Lesson 13. Calling Things That Do Not Exist as Though They Did. A school from “Faith and Confession” that lays an amazingly deep foundation in the Word of God. Charles Capps teaches how to activate the power of God in your life.
There is nothing more important for the Body of Christ today than the biblical principle: calling things that do not exist as though they did. And yet this topic is so controversial in some religious circles and so greatly misinterpreted by many.
I would like to caution you to approach the study of this subject with a desire to learn and understand God’s methods. They may seem strange because of your religious experience and beliefs. But do not decide for or against it until you know exactly what God has said and done about it.
This book is very important. Read it prayerfully. It addresses the issue of your freedom and success, both spiritually and financially.
Look, brothers and sisters, at your calling: not many of you were wise by human standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth;
But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong;
and God chose the lowly and despised things of the world—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are,.
1 Cor. 1:26–28
God chose this method. Some people do not know this passage of Scripture, even though they have read it many times. God chose to use things that are not obvious (something you cannot see with your eyes), to bring to nothing the things that are significant in this world. Nothing means “zero”; “to bring the significant things to nothing” means to reduce to zero what is significant in this world.
This principle is biblical. God designed it this way. I did not come up with it. God could have used any method, but He chose this particular one. He decided to use what is not obvious or apparent. He chose spiritual forces that you cannot see, feel, taste,
Smell, or hear, to bring the significant things to nothing. God chose this method to bring to nothing everything that is not in agreement with the Word of God. If you have a problem and can see it, then you are dealing with the physical realm. As long as you can see it, you can use your faith and the Word of God to change the situation.
The Same Spirit of Faith
But having the same spirit of faith, as it is written: I believed, and therefore I spoke; we also believe, and therefore speak…
For our light, momentary affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all measure;
As we look not at what is seen, but at what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.
2 Cor. 4:13, 17, 18
The unseen realm is a very powerful realm because it is governed by God and His eternal principles.
And there is a principle established by God Himself, a principle God used throughout the Bible, from the Book of Genesis to the Book of Revelation. It is the principle Jesus used in His ministry. This principle is what we call things that do not exist as though they did. In Romans 4, Paul says:
(As it is written: “I have made you the father of many nations”) in the presence of God, whom he believed—the God who gives life to the dead and calls things that do not exist as though they did.
Romans 4:17
God calls things that do not exist as though they did. Compare this with what Paul said: “God chose the lowly things of the world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are” (1 Cor. 1:28). This is God’s method. Call upon eternal forces to nullify what is visible. Call forth the fulfillment of what does not exist, and it will replace what is visible.
Paul said that we need to overcome evil with good. When you begin talking about calling things that do not exist as though they did, some people may think that you are denying reality. Some even believe that confessing the answer to their problem is a denial of reality. In fact,
confession is not a denial of existing reality; it is the principle of calling things that do not exist as though they did.
Do not call existing things as though they did not exist
There is a great difference between calling things that do not exist as though they did and calling things that exist as though they did not. God’s method is to call things that do not exist as though they did. In other words, He calls them forth into fulfillment. By doing so, He nullifies the existing problem.
If you have a problem, you are not denying its existence. If you are sick, you are not denying that fact. But on the other hand, you do not want to keep confessing your sickness. Some misunderstand this message and think that if they are sick, all they need to say is: “I am not sick!” Simply denying the fact that you are sick is not enough to receive healing. In fact, it could even be called a lie. But there is a great difference between lying and confession.
Confession is the method of calling things that do not exist as though they did. If I am sick, I will make the following confession:
By the wounds of Jesus, I am healed. I am free from the power of darkness. I am free from the curse of the law. I command my body to be healthy in the name of Jesus.
I am not denying that I am sick; I am denying sickness the right to be in my body.
I call health and healing into my body. And this is God’s method.
Do not act like the devil
There are always people who say, “You’re just trying to act like God.”
And I really appreciate that and usually say, “Thank you very much.”
I prefer to act like God rather than act like the devil. If I act like God and say what God says about me, then those who say what the devil says are acting like him.
If you constantly quote the devil’s words, you are agreeing with what he says about you. The devil will tell you, “You are sick, and you will die. You will never get better.”
Yes, outwardly, everything may look exactly that way, but never agree with what the devil tells you or quote him, because he is a liar. Even when there is no hope, do not confess hopelessness; go to the Word of God and find hope in it.
Abraham acted as God acts
When there was no hope, Abraham believed beyond hope. He used the Word of God as the source of his hope. He began to say what God had said about him: “I am the father of many nations.” God made him do this by changing his name. He had to say, “My name is Abraham,” which means “father of many nations.”
Faith comes by hearing the Word of God. For Abraham, the Word from God was this: “You are the father of many nations.” But at that time, he was not yet the father of many nations. Yet God said that this was so. What did God do? He called forth the fulfillment of the promise. God taught Abraham to say what He had said about him by changing his name.
Zechariah did not manage to act as God acts
God spoke to Zechariah, but his reaction was different:
But the angel said to him: Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard; your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John;
And Zechariah said to the angel: How shall I know this? For I am old, and my wife is advanced in years.
The angel answered him, “I am Gabriel, who stands in the presence of God, and I was sent to speak with you and to bring you this Good News;
And behold, you will be silent and unable to speak until the day when this happens, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in theirappointed time.
Luke 1:13, 18–20
Allow me to paraphrase this passage of Scripture. God sent an angel to Zechariah to say that his prayers had been heard and that his wife would have a child. Zechariah replied, “How can I know that you are telling the truth? Give me a sign.”
The angel replied, “All right, I will give you a sign. You will not be able to speak until all this is fulfilled.”
Notice how God dealt with these two men, Abraham and Zechariah. There was a man who doubted what God had told him. Therefore, God had to close his mouth so that everything ordained could come to pass.
Therefore, the angel made Zechariah unable to speak for nine months. But God dealt with Abraham differently: He gave him a new name so that whenever he spoke it, he would remind himself of what God had said about him.
Remember that God chose the method of calling things that do not exist as though they did. But there are people who misunderstand this method and simply deny reality. For example, someone might say, “I will deny that I have emphysema,” continually saying that they do not have emphysema.
If a person could get rid of this disease simply by denying it, they would still die of cancer. Therefore, denial is not an option. God’s method is calling things that do not exist as though they did. This does not mean denying reality. You do not call what exists nonexistent.
Confession Is Not a Lie
If you are going to apply God’s principle to your illness, you can say:
Thank You, God. The Bible says that by the wounds of Jesus I am healed. I have been redeemed from the curse of the law. Poverty, sickness, and spiritual death were the curses of the law. First Peter 2:24 says that by the wounds of Jesus I am healed, so I confess all this and command them in the name of Jesus.
I declare my body healthy. Body, do you hear me? In the name of Jesus, I tell you that you are— healthy!
And again, someone will say, “I know you are lying because you still feel pain.”
Perhaps I still feel pain, but I am calling into being the fulfillment of what has not yet been fulfilled.
“How can you say that your body is healthy if there is still sickness in it?”
This is one of the main reasons why I should do this. You call into being what you do not yet have. There is no need to confess what you already have or what has already been fulfilled.
I am not trying to convince you that I am not sick or that I am not in pain. If I were doing that, I would be lying. There is a great difference between confession and lying. If I am trying to convince you that I have something I do not actually have, then that is considered a lie. But if you heard me say:
“Thank God, my body is completely healthy; I am healed, I am free from the curse and sickness, and I declare that my body is healthy!”—you simply heard me call things that do not exist as though they did. I was not lying to you. In fact, I was not talking to you at all. I was saying it to myself, not to you. As far as I am concerned, it would have been better if you had not heard it at all, because you will probably misunderstand me. I am calling into being the fulfillment of the promise until it is fulfilled.
Do Not Neglect Common Sense
Someone may say, “Praise God, I am going to confess that I have no debts,” when in fact they owe everyone. Many people who are stuck on Romans 13:8, where it says: Owe no one anything except to love one another… say, “Praise God, here is what I will do—I will not owe anyone anything!” And when they delay paying their bills, refusing to borrow money to pay off their debt, they eventually simply get evicted from their apartment.
And that is not a very good testimony to people. Hearing such people confess that their God supplies all their needs according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus, they wonder what kind of God He is who is unable to meet this need.
You cannot be debt-free and owe no one anything at the same time. You must start from the level where you are. I am saying that you cannot use this principle as long as you owe someone. God said to the people of Israel in Deuteronomy 15:6:… for the Lord your God will bless you as He has promised you, and you will lend to many nations, but you will not borrow.… If borrowing were wrong, lending would be equally wrong. For they could not borrow if there were no one who could lend.
If God has told you not to borrow money, then you will disobey if you nevertheless ask someone to lend it to you. But do not burden yourself with this passage of Scripture. Honestly, Romans 13:8 is talking about paying taxes.
That is also why you pay taxes, for the authorities are God's servants, who devote themselves to this very thing.
Give to everyone what you owe them: if you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor.
Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law.
Rom. 13:6–8
In other words, if someone is worthy of honor, give them honor. Pay your taxes and dues; do not withhold them. Pay your taxes.
But what if someone says, “I have no debts. Thank God, I owe no one anything. I confess that all my bills are paid and I have no debts,” when in fact that person owes a great many people? Such a person is simply denying reality. This is not God's method. God's method is to call into being something that has not yet come to pass. Even if they managed to eliminate their debts simply by denying their existence, they would have to go hungry. Most people who go hungry owe no one anything. Therefore, simply denying the existence of debts is not the answer.
So what is the answer? God's method is to call into being something that has not yet come to pass. What has not yet come to pass in a person's life can be called a rich reserve. A person needs to turn to the Word of God and find promises about abundance, obey what the Word says to do in order to receive that promise, and then declare:
I give, and therefore it will be given to me, a good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over. My God will meet all my needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.
I give because I am generous and because I want to live according to God's principle. Therefore, I give generously and will reap generously. God has everything I need in abundance.
I say all this in the name of Jesus. I will prosper in everything, both when I go in and when I go out. I am abundantly blessed, and by the end of the year I will be able to pay all my debts and still give money to missions.
If someone heard such a confession from you, they might say, “I know you are lying, because I know that in reality you cannot even pay for your car.”
But this is another reason why you should continue confessing your confession: you are calling into being what has not yet come to pass.
Apply the principle and be patient
It may take weeks, months, or even years for the promise to be fully fulfilled. But by then, you will be able to live debt-free, buy groceries, and give money to missions.
Let us put it another way. Denying reality has negative consequences. Suppose a person says to himself: “I found the car I want to buy. If I sell my old car, I will have enough money for a new one.” But suppose he misunderstands the message of faith and begins to deny the fact that he owns a car. He says:
“I believe that I have sold my old car, so I will deny that I have a car.” And he begins to confess: “I don’t have a car. I don’t have one.” And if someone asks whether he has a car, he will answer no.
One morning, such a person may wake up and discover that his car has been stolen—and now he really does not have a car. Therefore, such behavior is not a solution to the problem. Denying reality always brings negative consequences. This cannot be called faith or God’s way.
God’s way may be to respond as follows:
Father, in the name of Jesus, I ask You to send a buyer for my car. Someone will want to buy this car. And this car will be able to meet a need in someone’s life. And there will be someone who wants to buy it just as much as I want to sell it.
Send such a person into my life. Let Your angels direct him to me. I thank You, Father, and I believe that I am receiving what I ask for. Thank You, Lord, that I will sell this car.
Then go out to your car and say to it: “Car, I declare that you are sold. Someone will definitely like your color, and they will like you very much. By faith I declare that you are sold, in the name of Jesus.”
How do you know that you are not lying?
Because you are calling what does not exist as though it did. Although the car is still your property, you are calling on the spiritual power of faith to bring about what nullifies reality. When you call health to your body, it is health that nullifies sickness. Call prosperity into the realm of your finances, and prosperity will nullify lack.
There is probably no other principle in the Bible for which you could be criticized so strongly. Nevertheless, this method is God’s way. And so many Christians do not understand this principle.
Acting as God Would Act
Someone may accuse you of trying to act like God.
But you are only trying to act as God would act if He were in your place. You are not trying to be God. If God had a car He wanted to sell, He would act as though it were already sold. Because in Genesis 1:2–3, when He saw darkness, He said, “Let there be light!” God says what He desires. He calls things that do not yet exist as though they did, so that they may come into being. I did not invent this method, but I found it in the Bible and proved in my own life that it works.
Let us look at how this principle can work in everyday situations. I heard a woman say, “Pray for my husband. I have been praying for him for more than 25 years, but he is only getting worse, and he still does not attend church with me.”
All those years, she prayed that way. She told the Lord that her husband was getting worse and worse and that he did not want to attend church with her. She prayed and spoke the problems aloud for more than 25 years straight. If she had prayed for the answer and called things that did not exist as though they did, her husband would surely have been saved more than 20 years ago.
But she called things as they were. This is another problem many Christians have. They declare what already exists and establish existing circumstances. Why call for something that has already come to pass? Sometimes people act very foolishly while thinking they are very spiritual. They say, “I say everything as it is. And you need to say everything as it is too.”
But calling and declaring what has already come to pass is not God’s method. God’s method is to call things that do not exist as though they did and to continue acting that way until it comes to pass.
Do not make confessing weakness a habit Say to wisdom, “You are my sister!” and call understanding your kinswoman.
Proverbs 7:4
Someone may say, “But wisdom is so far from me.” And they are probably right—especially if they have been saying that for 20 years. With their words, they have shut off access to God’s wisdom in their spirit. In this passage of Scripture, God says that we should ask for wisdom and understanding. If you want to have wisdom, call for it. Declare that you have God’s wisdom.
If you always make foolish decisions, begin confessing that you have God’s wisdom. Do not say everything as it is. Say what you want to have, based on Scripture.
It is foolish to confess, “I act foolishly, and my actions are foolish; I always act so foolishly.” Many say this, thinking that they are being honest. People will tell you that you need to call everything by its proper name. Someone will say:
I tell it like it is. I never have any money that I could give. I cannot give to missions because my money disappears so quickly that I do not even know where it goes. It feels as though I have a leaky wallet.
And it is no wonder that this is so. They continued speaking this way for more than 29 years, and their money really did disappear somewhere.
If this has happened in your life, start saying the following:
I will always have enough money for every good work. I will have prosperity, not lack. My money increases every month and does not disappear. I always have enough money because I am a giver.
But do not go to your neighbors to tell them this, because they may call you a liar. Yet by doing this, you are renewing your mind and allowing faith to come.
This is where we can draw the line. All of this should take place between you and God. You declare something based on the Word of God. It does not matter whether it is already a reality or not. The point is that you are calling forth the fulfillment of God’s promise, based on the Word and the confession of your faith.
A Divine Principle
Calling things that do not exist as though they did is a biblical method; it is a divine principle.
Remember that we do not call what exists as though it did not exist; that would simply be denying reality. Denying reality is not God’s method.
God’s principle is to call forth the fulfillment of what God has promised in His Word.
There will be people who say, “I do not believe in what does not exist.” But if you observe such a person, you will notice that this is exactly what they do every day. They repeatedly say, “Just look, our car is about to fall apart right before our eyes.” “I can tell you for sure that we will not be able to pay for the house this month.” “I guarantee that if you buy this car, you will lose your job.”
And such people criticize you for calling what does not exist as though it did exist, even though you are dealing with positive things.
Worry is also a kind of confession of calling something that does not exist as though it did, only in this case it is negative. But as soon as we begin making a positive confession, religious people immediately become upset. They say, “You are simply trying to live in an imaginary world.” Yet they themselves stand their ground and call negative, nonexistent things existent, saying, “I am saying what is really true; I want to be honest,” unaware that they have been deceived.
Of course, this may be true, but we have no need to call into being something that already exists; that is not God's method. People call bad things existent, and if they continue in the same spirit, sooner or later those things will come to pass. What they feared so intensely will overtake them, just as it happened to Job.
Acting According to Scripture
Mark 11:23 speaks precisely about calling something nonexistent into reality: …if anyone says to this mountain, “Be lifted up and cast into the sea,” and does not doubt in his heart but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done for him, whatever he says. If you say to a mountain, “Be lifted up and cast into the sea,” you will most likely be criticized. But the same people who criticize you also speak to the mountain: “Oh, mountain, you are getting bigger and bigger every day! I will never be able to deal with you! You will always stand in my way!”
They will criticize you using the same method, only from a negative perspective.
Some people say, “You are denying reality if you call something nonexistent as though it existed.”
No, we are not denying reality. We are doing something about what already exists, calling something else to take its place. Notice how God taught Abraham His method of calling what does not exist as though it did. Abraham did not deny reality; he affirmed what God had said about him.
Abraham did not say, “I am not old, I am not old, I am not old.” He did not deny the fact that he was old. Abraham was 75 years old when God told him that He would make a great nation from him (Gen. 12:24). Then God appeared to Abram again in Genesis 17:1–12 and changed his name to Abraham, which means “Father of many nations.”
Through his name, God made Abraham tell everyone that he was the father of many nations, although it was only 25 years later that he became the father of nations on a physical level. Throughout all this time, Abraham had God's promise, and he grew older and older. He was too old to become a father when God called him the father of many nations. But Abraham did not deny the fact that he was old; he agreed with God. When he said, “I am Abraham,” he was saying, “I am the father of many nations.” After Abraham began saying what God had said, less than a year passed before the promise was fulfilled and a son was born to him. Faith comes by hearing.
Sarah Received the Power to Conceive
The Bible speaks specifically about Sarah in the Letter to the Hebrews.
By faith Sarah herself, although barren, received power to conceive, and she bore a child when she was past the age, because she considered Him faithful who had promised.
Heb. 11:11
Sarah received the strength to conceive by faith. The same principle worked for her as it did for Abraham.
The New Testament reveals greater understanding
God revealed something about faith to us in the New Testament that was not revealed to Abraham. And it is very important to know how to apply these principles. If we do not know or understand these principles, we will most likely simply deny reality. But if we use this principle correctly, we do not deny reality; we simply do not let it take first place. We should not constantly talk about what exists, especially if that reality does not agree with the Word of God. |
Because the more you talk about it, the more you believe it. The more you believe it, the more you talk about it. Both fear and faith come by hearing.
The principle God chose uses what has not yet come to pass in order to abolish what is significant. And yet there are people who say, “I will say everything exactly as it is, and I advise you to do the same. If you say it differently, that is already a lie. So I will say everything exactly as it is.”
But when it comes to cats and dogs, such people behave quite differently
Let us see whether this is really how they live. Suppose a person has a dog and it is time to feed it. The person takes the food out onto the porch, but the dog is not there. If he truly practices what he says—“to say everything as it is”—this is what he will do: he will sit on the porch and begin saying, “My dog is not here; she is not here. Oh Lord, she ran away. Oh, how sad; she left me.”
And he will remain sad all morning, lamenting that his dog has run away.
Eventually, the neighbors, hearing him cry, will come over to find out what is wrong.
And the answer will be: “I am telling it like it is: the dog is not here; she ran away!”
The neighbor will say, “Have you tried calling her?”
“No! I can’t do that! You have to say everything exactly as it is! The dog isn’t here, so she must have run away!”
The dog really is not nearby, and she may never come back if she is not called. It would occur to anyone to call the dog right away. Everyone does this on the physical level.
Do you know what anyone would do if they went outside to feed the dog and could not find her? They would simply call her, even if she was out of sight.
Would it be a lie to call the dog as though she were nearby, even though she could not be seen? If people claim that they always speak only as things really are, then they should shout, “There’s my dog over there! She’s somewhere over there!” But in reality, no one behaves that way; everyone understands that it would be foolish.
Why, then, when it comes to biblical principles, do we forget how we behave on the physical, natural level, as in the example of the dog? The whole problem is that we have completely separated the principles of the spiritual and physical worlds. But we should not do this, because there is a parallel between the two. Everything you call forth in the physical world will surely come to pass. When you sow a seed, you call forth more seed. Sowing and reaping are God's principles. Sowing a seed calls into fulfillment what does not yet exist.
Speaking everything as it is or speaking as though it does not exist
A person will call the dog until she comes. Remember that when it comes to cats and dogs, even someone who believes in calling everything by its name and saying only what truly exists will speak of what does not exist. Imagine this situation: a person goes outside to feed the dog, and she runs up to him. He sits down on the porch and starts calling her: “Bobik! Bobik, come here!” A neighbor will surely come over and ask what he is doing, and he will reply, “I speak as things are. Bobik is here, so I say that Bobik is here.”
No one would do that. There is no need to call the dog if she is already beside you. Everyone knows this perfectly well.
Here is what I am getting at. Some people say, “Our finances are so bad that we will never be able to buy what we need. We are always short of money. We cannot manage it properly. Every time we manage to save even a little, our children inevitably get sick, and we spend every last penny.”
What are they doing? They are naming and calling forth what already exists; they are affirming reality.
But they would never treat their dog or cat that way. Why, then, do they behave this way toward what they do not want at all? They do not want poverty in their lives or illness for their loved ones. So why do they keep affirming this so insistently? Why not start saying what the Bible says things should be like? Call forth what you truly want, what God has promised. Use God's method to change reality.
Remember that God Himself chose this method. You can choose any method you want, but you will be much more successful if you use God's principles.
Many people will disagree with you; they will say that you are speaking falsely, but they use the same method of God, only on the physical level. When it comes to spiritual things, however, they are confused because they refuse to study and reflect on these biblical principles.
On a physical level, you do not call for what already exists. If you want to call a dog, but there is a cat near you, you stomp your foot and say “Shoo!” and then call the dog, right? If there is lack in your home, drive it out in the Name of Jesus and call forth abundance by confessing the Word of God. Do not sit and simply state the facts, calling everything as it is! Call forth what God has promised you. Call forth the fulfillment of the promise.
Desired
In the area of sickness, call forth what you truly desire.
…whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.
Mark 11:24
Pay attention to the phrase, and it will be yours. On a physical level, it is foolish to call for what already exists. It is much wiser to call forth what does not yet exist. This is a simple principle. It is so simple that we miss it so often, but it can be traced throughout the Bible. God established this principle, and He used it Himself. Jesus applied it throughout His entire earthly ministry. This principle is one of the most amazing truths in the Bible. But because we were taught incorrectly, the devil has blinded our minds. The enemy has convinced so many people that they are speaking lies when they call what does not exist as though it did.
If you call a dog or cat that is not near you, it will certainly hear and come. Some will say, “I understand when it comes to cats and dogs, but how can I speak to my body and say that it is completely healthy when in reality it is so far from that?” Are you saying that cats and dogs are smarter than your body?
The Mountain Has No Choice
In Mark 11:23, Jesus said that a person will receive whatever they ask for if they believe and do not doubt in their heart, but believe that they will receive it. They will have whatever they say.
Jesus teaches us how to declare what does not yet exist. You speak to the mountain while it is still in its place: “Rise and be cast into the sea,” or to the fig tree: “Be uprooted and planted in the sea!” By doing this, you speak what you desire according to Scripture. The mountain of problems must obey you; it has no other choice.
Test It for Yourself
The promises of the Bible are God’s will for you. But they will not be fulfilled in your life simply because they are in the Bible. You need to call them into your life. Look at your life: for many years, you have been calling something into your life, and that is why you are now in the situation you are in. It turns out that you were calling something wrong and negative. To change the situation you are in, all you need to do is use the same principle, but in a positive way.
The Word of God Is Above All
There are people who will say that this is simply positive thinking or an expression of willpower.
No, this is God's principle and the power of His Word! This is God's principle, and we were created in the image of God, so we can use this principle.
To use God's principles, you need to understand them; otherwise, people will confuse you by saying that you are simply speaking falsely rather than applying God's principles.
Such people are far from understanding that this is God's way, but if they could live by these principles for even a couple of days, they would never want to return to their former lives. But their eyes have been blinded, and their hearts have deceived them. Learn to call things that do not exist as though they did, because this is God's method of nullifying the things that matter in this world by calling into being what God has promised.
It is only about calling forth God's promises. And these promises are not something God does not want you to have, but what He has already prepared for you.
Jesus used this principle. In the Gospel of John, chapter 2, we read about the wedding in Cana of Galilee, where the wine ran out.
John 2:5–8: “His mother said to the servants, ‘Whatever He says to you, do it.’ Now there were set there six waterpots of stone, according to the manner of purification of the Jews, containing two or three measures apiece. Jesus said to them, ‘Fill the waterpots with water.’ And they filled them up to the brim. And He said to them, ‘Draw some out now, and take it to the master of the feast.’ And they took it”
The servants filled the vessels with water—water, not coffee or grape juice. They knew it was ordinary water. Both Peter and Jesus knew it was water.
The Water Was Called Wine
Jesus, knowing that there was water in the vessels, called it wine. You need to understand that Jesus was far more advanced than you in this matter. Jesus spoke only what He heard from the Father. And in this case, we can see how He used this principle. I am not saying that you should now try to turn water into gasoline.
The point is that it is all about the principle, and it works in everyday life. Jesus is not telling you to go out and turn water into wine or vice versa, but you can use this principle to meet your needs.
Jesus said:
“...Now draw some out and take it to the master of the banquet.” So they took it. John 2:8
Some people think these are merely fantasies.
There will be people who tell you that you are merely pretending or imagining things when you make a confession.
But what does Scripture say? Does it say, “This was the beginning of Jesus’ fantasies...” No, this is what Scripture says:
“This, the first of His miraculous signs, Jesus performed at Cana in Galilee...” John 2:11
People may tell you that everything you do is merely made up. People may say anything to you, especially religious people who are very dogmatic about their little doctrine.
But be obedient to the principle; do not try to turn water into gasoline or wine. Jesus did not keep turning water into wine simply because He had nothing else to do. Jesus used what was available to call forth what was needed.
In Luke 13, Jesus was in the synagogue:
“And a woman was there who had been crippled by a spirit for eighteen years. She was bent over and could not straighten up at all. When Jesus saw her, He called her forward and said to her, ‘Woman, you are set free from your infirmity.’” Luke 13:11–12
Jesus called her free from her infirmity even though she was still bent over. What did Jesus do? Was He simply making things up and pretending? No. He called forth what had not yet come to pass; He called forth a miracle.
Before doing anything, God always speaks first
As you study the Bible, you will notice that God never does anything until He has spoken it aloud. That is how He works. God created nothing on Earth without first saying it. Even now, God will not create anything until He says it, whether through prophecy or the prayer of faith.
Jesus called the crippled woman straight
Isaiah prophesied that the Virgin would conceive and bear a child 750 years before Jesus was born. God always speaks in advance about what He plans to do. Jesus did the same; He followed the same principle. He approached that little woman and said: “You are free from your infirmity!” But when He said this, she was still bent over. Jesus was calling forth what had not yet come to pass.
“And He laid His hands on her, and immediately she was made straight and glorified God” Luke 13:13
First, Jesus called her straight and healthy, as He wanted to see her. Faith always looks through the storm; faith always sees the end result. When Jesus approached this woman, He saw the end result by faith and therefore called forth what He had seen by faith.
Let us also look at the story of Lazarus of Bethany in John 11.
“So the sisters sent to Him, saying, ‘Lord, behold, he whom You love is sick.’ When Jesus heard that, He said, ‘This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified through it’” John 11:3–4
Jesus said: “This sickness is not unto death”. What would you say about this statement, knowing that Lazarus would eventually die?
Jesus called the dead man alive
Jesus said that the sickness Lazarus had was not unto death, but for the glory of God, so that the Son of God would be glorified through it. Some may say: “Jesus said Lazarus was sick and died so that the Son of God would be glorified.”
Lazarus’s sickness was not God's will for him, just as his death was not.
Let me show you why you cannot interpret this passage as meaning that sickness or death were for the glory of God. One rule of interpretation is to understand Scripture as literally as possible. But verse 4 cannot be understood literally. If you do so, it would mean that Jesus is a liar. But remember that there is a difference between lying and confessing—or calling something that does not yet exist as though it already exists. If you interpret this verse literally, then what Jesus said would be untrue; but untruth is a lie, and the Bible says that there was no sin in Him. Therefore, we need to look at this verse from another perspective.
Jesus called forth the end result
Jesus always sees the end result. He said that death would not be the end result, and that everything that would happen in the end would bring glory to God. God was glorified precisely when Lazarus was raised from the dead—not when he was sick and died. Neither sickness nor death can glorify God, but only resurrection. God raised Lazarus from the dead. If it had been God's will for Lazarus to become sick and die, Jesus would have destroyed God's works by raising him. But Jesus came to …destroy the works of the devil (1 John 3:8). Thus, Jesus destroyed the works of the devil when He raised Lazarus from the dead.
Jesus Was Misunderstood Because of His Confession
“After saying this, He then told them, ‘Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I am going to wake him up.’ His disciples said, ‘Lord, if he has fallen asleep, he will recover.’ Jesus was speaking about his death, but they thought He was speaking about ordinary sleep.” John 11:11–13
Jesus realized that the disciples had misunderstood His words when they said that if Lazarus had fallen asleep, he would soon recover. Jesus was speaking about something that had not yet come to pass. Lazarus had not fallen asleep; he was dead, and Jesus knew it. An entire day passed before news of Lazarus’s death reached them. Then Jesus remained for two more days in the city where He was before setting out for Bethany, and they needed another day to reach Bethany. On the way to Bethany, Jesus said: “Lazarus is asleep.”
What was Jesus doing? He was watching what He said so as not to undo what He had already declared at the beginning (“Death will not be the end result”). But the disciples misunderstood Him.
Jesus explained the situation and called forth what did not yet exist
Jesus stopped and explained to His followers that Lazarus had died (verse 14). Many translations use the word dead, but there is a significant difference between had died and dead. If you find it difficult to grasp the difference, look at Jesus, who died but did not remain dead.
Jesus was speaking about something that had not yet come to pass. Lazarus was not sleeping; he had died, but Jesus called him “sleeping” because He did not agree with death. This does not mean that Jesus denied it; He simply was not going to affirm anything beyond what He had declared when He heard the bad news.
Once again, Jesus is not teaching you to raise every dead person. He is teaching how the principle works when you call things that do not exist as though they did.
When Jesus arrived in Bethany, He said:
“...Take away the stone.” Martha, the sister of the deceased, said to Him, “Lord, by this time there is a stench, for he has been dead four days.” John 11:39
The fact that Lazarus had been dead for four days proves that he had already died when the messenger came to Jesus, and Jesus knew that he was dead, yet He still persuaded them to remove the stone from the tomb.
“So they took away the stone [from the tomb] where the dead man lay. Then Jesus lifted His eyes to heaven and said: Father, I thank You that You have heard Me.” John 11:41
Notice that Jesus said nothing, but thanked the Father that He had heard Him. Jesus meant what He had said four days earlier: “Father, I thank You that You have heard what I declared in faith four days ago; I thank You that the end result will not be death, but glory to You!”
Obeying the principle
We must learn how to obey this principle.
If someone calls you and says, “Aunt Susie is in the hospital and will most likely die soon,” use all your faith to dare to say something in faith. Say, “In the name of Jesus, I believe that she will not die but will live. I declare this in the name of Jesus.”
But what if she dies anyway?
You did everything you could; you used the full measure of your faith.
There are things you cannot control with your faith. Perhaps Aunt Susie wanted to die and go to heaven, and you were powerless to stop her. If she wants to die, you should not stand in her way.
We need to understand something: do not condemn yourself for using your faith. Someone may say, “But I prayed for someone, and that person still died.”
So what should you do about it? You are only required to use your faith, but you cannot control every situation or circumstance.
I am categorically against people leaving this life before their time, but if someone wants to die, it is not always right to stop them—they should have the right to go home.
Jesus declared the end result
Standing at Lazarus’s tomb, Jesus said to the Father: “...I thank You that You have heard Me.” By saying this, Jesus established something.
“I knew that You always hear Me; but I said this for the sake of the people standing here, so that they may believe that You sent Me.” John 11:42
Jesus said: “I knew that You would hear Me, so I said this; I wanted to establish it on earth.”
Psalm 119:89 says: “Forever, O Lord, Your word is firmly established in heaven.”
The Word of God is already established in heaven, but it still needs to be established on earth. Let us see what Jesus said to Peter:
“And I will give you the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven: whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” Matthew 16:19
Jesus said that the authority to bind and loose something is on earth. You have the authority to bind on earth what has been bound in heaven and to loose what has not been loosed—and this will be done not only by you, but also by God in heaven; however, you must first exercise that authority on earth. Jesus loosed Lazarus from the bonds of death.
“When He had said these things, He cried with a loud voice, ‘Lazarus, come forth!’” John 11:43
I can only imagine what Peter thought when Jesus began speaking to a dead man.
Everything Jesus commanded obeyed Him.
Notice that during His earthly ministry, Jesus commanded trees, the wind, the sea, and dead people, and they obeyed Him. In each case, He called things that did not exist as though they did, calling them into fulfillment.
When Lazarus came out, John nudged Peter and said to him, “Hey, Peter! Look! Lazarus is standing at the entrance to the tomb!”
But then the confusion left. Sometimes you may feel confused when you say and declare something because so much time has passed before it came to pass. But when you declare God’s promise over your life, all confusion will leave you.
Call for Peace in the Storm
In Mark chapter 4, we again see that Jesus called forth what had not yet come to pass.
“On the same day, when evening had come, He said to them, ‘Let us cross over to the other side.’ And a great windstorm arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that it was already filling. But He was in the stern, asleep on a pillow. And they awoke Him and said to Him, ‘Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?’ Then He arose and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, ‘Peace, be still!’ And the wind ceased and there was a great calm.” Mark 4:35, 37–39
Notice that Jesus spoke to the wind and the waves. When Jesus stood in the stern of the boat, He saw how fiercely the wind was blowing and how powerfully the waves were beating against the boat. It was a real storm, and Jesus looked at it and said, “Peace, be still!”
As He said this, the waves were raging, but Jesus declared what had not yet come to pass. The sea was not calm, but Jesus called it calm.
I am glad that some people I know were not in that boat. They would surely have said to Jesus, “But Jesus, You cannot do that. You must speak only according to how things are.” It would have been foolish to stand at the edge of the boat and shout:
“Huge waves and strong winds, we are sinking!”
Many people use the same principle as Jesus, but from the opposite side, prophesying their own destruction.
Calling Lepers Cleansed
Throughout His ministry, Jesus called what did not exist as though it did. In the seventeenth chapter of Luke, we read the story of ten lepers who pleaded with Jesus to have mercy on them and heal them.
“And as He entered a certain village, there met Him ten men who were lepers, who stood afar off; and they lifted up their voices and said, ‘Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!’ So when He saw them, He said to them, ‘Go, show yourselves to the priests.’ And so it was that as they went, they were cleansed.” Luke 17:12–14
Jesus told the lepers to go to the priest! What did He mean by that? Didn’t He know they were lepers?
He knew, but He called them cleansed already. The only reason the lepers could go to the priest was that they had been cleansed. Jesus called them cleansed, to which they could have said: “But Jesus, we don’t believe in these declarations of something that does not yet exist. We believe only in what exists, and we speak only as things are.”
If they had said that, surely they would have remained lepers for the rest of their lives. But the Bible says that when they went, they were cleansed. They responded to Jesus’ words through their actions (they went to the priest); they called what did not exist as though it did.
Whenever Jesus encountered a paralyzed person, He knew that such a person was unable to pick up his mat and go home, yet He still called them healed (John 5:8; Luke 5:24).
We know that a lame person cannot simply get up and walk, and Jesus knew this. But He spoke of the lame as healthy while they were still confined to their beds. And the lame confirmed their healing through their actions.
And again, in Luke 6:10, Jesus told a man to stretch out his withered hand. A withered hand can be stretched out only when it has
been healed. When the man responded to Jesus’ words, he agreed that his hand was already healthy. This was God’s method, which Jesus used.
Three Methods
There are three methods of calling into existence what does not yet exist. You can declare something, praying for the answer, confessing the Word of God, and taking corresponding action. The people we have just mentioned called what did not exist into existence through their actions.
Declaring the end result is a method of calling what does not exist as though it did. Jesus constantly used this principle.
If you want to grow in this area, you need to practice this principle constantly, because it takes time; it will not happen in an instant. You need to discipline yourself to believe in the fulfillment of what you declare.
A New Way of Life
Let your yes be yes, and your no be no. Say only what you really mean. Watch your words; learn to release faith in every word you speak.
The promise is very close to you: first it is in your mouth, and then in your heart.
I included a section with confessions from the book “God’s Creative Power Will Work for You” because I believe it is necessary for you to begin calling things that do not exist as though they did. Use these confessions as an aid when beginning your own confessions. These confessions are not a whim or passing fad—they are a new way of life. Be diligent, confessing and calling God’s promises into your life every day.
This is the beginning of a new life.
You can move forward into what God desires to give you in your life. Confess them aloud every day.
Do not read them.
Declare them aloud.
Faith comes by hearing.
End of lesson.
Author: Charles Capps
Source: The book “Faith and Confession.”
