Thoughts on Faith

Lord, Help Our Faith!

He replied, “If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it will obey you. Luke 17:6

Is Jesus playing with us in this verse? I mean, is this hyperbole? I don't think so. I believe Jesus is taking an opportunity to help his disciples see that faith is an incredibly powerful part of our relationship with God. Jesus often teaches on the effectiveness of our faith. And, I think we see that he is surprised at the disciple's lack of faith based on what they know or have learned, and based on what they have seen Jesus do. Of course, we can identify. I think that we would have all come to Peter's conclusion as well. “You are the Messiah, the son of the living God!”  So, naturally, we would all think,  “I could never do what you are doing because you are God!”

But, the exhortation and the truth in Luke 17:6 still remains. The truth stares at us with life-changing possibilities. All you need is a mustard seed? A mustard seed as you may already know is pretty small. Almost microscopic. So, the analogy is certainly not lost on us that it doesn't take very much faith in order to do supernatural things in the name of Jesus. Personally, this has been a challenge for me as a believing Christian. However, I have found that trust in God to do supernatural things have more often come true than not. I like to make note of these glorious supernatural moments. I do find, though, that once a supernatural lifestyle becomes commonplace, I tend to forget just how special it is.

What’s your mulberry tree today? Looking at this verse again, I have come to the conclusion that Jesus is saying that it is not so much the level of faith that we have, but the initiative to even ask.  So, ask...and you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.  Mark 11:24

Happy mustard seeding!

Pastor David M. Schmaltz