Increasing Faith

[marks]

Luke 17 (KJV)
3 Take heed to yourselves: If thy brother trespass against thee, rebuke him; and if he repent, forgive him.
4 And if he trespass against thee seven times in a day, and seven times in a day turn again to thee, saying, I repent; thou shalt forgive him.
5 And the apostles said unto the Lord, Increase our faith.
6 And the Lord said, If ye had faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye might say unto this sycamine tree, Be thou plucked up by the root, and be thou planted in the sea; and it should obey you.
7 But which of you, having a servant plowing or feeding cattle, will say unto him by and by, when he is come from the field, Go and sit down to meat?
8 And will not rather say unto him, Make ready wherewith I may sup, and gird thyself, and serve me, till I have eaten and drunken; and afterward thou shalt eat and drink?
9 Doth he thank that servant because he did the things that were commanded him? I trow not.
10 So likewise ye, when ye shall have done all those things which are commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants: we have done that which was our duty to do.

Jesus tells the disciples to forgive, but the disciples apparently don't think they can, and plead, Increase our faith!

To which Jesus replies with a parable to show that it's all just about doing your duty, doing what you are supposed to do, and not making a deal over it.

You don't need more faith. Faith as small as a mustard seed is enough to command a tree to replant itself in the ocean.

You have a duty to do, you are to just do it.

The tree, likewise, has it's duty to do, if your faith is to tell it to replant itself in the ocean.

What does your faith tell you to do?

Much love!

 

[marks]

2 Corinthians 10 (Holman)

12 For we don’t dare classify or compare ourselves with some who commend themselves. But in measuring themselves by themselves and comparing themselves to themselves, they lack understanding. 13 We, however, will not boast beyond measure but according to the measure of the area of ministry that God has assigned to us, which reaches even to you. 14 For we are not overextending ourselves, as if we had not reached you, since we have come to you with the gospel of Christ. 15 We are not bragging beyond measure about other people’s labors. But we have the hope that as your faith increases, our area of ministry will be greatly enlarged, 16 so that we may proclaim the good news to the regions beyond you, not boasting about what has already been done in someone else’s area of ministry. 17 So the one who boasts must boast in the Lord. 18 For it is not the one commending himself who is approved, but the one the Lord commends.

Normally I like to quote from KJV, in this case I thought Holman's a little more readable . . .

Paul is hoping that as the faith of the Corinthians increases, this will make possible a greater reach to Paul's ministry.

The one who boasts must boast only in the Lord, for it is the Lord Who makes these things possible, because He has worked in others to make our lives work.

As the one served becomes the one who serves.

As the one who received the Gospel now shares with others.

Much love!

 

[marks]

Jesus told the disciples in the boat, Oh ye of little faith! Literally, You little-faiths!

Because the boat was about to be swamped. Because they forgot bread. When Peter was slipping into the waves.

When circumstances are contrary, threatening. When supply is short. When I haven't got what it takes.

When Jesus told Peter to come to Him, the sea could only obey His wish to support Peter. The sea could not choose, it could only obey it's Maker's voice.

Peter could choose to obey or not.

Matthew 14
28 And Peter answered him and said, Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water.
29 And he said, Come. And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus.
30 But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me.
31 And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?

Peter knew that if Jesus told Peter to walk on the water, Peter could walk on the water.

Peter began to doubt this simple truth.

The song Oceans . . . "Take me deeper than my feet would ever wander . . ."

How do we increase our faith? By doing what we're told to do, with the expectation that God is able to make happen what He tells us to do. Even if we don't feel it.

Much love!

 

[marks]

Faith and Feeling . . .

Is faith a feeling? Or is faith an act of the will?

Faith gives a feeling of confidence . . . what when that feeling isn't there?

Can we have feelings of dread about that which God tells us to do?

Where do those feelings come from?

Where do our feelings of fear come from? The old man or the new? And if the old, should we not simply ignore them?

Can we have feelings of confidence about that which God has not said?

How do we relate true faith that comes from God, and our emotional life?

Much love!

 

[Helen]

2 Cor 4:13
"We having the same spirit of faith, according as it is written, I believed, and therefore have I spoken; we also believe, and therefore speak.."

And I have always liked Heb 13:6 -8
Paul and whoever wrote Hebrews were quoters of God's words...there faith tells me to do the same. Agree with God.
In fact I would go as far as to say that there in James 1 ...where it says -
23- " For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass:" If you study the word 'doer' there you will find it means poet/ parrot the Word. ( = we say what He says, and agree) which then goes on to make better sense of the verses with are following this ..

24 "For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. ( In saying what God says about us we are in agreement, we are what He says we are...but then he goes away and forgets again.. )
25 But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, ( what God has said) and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a *doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed."

So..back to Hebrews 13 = "He hath said ( in OT "Abraham staggered not" , yet we know he did with Hagar. Gideon , "mighty man of valour "...while he hid and worked at night from the Midianites and quaked in fear, "righteous Lot"..who we know stayed and lived in Sodom.. ) "He hath said- so that we may boldly say, "The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me."

.

 

[Not me]

Hi @marks and hi @Helen just saying hi to two people who love God and are much loved by Him.

Any talk of faith and the increase of, is a blessed read indeed.

a fellow servant of His, Not me

 

[marks]

So..back to Hebrews 13 = "He hath said ( in OT "Abraham staggered not" , yet we know he did with Hagar. Gideon , "mighty man of valour "...while he hid and worked at night from the Midianites and quaked in fear, "righteous Lot"..who we know stayed and lived in Sodom.. ) "He hath said- so that we may boldly say, "The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me."

"Abraham staggered not at the promises of God, but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God", "was strengthened", a passive voice, Abraham was made stronger in his faith, which gives the glory to God and not himself.

24 "For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. ( In saying what God says about us we are in agreement, we are what He says we are...but then he goes away and forgets again.. )

I think this has a lot to do with it, we have to remember what sort of people we are.

So that brings up the question, what do we believe about what God has done for us? Made us able to walk on water?

Much love!

 

[marks]

Hebrews 4
1 Let us therefore fear, lest, a promise being left us of entering into his rest, any of you should seem to come short of it.
2 For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them: but the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it.
3 For we which have believed do enter into rest, as he said, As I have sworn in my wrath, if they shall enter into my rest: although the works were finished from the foundation of the world.

"We which have believed do enter into rest".

Are we resting?

God's word did not profit the Isrealites, since they didn't believe it.

We which have believed enter into rest. It simply says that we do.

To trust is to rest.

Much love!

 

[Helen]

So that brings up the question, what do we believe about what God has done for us? Made us able to walk on water?

Much love!

I believe that if there was a time and need, and IF God called " Come". ..we would and could do it.
Peter did it once... God opened the sea up and Moses led them across once...these were not daily occurrences .

A friend of ours was staying at the house of a family. He came down to breakfast and thought that he was the last one. He found some oatmeal ready cooked and hot on the stove , so filled his plate and ate it. He ate all of it.
Then to his horror , the family came into the kitchen . They sat down and prayed , thanking God for the food. The wife went to the stove , took down plates and took oatmeal from the pot for her family. All this time Keith knew that he had emptied the pot!!!

This didn't happen every day...it just happened that day...it was in God's plan. The wife never spoke about it..she just smiled at him.

I believe for those who are believing-delivers , in the end times not too far away...we will see these things happen. I don't believe that we 'work ourselves up to the standard' ...I believe childlike , mustard seed faith in God, is more than enough.

 

[marks]

I believe that if there was a time and need, and IF God called " Come". ..we would and could do it.
Peter did it once... God opened the sea up and Moses led them across once...these were not daily occurrences .

A friend of ours was staying at the house of a family. He came down to breakfast and thought that he was the last one. He found some oatmeal ready cooked and hot on the stove , so filled his plate and ate it. He ate all of it.
Then to his horror , the family came into the kitchen . They sat down and prayed , thanking God for the food. The wife went to the stove , took down plates and took oatmeal from the pot for her family. All this time Keith knew that he had emptied the pot!!!

This didn't happen every day...it just happened that day...it was in God's plan. The wife never spoke about it..she just smiled at him.

I believe for those who are believing-delivers , in the end times not too far away...we will see these things happen. I don't believe that we 'work ourselves up to the standard' ...I believe childlike , mustard seed faith in God, is more than enough.

It's like . . . Don't think it can't happen!

I like what you wrote, we don't work ourselves up to it. Convince ourselves that we believe? I think that means we don't.

I often go back to C.S. Lewis, his idea that we don't generally attain what we want by direct pursuit.

We want to trust God more, but we don't gain trust by trying to gain trust, we gain trust by getting to know God better.

And I think the same thing too, that the more spectacular the act of God, perhaps the less frequently we see it, as the normal everyday needs are already included on the processes built into creation.

Much love!

 

[VictoryinJesus]

Jesus told the disciples in the boat, Oh ye of little faith! Literally, You little-faiths!

Because the boat was about to be swamped. Because they forgot bread. When Peter was slipping into the waves.

When circumstances are contrary, threatening. When supply is short. When I haven't got what it takes.

When Jesus told Peter to come to Him, the sea could only obey His wish to support Peter. The sea could not choose, it could only obey it's Maker's voice.

Peter could choose to obey or not.

Matthew 14
28 And Peter answered him and said, Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water.
29 And he said, Come. And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus.
30 But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me.
31 And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?

Peter knew that if Jesus told Peter to walk on the water, Peter could walk on the water.

Peter began to doubt this simple truth.

The song Oceans . . . "Take me deeper than my feet would ever wander . . ."

How do we increase our faith? By doing what we're told to do, with the expectation that God is able to make happen what He tells us to do. Even if we don't feel it.

Much love!

“increase our faith” only giving something to consider. Remember He said when you have done all things commanded of you...then say you are unprofitable. So many times it is asked throughout the word what profit do we have in serving God? He said it is the only profit there is. Romans 3:12
[12] They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one.

Christ said “I am the way...” Hebrews 7:18-19 For there is verily a disannulling of the commandment going before for the weakness and unprofitableness thereof. [19] For the law made nothing perfect, but the bringing in of a better hope did ; by the which we draw nigh unto God.
Matthew 16:24-26 Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. [25] For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it. [26] For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?

 

[VictoryinJesus]

“Increase our faith” Which faith? Dead vain(empty)faith that has gone out of the way and all has become unprofitable OR living Faith of “I am the way” that leads to Life? Living Faith came upon them after the Spirit not before, a clear distinction seen after they received the Spirit of God.
John 14:3-7 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also. [4] And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know. [5] Thomas saith unto him, Lord, we know not whither thou goest; and how can we know the way? [6] Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. [7] If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him.

They have all gone out of the way and have become unprofitable...then He said “I am the way”. Speaking of the boat ...they were perishing and knew it. Not only perishing in the great tempest but more so perishing under the bondage of sin and death. Without Christ all men perish. the great tempest ...lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. Walking on (literal)water will fail dare I say nearly always, but overcoming those things coming on the earth doesn’t. Luke 21:25-26 And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring; [26] Men's hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.

Mark 4:38-40 And he was in the hinder part of the ship, asleep on a pillow: and they awake him, and say unto him, Master, carest thou not that we perish? [39] And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. [40] And he said unto them, Why are ye so fearful? how is it that ye have no faith?

”why are you so fearful? How is it that you have no faith?”
Romans 8:15 For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father.