The Seed of Faith
11/15/09 AM
Text: Mark 11:22 (various)
Introduction:
In our lesson together today we are going to talk about faith. Ok, so I’ll do the talking but I’m hoping you will do the listening and the thinking because the simple fact is that none of us can get through even the simplest of days without faith. Every one of us expresses faith in numerous ways, every day.
Everyone lives by faith, whether they admit it or not. When you go to the doctor and he gives you a prescription, you take something that you cannot read very well to a pharmacist whom you do not know, who counts out some capsules of some type, and you don't know the faintest thing about what they contain, which you take home and then three times a day you swallow them. That takes faith!
When we get in our vehicles and drive the streets and freeways of San Diego we have faith that our fellow travelers are going to abide by the rules of the road.
In living our daily lives we have faith that everyone is going to abide by the rules and laws of civilized society (and the news is full of the stories of those who do not.)
Everyone has some kind of faith. The materialist has faith in their money, the philosopher in their ideas. The scientist has faith in the scientific method; everyone lives by faith of some kind and that faith gets us through our days. And that is the problem, it will only get us through our days and our days are numbered. Hebrews 9:27 And inasmuch as it is appointed for men to die once and after this comes judgment,
But there is a greater faith that does so much more than get us through our days, there is a faith that will get us through our days in this world and the world to come and that faith is faith in God.
I. We Walk By Faith, Not By Sight
A. This means you and me, all who are called Christian.
1. 2 Corinthians 5:7 “For we walk by faith, not by sight.”
B. The word WALK is in the present tense, meaning to continue or to keep on walking.
1. The word describes the state of spiritual activity in which we are to be engaged.
We who are children of God put our faith first in Him and not in the things of this world.
a. This walk is a walk of Faith and not sight. We are to conduct ourselves not with a temporal perspective but and eternal one.
We are to take our eyes off the visible and by faith put them on the invisible. We need to quit focusing on the temporary and focus on that which is permanent and eternal.
We live our lives not based upon what we see in the here and now but rather on what God has revealed to us through His Word.
Paul wrote these words in response to the afflictions and strife of living for God:
2 Corinthians 4:17, 18 For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison, while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal.
2. By this, when tough times come, we live no longer by fear and doubt but by the certainty of faith.
C. Jesus stressed faith often to His followers
1. Matthew 6:30 "But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, will He not much more clothe you? You of little faith!
Matthew 8:26 He said to them, "Why are you afraid, you men of little faith?" Then He got up and rebuked the winds and the sea, and it became perfectly calm.
Matthew 14:31 Immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and took hold of him, and said to him, "You of little faith, why did you doubt?"
Matthew 16:8 But Jesus, aware of this, said, "You men of little faith, why do you discuss among yourselves that you have no bread?
2. Matthew 17:20 And He said to them, "Because of the littleness of your faith; for truly I say to you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move; and nothing will be impossible to you.
a. Jesus was quoting a familiar expression of the Jewish religious teachers when he talked about throwing mountains into the sea by faith.
Since there was hardly any reason why the disciples would ever want to dump a mountain into the sea, it is safe to assume that Jesus was using a figure of speech to equate the spiritual obstacles they would face with the most formidable physical obstacle a man can face.
Even a small amount of true faith, as small as a mustard seed, is adequate to move a huge mountain, assuming, of course, that the “move” is in God’s will. Nothing is impossible with God.
Matthew 19:26 “…with God all things are possible.”
b. If you have the smallest or feeblest faith that is genuine, you can do all things.
3. Jesus said in Mark 11:22 “Have faith in God.”
II. Have Faith In God
A. Know that God “IS”
1. Proverbs 9:10 “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, And the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.”
a. There was not a lot of argument about this in Jesus’ day. The existence of God was not even considered debatable.
We can be as certain today.
2. We see God in His creation
a. Psalms 19:1 ( NASB ) The heavens are telling of the glory of God; And their expanse is declaring the work of His hands. Day to day pours forth speech, And night to night reveals knowledge. There is no speech, nor are there words; Their voice is not heard.
Romans 1:20 ( NASB ) For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse.
God has created a universe that carries His 'signature'.
3. We see God in His Word.
a. The Word of God is designed to produce faith
Romans 10:17 “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.”
Through diligent reading of the Bible, we can develop the “seed” our faith!
2 Timothy 3:16 ( NASB ) All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.
B. IMPORTANCE OF "FAITH"...
1. Faith in God is essential to eternity.
Hebrews 11:6 “And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.”
Romans 10:8 - 10 (NASB) But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart”—that is, the word of faith which we are preaching, that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation.
Conclusion
We all live with faith, we all walk in faith but it is only faith in God that will take us through our days, now and in eternity.
Invitation
