Introduction
How can you sing “Victory in Jesus” the right way if you don’t have any?
You’ve heard it—people smiling and clapping through the song, but if you could look inside, the victory light is barely flickering.
Life has a way of testing whether the words we sing are the life we live.
Some of you have been rowing hard against winds that never seem to change. You’re doing what’s right—going to church, praying, paying the bills, trying to love difficult people—but it feels like survival mode. You’re exhausted from rowing.
The disciples knew that feeling. They were obeying Jesus—He had constrained them to get into the boat—but the wind was contrary. They were doing exactly what He said, and still the storm came. That’s where most Christians live—obedient, yet weary.
But Scripture shows that there’s a level beyond just surviving storms. There’s a faith that walks on water—and another that speaks to the storm and commands it to cease.
Today, we’re going to talk about Strengthening Your Faith.
Faith isn’t a mystical fog that floats through your heart when you hear a gospel song. Faith is not a feeling you chase; it’s a conviction you choose. It’s confidence in the character of God when circumstances make no sense. It’s belief with legs—agreement, attitude, and action all moving in the same direction.
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I. The Definition of Faith
Hebrews 11 opens with one of the most quoted lines in Scripture:
“Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.”
Let’s unpack that.
The word substance in Greek is hupostasis. It literally means “that which stands under”—a foundation, something solid that supports what rests upon it. Faith isn’t wishful thinking; it’s the undergirding confidence that God’s promises are more real than visible facts.
And evidence—that’s elegchos, meaning proof or conviction. Faith is the inner proof that unseen realities are more certain than what your eyes can measure.
Put simply: faith is confidence in God’s Word that results in obedience to God’s will.
It begins with agreement—you hear what God says and acknowledge it as truth.
Then comes attitude—you start trusting that Word as dependable.
Finally comes action—you step out and live by it.
Agreement + Attitude + Action = True Bible Faith.
That’s why faith can never remain theoretical. Every story in Hebrews 11 begins with two words: “By faith…” and is followed by a verb—by faith Abel offered, by faith Noah prepared, by faith Abraham obeyed. Faith always does something.
Faith is belief with legs.
You might say, “Pastor, I’m not sure I have that kind of faith.”
Scripture says you do. Romans 12 : 3 declares that God has given to every man a measure of faith. You were created with it. But like a muscle, it has to be activated and developed.
That’s why child-like faith seems so natural. A child believes without arguing. But as we age, cynicism builds calluses over trust. So the older we get, the more intentional we must be to exercise faith again—until trust becomes second nature.
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II. The Disclosure of Faith
Hebrews 11 : 6 says, “Without faith it is impossible to please God: for he that cometh to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him.”
Two verbs frame that verse—believe and seek.
Faith believes that God is real, and then seeks Him as reliable.
The word please in Greek (euaresteo) means to gratify entirely—to bring joy to God’s heart. Think about that: your trust delights Him. When you believe, you bless God.
And the word rewarder (misthapodotes) literally means a remunerator—one who pays back in kind. In other words, when you satisfy God with faith, He satisfies you with Himself.
That’s why the most satisfied life is the faith life.
Without faith, life becomes reaction; with faith, life becomes participation—God working through you, not just around you.
Faith isn’t magic; it’s relationship. The same God who invites you to trust Him also shapes your circumstances to teach you trust. Which leads to the next section—how faith develops.
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III. The Development of Faith
Second Corinthians 10 : 15 speaks of “when your faith is increased.” Faith can grow. You can go from knee-deep belief to walking-on-water confidence. But it doesn’t happen automatically.
1. Adversity — Faith Refined
Peter says, “the trial of your faith is more precious than gold.”
Gold is purified by fire, and so is faith. God doesn’t test you to break you but to burn away impurities of self-reliance. Every storm is either a faith-destroyer or a faith-developer—your choice decides which.
2. Evidence — Faith Remembered
Hebrews 11 : 1 calls faith “the evidence of things not seen.”
One way to strengthen it is by remembering past evidence. Keep a journal of answered prayers. Throughout Scripture, God commands His people, “Don’t forget.” Build memorials—stones of remembrance—because memory fuels momentum. What you record you can recall, and what you recall you can rely on when new storms come.
3. Communion — Faith Recharged
Jude 20 says, “Building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Ghost.”
Prayer in the Spirit recharges spiritual batteries. When human vocabulary ends, the Holy Spirit interprets your groans into grace. Faith grows strongest on its knees.
4. Scripture — Faith Fed
Romans 10 : 17: “Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.”
You can’t live on yesterday’s sermon. Faith leaks unless refilled by fresh Word.
5. Community — Faith Sharpened
Faith withers in isolation but thrives in fellowship. Proverbs 27 : 17: “Iron sharpeneth iron.” The church is the gymnasium of faith where believers spot each other under the weight of life.
These are the builders of faith—adversity, evidence, communion, Scripture, and community.
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IV. The Four Levels of Faith
Now we move from principles to practice. In Matthew 14 and Mark 6, we find four ascending levels of faith in the disciples’ journey.
1. Dry-Docked Faith
Jesus constrained His disciples to get into the ship. The word means “to compel.” They had to choose obedience even when it didn’t make sense. Some people never reach that point; their faith stays parked on shore. They call Jesus “Lord” but never obey His voice. Dry-docked faith says all the right things yet refuses to launch.
You cannot call Him Lord and ignore His Word. Faith without obedience is admiration without surrender.
2. Storm-Surviving Faith
The disciples obeyed, but soon the wind was contrary. They were toiling in rowing. The Greek implies “tormented by effort.” That’s where most Christians live—doing right things in their own strength, rowing to exhaustion.
Here’s the lesson: being in God’s will doesn’t mean absence of storms. It means presence of Jesus. They were exactly where He sent them, and still the wind howled. Obedience doesn’t exempt you from opposition; it guarantees it.
3. Water-Walking Faith
In the fourth watch of the night, Jesus came to them walking on the sea. Peter stepped out and joined Him.
Three requirements for water-walking faith:
1. Desire for Jesus greater than fear of risk.
2. Willingness to fail while trusting.
3. Commitment before command.
And there are four rules:
Don’t look at the waves.
Don’t listen to the boat.
Don’t look at yourself.
Keep your eyes on Jesus.
The moment Peter looked away, he began to sink. Distraction always precedes defeat.
But notice what happened next: Jesus caught him. Every time faith falters, grace reaches faster. And when they climbed into the boat, the wind ceased—and the disciples worshiped, saying, “Truly You are the Son of God.”
Water-walking faith may fail, but it fails forward—into the arms of Christ.
4. Storm-Commanding Faith
Now comes the highest level. Jesus rebuked the water-walker! He said, “O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?”
You’d expect a congratulation—“Peter, that was impressive!”—but Jesus expected more. Why? Because the storm itself should have been rebuked.
He had already empowered them with authority. The storm was not defying the disciples; it was defying God’s command—“Go to the other side.” When you’re standing on a Word from God, any obstacle in your path is illegal. It’s your job to speak truth into turbulence.
Jesus said in Matthew 17 : 20, “If you have faith as a grain of mustard seed, you shall say to this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place, and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.”
That’s storm-commanding faith—when you stop pleading for calm and start proclaiming God’s will.
John 6 : 21 adds that when they received Jesus into the boat, “immediately the ship was at the land whither they went.”
Faith not only quiets storms—it accelerates arrival. Obedience plus presence equals immediacy.
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V. How to Strengthen Your Faith Today
1. Feed it—daily exposure to God’s Word.
2. Stretch it—step out of comfort zones.
3. Speak it—declare Scripture out loud; faith talks back to fear.
4. Guard it—refuse toxic voices that mock belief.
5. Share it—testimonies multiply courage in others.
Faith strengthens by use. The more you walk on the Word, the stronger your spiritual muscles grow.
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Conclusion
Where are you tonight?
Are you dry-docked—still admiring Jesus from the shore?
Are you rowing hard, surviving storms by grit instead of grace?
Or are you ready to step out and walk toward Him, trusting that even if you sink, His hand is stronger than the waves?
God is calling His church to a higher level—to storm-commanding faith. It’s time to stop defining our lives by circumstances and start defining circumstances by the Word of God.
Speak peace where there’s turmoil.
Speak hope where there’s despair.
Speak life where death has settled in.
You have a Word: “Go to the other side.” That means you will make it. The wind may be contrary, but it’s not final.
Prayer:
> “Lord Jesus, stretch forth Your hand again. Catch the sinking hearts in this room. Strengthen our faith until it stands taller than our fear. We believe You are who You said You are. Help us act like it. Teach us to trust You in the storm, to walk on Your Word, and to speak Your authority over the winds that oppose us. In Your name we pray. Amen.”
