O Ye of Little or Lots of Faith?

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It is telling that “O ye of little faith” appears 4 times in the Gospels and “O thou of little faith appears 1 time. In each case Jesus was speaking to His own followers. The first 4 appearance are found in the Gospel of Matthew and the other one is found in Luke. Each time He used this phrase applies to areas of our own personal, daily lives as it did with His original twelve. Let’s take a peek at the context of each situation where our LORD used this term when speaking to His disciples. When speaking about provision and trusting God’s hand to provide, Jesus said:

“Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith?” Matthew 6:30

When Christ and His twelve boarded a ship and were in the middle of the sea, a great storm arose His disciples feared and doubted that Jesus would rescue them from this peril. Jesus wondered why they were afraid.

“And he saith unto them, Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith? Then he arose, and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a great calm.” Matthew 8:26

When Peter joined Jesus in walking on the water and then began to sink, Jesus wondered at his lapse in trusting Him to save and sustain him.

“And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?” Matthew 14:31

When 5,000 men, not including women and children, followed Christ to the desert to hear His Word, He suggested that those seeking souls be fed physical food. Christ’s disciples then doubted how that was possible because they brought no food with them out there. They doubted how they would feed that large multitude because they were limiting things to their own finite ability. They were not trusting the miraculous workings of God. Jesus wondered at their lack of faith. The Son of God wondered why they didn’t yet understand that He owns all and their lack of understanding that “with God ALL things are possible.” (Mark 10:25) To their unbelief, Jesus answered:

“Which when Jesus perceived, he said unto them, O ye of little faith, why reason ye among yourselves, because ye have brought no bread?” Matthew 16:8

Finally, Jesus wondered at how the LORD God was doubted in the clothing and protecting His own children.

“If then God so clothe the grass, which is to day in the field, and to morrow is cast into the oven; how much more will he clothe you, O ye of little faith?” Luke 12:28

A Nugget to Encourage Your Heart

Just as the twelve struggled with unbelief at times, so, some of us do at times. Perhaps Jesus has whispered to us at times, “O ye of little faith.” Take heart beloved, even the mighty prophet Elijah is said to have been “a man subject to like passions as we are.” Yet, do you recall the mighty miracles God used him to do? Wow! Remember how he challenged, defeated, and slayed the 450 false prophets on Mount Carmel? (1 Kings 8) If God could use Elijah, He can use us because it’s all about His divine power and He brings it through that one who learns to trust and have faith in Him, not self.

“And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him. ¹⁶Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much. ¹⁷Elias was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain: and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and six months. ¹⁸And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth brought forth her fruit.” James 5:15-18

Trusting God Who is “A Very Present Help in Trouble”

“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” Psalms 46:1

Our LORD taught us to “Have faith in God” and that nothing would be impossible to those who believe. Here are the words of the Savior:

“And Jesus answering saith unto them, Have faith in God. ²³For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith. ²⁴Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.” Mark 11:22-24

As Christ taught on forgiveness, the disciples asked Jesus: “Increase our faith.” This reveals that such a prayer, from a sincere heart, is welcomed and answered by God.

“And the apostles said unto the Lord, Increase our faith.” Luke 17:5

Of the Corinthians believers, Paul said: “when your faith is increased” and so we can know that faith or our capacity to trust God, can be increased (2 Corinthians 10:15).

Are you ready to simply ask our LORD to increase our faith?

“We need to persevere in the asking/seeking kind of faith in God — and not give up — no matter how rare that is in this day and age: ‘Nevertheless, when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?'” Debbie Lord

Prayer: Heavenly Father, firstly, I admit and ask You to forgive my unbelief. Please forgive my selfishness and for having an evil heart of unbelief. Father, please bless this life to be truly crucified with Christ and filled with faith in Your love, provision, protection, and watch care over my life and the lives of all Your saints. I love You Father! I love You Jesus! Please fill me with Your Holy Spirit afresh and faith to believe to see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Abiding

7 Ways to Forgive [podcast]

PRAY

“But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;” Matthew 5:44

LOVE AND DO GOOD TO THE OFFENDER

“Let love be without dissimulation. Abhor that which is evil; cleave to that which is good.” Romans 12:9

REFUSE TO SPEAK EVIL OF THE OFFENDER

“Bless them which persecute you: bless, and curse not.” Romans 12:14

RELEASE THEM FROM YOUR PUNISHMENT

“Recompense (repay) to no man evil for evil. Provide things honest in the sight of all men. 18 If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men. 19 Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.” Romans 12:17-19

DON’T CELEBRATE THEIR FAILURES

“Rejoice not when thine enemy falleth, and let not thine heart be glad when he stumbleth: 18 Lest the LORD see it, and it displease him, and he turn away his wrath from him.” Proverbs 24:17-18

TREAT THEM THE WAY YOU WANT TO BE TREATED

“And as ye would that men should do to you, do ye also to them likewise.” Luke 6:31

STOP DWELLING ON THE PAST

“Remember ye not the former things, neither consider the things of old.” Isaiah 43:18

The blessedness of being merciful to others:

“Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.” Matthew 5:7

The only way to prevent holding a grudge, is to simply forgive them – as God freely forgave you through the infinite price Christ paid for your sins on the cross, of which you don’t deserve (Psalms 103:10).

“Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain. 8 Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts: for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh. 9 Grudge not one against another, brethren, lest ye be condemned: behold, the judge standeth before the door.” James 5:7-9

“And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. 31 Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: 32 And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.” Ephesians 4:30-32

Being kind and forgiving towards others becomes simple as we look in the mirror and declare with Paul the apostle: “For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing.” (Romans 7:18)

“He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities.” Psalms 103:10

Forgiveness becomes easy when we look in the mirror to see the person (us, me) who needs God’s mercy more than any other person alive on the earth! Memorize Ephesians 4:32 now. KJB

“For the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God.” James 1:20

“Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering; 13 Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye. 14 And above all these things put on charity, which is the bond of perfectness.” Colossians 3:12-14

Forgiveness Quotes

Forgiveness is ultra important to God. If you don’t forgive all others, you are not forgiven of your own sin and are as sure for hell as if you were already there. If you refuse to forgive you damn your own soul, non-negotiably. irrevocably.

“Forgiveness does not mean what happened is okay. It means not letting what happened take any more of your happiness.” Michelle Maros

“There is no love without forgiveness, and there is no forgiveness without love.” Bryant McGill

“Love is an act of endless forgiveness. Forgiveness is me giving up my right to hurt you for hurting me. Forgiveness is the final act of love.” Reinhold Niebuhr

“Holding a grudge doesn’t make you strong; it makes you bitter. Forgiving doesn’t make you weak; it sets you free.” unknown

Forgiveness | Fresh Start with God | Making Peace with God

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“He that is not with me is against me; and he that gathereth not with me scattereth abroad.” Matthew 12:30

It’s one thing to claim we are with Christ and He with us, and it’s another thing to prove we are with the Savior by adhering to His words. Jesus told us that those who are “of God” hear and obey His words (John 8:47).

If one chooses not to love Jesus enough to obey His stated terms, such a man has rejected the Son of God for the love of sinful self and will perish in his own corruption (Matthew 22:37-40; Luke 9:23-24; 14:33; 17:33; John 14:15; 1 John 2:3-6, etc.).

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Only the counterfeit will get upset at this Gospel message because such a rebel wants nothing to do with taking personal responsibility for his sin, the denial of self, the crucified life to be set apart, holy, and having the Savior reign!

Notice how Jesus knits the denial of self, the daily cross, the putting off the deeds of the body, of keeping under the body (the iniquitous fallen nature) with the destiny of the eternal soul.

“And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me. 24 For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it. 25 For what is a man advantaged, if he gain the whole world, and lose himself, or be cast away?” Luke 9:23-25

Jesus made it clear here that the cross is an original Gospel essential, an absolute imperative to eternal glory with Him!

Each of us proves exactly who we love the most by the way we are living! – God or self!

Everything that is happening in your life now is being allowed by God in order to get you down low into the death and burial with Christ. Read 2 Corinthians 4.

“But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us. 8 We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; 9 Persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed; 10 Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body. 11 For we which live are alway delivered unto death for Jesus’ sake, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our mortal flesh. 12 So then death worketh in us, but life in you.” 2 Corinthians 4:7-12

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