October 7 Sermon: Increase our Faith,

Part 1 of Series

The apostles said to the Lord, "Increase our faith!"

How many of you think that you could use a little more faith?

“Increase our faith” The Lord replied, "If you had faith the size of a mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, 'Be uprooted and planted in the sea,' and it would obey you.” Luke 15:6

Faith doesn’t have to be huge to have a big impact.

What’s more impossible than uprooting a tree? Or more absurd than planting a tree in the sea. Even the small faith they have cancels out words such as “impossible” and ‘absurd”.

Faith puts us in touch with the power of God. Faith connects us to God with whom nothing is impossible.

Jesus would affirm the faith we have – whether you think it’s small or big. It’s never too small to accomplish great things. Jesus invites us to live out the full possibilities of our faith - to get into action with the faith we already have.

Because, then our faith will grow.

Growth in faith comes from experience.

If we want to increase our faith, we have to trust the Lord and His promises. Then act in faith, relying on God to provide what is lacking in us.

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The manager of a large real estate firm was interviewing an applicant for a sales job, and asked: “Why have you chosen this career?”

The young man replied: “I dream of making a million dollars in real estate, like my father.”

“Your father made a million dollars in real estate?” the impressed sales manager asked.

“No’ replied the young man, “but he always dreamed of it.”

Dreaming but not doing...

Maybe our faith problem is a lack of action: we’re not using the faith we have.

So the message is “Act in faith” and “Ask in faith”, trusting His promise: For God did not give us a spirit of cowardice, but rather a spirit of power and of love and of self-discipline. 2 Timothy 1:7

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But ask and act in accord with His will.

That requires discernment. Which is why the Bible refers to us not just as believers, but as disciples – learners. Just as those first disciples traveled with Jesus to listen to His teaching, so we, as His disciples, should be listening to Jesus every day – listening and learning from Him.

You don’t have to travel around as they did, because He speaks to you through His words in the Bible. Read the Bible every day so you can begin to learn His will for you – so you can ask and act as He would have you do.

When you read, how can you hear the voice of God speaking to you in the words of the Bible?

All you need is a Bible and a bookmark.

Find a quiet time and place where you won’t be interrupted. Open to one of the gospels or one of the letters in the New Testament. Then pray that God would speak to you personally in the words you’re about to read in the Bible.

Read a passage and stop when it speaks to you. If that passage remains “speechless” or confusing, then simply continue reading.

When you do find a passage that seems to speak to you, ask a few questions. What does this passage tell me about God or life? How does it fit with what I know about Jesus and His teaching? What could be a lesson for me?

Pray that God would relate that passage to your life.

So approach your reading with the expectation that God has something to say to you. Read and ponder. Reflect on what this passage might say about how you are living – or about your relationship with God and others.

Then put your bookmark at the spot you stopped, so tomorrow you can start your reading at that point.

Spend 20 minutes each day with your Bible listening to Jesus, and thus be His disciple.

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Jesus invitation to would-be believers was not first believe in me, but rather follow me – join this group walking with me. By living the faith with others, experiencing faith in action - their faith would grow.

One way we “increase our faith” is by our relationship with other people of faith. In that sense, faith is caught rather than taught. We can see the faith of others and imitate them.

I am reminded of your sincere faith, a faith that lived first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice and now, I am sure, lives in you.

For this reason I remind you to rekindle the

gift of God that is within you… 2 Timothy 1:5

Timothy’s faith journey began in his family and that’s probably true for many of you.

The family is a gift from God and can be a place for spiritual formation. Little children can listen to their parents pray for them. And then they can learn to pray with their parents. In that way prayer becomes natural for them – something they have always done.

And we learn from our children and grandchildren that the love we give them returns to us. In sharing love with others we’re not giving something away, for it finally returns to us.

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Our friends may also help us grow in the practice of faith.

A close friendship is a spiritual trust from God. Friendships are relationships within we can learn loyalty – the kind of faithfulness that God requires.

Real friends don’t always agree. But in the safety of a close friendship we can practice forgiveness and understanding – the appreciation of another’s point of view. The bond of friendship helps us to transcend the disagreement – and we learn from experience how to practice Christian forgiveness and understanding in other relationships.

Often we’re tempted to refuse to be in conversation with our opponents. But the healing of a division begins when we enter into dialogue with those with whom we have a disagreement. As a follower of Christ, we can show empathy for them – work to understand their feelings, situation and motive.

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When you read the New Testament you always find Christians in groups, and almost never in solitary isolation. The human spirit shrinks in isolation. So in the gospel we see a group of followers gathered around Jesus. In the letters of the New Testament the followers are gathered in groups called churches.

Throughout the centuries since then, Christians have gathered in larger groups for worship and fellowship – and also in small groups for spiritual growth and mutual support. Because disciples of Jesus find their lives of faith enhanced by gathering for personal sharing and caring.

As His follower, we are called to really attend to one another. To give them the gift of our undivided attention – to really listen and to take their situation seriously.

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We are called to service – service to our friends.

To remind us, Jesus tells a little parable, to reorient our thinking about faith. It’s about a master and his slave – his servant.

Even though the servant has spent the day plowing the field or tending the flock, the master’s command is enough to send the servant to the kitchen to prepare the master’s meal. Then Jesus asks:

‘Do you thank the slave for doing what was commanded?’ No.

Jesus turns to us and says:

So you also, when you have done all that you were ordered to do, say, 'We are humble servants; we have done only what we ought to have done!' " Luke 17:9,10

What does this have to do with their question: Increase our faith?

Maybe the disciples’ problem is not the amount of faith, but the nature of their faith. Before they get more faith, they need a redirected faith – a faith orientated toward faithful service to God and others.

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Part of our job description is to offer comfort and encouragement - lifting the fallen and weeping with those who weep. Almost any pain can be borne, when it is borne together.

A woman was initially diagnosed with a terminal illness. But her doctor advised her to tell no one until more tests could be made and the diagnosis confirmed.

“It was really terrible, but the worst part was having to keep it to myself. Now that I can tell others, I can spread some of my pain around and that makes it easier. It’s like a 2000-pound weight has been lifted from my shoulders.”

One of the ministries of the church is to spread some of the pain around – to help a friend bear that burden.

Jesus came among us as one who serves,

and so his followers are to be servants –

- serve Christ by serving one another.

“Increase our faith.”

Trust His promise and rely on your faith.

Read His word and listen for Him speaking to you.

Obey His word and serve one another in love

Trust and Obey