Maturing you Faith for paper

In my last column I told the tightrope story in describing mature faith. In this column I will talk about maturing your faith.

So typically faith starts out much like an infant. With time it grows. Again Hebrews 12:2 quoted in the last column said Jesus was the author and perfector of our faith. Well how does he mature or perfect our faith. Let’s look at the following scripture. “Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ.”  (the bible) Romans 10: 17 and “Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, now that you have tasted that the Lord is good.”  (Pure spiritual milk is the bible) 2 Peter 2: 2, 3 and “And we also thank God continually because, when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men, but as it actually is, the word of God, which is at work in you who believe.” 1 Thessalonians 2: 13

When we read the bible or portions of it, it creates faith within us. God has caused his holy words, spoken through others; to be gathered together in a book we call the bible. It is a very reliable book. Both the apostles Peter and Paul testify that the authors of the different books in the bible were inspired by God as they wrote. “Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet’s own interpretation. For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.”  2 Peter 1: 20, 21  and “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness,” 2 Timothy 3: 16

So by hearing and reading the bible, the very words of God, your faith will grow and mature. Reading or hearing the bible is absolutely essential for all Christians. Personal reading, personal bible study, bible studies at church and the scripture readings on Sunday are all vital ingredients to maturing our faith. Now that we have a better understanding of faith, that it starts out small and grows as we are exposed to the bible, the question “what is the opposite of faith” can be asked.

(After miraculously feeding 4,000 followers Jesus sends his disciples ahead of him by boat across the Sea of Galilee) “During the fourth watch of the night Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake. When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. “It’s a ghost,” they said, and cried out in fear. But Jesus immediately said to them: “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.” “Lord, if it’s you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.” “Come,” he said. Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, “Lord, save me!” Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. “You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt?” Matthew 14: 25 – 31

Jesus cursed a fig tree and it withered rapidly. The disciples asked how it was done. “Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, if you have faith and do not doubt, not only can you do what was done to the fig tree, but also you can say to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and it will be done.” Matthew 21: 18 – 22

So doubt is the opposite of faith. It is not a situation where we have one or the other. These two “forces” are active together in all Christians. However as our faith matures doubts decrease. It is important to understand that doubt is the opposite of faith so we can recognize that we need to mature our faith.

If you died tonight are you confident you would wake up in heaven with Jesus? If you can confidently say yes, faith is what is allowing you to do so. If you cannot answer yes the solution is to increase your faith by the means God has supplied us with. I should point out if you do not have absolute confidence in your salvation or eternal destiny it does not mean you are not saved. Salvation is something that God does. Heb 2:12 said Jesus is the author and perfecter of our faith. Jesus gives us the faith we need; we do not conjure it up from within ourselves. Most likely if you lack confidence you do have faith and do not realize it because Satan has planted doubts and misconceptions in your mind. Maturing your faith is a lifelong process.

If you have been baptized and at this point you have doubts about whether you are saved I should point out you can get in the wheelbarrow with white knuckles and be hanging on for dear life. Jesus is doing the balancing and pushing. Probably the first step in getting in the wheelbarrow is to stop trying to walk the tightrope to heaven by yourself by “being good enough”. Faith is much more in the life of Christians than just the means by which we are saved. As a Christian matures his faith his relationship with Jesus becomes more and more important. That relationship centers on faith. As your faith grows you become closer and closer to Jesus and doubts diminish.

Blessings