Ye of Little Faith

Matthew 17:20 – “If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, … nothing shall be impossible unto you.”


A group of people were waiting for the elevator in a department store. One woman seemed extremely nervous. When the elevator door opened and she was about to enter, she looked down the elevator shaft and drew back in a gesture of panic. “I can’t,” she trembled. “See how deep it is below!” All eyes immediately looked at the open space down the elevator shaft. The practical operator said to her with the kindliest of advice, “If you always look up in an elevator, Ma’am, you’ll have no need to fear.” So often we look down in fear instead of looking up in faith.

Where is your faith? In the book of Matthew, Christ several times rebuked the disciples for their lack of faith. We see the first instance in Matthew 6:30 – a lack of faith in the provision of God –“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 so much more clothe you, O ye of little faith?” You know, we have that same problem today. We worry about all the little things that God knows we have need of. And this passage tells us that He will provide if we’ll just trust in Him. Look at verse 33, “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness.” That is what we should be concentrating on – fulfilling His will for us – spreading the word of His gospel – telling others about Christ and His salvation – living holy, consecrated lives. If we will do these things, then “all these things shall be added unto you.”

Next, remember when Jesus and the disciples were on the restless sea and Christ in Matthew 8:26 rebuked the disciples – “Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith?” he said to them. This was a lack of faith in the protection of God. John 10:29 tells us that we are smack dab in the center of the hand of God, and in that place of protection, nothing can harm us. How many times have we seen David in the Psalms praise God for His divine protection? We have the same God watching over us that David had. We have the same God watching over us that Paul and Silas had when they sang praises to Him from the prison cell and God delivered them. We have the same God watching over us that Peter and John had when God delivered them from prison. We have the same God watching over us that John had on the Isle of Patmos. We have His divine protection.

Next, we see in Matthew 14:31, the disciples had a lack of faith in the preeminence of God. In this instance, Peter actually showed tremendous faith in God by asking Christ to allow him to come to Him on the water. He got out of the boat and began to walk on the water towards Christ. What power – what faith – what courage – and then he began to doubt. He was out there – he was walking on the water – he was defying the law of gravity – but as he saw the boisterous sea and the waves crashing about him, he forgot that the one who was master of all the waves is the one he should trust in. He began to consider his circumstances – oh, how those circumstances will swallow you up! He forgot that God was preeminent over all circumstances – He began to sink – He cried out to the Lord – “Lord, save me.” Christ reached out and lifted him above his circumstances and then rebuked him for his lack of faith – “O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?” He was reminding him of His preeminence over every circumstance.

Then lastly, we see the disciples’ lack of faith in the providence of God in Matthew 16:8, “O ye of little faith, why reason ye among yourselves, because ye have brought no bread.” They had forgotten to bring bread with them across the sea and were worried that Christ was rebuking them for it. He was teaching them about the leaven of the Pharisees – their wickedness – their hypocrisy – their false doctrines. But they thought he was rebuking them for not bringing bread – He who blessed five loaves and had twelve baskets full to spare – He whose providence was in control of every situation. Yet they doubted that providence. So I ask again – where is your faith?

Quote – “When the outward look is dark, try the upward look.” - Unknown

The Fear of the Lord

Matthew 10:28 – “And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul; but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.”

Mysophobia is fear of "dirt." Hydrophobia is fear of "water." Nyclophobia is the fear of "darkness." Acrophobia is fear of "high places." Taxophobia is fear of being "buried alive." Xenophobia is fear of "strangers." Necrophobia is fear of the "dead." Claustrophobia is fear of "confined places." Triskaidekaphobia is fear of the "number 13." Unfortunately, many people who have learned to fear things that they probably shouldn't have never learned the fear of the Lord. Too few who have acrophobia have learned to fear God and to keep his commandments. Many who have some of these fears give no heed to the words of Christ: "And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul; but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.” Many fear what man can do to them but not what God will do at the judgment day if they do not repent and turn to Him in faith.

The fear of the Lord is a principle of the Scriptures that seems to have vanished today. There was a time when truly born-again people were called God-fearing Christians, but this seems to be a relic of the past. God does not expect us to fear Him or dread Him as a child fears some dark shadow under his bed – He expects us to fear Him with a reverential awe as we would feel if we were standing in the presence of a great and powerful man such as the President or a judge. Because truly, God is our President and our Judge. We are to respect Him – to reverence Him – to honor Him – to be in awe of Him.

Let’s look at some other passages which speak of this awe and fear towards God:

Proverbs 9:10 “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.”

Proverbs 8:13 “The fear of the Lord is to hate evil.”

Proverbs 14:26 “In the fear of the Lord is strong confidence.”

Proverbs 10:27 “The fear of the Lord prolongeth days.”

Proverbs 14:27 “The fear of the Lord is a fountain of life.”

Proverbs 15:33 “The fear of the Lord is the instruction of wisdom.”

Proverbs 19:23 “The fear of the Lord tendeth to life: and he that hath it shall not be ashamed.”

Psalm 19:9 “The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever.”

Psalm 130:3 “But there is forgiveness with thee, that thou mayest be feared.”

Isaiah 8:13-14 “Sanctify the Lord of hosts himself; and let him be your fear, and let him be your dread. And he shall be for a sanctuary.”

If we will walk in the fear of the Lord, as the early church did in Acts 9:31, then we will walk in holiness – we will hate evil – we will walk with confidence – we will prolong our days – we will have a fountain of life – we will have instruction of wisdom – we will not be ashamed to walk with Him – we will be forgiven – and we will have Him as our sanctuary. We truly are a God-fearing people – a people who hold Him up with awe and reverence – a people who honor and reverence “Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.”

Quote – “We fear men so much because we fear God so little.” – William Gurnall

He Careth For You

1 Peter 5:7 – “Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.”

In 480 B.C. the outmanned army of Sparta's King Leonidas held off the Persian troops of Xerxes by fighting them one at a time as they came through a narrow mountain pass. Commenting on this strategy, C.H. Spurgeon said, "Suppose Leonidas and his handful of men had gone out into the wide-open plain and attacked the Persians--why, they would have died at once, even though they might have fought like lions." Spurgeon continued by saying that Christians stand in the narrow pass of today. If they choose to battle every difficulty at once, they're sure to suffer defeat. But if they trust God and take their troubles one by one, they will find that their strength is sufficient.

Worry is one of the biggest problems facing today’s society. And sad to say, it’s one of the biggest problems facing the church. Experts tell us that the average person’s anxiety is focused on: 40% - things that will never happen; 30% - things about the past that can’t be changed; 12% - things about criticism by others, mostly untrue; 10% - about health, which gets worse with stress; and 8% - about real problems that will be faced. That’s 92% of our worries are about things that we have no control over or aren’t real problems to be concerned about. There’s no reason whatsoever for us to kill ourselves with stress and worry. Now if we’ll follow our text verse and cast upon Christ everything that would cause us anxiety, think of the lower stress levels – think of the lower suicide rate – think of the lower blood pressures – think of the lower valium consumption. Bill Harvey’s little chorus says, “Fret not – He’s watching over you. Fret not – The Lord will see you through. Fret not – you’re sure to stand the test. Commit and trust – delight and rest.”

Take a look at Matthew 6:25-34. There are in these verses six warnings against worry. “Take no thought” – six times. “Be not anxious for your life,” Christ is telling them. “Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.” Now look at Proverbs 10:22 – “The blessing of the Lord, it maketh rich, and he addeth no sorrow with it.” 2 Thessalonians 3:3 – “But the Lord is faithful.” There are many other verses that command us not to be fearful. For example, Philippians 4:6 – “Be careful [or anxious] for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.” Bring it to Jesus and cast it on Him. He takes great pleasure in handling your problems for you.

Many of us allow worry to consume us – we let worry turn to fear – and fear is the result of trying to look at God through your circumstances. But what God honors is faith – turning your anxieties over to Him is faith – and faith is the result of looking at your circumstances through God! There’s a big difference between a burden and a worry. When a burden begins to rob you of the joy of the Lord, then it’s a sin. Romans 14:23 tells us, “Whatsoever is not of faith is sin.” Did you know that every time you worry you display a lack of faith and that is sin? But if you’ll cast every care upon Him, then you are displaying faith. Did you know that worry and anxiety lead to fearfulness? – and “perfect love casteth out fear (1 John 4:18).”

Whether it be a fear, or a burden, or a worry, or a care – whether it be one of those things that we worry about that will never happen – whether it be one of those things about the past that we can’t change – whether it be one of those untrue criticisms by others – whether it be a concern about a health issue that compounds with stress – whether it be a real problem or an imagined problem – “Cast all your cares upon [Jesus] for He careth for you.”

Quote – “Cast all your cares on Him – casting signifies a rolling – you can roll many a burden you can’t lift.” – Dr. John McCormick

Simple Child-Like Faith

Mark 10:15 – “Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child, he shall not enter therein.”

The Chicago Daily News captions a picture of small children entering a "tiny-tot play lot" through a low gateway shaped like a keyhole. Admittance to the lot, given to the youngsters of Oak and Sedgwick Streets by Mr. and Mrs. Charles S. Dewey, depends on the ability of the child to walk upright through the low gate. Size too, determines whether or not a person enters Heaven. When His disciples asked the Lord Jesus who was the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven, he "called a little child unto Him, and set him in the midst of them, and said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven (Matt 18:13).”

This is an important concept in the Scriptures – we must exhibit simple child-like faith in order to be saved. Many times we adults – educated beyond our wisdom – cynical beyond our years – proud beyond our raising – we tend to make salvation much more difficult than it is. Now, I’m no advocator of “easy believism” – I believe that faith is a definite act – and with that act comes a command for repentance – but it is a faith that has no bearing on any work of our own. The work was done at Calvary, and all we have to do is believe and accept the finished work. But it is not a difficult thing. Simply “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved (Acts 16:31).” No ceremonies – no rites – no chants – no vain repetitions – no bugles – no drums – no marching bands – no dogma – no catechisms – no works – no nothing, but “believe and be saved.”

In fact, there is nothing that we can do to even deserve salvation – Ephesians 2:8-9, “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.” Titus 3:5, “Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us.” Through an implicit faith in Christ as the supreme sacrifice for sin, any man who wholeheartedly accepts Christ through believing and repenting will be saved. It’s all about His wonderful mercy and grace – through child-like faith.

Just why do you suppose we must “become as little children” to be born-again? We could look as several possibilities:
Children are pure in mind and heart. Psalms 131:2 “Surely I have behaved and quieted myself, as a child that is weaned of his mother: my soul is even as a weaned child.” As children pass from childhood to adolescence, their minds become sullied by the educators of this world, and they lose their purity. Their hearts become entangled in affairs of this world, and they lose their purity. Their emotions become distorted by the prince of this world, and they lose their purity.

Children are innocent in worldly ways. 1 Corinthians 14:20, “Brethren, … in malice be ye children, but in understanding be men.” Children have no guiltiness – they are innocent. They have no malice – they are innocent. They have no accountability – they are innocent. As they increase in understanding, they also increase in accountability. Their innocence becomes ruined by cynicism.

Children are free of preconceived notions. 1 Peter 2:1-2, “Wherefore laying aside all malice, and all guile, and hypocrisies, and envies, all evil speakings, As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word.” They don’t carry all the mental and emotional baggage that adults do. It’s a fact that worldly experience brings about worldly thoughts and ideas.

Quote – “Faith is not believing that God can. It is knowing that He will!” – Paul W. Brubaker