faith

Sometimes it seems as if we are being encouraged to work up our faith for a certain gift to become manifest, or grow our faith bigger so that God’s kingdom will come down around us. Though God does want us to have faith, He also is the giver and the maintainer of that faith (Rom 12:3). Jesus begins and brings to perfection our faith (Heb 12:2).

Our gifts operate by faith and by the grace each one of us has received (Rom 12:6). We could not serve each other without faith and grace from the Lord. Yet the good works we want to do cannot be influenced by our own attempts to reach for them and pull them down to ourselves. These are not faith-based actions, but fall into the category of vanity. God maintains His Lordship over His Church by holding our growth and maturity in His own hands.

Jesus told this parable to illustrate the point that God gives growth to our faith; “This is what the Kingdom of God is like. A man scatters seed on the ground. Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how. All by itself the soil produces grain – first the stalk, then the head, then the full kernel in the head. As soon as the grain is ripe, he puts the sickle to it, because the harvest has come.” (Mk 4:26-29). Simply put, God gives the growth (1 Cor 3:7). He brings the rains and sunshine, the trials and the blessings that mature us for those works, small or great, we are called to.

Striving to grow our faith will bring frustration, whereas submission to the tests and trials of our life will mature our faith. Just as God was faithful to bring His word to pass in our forefather’s lives, He will do the same for us if we continue in our faith, unwavering. Trials, passed victoriously, keep us from wavering in our faith. God will entrust the trustworthy with His kingdom and His kingdom works. Amen. Let us encourage one another as we see the day approaching.