Mountain-Moving Faith
No matter how wonderful mountaintop experiences are, the work of ministry occurs in the valley. Matthew 17:14-23 illustrates this truth. Who was Jesus referring to when He said, “O faithless and perverse
generation,”? It becomes clear that He was referring to His disciples in verse 20—“Because of your little faith.” These guys walked with the Lord and regularly missed it. At the feeding of 4,000, which happened after the 5,000, His disciples said to Him, “Where are we to get enough bread in such a desolate place to feed so great a crowd?” (Matthew 15:33) Here, the disciples watched Jesus take care of the situation, then privately asked Him, “Why could we not cast it out?” (v. 19) Their inability had nothing whatsoever to do with confidence—in fact, they were surprised and couldn’t understand why they couldn’t cast out the demon. Why didn’t they have mountain-moving faith anymore? Jesus’ answer to their question reveals two qualities of true faith. And you can have this kind of faith as well. First, mountain-moving faith is consistent—again “Because of your little faith.” Fulfilling the Great Commission hinges upon an army of believers who refuse to waver. Mountain-moving faith must be consistent at all times. Consistency pays off but we frequently neglect it because the dividends come in slower than we desire. Second, mountain-moving faith is committed—“This kind never comes out except by prayer and fasting.” (v. 21) Faith cannot be exercised by proxy. You must develop it yourself. Howard Hendricks said, “There is no such thing as a correspondence course for swimming.” Jesus wasn’t teaching positive-thinking. Both the source and the object of genuine faith—even the weak, mustard-seed kind—is God. “For nothing will be impossible with God.” (Luke 1:37) Faith is a day by day process in which God will show us what to do moment by moment.
Sin cera, Erik
Erik O. Garthe is Associate Pastor at Canton Baptist Church in Baltimore, Maryland.