Meditations On Faith - 8

Faith does not originate within us, but within God.

`Genuine faith has its foundation in the promises and provisions of the Scripture.’ (DA126)

Please notice from the above text that faith is built on something that is outside of ourselves. In other words, faith is not established on what I can do, or on what I am, but on what God is and on what God has promised to do.

This is an encouraging thought, for it assures us that the weakest of sinners can have great faith - for his weakness cannot alter God’s strength, and his unfaithfulness cannot alter the fact that God is bound to remain faithful to His promises.

Faith, therefore, does not originate within us. As such, It is not something that goes out of us. It is the acceptance by the conscious mind of something that resides in and originates with God and it finds its strength and motivation in what God is.

We might even liken faith to the sun. The sun is outside of us, and yet anyone, but anyone, can choose to step outside and bask in the sun’s warm rays. Just as the sun is always there, so the Son is always there. It remains only for us to open the shutters of our minds so that our souls may be bathed in the Son's healing, warming rays.

This being the case, we must not look within ourselves for increased faith. Our trust, our hope, our confidence must be directed at God and must rest solely on what He is, on what He has promised, and on what He has provided and on what He will continue to provide.

In order to open the shutters that faith may shine into my soul, however, there is something in me that must step aside - and that something is self-reliance. Self-reliance is the shutter that keeps out the sunshine of faith.

Please notice that "Jesus overcame through submission and faith in God.’ (DA130). In other words, Jesus emptied Himself of self-reliance that He might rely totally on God and that He might be filled with all that emanates from God.

And this is precisely how we are to develop "great faith." We have to declare, with sincerity, "not me, not my way, nothing is mine; but You, Your way, all is yours."

So, whoever you may be, dear reader, do not bemoan your small faith, or your sickly spiritual experience. You have only to open the shutters of your soul.

In order to reinforce this message, let us consider faith from yet another angle. Faith can be compared to a fountain. This fountain gushes forth freely in eternal torrents, and all are invited to come and to drink - without cost or condition. This fountain was put in place by an infinitely kind Father and, as such, God delights to see you drinking at His fountain.

Do not allow your sinfulness to keep you from bowing at the fountain. All you have to do is to come, to kneel, and to drink - yes, that's right, you do have to kneel . . . and this is the part that many find so difficult - they are so erect in self-dependence that they cannot kneel.

Nevertheless, no matter who you are, no matter what your past, no matter what your present condition, your faith is established on the promises and provisions of God - I repeat, your faith is not established on what you are, on what you have done or failed to do, or on where you come from. You only need to open the shutters of your soul - cast out your self-reliance, and wallow in God’s kindness as it billows and gushes and erupts and bursts and floods into your life.

Let’s put it this way, you cannot have what you do not reach out for, and faith demands that you reach out and take it. All that God is asking is that you reach out your absolutely empty and unworthy hand that He might fill it. Yes, your hand must be empty, for you have nothing of your own that is worth anything. Come, just as you are, empty handed, and take up the Word of God - for this is the fountain of faith. By opening God’s Word, we open our eyes, that we might drink from the fountain, - "faith comes by hearing, and hearing comes by the word of God." (Romans 10:17)

Just remember, therefore, that the smaller you are in your own eyes, the greater you will become in His strength; and the less you see to praise in yourself, the more you will see to love and adore and to praise in Him.

Scripture only records two occasions when Jesus commended people for their "great faith." And they were certainly not the high and mighty and notable ones of earth. Study the characters of these two people and you will realise just how easy it is to be commended by the Master for your great faith. (See Luke 7:6, 7; Matt 15:27, 28)

`Genuine faith has its foundation in the promises and provisions of the Scripture.’ (DA126)

In the light of this meditation, the reader is referred to the feature, A Brand New You, at our outreach site.