by Will Willimon
Gospel Reading: Luke 17:5-10
For Sunday, October 6, 2013: Year C—Lectionary 27
What is faith? Faith is trust, belief, conviction, relationship. If I say, “I have faith that this jet will get me to Omaha,” I’m saying all that.
If someone is able to say, “I have faith that Jesus Christ is the whole truth about God,” Christians believe that is not a personal, intellectual achievement, or the result of being an especially good or spiritually adept person. It’s a gift of God. God gives us faith so that we may be in relationship with God.
More Faith
Here’s a hard question: How can I deepen my faith? That’s the question the disciples asked Jesus; “Increase our faith.” They already had some faith in Jesus; after all, they were following him around as disciples. What they yearned for was more trust, surer belief, stronger conviction, deeper relationship that is, more faith.
Jesus responds by telling them they don’t need a lot of faith, just a tiny mustard seed of faith will do. Still they asked, “Increase our faith.” If faith is a gift, that is grace, that makes all the more baffling Jesus’ response to his disciples. Jesus then responds with a little story about some faithful servants who work hard for their master and do their duty. What was Jesus getting at by responding to the question, “Increase our faith,” by talking about some hard working servants who simply do their duty?
Works Righteousness?
They ask him to give them more faith; Jesus responds, “If you have faith” (implying that they do have faith), then you will do your duty and work hard for the Master.
At this, the Protestant in me gets nervous. Is Jesus in danger of preaching that dreaded “works righteousness” that we Protestants fear? We can be righteous, set right with God, only by the action of a good God who does for us that which we cannot do for ourselves, not by our good works. If faith is a divine gift that only God can give, why Jesus’ talk about work and duty when asked for more faith?
Doing Faith
I think Jesus might have been saying, “You want increased faith? Then keep at being faithful.” Put another way, “You get more faith not by closing your eyes, trying real hard to feel or to believe something. More faith comes through faithful living. Just do it; your faith will be increased, not as a personal achievement, but as a gift of God.”
God loves us enough to give us rituals, sacraments, practices, habits that – in the doing – God graciously uses to increase our faith. Being a Christian is not simply believing a set of ideas; it’s taking up a way of life and, in living this way of life, we are brought closer to God, that is, our faith is increased.
When Believing is Difficult
“I find it difficult to believe some of the statements in the Creed,” a frustrated person said to his priest. “How can I stand and affirm what I don’t really believe?”
His priest replied, “Just keep saying it. Eventually, it may come to you. Until then, the church will keep believing for you until you are ready to believe it yourself.”
Want to increase your faith? Set aside some time each day for study. Read and digest, “The Hardest Questions” blog! Try praying for someone besides yourself every day at the same time of day. Dutifully do the faith and you are bound to find more faith.
The Strangest Thing
“The strangest thing happened to me today as we repeated the Lord’s Prayer together,” she said. “There I was, just saying the prayer I said ten thousand times, just repeating the words without thinking about it and suddenly, ‘Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done,’ really hit me. I had been going through a tough time in my life, struggling with which way I ought to walk. Today, suddenly I was overcome with a willingness to let God’s will be done in my life, whether what God might will is difficult or easy. For the first time, I really mean it.”
Just doing her duty, just saying the words she had been taught, God had increased her faith. In regard to faith, just do it! God will handle the rest.
The Hardest Question
In my reading of this text am I guilty of commending dreaded “works righteousness?”
Will Willimon is a bishop (religious authority, brother to the Pharisees) of the United Methodist Church, retired. He is Professor of the Practice of Christian Ministry at Duke Divinity School, Durham, NC where he tries to get future pastors to ask hard questions. Will is the author of many books. His latest book is a novel (!) about a church, its clergy, and members, Incorporation, from Cascade Press, Eugene, Oregon. Will blogs at "A Peculiar Prophet"—willwillimon.com.
