Luke 17:1-10
More Faith
Can there ever be too much of a good thing? Is it possible to have too much good that it becomes bad? Of course, to answer this, we must define what it means that something is “good”. Good might mean here that it both helps us live or improves our life in some manner. For instance, food is something good. We need food to survive, lest we starve. But is it possible to have too much food? Absolutely! Eating too much food can become even detrimental to your overall wellbeing. What about friends? Can someone have too many friends? Perhaps we’re tempted to say no, because who doesn’t want more friends? Yet, when our friend group begins to get too large, inevitably, someone will feel neglected. It’s actually been shown psychologically that there’s a limit to the number of friends you can keep. And should these have shown us already that something good can become bad, then needless should I mention things like money, fame, or power. All the “good” things will corrupt a person by seeking the place of God in their heart. Now, I’m not trying to trick you here... but what about faith? Is it possible to have too much faith? As long as we understand it as faith in God and not faith in anything else, then... the answer is simple... no. Faith is perhaps the only “good” thing which we truly can never have too much of. For faith is different from every other tangible or intangible benefit we receive. Faith is a measure of our relationship with God. How much we fear, love, and trust in God above all things. Thus, the more faith we have, the more we know God as he is.
For let us understand this plea which the Apostles make today. This isn’t like adding money to your bank account. Rather, it’s coming to a greater understanding of ourselves and God. Let us then examine the struggles that lay before us, even as we say:
INCREASE OUR FAITH, O LORD!
I.
There’s really two concepts or words which we must understand today… sin and faith. While you may not think of it this way, these are natural opposites. If we don’t have faith, then we have sin, or if we conquer sin, then we have faith. And yes, we know that sin is an ever-present reality for us. We’re constantly sinning even while we believe in Christ alone. But let us hear what Jesus has to say first, “Temptations to sin are sure to come, but woe to the one through whom they come!” Luke 17:1. In life, we’re bound to face temptations. Now, temptations are like urges. It’s like hunger or thirst. It’s the feeling of needing something but not the actual action of doing it. This is why we say Jesus was tempted as we are, yet without sin. He faced the same urges as the rest of us, but he never gave into them. For these temptations come from a number of different places… peer pressure from family or friends, our own flesh, the world, or even Satan. We live in a sinful world where there will be untold numbers of urges to sin against God and one another. Yet, this is also why Jesus says “woe to the one through whom they come”. We should never purposefully tempt anyone towards sin. And to the one who does tempt a “little one” towards sin, “it would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck and…cast into the sea” Luke 17:2.
What is sin then? If temptations are simply the urges, what is the actual thing? Sin is more than simple disobedience. It’s not like messing up on a project or getting less than 100% on a test. Sin is every action that flows from our desire to usurp God, to be god unto ourselves. Sin is walking away from God and being turned further into yourself. Hence, Jesus tells us the fundamental process of dealing with sin. “If your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he repents, forgive him, and if he sins against you seven times in the day, and turns to you seven times, saying, ‘I repent,’ you must forgive him,” Luke 17:3-4. Sin cannot be swept under the rug. It must be rebuked and addressed lest we completely wander away. Thus, we learn about repentance that it’s a turning away from ourselves, away from Satan, and towards God and our care for others.
II.
As prevalent as sin and temptations are in our world, we all should echo daily these very words of the disciples, “Increase our faith!” Luke 17:5. If we only knew what struggles and challenges we face in life, let alone living up to the commands of our Lord, we would all fall down before our Lord pleading with him for faith even as small as a mustard seed! For faith is nothing less than our fear, love, and trust in God above all things. Faith is our desire to know God as he is in his righteousness and holiness so that we may be closer to him, even to be like him. Faith is our relationship with God in Christ and our walk with him. Our ability to forgive our brother doesn’t come from the strength within us… it comes from knowing God and his forgiveness. Loving our neighbor isn’t something that comes from within, but rather from knowing the immense love of God in our life so that it may overflow to all people!
But let us not become self-conceited even in our walk of faith. For nothing we do comes from us. Rather, it all is at the command and guidance of Christ our savior. Hence, Jesus teaches us, “So you also, when you have done all that you were commanded, say, ‘We are unworthy servants; we have only done what was our duty,” Luke 17:10. Yes, faith comes from God… it’s his revealing of himself to us. His love, his grace and mercy, his holiness and righteousness. For the urge of the Christian life is fear of God, that is, knowledge of who God is. He’s good. He’s almighty. Faith is the combination of this knowledge with love… that is the understanding that God has done all of this for me! God sent Jesus Christ to suffer and die on the cross for MY sins, in MY place! But that’s not even the end. For what good is it to know all that God has done, to know he’s done it even for me, if we don’t also act upon such knowledge? Yes, faith is fear, love, and trust. Trust that just as God has worked in the past, he will work in the future. Trust is placing our whole being, our life, our family, our goods, our happiness, and all that we are into the very hands of God… and expecting him to give us all good things!
Thus, we see that sin and faith are opposed to one another. Whereas sin is walking in step with this world, faith is knowing God and walking closer with him. Thus, we cry out, increase our faith, O Lord! Help us to fear, love, and trust in You above all things that we may do all that you command to the glory of Your holy name! In Jesus’ name! Amen!