BY PASTOR DOUG BATCHELOR
An Amazing Fact: You probably already know that eagles have superior vision to humans. But did you know why? Their eyes are packed with up to a million light-sensitive sensory cells per square millimeter of retina. In contrast, you and I only have about 200,000 per square millimeter. And while we have only one fovea, a part of the retina where vision is sharpest, eagles have two. Eagles are also able to see five basic colors, where people can only see three, enabling the great birds to pick out even the most well-camouflaged prey. Their incredible ability to focus on an object even miles away helps these majestic creatures find easily food and feed their young.
The word faith is mentioned 231 times in the Bible, with 229 of those found in the New Testament. For those who posses faith, the Bible promises great things: “For by grace are ye saved through faith” (Ephesians 2:8). We must have faith to please God, (Heb 11:6), and ultimately to be saved, (Eph 2:8). So I am sure you will agree that faith is an essential component of the Christian life.
Would it surprise you then to know that Christ commends just two people for having great faith during His ministry? You can read about those rare events in Matthew 8:5–13 and Matthew 15:21–28. I also find it very compelling that neither of the two people were members of “the church.” They were Gentiles. Yet Christ marvels at their faith! Wouldn’t you like to be a person like that?
Sadly, most often, Christ’s closest followers, those in the church, were chastised for their “little faith.” In Matthew 8:23–27, Jesus and His disciples are in a boat on the Sea of Galilee when a fearsome storm blows in. Yet while Jesus slept in perfect trust of His Father, the disciples panicked. I can understand their reaction, because I have been on much larger boats during storms, and it is not fun. When you’re far from shore, and the sky is black and the waters are dark, you feel very small and very and expendable. When the disciple awoke Jesus, they must have been surprised by His rebuke: “Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith?” (Matthew 8:26).
But before you are tempted to become discouraged, Jesus explains how much faith we need. “If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you” (Matthew 17:20). A mustard seed was one of the smallest seeds in the Middle East, yet even that amount of real faith can move mountains! With a little seed of faith watered by the Holy Spirit, God can do much.
Focusing on Faith
So how do we obtain this mountain moving faith? Don’t you want to have the confidence that Jesus says you can have in Mark 11:22, 23? “Have faith in God. For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith.”
That is a pretty amazing passage. If you ask and pray in faith in accordance with God’s will, you can expect what you’re praying for to be done — no matter how big or small. How can you get that kind of faith if you don’t have it now?
First of all you need a little faith to receive more. "Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them" (Mark 11:24).
If you don't have even that much, start by reading the Word of God.
The Bible tells us. “So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God” (Romans 10:17). Hearing and reading the Word of God is the starting point for a resurrection of your faith.
Finally, the children of Israel, like Joshua and Caleb, that survived the wilderness wandering and made it to the promised land all had one thing in common. They did not focus on the problems, they focused their faith on God. (Numbers 13:30).