November 21: Luke 17 1-6

Key Verse: Luke 17 6
He replied, “If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it will obey you.”

Devotion:
Faith has many facets. Faith is not just the blind belief in something which is not visible but goes much deeper than that! Faith is the belief in something we cannot see but also is the willingness to do what is believed in. What use is having faith if you are not willing to carry out those beliefs and to demonstrate that faith?

Jesus showed the disciples they would have to face up to many things which go against what we think should be right or decent. If someone does something wrong against you, you have the right to tell them what they have done is wrong, but if they ask for forgiveness on that matter, we must always forgive them – even when they do it “seven times in a day!” Our faith in this case should be toward believing the other party is willing to change their ways; it may take them a while and several tries before they can get it right…

Jesus wanted them to know the smallest amount of faith can make the biggest difference in the lives of those around us, especially when we are willing to show the faith we have toward our God openly and outwardly; after all, what good is that faith if we hide it from others? Our faith in God needs to be open but also replicated toward and through others. If we demonstrate our faith in God but are not willing to show any faith in other people, nobody is going to believe us!

Christ wants us to know our faith is going to make a big difference in the world around us and if we are willing to stand by our faith no matter what, then He will be willing to work miracles in and through us. The object of our faith and the glory due is important too. If we are demonstrating faith just so we can feel better, then the only reward we are likely to see is us feeling good; but if we are willing to show our faith is grounded on Christ Himself, then we may well see much more than we expect!

Points to Ponder:
Do you doubt your faith? (Many of us do!)

Are you willing to base your faith in Christ alone?