Where is your faith?

Where is your faith?

Luke 8:22-25

Key Verse 25

Introduction:

In the middle of a life crisis, Jesus asked his disciples a very probing question, “Where is your faith?”

Through today’s passage, I want to examine our faith and perhaps be able to answer to Jesus’ question, "Where is your faith?"

In the first part of Ch. 8, Jesus taught the people. The main medium of the teaching was a parable  about faith. It was like a lecture in a class room, where the main subject was faith. But today’s passage is about what happened as Jesus and his disciples went over to the other side of the lake. There are two events recorded from this trip. One is the event of a storm, and the other is about saving a demon-possessed man in the region of the Gerasenes, a Gentile territory. These two events are recorded together  in three of the gospels: Matt, Mark and Luke. This means that these two events were viewed to be interwoven in their significance and  purpose.

V22. One day, Jesus told his disciples “Let’s go to the other side of the lake” This side of the lake (the western side) was a Jewish area and the other side (the eastern side) was a Gentile area, maybe near or in the outskirts of the city, Hippos, one of the ten city-federations of the Roman colony, composed mostly of Greek inhabitants. The lake shore of the eastern side was walled off by a steep elevation.

V23. As Jesus told them, they got a  ship and set off for the other side of the lake. When they were in the middle of the lake, they faced sudden winds,  rain, and  raging waters. It was so severe that the ship was filling with water and was being tossed around like a toy by the raging waters. The twelve disciples did  their best to keep the ship afloat, but the storm was too much for them to handle. They struggled, possibly for hours, but they were losing the battle against this raging storm. In their minds, it was just a matter of time before the ship  capsized and they all would be drowned; their lives were like a flickering light. Actually, death seemed to be  at the door of their lives.

Drowning creates one of the worst fears. The moment we realize that we cannot win against the raging waters, we begin to panic and  cannot swim well. The fear of death strikes most vividly upon those who are drowning. When I was in 7^th grade, I was almost drowned  because I could not swim. I was maybe about 30 seconds in water, up and down, inhaling water, but, for me, it  felt like hours of struggling, fighting for my life, until someone reached out his hand. In life, we will surely face crises. While the disciples were struggling for their lives, what was Jesus doing?

In this situation, Jesus was sleeping in the stern. It was amazing that Jesus could sleep in such a situation. Why was he sleeping in such a crisis of life? Did he not know? Did he not care? Simply, he was sleeping so heavy and so sound. We do not know, and the Bible does not say anything, about why. At the end of their rope, the disciples had no choice but to wake him up, so they said, “Master, Master we are going to drown”.

They pushed the panic button. Was it to let him know the situation or was it to call for help? To their surprise, as soon as he woke up, he rebuked the wind and raging waters. Rebuking a storm was a strange thing, but all the more strange  was that immediately the storm subsided and all was calm. While the disciples were struck by awe at this amazing miracle, Jesus said  to his disciples “Where is your faith?”

It was a mixture of a gentle rebuke and a question. Jesus expected them to use their faith at such a time as this, but they did not use their faith at all. Why did they not use their faith? I will explore the reason through reviewing what they went through and what they said.

V25b “In fear and amazement they asked one another, "Who is this? He commands even the winds and the water, and they obey him."”

Who is this? The ‘Jesus’ that rebuked the storm was not the person that they thought they knew. They came  face-to-face with a Jesus that was totally different from one they knew. He was far greater and more powerful than they imagined and they were filled with fear and amazement. . Being with him had a  chilling effect and gripped them with fear.

What was the faith that they had before this event? It’s good to examine what they had believed about Jesus.

We can begin this by examining the experience of Peter and his three  companions, his brother Andrew, John and James (Ch. 5). When Jesus told Peter to put  the net down into the deep water, Peter said this: “Simon answered, "Master, we've worked hard all night and haven't caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets"” (Luke 5:1 NIV).

When they did so, they caught so many fish that the net was almost breaking. Seeing that miraculous catch, Peter immediately  prostrated himself before Jesus and said “Go away from me, Lord! I am a sinful man”. Peter felt that Jesus had a power that he had never seen before. That power was of God and from God. Peter and his companions came to realize that Jesus had great power even over the fish. Previously,  Jesus had healed a servant who was far away simply by saying a word of command (Ch. 7:1-10). They also saw Jesus raise a widow’s dead son in the city of Nain (Ch. 7:11-17), and witnessed the healing of a centurion’s servant . Without any doubt, they believed that Jesus was the Messiah who came to save the nation of Israel. In this way, they thought that they knew Jesus as the one who could even raise the dead to life. Jesus was the one that had godly power.

In this storm, they faced a life-threatening situation. The force and power of  nature was  immense, beyond any man’s ability to handle. Seeing the imminent danger to their lives, they were captured by fear and they panicked.

The threat to life was beyond their ability to control or  contain. Helplessly, they had to succumb to the natural forces. At this time, Jesus was sleeping at the stern. It was possible that they had forgotten Jesus as they struggled to fight against the storm. One thing we know is that, in their mind, Jesus’ presence or his power did not matter much. Simply, his presence with them was irrelevant to this crisis. Why? What they thought about is well revealed in what they said to Jesus:

V24a. “"Master, Master, we're going to drown!"” I would like to delve into what they said to Jesus.

First, about their call of “Master, Master”: “Master” means teacher. To them, Jesus was an excellent and powerful teacher a great man. This word ‘Master’ is different from the word ‘Lord’. As we noted in the previous quote by Peter, he used “Lord” instead of Master as he faced the power of God as revealed in Jesus. The word “Lord” denotes one that has authority and power; it was used for  figures like kings,  who had absolute authority over their subjects. On the other hand, ‘Lord’ was used invariably to denote God (Luke 1-2). In this way, ‘Master’ is totally different from ‘Lord’. Especially in Luke, whenever they referred to Jesus with proper faith, the word ‘Lord’ was consistently used. Never before used as a call, Master slowly took on new meaning as a call to God.

In this time of crisis, they called Jesus ‘Master’. When faced with such danger, no one could think through what the proper title was for him. Simply, whatever was in their heart came out naturally. So ‘Master’ reflected exactly what they thought of who Jesus was to them. In this way, Jesus was their master. They gave Jesus the credit worthy of a great teacher and a man with great power and ability.  They might also have been thinking of Jesus along the lines of being a great prophet, like Elijah, or a great king like David. Could King David do anything in such situation as this violent storm? No one would think so.

It is interesting that they did not use the word ‘Lord’. Though it is used to call kings, in respect to their honor, authority, and power, only the word ‘Lord’ contains the authority and power of God Himself. This difference is well-noted as I discussed when speaking of Jesus' call to Peter (Ch. 5).

In their panic, they woke  Jesus up by calling “Master, Master”. What is the faith they had in Jesus? In the depths of their hearts, Jesus was just a great man, a great and powerful teacher or like a superman. He could not handle this storm any better than we could because the storm was beyond any human power. He was not seen as God or the Son of God.

Such an understanding is supported by the way they addressed the problem: “We are going to drown.” This may be a way of asking for help, but this also might not be them asking for help at all. It might have been them just telling him what the emergency was that they were facing. A strong demand for help was not expressed and most likely was not the primary purpose of or primary force in this statement.

They saw Jesus raising the dead to life, so they believed that Jesus could resurrect the dead. Could they apply this belief to their lives? If they did so, then they would not have feared the storm and their minds would not have suffered during such a crisis of life. This is what Jesus meant when he said to them, “Where is your faith? If you believed that I can raise the dead to life, why do you worry about your life while I am still with you?”

We live with worries and fear for practically our whole lives. M Reb worries about her overweight,  pre-diabetic figures. Boyang worries about his EPT extension; can, or will it be issued on time, or will it be issued at all? How long can I stay in this job? These questions may fill his mind. Michael may be worrying about his future and his job interview. I worry about my health. Over the last few weeks, I have had aches in many different parts of my body and I feel myself losing the energy to do things. I have begun studying Hebrew, but I am not sure if I can keep up with the class, not only because of my lack of energy but also because I am losing my passion for God’s truth. If we cannot trust Jesus in these little things, how can we trust Jesus in the big things, such as a life-threatening storm? We may face the same question from him, “where is your faith?” What would be your answer?

Before giving an answer, I would like to delve into a few basic things: human nature, what is faith as defined in  Scripture, and how  we can live by faith.

Human nature
Here is a human predicament that no one can handle. In the crises of life, how can we not panic as these disciples did? They knew Jesus, but they did not believe he was the one who could and would save their lives in this crisis. This is the fallen nature of human beings. We all have a hard time  entrusting our lives to the hands of someone else, like Jesus, even after he demonstrated such godly power, truth, and love.

Being cut off from God’s protection and provisions, we have lived under His judgment. This is due to the way of our lives,  our being,  our habits, and our nature. Soon after being dispelled from the Garden of Eden, Cain rejected God’s counsel and God made him wander on the earth. He felt  fear for the first time in his life; having been driven from God’s presence, he feared that anyone who found him would kill him. When we are cut off from God, we are also cut off from the source of life. Our lives are our own, but when we cannot keep our lives secure, we are fearful and panic. So we fight with all our might to keep and protect our lives. These characteristics are  seen in these disciples. When the raging waves threatened their lives, they were gripped with fear. Simply, within ourselves, we have no solution. We have to admit this truth in during any of the challenges and crises of our lives. We have to decide to actively look for a solution, not from me, but from somewhere apart from ourselves. It is very difficult.

The most difficult part comes when our lives are on the line. We might be able to risk all else, but we cannot risk our lives unless we are sure, 100% sure, of a good outcome. The problem is that we cannot find such certainty anywhere! We cannot find it in the many wisdoms of the world, not from many religions, and not from our  loving and caring families and friends. All that has offered truth with  certainty has succumbed to death. Their word or truth cannot be of much help! Helplessness can be aided only by faith in God, the original One who created us and provides us with the security, life and peace for which we are searching. We have to learn to trust and  have faith in God. What is this faith that God demands from us?

What is faith?

What do you think ‘faith’ is? It can be defined as “confidence or trust in a person or thing” or “belief that is not based on proof”. It is something that is inside of us. It is difficult to substantiate exactly its size, quality or content.

Many have false ideas about faith, such as: it is believing in what you have not seen and or understood, or it is believing in what you do not know. For instance, some may say ‘I do not know God but I have to believe’; quite a number of people believe that this is faith, but this is not the faith that God is asking of us. Not at all! No man can do that. God knows this, so He never demanded people to believe outright without any evidence. Never!
Faith is giving full credit based on evidence. The evidence is seen in Jesus’ demonstration of his mighty power in catching so many fish, his healing of a servant by his word, and his raising the only son of a widow from the dead. All these lead to the truth that Jesus is the Son of God. In the essence of his being, Jesus is God. If anyone does not give Jesus credit as the living God, then he is not giving him full credit as the Lord of life. Jesus is not happy with this and such faith does not yield the real fruit of a godly life. No one can entrust his life to such a Jesus as we have seen in these disciples’ reactions. When we trust him as  the Creator of heaven and earth and the Lord of life, then in any occasion,  we can entrust our lives to his hands.  

How can we live by faith?

I like to recognize three steps in the life of faith. First is to know Christ, second is to believe Christ and  third is to practice that belief in one’s life.

a. To know Christ

The disciples knew Jesus better than anyone in the crowd, but they did now know Jesus well enough. Jesus is not a merely a man, but God Himself. He has control even over natural forces. John said this at the beginning of his revelation of Jesus; he created all things and  sustains all lives. He is the life and  the truth. This is the full knowledge of Jesus.

b. To believe Christ

We have to believe Jesus. What I mean is that we have to accept all the truth and knowledge implied through Jesus’ teachings and miracles as true to our lives. Jesus raised the only son of a widow at Nain, so he has the power to raise all the dead and  can raise my life as well. This is belief. So far this is all about what should happen in our mind and our knowledge, but this is not enough.

c. We have to live in this belief.

We have to entrust our lives based on the belief that we have accepted in our hearts. This is faith in life or in practice. Faith is considered to be something that exists in one’s mind. This is true but it does not give the full picture of faith. If you think so, then it might even be wrong.

In Heb. 11:1, it is called a certainty (NIV) or substance (KJV) that we do not see. The most vivid examples of faith are recorded in Heb. 11:23 ff.

“By faith Moses' parents hid him for three months after he was born,

because they saw he was no ordinary child, and they were not afraid of

the king's edict.  By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be

known as the son of Pharaoh's daughter.  He chose to be mistreated

along with the people of God rather than to enjoy the fleeting pleasures

of sin.  He regarded disgrace for the sake of Christ as of greater value

than the treasures of Egypt, because he was looking ahead to his reward.

 By faith he left Egypt, not fearing the king's anger; he persevered

because he saw him who is invisible.  By faith he kept the Passover and

the application of blood, so that the destroyer of the firstborn would not

touch the firstborn of Israel.  By faith the people passed through the Red

Sea as on dry land; but when the Egyptians tried to do so, they were

drowned” (Heb. 11:23-29 NIV).

In these examples of faith, their faith was expressed  by their actions. It is the substance of our inner being but it inevitably shows itself through actions. When? When will what is inside show itself on the outside by way of actions?
As we have seen in this storm, the disciples did not apply or show their faith, so Jesus rebuked them with ‘Where is your faith’? In the crises of life, the true picture of faith is revealed. If it is genuine, it comes out with conviction and power, but if it is not, then it won’t come out.

When Jesus made this gentle rebuke, saying 'where is your faith?', he is saying “why did you not ask for help or trust in me?”. Their fear and panic itself revealed their anxiety and  unbelief. Faith expresses itself by asking for help from Jesus in utter dependence; I noted before that what the disciples said was not the right kind of asking for help. It was more of making him aware of the crisis at the end of their  wisdom and strength.

Faith needs practice.

Faith that has never been tried or tested is seldom useful and unlikely to become  the kind of faith by which one can entrust his or her life to God’s hands.

Faith must begin with doing and obeying in the small things;  then we can trust Him in the big things. Eventually, we will become confident and entrust our lives to God. We must get to that point without any fear or uncertainty. It begins with obedience to the word in small things and  will lead to  faith that is able to entrust the whole life. If you think that looking for a job is a small thing,  you can trust Him and you will have joy in knowing Him. “Where is your faith?” is Jesus’ demand of us to believe even in such a situation as this.

Peter provides the best example of this; he faced numerous challenges in his life as God's servant, but he took these challenges by faith. Standing before the Sanhedrin, he said  this:

Acts 4:19 - “But Peter and John replied, "Which is right in God's eyes: to listen to you, or to him? You be the judges!”

The  Sanhedrin members threatened him, but, by faith, he stood his ground.  God protected him and he was released. In this way, he gained confidence in Jesus’ power and grace, and  eventually dared to give his life for the sake of Jesus' name. How could a coward like him do such a thing? Through this obedience, he became confident in Jesus’ presence with him. With this confidence, he could challenge all hardships. He eventually was believed to be crucified. Peter dared to follow Jesus because he had lived by faith all along.  In some sense, Jesus might have chosen him because of such ‘faithful’ traits.

This truth is also well illustrated in Jesus’ teaching on the building of a house on a rock (Luke 6:46-49).

The foundation must be built out of  confidence in Jesus’ power, will, and his being  the Lord of life. This begins when we trust him even now with small things every day.

We do not know true life unless we know what death is about. As long as  death stands as the source of our fear and anxiety, then the faith we have in Jesus may  have done little good. Against this fear, Jesus demonstrated his power as the Lord of life. That revelation came through his death and resurrection. Again, Jesus died and was resurrected!

This storm event served as the prelude to the ultimate revelation of Jesus’ power and authority as the Lord of life. Through his death, he spoke the truth about life in the present. Through his resurrection, he spoke the truth about real life, but he also demonstrated his love and power to save our lives on the cross. Faith is putting our anchor on this fact of the cross and resurrection of Christ. Faith is  giving him full credit as the Lord and owner of our lives. Then we can entrust our lives to his hands as well.

Where is your faith? Do you have any challenges in your life? If so then take the challenges by faith. Believe and move forward, entrusting the outcome to Jesus’ hand.

Then, we all can say, “Here is my faith!”

May God bless all of you to take challenges of life by faith today!