Where Is Your Faith?

Mat 8:23-27; Luke 8:23-25

Our two scriptures today give an account of the same event that was experienced by the disciples, captured from two slightly different perspectives.

The main details of the encounter were accurately reported the same in both accounts:

They were on a journey in a boat with Jesus.

There arose a great storm that threatened to capsize the boat.

Jesus was asleep seemingly unbothered about their security and well being.

They feared for their lives and doubted the word that Jesus had spoken to them: “Let us cross over to the other side of the lake”.

Jesus arose and rebuked the wind and the storm.

Order and peace restored.

The slight point of divergence in the reports however, is the emphasis of the two disciples on the response of Jesus or shall we say, His querying rebuke concerning their attitude to the adverse conditions they were encountering; which both work together to show us what may also be our own failure point in the face of life’s challenges:

In Luke’s account (Luke 8:25), the query was simply — “Where is your faith?”

Matthew gives us an expansion of the details of the rebuke in his own account (Matt 8:26) that somewhat provides the answer to the query of the rebuke — “Why are you fearful, O you of little faith?“

The ultimate casualty of fear in any adverse situation is your faith!

As we also saw in yesterday’s scripture (Matt 14:31), at Peter’s failure point, Jesus directed a similar querying rebuke at him — “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?”

Fear and doubt are two sides of the same coin that work together to rob you of your faith in Jesus!

They have no place in the life of a believer, if we are to survive the challenges and the adverse situations that we will face in life.

Satan’s strategy is to make sure you fix your eyes on the raging storms and fill your hearing with the howling winds and contrary and dissenting voices, to cause your heart to fear and your mind to doubt the integrity of the word that God had spoken to you.

Prayer Focus

Ps 27:1-14

Dear friend, let the word of the Lord be your confession today as you step into that boat to cross to the other side:

The LORD is my light and my salvation; Whom shall I fear? The LORD is the strength of my life; Of whom shall I be afraid?

You will safely get to the other side as Christ has commanded; you will take the territory that has been appointed for you.

You will walk upon your high places and arrive at your destined port in Jesus’s mighty Name.

Amen.

Shalom!

Pastor Wale Ola