Can you measure
your faith in God?
In the time of the
prophet Habakkuk, the southern kingdom of Judah is in a desperate position, and
Habakkuk is grappling with questions about the very nature of God: Why do
you let me see ruin? the prophet asks God.
Habakkuk is surrounded by destruction
and violence, by strife and clamorous
discord. But God insists that
Habakkuk must simply be patient and trust:
the just one, because of his
faith, shall live. It’s never easy
for human beings to be patient, especially when they don’t understand what’s
going on around them. When the Israelites
are traveling through desert in the Book of Exodus, they fail to be patient
with God and, at Massah and Meribah, as Psalm 95 reminds us, they test the Lord
to see if he will intervene and provide them with water on demand. The people are not patient, they do not
trust; they have little faith.
Jesus’ apostles have
similar issues around trust in Luke’s Gospel.
Increase our faith, they say
as they journey with Jesus to Jerusalem. But Jesus is quick to point out that
it’s not the measure of their faith, but its very existence that is in question: If you
have faith the size of a tiny, ordinary mustard
seed, he tells them, you could do extraordinary things. Consequently, they should not be seeking grace
on demand, or an extra dollop of faith; rather, they should be patient and
serve, simply doing what they are obliged
to do as his disciples, as his followers, with trust, open to the little
faith they can muster. The rest will come
in due course. For all of God’s gifts,
as Paul will remind the downhearted pastor Timothy, are forms of grace,
particularly love and self-control,
gifts that Paul calls a rich trust that
Timothy must guard, a treasure for
which Paul has been but a conduit: sound words born in the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. Timothy, like Habakkuk, like us, must simply remain
patient and keep his heart open, in faith and in love, trusting in the Lord, and
allowing God’s love to grow in him.
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