Just what difference, then, is there between mustard seed size faith and tiny tiny faith?
Isn’t that exactly what Jesus meant when He used the comparison?
The problem with the name it and claim it kind of faith is many fold.
First of all, it puts God in a box and limits Him to what the person thinks He MUST do. It means that some person somewhere has decided how God must act at all times and insists that He always act in accord with the perception of God that the person has.
It disallows that God may have other purposes in mind that the affliction is working out in the person’s life.
It blames the person who is sick for their condition.
When Jesus healed, He healed people who weren’t looking for it and didn’t even know who He was. His healing people NEVER depended on their faith but on HIS work.
NEVER did He tell someone they weren’t healed because they didn’t have faith, like so many misguided Christians do.
If God wanted to heal everyone all the time, all that much, He could certainly do it without anyone *blocking* the healing. Jesus did it to people who didn’t know what was happening to them. They had no faith, so clearly the amount of faith is NOT a factor in a person’s healing.
And again, we still haven’t had a decent answer about God healing amputated limb and the one about Joni. She’s still in that wheelchair last I knew.
Who’s going to go to her and tell her to her face that she doesn’t have enough faith?
So suppose two women get cancer, both get prayed for and one gets healed and one doesn’t?
Who’s got the greater faith? The one who got healed or the one who still lives for Jesus and praises Him for what He’s doing in her life and isn’t rattled by the fact that she wasn’t healed?
“Name it and claim it” is all over the Bible.
“And, behold, a woman, which was diseased with an issue of blood twelve years, came behind him, and touched the hem of his garment: For she said within herself, If I may but touch his garment, I shall be whole. But Jesus turned him about, and when he saw her, he said, Daughter, be of good comfort; your faith has made thee whole. And the woman was made whole from that hour.” (Matt 9:20-22).
Many thronged him but only one said, “if I can only touch him I will be whole,” and Jesus said “Your faith has made you whole.”
Again, your argument isn’t with me, it’s with God.
There is much, much less in size than a mustard seed. Jesus was saying how very, very powerful faith is. The average, even “good” Christian may be operating on just a grain of sand of faith. Even a grain of sand of faith can accomplish much because that is how extraordinarily powerful faith is.
Metmom, we must not get caught up in thinking that if someone doesn’t have as much faith as someone else that means that they are to be considered a bad Christian. Jesus talked about talents. Some people may start out with one talent and another with three. It is what someone does with the talents that they are given that determines how much they will receive in the Kingdom to come. Also, as we are faithful with what God has given to us He will increase it. We shouldn’t get caught up in all of this guilt talk and worrying about who has more faith than someone else. We should concentrate on not judging others and doing the best we can before The LORD. It is His job to be the judge.
As far a Joni is concerned she tried, as far as I know, to be healed once and when it didn’t happen she was satisfied with her infirmity. God has truly used her mightily, but she has used her talents to her fullest. If she isn’t invested in a quest to be healed after one try that is between her and God. It doesn’t mean that God would not have at some point healed her. Maybe she could not ever be healed in this world even if she continued to try to have faith to be miraculously healed because she didn’t obtain onto faith to be healed. Either way there isn’t any condemnation. But it certainly would not hurt to try to find, before God, what it takes to have mustard seed faith for a healing. Failure isn’t worth than not trying.
I think of faith like this. For thousands of years man thought about flying and tried to fly. For thousands of years he failed. Did that mean that flying isn’t possible? No, it means man did not understand what it took to fly. Most thought it was impossible. But somewhere around the early 1900s Orville Wright flew just a short distance. It took finding out what it took to fly. Think about what has happened since he flew that short distance. Now you and I fly hundreds of miles an hour. Faith is kind of like that. Just because we haven’t seen miracles much for two thousand years since Jesus was here (and He hasn’t changed) doesn’t meant if some of us can break through to uncomplicated, child like faith and some are healed by God for real that an explosion of faith cannot happen.
In general it seems that Christians grounded in good, solid doctrine have been conditioned to not believe God for miracles and those who do try to believe are not grounded, run on their emotions and are satisfied with false miracles and prophesies. Oh for the day when the grounded realize that our God is the God of miracles. We are not trying to enforce our will upon Him when we believe Him for miracles but rather for His glory and because of His great, great love for us we are believing Him for what He already wants to do.
John 14:13 And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.
14: If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it
John 16:24 Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full.