Sermon Series: My Faith Looks Up to Thee
We sometimes use the word faith very casually. We say, “Just have faith.” We tell people to “keep the faith” or talk about making “a leap of faith.”
As Jesus' journey to Jerusalem nears its conclusion, he begins to talk about faith in ways that are anything but casual. He says profound things about the power of faith: “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” (Luke 17:6). Or “Your faith has made you well” (Luke 17:19). In thinking about his second coming, Christ wonders aloud, “When the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?”
Jesus’ words are serious and compelling. They force us to consider what true, saving faith is. Jesus’ words move us to ask him to give us a greater, stronger faith. And his words help us to continually look to our God, who alone gives faith its power.
Week 4: My Faith Looks Up to Thee and Depends Entirely on You
As we wrap up the series My Faith Looks Up to Thee, we consider a message from Luke’s gospel, in which a rich young ruler asked Jesus a straightforward question: “What must I do to inherit eternal life?” There are many who believe—and many Christians who believe—that the way to heaven lies in our own good deeds. That we’re good enough to earn heaven ourselves. But in this gospel account, Jesus cut right to the heart of this man’s false belief in his own good works. Jesus uncovered the idol that was standing in the way of this young man’s faith relationship with God. And in this interaction, Jesus challenges us to examine our own attitudes, self-righteousness and idolatry. And we see that everything we have and everything that we hope for depends entirely upon the God that we look to in faith.