4 Year Anniversary Sunday: Faith For The Future

4 Yr Anniversary Sunday: Faith For The Future

August 21st, 2022/Casey Middle School

Story: Coming back to faith. Not for the sake of faith, but for the sake of the call. We’re in the middle of many miracles. We’re standing in the middle of a miracle.

More than effort, more than a strategy, more than a model, I believe God is calling each and every believer in this house to a season of increased faith. Faith for the future. Faith for forgiveness. Faith for healing. Faith for salvations. Faith for the impossible.

“Jesus said to her, “Didn’t I tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?” - John 11:40 CSB

Has there ever been a time where you needed faith for something? Or maybe faith for someone? What have you stopped believing in? What have you concluded that “it’s never going to happen”, “it’s just too much”, “it’s just too impossible.”?

There’s a passage in the Gospel of Luke that helps us understand what it means to not only have faith, but to live by faith. It speaks to not only the reality of faith, but the potential that faith in Jesus offers. Would you turn with me in your bibles to…

Passage: Luke 17:5-10 CSB

The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith.” 6 “If you have faith the size of a mustard seed,” the Lord said, “you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it will obey you. 7 “Which one of you having a servant tending sheep or plowing will say to him when he comes in from the field, ‘Come at once and sit down to eat’? 8 Instead, will he not tell him, ‘Prepare something for me to eat, get ready, and serve me while I eat and drink; later you can eat and drink’? 9 Does he thank that servant because he did what was commanded? 10 In the same way, when you have done all that you were commanded, you should say, ‘We are unworthy servants; we’ve only done our duty.’”

Pray:

Title: Faith For The Future

Defining Terms:

Faith = Total dependence on God and a willingness (desire) to do His will.

Big Idea:

1. Faith in Jesus that is authentic has the power to do the impossible.
2. Faith deepens as we humbly obey what God tells us to do

Main Points: 5 truths of faith

1. The Author of Faith

   1. The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith.”

      1. They sought out the big faith! The supersized faith that could provide such forgiveness.

         1. The size of their faith is not nearly as important as the object of their faith.
         2. When you have even the smallest faith in the all powerful God then you have the right faith for whatever you need.

         3. The character of God grounds us and the faith in God propels us! 2. They went to the right person.

         4. Here’s how I’d apply that. They did not say to themselves, “I’ll work on my faith”

         5. They did not go to the pastor and say, “Preach a strong word so that my faith may increase”. How many of you know I can preach a strong word and I can encourage you in the faith, but I can't make your faith grow.
         6. They did not say, “I will read a book, listen to the latest podcast, and that will increase my faith.”
         7. No, they said to the Lord, “Increase our faith.”
         8. The Author and Finisher of our faith alone can provide the increase.

         9. Question: Where do you go to increase your faith? 3. Application: If any of you desire to have a growing faith, cry out to God “Lord, increase my faith!”

         10. If you doubt God’s character and promises, then how can you believe for the impossible?

         11. If your money is tight, go to the Lord, and say, “Increase my faith; You are my provider”
         12. If your marriage is struggling, go to Him, and say, “Increase my faith, You are the God of restoration”
         13. Are you sick and full of pain, go to your Father and say, “Increase my faith, You are the Great Physician”
         14. Are you tired and feeling overwhelmed? Go to the Father and pray, “Increase my faith! You are my comfort and peace”
         15. Have you little faith? Take it to Jesus, make the request, submit to His provision in your life and pray “Increase my faith! You are all that I need!”
         16. Question: What is it that you need faith for right now?
         17. By faith ____________. You fill in the blank.
         18. OK, so we looked at where God says we need to go to increase our faith now, we need to understand The Capacity of Faith.

2. The Capacity of Faith

   1. The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith.”

      1. Faith can grow by talking to Jesus, reading the Word, and obeying what God tells you to do.
      2. “Lord, increase our faith”, you could also say, “Lord, help us to believe that you can do this through me”

      3. Notice what they did not say…

         1. They did not say, “Lord increase our love”
         2. They did not say “Lord increase our strength”

         3. They thought “That’s impossible, we need more faith!” 4. When you pause in faith then you will fail in battle! 5. Illust: Just as a wheel keeps its momentum as it progresses, but when it stands still it falls to the ground. So is our faith that remains stagnant. It must increase as we face new seasons, new challenges, new battles ahead! 6. Illust: You want faith for a house, but you lack the faith to tithe.

         4. You want faith for a spouse, but you lack faith that God can break you free from your porn addiction.

         5. You want faith for a platform, but you lack faith for the private prayer life.

         6. You want faith for a promotion, but you lack the faith that God can use you in your current position. 7. Question: Who wants mature faith? Deep roots? Increased faith for the battle ahead?

         7. Your next step of faith is believing in the character of God, your next step is believing in the promises of God!

3. The Reality of Faith

   1. 6 “If you have faith the size of a mustard seed,” the Lord said, “you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it will obey you.
   2. Jesus is using an agricultural metaphor as a hyperbole to demonstrate that it’s not as much the size of your faith as much as how you exercise genuine faith in our great and powerful God! The focus is not on the quantity of faith, but the reality of it.

   3. The mustard seed was proverbial for its small size.

      1. It is uncertain what tree the sycamine was, but most think of the black mulberry. *Show Picture
      2. From Leon Morris, Luke (Tyndale New Testament Commentaries), on Luke 17:6.
      3. The rabbis held that the roots of the tree with this name would remain in the earth for 600 years (SB). Clearly it was very firmly rooted, so that removing it would be difficult.
      4. Jesus is saying that nothing is impossible by faith!
      5. You want healing, bring your faith, you want restoration, bring your faith, you want provision, bring your faith, you want a miracle, have FAITH and trust God with the answer!
         4. A little goes a long way
      6. Story: Conversation with Ryan. “Everyone puts their faith in something dad. If you believe nothing, then that’s still faith in nothing.”
      7. The same is true when we put our faith in sex, fame, money, drugs, relationships, etc. The reality is devastating. It will not only lead to a jacked up root system, but it can bring about damaging results to the fruit.
      8. But when we dig our roots deep in Christ we become firmly established. A place for nourishment and hope to a world in desperate need of purpose.

4. The Potential of Faith

   1. 6 “If you have faith the size of a mustard seed,” the Lord said, “you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it will obey you.

   2. Illust: A seed to a tree. There’s more potential than you realize or could ever rationalize.

      1. “Because of your little faith,” he told them. “For truly I tell you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will tell this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.” - Mt 17:20
      2. Question: Who here needs some faith for something impossible in your life? If it aligns with the will of God, then let faith rise up! This is a house of prayer, full of faith!
      3. Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and He will act, - Ps 37:5.
      4. When God moves, who can stop Him?! When God speaks, who can stand against Him?!
      5. 3 For this is what love for God is: to keep his commands. And his commands are not a burden, 4 because everyone who has been born of God conquers the world. This is the victory that has conquered the world: our faith. - 1 John 5:3–4
      6. C’mon church! Let faith rise up! We have victory in Jesus' name! There’s more potential in the seed than you realize! That's GOOD NEWS. John says OUR FAITH in Jesus has conquered the world! Somebody say “I got a seed!”
      7. OK so y'all just said you got a seed... you know now you have to do something with that seed... Let's talk about number 5, the Work of Faith

5. The Attitude of Faith

   1. 7 “Which one of you having a servant tending sheep or plowing will say to him when he comes in from the field, ‘Come at once and sit down to eat’? 8 Instead, will he not tell him, ‘Prepare something for me to eat, get ready, and serve me while I eat and drink; later you can eat and drink’? 9 Does he thank that servant because he did what was commanded? 10 In the same way, when you have done all that you were commanded, you should say, ‘We are unworthy servants; we’ve only done our duty.’”

   2. Jesus has given us Salvation. We did nothing to earn it, but He graciously gives us unconditional love. He has broken the chains of sin and has given us freedom in Him. He is our provider, our comforter, our Redeemer.

      1. The Christian life is not what you or I can do for Christ, but what Christ wants to do in and through our lives.

         3. Nobody owes me anything, Jesus gave me everything!
         4. Serving with the wrong attitude:

      2. Doing our duty because we have to.

      3. Doing our duty so that we might be seen.
      4. Doing our duty because we hope to gain a reward.

      5. “And who has ever given to God, that he should be repaid?” - Romans 11:35

         5. “Where’s my reward?!” “Where’s my recognition?!” Excuse me?! What do you think this is? This is not American Idol, this is war. This is a battle against a very real enemy. This is not the time for unwarranted confidence or spiritual arrogance. We have been called, we have a mission, we have a duty to do!

      6. Nobody shouts in the middle of a warzone “Do you see how good I’m doing!” No!! Everyone is fighting for something bigger than themselves!

Song I wrote while studying:

Where there is faith, there is a seed

Planted in the ground, waiting to receive.

Where there is faith, there is peace

Growing in obedience, and resting in His grace

In faith, we say let the mountains move

In faith, we say let the giants fall

In faith, we say let revival come

You have our yes, you have our all

Invitation: