Serving proudly since 1873 as the beautiful Nebraska Panhandle's first newspaper

God Is Enough

A man asked his pastor, “How do I make God’s voice louder…?”

His pastor said, “God’s voice is as loud as it’s gonna get. Other things in your life have to get quieter so you can hear God better.”

Pastor King Duncan said, “So, is that what we’re missing? Have other voices become so loud in our lives that they have drowned out God’s voice? We equate faith with healings and miracles and flashy evangelistic crusades where people shout and faint and speak in tongues. We want a loud, miraculous display of power to prove our faith.  Instead, God plants His Spirit in our hearts and minds and grows us into a people who reflect God’s character.”

Pastor Duke Kwon wrote in his Twitter feed, January 2, 2022.…

“We demand answers; God gives us wisdom.

We demand ease; God gives us endurance.

We demand certainty; God gives us faith.

We demand a crown; God gives us a cross.

We demand His gifts; God gives us Himself.”

The apostles didn’t know what they were askin’ for when they asked Jesus to increase their faith – they wanted to be able to do everything they’d seen Jesus doin’ – but they wanted it without the relationship and the work that goes with it.  Jesus didn’t give them what they wanted – bigger and better faith – instead He gave them what they needed – a relationship with Himself! 

Jesus said, “If the same person sins against you seven times a day, and turns back to you seven times and says, ‘I repent,’ you must forgive.”  Basically, He was saying forgiveness is s’posed to be limitless – seven is the number of perfection – so the implication is that there’s no end to how many times we must forgive when asked.  It’s then that the disciples said to Jesus, “Increase our faith!”

Pastor Jason Buckwalter wrote about this word, ‘increase.’  He said, “The word the apostles use for “increase” in the Greek as in “increase my faith” is “prostithemi. That word is the same word from which we get the word prosthetic, as in prosthetic leg or arm. A prosthetic is not a natural appendage; it’s a manufactured piece added to the body to replace the natural limb which was lost. Basically, the disciples are asking for a crutch.”

I like this because it’s as if the disciples are sayin’, “Oy, vey, Jesus, we can’t do that on our own! We can’t forgive that much! We don’t have enough faith! You’re gonna have to give us a whole lot more than what we’ve already got if we’re gonna learn to live that way…!” 

But you see – Jesus was telling them they already had their portion – they already had the faith God had given them – and they ALREADY had enough…!

This morning I’m tellin’ you the exact same thing: When it comes to faith – you already have your portion; you already have what God has given you; you ALREADY have enough…!

Pastor Corey Jenkins

Faith Methodist Church

 

Reader Comments(0)