A New Look At True Faith

There have been several booklets written, and many sermons delivered, on the subject of “true faith.” Anyone who knows me and understands some of my beliefs will not be surprised when I say that once again, the ministers of the “Churches of God” have failed to fully comprehend what God and his Son Jesus have tried to convey to us about faith.

Once again I must ask the question, did Jesus ask a foolish and unnecessary question when he said: “When the Son of man comes, will he find faith on the earth?” Is it possible that he was truly concerned? When he does return will there be the level of faith he deserves to find in the true “church”; the “ekklesia”; the begotten children of God?

Do you want to hear a loud chorus of denials? Just ask about a lack of true faith in a room full of those who have been chosen, or who themselves have chosen, to minister over the Churches of God. One after the other they would preach with zeal and passion that “The Work” of God is living proof of the faith and the strength of the ministers and the “Churches” of God. This one time they would stand together in unity of voice and purpose -- instead of the differing and bickering factions that arrogance and intractability has created of them; and of us.

True faith comes from the perfect understanding of GOD’S TRUTH! Belief in a doctrine that contains error cannot be used to build the true faith of God. Make no mistake: when a Tibetan monk commits himself to a lifetime of poverty and privation in a Tibetan mountain monastery he does so by faith. When a woman takes up the orders and trappings of a Catholic nun she does so by faith. When our brethren in any of the many different and differing Churches of God follow a doctrine taught to them by their minister they do so by faith. However -- faith without truth is dead!

The ministers of the “Churches of God” have allowed error to form part of the doctrines they preach and teach. Our collective faith is based upon what we have learned and what we believe to be true. If we have accepted error as one or more of the building blocks of our faith, then that faith is flawed! If such error could have and should have been discovered and corrected, then I cannot believe that God will support such faith; and this makes me wonder if, when the Son of man comes, “…will he find faith on the earth?”

There is a saying I have adopted as an explanation for the way I approach my search for knowledge and understanding. This saying varies with the telling, but it goes something like this:
“There is no question I will not ask and ask again in my search for the understanding of God. There is no scripture I will not question and question again. There is no doctrine I will not pull apart and rebuild again and again to assure myself it is built on a foundation of truth. Every miniscule truth when proven and proven again becomes a building block to my faith. Every error, when found and corrected, adds to my understanding and my faith -- and when this happens it fills me with great joy that God my Father has seen fit to correct a child that He loves!”

I would like to dwell for a moment on the statement, “every miniscule truth.” I don’t know how many times I have heard a minister blast and ridicule those who would, “dwell on some picky point of scripture” as if all scripture had not been given to us by inspiration of God. Notice the seeds from which many things in God’s creation grow, few are more miniscule than the mustard seed; and yet God has used the mustard seed to teach us of his truths.

There are several references made to a grain of mustard seed in the New Testament and two of them are made in direct reference to faith. You will find them recorded at Matthew 17:20 and Luke 17:6. For the purpose of this discussion I shall quote the one recorded at Luke 17:6…“And the Lord said, ‘If you had faith as a grain of mustard seed, you might say unto this sycamore tree, ‘Be you plucked up by the root, and be planted in the sea’; and it should obey you.’”

Until recently, I had believed this meant that with no more faith than an infinitesimal amount the size of a mustard seed any follower of Christ could perform great miracles -- and yet, to my knowledge, not one individual in any of the “Churches of God” can perform a miracle of any kind!

The next question must therefore be: “If there is no one that can perform a miracle of any kind, is there no one in any of the “Churches of God” who has any faith at all? Is there not one person that has enough faith in size or volume equal to that of a grain of mustard seed?”

I have no doubt the ministers of the many “Churches of God” have an answer which would satisfy the majority of the brethren; after all, each of us wants to believe that we do in fact have faith. For my part, I don’t think it’s necessary to find an explanation other than that which the Bible, and Jesus himself, was trying to convey.

If Jesus was using a grain of mustard seed as an analogy of faith, would it be fair to say he was referring not to the mustard seed itself, but to the potential of that mustard seed? “If you have faith as a grain of mustard seed…” The grain of mustard seed, (by analogy), has no doubt that one day it shall grow to be of the greatest of all herbs. We as children begotten of our Father should have no doubt that one day we shall grow to be of the greatest of all beings.

Faith is something we must build slowly and carefully over a lifetime. Just as a mustard seed, properly fed and nurtured will eventually grow to become the greatest among herbs, so shall the faith of a begotten child of God grow with the strength of their knowledge and the perfection of their understanding. Just as the mustard seed is not yet the greatest of herbs; so then is the faith of the brethren not yet able to cast sycamore trees into the sea.

If there is truth to be found in any of this, then it is of paramount importance that we not allow error to enter into any of our beliefs! If error does exist, then we must find it and root it out! We cannot allow ourselves to become complacent in our beliefs; we must not be made to stand before our Lord when he returns, with shame on our face and in our hearts because of our lack of true faith!

Have the following few questions been answered by the ministers of God with the proper degree of depth and understanding? It is my belief they have not!

Q…Are those of our brethren who have “fallen away” lost to us forever?
Q…Are the angels that followed Lucifer in his rebellion doomed to the lake of fire?
Q…Is there a prophecy within the prophecy of the virgin birth?
Q…Do we truly know all that should be known about the rite of baptism?
Q…Why did Jesus refuse to drink the vinegar mixed with gall?
Q…How much time passed from the moment of Jesus’ death, to his resurrection?
Q…Was it John, or Jesus, who came in the spirit and power of Elijah?
Q…Did Jesus promise salvation to the thief who died beside him?

There are many questions that demand to be asked again! If the possibility exists that our collective beliefs may contain error, why do the ministers refuse to even discuss this possibility?

We must always remember what is written in Hebrews 11:6…“But without faith it is impossible to please him; for he that comes to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him!”

Does the diligent seeking of God end when we come to believe we have found Him; or should it continue until we are one day born again as His children? It is my personal belief that we shall go on learning into eternity -- and still we will never fully understand the wonder and complexity that is our Father and our God!