“He presented another parable to them, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and sowed in his field; and this is smaller than all other seeds, but when it is full grown, it is larger than the garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and nest in its branches’” (Matthew 13:31-32). A little passage with a great, big message from Jesus. And how about Matthew 21:21-22, “And Jesus answered and said to them, ‘Truly I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what was done to the fig tree, but even if you say to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and cast into the sea,’ it will happen. And all things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive.’”
MUSTARD SEED OF FAITH MOVES MOUNTAINS. Man, I want some of that mustard seed faith! How about you? If Jesus can heal lepers, make the blind to see, stop hurricane force winds, make fish swim into nets, walk on water, cast out demons, raise the dead, and top it off by dying on the cross and rising from the dead on the third day, then there might just be a chance that He can work in our lives if we just believe.
It’s tough isn’t it? I mean, maybe if we had seen Jesus perform all of those miracles with our own eyes we would have more faith. Problem: Judas was with Jesus for over three years and saw everything and look what he did! And, what about the other apostles? Jesus told them over and over and over again that He would die on the cross and rise from the dead yet they denied Him and scattered like sheep when He was arrested. Thomas makes a great witness for Jesus because of his unbelief as we read in John 20:24-29, “But Thomas, one of the twelve, called Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples were saying to him, “We have seen the Lord!” But he said to them, “Unless I see in His hands the imprint of the nails, and put my finger into the place of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe. After eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came, the doors having been shut, and stood in their midst and said, ‘Peace be with you.’ Then He said to Thomas, ‘Reach here with your finger, and see My hands; and reach here your hand and put it into My side; and do not be unbelieving, but believing.’ Thomas answered and said to Him, ‘My Lord and my God!’ Jesus said to him, ‘Because you have seen Me, have you believed? Blessed are they who did not see, and yet believed’”.
How about reading and meditating on just one verse today: I Peter 1:8. It relates to us 100%. We are in the same boat as these first century Christians. Like us, they did not see Jesus, yet they had tremendous faith –even suffering for their faith. We can indeed believe based on the evidence in the gospels. And, even with a mustard seed faith God can work powerfully in our lives. Listen to Just Believe by Josh Wilson and have a great day in the faith.
1 Peter 1:8
Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy,