Search

“What if I have weak faith?”

When we read about Abraham, it seems like he’s this superhuman figure. Always making the right decision, never doubting, and consistently devout in his thinking.

There’s even a Bible verse that people have used to put forward this notion:

He did not weaken in faith when he considered his own body, which was as good as dead (since he was about a hundred years old), or when he considered the barrenness of Sarah’s womb. Romans 4:19

We read that and sometimes the message is, “Abraham didn’t weaken in faith! He was always confident in God’s promises. And you should never weaken in your faith also! Don’t question God! Don’t doubt!”

The problem is that’s just not true.

It’s not true in reality. No one is like that, not even Abraham. It’s not human. Humans change all the time. We aren’t robots.

It’s not true according to Genesis. The Bible records many times where Abraham’s faith gets weak. He questions God a number of times. (Exhibit A, Exhibit B, Exhibit C, Exhibit D)

It’s not even true according to this verse! If we read on, it says,

No distrust made him waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God, fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised. Romans 4:20-21

Did you see it?

The Bible says, he grew strong. He wasn’t always strong. But he grew strong in his faith as he worshipped God.

Having faith isn’t about being this inhuman, godlike, unflappable demeanor. That’s the least important part about faith because that’s about you. The most important part of faith is who it’s based on.

When Jesus’ disciples asked God to increase their faith, this was His response:

The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith!” And the Lord said, “If you had faith like a grain of mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you. Luke 17:5-6

According to Jesus, faith isn’t about how much faith I have. Because I could have tons of faith in the wrong thing. Instead, what matters is WHO our faith is on. Because even a little amount of that faith will move mountains.

  • It’s okay to question God, as long as you listen and wait for His assurance.
  • It’s okay to have a small amount at times, as long as you have it in the right person.
  • It’s okay to ask Jesus to increase our faith.
  • It’s okay to have faith, while still struggling with a few doubts as well. (Verse)

The story of Abraham isn’t the story of a Herculean man who impressed God and fathered a nation. Not even close.

It’s the story of an ordinary man with a marvelous God who did wonderful things for him. And that’s our story as well.

 

Join the discussion

4 comments

More blog posts

Our National Purpose

I’m posting something I wrote for one of our discussion forums in Asbury Seminary. (I’m in seminary, by the way.) I just wanted to...

Connect with Joe