Where Is Your Faith?

Luke 8

And He said to them,"Where is your faith?" They were fearful and amazed, saying to one another, "Who then is this, that He commands even the winds and the water, and they obey Him?" – Luke 8:25 NASB

Where is your faith? This isn't so much as a question of its existence as to its focus? In other words, we all have faith. We all trust in something or someone. The issue has to do with the who or what our faith is in. For the disciples, they were having to learn to have faith in Christ. And every time they turned around they were having their misguided, misdirected faith exposed. In the case of verses 22-25, they had their misguided faith in themselves exposed. Think about it, a good portion of these guys were professional, seasoned fishermen. They had been around and on the water for most of their lives. They had seen their fair share of storms. So they knew what to do when one blew in while they were out on the water in a ship. They could probably predict the weather without fail. The could read the signs. They could ride out the worst of storms like the best of sailors. In other words, they had faith in themselves and their own abilities.

In this story they found themselves in a storm on the sea of Galilee and they began to panic. They woke up Jesus who was calmly sleeping in the bow of the boat. They fearfully explain the gravity of their situation to Jesus. "Master, Master, we are perishing!" (Luke 8:24 NASB). What happened to all their boating acumen and experience on the waves of the Sea of Galilee. It was all gone. They suddenly discovered that they were no match for this storm. They weren't going to be able to get themselves out of this one. No, from their perspective, they were about to drown. Which is right where Jesus seems to want them. Jesus heard their cries and calmly rebuked the wind and waves. The sea suddenly calmed and so did the disciples. To a degree. They were now fearful because of what they had just witnessed. They realized that they had just been part of something truly amazing. They had just seen a power displayed that that they had never seen before. A power greater than the waves and winds of nature. A power greater than anything they could bring to bear on the situation. Jesus asked them, "Where is your faith?" It seems to be a rhetorical question. He knew the answer. Their faith was non-existent. At one time it would have been in themselves and their own abilities. Now it was nowhere. Nothing they had ever relied on before was going to help them out of this predicament. Only Jesus!

That's where we need to be each and every day. We need to stop putting our faith in anything or anyone other than Christ. And every day they spent with Him was going to be a lesson in faith. They would watch Him heal. They would hear Him teach. They would see His power on display. They would take in all His parables and witness Him casting out demons and healing the sick. They would even see Him raise the dead. They were eyewitnesses to the power of Christ. And it was rocking their faith system. Over time they would learn to put their faith in Him and not in themselves. That is the journey of the disciple. Before we can place our faith in Christ, we must openly admit where our faith has been. In whom or what have I been trusting? Where have I been turning for comfort and consolation? Tearing down the idols we have erected and the sorry substitutes we have turned to for years is the first step in putting our faith in the One who is always faithful.

Father, I feel as though you are asking me each and every day, "Where is your faith?" And the truth is, I still struggle with putting my faith in the wrong things. I still want to trust myself and others more than I trust You. Forgive me for that and show me how to trust You more. Your power is limitless. You alone are worthy of my faith. Everything and everyone else will fail me. They don't deserve my faith. But You do. Amen.