Increasing Faith (7)

“Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you.” Luke 6.38

A transferrable principle
In these remarks Jesus was not talking only about giving material goods, like money, although this is the way many preachers interpret our text. Jesus begins by warning against harboring a judgmental spirit and refusing to forgive others. He explains that, if we are generous in our attitudes toward those who offend against us, and ready to forgive them when they repent, then we will find the same generosity and forgiveness extended to us in abundance by the Lord.

What we give to others, God will give back to us in spades.

The Lord looks into our spirits and responds to us by extending to us “the measure” we extend to others. And while I would not be reluctant to apply this passage to the matter of tithes and offerings, I think there’s a spiritual principle here which we can apply to the question of how to increase faith.

It’s this: If we give faith to others, God will increase our faith.

Faith is not a boon to hoard; faith is a gift to be given away. And when we give it away, we make room for God to fill our souls and lives with increased faith, pressed down and running over into every area of our lives.

Giving away faith
The whole drift of faith is to extend faith to others. Abraham was blessed by God so that He could be a blessing to others (Gen. 12.1-3). We have come to know the resurrection life of Christ, and Christ explains that we are to be His witnesses and extend this glorious benefit to the people around us. Christians are exhorted to teach, admonish, and correct one another, and to stimulate one another to love and good works of faith (Heb. 10.24). All believers, like the Savior Himself, have been appointed not to be served, but to serve (Mk. 10.42-45).

In sharing, giving, blessing, serving, and bearing witness, we give away our faith to others, stimulating faith in them. And as we do, paradoxically and mysteriously enough, our own faith increases as a gift from the Lord.

As is by now obvious, Christian faith is not simply an intellectual exercise. Faith is not merely something to affirm; it is something to live. We may expect our faith to increase and become full faith in direct proportion to how we exercise faith in seeking the Lord, opening our souls and lives to His Word and Spirit, extending ourselves into new areas of learning and life, bearing witness for the Lord, reading and hearing His Word with understanding, and extending the faith of Jesus to others.

This is what Paul Little had in mind in his classic book, How to Give Away Your Faith. As we give faith away, through teaching and sharing, by serving or bearing witness, we tap into the wellspring of God’s Spirit, the “secret of the Kingdom,” Who then replenishes the faith we’ve given away with new faith and fuller faith, so that by the increase of faith we become more like Christ day by day (cf. Jn. 7.37-39).

Paul insisted that we walk by faith, not by sight (2 Cor. 5.7). We act in faith toward others when, by faith, we envision the ways faith might lead us to show the love of Christ to the people around us, and then when we step toward that vision, or perhaps into it, following God’s Word and depending on His Spirit. By faith and with faith we may stimulate others to experience faith, at the same time finding our own faith increased for the next such opportunity of giving it away to others.

In the Gospel, Paul explains, the righteousness of God is revealed “from faith to faith” (Rom. 1.17). We experience and express the righteousness of Christ as we act on what we understand, and obey the promptings of God’s Spirit. And this reading-and-running in faith actually prepares us to live this way in other areas of life, as faith leads to increased faith and the principle of giving-in-order-to-increase spreads into all the relationships, roles, and responsibilities of our lives.

Increase our faith!
In all this seeking increased faith, of course, we must remember where we began – seeking the Lord in prayer: “Lord, increase our faith!” By persisting in prayer, praying without ceasing for the Lord to increase our faith, not only will we be more mindful of the daily faith opportunities the Lord puts before us, but we will be more likely to “get out of the boat” and “just do it”.

Prayer is the constant companion of faith, and prayer is the catalyst that moves us to give faith away and for God to increase faith, all at the same time.

The life of full faith never really gets full. There is always more to learn, more to discover, more to live, and more to delight and rejoice in as we follow Jesus in seeking His Kingdom and righteousness. So let us never weary of praying, “Lord, increase our faith!”

For reflection
1.  What does giving away faith look like in your life at this time?

2.  How have you experienced someone giving faith to you?

3.  What opportunities for giving away faith can you anticipate today?

Next step – Expanding your Personal Mission Field: What are you doing to seek increased faith? What plan are you following? Write down what you intend to do each day to seek increased faith, then share your plan with a prayer partner. Meet from time to time to rejoice in the increased faith the Lord is giving you.

T. M. Moore

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This week’s ReVision study is Part 10 of a 10-part series, “Full Faith.” You can download “Increasing Faith” as a free PDF, prepared for personal or group study. Simply click here.

Except as indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.