We can see great signs and wonders and still have little faith. It happened to Jesus’ twelve disciples. Signs and wonders alone can’t increase our faith. Let’s look at an example from the Gospels.
Matthew 8:26 “He said to them, ‘Why are you afraid, you of little faith?’”
Jesus is rebuking the twelve for their little faith. Notice that their little faith caused fear in them.
Little faith = fear. Great faith = fearless.
It is a good formula to remember and a reason to grow your faith.
Jesus wouldn’t have rebuked His disciples for little faith if there was a reason for them to have a greater faith. That would not have been fair. Let’s look at what happened preceding this.
The day before this, Jesus preached the Sermon on the Mount. This sermon takes up three chapters in Matthew’s Gospel. That is a significant amount of teaching, and I am convinced Matthew only wrote about the highlights.
Where does faith come from? Romans 10:17, “Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.” (NKJV)
This is the reason Jesus expected His disciples to have greater faith. He had preached the day before about the Kingdom of God and faith. They heard the Word, but didn’t really accept it.
You can see my chart of the different levels of faith HERE.
Signs and Wonders Confirm Jesus Teaching
They come down from the mountain and a leper greets them. (Matthew 8:1-4) The leper asks if Jesus is willing to make him whole. Jesus said he is willing, and the leper is cleansed of his leprosy.
Upon entering Capernaum at the base of the mountain, a centurion stops Jesus. The centurion tells Jesus that his servant is at home paralyzed, and he asks Jesus to heal his servant. This is when Jesus observes the greatest faith He has seen in all of Israel. We will come back to this incident in the Gospels in another devotion.
Then they enter Peter’s home and Peter’s mother-in-law is sick from a fever. Jesus heals her with a touch.
Now, look at what happens that evening:
When evening came, they brought to him many who were demon-possessed. He drove out the spirits with a word and healed all who were sick. (Matthew 8:16 CSB)
We don’t know how many miracles the disciples saw that day, but it was hundreds at least. They should have had greater faith with all the teaching and then the signs that confirmed the Word Jesus taught.
The Disciples Have Little Faith
Now we come to the point Jesus rebukes the disciples. They get into a boat at Capernaum and cross the Sea of Galilee. A violent storm comes up.
Now realize, at least four of the disciples are fisherman. They knew boats and storms, yet they were terrified. For the fisherman to be terrified this must have been an extremely violent storm.
Suddenly, a violent storm arose on the sea, so that the boat was being swamped by the waves—but Jesus kept sleeping. So the disciples came and woke him up, saying, “Lord, save us! We’re going to die!” He said to them, “Why are you afraid, you of little faith?” Then he got up and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm. Matthew 8:24-26 CSB)
Now we can understand why Jesus rebuked His disciples. All day they listened to Jesus teach about the Kingdom of God and faith. After which, Jesus’ words are confirmed by hundreds of signs and wonders. They should have had greater faith.
We need to examine ourselves. We must identify the areas where we have little faith. Then we must build up our faith in those areas.
Here are more of my articles that will help you grow spiritually:
5 Steps to Change Your Future With A New Bold Life View
Prayer
Father, forgive me for my little faith. From this moment on, I am determined to build my faith. Holy Spirit guide and teach me in my efforts to build my faith.
I will diligently study your Word daily to increase my faith. I will observe signs and wonders more carefully. When I see you performing signs and wonders, I will praise you for confirming your Word. In Jesus name, I pray. Amen.
Additional Scriptures
Matthew 17:20; Luke 1:37; Proverbs 3:5-6; Philippians 4:13; Luke 17:5
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