A Gift

"Then He said to the disciples, “It is impossible that no offenses should come, but woe to him through whom they do come! It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were thrown into the sea, than that he should offend one of these little ones. Take heed to yourselves. If your brother sins against you, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him. And if he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times in a day returns to you, saying, ‘I repent,’ you shall forgive him.” And the apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith.” So the Lord said, “If you have faith as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be pulled up by the roots and be planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you. And which of you, having a servant plowing or tending sheep, will say to him when he has come in from the field, ‘Come at once and sit down to eat’? But will he not rather say to him, ‘Prepare something for my supper, and gird yourself and serve me till I have eaten and drunk, and afterward you will eat and drink’? Does he thank that servant because he did the things that were commanded him? I think not. So likewise you, when you have done all those things which you are commanded, say, ‘We are unprofitable servants. We have done what was our duty to do.’ ” Luke 17:1-10 NKJV

Why is such a serious woe spoken to the people who offend the little ones [Christian brothers and sisters] given by our Lord Jesus Christ? It's because they are purchased by His blood of the cross. They are His possessions and treasures. We must take heed what our Lord says that we forgive our brothers who sin against us and repent seven times in a day. That statement Jesus uttered stunned the disciples. Literally they were eyeballed and said, "Increase our faith."

Jesus corrects them that faith is not quantity but quality. If they have faith as small as a mustard seed, they can move the mountain. It's amazing, almost impossible to believe. That's what faith is all about. Faith in God can uproot a sycamore tree. It's so true that when we observe the fact how we were delivered from the iron bondage of sin and death which almost choked us to the point of death.

Everyone who has been delivered from the power of sin should understand what that means. Unrelenting guilt, powerlessness, futility, emptiness, meaninglessness, hatred, anger, jealousy continuously pounded and hammered us without pity. We were the defenseless victims of the evil power.

But when the faith in Jesus Christ comes into our hearts by grace and mercy, a remarkable thing has happened that we entered into the marvelous light in Jesus Christ the Lord. That's what faith has brought for us in Jesus Christ our Lord. It's a gift from the Father who is Immortal, Almighty, and Living God.

So, we cannot boast of it at all. There is not an iota of contribution to earn the gift of faith in our part. In entirety, it depends on the other party, Christ Jesus the Lord. Therefore, the servant says "I am an unworthy servant" after all day's hard work. "We have done what was our duty to do.” We keep on giving thanks to the Lord who has called us into His marvelous light to live a true life in Him forever.