Little Believing and Great Believing
Dearly beloved of God, the Lord Jesus Christ spoke of great believing and little believing.
The record in Luke 7 deals with a Gentile Roman Centurion that approached Jesus Christ on behalf of his sick servant.
The centurion said he was not worthy that Jesus should enter his house, but “say in a word, and my servant shall be healed.”
Jesus marveled, and said, “I have not found so great faith [pistis: believing] no, not in Israel.”
Matthew 6 reveals another statement Jesus made about believing. He said, “…O you of little believing [oligopistos: little believing. “
The Lord was teaching them about the anxious cares of worry because of their little believing. You cannot serve two masters: God or mammon.
“Therefore, I say unto you, “Take no thought [Greek: merimnao: to be full of anxiety which divides up and distracts the mind, distracting care] for your life, what you shall eat, or what you shall drink; nor yet for your body, what you shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?”
The Father takes care of the birds, aren’t we much better than them?
“Therefore, take no thought saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or, ‘Wherewithal shall we be clothed?’ (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your Heavenly Father knows that you have need of all these things. But seek you first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. Take no thought [merimnao: to be full of anxiety which divides up and distracts the mind, to be full of cares, anxious; be full of anxious or distracting care] for tomorrow: for tomorrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.”
The Father takes care of the grass, and lilies of the field, shall He not much more clothe you, “…O you of little believing [oligopistos: little believing.]
In Matthew 8:26 he rebukes their fear due to their little believing. In 14:31 he rebukes their doubt because of their little believing, and in 16:8 their reasoning by the five senses due to their little believing.
The centurion said that it shall be as Jesus had spoken. Jesus spoke what God instructed him to speak; he always did his Father’s will. He didn’t go off on his own, and attempt to accomplish something that God had not directed him to do.
God is our sufficiency today, beloved, and He will be our sufficiency tomorrow. We walk by believing, not by sight. He will lead and guide us, and He will supply our every need as we believe what He says.
We should be like the centurion that said, “Say in a word, and my servant shall be healed. For I am a man set under authority, having under me soldiers, and I say unto one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes: and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.”
Want to have great believing? Take God at His Word. Do not be conformed to this age; it is an evil age. Believing God at His Word will overcome the anxious care of this evil age.
It does not matter if it is anxious care caused by Covid, or by the supply chain, or by wars and rumors of wars, or by evil governments, or by loss of jobs and financial wellbeing, or anxiety caused by relationships, or by the fear of death, or whatever else mentally distracts you from trusting God, and having confidence in Him.
Take God at His Word and cast all your cares upon Him, because He cares for you, dearly beloved. His Word cannot be broken.