I believe this verse may be telling us that faith is literally a “spiritual substance” that operates on the inside of us and that it is capable of growing or waning.
However, other Bible Scholars do not believe that faith is an actual substance. Their argument is based off the Greek word for the word “substance.” This Greek word is “hypostasis” and it means: “A setting under or support (foundation), assurance, confidence, confident expectation, an assured impression and a mental realizing.”
Other good definitions on what faith is from some of the different Bible Dictionaries and Commentaries are the following: “The assurance of things hoped for, a belief or confident attitude toward God, conviction, trust, belief, reliance, and a trustworthiness towards God.”
But whether faith is a spiritual substance and/or more of a mental quality – it can still be actually increased or decreased as you will see in the following verses. And we are also given a certain measure of it by the Lord.
The Bible tells us that we have all been given a certain “measure of faith” by God in which to work with. Here is the verse that will give us this specific revelation: “… as God has dealt to each one a MEASURE OF FAITH …” (Romans 12:3)
The best way to understand faith and how it operates on the inside of you is on a scale of 1-10, with 10 being the most amount of faith you can have and 1 being the lowest amount of faith you can have.
Most people start out in their own personal walk with the Lord at the lower end of that range – in the 1-3 category. And that is just fine with God! One of the most amazing insights that I feel God has given me on this subject is the following analogy:
I felt like this really came from the Holy Spirit. He said to me: “If the Bible says that faith the size of a mustard seed can move a mountain, what do you think faith the size of a golf ball could do? Or faith the size of a baseball? Or faith the size of a basketball?” This means that your faith is capable of growing.
The mustard seed is supposed to be one of the smallest of all seeds. The above analogy tells us two things:
One – that your faith can literally grow in the Lord over time – from a mustard seed size – to a golf ball size – to a baseball size – to a basketball size, etc. Here is the verse that will specifically tell us that our faith levels are capable of actually growing in the Lord: “… because your FAITH GROWS EXCEEDINGLY …” (2 Thessalonians 1:3)
Two – look very closely at the above analogy. The Bible says that faith the size of a mustard seed can move mountains! This means that we do not have to have our faith levels up in the 5-8 category to get God to become very active in our lives. All we need is a very small amount of faith to get the show going with God.
In other words, on a scale of 1-10, all you need is a 1 amount of faith to get God to start moving in your life – and everyone has at least a 1 amount of faith when they get saved because the above verse tells us that God has given each one of us a certain “measure of faith.” God has to give each person a certain measure of faith, otherwise we would not be able to get saved, as the Bible specifically tells us that we are saved by grace through “faith.”
So when you witness to others, explain this analogy to them. Explain to them that they do not need to have great or large amounts of faith in God to get Him to become very active in their lives when they first enter into the real walk with the Lord. God will take whatever amount of faith you have to start off with and He will then start the building process with your life with just that small amount of faith!
Next: HOW TO INCREASE YOUR FAITH
