i.    The Origin Of Faith.

     Let's begin by four statements concerning faith which I will
first present and then, as the study continues, I will prove
biblically.

     1.  Faith is a fixed value.
     2.  God has faith.  
     3.  You will never have more faith than you do right now.
     4.  Faith and more faith isn't what we need.

Since in this section, we are focusing on "The Origin Of Faith,"
let's answer the question, "From where does faith come?"  to
answer this question, I am going to focus on these three areas.

A.  The Source Of Faith.
B.  The Strength Of Faith.
C.  The Size Of Faith.

A.  The Source Of Faith.

     Romans 12:3 says, "God has dealt to every man the measure of
faith."  The Greek word for "dealt" in this verse means
(separating or dividing into equal portions).  For example, when
cutting a pie, we attempt to cut the pie into equal portions so
everyone gets the same amount.  If you were God and cutting that
same pie, it would be exactly equal portions.  When giving candy
to our children, or in my case, our grandchildren, everybody gets
an equal amount.  Otherwise, somebody's feelings are going to get
hurt.  We don't give more to one than the other because that
wouldn't be fair.  God doesn't play favorites either because He
loves us all the same, that is, equally.  Thus, the faith we have
is proportioned to everyone equally, exactly, and precisely.

     The Greek word for "measure" in this same verse means an
instrument of exact measurement.  This Greek word has been
transliterated and given us the word "metronome."  this time
keeping device sits on a piano and assists us in keeping perfect
time to the music we play.  Thus, an exact measurement of faith
allows us to keep perfect time with the Lord and His perfect will
and God is the One who keeps perfect time in our lives.

     According to this verse, "Who gives us this exact
measurement of faith?"  Yes, it is God Himself who gives us the
faith.  So the real question now become, "Where did God get it?"

     If I were to ask if god has righteousness verses God is
righteousness, I'm sure you would say, God is righteousness.  If
I were to ask if God has holiness or is God Holiness, I'm sure
you would agree that God is Holiness.  If I were to suggest God
has love but God Isn't love, I would imagine you would totally
disagree with that statement and say, God is love.  Yet, if I say
God has faith, or God is faith, most would disagree with both
statements.  So let's discover what the Bible says is the truth
concerning this matter.

     Hebrews 12:2 says, "Looking unto Jesus the author and
finisher of our faith."  Some would quickly point out that the
verse says it is "our faith."  Let me just as quickly point out
the focus is on Jesus and not us.  Besides, if we have faith as
Born Again Believers, where did we get it?  Hebrews tells us we
got it from the Lord Jesus.

     The Greek word for "author" in this passage means (head,
leader, chief), as in "The Commander and Chief," of our faith. 
Likewise, the Greek word for "finisher" in this verse means (one
who perfects).

     A friend of mine builds houses for a living but he is called
a framer because he, and his crew, builds the structure, or
framework, of the house.  Others come in to do the wiring,
plumbing, sheet rocking, and they literally "finish" the house. 
This is what Jesus does for our faith.  Our faith comes from
Jesus and He finishes it for those who are continuing to walk in
it.

     Unfortunately, for some, this raises yet another question. 
If Jesus is the "author," and "finisher" of our faith, that must
mean that Jesus has faith, or He is faith, so where did He get
it?  Before answering that question, let's continue and we will
return to this issue later.

     Although it is likely we are not yet in agreement that our
faith has been given to us by God, and that Jesus is the
Perfecter of our faith, let's look at another aspect of faith
that will begin to bring things into focus.

B.  the Strength Of Our Faith.

"So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God,
(Romans 10:17).

     Several years ago, this passage of Scripture continually
came to my thoughts.  Over a period of a couple of weeks, it
nearly drove me crazy.  I finally stopped working one day, sat
down at my computer, and dialed the verse into the window and
began studying each word.  What bothered me the most, during this
two week period, is that still small voice of the Holy Spirit
kept misquoting the verse.  He said, "Faith comes out of hearing
the Word of God."  I knew that was wrong so maybe, just maybe,
that wasn't the voice of the Holy Spirit in my thoughts after all. 
Of course, as it turned out once again, I was wrong and He was
right.

     The Greek word for "cometh by" as used by the King James
translators means (out of), or "out from).  Coupled with the
question, what are we hearing, and the answer is the Word of God,
then the verse literally reads, "Faith comes out of hearing the
Word of God."  This can only be true, of course, if we are
listening at the time.  Listening, that is, with our spiritual
ears.  In fact, the experience itself I just describe is exactly
how faith literally comes out of hearing the Word of God.  This
also means, in my opinion, but I am far from done proving it, that
faith must be a fix value, that is, a fixed amount.  Why?  Because
such is the nature of God's Word; it never changes.  If faith
comes from hearing the Word of God, and God's Word is fixed, or
true, or without error, then the faith which comes out of the Word
of God must have the same spiritual characteristics.  Thus, I
believe faith is a fixed amount.  Let's not stop yet, though,
proving that faith is, in fact, a fix value or an exact spiritual
measurement.  In this line of thinking, and only in this way, I am
calling this the "strength" of our faith because our strength,
metaphorically speaking, and sometimes even physically speaking,
comes from total dependency upon God's Word.

     We have looked at the A.  Source Of Faith, and B.  The
Strength Of Faith, so let's move to the next point in the
outline.

C.  The Size Of Faith.

     Question.  How much faith does it take?  I'm referring to
whatever you are asking God for and believing.  Does it, as was
earlier suggested, take a little faith, medium sized faith, 75
percent faith, or off the scale faith in order to get the job
done?  You see, this is why I do not personally believe that faith
has a size or measurement other than the exact measurement we
received at the moment of salvation.  As I said, the faith you
have now is all the faith you are ever going to have.

Illustration.

     Several years ago, I was listening to one of my favorite
daily Christian radio programs.  If I mentioned the man's name,
everyone who listen to Christian radio at all would know him.  I
still greatly admire this man and still often listen to his radio
programs.  I have even purchased a number of his tapes over the
years and still would if I heard something I desired to review and
keep for my personal satisfaction and spiritual growth.  So, what
you are about to read is in no way a criticism of this man or his
ministry.

     One day, his guest was a man who had been working on the
engine of a prop aircraft.  He had pushed on the prop, it swung
back, struck his nose, and literally sliced his nose off.  As the
testimony goes, the man began screaming, "I am healed by the
stripes of Jesus.  I am healed by the stripes of Jesus."  People
came running and even his wife, who just happened to be driving to
the airport, and because she felt the Lord telling her to get to
the airport as I recall, drove into the parking lot shortly after
the accident.  She ran out to the area where the plane was parked,
fell down beside her husband, and in spite of the crowd and the
medical team trying to work on him, started praying out loud in
tongues.  If you don't believe in speaking in tongues for today,
forget that last part but keep reading.  They took the man to the
hospital, and without pain killing drugs, literally sowed his nose
back on.  That night, the man was standing in a church speaking
and giving his testimony of healing.  The testimony itself is not
what bothered me about what I heard.  By the way, for you
skeptics, the phrase "By His stripes we were healed?"  That is a
quote from both First Peter 2:24 and Isaiah 53:5 except in Isaiah,
it says, "By His stripes we are healed."  The Greek and Hebrew
words used for the word "healed" is translated, (cured).  You
cannot be cured from your sins; only forgiven.  Thus, the passages
of Scripture are not metaphorical but literal.  The word is used
repeatedly throughout the New Testament in passages where it says
Jesus cured the sick.  Look it up for yourself if you doubt what I
have just said.

     what bothered me in this man's testimony was not how he was
healed by the stripes of Jesus.  It was what he began to teach
about faith, and said how we exercise our faith, and learn how to
walk in faith, which bothered me.  Why?  Because what he taught
wasn't Scriptural.
     I made mention of this previously but I felt it was worth
repeating in more detail again since it related directly to the
size of faith it takes to get a prayer answered.

     As the man continued after his testimony, he was asked by the
host about how we make our faith work.  The man suggested we start
out with small things, such as a head ache, and once we achieved
success in the smaller areas, then advance to the more difficult
and complex.  This implies that faith must have a predetermined
size which God has preordained for each individual situation and
will not, therefore, accept anything less.  It is this concept
which I find totally unscriptural.  Let's return to the original
passage I used when beginning this study on faith.

"And the Apostles said unto the Lord, increase our faith,"
(Luke 17:5).

     As I pointed out, these same disciples came to Jesus on
another occasion and said, "Teach us to pray," and Jesus did
teach them to pray.  He, Jesus, used what we call the Lord's
prayer to teach them a format to which they could relate. 
Unfortunately, some religions today have made what Jesus taught,
the central form of worship in their denominations and such was
not at all the point Jesus was trying to get across, but I
digress.  The issue is, Jesus did not increase their faith upon
their request.  Instead, on more than one occasion, Jesus started
teaching, it would appear, on mustard seeds and trees and
mountains and oceans.  Let's quote the very next verse in Luke 17
but this time using verse 6 in the passage.

"And the Lord said, If you had faith as a grain of mustard seed,
you might say unto this sycamine tree, be thou plucked up by the
roots, and be though planted in the sea; and it shall obey you."

     I realize that most of us have been taught he was speaking
and teaching metaphorically and spiritually and that Jesus really
didn't mean what He said.  After all, He was just teaching. 
Right?  Yes, He was indeed teaching all right but He was teaching
about faith or did we forget that already?  What, then, was Jesus
trying to say?  Was He suggesting the disciples had faith even
smaller than a mustard seed?  That seems difficult to believe
since His disciples had been preaching and teaching on their own
and casting out demons, healing the sick, and doing everything
they had seen Jesus already doing.  So they must have had a fair
amount of faith, otherwise, how could they have done those
miracles at all?  Let me explain what I mean by comparing yet
another passage of Scripture.

                        Matthew  17:14-20

14  And when they were come to the multitude, there came to him a
certain man, kneeling down to him, and saying.
15  Lord, have mercy on my son: for he is lunatick, and sore
vexed: for ofttimes he falleth into the fire, and oft into the
water.
16  And I brought him to thy disciples, and they could not cure
him.
17  Then Jesus answered and said, O faithless and perverse
generation, how long shall I be with you? how long shall I suffer
you? bring him hither to me.
18  And Jesus rebuked the devil; and he departed out of him: and
the child was cured from that very hour.
19  Then came the disciples to Jesus apart, and said, Why could
not we cast him out?
20  And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for
verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard
seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder
place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto 
      you.
21  Howbeit this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting.

This is quite a fascinating portion of Scripture in many ways. 
There is a great deal of theology that could be gleamed from this
miracle but it isn't the miracle upon which I wish to focus at the
moment.

     First, and foremost, we have the mustard seed comparison
Jesus used again.  The disciples also failed in their attempts to
cast the demon out.  Odd, you might think, because they had
already been doing exactly that, and much more, as Jesus sent them
out under His power and authority.  Since the disciples came to
Jesus and asked Him why they could not cast the demon out, they
apparently figured it didn't work because they did not have enough
faith.  As it turns out, that wasn't the problem at all.

"19  Then came the disciples to Jesus apart, and said, Why could
not we cast him out?
20  And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief."

     Because of their "unbelief?"  Wait just a minute here.  Did
Jesus get mixed up on His doctrine or something?  Shouldn't it be
their faith that was in question?  What's believing have to do
with anything?  You see, the disciples made the same mistake we
normally make, and that is, we think faith has a size for each
individual thing we face in life.  This erroneous interpretation
of Scripture leads one to believe that if they pray, and nothing
happens, then they just didn't have enough faith.  Yet Jesus made
it perfectly clear, it wasn't their lack of faith but what they
believed.  They thought if they just had enough faith, or more
faith, or a whole lot of faith, things would happen.  Jesus
explained to them it had nothing to do with their faith which they
thought needed increasing but what they believed.  Jesus was
trying to get them to see, and understand, that it was not the
size of their faith that made the difference but the size of their
God.  How big is God?  Whatever you believe.  The variable in any
situation, therefore, is not how much faith you have, or need, but
what we believe.

     In this particular case, Jesus said prayer and fasting was
required.  Why?  For the disciples to have gain greater insight to
why the demon was there in the first place and to remember the
authority Jesus had already given them.  The fasting and prayer
certainly wasn't for the demons benefit.

     Before leaving this lesson, let me mention that I am far from
finished proving what I believe about faith.  the other lessons
expand upon what I have taught thus far.  If you stop here,
without reading the rest of the lessons, you will go away with the
wrong conclusions.  What I teach and believe and live by is not
even taught by Charismatics and Pentecostals so don't try and get
ahead of me.  If you out run your headlights, you might end up as
your own road kill.

End Of Lesson Two.


It Sounds Like God To Me.
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