Do You Believe?

It’s really the single-most salient question that we have to answer with respect to our whole life.  Do I believe?

Until faith is tested, it is only a concept.  I think I have faith sufficient to say that I believe.  But how can I know with certainty?

Holy Scripture is full of wisdom related to belief.

Let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. (Jam 1:6)

Truly I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what has been done to the fig tree, but even if you say to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ it will happen. (Mat 21:21)

Immediately the father of the child cried out, ‘I believe—help my unbelief!’ (Mark 9:24)

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. (Prov 3:5)

Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. (Heb 11:1)

Enough? 

Our ‘belief’ is a reflection of the content of our hearts.  See the article on Page 2 from Abbot Tryphon.

When doubt comes to us, the Lord has shown us the way to reject it.

As Jesus walked to the Apostles on the turbulent sea, and Peter asked to come to Him on the water, it was doubt that caused Peter to begin to sink.  This is how doubt presents itself to us in our regular daily affairs.  God is there.  He has not moved.  He has not changed.  He is waiting for us, His children, to seek Him with our whole heart.

But when we doubt, we lose our focus on Him.  We cease to see Him directly and become distracted by the “things of this world,” noise, turmoil, troubles, illness, and any manner of that which attacks the physical.

As Peter sank into the waves of the sea, he did not lose faith—he lost focus.  He still believed.  The only ‘belief’ that he lost was in the Lord’s provision of grace to him to do the impossible.  We can find evidence of his continued (perhaps diminished) faith as St. Peter recognizes his failure and calls out to Jesus, Lord, save me!  The end of this encounter in scripture is our Lord saying to Peter, Why did you doubt?  By God’s grace, the impossible is possible. 

St. Paul writes, Will unbelief make the faithfulness of God without effect?  Certainly not! (Rom 3:3-4)  God knows our frailty and our tendency to be swayed by the world around us.  It does not cause Him to abandon us.  In many instances those things which come upon us that test our belief are a gift FROM Him, to bring us to that point of turning back to Him, to focus on Him and NOT on the world, or the things that bring that turmoil to our lives.

So in all instances respond to the question, “Do you believe?” with a resounding, “YES, I DO believe!”  If your resolve in so doing wavers, remember the father of the young girl in Mark Chapter 9, and respond as did he: “I believe, Lord—help my unbelief!”  It’s a great prayer, confessing our weakness while simultaneously showing our dependence on the Lord for our needs.