Increase our faith

Luke 17:5–10 

“Increase our faith” is the cry of the apostles. Part of me wonders whether when Jesus heard it, it sounded a bit like kids in the backseat asking the question, “Are we there yet?” “Increase our faith” “Are we there yet?”

Our congregation vision is “Growing lifelong disciples of Christ” so the answer to are we there yet is “no, not yet” and the cry of disciples to “increase our faith” has a place on our own lips.

But as we think about the reading, I wonder what the apostles were actually asking for and why. And, what does increasing our faith look like for us now. 

When we dig into the Greek word for faith, pistis, we are looking at a verb not a noun. A verb which means hearing and obedience. Faith has an element of our intellectual and emotional assent to some kind of concept of who God is, but it primarily involves these actions of hearing and obedience.

In terms of hearing, the Aboriginal concept of dadirri, or deep listening, that comes to us from the Northern Territory provides an insight for us. We listen for God with our whole being – the inner voice, the silence after the storm, the words of wisdom within the scripture, and our learning and listening from those who carry wisdom in the world around us. 

There is a connection in this concept of dadirri to the theological methodology known as the Wesleyan Quadrilateral for developing understanding which involves deep listening to the scriptures, to the tradition of the church, to reason, and to our experience.

This listening element of faith has both a contemplative and active element, but it also leads us into obedience which is to act. Faith is faithfulness, it is about what we say and do as we live in the world. But faith does not sit alone as we seek its increase.

I went to Newington College in Sydney for my first two years of High School which had the motto. In fide scientiam ‘To your faith, add knowledge’. This motto was based on the words of 2 Peter 1:5–8 (NIV).

For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love.  2 Peter 1:5–8 NIV

Increasing faith means considering the layers of meaning that are connected to the word. 

At the time of the Reformation the slogan sola fide or by faith alone developed. Paradoxically by faith alone was one of five solas or “alones”.

Sola scriptura – by scripture (God’s Word) alone

Solus Christus – By Christ alone

Sola fide – by faith alone

Sola gratia – by grace alone

Sola Deo Gloria – to God’s glory alone

The cry to “increase our faith” is a cry that reverberates into all aspects of our journey with God. 

Tomáš Halík in his book The Afternoon of Christianity reminds us of this meaning of faith as journey when he writes, “Faith in Christ is a journey of trust and courage, of love and faithfulness; it is a movement toward the future that Christ inaugurated and to which he extends an invitation.” Tomáš Halík 3

We are invited into Christ’s future as we follow him in the present that we find ourselves no matter how young or old we are. And getting older is a gift which brings with it great possibilities in our faith. A key theme in this service is the recognition older persons.

In his book Halik references the work of the founder of analytical psychology Carl Jung, who compared the span of a human life to the hours of a single day.

The morning of our life is our childhood and transition into adulthood. It is “the time when people are developing the basic features of their personality … They create an image of themselves - an idea they want others to have of them, a mask … that is their ‘outer face’.”

According to Jung this morning is followed by “the noonday crisis. It is a time of fatigue, of sleepiness; people cease to enjoy all the things that used that used to satisfy them … It is a loss of energy and zest for life, a spiritual malaise, a dullness … A crisis can affect our health, our careers, a marital and family relationships, our faith and spiritual life.” Halik 28

Halik points out that “it is only when one has passed the test of the noonday crisis - for example, when one is able to accept and integrate what one did not want to know about oneself and did not want to admit it to oneself - that one is ready to embark on the journey of the afternoon life.” In acknowledging this possibility of moving on Jung also notes that some people fall back into the quest of the morning seeking identity in creating other masks after their noonday crisis. There is a difference between getting older and become wiser.

Moving beyond the self-centredness of the morning the afternoon of life provides new opportunities. Halik summarises it this way: “The afternoon life - mature age and old age - has a different and more important task than the morning life - a spiritual journey, a descent into the depths. The afternoon of life is Kairos, a time appropriate for the development of spiritual life, an opportunity to complete the lifelong process of maturing.” It is a time of crying “increase our faith Lord” with a new zest and new desire.

Halik reminds us that “God comes to us not only as an answer but also as a question. God comes in the desire to understand, a desire that transcends every partial answer and constantly revisits it with new questions, instigating a fresh search; God imparts a Pilgrim character to our existence.” Halik 28

But in response to the cry of the apostles Jesus’ answer is uncomfortable for we who live in the 21st century to hear and contemplate. So, we need to bring some wisdom of the afternoon of our faith to our considerations of what this means for us.

Jesus’ answer speaks of faith the size of mustard seeds enabling the apostles to tell mulberry trees to throw themselves in the ocean. In other words, the tiniest of faiths can make the hugest of differences. But then Jesus goes on to speak about slaves and their task. The slave does what they have to do not for any reward but because it is their role in life.

We should be careful of imposing first world societal understandings on our society or seeing these words of Jesus affirming slavery. However, Jesus’s listeners lived in a world of slaves, and many had slaves, and the slave knew their place. The shock for Jesus’s listeners of this story, and us comes at the end of the reading that we heard. 

“So you also, when you have done all that you were ordered to do, say, ‘We are worthless slaves; we have done only what we ought to have done!’”

Jesus puts his apostles and anyone else listening into the role of slaves and basically says there is no reward and affirmation for simply living as you should. This is a stark contrast to the oft-quoted verse from Matthew 25, “Well done good and faithful servant”. No instead, “We are worthless slaves!” 

As I struggled with this passage, I was led to read Bill Loader’s comments about it. Loader emphasizes the idea that at the heart of what Jesus is saying is that it is not our actions, not our faith, that is determinative in our relationship with God. No, it is God’s love for us.

He says, “We are valued because of who we are. The more we become convinced of that, the less we need to play the other game and the less it will matter. Then, the less we are preoccupied with making ourselves deserving, the more value we can give to others, the more energy and time we have for others.” Bill Loader

“The less we are preoccupied with making ourselves deserving, the more value we can give to others.”  I wonder what this could mean for us as lifelong disciples of Christ on older person’s Sunday. How does this idea of increasing our faith as we bring it together with the wisdom of the afternoon of our lives?

The first thing is to say that we have already arrived at the fullness of faith and life with God in and through Christ. We will remember and celebrate this as we share in bread and wine today. But being set free from the need to justify ourselves we are set free to grow.

Before the service we asked to collect your age as you walked in. I did that deliberately because I wanted to find out this statistic. In this room are close to 6777 years of Christian experience. What do we do to share that experience and grow that experience?

At the end of each sermon, I invite you to contemplate what Is the one thing that is standing out for you from the sermon. However, I have also asked you to consider who you will share your insight with. The way that we grow in our faith is that we act up on in conversation and in good works. We listen deeply to each other with humility expecting the possibility that there is more for us to learn and know.

Just before I went away on my leave you were invited to consider the concept of belonging and how you connected to this congregation. By engaging in that process, I have been approached by at least two people in the congregation who wish to explore confirming their membership. 

These are some internal opportunities that we have. But I'm interested also in the people that lie just beyond these windows around us in the suburb of The Gap. Did you know that at the last census 732 people in just this suburb identified as being Uniting Church? If just one third of these people came to church, there would nearly 220 people here today. What might we need to learn from them about their faith and why they may be going to a different suburb for church or more than likely not at all? How can the 6777 years or Christian life in this room connect with these people?

This may be a challenge because the average age of the 82 people in church this morning our average age is 83! This means we are not reflective of the suburb around us. At the last census the median age for residents of The Gap was 42, with nearly 65% of households identifying as being a couple, or single parent, with children at home. I wonder how many of these families identify with the Uniting Church.

Beyond that, of the approximately 17 000 people who live in the suburb more than 50% do not identify with any religion. Every second person you walk past at the shop could be an opportunity to bring to bear the wisdom and fullness of life that you have from knowing Jesus and share with them why you come here as you listen and are curious about who they are and what they believe.

“Increase our faith”. October 1st was the International Day for the recognition of older persons. António Guterres, the Secretary-General UN in his reflection on this year’s theme said that “older persons are powerful agents of change”. 

As a community committed to Growing Lifelong disciples of Christ we are not there yet. We are committed to increasing our faith we are seeking constant renewal. We have a prayer group led by Glenda who is committed to just that purpose that you are welcome to join. If we take seriously the afternoon stage of our lives as an opportunity to grow spiritually then change is inevitable.