"The apostles said unto the Lord, Increase our faith" (Luke 17:5).
The men who comprised Christ's close circle were asking something important of their master. They wanted a greater understanding of the meaning and workings of faith. They were saying, in essence, "Lord, what sort of faith do you desire from us? Give us a revelation of the kind that pleases you. We want to grasp faith in its fullest meaning."
On the surface, their request seems commendable. Yet I believe the disciples asked this of Jesus because they were confused. In the previous chapter, Christ had baffled them, saying, "He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much...If therefore ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches?" (16:10-11).
Jesus knew his followers' flesh wanted to avoid what they considered to be the lesser matters of faith. So he told them, "If you're faithful in the little things, the foundational matters of faith, you'll be faithful in the greater things too. So, prove yourself trustworthy in the basic requirements of faith. Otherwise, how can you be trusted with a deeper measure?"
If we're honest, we'll admit we're much like Jesus' disciples. We also want to proceed straight to the larger matters of faith, to obtain the kind of faith that moves mountains. And, like the disciples, we often judge faith by visible results.
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