Faith to Fly?

By Pastor Chad

Read: Matthew 21:18-22

When I was a child, one of my favorite movies was “The Boy Who Could Fly.” The movie is about a quiet, reserved teenage boy, Eric, who has a secret: he can fly. Tragically, Eric lost his parents in a plane accident. As a coping mechanism, he had a habit of sitting on windowsills and standing on rooftops. After observing his erratic behavior, Milly, the girl next door, discovers his secret flying ability. It doesn’t take long for others to notice Eric flying around town. 

What is fascinating about the story is that it is assumed Eric did not always have his flying ability. It seems he developed the ability by simple belief. 

I enjoyed the movie so much that when I was a kid, I’d climb on top of my dad’s shop and stand on the edge hoping, if I just believed enough, I too could fly. Well, I never developed that ability–but it wasn’t for lack of trying. 

Jesus speaks quite a bit on the idea of belief. For example, in Matthew 21:21-22, He says,  “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. And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith [that is, believe].” There have been quite a few Christians over the centuries who understand this idea of belief (or faith–same Greek word) as the ability to hold an idea as true with a great amount of certainty; so much certainty, that one is given supernatural power. But is that really what Jesus means here? Indeed, if this were the only time Jesus discussed faith, then one may have a strong argument for such an interpretation. Scripture, however, gives us more details regarding belief or faith. 

Faith does mean that one accepts an idea as true with a high degree of certainty, but that is not all faith means. In Matthew 14:22-33 we read of the famous account of Jesus walking on water. When Peter sees Him, he calls out, “Lord, if that is you, tell me to come to you” (v. 28). Jesus then replies, “Come!” At first, Peter follows the example of our Lord–he walks on water. But when Peter takes his eyes off Jesus and starts noticing the wind and the waves, he begins to sink. In a panic, Peter cries out, “Lord, save me!” Jesus immediately reached out, grabbed Peter by the hand, and said, “You of little faith. Why did you doubt?” The point here is that faith seems to include more than just accepting an idea as true. It also entails a trust. A trust that the way of Christ is true. A trust the He is who He says He is. In fact, in Acts 16:31, Paul tells the Philippian jailer to “Believe in the Lord Jesus…” The idea of believing in the Lord Jesus is more than simply believing something about the Lord Jesus. 

Thus, faith, properly understood, is accepting certain ideas about Jesus as true, but it also includes conforming to those ideas. Faith is surrendering to the life and teachings of Jesus as a way of life. It is giving your life to Jesus. 

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Prayer: Lord, I believe, but help my unbelief. Help me to follow you in the true faith you call me to.