Active Faith

And when it grew late, his disciples came to him and said, “This is a desolate place, and the hour is now late. Send them away to go into the surrounding countryside and villages and buy themselves something to eat.” But he answered them, “You give them something to eat.” And they said to him, “Shall we go and buy two hundred denarii worth of bread and give it to them to eat?” And he said to them, “How many loaves do you have? Go and see.” And when they had found out, they said, “Five, and two fish.” Then he commanded them all to sit down in groups on the green grass. So they sat down in groups, by hundreds and by fifties. And taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven and said a blessing and broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples to set before the people. And he divided the two fish among them all. And they all ate and were satisfied. And they took up twelve baskets full of broken pieces and of the fish. And those who ate the loaves were five thousand men. Mark 6:35-44

Jesus taught active faith, not passive. He taught his disciples to have compassion on people as He did, to serve, to minister, to teach. As you read about his life, you get the picture that Jesus was in constant serve mode, caring and ministering to people.

Jesus led the disciples by example. As they walked with Him, they learned to minister, to serve, to love. The disciples were to carry the responsibility of serving the people. They weren’t to leave them, push them away, let someone else do it. People were their responsibility.

So, when the disciples came to Jesus and asked for him to send the people away to get something to eat, Jesus immediately said, you give them something to eat. Jesus turned it around, put the responsibility back on the disciples. You do it. Don’t pass the buck.

The disciples were asked to do something impossible. It didn’t make sense. They didn’t have enough food to give the people or money to purchase more. But, the disciples followed the plan of Christ, He provided, and the people walked away nourished. The disciples were given a clear picture of what dependence on Jesus looked like. They were not to provide the food themselves. They were to act and depend on Jesus.

Active faith isn’t void of dependence on Jesus. Jesus is actually the fuel for active faith.

First, the knowledge that Jesus died for us, drives us to active faith. We are compelled to love because He first loved us. When you are humbled by what He did for you on the cross, you are driven to active faith.

Second, He directs our path. When you read about the life of Paul, arguably the greatest missionary that ever lived, he fully depended on God on where he traveled. At one point, he mentioned God preventing him from going to Rome. Today, as you move through life, no doubt you will cross paths with someone that needs help, needs encouragement, needs love. God directs your path.

Finally, active faith depends on Jesus. In the verse above, the disciples were faced with the impossible task of feeding the people. We don’t see them devising a plan on their own, outside of Christ. Jesus made a way. So many times, our tendency is to depend on our own efforts, our own strength. With this mindset, we become defeated before we begin. Ever have the thought, “what would I say?” Or, the idea that you haven’t done something or acted a certain way in a long time. That never works, so why try it now. This is a mindset void of dependence on God. Throw yourself into the uncomfortable and depend on Christ.

Active faith grows active faith. When your faith is active, living, moving, serving, you see God’s presence, the way He works through you, and your faith grows. With passive faith, if there is such a thing, there is no growth.

The Bible teaches an active faith. There was nothing passive about those that followed God. Their lives impacted others.

Impact others. Live generously.

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