Faith Works: Dependence on God

## 1. The Failure at the Foot of the Mountain Read the sermon passage together: > And when they came to the crowd, a man came up to him and, kneeling before him, said, 'Lord, have mercy on my son, for he has seizures and he suffers terribly. For often he falls into the fire, and often into the water. And I brought him to your disciples, and they could not heal him.' And Jesus answered, 'O faithless and twisted generation, how long am I to be with you? How long am I to bear with you? Bring him here to me.' And Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of him, and the boy was healed instantly. Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, 'Why could we not cast it out?' He said to them, 'Because of your little faith. For truly, I say to you, if you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, Move from here to there, and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you.' (Matthew 17:14-20)

The disciples had walked with Jesus, yet they could not cast out the demon. Why does Jesus say their failure was about 'little faith' rather than a lack of technique or effort?

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## 2. Are We Any Different? The sermon said we are like those disciples — we also have 'little faith' and often trust our own strength. In what area of your life (school, sports, relationships, future plans) do you most easily slip into self-sufficient mode and forget to depend on God?

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## 3. God's Word as Faith Fuel Jesus prayed, 'Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth' (John 17:17). The sermon described the Bible as an autobiography God wrote about Himself to help us trust Him. How can reading or hearing Scripture move you from self-confidence to God-confidence this week?

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## 4. Grace for the Faithless Ezekiel 16 shows God remaining faithful to His people even when they were unfaithful. If Christian power does not come from your own ability but from relying on God, how does knowing His faithfulness change the way you view your failures?

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## 5. Debate: Mustard-Seed Promises Jesus promises that with mustard-seed faith, 'nothing will be impossible for you.' Some people treat this like a guarantee that God will give them anything they want if they just believe hard enough. Others say it means God works through dependent faith to accomplish His purposes, not ours. Which view lines up with Matthew 17 and the rest of Jesus' teaching, and why does the answer shape how we pray?

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## 6. Ordinary Means, Extraordinary Dependence The sermon urged us to use the ordinary means of grace — Scripture, prayer, fellowship, baptism, and the Lord's Supper — so our faith grows in reliance on God rather than ourselves. Jesus promised, 'I am with you always, to the end of the age' (Matthew 28:20). What is one specific, practical step you will take this week to nurture your faith through one of these means?

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