Luke 17:5-10
5 The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith!” 6 The Lord replied, “If you had faith the size of a mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you. 7 “Who among you would say to your slave who has just come in from plowing or tending sheep in the field, ‘Come here at once and take your place at the table’? 8 Would you not rather say to him, ‘Prepare supper for me, put on your apron and serve me while I eat and drink; later you may eat and drink’? 9 Do you thank the slave for doing what was commanded? 10 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!’”
Lord, Increase Our Faith
Reading the text in its context helps us to better understand the content and the message. Jesus doesn’t want us to be slaves. Rather, He compares those who accomplish their jobs with integrity and humility to a slave. Jesus wants us to be fully committed to follow and obey Him, like a slave who does His master’s will. When we accomplish His will, we grow in faith through his grace. "I didn't call you slaves but friends" John 15:15.
St. Luke invites us to follow Jesus up to Jerusalem beginning with chapter 9:51.
On the way, He continues to teach and perform miracles and signs, calling the crowds in general to accept His Messianism; and His disciples in particular to deepen their faith and trust in Him as the Son of the Father, sent into the world to redeem and save.
Jesus is teaching about repeated forgiveness that produces healing, about honesty at work that includes gratitude and humility, about the necessity of overcoming sin and its causes, and about not acting in a way that leads others to fall into sin. These teachings touch upon human impossibility.
This is why the disciples, who already have faith in Jesus the Christ, approach Him with this request, "Increase our faith." They would like to fulfill what He teaches, but they feel that their faith needs to be increased.
Jesus tells them that they already have faith, but they need to let it grow through their acts, keeping trust and faith in Him -- like a mustard seed that, once planted, continues to grow and become a big tree (Luke 13:19).
The disciples' doubt about their insufficient faith to fulfill Jesus' expectations becomes an element of faith. Through asking Him to increase their faith, they already have faith and believe in Him.
Jesus' teaching invites the question, not how big is our faith, but in whom do we believe? Trust Jesus and follow Him. This is what grants us clarity, strength and determination to fulfill His will -- maybe not in our time, but in God's time.
Todays' Gospel brings us to meditate about two main points.
Who do we put our faith in? Is it in ourselves or in Jesus?
Could we pray as the father of the child who was healed by Jesus after the disciples were unable to, saying, "Lord, I believe, help my unbelief?" (Mark 9:17-24).
May our small mustard seeds become for us a big tree of reflection, meditation and prayer.