SECTION 1 - FAITH
WHAT IS FAITH? Section 1, Paper 1 – Jan 2011
Assemble and report Action of previous meeting.
SOCIAL INQUIRY:
If I were to ask you: What is faith? What would your answer be? We use the word loosely at
times to mean trust confidence, a set of beliefs etc. Faith really is a commitment, a total self-
surrender to God. For us, as Christians, it is a commitment to God in Christ, who we believe is
God‟s ultimate Word to us, the highpoint of his revelation to human beings. The letter to the
Hebrews begins so beautifully: “In many and various ways, God spoke of old to our fathers by
the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by a Son” (Heb. 1:1). Jesus is for us the
last word of the Father to us and we respond to that word by a total „yes‟, a whole-hearted
commitment.
For a Catholic, this faith-commitment to God in Christ has an ecclesial dimension. It is
commitment in the Church which is the community of faith. After the candidate for Baptism
makes his/her profession of faith, the celebrant says: “This is our faith. This is the faith of the
Church”. In Baptism, we share in the faith of the Church, the faith which is identical with the
faith of the Apostolic Church summed up in the words of Peter: “Lord to whom shall we go?
You have the words of eternal life” (Jn. 6:68) and of the Apostle Thomas: “My Lord and My
God” (Jn. 20:28). (Bishop Agnelo, Keynote address ICCFM – Goa 10/09/10)
OBSERVE:
1. What does a whole-hearted commitment to Christ involve?
2. What are some ways in which you fall short in your struggle to live up to your whole-hearted
faith-commitment to God in Christ a) personally b) as a couple c) as a family d) as a CFM
group?
3. Why would you call someone a person of faith? What would be some of that person‟s
outstanding qualities?
SCRIPTURE READING.
Heb.11:1Now faith is (present tense) the assurance (hupostasis Greek word meaning title deed)
of things hoped for (in the future), the conviction of things not seen. (biblical definition of faith)
Rom.10:17 Faith comes from hearing the (rhema/spoken) word of God.
JUDGE:
1. Faith is not hope, knowledge or presumption. Define each. When does someone receive the
“title deed” to a property and what does this entitle the holder to?
2. Do we hear the voice of God? How does God speak to us?
3. Is the assurance and conviction of your faith based on Jesus (who He is and what He has
done) or His teaching? What is the difference?
ACT:
Reflect: How long have you been a Christian? You have the title deed to your inheritance. How
have you responded? What do you think Jesus‟ response would be to you today?
Ask God to speak to you in the depths of your heart and discern what He is asking you to change
in your personal life and relationships in your family/community in order that you may grow in
your whole-hearted faith commitment to God in Christ.
FROM FEAR TO FAITH. Section1, Paper 2 - Feb.2011
Assemble and report action from previous meeting.
SOCIAL INQUIRY:
The bible tells us 365 times not to be afraid. Should Christians be immune to fear? A healthy
fear alerts us to danger and helps us survive in our corrupted world. However, God did not
design us to be dominated by fear. We have the ability to choose to trust in Him and thus NOT to
be controlled by fear.
What we believe and what we feel are often very unreliable and sometimes the complete
opposite of what is the reality. If we believed that a thief was banging on our front door our
response would be very different from if the intruder turned out to be a close friend facing an
emergency. Faith controls feelings not vice versa.
We cannot manufacture faith; the only way to receive it is from God and from those with whom
we live. However, when we are controlled by fear in some area of our lives, WE turn away from
God and focus instead on the object of our fear. When we are gripped with fear and need God
the most we are unable to pray. The body reacts to what we believe. Fear drains energy.
Therefore spiritual mountain climbers just like physical mountain climbers cannot afford to
entertain fear. Unhelpful fear (doubt) is not from the Holy Spirit.
The paradox is that as long as we deny fear, fight it, attempt to control it, it remains our
tormentor and we are in its power. When we admit in humility, thank God for our circumstances
and our own helplessness, the power of fear is broken and it is defeated. When we meet fear with
gratitude to God, it becomes our ally! (Merlin Carothers – From Fear to Faith)
OBSERVE:
1. Name some of your fears. Can you identify the root of these fears?
2. What is one area in which YOU NEED to be in control? Are you really in control or is
this an illusion?
3. Does having faith mean inaction on one‟s own part?
SCRIPTURE READING
Heb.11:6.
JUDGE
1. Why is it that fear and faith CANNOT co-exist? If doubt is not from the Holy Spirit,
where is it from?
2. Recall times when God has been faithful to you and times when you have not received
the answer that you desired to your prayers. How did this help/hinder the growth of your
faith?
3. Do you believe that God is always in control? If so, what is His purpose in allowing
trials and suffering in our lives?
ACT: Consciously surrender one area at a time in which you need to be in control of, to the
Lord.
GROWING IN FAITH AND IN THE IMAGE OF CHRIST. Section1, Paper 3 – March 2011
Assemble and report action from previous meeting.
SOCIAL INQUIRY:
Most people go about maintaining a façade that all is well with them, in society. We can tell
others and sometimes even fool ourselves that we believe and rely on the Lord, but we cannot
fool God. (Prov.20:27) This does not mean that God is saying, “I won‟t listen to you because
you aren‟t doing it right.”
OBSERVE:
1. What are some barriers to prayers being answered?
2. What is your response when you are praying in alignment with God‟s word but there seems to
be absolutely no change in the circumstances that you are praying for?
3. In hindsight what has been your learning from the ways God answers prayers?
SCRIPTURE READING:
1Pet.1:23 – For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through
the living and enduring word of God.
We have been born anew of the seed of God is planted in our spirit to create in us a new person
that has our personality but also the nature of God! The word then becomes flesh in me in the
same way that it was made flesh in Jesus. This has already happened because God has spoken it
into existence. God‟s word once spoken comes to life in the spirit realm and hangs there
eternally throbbing with all the power of eternal life. For it to be manifested in this material
time-space world, God needs ME to REACH OUT AND GET HOLD of it by faith - to create in
me a new person that has my personality but also the nature of God. We are a glorious new
creation in Christ.
JUDGE:
1.In Mt. 22:37-38. (The first commandment that Jesus gave us) God wants our love. Why? Is my
relationship with my Father one of constant petitioning & relying on HIS faithfulness or is it a
two way relationship?
2. I am a son/daughter of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. How is my life evidently a
witness to the family name of Christ? Would a non-Christian want what I have when s/he looks
at my life?
3. Why is it imperative that I live victoriously?
ACT: What one action will you commit to, in order to grow in the family resemblance of Christ?
a) personally b) as a couple c) as a family d) as a CFM group?
FAITH IN THE FAMILY: DOERS OF THE WORD. Section 1, Paper 4- April 2011 (FOR
LENT)
Assemble and report action from previous meeting.
SOCIAL INQUIRY: Bishop Agnelo in his keynote address at the ICCFM began his reflections
on the theme quoting a sentence from Pope John Paul‟s Encyclical on the family, Familiaris
Consortio (F.C.). In no. 86 of the Encyclical, the Pope says: The Future of humanity passes
by way of the family.
He spoke about the stages of faith beginning with the implantation when the infant is baptized
into the faith through the family. The seed once planted has to be nurtured. The questions asked
of the parents at the time of baptism are significant. The priest says: “You have asked to have
your child baptized. In doing so, you are accepting the responsibility of training him/her in the
practice of the faith. Do you clearly understand what you are undertaking”? Only after the
parents have said „Yes‟, does the Baptism continue.
OBSERVE: 1. In the days gone by perhaps it was sufficient for our parents to baptize us and
send us to a Catholic school. Because of the impact of society on children today is this enough?
If not, how will you fulfill your responsibility of training your child in the faith as you promised
that you clearly understood when your child was baptized?
2. If life on this earth is a blink in comparison with eternal life, is the attention you pay to the
career and material success of your children in proportion to the attention in training your child
for eternal life? If not what do you need to do?
SCRIPTURE READING: 1Tim.6:12-13
1Tim.6:12. Paul first instructs Timothy to fight the good fight and then went on to explain how.
Now if I get hold of (the free gift of) God‟s life, then God‟s faith (God CANNOT doubt
Himself) comes as part of the package. Therefore, God‟s life must increasingly fill me. The
more I am filled the more I find myself being moved to think and speak like God. When His life
becomes my life and the power and energy of my life is truly the eternal life of the living God,
then faith will be as natural to me as it is to God and God‟s word in my mouth is the same as
God‟s word in God‟s mouth. This is how Jesus lived and how He taught and expected us to live.
Jesus believed He was victorious when He was arrested and scourged and spat upon and
mocked. He claimed victory even when He was dying. When everything screamed „you are a
failure’ and Caiaphas and then Pilate demanded, “Are you the Christ? He replied, You bet I am!
It was a statement of fighting, defiant, glorious faith. His words and demeanor rang with truth
and authority. A supernatural light shone from the pulpy mess of His face. His belief was so
strong because He trusted that He would be resurrected and that death was necessary before His
resurrection. That is the good confession of faith 1Tim.6:13 that you and I must maintain even
when faced with mountain sized problems in order to be a witness to the Resurrection.
JUDGE: How is your life a „good confession‟ - a living witness to the Resurrection a) to your
children? b) to the community? c) to non-Christians?
ACT: Ask the Holy Spirit to convict you and reveal areas in which you are still conceding
victories to Satan; habitual weaknesses in your life which you have not yet overcome; to help
you plan action steps towards growing into the image of Christ.
FAITH AS SMALL AS A MUSTARD SEED.
Assemble and report action from previous meeting.
SOCIAL INQUIRY:
To date have you heard of one Christian who has ever had sufficient faith to remove a
mountain? So what is Jesus really saying here? Jesus is likening faith to the nature of the
mustard seed. Growth is in the very nature of a seed but it can‟t make itself grow. The farmer
must cultivate the soil and plant the seed. Then it needs sun and rain. So we must look to the soil
of our soul and nurture the faith that God has planted in each one of us. On the other hand, even
with good conditions, if the seed worked with all its might for an entire year, would it be fully
grown? Faith cannot be forced. Jesus was perfect, yet even He had to learn in order to mature.
Lk.2:52. It takes 6-8 years for the mustard seed to grow into an 8 ft bush. Its branches are often
large enough to use as wood. It does not reach its full height in a day, a month or a year. Would
the wise farmer dig it up and throw it away? If we doubt our faith because it is not 8 ft tall, we
will never know the power of a victorious faith that can change us and the world around us.
Rom.12:3b; Heb.12:2.
OBSERVE:
1. What is the difference between a mustard seed, a grain of sand, a grain of wheat.
2. How is a faith that can move mountains nurtured?
3. What concrete steps are you taking to continually grow in faith?
SCRIPTURE READING:
Lk7:6-9 The Roman Centurion at whose faith Jesus marveled, understood that the key to great
faith was implicit obedience. The life of a soldier is not his own any longer. When he sleeps,
eats, bathes, how he cuts his hair etc is not by his own choice. He must learn the discipline of
implicitly following his orders in all circumstances. Only once he learns this is he entrusted with
authority.
If we think of the punishment meted out to Moses or Adam and Eve we may think perhaps that
it was beyond the offence. But when we understand that the offence was disobedience to God
we will recognize that God takes disobedience to Himself very seriously. Faith is not primarily
reading/speaking the word; it is obeying the word.
Mt.15:22-28 A desperate and persistent pleading heart. The Canaanite woman had a dogged
faith borne of desperation. Have you observed a dog when he wants something from his master?
It will sit at his feet, touch him gently with its paw and beg with pleading eyes and whimper.
Such worship is almost impossible for the master to resist. If you are desperate like this woman
you won‟t argue theology with God, you will just plead your way past every obstacle. Just
worship and plead.
JUDGE:
1. What did the Roman Centurion stand to lose by coming to Jesus? What was it about the
Roman Centurion‟s faith that Jesus really commended?
2. Why do you think Jesus did not answer the woman at first and then even seemingly insulted
her?
3. What key principles about faith can you learn from the above two examples?
ACT
1. God desires that we give Him thanks and praise in all situations in our lives. As we
persist in praising God FOR (not in spite of) the difficult person or situation in our lives we will
begin to experience the peace and joy that surpasses all understanding. Rejoice. Something good
is bound to happen when we rejoice and sing and make melody in our hearts. Will you today
begin to thank and praise God for the difficult people and situations in your life that He has
specifically chosen for your spiritual growth?
2. Have child-like faith. When a child believes she is about to receive something good her face
lights up. Fear and faith are reflected in our faces. The evil one and his allies cannot read our
thoughts but they can see us. If they see the peace and joy of the Lord reflected in our
countenance even when they are turning the heat on, then they know that the Lord is with us and
they want to get far away from us just as they wanted to get far away from Jesus.
3. Practice expectant believing (like a pregnant mother) – When we practice believing the gifts
God has given us are activated. Exercising spiritual muscles, just like with physical exercise
must be consistent. It takes 20 minutes of vigorous exercise for the body to cleanse all its blood.
So too spiritual exercise takes time and we must do it nearly 365 days a year. Learn to patiently
and persistently declare that in each and every situation God is in control and intimately
involved with every detail of our lives and He is working all things for our good. He causes me
to be where I need to be so that I can learn the things I need to learn. He specifically puts the
people in my life that I need to help me to change and grow more and more in His image. We
will then face each and every trial or potential fearful situation with joy. Begin by stepping out
in faith in little things. eg if you have lost something small. Whether you find it or not, it‟s a
win-win situation. As we use the faith we have, God adds to it.
Jesus selected a mountain because of its immense size. As you exercise this total trust in God,
you will find that more and more you will be able to move mountain sized problems by
exercising faith in EVERY AREA AND ASPECT OF YOUR LIFE. God is continually giving
us opportunities to mature in our faith. Satan is aware of the power of faith and works hard to
keep the seed dormant.