Built on Faith

The Rev. Joseph Winston

July 6, 2008

Sermon

Grace and peace are gifts for you from God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.1
In a very real way, the world, which we live in, is built on faith. Take for
example the form of government that we use here in the United States. Democracy
only works when there is explicit trust between the government and the governed.
We see this daily in our Constitution. For the most part, everyone in this country
must agree with the rules that have been set down by our leaders and follow them.
This simple act of obedience requires that we know the laws that apply to us and
we have faith that the people who enforce the rules are honest.
Another common example of the confidence we all have in our government
is our monetary system. Take a close look at the money you are carrying in your
pocket. If you are like me, you will have some combination of pennies, nickels,
1
Romans 1:7, 1 Corinthians 1:3, 2 Corinthians 1:2, Galatians 1:3, Ephesians 1:2, Philippians
1:2, 2 Thessalonians 1:2, Philemon 1:3

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dimes, quarters, and folding money. If you attempt to exchange your change for
something of real value at a scrap metal dealer, you soon would find out that your
coins are practically worthless. The same thing would happen if you tried to sell
your paper money to a recycler. Then why do we continue to carry all these tokens
around if they have nearly no worth? We keep using this money only because we
trust that others will honor it.
Probably the most powerful example of trust in the business world is personal
credit. A few numbers on a small piece of plastic can get you just about anything
that you want. The Internet provides us with a perfect illustration. Log onto Ama-
zon.com or eBay and you can have almost anything sent to you after you give
them your numbers. Think about what has happened. You exchanged a small bit
of information and in return, you receive something real. This transaction only
occurs because the merchants trust that you will pay them back.
In all these individual illustrations, difficulties arise when our trust or faith is
lost in the system. Take our first example about the government. When the people
loose faith in the laws, anarchy results. If the leaders do not trust everyone, a
tyrant rules the people. Corruption becomes rampant when police take a bit of
the action. In the second example, confusion would rule the day if no one trusted
our currency. Someone would want to be paid in chickens because that is what
they need at the present time while others would require a cup of coffee. On top
of that, it would be very difficult if not impossible to set up a market that would
exchange what I have for what you need. Trust is also needed for the final example
about credit. Because neither party trusts the other, all purchases must be made

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with currency. But there are real problems with this solution. How do you get the
money to the other person if you cannot make it there in person? And how you
get your money back if the product was defective or if it did not live up to its
advertising?
The same sorts of problems do not occur when doubt is a part of the way the
world works. It is obvious from reading the Constitution and the Bill of Rights
that doubt is an integral part of our government. It goes without saying that we
see this in the checks and balances found in our Constitution that prevents one
branch from dominating the other ones. Currency traders actively doubt that any
one form of money is always worth the most. They profit from this reality. We
express our doubt when we use credit. For those making the purchase, we might
doubt that the product is worth the money. In this case, we can try the product at
almost no cost to us and let the credit card company deal with the often-difficult
task of returning the unwanted item. We might doubt that we have enough money
to purchase a needed item. Now, credit allows us to bet that we will be able to pay
in the future. Interest is the way the credit card company makes a profit on our
doubt.
The examples of the government, money, and credit showed us the value of
faith. We saw the mutual trust is needed for the proper operation of the govern-
ment. We learned that our monetary system works because we trust in it. The same
holds true for the credit industry. We must have faith in each other.
Faith in God differs slightly from these earlier illustrations. It is vital to re-
member that we never discussed how this faith in the government, money, or the

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credit industry came to be. In every other case, faith comes through hands-on ex-
perience and effort. We see good and bad forms of government. This practical
knowledge leads us to design a system based on trust. We have learned that it is
impractical to always carry hard currency like gold or silver. This understanding
created monetary system that we currently use. The development of credit follows
the same trend. It fills the need of joining producers and consumers through an
intermediary. Faith in God is different from the other examples since this trust in
God does not come through experience or any work on our part. Instead, God both
gives us our faith and keeps it alive.
Martin Luther spells this understanding out in his interpretation of the Apos-
tle’s Creed. Luther explains, “I believe in the Holy Ghost; the holy catholic Church”
in the following way:

I believe that I cannot by my own reason or strength believe in Jesus

Christ, my Lord, or come to Him; but the Holy Ghost has called me
by the Gospel, enlightened me with His gifts, sanctified and kept me
in the true faith; even as He calls, gathers, enlightens, and sanctifies
the whole Christian Church on earth, and keeps it with Jesus Christ in
the one true faith. 2

In other words, Luther says, I believe that I cannot have faith. The great reformer
knows that it is impossible for anyone to have trust in God. Our faith in God must
come from somewhere else. God comes to you and me and places inside of us this
2
Small Catechism, T HE T HIRD A RTICLE : S ANCTIFICATION, II, 6; Theodore G. Tappert et al.,
editors, The Book of Concord, (Fortress Press, 1959), p. 345.

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trust of God. God then feeds this faith so that it matures. This is something that
God does for every believer and for the entire Church here on earth.
Next, it is necessary to remember that faith is not needed to know God. This
completely agrees with our earlier examples. You might be an anarchist but your
lack of faith does not make the government go away. Your trust in the gold stan-
dard does not make someone else’s currency disappear. You could only pay cash
for everything but others will use credit. Your life outside of the faith only proves
that God’s existence. Not only that, but God gives the unbeliever other gifts ev-
eryday like life, hope, and love.
The previous illustrations about how the world works show us how faith and
doubt are intertwined. It takes doubt about the rulers and the ruled to build a
successful democracy that lasts the tests of time. Currency traders use doubt about
markets to make a profit. Credit functions since we doubt each other.
Doubt is also an integral part of our faith because it is part of the life that we
lead here on earth. Faith in God never has the slightest bit of either mathemati-
cal or empirical evidence. Any claim to the contrary is obviously wrong because
this perceived knowledge distracts our attention away from God onto something
else that is less important. In just the same way, our feelings cannot prove God.
When we start to focus on how our emotions make us feel, God can disappear
when that sentiment goes away. Additionally, we realize that at all times faith is
risky because the evidence supporting God here on earth is always incomplete.
We undeniably recognize this lack of understanding in every other part of our life
and there is no different in our relationship with God. Our knowledge of God is

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limited. All of this adds up to one undeniable fact. Everyone’s faith has an element
of doubt. Sometimes our doubt is so big that it seems to push faith out the door
while at other times our doubt might be so small that we do not see that it is there.
It is especially important to remind you of the role of doubt in faith on the
festival of St. Thomas, a person who is often remembered for being someone who
doubted the resurrection. And at one time, the translators of the Gospel accord-
ing to St. John knew the fact that doubt is a normal part of faith. This could be
heard in the dialog between Jesus and Thomas that occurred one week after the
resurrection.
The narrator starts out this portion of the Gospel by telling us the basic facts.
Thomas was not there the first time the disciples saw Jesus in the locked room
(John 20:24). They kept telling him that they had seen the risen Lord (John 20:25).3
Thomas’ response to their witness of the resurrection is very harsh. Thomas wants
to throw his hand into Christ’s wounds and until this happens he will not believe
(John 20:24).4 A week later Jesus appears to the disciples and tells them, “Peace is
with you (John 20:26)!”5 Jesus then invites Thomas to touch and see the wounds
on His body (John 20:27a).
We now are at the verse of contention. In 1611, the King James Version had Je-
3
Some authors consider the verb ἔλεγον to be a “conative imperfect,” which means that the
others tried to tell him about Jesus. S.D.B. Francis J. Moloney; S.J. Daniel J. Harrington, editor,
The Gospel of John, Volume 4, Sacra Pagina Series, (Collegeville, Minnesota: The Liturgical Press,
1998), p. 539.
4
The Greek (βάλω τὸν δάκτυλόν μου εἰς τὸν τύπον τῶν ἥλων καὶ βάλω μου τὴν χεῖρα
εἰς τὴν πλευρὰν αὐτοῦ) is more violent than the normal English translations and it also contains
Thomas exclaiming that he will not believe. Ibid..
5
The Greek εἰρήνη ὑμῖν does not have the verb to be.

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sus commanding Thomas to, “be not faithless, but believing.”6 The Revised Stan-
dard Version in 1946 used almost the exact same translation, “do not be faithless,
but believing.”7 This all changed in 1973. The New International Version decided
that being without faith meant that you where doubting, so they have Jesus tell
Thomas to, “Stop doubting and believe.”8 The New Revised Standard Version,
the translation that we normally use at Tree of Life, follows the lead of the New
International Version with the words, “Do not doubt but believe.”9
The last two English translations are wrong. Thomas does not doubt. The
Greek text is very clear on this one point. The original text plainly reads, “Do
not have no faith but faith.”10
There are two importantly reasons why we need to make sure that everyone
here today understands why Jesus is condemning Thomas’ lack of faith and that
He is not telling Thomas about the problems that might arise due to doubt. First
of all, Jesus speaks these words to Thomas as a warning. In the Gospel according
to St. John, Jesus tells us that sin is simply not believing in Him (John 16:8-9).
Thomas’ current state of no faith places him at risk.
Christ’s warning to Thomas also holds for each of us. When we actively deny
that we know Jesus, we are sinning. More than likely, this occurs when we act
just like the rest of the world. Some of us might not take care of those people who
need us. Other of us could refuse to speak out about the injustices that we see all
6
John 20:27b KJV 1611.
7
John 20:27b RSV 1946.
8
John 20:27b NIV 1973.
9
John 20:27b NRSV 1989.
10
καὶ μὴ γίνου ἄπιστος ἀλλὰ πιστός (John 20:27b NA-27.)

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around us. And most importantly, there might be yet others who do not tell their
family, friends, and neighbors about Jesus. These sorts of behaviors are explicitly
telling the world that we do not know Jesus. This places us in the same category
as Thomas. We have no faith and because of this, we have condemned ourselves.
The second reason why we need to ensure that this whole idea about “Doubt-
ing Thomas” gets wiped out of existence is that doubt is an everyday part of faith
and questions about our salvation are to be expected.
This understanding about the role of doubt in faith is what dramatically sep-
arates us Lutherans from the rest of the Protestants. Every other Protestant group
in the world uses the following logic. They start out with the statement, “Whoever
has faith will be saved.”11 Pay careful attention to the next part of their reasoning.
They say, “I have faith.” Their conclusion logically is, “I am saved.”
There are two major problems with this approach. The first issue with this
methodology is that one must do something to be saved. Specifically in this case,
one must hold onto and possess faith. While this might be less onerous that other
ways of working yourself into heaven, the result is the same. Only those individ-
uals who have the ability to do this difficult work will be saved. This logic imme-
diately rules out all those people who cannot perform this action: the infants, the
infirm, and the doubters. The second problem with this line of reasoning is that
no matter how much we want to deny it we all are aware of our limitations. No
matter how hard we try, we cannot even do what we want. Add to this harsh fact
the ever-present reality that everyone doubts. More importantly, there are times in
11
This is nothing more than a paraphrase of Mark 16:16.

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life were we cannot believe.
Lutherans famously start out at the other end of the spectrum. We confess that
we can only be certain of God’s Word and not of our faith. Our reasoning goes
something like this. At our baptism, Jesus tells each and everyone of us, “I baptize
you in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit (Matthew 28:19)”
What comes next builds on God’s Word and not on our ability to believe in God.
We trust that Jesus only tells us the truth. Or said in another way, Jesus never lies
to us. The result of this line of reasoning is amazing. Because of God’s promise
spoken directly to me by Jesus Himself, my sins are drowned and I have been
given a new life. While I still might have doubts about my faith and could even
completely stop believing in God, there never can be any doubt about God’s Word
pronounced over me because my baptism occurred at a specific time and place.
God has bathed me in the life saving waters. Whenever we doubt our salvation,
whenever we fear that God does not love us, whenever we are in our darkest
situation, we can return to this promise because in the waters of baptism you are
saved.
That is why we normally start out every liturgy at the baptismal font. The
water is stirred in hopes that it will remind you of God’s amazing Good News.
You are baptized and you have been given a new life. This cannot be taken away
from you.
In our own lives, we know what happens when hope is misplaced. When any
part of the judicial system breaks down, chaos results. We saw this in New Orleans
after Katrina. Looting occurred because people no longer trusted that the system

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would work for them. Our faith in the value of money does not always ring true.
During times of crises, say a hurricane, people no longer want cash. They desire
items that have some physical value like ice, potable water, and bread. Mistrust
also takes place in the world of business. Credit card fraud is but one example.
This deception costs each of us because we pay to cover their losses.
In the three months that I have had the privilege of serving you, I have seen
many cases of how you trust in God. The church council deals with items ranging
from maintenance of this building to the mission of this congregation. You need
to be told that they continue to have faith in God’s promise that God has saved
them despite the many setbacks we have suffered. The call committee has been
diligently working to find a pastor that will teach you that God loves you and
give you the sacraments. Twice they have been disillusioned because the pastor
that they recommended to you did not come here. Those terrible disappointments
have not shattered their faith because they realize God has already saved them.
The members of this congregation who I have talked with know deep in their
hearts that God loves them and they want to share this faith with others.
Today at the late service, we have another indication of how much people have
faith in God. Susan and Mark Raven are trusting in the future of this church. Here
at the Tree of Life they have experienced God’s presence. God has come to them
in the Word and the meal that we share. They want to live with you so that they
can be reminded of the God who loved the world so much that He sent His Son to
save us.
Continue to follow the path of trusting in the Lord who comes to us in this

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world and tells us, “I am the way. I am the truth. I am the life.” Have faith in the
words and the promises of this One and you will have peace.
“The peace of God, which passeth all understanding, keep your hearts and
minds through Christ Jesus.”12

References

Beaudoin, Tom, Virtual Faith: The Irreverent Spiritual Quest of Generation X,

(Jossey-Bass, 1998).

Francis J. Moloney, S.D.B.; Daniel J. Harrington, S.J., editor, The Gospel of John,
Volume 4, Sacra Pagina Series, (Collegeville, Minnesota: The Liturgical
Press, 1998).

Gritsch, Eric W. and Jenson, Robert W., Lutheranism The Theological Movement
and Its Confessional Writings, (Fortress Press, 1976).

Hall, Douglas John, Chap. Paul Tillich: Systematic Theology – Faith’s Quest
for Wholeness In ‘Remembered Voices Reclaiming the Legacy of Neo-
Orthodoxy’, (Westminster John Knox Press, 1998), pp. 27–45.

Tappert, Theodore G. et al., editors, The Book of Concord, (Fortress Press, 1959).

12
Philippians 4:7.

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