Faith Unlimited

Life Unlimited

Allen Snapp

Grace Community Church

Sept. 21, 2025

Faith Unlimited

We’re in a series called Life Unlimited and today’s message is titled Faith Unlimited. Let’s turn in our Bibles to one of the more amazing statements Jesus made about the power of faith. Matthew 21

¹⁸ In the morning, as he was returning to the city, he became hungry. ¹⁹ And seeing a fig tree by the wayside, he went to it and found nothing on it but only leaves. And he said to it, “May no fruit ever come from you again!” And the fig tree withered at once.

²⁰ When the disciples saw it, they marveled, saying, “How did the fig tree wither at once?” ²¹ And Jesus answered them, “Truly, I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what has been done to the fig tree, but even if you say to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ it will happen. ²² And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith.” Matt. 21:18-22

Let’s pray.

The disciples were amazed that the fig tree Jesus cursed withered and died on the spot and Jesus uses this moment to highlight the virtually unlimited power of faith.

If you have faith…even if you say to this mountain, “be taken up and thrown into the sea” it will happen. And whatever you ask in prayer you will receive, if you have faith.

When Jesus said this there’s a good chance they were standing on the Mt. of Olives and looking down on the Dead Sea but what is certain is that Jesus wants to impress on them that - if they have faith – they can do far greater things than just curse a fig tree. The sheer power and the massive disruption throwing a mountain into the sea is beyond comprehension.

They were amazed at the fig tree dying, Jesus says, “that’s nothing. If you have faith, anything is possible! Everything you ask for in prayer you will receive, if you have faith.” We really are talking about faith unlimited!

And this isn’t the only place where Jesus expounds on the power of faith. Mark and John also record Jesus saying that anything we ask for in prayer, if we believe, we will receive and anything we ask in Jesus’ name he will do in order to glorify his Father. This makes me a little uncomfortable and I would want to rush to limit people’s expectations of what faith can accomplish – but Jesus deliberately takes the limits off, encouraging his disciples to have great faith – unlimited faith!

My hope this morning is that our faith is stirred to believe God for great things while being guided by God’s word so that we avoid doing things in the name of faith that do damage to ourselves, other believers, and the name of Christ.

So let’s begin again with what I’ve been saying: unlimited always has its limits!

1. Unlimited always has its limits

Nothing is unlimited in every direction. Even God, who is infinite in of His attributes, has limits to His infiniteness. A few years ago I was watching a movie – can’t remember what movie it was – but a theologian was trying to teach his students and one of the students was kind of rebellious and skeptical and with a smirk on his face asked the teacher this question: “if God can do anything, can He create a rock that’s so big He can’t lift it?” The teacher got flustered and it was clear the student won that round.

Of course the movie depicted the question as being unanswerable but actually it’s easy to answer. The question is built on a false premise, that being that God can do anything. God can’t do anything. He can’t lie. He can’t do evil. And one of His infinite qualities can’t contradict or stump another one of His infinite qualities. His love will never contradict His justice or His justice ever contradict His love. And His creative ability could never go beyond His lifting ability. The question is built on a false premise, that God can do anything. God can’t do anything that goes against His character.

So coming back to faith, what limits unlimited faith? To answer that we need to understand what biblical faith really is.

2. Faith is based on hearing from God

So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ. Rom. 10:17

Biblical faith isn’t simply saying and believing whatever we want. Biblical faith is our response to hearing from God. Biblical faith is built on God’s will, not our will. When we hear the gospel of Jesus and believe it, we are saved. It’s not faith that saves us, it’s Jesus that saves us by grace through faith. When we take God at His word, faith becomes the channel through which God’s power flows to us.

Faith is always linked to God’s will. So let’s take a deeper look at the cursing of the fig tree. Why did Jesus curse the fig tree? It’s one of the only times when Jesus hurts one of his creatures. Was he just having a bad day? Was he so disappointed when he saw the fig leaves promising fruit and then found no fruit that he had an angry outburst?

No, Jesus meant the cursing of the fig tree to be a warning to Israel – the fig tree was like the religious state of Israel and its leaders – promising a lot, delivering nothing. And on the edge of being cursed by God.

“The point was that the tree by its leaves announced that it was bearing fruit, when in fact it was not — the cursing of the tree became a model that pronounces judgment on religious hypocrites — people who make a show of piety but who bear no genuine fruit of piety.” ~ Don Carson

This is where the Word of Faith teachers go wrong. They believe faith is declaring whatever we want and if we believe it enough than God has to give it to us. Name it and claim it. I’ve heard some teach that faith is a law that God has to obey. That is really bad doctrine and has damaged the faith of a lot of Christians.

Our faith always needs to be anchored in the will of God, and when it is whatever we ask we will receive if we have faith. If God wants to throw that mountain into the sea, it’s gonna happen. Nothing is impossible with God.

Faith doesn’t order God, God orders faith. We don’t command God to do what we want by having enough faith, faith is our ability to hear what God has commanded and take Him at His word! God’s will is the only limitation to unlimited faith.

3. The preciousness and power of faith

Some of you may remember Aron’s message a couple weeks ago on the power of the word “if”. Let’s reread vv. 21-22 and notice the hefty weight the word “if” is carrying in this passage:

²¹ And Jesus answered them, “Truly, I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what has been done to the fig tree, but even if you say to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ it will happen. ²² And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith.

There’s no avoiding the fact that Jesus is saying that great things will happen if we have faith that won’t happen if we don’t have faith. Mountains will get moved if we have faith that won’t get moved if we don’t.

On one extreme are those who believe that they will get whatever they want, if they have enough faith. On the other extreme – and my guess is this is where more of us probably fall – are those who think “God is going to do whatever He’s going to do so it doesn’t matter if I pray or have faith.”

Jesus says no, mountains can be moved if we have faith that won’t be moved if we don’t have faith. Prayer can make things happen that won’t happen if we don’t pray.

Peter says our faith is more precious than refined gold. He’s talking primarily about our faith in the faith of Jesus Christ but our faith in Christ isn’t just to get us to heaven, our faith is a precious part of every day, every need, every trial, every victory.

I want to close by encouraging all of us to exercise our faith and believe God to move some mountains in our lives. Any prayer is better than no prayer but Jesus is calling us to pray for big things with faith. He sandwiches this vision of what God can do with the words if you have faith on both sides.

I see faith as a little more proactive than trust. Some of us are stronger in trust than in faith. Trust trusts that God is going to meet us, work all things out for our good, and be faithful. Trust in God is precious and beautiful in the life of a believer.

But faith has a more proactive quality – I’m believing God to do something. I’m asking God to do something. I’m praying for God to move that mountain. More than that, when the Spirit quickens to us a sense of faith, I’m not just praying for God to move the mountain, and I’m telling the mountain to move! Jesus didn’t say have a conversation with the mountain, he said speak to the mountain and tell it to pick itself up and throw itself into the sea!

Some of us need to talk to some of the mountains in our life!

• Maybe for some your mountain is a financial crisis. Speak to that mountain and say move from crisis to sufficiency. I’m not a God-wants-you-rich prosperity kind of guy, but the Lord wants you to be able to pay your bills, to have the shelter, food, and clothing and enough to give to God’s work. The first mountains you might need to move might be your habits to help you move from being a poor steward to a good steward. You might need to make a budget and eat out less and cut back on the 1500 TV channels package. If you’re not already doing it, you will want to honor God by tithing. Speak to that financial crisis mountain and say move from crisis to provision.
• A family member who has walked away from the Lord. They’re not budging as far as they’re concerned. Nothing about their life’s direction looks like its gonna move. Speak to the mountain in prayer. Lord move my friend, my son, my daughter, my spouse from unbelief to a strong faith in Christ. In Jesus’ name do it Lord!
• Sometimes the mountains that don’t want to move are our own attitudes. We have a bad attitude – constantly thinking negative or ungrateful thoughts, or fearful anxious thoughts or arrogance towards others. We don’t have to live in that mindset. “Well, that’s just the way I am. I can’t change.” Yes we can change! The gospel promises us change! The Holy Spirit resides within us to transform us into the image of Jesus!

I’m not talking about name it and claim it or positive thinking. I’m talking about stirring up our faith in a proactive way where we believe God’s promises over our lives, we believe His promises over the people we love, we believe His faithfulness and power and love will meet us where we are and we speak that – out loud if we can – with faith.

Heb 11 tells us that without faith it is impossible to please God. Faith believes God’s promises and trusts God to always be there for us. If you struggle with a weak faith, you’re not alone. Jesus was often amazed at his disciples weak faith and rebuked them for it but he never rejected them because of it.

Have a daily time to build your faith by reading the Bible. Set aside a time each day to pray and pour out your heart to God but also speak to some mountains in your life and tell them to move in Jesus’ name.