Are you worried that your faith is weak? Don’t worry. Faith does not save you. Jesus saves you. Greg was a guest on a recent episode of the White Horse Inn podcast, and when they discussed the idea that “it’s not the amount of your faith that saves you; it’s the object of your faith that saves you,” he gave this helpful analogy:

GREG KOUKL: Just think if you were in the Midwest when the lakes are frozen over, and you’re not sure whether it’s okay to go ice fishing or not, and you think the ice may be thin, and you’re crawling out with very weak faith; but listen, if the ice is thick, you’re in good shape. You’re safe.

MICHAEL HORTON: It’s all about the ice.

GREG KOUKL: Exactly. But if you’re trouncing out there with all the faith in the world, and you’re on thin ice, you’re going to get wet.... We’re not saved by faith; we’re saved by Jesus. Faith is the hand that receives what Jesus offers. It connects us with that which Jesus does, but the object is really, really important.

Your feelings of faith (i.e., trust in God) will vary because that’s just the way we humans are. If you’re trusting in your feelings of faith, then when those feelings are weak you’ll focus your efforts on increasing those fickle and powerless feelings and be no better off than you were before. But if you’re trusting in Jesus, then when your faith feels weak you’ll be driven to look at Him, and you’ll find that He is holding on to you, no matter how weak you are. It’s His work and strength that matters, not yours. As Michael Horton said in the episode, “Weak faith grasps a strong savior.”