A Mustard Seed of Faith

In another parable, he described what faith looks like by comparing a powerful prayer life to a widow that persistently cried out to an unjust judge who, unlike our heavenly Father, would be unlikely to be moved to help:

And the Lord said, "Listen to what the unjust judge says. And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?" Our Lord asked the question—“Will anyone show their faith by persevering past the point at which others would say it simply is not worth the effort involved?” (Luke 18:1-8).

Finally, we see in the parable of the sower, that one aspect of the good and faithful heart that bore abundant fruit was that it persevered until the crop came about. (Luke 8:11-15).

In Jesus’ parables, the Kingdom of God is described as a place in which peoples of all walks of life, from every race, rich or poor, physically weak and physically strong, and from every background, would be caught up in the teaching of the kingdom and brought to true faith in the one Lord, Jesus Christ. This is highlighted in, among others: the parable of the net (Matthew 13:44-46); the wedding banquet (Matthew 22:1-10); the parable of the yeast (word or Christians) working all through the dough (world) in Luke 13:20-21; and the parable of the narrow door which talks about people from the east, west, north and south that will take their places in the kingdom of God (Luke 13:28-29). Jesus clearly taught that it is God’s intent that there be no class of people, no location, and no corridor of humanity that would miss the opportunity to hear the gospel message.

And the point of our story is this: that anyone, even the weakest among us, with God’s help can do the unimaginable when armed with just a tiny sliver of faith, when they are willing to persevere with it. And so it was, that God decided to use those you might least expect--a brother that had fallen away twice, struggled with faith for years, and then became restored to faith; a sister with a non-christian husband that often caused her to struggle and stumble in her faith, yet persevered when her mother and physical sister fell away; a new Christian who was very timid in character, typically afraid to speak out and also employed with a legislative or State agency; an evangelist in one of the smallest churches in our fellowship here in the Midwest. Yet, armed with this one conviction, that God really means “all” when he says reach out to “all”—such a belief became a mustard seed of faith to start something amazing.

In April of 2001, a few disciples discussed the need for a Bible discussion in the halls of government. At the same time lobbyists and others in and about the capitol building in Springfield , Illinois , observed that group Bible discussions with legislators had gone on until recently but that these had stopped. The above-mentioned restored brother, working at that time for a legislative agency, then approached the Governor at a legislative reception. Having no relationship with the Governor or any of his staff, he simply believed that God could answer an on-the-spot silent prayer to himself, much like the prayer in Nehemiah 2:4. And so he suggested that a non-denominational non-partisan group Bible study could begin to meet at the Governor’s mansion, inviting persons from the Senate, House, and the Governor’s Office in a unified effort gathering every side of the political aisle and every walk of life. The Governor agreed to this concept, and after a memo was sent to the Governor (which required approval from the brother’s boss, who happened to be an atheist), Bible discussions began. Over 1000 invitations were sent out to legislators, legislative staff, lobbyists, local government officials, and state agencies, and these Bible discussions in the Governor’s mansion attracted about 20 to 25 people per discussion. Later, regular Bible talks also began in a chapel located inside the Capitol building. This chapel had been made available for public use years earlier, after appeals to the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals reversed a federal trial court’s injunction against using state funds to build a chapel on state property.

To get a flavor for what has happened, the following time-line might be helpful:
2001—Start of Bible discussions in Governor’s Mansion and the Chapel in the Capitol;
2002—Illinois Governor’s mansion discussions attract diverse groups of up to 25, including legislators, legislative staff, lobbyists, judges, local elected officials, and agency managers; State appellate justice writes a letter urging the incoming Governor to continue the Bible discussions in the mansion; for Christmas, the incoming Governor is given a Bible personally embossed bible with greetings inside; a focus on 7:30 AM Spring session Bible discussions begins and several Illinois senators attend regularly;
2003—Personal Bible studies go on, including studies with legislative staff and the General Counsel of one of the State’s largest and most influential associations; announcements of 7:30 AM Bible discussions are made on the House and Senate Floor during State legislative session.
2004—Outreach extends to more state workers as noon Bible talks continue at the Governor’s mansion; our Springfield evangelist is asked to offer an opening prayer for one of the session days and has the opportunity to again offer the opening prayer from time to time;
2005—Invitations to all elected officials within 60 miles go out and a village mayor and a member of a county board attend Bible discussions;
2006—Bible discussions continue in both the Chapel and the Governors’ Mansion;
2007—Informal planning breakfast occurs during veto session and 3 legislators pick out the book entitled “Twelve Ordinary Men” by John Macarthur for group Bible discussions for 7:30 AM Bible discussions the following spring;
2008—Emphasis is placed on 7:30 AM Bible discussions with legislators, with noon discussions occurring at the Governor’s mansion in summer and fall only; 7:30 AM bible discussions on session days attract more legislators than ever before; Legislators pick "Why I Believe", by Dr. D. James Kennedy for 7:30 AM Bible discussions to take place the next spring;
2009—More and more legislators continue to attend as 7:30 AM Bible discussions continue and as legislators are invited in person at their offices; at informal planning breakfast, legislators select “The Victory of Surrender” by Gordon Ferguson for Bible discussions in 2010. Governor’s mansion discussions continue once every other month after Spring session is over; for Christmas, the incoming Governor is given a Bible personally embossed Bible with greetings inside; and
2010—Early morning legislative Bible discussions continue to attract legislators to attend; as of May 1, 34 copies of Gordon Ferguson’s book are sold, mostly to legislators who express a desire to attend.

We believe what is now happening is the direct result of God’s intervention over time, as we have obtained the trust of various legislators who observe our intent to glorify God and involve the legislature in a non-partisan and non-denominational fashion.

Please pray for the success of these Bible discussions and for the hearts of everyone involved. In particular, please pray also for:

--opportunities to develop deep friendships with these legislators that can foster openness;
--for effective one on one Bible studies to take place;
--for God to supply additional disciples who can be available and be effective workers for the Bible talks (while the 7:30 AM slot is just about the only time legislators can make, it is a very difficult time slot for other disciples who have jobs to go to and kids to get off to school in the morning).
--for wisdom in how to reach the legislators and other visitors who attend, many of whom tend to be somewhat established in their own churches
--for us to have a greater understanding on how to reach “Apollos” types that tend to have some knowledge of scripture yet need to be taught “the way of God more adequately” (Acts 18:26).

And finally the question for each of us, what will we do with the mustard seed of faith God has given us? And to God be the Glory!!