PORTERVILLE POST | The "RIGHT" Word © ~ with Brother Scott

| “In the Pursuit of Strong Faith”

The Right Word^© - Feb 08, 2026
with Brother Scott : scott@portervillepost.com

We’ve been talking about the power of faith and prayer by faith and how it is not natural to the earthly man or woman but is supernatural, and in its initial measure given us is a gift from God.
Listen :
(† Luke 18:1-8) -- († Romans 12:3)
Our initial endowment of God-given faith is not unlike what we are suppose to learn from the Lord’s parables about having been given talents and what we do with them. In His parables, Jesus relates how several men were given a certain number of dollars (talents) to work with in His absence. As you should recall, one did very well in his stewardship, another also did well, and a third did nothing with the talent he was given but hid it in the ground.

( † † † )
† Matthew 25:14 For the kingdom of heaven is as a man travelling into a far country, who called his own servants, and delivered unto them his goods. 15 And unto one he gave five talents (in coin or a sum of money), to another two, and to another one; to every man according to his several ability; and straightway took his journey. . . 19 After a long time the lord of those servants cometh, and reckoneth with them. 20 And so he that had received five talents came and brought other five talents, saying, Lord, thou deliveredst unto me five talents: behold, I have gained beside them five talents more. 21 His lord said unto him, Well done, thou good and faithful servant. . . 22 He also that had received two talents came and said, Lord, thou deliveredst unto me two talents: behold, I have gained two other talents beside them. 23 His lord said unto him, Well done, good and faithful servant. . . 24 Then he which had received the one talent came and said, Lord, I knew thee that thou art an hard man, reaping where thou hast not sown, and gathering where thou hast not strawed: 25 And I was afraid, and went and hid thy talent in the earth: lo, there thou hast that is thine. 26 His lord answered and said unto him, Thou wicked and slothful servant, thou knewest that I reap where I sowed not, and gather where I have not strawed. . .

In another version of that parable and with similar lessons and outcomes at († Luke 19:11-24), the nobleman is heard to say to his servants (or Jesus to us), “Occupy until I come”, which means to be busy about or trade for a gain what I have given you.

“Occupy until I come”

That’s what I want to discuss with you today—being spiritually “busy” about strengthening that which the Lord has given you as faith; to “trade” some things you have that you do not now need for a much better thing to have, and that is strong faith.
The word faith is used 245 times in the KJB and is one of only a few often-spoken and prevailing themes in both the Gospels and the other books of the new covenant writings from Acts to Revelation. Two noteworthy examples are these:

( † † † )
† Mark 11:20 And in the morning, as they passed by, they saw the fig tree dried up from the roots. 21 And Peter calling to remembrance saith unto him, Master, behold, the fig tree which thou cursedst is withered away. 22 And Jesus answering saith unto them, Have faith in God.
† Hebrews 11:1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. 2 For by it the elders obtained a good report. 3 Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear. . . 6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

Now you and I were given a seed-sized measure of faith to believe the Gospel, yet so many do not grow beyond that initial deposit of faith to be able to believe God and believe what His written Word says to us about other needful things. The 12 disciples were often chided for having “little faith” (= incredulous [skeptical, disbelieving], lacking confidence).
Today’s exhortation is about going from little seed-faith given us by God to great faith by the help of the Holy Spirit and the Word of God; it is expected of us by God and it is needful for us who live in these last days—great faith.

( † † † )
† Luke 17:6 And the Lord said, If ye had faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye might say unto this sycamine tree, Be thou plucked up by the root, and be thou planted in the sea; and it should obey you.
† Matthew 8:5 And when Jesus was entered into Capernaum, there came unto him a centurion, beseeching him, 6 And saying, Lord, my servant lieth at home sick of the palsy, grievously tormented. 7 And Jesus saith unto him, I will come and heal him. 8 The centurion answered and said, Lord, I am not worthy that thou shouldest come under my roof: but speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed. . . 10 When Jesus heard it, he marvelled, and said to them that followed, Verily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel. . . 13 And Jesus said unto the centurion, Go thy way; and as thou hast believed, so be it done unto thee. And his servant was healed in the selfsame hour.
† Matthew 15:21 Then Jesus went thence, and departed into the coasts of Tyre and Sidon. 22 And, behold, a woman of Canaan came out of the same coasts, and cried unto him, saying, Have mercy on me, O Lord, thou Son of David; my daughter is grievously vexed with a devil. 23 But he answered her not a word. And his disciples came and besought him, saying, Send her away; for she crieth after us. 24 But he answered and said, I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel. 25 Then came she and worshipped him, saying, Lord, help me. 26 But he answered and said, It is not meet to take the children's bread, and to cast it to dogs. 27 And she said, Truth, Lord: yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters' table. 28 Then Jesus answered and said unto her, O woman, great (megas: big, mighty, strong) is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt. And her daughter was made whole from that very hour.

Now this is the crux of the matter about believers who confess by faith that Jesus is the Son of God and their Savior but do not have the faith to believe God for so many other things: Growing faith requires both intentional dedication and discipline, which many simply do not have toward God.
We do not like or welcome the issues of life that God either permits or arranges for us to face that have the Divine goal of exercising and expanding our faith. A rubber band is of no use if it is not stretched around something to hold that something in place or to be closely bound with other things.

Faith remains juvenile at best in its development

Faith remains juvenile at best in its development and potential if over time it is itself not strengthened and stretched to include bigger and bigger things without breaking. In short, you and I need the challenges that this life can throw upon us in order for you and I to advance in and grow strong faith, and then to apply faith to great needs and harder situations.
But we fight against such things by the flesh’s desire for comfort and an easy path to follow. Jesus told us that the road to life is going to be fraught with inconvenient obstacles and trouble, whereas the road to destruction is one that is the easy way.

( † † † )
† Matthew 7:13 Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: 14 Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.
† Luke 13:23 Then said one unto him, Lord, are there few that be saved? And he said unto them, 24 Strive to enter in at the strait gate: for many, I say unto you, will seek to enter in, and shall not be able. 25 When once the master of the house is risen up, and hath shut to the door, and ye begin to stand without, and to knock at the door, saying, Lord, Lord, open unto us; and he shall answer and say unto you, I know you not whence ye are. . .

Until a Christian comes to understand how vital his or her faith in God and His Word is and that it must be tempered stronger year-after-year that man and woman will fight against God’s work to grow one’s faith to believe for great things.

( † † † )
† James 1:2 My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; 3 Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. 4 But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing. 5 If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. 6 But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. 7 For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord. 8 A double minded man is unstable in all his ways.
† Hebrews 10:38 Now the just shall live by faith [“by faith” 37x's in the NT with 16x's in Hebrews 11]: but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him. 39 But we are not of them who draw back unto perdition; but of them that believe to the saving of the soul. . . 11:6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

It is a weak faith that cannot trust God to help, to guide, to protect or provide-for when trouble arises. Instead of looking to Him, we freak-out, worry, lose sleep, and run to the world for its help having failed to pray and wait on the Lord in hope; I have done it and am pretty sure you’ve done it, too.

Here's the question for the hour we're now entering

What are you going to do when for whatever reason you don’t have medical insurance for a serious health problem?
What can you do when the main income to your household is lost and the rent or mortgage, your utility bills, and the car and credit card payments cannot be paid?
And most astonishing will be when the dollar crashes and there is no way to buy (or buy on credit) the food you need!
What will you do about these things—sell you family treasures, hope for government welfare help, resort to stealing, stand in a mile-long food line, check you and your family in at a FEMA facility for food and shelter?
Or do you have the faith to get on your knees before your God and Savior and ask, seek, and knock by a strong faith knowing that He will provide, if you have the faith in Him to do so? You must be able today to trust God before such things happen to be able to not freak-out, worry, lose sleep, and run to the world for help in our near tomorrows.
And, by the way, such a needed strong faith realizes that asking and our receiving may not happen in minutes or a few hours; we may have to go to bed a night or two hungry while the Holy Spirit does a deeper work in our souls. Do keep that in mind!

Great faith knows these things
And lives by them with-out-compromise

( † † † )
† 1 Corinthians 10:13 There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it. [Faith believes this!]
† Psalm 3:4 I cried unto the LORD with my voice, and he heard me out of his holy hill. Selah. 5 I laid me down and slept; I awaked; for the LORD sustained me. 6 I will not be afraid of. . . 7 Arise, O LORD; save me, O my God. . .
† Matthew 7:7 Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: 8 For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.
† Romans 8:25 … if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it. . . 28 And we know that all things [hardships, trouble, failures] work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose [especially when it seems God is not there].
† Job 23:8 Behold, I go forward, but he is not there; and backward, but I cannot perceive him: 9 On the left hand, where he doth work, but I cannot behold him: he hideth himself on the right hand, that I cannot see him: 10 But he knoweth the way that I take: when he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold. 11 My foot hath held his steps, his way have I kept, and not declined. 12 Neither have I gone back from the commandment of his lips; I have esteemed the words of his mouth more than my necessary food.
† Psalm 37:25 I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread.
† Psalm 31:14 But I trusted in thee, O LORD: I said, Thou art my God. 15 My times are in thy hand: deliver me from the hand of mine enemies, and from them that persecute me. 16 Make thy face to shine upon thy servant: save me for thy mercies' sake. 17 Let me not be ashamed, O LORD; for I have called upon thee. . .
† 2 Corinthians 3:4 ...such trust have we through Christ to God-ward: 5 Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think any thing as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God.
† 2 Corinthians 9:8 And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work:
† Ephesians 3:20 Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, 21 Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen.

Today’s message is to urge you to be spiritually busy about strengthening your faith by trading all disbelief of your heart for strong faith.
Your part in this is to submit to the Lord in the hardships you face and not refuse their purposes. Your part is to both read and believe the Word, the faithfulness of God, and His power and promises.
As we read at the first today, Jesus asked that upon His coming, will he find faith in your heart—did it remain just the seed-faith that was never developed or under the tutelage of God’s Spirit and the power of the Word did it become fig-tree-cursing, mountain-moving, walking-on-water great faith?

Do not resist the training program of God

Please brothers and sisters, do not resist the training program of God for your faith, which is the reading of His Word and the faith-strengthening experiences He allows you to face.
Remember this as I paraphrase: “Faith accumulates in your soul and spirit by feeding on the Word of God” and “Count it a reason for joy when you experience different trials because the testing and exercising of your faith works personal endurance and mature confidence in God” († Romans 10:17) & († James 1:2-3).