Thrive Weekend – “Dare to ‘Maybe’: Stepping into God’s Adventure”

‍Pastor Guy Wasko – For.NYC‍

1 Samuel 14 describes a critical point in ancient Israel’s history – a point in which Israel’s King Saul is leading his army against their perennial enemy, the Philistines. The army is down to just 600 soldiers with just a couple of swords, and they’re camped out in a valley while the Philistines hold the high ground above. But Saul isn’t readying them for battle – he’s taking a nap. So his son Jonathan decides to take action himself – without any idea about how it’s going to turn out. 

1.  “Maybe” is a Powerful Expression of Faith (1 Samuel 14:6 ^NIV)

• It can be easy (and exciting) for us, as people of faith, to focus on Jonathan’s certainty in his decision to confront the Philistines: “Nothing can hinder the LORD from saving.” But while that’s clearly true, it’s not the most noteworthy part of the story. What Jonathan says before that statement may be the key for understanding the real depth of his faith: “Perhaps the LORD will act on our behalf.”
• If we only focus on and preach the “nothing is impossible for God” theme, our faith can become a bit imbalanced, even lopsided. Jonathan trusted that God could do anything, of course, but the impressive part of his statement is the word “perhaps” – or, as we might say today, “maybe.” Jonathan’s faith pushed him to action, without knowing: “Let’s go pick a fight. Maybe God will help.”
• “Maybe” is not the way most of us live out our lives (“Maybe the car will start this morning.” “Maybe this food is safe to eat.”). But not everything in life is built on certainty; there will always be times in our lives when we don’t and can’t know for certain what will happen next. Yet we’re called in those times to step out in faith – not trusting in the outcome, but that God will somehow meet us there.
• We don’t and can’t always know what God is doing and what he has planned, so there will be, by definition, times when our faith looks a lot like “maybe.” If we don’t experience those times of uncertainty, if we only have “faith” and step out when we can see God’s full plan, then we’re going to miss many chances to see God at work – and perhaps our “faith” isn’t really faith at all.

2. 3 Dimensions of Faith
   
   • Similar to the “Understanding/Conviction/Commitment” faith journey we’ve been exploring in the Un/Belief message series, faith can be seen to exist in three “dimensions”:
     
     1. Pre-Faith – Intellectual acknowledgment that something that is obvious it true; not really “faith,” but “pre-faith.”
     2. Dimension I Faith – Trust that what we can’t see is true, based on our understanding, not (necessarily) our own experience
     3. Dimension II Faith – Action based on our trust in what’s impossible to see – a deep faith that lives at the intersection of “I don’t know how” and “It’s going to happen.”
   • We can believe some “myths” about faith – e.g., that faith always makes us right or fail-proof, or that strong faith guarantees success – but true, biblical faith is more often associated with risk. Whenever we take on a God-sized challenge, certainty and safety are rarely part of the equation.
   • Uncertainty is an invitation into the “divine space” – the space where God is working. God gave the Israelites the victory because of Jonathan’s faith in what God could do, even when he couldn’t see what God would do. God calls us into the same adventure – and to have the faith to “dare to maybe.”

ADDITIONAL SCRIPTURE

These passages may provide additional insights related to the subject of this week’s message. All verses are NLT unless otherwise noted.

Isaiah 55:8-9; Luke 5:1-5; John 14:27; Romans 8:28; 2 Corinthians 4:16-18; James 4:13-16

Video of the Week: Hope by the Bible Project

QUESTIONS FOR REFLECTION AND DISCUSSION

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1. In general, how comfortable are you with uncertainty – with the thought of doing things when you don’t know how your actions will turn out?  Explain your answer.

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2. In what ways might our faith become imbalanced or “lopsided” if we only focus on the premise that “nothing is impossible for God?

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3. Read 1 Samuel 14:6 ^NIV again. How would you describe Jonathan’s mindset (his faith perspective) as he made the decision to climb the cliff and “pick a fight” with the Philistines?  What was he thinking?

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4. In the Israelite camp, there were 600 men who (theoretically) believed that “nothing is impossible for God.” Why do you think that only Jonathan and his armor-bearer got up and took a (huge) step of faith to engage the Philistines?

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5. For those of us who like (idolize?) control in our lives, what can we do or focus on to become more like Jonathan – i.e., more likely to step out in faith without any certainty about the outcome?

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6. In what ways is our decision to surrender to Jesus – to trust and follow him as our Savior and Lord – similar to Jonathan’s decision to climb the cliff and engage the Philistine enemy?

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