Eloise Collins is a talented writer and a devoted Christian, who is doing God’s work by spreading the Christian faith in the form of writing. Collins’s latest book, The Faithfull Journey 978-1-950088-15-7, serves not only as a memoir but also as a sort of guide to help people increase their faith in Jesus Christ and God. The author first heard Christ's voice at a young age, she was not able to ignore it and let the voice guide her in life to this day. Collins aims to help others, especially those who are struggling to find the light in dark times, to recognize, listen, and follow Jesus's voice that will help them to the righteous path. In a similar sense, Jesus Christ helped his disciples to increase their faith. He does this in two ways and both involve being honest and attentive. John Piper, the founder, and senior teacher at desiringGod.org explains how Jesus Christ helped solidify His followers' faith. Piper writes, "First, he strengthens our faith by telling us in Luke 17:6 that the crucial issue in accomplishing great things to advance the kingdom of God is not the quantity of our faith, but the power of God. He says, “If you had faith like a grain of mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you.” By referring to the tiny mustard seed after being asked about increased faith, he deflects attention away from the quantity of faith to the object of faith. God moves mulberry trees. And it does not depend decisively on the quantity of our faith but his power and wisdom and love. In knowing this we are helped not to worry about our faith and are inspired to trust God's free initiative and power.”
He goes on to explain the second act, “Second, he helps their faith grow by telling them in Luke 17:7–10 that when they have done all they are commanded to do, they are still radically dependent on grace. Jesus gives an illustration. You might want to read it again in verses 7–10. The gist of it is that the owner of a slave does not become a debtor to the slave no matter how much work the slave does. The meaning is that God is never our debtor. Luke 17:10 sums it up: “So you also, when you have done all that you were commanded, say, ‘We are unworthy servants; we have only done what was our duty.’” We are always his debtor. And we will never be able to pay this debt, nor are we ever meant to. We will always be dependent on grace. We will never work our way up out of debt to a place where God is in our debt. “Who has given a gift to him that he might be repaid?” (Romans 11:35).
When it says in Luke 17:9 that the owner does not “thank” the slave, the idiom for “thank” is provocative. I think the idea is that “thanks” is a response to grace. The reason the owner does not thank the slave is that the servant is not giving the owner more than what the owner deserves. He is not treating the owner with grace. Grace is being treated better than you deserve. So it is with us in relation to God. We never treat God with grace. We never give him more than he deserves. Which means that he never owes us thanks. God never says "Thank you" to us. Instead, he is always giving us more than what we deserve, and we are always owing him thanks.”
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