I know that “looking to Jesus” sometimes sounds like a vague and convenient substitute for more careful application. But really, look to Jesus — not simply with a quick glance in moments of care, but as the main labor (and joy) of every day. Read books about him. Get to know him in his offices as Prophet, Priest, and King. Perhaps choose a Bible-reading plan that always has you reading one of the Gospels. Orient your Christian life less around a set of practices and more around a glorious Person.

“O you of little faith . . .” The words run through the Gospel of Matthew as a kind of refrain, reminding us of the disciples’ wavering trust. And perhaps of our own. Four times, we hear this rebuke cushioned with tenderness, this tenderness steeled with rebuke.

Do you see, disciples, how God feeds the ravens and robes the lilies? And “will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?” (Matthew 6:30).

Winds may blow and waves may rise on the fickle Sea of Galilee, but I will be with you — I, the storm-stilling Son of God. So “why are you afraid, O you of little faith?” (Matthew 8:26).

Every wave will hold your feet if you only keep your eyes on me, Peter. But “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?” (Matthew 14:31).

Do you remember, my twelve, how I fed thousands from a few leftover loaves? Then “O you of little faith, why are you discussing among yourselves the fact that you have no bread?” (Matthew 16:8).

Why such tenderness in this rebuke? Because their faith, though little, was genuine. Why such rebuke in this tenderness? Because their faith, though genuine, was smaller than it should have been. And perhaps so too is ours.

O You of Little Faith

“O you of little faith” is our English way of rendering just one Greek word, which Jesus may in fact have coined — a mash-up of the words for little and faith. “O you of little faith” are the small-trusts, the meager-confidences, the weak-believes. I often find myself among them.

You can recognize them, first, by their anxious care (Matthew 6:25–33). Though they walk in a world where birds feast and flowers dress like kings, they find themselves easily troubled by their own needs. Does God see them? Does God hear their cries? Is God really their Father? Their heads may nod, but their hearts hesitate. Alongside the worry they wear on their sleeve rests this badge: “O you of little faith.”

So too, the little-faith regularly walk in unneeded fear (Matthew 8:23–27). Not all fear arises from little faith, and Jesus knew when to comfort fears rather than correct them (Matthew 14:26–27). But for the little faith, fear is less like an acquaintance and more like a roommate, less like an occasional wave and more like a constant undercurrent of silent insecurity. Though they know that Jesus is with them, fear somehow seems to stand in between.

And then, finally, those of little faith often are marked by many doubts (Matthew 14:28–33). Like Peter on the sea, they often entertain what Martyn Lloyd-Jones calls “after-thoughts.” Peter saw the wind and the waves before putting his foot on the water, apparently trusting Jesus’s word more than the storm. But then he thought again. “That is always the trouble with weak faith,” Lloyd-Jones writes. “It comes back again to questions which it has already solved and answered” (Spiritual Depression, 157). Introspective and second-guessing, those of little faith struggle to leave their doubts in the boat.

The tenderness of Jesus shines magnificently in these stories of little faith. He meets his disciples’ cares, fears, and doubts with his assurance, peace, and help. Yet his tenderness also carries a rebuke we need to hear.

Lessons for Those of Little Faith

In John Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress, we read of one Little Faith, who, after being robbed of his spending money (though not his jewels), was forced to travel “with many a hungry belly the most of the rest of the way” to the Celestial City (146).

And so with us. We need only a little faith to be united to the Christ who saves (typified by Little Faith’s jewels). But we need more than a little faith to walk comfortably with Christ. So as we gather up the tenderness Jesus gives to those of little faith, let’s listen too for the lessons he teaches, knowing that he rebukes us for our comfort.

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