Where to Find Strength When Your Faith Is Weak

By Andrea Lucado

At the end of First Corinthians, Paul writes about the one truth that the Christian faith hinges upon: the resurrection.

Paul claims, “If Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith.”1 Cor. 15:14

Faith in the resurrection is what sets Christians apart. Without it, you are simply following a nice rabbi who made some very bold claims. As Paul explains, “And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins…If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied.” 1 Cor. 15:17,19

But with it, you have every hope in the world for “Death has been swallowed up in victory.” 1 Cor. 15:54

This truth, that the resurrection is where our faith must lie, makes faith at once simple and difficult. At any given time on the faith journey, you may find yourself fully able to believe in Jesus, what he said and what he did, before and after his death. At other times, faith doesn’t come as easily. You start to deconstruct those basic truths and find yourself at a crossroads of belief and disbelief.

Contrary to what you might feel, being at the crossroads is a good place to be, for how can you really believe in something if you’ve never claimed it as your own? It can be when our faith is at its weakest that we see God’s work the most.

Just as Paul wrote about faith, he also wrote about weakness. In 2 Corinthians, when talking about being tempted by Satan, Paul says he asked the Lord to take the temptation away. Instead of doing this, the Lord told Paul, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” 2 Cor. 12:9

What if in our weakest moments of faith, our prayer was not, “Give me more faith,” but rather, “Let your grace be sufficient?” What if instead of fighting doubt or uncertainty or hopelessness—whatever it is standing between you and faith—you let go and confess that you are weak and He is strong?

We can learn something about faith from Paul. He was an apostle who declared boldly, “Christ has indeed been raised from the dead.”1 Cor. 15:20  He also regularly confessed that he was weak. Our faith journeys are not meant to be perfect and strong at all times; they are meant to depend on the one who was raised from the dead. It is all we need.

If you find yourself in a time of weak faith, looking at the resurrection and wondering if you can cling to its truth, remember the grace you experienced at one point in your life was sufficient for you then, and it is sufficient for you now. Let go, and let grace step in.

If you are interested in learning more about the resurrection of Christ, we encourage you to check out our study 1 Corinthians: Solutions for the Church.