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| Chapter XVI. That faith itself must be given us by the Lord.
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Chapter XVI.
That faith itself must be given us by the Lord.
But so thoroughly did the
Apostles realize that everything which concerns salvation was given
them by the Lord, that they even asked that faith itself should be
granted from the Lord, saying: “Add to us faith”1266
as they did not imagine that it could be
gained by free will, but believed that it would be bestowed by the free
gift of God. Lastly the Author of man’s salvation teaches us how
feeble and weak and insufficient our faith would be unless it were
strengthened by the aid of the Lord, when He says to Peter
“Simon, Simon, behold Satan hath desired to have you that he may
sift you as wheat. But I have prayed to my Father that thy faith fail
not.”1267
And another
finding that this was happening in his own case, and seeing that his
faith was being driven by the waves of unbelief on the rocks which
would cause a fearful shipwreck, asks of the same Lord an aid to his
faith, saying “Lord, help mine unbelief.”1268
So thoroughly then did those Apostles
and men in the gospel realize that everything which is good is brought
to perfection by the aid of the Lord, and not imagine that they could
preserve their faith unharmed by their own strength or free will that
they prayed that it might be helped or granted to them by the Lord. And
if in Peter’s case there was need of the Lord’s help that
it might not fail, who will be so presumptuous and blind as to fancy
that he has no need of daily assistance from the Lord in order to
preserve it? Especially
as the Lord Himself has made this clear
in the gospel, saying: “As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself
except it abide in the vine, so no more can ye, except ye abide in
me.”1269
And again:
“for without me ye can do nothing.”1270
How foolish and wicked then it is to attribute any good action to our
own diligence and not to God’s grace and assistance, is clearly
shown by the Lord’s saying, which lays down that no one can show
forth the fruits of the Spirit without His inspiration and
co-operation. For “every good gift and every perfect boon is from
above, coming down from the Father of lights.”1271
And Zechariah too says, “For
whatever is good is His, and what is excellent is from
Him.”1272
And so the
blessed Apostle consistently says: “What hast thou which thou
didst not receive? But if thou didst receive it, why boastest thou as
if thou hadst not received it?”1273
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