Don’t Waste Your Faith // Mustard: The Seed That Can Change Everything (Pt 1)
Focus Keywords: mustard seed faith, faith is paramount, spiritual focus, discipline vs faith, building the future, Transformation Church, Michael Todd sermon, Hebrews 11, faith without works
This rewrite summarizes Pastor Michael Todd’s message, “Don’t Waste Your Faith // Mustard: The Seed That Can Change Everything (Pt 1),” urging believers to radically refocus on and activate the faith God has given them. The central concept is that the faith the size of a mustard seed holds the power to move mountains and transform destinies, but it is often wasted on problems that personal discipline could easily solve.
The Vision and the Series Introduction
Transformation Church (TC) operates with a clear vision: to represent God to the lost and found for transformation in Christ. This message kicks off the “Mustard” series, which aims to change the fundamental way people think about God and the importance of their faith.
The core message is a direct call for spiritual focus. Many believers possess an “anemic faith”—malnourished and underdeveloped—while simultaneously praying for “big things”. The sermon aims to impart a spiritual gift, showing how the speaker has personally witnessed mustard seed faith produce massive results, such as the church building itself.
Understanding the Power of the Mustard Seed
The mustard seed, though physically small enough to be easily lost, represents the expansive power needed to change an entire life.
- Size vs. Impact: The seed is so small that it requires significant magnification for anyone to see it, yet the Bible states this tiny faith can “move a mountain”.
- Destiny Change: This minimal amount of faith is enough to change one’s next year, reshape a family’s financial trajectory, and provide the ability to forgive someone who is unforgivable. It takes this level of faith to believe God can heal disease and undo damage.
- Plant It, Don’t Show It: The fundamental mistake most believers make is walking around with jars of mustard seeds—showing their faith instead of planting it. Faith must be “under soil”—under prayer, under decisions, and under actions—for it to grow. The believer must “put it in some soil” and prove it has life by watering and cultivating it.
Faith is Paramount: The Fabric of the Spiritual Walk
The word “paramount” means the peak or the top. Faith is not a side feature of the Christian life but is paramount—so important that God “weaves it into the fabric of every area of our spiritual walk”.
Key Facts About Faith:
- Faith Formed the World: Faith is the starting ingredient that precedes intellect, planning, or resources. Hebrews 11:3 reveals that “by faith, we understand that the entire universe was formed at God’s command”. What is visible today did not come from anything that could be seen. This sets a precedent: anything the believer seeks to build—a new world, a better marriage, a new leadership position—must “start with faith”.
- Faith is the Guts of the Gospel: Salvation is “by grace… through faith” (Ephesians 2:8-9). Faith is the essence, or the “guts of the gospel”. For someone to be saved, another person must have the faith to approach and speak to them, believing that God will change their heart.
- Faith Pleases God: “Without faith, it is impossible to please God” (Hebrews 11:6). Faith pleases God regardless of the outcome. God is pleased by the obedience and action of faith, not necessarily the immediate result. Believers must stop attaching faith to a specific desired outcome and instead attach it to obedience.
- Faith is the Future: “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1). The future is not passively waiting; it is “being created by your faith today”. God has deputized believers to be part of the “creation of their future” by putting their faith into action now.
- Faith Finishes: Faith, hope, and love remain, but the greatest is love (1 Corinthians 13:13). Faith finishes when everything else fades. When standing before the throne, God will look at “how did you exercise your faith,” not earthly accolades or influence.