“Verily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel.”
Matthew 8:10
Read this saying in the chronological reader →Words of Jesus by topic
What did Jesus say about faith?
Jesus’ sayings about faith range from trust in moments of fear to confidence in God, responses to healing, and the challenge of believing without sight. The Gospels show faith through trust, dependence, action and perseverance rather than reducing it to a single feeling.
At a glance
- Jesus commends faith in unexpected people, including a Roman centurion.
- He confronts fear and doubt in his disciples without pretending that faith means never struggling.
- Several healing narratives connect faith with approaching Jesus in trust.
- Jesus links faith with prayer and with forgiveness.
- The risen Jesus blesses those who believe without Thomas’s direct sight.
Faith in Jesus’ authority
When a centurion trusts Jesus’ authority to heal at a distance, Jesus publicly marvels at the man’s faith. The episode presents faith as confidence in Jesus’ authority rather than confidence in the strength of one’s own feelings.
Faith and fear meet in the same stories
The disciples’ fear in storms and Peter’s sinking after walking on the water show faith mixed with uncertainty. Jesus’ rebukes are direct, but the scenes also portray disciples who are still learning to trust.
“O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?”
Matthew 14:31
Read this saying in the chronological reader →“Only believe”
In the intertwined stories of Jairus’s daughter and a woman who had suffered for years, Jesus redirects frightened people toward trust. These sayings belong to particular healing narratives; they should not be turned into a blanket claim that sufficient confidence prevents every tragedy.
“Be not afraid, only believe.”
Mark 5:36
Read this saying in the chronological reader →“Daughter, be of good comfort; thy faith hath made thee whole. Go in peace.”
Matthew 9:22; Mark 5:34
Read this saying in the chronological reader →Faith can be small and still be real
The mustard-seed image emphasizes what God can do rather than the impressive size of human confidence. In the surrounding episode, the disciples have failed and Jesus calls them toward deeper trust and dependence.
“If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed ... nothing shall be impossible unto you.”
Matthew 17:20
Read this saying in the chronological reader →Believing without seeing
After Thomas sees the risen Jesus, Jesus turns the scene toward later believers who will not share Thomas’s physical encounter.
“Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed.”
John 20:29
Read this saying in the chronological reader →Explore the complete collection.
Search the reader for “faith,” “believe,” and related wording.
Search sayings containing “faith” →This guide summarizes representative sayings. It does not claim every occurrence of “believe” carries exactly the same nuance in every Gospel context.