How does faith congeal in the soul to become substance? Is it like epoxy resin, where two or more disparate ingredients are brought together in sequence and, voila (or almost voila), a new material appears hardened before our eyes? No, I don't think so; besides, one more graduated step program for securing success is the last thing any of us need!
I'm not a Calvinist, and so do not believe that God waves his magic wand over us and makes us persevering people of faith. If he did, in fact, do that kind of thing for one person, he'd do it for all; but, I'm not a Universalist either, so let's not turn down that dead end. I do believe that folk like you or me would be hard-pressed to produce, if in fact we ever could, that "faith moment" spoken of in an earlier post without some gracious input from God, but I also know he isn't going to believe for us. Otherwise, all of his commands to us (too numerous to cite) to believe would be nonsensical.
God has made mankind with the capacity for faith. That is what separates mankind from angels in regards to redeemability. Mankind was made in innocence, really ignorance, and therefore, for faith. Faith exists in that gap produced by unseens and unknowns. Angels were made in knowledge or sight. Therefore, angels rebelled knowing and are irredeemable as a result (see Hebrews 6:4a for the concept as it applies to mankind). If Romans 12:3 applies broadly to all humanity (as I've always taken it to mean) rather than just the church, than God has in fact dealt each person at least some measure of faith.
I don't think Jesus would have spelled out the possibilities of faith if we were never to experience them. In order to do that, a minimal amount and clarity of faith (i.e. mustard seed quantities without doubt) are all that's required. That doesn't seem like much of a threshold to me, and yet it remains a mountain to most of us most of the time.
Is there any hope for us then? We do have that cryptic gift of faith. What's that about? A supernatural endowment of faith inspired in a flash by the Holy Spirit. Bigger than a mustard seed, focused on Christ, and endowed for the time it takes to express it. I don't know if it's necessary that every miraculous occurrence be associated with a concomitant gift of faith, but I don't doubt it often is.
We are called to faith. Generally, we answer with something not quite up to snuff. When our focus on the authority of Christ clears excluding doubt, the miraculous ceases to be possible and becomes probable. As difficult as that seems to be for us, thankfully the Holy Spirit is there to bring us to that moment when everything comes together and Jesus is supreme-- the faith moment.
