Asking For Faith

ὁ δὲ Ἰησοῦς ἀκούσας ἀπεκρίθη αὐτῷ: μὴ φοβοῦ: μόνον πίστευσον, καὶ σωθήσεται. Πίστον γε ἀπαιτεῖ πρῶτον τοὺς ἐπικαλουμένους αὐτὸν ὁ Κύριος· ὡς ἐπὶ τοῦ τυφλοῦ λέγων· Πιστεύεις, ὅτι δύναμαι σοι τοῦτο ποιῆσαι; καὶ ἐπὶ τοῦ σεληνιαζομένου δέ φησιν, ὅτι Ἐαν πιστεύῃς, γίνεται. Ἀπαιτεῖ δὲ τοῦτο ὁ Σωτὴρ, οὐκ ἐπειδήπερ ἔχρῃζε τῆς παρ' ἑτέρων συνεργίας· ἀυτὸς γὰρ καὶ τῆς πίστεως κύριος καὶ χορηγός ἐστιν· ἀλλ' ὅτι τοῖς πιστεύουσιν ἐπινεύει, καὶ ἵνα μὴ χωρὶς πίστεως δέξωνται τὰς εὐεργεσίας, καὶ τῇ ἀπιστίᾳ ταύτας ἀπολέσωσι. Θέλει γὰρ χαριζόμενος παραμένειν τὴν χάριν, καὶ θερπεύων ἀδιάπτωτον εἶναι τὴν θεραπείαν. Ἠσφαλίζετο γοῦν τὸν παραλυτικὸν λέγων· Ὑγιὴς γέγονας, μηκέτι ἀμάρτανε. Καὶ ὥσπερ ἄν τις ἰατρὸς εἰσιὼν πρὸς τοὺς κάμνοντας πυνθάνοιτο πρῶτον, εἰ βούλοιντο θεραπεύεσθαι, ἵνα μὴ, αὐτοῦ φροντίζοντος, κάκείνων μὴ βουλομένων, ἀνωφελὴς ἡ θεραπεία γένηται, ἐναντιουμένων τῶν καμνόντων πρὸς τὴν τοῦ ἰατροῦ τέχνυν· οὕτω καὶ ὁ Κύριος τῶν θεραπευομένων ἐπυνθάνετο, καὶ τοῖς πιστεύουσιν ἐχαρίζετο, ἵνα τῇ πίστει καὶ τὴν χάριν κατασγεῖν δυνηθῶσι, γνώρισμα γὰρ τῆς προαιρέσεως τῆς ψυχῆς ἡ πίστις ἐστί. Καὶ νῦν οὖν φησι· Μόνον πίστευε, καὶ σωθήσεται. Ἅγιος Ἀθανάσιος ο Μέγας, Εἰς Τὸ Κατὰ Λούκαν Εὐάγγελιον, Ἐκλογή Source: Migne PG 27.1400b-c

Hearing these things, Jesus answered, saying: 'Do not fear, only believe, and she shall be saved.' 1 The Lord asks for faith from those who call on Him, as from the blind man with these words: 'Do you believe that I am able to do this?' 2 And concerning the lunatic: 'If you believe, it shall be.' 3 The Lord asks not because He has need of another for the deed, for He is the lord and giver of faith, but that He approve of the faithful, and lest those without faith receive good works, which things are lost by unfaithfulness. For when He confers grace, He wishes that grace remain, and when He cures, that the cure not perish. This He confirms with paralytic saying: 'You have been made well, do not sin any more.' And as a physician who comes to a sick man, first asks whether he wishes to be cured, lest with the sick man's worry the cure be useless, so in the same way the Lord asks those who are to be cured, and to the same believers He gives grace, since with faith they are able to retain grace, for faith is the mark of the willing soul. So He says here: 'Only believe, and she shall be saved.' Saint Athanasius, Fragment on Luke 1 Lk 8.50 2 Mt 9.28 3 Mk 9.23