What does the book of Ephesians chapters 1- 6 tell us about the concept of faith? What does Christ say about faith in Matthew chapters 9,15 and 17? I can read the words but I can't explain it in a way that others will understand it.
Answer
The book of Ephesians has very little to do with the concept of faith. Although faith is mentioned a few times (eight) in the book (and many of those talking about the faith of Jesus), it is only incidental to the lessons of Ephesians. Certainly the book is designed to increase our faith, but tells us almost nothing about faith except that we are saved by the faith of Jesus (not necessarily our faith in Jesus), and that once we are saved faith is our shield against the devil. The book talks much more about the grace of God, and our responsibility as a result of that grace, than it is about faith.
Most of what is said in the chapters of Matthew you mentioned (9, 15, and 17) has nothing to do with faith. There are incidents in those chapters that may address the nature of faith. In chapter 9 we find that faith will lead us to a circumstance in which healing is available. The men with the palsied friend, the woman who touched Jesus’ hem, and the blind men were granted healing because their faith brought them to the one who could heal.
Chapter 15 teaches nothing about the nature of faith. All it tells us is that Jesus recognized faith when he saw it.
Chapter 17 only has one verse that talks about faith. That is verse 20. In it Jesus says that a lack of faith is a self-fulfilling prophecy. If you don’t believe something will happen, you will actually work to see that it doesn’t. But if you have a little faith you can do marvelous things. Note that he is not here saying that it is faith in God, but faith that what you say will happen will actually happen. For more on this, please see my article, Have Faith in Faith.