"Lord, I do believe, but help me to overcome my unbelief," said the
father of the boy who was possessed. Do you ever doubt? Doubt God is
God? Doubt God can do anything? Doubt that God is in control and that
even if you try to be in control, you aren't? Do you question God's work
in your life? His decisions of what is best for you? I do, all the
time.
Last night I was sitting and doing my Sunday school lesson
for my class. It was on sin. Yeah, a great subject. When we sin, we do
what we want versus what God wants. We are saying God isn't good enough.
His death on the cross wasn't good enough. That we don't trust Him. I
had to really think about all of this in my own life. The lesson had me
look at a list of sins and rate them from 0 to 10 of how much they were
in my life. Then I was to pray and ask God for the ones that I needed to
bring to Him. The ones that I needed repentance from. The ones that I
needed to turn from. What hit me when I was doing the lesson is how much
doubting God is a sin, too. Just like the father who said he believed
that Jesus could heal his son but at the same time ask the Lord to help
him in his unbelief. Not so much of not believing Jesus is the son of
God but believing His power, His ability, and His truth are real.
Believing what He can do versus what I can do. Knowing His way is the
best way NO MATTER how I think or feel about it. What I think doesn't
matter. It's not about me. What is cool about this is that God knows
that we are going to do this, and it will take a constant relationship
of turning back to him to restore, renew and grow it.
What I
love about this man, this dad is he asked the Lord for help. It's OK to
ask the Lord for help to trust Him, to follow Him, to believe in who He
says He is. Because in my finite mind—with my finite ability—I can do
nothing and I need Him in all parts of my life. Whew! I need Him to help
me in everything and the great thing is, he wants to. He wants us to
turn to him constantly, because we know that is where our direction
lies.
When they came to the other disciples, they saw a large
crowd around them and the teachers of the law arguing with them. As
soon as all the people saw Jesus, they were overwhelmed with wonder and
ran to greet him."What are you arguing with them about?" he asked. A man
in the crowd answered, "Teacher, I brought you my son, who is possessed
by a spirit that has robbed him of speech. Whenever it seizes him, it
throws him to the ground. He foams at the mouth, gnashes his teeth and
becomes rigid. I asked your disciples to drive out the spirit, but they
could not." "O unbelieving generation," Jesus replied, "how long shall I
stay with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring the boy to me."
So they brought him. When the spirit saw Jesus, it immediately threw the
boy into a convulsion. He fell to the ground and rolled around, foaming
at the mouth. Jesus asked the boy's father, "How long has he been like
this?" "From childhood," he answered. "It has often thrown him into fire
or water to kill him. But if you can do anything, take pity on us and
help us." 'If you can'?" said Jesus. "Everything is possible for him who
believes." Immediately the boy's father exclaimed, "I do believe; help
me overcome my unbelief!"When Jesus saw that a crowd was running to the
scene, he rebuked the evil spirit. "You deaf and mute spirit," he said,
"I command you, come out of him and never enter him again."The spirit
shrieked, convulsed him violently and came out. The boy looked so much
like a corpse that many said, "He's dead." But Jesus took him by the
hand and lifted him to his feet, and he stood up.After Jesus had gone
indoors, his disciples asked him privately, "Why couldn't we drive it
out?"He replied, "This kind can come out only by prayer.
Mark 9:14-29
What I Have Learned from This Father:
1. As you grow closer to Christ, looking to him will come naturally.
I
love how the disciples—and even the crowd—turned to Jesus when he
walked up. They (including the father) turn not just quickly, but with
wonder, and are overwhelmed. They knew who He was and what He could do.
They had seen or experienced His power. They turned to Him because the
disciples couldn't do what they wanted in healing this boy. Sometimes we
can quickly make decisions based on past experiences with Christ—and
that is good, but sometimes we can't and we need time to talk directly
to God. Do we turn to Jesus when we do have questions, concerns, or
troubles? How about when things are going great and we need to praise
Him? Do we really seek Him for His direction? Do we do all of this with
excitement because we trust His answers or do our feet drag, not wanting
to hear what He has to say? Are we afraid of what he might say or tell
us to do? As we draw closer to Christ, it will come naturally to keep
going to Him. And not only will you grow, but others around you will as
well.
When they came to the other disciples, they saw a
large crowd around them and the teachers of the law arguing with them.
As soon as all the people saw Jesus, they were overwhelmed with wonder
and ran to greet him.
Mark 9:14-15
Every
day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke
bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts,
praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord
added to their number daily those who were being saved.
Acts 2:46-47
2. Not everything we ask for will be given to us, at least not in the way we think.
Sometimes
we come to the Lord asking for healing, for encouragement, for help
with finances, for God to bring us the love of our lives, the right job,
etc. Sometimes God gives us what we want, and sometimes he doesn't. I
believe God answers all prayer with yes, no, maybe and not now. This man
came to find Jesus and his disciples, but when he got to where they
were he encountered the disciples first. He asked that they would heal
his son. Maybe it was because he had heard they had the power like Jesus
or maybe the disciples told them they could. We know in some instances
the disciples were also using their gifts to heal. But why not now? Why
didn't it work? Because Jesus had a purpose in waiting to heal this
child. And sometimes he has a purpose in having us wait, too. Wait to
give us what we want. The new house, the perfect promotion, the healing
of a loved one or the salvation of a loved one. Remember, God's timing
is perfect. His purpose will always prevail. Sometimes we need to stop
trying to make our lives happen. Why in the world would you want
something God doesn't want for you? Why would you want to be out of His
will?
"What are you arguing with them about?" he asked. A man
in the crowd answered, "Teacher, I brought you my son, who is possessed
by a spirit that has robbed him of speech. Whenever it seizes him, it
throws him to the ground. He foams at the mouth, gnashes his teeth and
becomes rigid. I asked your disciples to drive out the spirit, but they
could not."
Mark 9:16-18
3. Jesus is frustrated with the father and with me, too.
Just
like in Jesus' time, He was very frustrated with those around him. They
(including this father) had seen His power, His miracles, His ability
to heal and yet, they still had doubt. Each of us reading this right now
has had the experiences of millions of peoples' testimony since
Christ's birth. We actually have the Bible
as our instruction book and yet, we act just like those did in relation
to this little boy. As if we don't know why we are the way we are? Why
we sin? Why we doubt or don't believe? And Jesus is asking me the same
thing he asked the people standing around this possessed boy. How much
longer shall he put up with me, with us? What is it going to take? What
is it going to take to make you stop doing some of the things you know
are wrong? What is it going to take for you to change? To reconcile a
relationship? To ask forgiveness from someone? To stop lying to those
you love? How long, how long?
"O unbelieving generation,"
Jesus replied, "how long shall I stay with you? How long shall I put up
with you? Bring the boy to me."
Mark 9:19
4. There are many people lost in our world, even possessed by the enemy.
If
you are saved and have asked the Lord into your life then you have the
light; the Holy Spirit is living in you. Understand that the enemy, the
devil, cannot live in you anymore—although most of you know the enemy
can still greatly influence you. This boy was possessed, lost and the
enemy was in him, affecting him, controlling him to the point of trying
to kill him whenever possible. Jesus, asked the father how long he had
been this way to show the crowd that this behavior had been the same for
many years. This would be a way to show the power of what Jesus could
do in an instant. In an instant, God can heal us, fix us, provide for
us, restore us, etc. It all comes from Him. This father had endured
years of seeing his son in pain. Finally he learned where the healing
came from. Praise the Lord for his healing!
So they brought
him. When the spirit saw Jesus, it immediately threw the boy into a
convulsion. He fell to the ground and rolled around, foaming at the
mouth. Jesus asked the boy's father, "How long has he been like this?"
"From childhood," he answered. "It has often thrown him into fire or
water to kill him.
Mark 9:20-22
You,
dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who
is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.
1 John 4:4
5. Everything is possible for him who believes. It is possible, but it doesn't mean it will happen.
First
of all, I was so excited to read this scripture again. Everything is
possible. Anything I can dream of, think of, pray for, etc., is
possible. I could be president. Well, not sure I would want that. I
could invent a cure for cancer. Well, it would help if I was a doctor.
Hmmm, I could write and teach the Word of God to tens of thousands of
people, write Bible studies and travel around the world, without a
seminary degree, and being a woman and over 40. Yes, everything is
possible for him who believes, and I believe. But what is also important
to learn here is just because I believe, it doesn't mean God will give
it. It's about trusting him for what is best for me. It's about faith.
It's about peace in His direction. It's also about allowing Him to equip
me so that I can do whatever He wants me to do. This father would be
able to see what the power of God could do.
But if you can do
anything, take pity on us and help us." "If you can'?" said Jesus.
"Everything is possible for him who believes."
Mark 9:22-23
Jesus looked at them and said, "With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible."
Matthew 19:26
6. I learned about humility.
If
you can do anything, take pity and help us. Not that he believed Christ
couldn't but it came across to me as " if you want to do anything,
please understand my situation ... I need your help." And the Lord
helped him. Sometimes the Lord allows pain in our lives, situations and
hurts so that we learn to grow in our relationship with Him. He may be
trying to see if you are serious about making changes, about following
Him and about serving Him. So what do you need to be humble about? What
do you need to go to Christ about and lay before him? For what do you
need to say I can't do this, and I need your help in my life?
Remember
how the LORD your God led you all the way in the desert these forty
years, to humble you and to test you in order to know what was in your
heart, whether or not you would keep his commands.
Deuteronomy 8:2
7. This father taught me about courage.
I
shared in my opening paragraph of how it's OK to ask for help. Help to
even believe. We are the flesh and as a result we get turned around
daily, hourly and even sometimes minute to minute. It takes courage like
this father to say, "Help me to overcome by unbelief." He wasn't saying
I dont' believe; he just needed continuous help to believe, because he
sins and falls short. Sometimes we can get prideful when it comes to
being around other believers. We don't want anyone to think that we
aren't living this righteous life perfectly. That we would NEVER doubt
God or say we don't believe sometimes. STOP and be honest with yourself.
Every time you sin you are saying to God that you don't believe. But
you know what is cool here? Each time we turn back from our sin, Jesus
is there, waiting.
Immediately the boy's father exclaimed, "I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!"
Mark 9:24
Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you."
Deuteronomy 31:6
8. We have victory over the enemy.
I
don't know how many of you ever noticed in verse 25 that it says "and
never enter him again." Our salvation comes from Jesus. When we are
saved, it brings a power of light over darkness. The devil, the enemy,
cannot dwell in us any longer. When I became a Christian, Jesus was
rebuking the enemy on my behalf. He was telling him that he had no power
over me. That he could not enter into me again. Isn't that amazing?
This father could rest in knowing his son would not be the same; he
would not only be healed, but the enemy could not enter him again. His
son would have victory over the enemy.
When Jesus saw that a
crowd was running to the scene, he rebuked the evil spirit. "You deaf
and mute spirit," he said, "I command you, come out of him and never
enter him again."
Mark 9:25
I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you.
Luke 10:19
9. Jesus is always reaching out to us, but are we reaching back?
What
I love about this part of the story is how to the crowd, the boy looked
dead. I mean, if you had a demon controlling you, throwing you to the
ground, trying to kill you, how would you look? But seriously, they
thought he was dead. All the more showing the power of Christ. When
Christ heals, he restores. He replenishes. He is the Father of the
downpour. Do you need salvation? Restoration? Reconciliation. Do you
need to be renewed in Christ? Maybe you just need rest. Jesus went on to
reach his hand out to the boy who was on the ground, taking his hand
and lifting him to his feet. Jesus never moves, we do. Jesus is always
trying to reach us. Are we reaching back?
The spirit
shrieked, convulsed him violently and came out. The boy looked so much
like a corpse that many said, "He's dead." But Jesus took him by the
hand and lifted him to his feet, and he stood up.
Mark 9:26-27
Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.
Psalms 51:10
10. Sometimes it takes prayer.
Wow,
sometimes it takes prayer. The disciples asked Jesus in private: "Hey,
Jesus, I mean, we have these different gifts. We have healed in the
past, and this time we couldn't do anything. What did we do wrong? Did
we miss something? I mean, I mean. …" I can just hear them. They were
stunned that they couldn't heal this boy. But then Jesus said that this
healing could have only come by prayer. It's not that anything we do in
Christ we aren't doing prayerfully. But sometimes, due to being a
Christian for a while, we don't have to always stop and ask God's
direction. We know from experience what we need to do. I believe Christ
is showing them that sometimes when we use our gifts for the body, it
will take more than just doing something; it will take time, humility,
submission, belief and prayer. Not just surface prayer but deep prayer.
Prayer that becomes a witness to others. Prayer that takes you into a
level with the Lord where you have never been. Prayer that changes you
and others. Remember, prayer is our time with God one-on-one. Some
things we ask for will not happen unless we are in this type of
communication with God. It is through prayer that we hear from God, know
the direction for our lives and ultimately change.
After Jesus had gone indoors, his disciples asked him privately, "Why couldn't we drive it out?" He replied, "This kind can come out only by prayer."
Mark 9:28-29