Mark 9:14-29
For all the negativity that the internet can bring, there are also so many positive things that have come with it over the last 20+ years. We are more connected now than we have ever been. In a matter of seconds I can be talking to my family across the world. One of the coolest things about the internet is the ability to see things that we may never have seen otherwise. People wearing squirrel suits and flying a few feet away from rock outcroppings on the side of a mountain. People jumping out of helicopters and landing on marlins. Insane human feats that logically don’t make sense. And one of the more common responses that people have is to say, “wow, that is unbelievable.” The definition of this word, “unbelievable,” is something being “so great or extreme that it is difficult to be believed.” I’ve got to see it to believe it.
And what we see in our passage this morning is a situation that is so extreme that the miracle needed is incredibly difficult to believe. In fact, Jesus would address the unbelief of not only His disciples, but the main character of the story, a father who is desperate for help. What needs to be done seems impossible, so unbelievable, that their faith falters in the midst of the desperation.
Read Mark 9:14-29
Peter, James and John have just experienced one of the most incredible moments in history. Jesus, fully God in flesh, showed them a glimpse into His glory. It was a literal “mountaintop experience.” And as they are walking back down the mountain, they enter into quite the commotion. The other 9 disciples are arguing with the scribes. The debate revolves around the fact that the disciples were unable to cast this demon out of the young boy.
In this story, we see desperation in 3 different groups and individuals. And we need to start with the desperation of the young boy.
1.. Desperation of the Boy
We’ve already seen a pretty extreme case of demon possession in the cave-dwelling man. The intense shrieking and self-harm painted a picture of a hopeless outcast. We also talked briefly about the goal of demon possession. Satan uses this as a means to destroy the image of God. Humanity was created in His image, and Satan wants to kill and destroy anything that bears that image.
Let’s slow down verses 17 and 18.
The boy is mute, and not by birth, but under the power of a demonic spirit. Imagine the agony and frustration with not being able to express yourself. Especially in this situation, where a demon is wreaking havoc on your body and in turn your mind. But you can’t tell people how you feel. You can’t express the fear, the pain, the defeat. You have no choice but to keep it bottled up inside. The demon also throws the boy into violent seizures.
I remember we had a student years ago who had seizures, and she knew when they were coming. The first time I experienced this it was very scary. Her body became stiff and her jaw locked shut. We were told to massage her jaw to loosen it up, and make sure that her tongue was clear of her airwaves.
This boy would be thrown to the ground, violently. He would foam at the mouth and grind his teeth. His body would become stiff. And the situation only gets worse when we read of the attempts of the demon to destroy this boy’s life. For years this has been happening, and multiple times he has been thrown into a fire, or into water, the spirit attempting to burn the boy alive or drown him. I imagine this young boy with burn scars all over his body. It’s just awful. And then we have the father.
2.. Desperation of the Father
Imagine this man has tried everything for his boy. I know I would! I would exhaust every resource known to man to save my child. But nothing has worked! Put yourself in this father’s shoes. Assuming that he is married, surely this is taking a toll on their physical, mental and emotional health. They would have to live in a constant state of worry and dread. When will the next seizure happen? Sleepless nights. Constant awareness of fire and water. Watching his child suffer without being able to express his pain. Certainly this has created great strain on his marriage, on his work, on every area of his life!
He has heard about the power of Jesus. He has maybe heard about the power of the disciples to heal and cast out demons. And so he comes to them but they are unable to save his son. He has nowhere else to turn but to Jesus. It’s his last hope! And even in the midst of his pleading and begging Jesus to help, the demon throws his son into a violent seizure. “See! Please! Do something! Have compassion on us!”
3.. Desperation of the Disciples
These poor disciples. Again, we like to look at them from the outside looking in, and place judgment on them. “I mean come on disciples! You literally were given the power of God to cast out demons already, to heal sick people. I mean, have you already forgotten?” And so they are being berated by the scribes. The pressure is on, and they are unable to help this boy. They are incapable of doing so. They are restricted by their unbelief. The crowds are pressing in. They are confused and losing heart. And then Jesus enters the picture. And He looks at the situation, and He maybe even shakes His head. And then He addresses the unbelief of the disciples, and of the father of this young boy.
1.. The Unbelief of the Disciples
Look again at verses 18-19. Read vs. 18b-19. He is actually addressing 2 groups of people here at the same time. First and foremost his disciples. After everything you’ve seen me do. After everything I’ve allowed YOU to do, you still don’t believe! And these rhetorical questions are meant as a form of rebuke and challenge. “How long am I going to deal with you? How long am I going to have to put up with you?” Jesus has perfect patience but it would seem that His patience is being tested. I can almost imagine Him closing His eyes and taking 10 deep breaths. Looking up to heaven and asking God these questions in His mind. “Father, how long do I have to deal with this? How long do I have to put up with these men?”
And while this is directed at the disciples, Jesus uses a more general address to the “faithless generation.” He wants everyone to hear what He has to say. There is so much unbelief present. And when He next addresses the Father, we see the lesson that He wants everyone to hear.
2.. The Unbelief of the Father
Jesus directs his attention to the father, and asks him to bring his boy to Him. As soon as the demon sees Jesus, he throws the boy into a wild episode. And I just imagine Jesus getting down on His knee and taking the boy’s hand, looking up at the father and asking, “how long has this been going on?” “Ever since he was a young boy, and we have had to save him from death, please have compassion on us. Please save my boy!” But notice the unbelief even in his moment of desperation. Verse 22 says “IF you can do anything.” The big question mark, “if.”
And Jesus’ response has more of a direct tone than maybe this verse portrays. Really what Jesus is saying is, “what do you mean IF I can? I can do anything! And anything is possible for the one who believes.” In other words, “it’s not a matter of IF I can do it, it’s a matter of ‘do you believe that I have the power to do so!”
The father had heard the stories. He had enough faith, or at least desperation, to travel to meet Jesus. And while he was pleading with Jesus, Jesus looked at Him and said, “you just need to believe!”
And the father’s response is where we see the application for us this morning:
“I believe! But help my unbelief!”
The crowd swarms again, and in that moment, Jesus commands the demon to exit the boy’s body. He does, and in perhaps the most violent shaking the boy has ever experienced, the demon exits his body, and leaves him laying there, seemingly lifeless. So much so in fact, that most people standing there said, “he is surely dead.” But, Jesus took him by the hand, and lifted him up. He stood him up into new life. He immediately restored his strength, his speech, his mind. The power of Jesus infiltrated that boy’s life, even in the midst of so much unbelief.
Before we move into our application, we need to address one more interesting point. Read verse 28-29. Here lies the scary nature of the demonic. There are different types that inflict people in different ways. Jesus tells His disciples, “the reason why you couldn’t cast Him out is because you didn’t ask for help. You were relying on your past experience and your own power, but the key was a reliance on the Father to give you the ability to do it.” Very interesting piece of demonology here.
Application
“All things are possible for one who believes.” This is a verse that can be taken and twisted into a heresy that Jesus does not intend. This is one of the verses that provides a false foundation for those who preach the prosperity gospel. “All things are possible for one who believes, and if it isn’t happening, it’s because you aren’t believing enough. Your faith is not strong enough.” The prosperity gospel claims that “God rewards increases in faith with increases in health and wealth.” Just as a warning for all of us this morning, this is not the gospel. This is not what Jesus is saying. And we need to steer clear of those who preach this as inspired truth: Creflo Dollar, Benny Hinn, TD Jakes, Joyce Meyer, Joel Osteen, to name a few.
So what is Jesus saying? As I was studying this week, I came across a great contextual perspective: Faith is an important ingredient in this story. Some have argued that the strength of one’s belief is what Jesus is discussing. The issue at hand, however, is not how strongly or boldly the father believed Jesus would heal his son. The issue is the object of one’s belief. The disciples didn’t need more faith but more focused faith. Put another way, the disciples needed to place their belief in the correct object—Jesus Christ.”
A better translation of this verse would be, “anything is possible for one who believes and trusts in the power of Jesus.” But, there is one more key that we don’t want to miss. The “anything” means that yes, Jesus is capable of ANYTHING, but the “anything” must align with His will. 1 John 4:15 says. “this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us.”
Jesus can do anything. We need to believe that He can, and if it is a part of His sovereign plan for us, He can make anything happen.
“I believe, but help my unbelief.” This is where all of us have found ourselves at one time or another. We waver between belief and unbelief. This can be affected by circumstances in our lives, by past experiences that we’ve had. We can so often walk this line of belief and unbelief. It’s like the father in the story. “Jesus, I believe what I’ve heard. That’s why I’ve traveled all this way to bring my son to you. I believe you can do it. But, it also seems like an impossible situation, so I’m struggling with skepticism. I believe, but there’s a part of me that is struggling to fully give myself to that belief!”
Does this sound familiar to anyone in here? I know it does for me. There can sometimes be a disconnect between our head knowledge and our soul level belief. Like, in my mind, I know that Jesus promises to bear my burdens, but like they are really heavy right now. I know the truth ABOUT Jesus, but I’m having a hard time believing that it’s possible.
In my mind, I know that Jesus is the Good Shepherd, and He has promised to lead me by still waters and give rest to my soul. But I’m not feeling the calm, I’m not feeling the rest. I know the truth ABOUT Jesus, but I’m having a hard time believing that it’s possible.
In my mind, I know that the Holy Spirit can give me a peace that passes understanding, but I don’t feel at peace. I have conflict in my marriage. I have conflict at my job. I am struggling with my health, my finances, my children. I know the truth ABOUT the Holy Spirit, but I’m having a hard time believing that it’s possible.
And we can go on and on. Jesus doesn’t rebuke the father when he admits his unbelief. Instead, He heals his son. And so we pray. Jesus, I believe, but help me in my unbelief!
