Key Verse: "I tell you the truth, if you have faith as
small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, "move from here to
there," and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you."
Matthew 17:20
Kathy can identify a little with the plight of the Father. When she was in junior high, one of her classmates suffered from severe epilepsy. One
never knew when a seizure would strike. It could be that the fact that his body
was changing made it even harder to medicate him properly. Junior high is tough
enough without the added problems that epilepsy created. He suffered from grand
mal seizures. He would fall to the floor, become rigid, convulse for several
minutes and then, when it was over, he was moved to a quiet place where he
would sleep for many hours. For Kathy, who was unfamiliar with the condition, it was scary. For those
who had been trained, including his close friends, calm and patience made a
huge difference.
This boy's parents had the blessing of living in the
20th century. Their son's condition, though ongoing, was understood by them and
they were doing all they could to help their son gain control over the
situation and live as normal of a life as possible. The father in this story,
however, had no hope for his son until Jesus. And today’s doctors wouldn’t understand this
boy’s condition. It looked like epilepsy,
but Scripture specifically identifies this as a demon possession.
So he came to where Jesus was. The disciples who had been
left behind thought that they could help! After all, they had some experience with
healings by now. So, they gave it a try, but they were unsuccessful. When Jesus arrived, He was able to get the
situation well in hand. The Father begged for mercy and for help with his own
lack of faith. Jesus honored the father's request, healed the boy and sent them
on their way.
Now, however, we have to wonder if the nine disciples who
were with the father, were riddled with self-doubt. They had been left behind
while Peter, James and John had gone off privately with Jesus. They wouldn't
learn until after the resurrection just what Peter, James and John's experience
had been while with him, but to face defeat also in something that Jesus had
blessed them to be able to do earlier had to have been unsettling and caused a crisis
of faith.
In fact, it is their faith that Jesus calls into question.
Matthew records Jesus stating that they lacked faith. If they had had even as
little faith as a mustard seed, they would have been successful. Mark records
Jesus saying, "This kind can only come out by prayer." (Mark 9:29) We
would think that Jesus’ disciples would know best how to pray and walk by
faith. After all, Jesus had taught them personally as they walked with him on
a daily basis. Could it be, however, that in this incidence at least, they had
become self-confident, forgetting where the true source of the power is. We
don't know this for sure, but wouldn't that just be like us humans to think
that, this time, we can handle things without consulting God in prayer first?
We too, need to be careful not to fall into the self-confident
trap in which the disciples may have found themselves. We need to be in
constant touch with Jesus, seeking His wisdom and strength for every moment of
our lives. We can't afford to coast on past successes of faith. They may help
us remember to have faith, but contact with Christ is the only way to stay
connected with His true power.
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