The question is not what Jesus can do, but rather can he do it through us? Unbelief questions but faith exclaims. The father of a suffering child said to Jesus through tears, “Lord, I believe: help my unbelief!”
Jesus rebuked the foul spirit, saying: ‘You deaf and dumb spirit, I command you, come out of him and enter him no more!’ And he became like one dead, so that many said ‘He is dead’. But Jesus took him by the hand, lifted him up, and he arose.” (Mark 9:24-27)
“And when He came into the house, His disciples asked Him privately, Why could not we cast it out?” (Mark 9:28; Matthew 17:19) They had certainly tried! Was their failure due to the absence of Jesus, Peter, his boldest disciple, and the brothers James and John? No, it was due to their unbelief.
Unbelief is an attitude. An attitude is a fixed mental position and a position can be changed at will. The truth was that the faithlessness of their generation was revealed in their unbelief. They went through the motions, for the boy’s sake. But in their minds, they thought they couldn’t – and because of that they were right!
“So Jesus said to them, Because of your unbelief; for assuredly I say to you, if you have faith as a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, Move from here to there! And it will move; and nothing shall be impossible for you. ” (Matthew 17:20)
It takes a minimal amount of faith to move a maximum sized obstacle. If you believe that you can, you will. Your words express your faith. If you doubt in your heart it will not happen. But if you believe that the things you say will come to pass, you will have whatever you say — “mountains” notwithstanding.
From this combined account of Jesus delivering the young boy, we conclude that:
1. A visible lack of spiritual authority on the part of those who should be able to demonstrate it — especially in desperate situations — invites religious opposition.
2. The glory of Christ both amazes and terrifies people – they run to him, even though terrified of him! Never underestimate the power of the Holy Spirit anointing to draw people who paradoxically fear the power. The “raw” power, if I may put it that way.
3. The question is never what Jesus can do, but what we can do: (a) with the smallest amount of faith; and (b) with our God-given authority, which is the all-powerful and overruling Name of our Lord Jesus.
4. Although we would naturally prefer to continue in “mountaintop experiences” with Jesus, the pressing need is that we “come down” to where problem ‘mountains’ need to be moved out from the lives of needy people.
5. The unbelief in the boy’s father was also in the disciples, who didn’t even know they had unbelief – until Jesus later informed them!
6. When we really do believe, obstacles then move aside at our command because words of faith spoken by believers never take impossibilities into account!
7. The more compatible demons become with those they possess, the more discernment we need to assess them and the more prayer and authority we need to evict them; and more understanding of the ‘tearing’ that takes place when they depart from their human host.
8. The Majesty of Jesus is seen not only in spiritual revelations and ecstatic experiences, but also in restorations on the lower levels of down-to-earth human existence, through the entry of the super into the natural. Many years later, the Apostle Peter wrote of this unforgettable experience (2 Peter 1:18).