Mark 9:14-29 Believe for the Impossible!

Mark 9:14-29  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.”

The commotion that Jesus came upon revolved around the teachers of the law disputing with the disciples about healing.  They were probably contesting the disciples' authority in praying for the sick.  Who are they but simple men?  In the Old Testament miraculous healing materialized out of the prayers of important people such as prophets and kings.  Common men were not considered important enough for God to answer their prayers for healing.  The teachers of the law probably were pointing out this fact to the crowd as well as to the disciples.  This is undoubtedly true because the passage says that a man in the midst of the crowd reveals that this commotion was caused by him wanting the disciples to deliver his son from demon possession.  He describes to Jesus the condition of his son and also that he brought his son to the disciples to be delivered from this possession, but they could not help him.  Jesus responds in frustration: O unbelieving generation.  What are they unbelieving about?  Were they unbelieving about the fact that healing was occurring in the name of Jesus?  The religious elite were fighting this reality.  They did not want the people to believe this simple man, Jesus, or his followers had power to actually heal people.  Healing for the religious establishment came only through the channels of the "well-connected" with God, meaning patriarchs, prophets, and kings, chosen by God to rule and act in his name.  In the Old Testament, we have twelve such healings--all under the auspices of such authority.  But here we have a man with a needy son, coming first to the disciples and now to Jesus, asking him to take pity on them and to heal the boy who has been afflicted from childhood.

As the father presents the son's condition, describing how the evil spirit has often thrown him into fire or water to kill him, he ends by asking for Jesus to help them: But if you can do anything, take pity on us and help us.   Jesus is disturbed by the father's comment: if you can do anything.  This statement was dressed in unbelief; ignoring or disbelieving the many marvelous works that Jesus had already performed in the land of the Israelites.  Jesus responds to him somewhat rudely by repeating the father's words of unbelief: If you can?  How can this man dare question Jesus' power to heal?  It was well known that Jesus was performing marvelous healings throughout the land, acts that no man had performed from the beginning of time.  The people were witnessing this in and through Jesus, the One who had declared, with God all things are possible.  (Matthew 19:26)  Jesus' journey through Israel was accompanied by miraculous acts, confirming him as the Messiah, the Son of God.  So, for the father of this troubled boy to question Jesus' ability to cast out demons was an affront to what Jesus was doing everywhere.  No wonder Jesus questioned how long He should put up with such unbelief.  He was constantly speaking to his disciples about faith, such as when he talked about the birds in the air and the flowers in the fields.  He said, Consider how the lilies grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these.  If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today, and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, how much more will he clothe you, O you of little faith!  (Luke 12:27-28)  

In Acts we see healing carried on by the New Testament church.  As the disciples journeyed through the area, many people were healed and set free from demons.  The power of God was so strong on them even their shadows carried a delivering power.  Many came to Christ because of these wonderful, supernatural acts and the indwelling Holy Spirit.  Peter plainly tells the men of Israel the source of this power.  While the beggar held on to Peter and John, all the people were astonished and came running to them in the place called Solomon’s Colonnade.  When Peter saw this, he said to them: “Men of Israel, why does this surprise you?  Why do you stare at us as if by our own power or godliness we had made this man walk?  The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God of our fathers, has glorified his servant Jesus.  You handed him over to be killed, and you disowned him before Pilate, though he had decided to let him go.  You disowned the Holy and Righteous One and asked that a murderer be released to you.  You killed the author of life, but God raised him from the dead.  We are witnesses of this.  By faith in the NAME of Jesus, this man whom you see and know was made strong.  It is Jesus’ NAME and the FAITH that comes THROUGH HIM that has given this complete healing to him, as you can all see. (Acts 3:11-17)  Peter states the source of this supernatural power comes from Jesus: faith in him, in his name.  When Jesus says this is an unbelieving generation, He is saying that generation will not believe He is from God and performing works under his Father's authority.  When the disciples questioned Jesus why they did not have authority over the demon, Jesus responds, This kind can come out only by prayer.  This is a reminder for all of us not to fight the good fight in our own strength, not to think we can take on the enemy unless we are prayed up, strong in the Lord, and full of the resurrection power of the Holy Spirit.  Today we will not say: If I can do all things through Christ, I will overcome.  We will declare: I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.  (Philippians 4:13)   

Mark 9:9-13 The Deaf Will Hear

Mark 9:9-13  As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus gave them orders not to tell anyone what they had seen until the Son of Man had risen from the dead.  They kept the matter to themselves, discussing what “rising from the dead” meant.  And they asked him, “Why do the teachers of the law say that Elijah must come first?”  Jesus replied, “To be sure, Elijah does come first, and restores all things.  Why then is it written that the Son of Man must suffer much and be rejected?  But I tell you, Elijah has come, and they have done to him everything they wished, just as it is written about him.”  

The disciples pondered what Jesus said about rising from the dead.  They also must have wondered why Jesus said Elijah would restore all things, yet He then said the Son of Man must suffer much and be rejected.  Why would the Messiah suffer in a perfect kingdom set up for him to reign supreme?  These ruminations of the disciples must have been a part of their daily journey with Jesus, for he had told them of his fate before such as after Peter said He was the Christ: He (Jesus) then began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and after three days rise again.  (Mark 8:31)  How could Jesus talk about his suffering when surely God's purpose for Jesus was to lift him up and bring salvation to the Jewish people?  However, the apostles missed the truth of what Jesus was saying because their ears remained stopped to the perspective of an eternal God.  They had human ears but not spiritual ears to hear clearly the voice of the Spirit speaking truth to their inner ears.  Consequently, Jesus often explained his parables to them, even though they walked with him and heard his every word.  Their spiritual ears were mostly inoperative, dysfunctional.  Their perspective of the world was flesh-centered, not Spirit-centered.  Their flesh-centered view based on their senses and experiences defined the parameters of what was possible or probable.  Because they were thinking in the terms of their human understanding, Jesus' words about dying after Elijah comes confused them.  They kept the matter to themselves, discussing what “rising from the dead” meant.  The disciples were walking by sight in the flesh and not by faith with the Spirit's perspective.  Of course they marveled at Jesus' miracles, but they could not place these marvelous acts in the context of an eternal, heavenly kingdom according to Jesus' real purpose.  They probably surmised that Jesus' main purpose was to overthrow the Romans and establish a physical kingdom for the Jews on earth.  When Jesus did that, they would be his entourage, experiencing the blessings and perks that come from being close to the Messiah.  Perhaps that is partly why Peter and the rest of the apostles claimed they would never abandon Jesus and they would defend him to the death. They may have written themselves a grandiose part in their plans for the future as God set his Son up in a glorious kingdom on Earth.  

In the scripture previous to the above scriptures, we hear Jesus telling the disciples to tell no one of what transpired on the Mountain of Transfiguration until He, Jesus, has risen from the dead.  They were to remain silent.  Why?  Probably because their understanding of what happened on that mountain was too fixated on their preconception of what Jesus should do now following God's affirmation of him as his Son.  They might have relayed this wonderful message to the people, inspiring them to revolt against the Roman occupation.  If Jesus is the Son, then all things are possible, for who can conquer God?  They may have stirred up people to believe: If God is for us, who can stop us from setting up the kingdom of the Messiah here on earth?  As with Joshua, let's take the land by force.  But Jesus confuses them by saying, don't tell anyone about this until I am raised from the dead.  What?  Dead?  How can the Messiah die?  How can Jesus the Messiah die after God affirms him as his Son: “This is my Son, whom I love.  Listen to him!”  None of this makes sense to them, for their ears are still unable to take in God's truth.  They were hearing with their natural ears.  The Kingdom of God for all eternity, for all people, was a concept beyond their hearing frequency.  No, the kingdom is not for just the Jewish people, but for all people.  God is establishing a family of adopted sons and daughters, bought by the blood of Jesus Christ.  Jesus knows that after He is raised from the dead, after their personal temples are cleansed by the blood, that the Spirit will come and indwell them.  Their inner ears will be unstopped.  He knows that his domain will become real, life-giving after the Spirit makes his beloved disciples new creations through the cross.  Everything Jesus said will fall in place.  After Pentecost, they will minister the Good News to the whole world.   In Acts 10 we see Philip ministering to the hated Samaritans; later on we see Paul sent out to the Gentiles of the world.  For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.  For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.  (John 3:16-17)  Whosoever will, will receive freedom from sin.  Whosoever will, will become the saints of God.  Whosoever will, will receive new life.  Whosoever will, will receive adoption from the hands of God.  

The kingdom has come, and now dwells in the temples of the redeemed.  We who are washed by the blood of the Lamb are the temples of God where the Spirit abides.  No longer is our frequency of self-talk attuned only to our fleshly pursuits.  No, we can hear the words of God within us.  We can leave that airway of conversation in our minds to our fleshly self or we can give that avenue of communication to God.  In the inner ear, we can hear the words of God and prophesy of his goodness and love.  We can be his instruments here on earth.  Paul say, do not forsake prophesy.  Do not stop your mouth from speaking forth that which is of the inner man from the Spirit.  Jesus said, What I tell you in the dark, speak in the daylight; what is whispered in your ear, proclaim from the roofs.  (Matthew 10:27)  God has come down to earth through the Son to fellowship with mankind, to bridge the great gulf of separation between a loving God and his creation.  God has come in the form of a dove, a priceless dove, that landed on Jesus at the River Jordan, declaring God's love for the Son.  The disciples could not understand what was happening that day in the context of eternity, but their lack of intuition and faith did not affect the Father's love or the Son's commitment to Calvary.  They could not understand why Jesus talked about dying; but today, dear friends, you know why Jesus spoke of his death.  His death has brought the resurrection power of the Holy Spirit to every believer who calls upon his lovely name.  Christ's death has brought righteousness, eternal life in God to you, the words of God to you.  Now, beloved of God, do not be double-minded, wandering about and wondering whether you should be all in for your Lord; for as the Word says, a double-minded person is unstable in all his ways.  Believe the word of God; believe that you are a new creature through Christ in you; believe that the word of God rests upon you.  Be his servants, do his will, for you are greatly blessed.  When Jesus warned the people against having calloused hearts, He said, But blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear.  For I tell you the truth, many prophets and righteous men longed to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it.  (Matthew 13:16-17)  Amen and Amen!    

Mark 9:1-8 Listen to Jesus

Mark 9:1-8  And he said to them, “I tell you the truth, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the kingdom of God come with power.”  After six days Jesus took Peter, James and John with him and led them up a high mountain, where they were all alone.  There he was transfigured before them.  His clothes became dazzling white, whiter than anyone in the world could bleach them.  And there appeared before them Elijah and Moses, who were talking with Jesus.  Peter said to Jesus, “Rabbi, it is good for us to be here.  Let us put up three shelters — one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.”  (He did not know what to say, they were so frightened.)  Then a cloud appeared and enveloped them, and a voice came from the cloud: “This is my Son, whom I love.  Listen to him!”  Suddenly, when they looked around, they no longer saw anyone with them except Jesus.

We know God's kingdom came in full measure at Pentecost.  Ordinary men, full of the Holy Spirit, proclaimed the glory and power of God to everyone present in their own language.  Under divine unction, believers heralded a new age where God would indwell his people with the Holy Spirit to do his work in this world.  The kingdom of God was nigh, even at their mouths.  When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place.  Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting.  They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them.  All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them. (Acts 2:1-4)  Later when Peter was brought before the elders and spiritual leaders for healing a crippled man, he announced a message that shook them to the core.  No longer would the kingdom of men reign with God directing them through prophets from time to time, but God himself through his blessed Son, Jesus, would reign over mankind's souls, living within them through the Spirit.  Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them: “Rulers and elders of the people!  If we are being called to account today for an act of kindness shown to a cripple and are asked how he was healed,  then know this, you and all the people of Israel: It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed.  He (Jesus) is ‘the stone you builders rejected, which has become the capstone.’  Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.” (Acts 4:8-12)  Peter told them every person must make a decision regarding the resurrected Jesus.  If they chose for him, the kingdom of God would come to them; if they rejected the risen Lord, they would be rejected by God himself on the day of judgment; for Jesus said, The Father loves the Son and has placed everything in his hands.  Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on him.  (John 3:35-36) 

On the Mountain of Transfiguration, Peter saw again that Jesus is Lord.  On that day, when God miraculously allowed Elijah and Moses to appear before Peter, James, and John and converse with the transfigured Jesus, God did not perform this deed to have the disciples set up a memorial to three important spiritual figures as Peter first supposed.  No, the Father affirmed Jesus as his Son: “This is my Son, whom I love.  Listen to him!”  The Son's voice is the one to heed: no other voice leads us into truth and brings us into victory over sin and death.  In other words, men and women should no longer look back to the patriarchs or the prophets for the pathway to God.  Neither should they seek another great leader such as Moses or another Messiah to lead them.  God the Father once again pointed clearly to the Son, revealing on that mountain that Jesus is the cornerstone of salvation for all people.  He is the way; He is the gate.  There are no other gates to eternal life, to heaven.  Therefore Jesus said again, “I tell you the truth, I am the gate for the sheep.  All who ever came before me were thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them.  I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved.  He will come in and go out, and find pasture.  The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.  (John 10:7-10)  Any lifestyle other than one committed wholeheartedly to God through faith in Jesus Christ is a counterfeit existence, unacceptable to a holy and righteous God.  God accepts no other name under heaven for the propitiation of our sins.  Christ alone has purchased our salvation through his sacrifice.  He has paid the price for sin.  Jesus said, I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.  (John 14:6)  The three disciples learned this reality on that mountain.  After Pentecost, this revelation became a reality in the apostles' lives as the Holy Spirit taught them and brought Jesus' words back to their remembrance.  Through the Spirit's work in their lives, they understood why Jesus had to go to the cross when they saw sicknesses healed and people delivered from demon oppression by the power of Jesus' name.

Sometimes we react as Peter did on the mountain top.  God does something great in our lives or we have something difficult happen, and we are not quite sure what to do about it.  Instead of asking him about next steps, we decide we will build a monument to mark that day.  We are overly excited or sorrow creeps into the depths of our being.  What can we do with these strong emotions?  We make a memory of the event and camp there for a while.  The markers are important to us: places to go back to and remember what happened, whether positive or negative.  We know the Lord was with us because He promised never to leave us or to forsake us.  Yes, He was there, and we are sure He likes the memorial we have raised to honor that day.  We spend a lot of time remembering how great or how awful that day was, and we have told our friends and relatives all the details and how it makes us feel to think about what happened.  Soon we find ourselves going back again and again, and we do not find a sense of release or peace--there's an emptiness.  We need to stop to ask the Lord what comes next?  Is it time to move forward?  Did we fail to give Jesus an active role at the memorial service and the days following?  Did we let him rejoice with us or sorrow with us?  Have we asked him to tell us how He wants us to use what we have learned from our experiences?  Have we stopped to think since Jesus was really there with us, then God would certainly have said to us in a time of great joy or sorrow: This is my Son, whom I love.  Listen to him.  Yet we have not had an ear to hear.  After telling about the seed and the sower and ending with the seed that fell on good ground, producing 100, 60, and 30 times what was sown, Jesus said, He who has ears, let him hear.  (Matthew 13:9)  Whatever happens in our lives, God is intimately involved: a physical healing, a new job, a marriage, a gift of money, a death, a rejection, work problems, strife in the home, financial distress, the list goes on.  God has a plan for every situation.  He does not want to be a silent observer, the one we call after our plans fail.  He is with us to help us through the power of the Holy Spirit.  He loves us with an everlasting love.  We must not erect memorials and then do our own thing.  We should ask Jesus to be Lord of all: He will guide us and move us forward.  If we put our faith in him, the events of life, good or bad, will be opportunities to grow by faith in the Lord.  He is faithful to the uttermost!  

Mark 8:34-38 Are We Ashamed of Jesus?

Mark 8:34-38  Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.  For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me and for the gospel will save it.  What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul?  Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul?  If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his Father’s glory with the holy angels.” 

After dealing with Peter on the same issue, we find Jesus continuing to delineate between a true follower and one who follows him for the loaves and fishes.  The former wants a kingdom for God's purposes; the latter wants a kingdom to serve his purposes in the flesh.  Peter rebuked Jesus for talking about dying because Peter expected Jesus to continue as an earthly leader of the people.  After telling Peter he is speaking the words of Satan, Jesus draws his disciples and the people together and asks them for a total commitment to him and not to their preconceived ideas of who He is and what He should do for them.  He probably surprises them by saying, if anyone wants to follow me, he must deny his own wishes and desires and sell out completely to God's will.  He must take up his cross, which represents death to this world, and follow me wholeheartedly.  Jesus knew that to ask anything less would mean those who answered his call were not true followers of the Lord.  Peter's vision for Jesus and probably the vision of the rest of the apostles was for him to be the Messiah who would set up a new Jewish state, a kingdom controlled by their beloved miracle working Jesus.  Jesus  smashes that vision, by saying they must die to the world and prepare their souls for God's plans.  Jesus was not looking to bring fame and fortune to his followers or himself: his mission was to bring salvation to the whole world.  He was preparing them to take a stand for the cross of Christ, a cross that meant death but also stood for resurrection and victory over sin and death.  He had just told them God's plan when He proclaimed the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and after three days rise again.  (Mark 8:31)  Now He demands their allegiance to his mission, saying, If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his Father’s glory with the holy angels.

The crowd greeted Jesus on Palm Sunday with shouts of joy: Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!  Hosanna in the highest!  (Matthew 21:9) They saw him as the coming king, who would throw off the yoke of the Romans.  However, a week later, the same people were ashamed of him when they saw him in the hands of the hated Romans, not a king but a prisoner.  Pilate mocks them by claiming Jesus is the king of the Jews.  Their hope of deliverance from the hated Romans was crushed.  To be so deceived by Jesus was an embarrassment to them.  In anger, they shouted, "Crucify him!"  They thought his death would wipe this problem from the face of the earth, close this chapter of history, and let it be forgotten; for they were a laughingstock to the world for believing in this man as the Messiah.  However, there was a great crowd of witnesses that day: God and the heavenly host looked in on the scene.  The sky darkened that day in shame.  But the curtain in the Temple was torn in two to indicate we have access through the blood of Christ to the presence of God.  The disciples were warned that they should not be ashamed of this crucified Lord, nor his many words spoken boldly before Jews and Gentiles.  As He gave his life, so should they.  As He won victory through his death, so should they win victory with their sold-out lives.  This remains our mission  As the resurrection was witnessed, so are our lives as we commit to the risen Christ: Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.  Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.  Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.  (Hebrews 12:1-3)  Observe how Jesus ran the race; therefore, do not give up, don't grow weary in doing good, don't lose heart and faint on your journey.  God is faithful and good regardless of your personal circumstances.  

Don't reject God's purposes in your life for one minute.  Don't be like Esau, who rejected God's will, giving his birthright to Jacob for a single meal.  He did not want to die to his desires and wants that day because of his fleshly needs; consequently, God's judgment came upon him.  Praise God, we have Jesus who is the Way, the Truth, the Light, and the Life.  He paid the price, so we would not have to suffer for our sins.  But  Jesus warns us not to build our house of life on the sand, but to build it on the rock, Christ Jesus; so when the storms of life come, our house will not fall.  He said if we hear his words and do not obey him, when the rains come down, the streams rise, and the winds blow and beat against that house, it will fall with a great crash.  (See Matthew 7:24-27)  God is a consuming fire of holiness; yet, IN CHRIST, we have been adopted into God's family because He has washed us in his blood and made us holy, without spot or blemish.  We are the beloved, in the presence God and a holy assembly.  You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly, to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven.  (Hebrews 12:22-23)   Yet He calls us to walk in the light as He is in the light.  Paul tells the church we should become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe as you hold out the word of life. . .  (Philippians 2:15-16)  To live holy means we die to our wills and desires.  We live for the kingdom of God, not for the kingdom of men.  Jesus said if we are ashamed of him, He will be ashamed of us.  Basically, He was talking about our choices, our allegiance to one kingdom or another.  When Pilate questioned Jesus, he asked him, "What is it you have done?"  Jesus said, "My kingdom is not of this world.  If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jews.  But now my kingdom is from another place."  (John 18:35-36)  Pilate found no fault in Jesus, but he also did not defend Jesus.  That is our choice: Will we take up the cross and preach Christ to this adulterous and sinful generation, or will we behave as Pilate and fail to recognize and to follow our Lord wholeheartedly?