Matthew 17: 14-20 When they came to the crowd, a man approached Jesus and knelt before him. “Lord, have mercy on my son,” he said. “He has seizures and is suffering greatly. He often falls into the fire or into the water. I brought him to your disciples, but they could not heal him.” “You unbelieving and perverse generation,” Jesus replied, “how long shall I stay with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring the boy here to me.” Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of the boy, and he was healed at that moment. Then the disciples came to Jesus in private and asked, “Why couldn’t we drive it out?” He replied, “Because you have so little faith. Truly I tell you, 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.”
What did Jesus mean with He said, Nothing will be impossible for you? Did that mean we can take complete control of our lives from God, determining what will happen to us in our day-to-day activities? Are we now the masters of our own fate? If we stumble and scar our knee will the scar disappear before our very eyes as we pray for the renewal of the skin. Did Jesus mean that aging will disappear, such as happened with Moses, for he died with the strength of a young man—God just took him. What kind of faith removes mountains, and what are those mountains in life? In the above focus, Jesus was disappointed with his disciples, probably the nine that were left behind as He, James, John, and Peter were on the mountaintop, hearing God’s affirmative voice about Jesus. For when they came down from that experience, they met a crowd and within that crowd was a man who had a very sick boy, possessed by a demon. This demon intended to kill his boy. He has seizures and is suffering greatly. He often falls into the fire or into the water. Within that crowd, we can assume that only the disciples had any power over demons. When Jesus addresses his disciples, He is also addressing the people. You unbelieving and perverse generation,” Jesus replied, “how long shall I stay with you? Of course, only the apostles are with Jesus all of the time. They had heard all of his teaching, they had seen all of his healings, they had seen the power He had over the physical world. He could stop the wind and knock down the waves. These disciples knew Jesus as a person of great power, so great that they thought of him as like God. He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm. He said to his disciples, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?” They were terrified and asked each other, “Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!” (Mark 4:39-41) The disciples struggled with their thoughts about Jesus. In the boat, their fear about their finiteness overwhelmed their belief about Jesus being divine. Even though Jesus was in that boat, completely at peace for He was asleep, they could not calm their souls by his nearness. If He truly were a man of power, they had no reason to fear, but they woke Jesus, for fear possessed their minds. Jesus reprimands them by saying Do you still have no faith? After seeing all that you have seen, why are you possessed with fear and anxiety? Do you not really know who I am! Of course as with today’s focus, the disciples were struggling with who they were and who Jesus was. Jesus lived as all humans live, with the normal bodily needs: eating, drinking, and resting. They knew He also aged. He was altogether human, so how could they imagine he was God in the flesh? Only after the resurrection could they accept completely who He was and even then, Thomas doubted. To know Jesus as completely God was difficult for them to conceive.
Jesus is harsh with his disciples, for He had compassion for the people. Lord, have mercy on my son. He heard the broken heart of a father who dearly loved his son. Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of the boy, and he was healed at that moment. There was no waiting to see if the boy was normal. As sure as the wind stopped tossing the boat, the boy was calm and his mind clear. The disciples should have been able to rid the boy of this demon. They had already experienced great things through their own ministry. Jesus had sent them out to minister the Good News to Israel. When Jesus had called the Twelve together, he gave them power and authority to drive out all demons and to cure diseases, and he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal the sick. (Luke 9:1-2) . . .So they set out and went from village to village, proclaiming the good news and healing people everywhere. ( Luke 9:6) Under the commission Jesus gave them, they effectively attacked the devil’s work of darkness and sickness. They proclaimed the Good News of the Kingdom of God being near, and they healed people everywhere. But now we see them unable to rescue a boy from a demon of death. Jesus was not happy with the nine, for they did not understand the power of God in the words of faith. Truly I tell you, 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. No special commission or dispensation needed; the words of Christ and the words of his followers in Christ’s name carry great power. This was a time when darkness was dispelled in Israel with the demonstration of power. God was confirming to the Jews that Jesus and his disciples were his messengers and that Jesus was the Messiah of deliverance sent to bring light to the Jews and to all the world. Power, signs and wonders were needed. The people’s eyes and ears had to be opened. Today, the same power is needed to open the eyes and ears of those who are living in darkness. Darkness cannot be dispelled easily. Miracles still happen, but prayers must be done in faith, not in a double-minded way. We see after the resurrection, the establishment of the church as God’s presence in the community was necessary, even Peter’s shadow brought healing to the people. In Ephesus we see the same kind of power evident to establish the church. God did extraordinary miracles through Paul, so that even handkerchiefs and aprons that had touched him were taken to the sick, and their illnesses were cured and the evil spirits left them. (Acts 19:11-12) To attack the devil’s strongholds, the power of God must be evident in people’s lives and words. This is still necessary in today’s world: miracles have not passed away as unnecessary in a dark world. They are essential!
But the story of our lives is still in God’s hands. We cannot say that all things will work out well as we conceive them. Healings do not always happen, struggles do not always disappear, and the vicissitudes of life do happen to us, not just to others. We see such accounts occurring repeatedly in the Bible. We cannot say that in certain circumstances people did not pray, that faith in Jesus Christ as Lord was not present, but we can say that God was always there. We find James, one of the three that saw the transfiguration, was martyred. Paul was stoned and beaten with rods. John the Baptist was beheaded, Peter was imprisoned, all the disciples but John were martyred. When Jesus talked to his disciples, He promised them trouble and trials. He told them, In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world. (John 16:33) Historical records of the early church describe martyrdom, difficulties, and trials. People of faith died by the sword, were tortured unmercifully, were ostracized, and experienced hunger and all manner of sorrow. James speaks of some believers when he talks of giving food and clothing to those in need. Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? (James 2:15-16) Jesus spoke of helping the needy. Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’ The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’ (Matthew 25:37-40) What did Jesus mean when He said, Nothing will be impossible for you. Does He mean, we say, “Bring it on Lord! I can withstand all things, for I will change anything that is not to my liking and control the world around me. We do not see that reality in the church’s journey through this world. Instead, we are told, Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! (Philippians 4:4) This is difficult, for at times the world is a harsh place, hard to control or avoid. Paul reveals his frustrations when he juxtaposes the worldly believers boasting about their fine and secure lives with his and the apostles. His world is out of control, and he cannot determine what is best for his life. He says, For it seems to me that God has put us apostles on display at the end of the procession, like those condemned to die in the arena. We have been made a spectacle to the whole universe, to angels as well as to human beings. We are fools for Christ, but you are so wise in Christ! We are weak, but you are strong! You are honored, we are dishonored! To this very hour we go hungry and thirsty, we are in rags, we are brutally treated, we are homeless. We work hard with our own hands. When we are cursed, we bless; when we are persecuted, we endure it; when we are slandered, we answer kindly. We have become the scum of the earth, the garbage of the world—right up to this moment. (1 Corinthians 4:9-13) Breakfast companions, can you identify with Paul’s words or are you unwilling to place your lives on the altar, trying to escape every vicissitude in your life. Yes, pray about all things, believe for all things, have faith in everything. As John the Baptist, you can lower the mountains and make straight the way for the work of Christ in people’s lives. You can bring Good News to the sightless, to the deaf, by performing God’s works in your lives, even healings and miracles, through strong faith in Jesus Christ. But above all, display the love of God by faith to a dark and weary world.
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