Help My Unbelief
Text: Mark 9:14-29
Core Idea: Jesus invites us to rely on Him and rest in Him. Then as we fix our eyes on Him, let’s pray – not just for the forgiveness of our sins but for everything in life. Let us be a praying people.
INTRODUCTION
Thank you, Esther, for sharing your story with us – and reminding us of God’s sovereign grace in our suffering and pain. Your story actually reminded me of what Pastor Tim Keller said, “Suffering can refine us rather than destroy us because God Himself walks with us in the fire.” Some of you may be experiencing suffering that is shaking your faith – causing you to question, doubt God’s love for you. If so, I pray that you’ll cling to this truth – to know that He’s in the fire with you, that He hasn’t abandoned you, that He hasn’t forgotten you, and that He will comfort you and give you the strength to persevere. I know it’s not easy being vulnerable before others, but I firmly believe that this is how we grow. So, if you have a story to tell, please let me know. We would love to hear your story.
Well, we’re exploring the life of Jesus through the Gospel of Mark. Last week, we jumped ahead to chapter 10 and saw that the Kingdom of God belongs to those who are like little children – those who are poor in spirit. But today, we’re going to jump back to the time when Jesus took Peter, James, and John on a mountain in chapter 9. If you remember, there, we saw Jesus’ glory on full display as He was transfigured before them. It was a beautiful but also a terrifying moment for the disciples, which is why it was good news for us to see that Jesus didn’t remain transfigured – He humbly came down the mountain to be on the road to Jerusalem where He would be disfigured for us on the cross. Then we’ll pick up from here to see what happened when Jesus joined the rest of His disciples. If you have your Bibles, let’s turn to Mark 9:14-29. Let me read this for us.
14 When they came to the other disciples, they saw a large crowd around them and the teachers of the law arguing with them. 15 As soon as all the people saw Jesus, they were overwhelmed with wonder and ran to greet Him. 16 “What are you arguing with them about?” He asked. 17 A man in the crowd answered, “Teacher, I brought You my son, who is possessed by a spirit that has robbed him of speech. 18 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.” 19 “You unbelieving generation,” Jesus replied, “how long shall I stay with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring the boy to me.” 20 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. 21 Jesus asked the boy’s father, “How long has he been like this?” “From childhood,” he answered. 22 “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.” 23 “‘If You can’?” said Jesus. “Everything is possible for one who believes.” 24 Immediately the boy’s father exclaimed, “I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!” 25 When Jesus saw that a crowd was running to the scene, He rebuked the impure spirit. “You deaf and mute spirit,” He said, “I command you, come out of him and never enter him again.” 26 The spirit shrieked, convulsed him violently and came out. The boy looked so much like a corpse that many said, “He’s dead.” 27 But Jesus took him by the hand and lifted him to his feet, and he stood up. 28 After Jesus had gone indoors, His disciples asked Him privately, “Why couldn’t we drive it out?” 29 He replied, “This kind can come out only by prayer.”
Amen. This is the Word of God for you today.
Once they come down the mountain, the scene shifts from one extreme to the other – it turns from the glory of Christ to the pain and suffering of the world. This was intentional as Mark wanted to show us that the way of the cross, not only for Jesus but for all of us as His disciples, will be met with challenges and difficulties. Relatively speaking, it’s been quite easy for the disciples to follow Jesus so far – Jesus was the One who healed, taught, cast out demons, calmed the storms, fed the thousands, and walked on water. But following Jesus was about to get a lot harder. And in many ways, that’s true for us as well – the more we walk with Jesus, the harder it will get. Just when you think you’ve learned to walk with Him, it will demand more courage, more energy, more faith, more sacrifice, more discipline, and more dependence on Jesus as the threats will become more intense. The Christian life is a struggle. But what I want to show you is that there is strength in your struggle, because it’s your struggle that gives you the opportunity to be more dependent on God. In other words, your struggles are actually a gateway to the power of the Most High God. Then there are three things I want to point out from this passage:
SPIRITUAL WARFARE
FAITH
PRAYER
1) SPIRITUAL WARFARE
This is the context. Jesus and the three disciples came back to find the remaining disciples engaged in a heated argument with the religious leaders. The word on the street was that the disciples were able to heal the sick and cast out demons. So, this man came with his son looking for help – expecting some relief. But the disciples could not drive out the spirit and the teachers of the law must have started to mock them over their failure – they were probably using the lack of success as an opportunity to question Jesus’ authority. And this commotion drew a huge crowd around them. So, Jesus asked, “What are you arguing with them about?” (Mk. 9:16). But before the disciples could say anything, a man in the crowd spoke out in verse 17, “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.”
Now, before we move forward, here’s something we can learn from this – namely, that we are at war. This was not a parable; it wasn’t a story Jesus told to make a point. It was a real situation with real people who had a real problem, and that problem is our problem as well. It’s true that for Christians, through Christ, we have peace with God and with one another. But what we often forget is that peace with God always means enmity with the devil. Unfortunately, many of us live as if we’re in peacetime. Many of us have become consumed and distracted by the busyness or demands of life that we let our guards down. We’re not really shaken by the fact that our relationship with God is being neglected or that we’ve become too comfortable with our sin. But make no mistake: this negligence will ultimately prove itself to be detrimental because the enemy’s singular purpose is to bring death and destruction. It can of course be a physical attack like it was for the boy we see in our passage. The demon robbed him of speech (v. 17), caused a loss of bodily control (v. 18), and tried to destroy and kill him by throwing him into fire or water (v. 22). But it can also be emotional, relational, and most importantly spiritual. The devil doesn’t just want us to be in pain; he wants us to hate God for it. He doesn’t just want us to sin; he wants to use our sin to draw us away from God and drive us into deeper bondage. He doesn’t just want us to do what makes us happy; he wants us to become addicted to it so that it will completely derail us from walking with Jesus. He doesn’t just want us to be discouraged; he wants us to hate ourselves and despise our lives. He wants us to be crushed. He wants to destroy our faith and prevent us from bearing fruit. He wants to ruin what God is doing in us. He wants to corrupt our worship, spoil our marriage, mislead our children, poison our workplace, distract us from the pursuit of holiness, destroy the image of God in us, and make us ineffective as disciples of Jesus Christ. Brothers and sisters, we are at war. And the battle for your heart takes place every day – even now.
Of course, this isn’t something new as many of us are already aware of this truth. Then this story is here for us to be reminded of this truth. Listen to what Jesus said in John 16:33, “In this world you will have trouble.” It’s clear that we will be met by the forces of evil living in this world. But listen to how Jesus ends that verse, “But take heart! I have overcome the world.” And that’s the point of all exorcism recorded in the Gospels: we shouldn’t be surprised by the battle, yet we shouldn’t lose heart because Jesus is stronger. That’s exactly what we see in verse 25. This wasn’t an epic battle. Jesus didn’t struggle to get that demon out of the boy. It’s remarkably amazing and comforting to see that all Jesus had to do was speak. Jesus simply told him to come out and he had no choice but to obey. Brothers and sisters, Jesus is stronger. There’s power in His Word to protect us and liberate us from the dominion of darkness. Then we must learn to cling to Him as we continue to fight the good fight.
2) FAITH
Let’s go back to verse 19 – Jesus said, “You unbelieving generation, how long shall I stay with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring the boy to me.” Now, who was Jesus referring to when He said, “You unbelieving generation”? Well, all the commentaries that I read agree that He was really talking about everyone there – the disciples who doubted and questioned the authority of Jesus despite all they had seen and heard, the religious leaders who refused to believe that Jesus was the Messiah, the crowd that was impressed by what Jesus can do but refused to surrender their lives, and even the father who saw Jesus simply as a means to an end. Everyone there was faithless. Jesus was standing before them, yet He wasn’t their focus – they were all looking at something else. The disciples were looking at their failures, the religious leaders were looking at their reputation, the crowd was looking for entertainment, and the father was looking at his needs. Do you see that? They wanted Jesus to fix their problems, but their hearts were not fixed on Jesus. Friends, does this describe you today? You’re here in the presence of God to worship Him, to pour your hearts to Him because of the troubles of life but you’re not fixed on Jesus. Your heart remains fixed on your circumstances – doubting, becoming antsy, questioning why God hasn’t done this or that. If this is you, I pray that your eyes will be opened to see Jesus who’s standing before us and to know that the One who’s so glorious, so powerful, so wise, and so loving is for you and with you. That’s what faith is: fixing our eyes on Jesus. Faith looks at Jesus and rests in Him when all around is chaos. It’s to take our eyes off of our circumstances and lay our troubles down at His feet as we fix our eyes on Him, the Author and Perfecter of our faith. And we’re about to see this kind of faith in this story – not from the disciples but the father.
Let’s look at verse 20. Jesus called the boy to Him, and the demon started to resist. Jesus asked, “How long has he been like this?” The father said, “From childhood.” Think with me. From the time he was a little child until he stood here before Jesus on this day, he has been tormented. Every day has been filled with pain, agony, and fear not just for this boy but the whole family. It’s been so long since things were normal. There was no peace, no rest – not a moment that this father could take his eyes off of his son for fear of what may happen. Some say that nothing will break you down and make you desperate like seeing your child hurting or suffering. This father knew that pain – and he also knew that if something didn’t happen soon, his son would be dead. So, he pleaded, “Jesus, if you could do anything, anything at all, we’ll take it. Please have mercy on us and help us.” Can you imagine how desperate he must have been? But notice that the father didn’t question the willingness of Jesus but the ability of Jesus. The father assumed that the problem was probably with Jesus, not with himself.
Yet take a look at how Jesus responded. He didn’t say, “Do you know who I am? I am the glory of God in the flesh. How dare you doubt My ability!” Rather, He invited the father to trust Him – essentially saying, “‘If you can’ is not the right question. I can do all things. But you have to trust Me. This is not about My ability to help but it’s about your willingness to believe. Then are you ready to trust Me? Do you have the faith to see that I am able, and I am willing?” Then something happened – Jesus’ words ignited faith in the heart of this father. So, Mark tells us that the father immediately responded with faith, “I do believe!” But it didn’t end there – he also added these words, “Help me overcome my unbelief.” He had faith, but he also had doubt mingled in. He was beginning to see but not really see. Then what does this mean for us?
It means that struggling with doubt is okay, but we must struggle with God. The father could’ve walked away after the disciples failed to cast out the demon – but he didn’t. With little faith he had, he pleaded once again. He cried out to Jesus. Sure, he doubted – but he at least had the courage to ask Jesus to help him with his unbelief. Friends, are you doubting today? Maybe you’ve said something like this: “I believe that God is good, but it’s hard to believe it when I see this or that happen in my life. I believe that God is wise, but it’s hard to believe that He has a plan for me when I see this or that goes wrong. I believe in God’s providence, but it’s hard to believe it when it seems like all I’m getting is the suffering and none of the blessings.” If this is you, instead of distancing yourself, come to God and pray like this: “Lord, I do believe. But I’m not fully there yet. I’m struggling. It’s really hard to believe that You’re sovereign and good. I don’t want to have these doubts, but I can’t shake them off. So, help me overcome my unbelief!”
Now, it’s so important to point out what this doesn’t mean. This doesn’t mean that if you just believe hard enough, pray enough, and have enough faith, then you can have whatever you want. That’s absolutely not true. We must know that God may in His goodness orchestrate our lives in ways that may be different from our desires and expectations. Just look at what happens after this man stepped out in faith – things got worse. Verse 26 – “The spirit shrieked, convulsed him violently and came out. The boy looked so much like a corpse that many said, ‘He’s dead.’” Can you imagine what this father must have thought? “I told You I was struggling – that I was doubting. You know how small my faith is – and You still let this happen? How could You do this to me? I trusted You, and now my son is dead.” Sometimes, even when we remain faithful, things may seem like they’re falling apart. But faith doesn’t give up – it hangs on as you ask for more help believing that God has everything under control.
Then brothers and sisters, are you struggling today? Are you exhausted? Do you feel like giving up? Are you questioning if it’s all worth it? If so, ask God for faith. He will give you faith to believe – for you to see that He is with you and that He is using even the pain that you’re experiencing to strengthen your faith. And with this gift of faith, place it on Christ. Faith is not this vague hope in the midst of our difficulties that says things will be okay. Nor is faith a matter of ignoring what’s going on around us and moving ahead as if everything’s just fine. Faith is looking to Jesus in the midst of our circumstances. It’s taking what we know to be true about God and seeing our situations in light of that truth. Faith means a willingness to live based on what we know to be true of God – trusting that He will not forsake us. Again, it’s not the strength of our faith but the object of our faith. Jesus’ sufficiency is more than enough to cover our insufficiencies. He will make a way. And that’s exactly what we see in verse 27 – though the boy looked dead, Jesus simply took him “by the hand and lifted him to his feet, and he stood up.” Then what does it mean practically to exercise our faith, place our faith in Christ? This leads to our final point.
3) PRAYER
Let’s turn to verse 28. The disciples were genuinely confused because back in Mark 6:7, Jesus had given them authority to cast out demons – and they probably have done it a number of times too. But for some reason, they weren’t able to cast it out this time. So, they asked, “Why couldn’t we drive it out? What did we do wrong?” And Jesus simply answered, “This kind can come out only by prayer.” Friends, this is the most important point of this story – the whole miracle is for this moment for Jesus to speak to His disciples. Jesus wanted to expose their self-reliance. Think with me. You’ve seen the description of evil that was taking over this boy – the power to destroy. And yet the disciples stood before this boy and thought the power to drive this spirit out was within them – that if they tried hard enough, focused enough, screamed loud enough, were firm enough, he would come out. Do you see how shocking that is – arrogant that sounds? Who do they think they are? How could they possibly forget to pray and rely on God? And yet they did – as many of us do as well. You see, too many of us forget to pray – or worse, too many of us choose not to pray. Of course, no one explicitly says, “I’m not going to pray,” but we choose not to pray by staying busy, staying distracted, or relying on ourselves.
Brothers and sisters, our prayer life, the quality of our prayers, may be the most honest gauge of our faith. Our fervency in prayer or lack of it may be the best indicator of where we place our trust. Hear this: if we’re not praying about it, we’re deciding that we can handle it. One pastor (Chris Gaynor) says it like this, “Your prayerlessness screams, ‘I’ve got this!’” The disciples relied on their past successes, experiences, and skills. And don’t get me wrong – experience is good if it makes you wiser and more competent, but not if it makes you less dependent on God. The Christian life can certainly begin with a deep sense of weakness and need, a humble celebration of His generous grace, but as we grow, mature, and experience “successes,” it can be tempting for us to become self-reliant – to begin to think that we’re more able than we’re actually able, to begin to think that we have power that we don’t actually possess. Brothers and sisters, we must remember that we are as desperately in need of His grace today as we were the moment when we first believed. Then let me ask you, “Are there things that you used to saturate with prayer but now you do them very routinely without prayer – before you start your day and before you sleep, as you put your kids to sleep, as you come into worship on Sunday, before you work, before you meet someone? Do you pray for your marriage or future spouse regularly – your children, your workplace or school, your co-workers, your unbelieving family or friends? Do you pray before you make certain decisions, when you feel incredibly overwhelmed, when you’re angry, when you’re mistreated, when you feel lost, when you feel defeated? Do you pray over your sins? Do you pray when all things are going well? Friends, do you pray not because it’s the thing that good Christians do but because you realize how arrogant it is to believe that you can do all these things without His help?” It was important for Jesus to expose the disciples’ tendency to self-reliance now because He knew what was coming. He knew that the way of the cross would be difficult – and they would not survive if they were to rely on themselves. Brothers and sisters, I pray that this truth will expose you to your tendency to self-reliance so that it will cause you to repent and learn to depend on Jesus. I pray that our eyes will be opened to this because we cannot, we will not finish the race if we fail to rely on Him daily.
And church, I pray that we would never become a community that is prayerless. God has been so good to us. There’s this good familiarity with what we do here. New people are slowly but surely coming. Good things are happening in our Community Groups. God has blessed us financially. Sure, we still have a long way to go but we’re taking steps to find our identity. In fact, we’re approaching our one-year mark soon and we only have countless things to be thankful for. But I pray that these blessings will never blind us – cause us to be careless in our pursuit of holiness and our prayer life. May we never become so good at what we do that we begin to rely on our own skills, techniques, and strengths. I pray that He will keep us humble so that we as a church will remain dependent on Him.
Now, if you look at this story again, only one person actually prayed – the father. Verse 22, “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.” The father didn’t tell Jesus what to do. He didn’t come with a plan. He didn’t name it and claim it. He just surrendered himself and his son to the mercy of God. Then let’s do just that right now. I want to give you an extended time to pray. May you pray like the father in verse 22 – “my marriage feels like it’s dead, but Jesus, help us. I’m lost with parenting, but Jesus. I can never forgive this person, but Jesus. I’m deeply immersed in this sin, but Jesus. I have this and that going on in my life and I’m worried, but Jesus.” Lay your troubles down at His feet, but I pray that you would have the faith to end that prayer with “but Jesus, help.” If you’re having a hard time praying at all, just pray this, “Lord, help me overcome my unbelief.”
CONCLUSION
Lighthouse family, Jesus invites us to rely on Him and rest in Him. This is imperative as we find ourselves at war – a battle that we’re not meant to face on our own but a battle that has been already won through the work of Christ on the cross. Then as we fix our eyes on Him, let’s pray – not just for the forgiveness of our sins but for everything in life. Let us be a praying people. Let’s do that right now.
Discussion questions
Whenever we see Jesus cast out demons, it reminds us that we are at war. How does the devil actively work against us today? How can we stay “alert and of sober mind” (1 Peter 5:8)?
J.C. Ryle said, “Doubting does not prove that a man has no faith, but only that his faith is small. And even when our faith is small, the Lord is ready to help us.” In what ways do you struggle with doubt? How can we grow in our faith?
Our prayer life may be the most honest gauge of our faith. Then how are you doing in your prayer life? How can your Community Group help you grow in the way you pray?