From Him, Through Him and To Him

Dear CBC Family,

This morning I wads thinking about the father whose son the disciples were unable to heal. I wonder how many of us can see ourselves in the father whose faith was shaky? The story can be found in Mark 9.

Mark 9:19,22-24: But if you can do anything, have compassion on us and help us. And Jesus said to him, “‘If you can’! All things are possible for one who believes.” Immediately the father of the child cried out and said, “I believe; help my unbelief!” (ESV)

Jesus places a very high premium on faith. More specifically, He cares about us putting our faith in Him particularly in those times when it’s difficult for us to do so. Think about that for a moment. It’s a real dilemma, isn’t it? You want to believe that Jesus will show up when you need Him, but it’s precisely when things seem impossible that our faith sometimes seems to elude us.

If you feel that way, don’t worry because you are not alone. A man whose son was demon possessed, unable to speak and constantly behaving in a destructive way, brought him to the disciples. He was hopeful they could help. But they couldn’t cast the demon out. When Jesus arrived, He was seriously unimpressed:

Mark 9:19 “O faithless generation, how long am I to be with you? How long am I to bear with you? Bring him to me.” (ESV)

What was He upset with? Their lack of faith. Now put yourself in the dad’s shoes for a moment. How confident are you at this point, after hearing Jesus rebuke the disciples, in your own faith? So, the man says to Jesus:

Mark 9:22-24 “But if you can do anything, have compassion on us and help us. And Jesus said to him, “‘If you can’! All things are possible for one who believes.” Immediately the father of the child cried out and said, “I believe; help my unbelief!” (ESV)

There was a huge gap between what Jesus knew He could do, and what the man believed He might be able to do. This father was torn – he wanted to believe, but something inside him doubted. Are you in that situation today? As you think about that one difficult situation in your life, there’s something that you tend to stop thinking about, if that makes sense. The more we focus on our “difficult situations” the less we remember the reality of who God is, what He CAN do and what He said He would do! Luckily, the father in our story snapped out of his focus on what God wouldn’t do and in desperation he cried out: I believe, help my unbelief. That, as things turned out, was more than enough. Jesus cast the demon out and the boy was set free.

Our faith doesn’t have to be perfect. It just has to be the size of a mustard seed. Just confess your doubts to Jesus. That’s more than enough.

This weekend we will be in Romans 11 in a great study about what God can do called “From Him, Through Him and To Him.” We will have an old friend Brendan Prout leading the worship. Join us for a great time around the word of God.

Blessings,

Pastor Scott