Greetings in Jesus' name blog reading friends! It has been a few weeks, and I apologize for the delay in updating you all...I am currently settling in to my new job as a customer service specialist at Mardel ( a Christian book store/office supply joint,) helping out with some projects at Life Tabernacle and the usual stuff of spending time with my wonderful family...
Having said that, let me give you a few thoughts to chew on. Mark chapter 9 verses 14-29, read it. Amazing portion of scripture, and I think we have overlooked some things that will help us in our pursuit of helping others.
Having some trouble pasting the scrips, oh well, better to avoid copyright infringement I suppose...
Verses fourteen through eighteen give us the situation. We have a scribe, a group of disciples, and a boy possessed with a devil that is, among other things causing the boy to not be able to speak. From what I understand, the scribe brought the boy to the disciples hoping for the devil to be cast out, and the disciples were unable to do it. This is the message relayed to Jesus.
There are still particular devils today that wish to silence you. Just a sidebar.
Let's take a look at the list of things this devil does to this poor boy, for we ourselves could learn a thing or two: this is the devil's will for your life. God has a will for your life, so does the devil. Here's what he would like to do to you, according to verse 18:
1.) He taketh him (he seizes, grabs control)
2.) He teareth him (breaking, rending, tearing)
3.) He foameth (foaming at the mouth)
4.) Gnashes with his teeth (literal, but can spiritually represent bitterness.)
5.) Pineth away. This is the devil's ultimate will in your life: for you to dry up spiritually and wither away.
Problem: Jesus' boys couldn't get it done.
In verse 19, we get Jesus' initial response. He rebukes. He rebukes the disciples for their lack of faith. You need to note that: LACK OF FAITH, because he expounds on that statement later. He said "how long shall I suffer you..." Scriptural principle: 'without faith it is impossible to please God' - lack of faith GREIVES the Spirit. It frustrates him. It irritates the Holy Ghost when we demonstrate a lack of faith.
Let's jump ahead to the end, and then we will come back to the text. The disciples later asked Jesus why they were unable to cast out the devil. He said 'this kind comes forth only by PRAYER and FASTING. Can we make a connection. First vital connection: your level of FAITH is effected by your level of PRAYER and FASTING. Prayer is an excercise of faith. It strenghtens faith. You fail to pray, you can atrophe spiritually in the faith department. He also said, FASTING. Fasting is an act of faith, and a dying out to the will of your flesh. Because it takes FAITH to trust in God, your flesh can get in the way via you depending on you instead. FASTING says: I can't do anything in it of myself, HE must do the work IN me and THROUGH me, and he can't do that if the flesh is in the way.
So we have a lack of faith, prayer, and fasting on the part of the disciples, and at this juncture, we still have a boy possessed with a devil.
In verse 20, they bring the boy to Jesus. Notice how the devil in him acts up as they get in God's presence. The devil acting up in your life or in a church's life is a good sign that he knows that Jesus is getting ready to drive him out. Devils have a keen sense of when their time is up. This is when they act up the most. It is a defense mechanism, a last ditch effort at intimidation.
Jesus turns to the boys father next and asks how long the boy had been this way...chalk this up to LENGTH of CONDITION is no matter to God. If you've been bound for ten, twenty, thirty years, Jesus troubles the water wherever he goes, and he is not bothered by how bad things are, or how long they've been that way. The answer: since he was a child.
Now the next few verses are crucial, and I think they contain the things that we have previously may have missed.
Verse 22 gives a good picture of the work of Satan vs the work of God: the devil would throw the boy into both the water and the fire TO DESTROY him. Remember, John 10:10 - 'the theif cometh not but for to steal, kill, and DESTROY. Be it by water or fire. Two totally opposite things. He'll get some with sins, he'll get others with success. He'll get some with devils, he'll get others with distractions.
'But if thou canst do anything, have compassion on us, and help us'
The devil desires to destroy, but it is God's will to do, the have compassion, and to help.
But now we're getting into the greater issue. I want you to note two things: one, this scribe was struggling with his faith: he said IF. He didn't ask for a sterile, simple religious fix, he asked for compassion, and for help. He was unsure of his faith, but he was quite sure of his need. Wow. I find it observationally humorous that Jesus rebuke the disciples for a lack of faith, but this guy gets off clean, even though he was struggling with his faith: MOTIVE. The scribe wanted compassion and help, the disciples wanted CREDIT.
Jesus responds in verse 23: watch, there is a credential for an answer here: "if you can believe, all things are possible..."
We know he's struggling with his faith, but its almost like Jesus cheering him on: just believe, just a little bit, just a mustard seed...if you can have just a little faith I can help you: watch the honesty of this man.
The bible says this man 'cried out with tears, Lord I believe, help thou my unbelief...'
And that man got a miracle. Why? The twelve had the power. The twelve had the authority. They had the credentials, they couldn't help this guy. But the scribe gets a miracle...I think I figured out why. He cried out with tears: that man loved his son, and Jesus was able to instantly read that in his tears...combined with the struggling 'I believe.' Don't you get it...Galatians said that faith worketh by love...not by pretense, or authority, or power, no it works by love...the scribe wanted the miracle for the right reasons, though he stuggled in his faith, his spirit matched that of God's - our spirit must match his, that's why motive is SO SO IMPORTANT in ministry. Because if our motive is wrong, we can have all the power and authority and position in the world, and none of that will help us when the rubber meets the road of real ministry...WE MUST LOVE PEOPLE! BECAUSE GOD LOVES PEOPLE...and he wants to love people through us. Your faith is not the biggest issue, the issue is wether your faith is working by pretense or by love.
Compassion, help, that's the motive for ministry. If its anything less, we are in the wrong field. This is why it is so key to be in tune with the will of the Holy Ghost in a service, and out...if we just do out of pretense we won't see much in the miraculous, but if we can follow his lead, he show us people that need to be loved, and shown the love of God. Friend, you have got to let it flow through you out of love: for God and for your neighbor.
How? How do I love those that I do not know. 'This kind comes forth not but by prayer and fasting...' You can't love in the flesh. Period. Real love, God love, faith that worketh by love love, it has to come from God's spirit in us, and can't be fake or conjured up in the flesh, so we have got to move the flesh out of the way to allow the Spirit to do what we cannot do: love sinners.
Prayer and Fasting weakens the flesh, and strenghthens not only your faith, but the Spirit in you is allowed to work with more liberty. The will of the Spirit is to love...get your flesh out of the way and let him do it...that's why the disciples were rebuked and unable to help, flesh was in the way. Could fake it real nice, call on the name, operate in pretense and religiosity, but couldn't help...Yes power comes by prayer and fasting, but power is not the issue. Remember, this guy was struggling with unbelief...what we need out of our prayer and fasting is compassion, and the desire to HELP.
Isaiah 58:6-8
it was never about power,
"Is not this the fast that I have chosen? to loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke?
Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry, and that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house? when thou seest the naked, that thou cover him; and that thou hide not thyself from thine own flesh?
it is all acts of mercy, and love, and compassion, and deliverance...not just faith...
Then shall thy light break forth as the morning, and thy health shall spring forth speedily: and they righteousness shall go before thee; the glory of the Lord shall be thy reward...
Great will be the reward of a church that prays, that fasts, and that whose faith works by love. No devil can stand up to a person of God filled with holy, awesome love and compassion...especially when that love and compassion gets mingled with faith...then we see awesome things happen!
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