Believe

DEVOTION

THE GOSPEL OF MARK

BELIEVE

Mark 9:20-24

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 him who believes."  24 Immediately the boy's father exclaimed, "I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!"

NIV

We must take only a portion of the narrative again in the story in order to give proper attention to certain truths that are within it. The response Jesus gave to the father when he said, “but if you can” seems almost a little out of character for Jesus. Depending how we read what Jesus answers, it could sound like, “What you don’t think I can?” That might be exactly the right way to read it within the context as the father asks Jesus to help him with his unbelief. The father actually did not believe Jesus could do anything about it, and maybe that was because his disciples could not. The father may have been thinking Jesus was just like his disciples, just another one of the guys who could not do anything about the demon who was tormenting his son. But we know Jesus is not just one of the guys and we know he can do anything, we know that he can and will do anything we ask the Father in his name. Jesus tells this father, “Everything is possible for him who believer.” That original word used that is translated in everything means just that, all, every, whatsoever, always, as many as. It means everything and thus that is the truth for us today. So we have to ask whether or not we truly believe and if we need to ask what that father asked, help us with our unbelief. It we truly believed than all things would be possible. Did Jesus just mean that it would be possible but not probably? Did Jesus mean it would be possible but that it wasn’t going to happen? It seems that would be quite foolish of us to even think like that. Jesus says that if we believe, all things are possible. So once again we have to examine our belief. Do we or do we not believe? If we actually believe than we must live accordingly. We must live as believers and except everything to be possible. That would include just about everything, no not just about, it would include everything, but we must believe.