Mark 9:14-29
There
is often a struggle deep inside most human beings and that struggle centers
around belief. Not simply belief in the spiritual realm. I’m talking about
belief in others and belief in one’s self. This plays out repeatedly throughout
our days. Can I trust them? Am I getting this right?
Most
of this doubting takes place in our mind as part of our internal dialogue. Some
people’s internal tapes contain multiple tracks of doubt. Some only have a few.
It can be hard to overcome some of these imbedded negative thoughts. Some
people never do get rid of this doubt.
After
seeing Jesus changed before their eyes, the three inner circle disciples and
Jesus rejoin the rest. A big crowd has gathered because a boy has been brought
to the remaining disciples who were unable to ‘fix’ him. Jesus has no problem
with the boy’s affliction.
Even
in the face of imperfect faith, Jesus acts. The boy’s father exercises his
faith. He does believe. But at the same time he struggles with some unbelief.
This unbelief, this internal struggle does not prevent Jesus from acting. The
reality is that we all have imperfect faith. Some of the time we struggle to
believe God. Some of the time we struggle to believe in ourselves. Some of the
time we have trouble believing another person who we know to be trustworthy.
We
as humans doubt. We as humans have faith. And we as humans waver between the
two. All of us do. You are not alone in your on again, off again trust. Or like
the father in our text his imperfect belief, we have imperfect belief and need
help with our unbelief.
The
disciples had a problem as well. They tried to fix the situation in their own
strength. They could not, or would not admit their own inability to handle this
demon-possessed boy. How many times do we try to fix someone before we realize
that only the LORD can fix them? And the someone may be us!
Next
time you get down on yourself for not having enough faith, take heart. You are
not alone. Admit your struggle to Jesus and ask Him to help you with your
unbelief. Take your doubts and fears to Him. Bring them into His presence. Lay
them at His feet. Then be honest with those around you. Include them in your
internal conversation.