Last night during my small group the Holy Spirit asked what is the first thing that pops in your mind concerning the purpose of prayer? My first response was intercession, because I have been reading a book on intercession but the Holy Spirit said go a little deeper. “Source” was the next thing that came to mind. This week I had not been faithful in denying the comfort of my bed and getting up to seek the Lord and it has shown. He showed me the example of a cell phone, I plug up my cell phone every night before I go to sleep so that it will have enough power to last through the next day. I can remember days where I did not plug it in to charge it up and how I spent the next day screening calls so I didn’t waste my battery. Or I was constantly looking at the battery life to see if it was going to cut off in the middle of the day. Talking is the way I see things about myself and so I was talking about it, I realized that I really have not been connecting to the source but even worse been relying on my own strength to make it through the day. I was telling God, “I don’t need you, I can make it”. That’s a scary place to be. I said that I want God to be my source, I don’t want to be able to make it through a day where I didn’t tap into my source.
I tried to justify it with the cell phone example: well what if I didn’t talk on the phone that much the previous day (I didn’t totally spend myself on Christ’s behalf) so I have some power left from yesterday. The Holy Spirit said what if an emergency happens and I need all of your energy, but because you’re not fully charged you’ll give out when it’s most critical. Even on the other hand, God did not give the Israelites manna to hoard for the future, they had to use it or lose it. We can hold on God’s power for a future date. He gives it to us to spend in that day. That’s a lack of faith on our part that Christ won’t provide for us tomorrow. (This is convicting even in my writing but it must be exposed!)
This morning as I was reading from one of my books, The ministry of intercessory prayer (Andrew Murray), the chapter that I began to read this morning was “Is Prayerlessness Sin?”. CONVICTION!! I couldn’t even get through the entire chapter. Not tapping in to our source of power will always result in failure or defeat. Defeat and failure are always due to the loss of God’s presence. God’s presence comes through prayer. Look at 1 Samuel 12 with Achan, defeat followed the absence of the presence of God.
Lord, help me to truly see you as my source and not just a resource. Show me that it is IN you that I live and have my being, you are the source of my strength. Father I repent for acting as though I can make it in this life without you and neglecting your work on the cross. I pray that I plug in to you every morning when I rise and every night before I lay down, that I may always have your presence, peace, and power.
Have you made God through prayer your source for living?
Nov 20, 2008
Nov 5, 2008
Good is Not Good Enough!!!
I know it's been a while but this is a preview of a coming attraction...
2 Chronicles 34 King Josiah
Revelations 2:14-21
God is giving the people of God an ultimatum, live for him totally or don't. No longer will he allow His standard to be lowered by believers who aren't willing to pay the price.
The meat is coming soon....
2 Chronicles 34 King Josiah
Revelations 2:14-21
God is giving the people of God an ultimatum, live for him totally or don't. No longer will he allow His standard to be lowered by believers who aren't willing to pay the price.
The meat is coming soon....
Oct 17, 2008
Oct 7, 2008
Don't become a Levite!!
God's revelation from a book I'm reading; "Ministering to the Lord" by Roxanne Brant (I found it online for less than $1 more than worth the investment.)
Ezekiel 44:10-16
When an NBA player is drafted into the League, what’s their primary purpose? To play in the game, right? Practicing, traveling, the money; all of these things come with it but their primary purpose is to play on game night. What happens when their behavior gets them suspended from playing in the games? They can still practice, travel some, and still have the money but they can’t fulfill their primary purpose. They can even help the team get better in practice but at the end of the day it was all for not because their purpose can’t be fulfilled. Is that a good place to be or safe place to be?
We as believers are not much different from them. Our primary purpose, main reason for being saved is to have fellowship with God, or our ministry to God. Ministry or to minister in its simplest terms means to serve. As I serve my Pastor as his armorbearer, I’m learning that in order to serve him most effectively, I must know him. I have to know his likes, dislikes, habits, moods, his heart, the way he thinks, etc. the only way to know these things is to fellowship with him or fellowship with someone who knows these things.
Matthew 6:33 “But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things will be given to you as well.” I used to think the “seek” in this verse was the same as the seek in Hebrews 11 where it says that God will reward those that earnestly seek him. But the seek in Hebrews 11 means to make a concerted effort, while the “seek” in Matthew 6:33 means to give attention or priority to, to desire. We are to give the kingdom of God and his righteousness priority in our lives; this is our primary purpose. There are other aspects to being a believer but they become empty when we don’t fulfill our primary purpose; ministering to the Lord.
To the text
Priest: descendants of the family of Aaron (tribe of Levi). Consisted of males 25-50. They were required to maintain a special standard of purity. They performed the day to day duties in the temple. They were to guard and preserve an intimate relationship between God and the people. They were intercessors or mediators. As a priest, you were permitted into the Holy of Holies to minister to the Lord. Old Testament Priest = New Testament Believers
Levites: deal with the day to day duties of the temple and serving the people. The distinction between the Levite and Priest was the priest could minister to the Lord (enter the holy of holies) AND minister/serve to the people.
Vs. 10 God addresses those [priest] who fell away to idols as Levites and because of their fall away they had to deal with the consequences of their sin. For the sake of making it easy to understand, we’ll say that the Levites and Priests are the mature believer or leaders in the church. The Levite’s fall came during a time when the rest of the people did not follow God and chose to do what the flesh desired (sounds like the times of today). The Bible says that they went after their own idols and an idol is anything that we put before God; so it could be selfish ambition, serving others, pride, whatever.
Verse 11 and 12 says that they can still minister in the temple and to the people. Because they ministered to the people in the presence of their idols, they lost their ability to function as priest. They went from walking in destiny to walking in purpose. As priests they could go into the Holy of Holies to become impregnated by God, to receive power but because of their sin they could no longer enter that place. They were left to do the menial tasks, things that anybody could do and did do. In the verses preceding what we read it talked about how they let the uncircumcised in heart and flesh work in the temple. This scared me because the menial tasks were EVERYTHING ELSE. The menial task is not the parking lot ministry but everything else; teen pastor, usher, praise team, preacher.
All this because they went after their own idols and led the people astray. The fall happened years prior to God giving Ezekiel these regulations concerning the temple, so their consequence wasn’t immediate. God was reestablishing divine order so that he could once again and for all come and dwell in the temple. I truly believe that’s what he’s doing today; reestablishing divine order so that he may return and dwell in and among us. But he must first rid his temple; we are the temple, of everything that is not like him.
1 Corinthians talks about how as a mature believer we must be very mindful that we don’t lead the weak astray and when we do, we actually sin against Christ. If our desire is for the world to see Christ then we have to make sure we don’t become a stumbling block that makes them fall.
This fall kept them from walking in the priestly duties (vs. 13); “They are not to come near to serve me as priests or come near any of my holy things or my most holy offerings; they must bear the shame of their detestable practices.”
What a scary place to be; able to work in the Lord’s house but not able to come near the Lord of the house. What is scarier is that we can go on like that and think we’re alright because we’re working or ministering in the church; the second dimension. But we’ll be in for a rude awakening because based on Matthew 7:22-23 “Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you workers of iniquity!” These are people that worked in the church, served the people but never entered the third dimension of the Kingdom. They were never able to fulfill their intended purpose or destiny which is to minister or serve the Lord.
It’s so easy to become content and blinded in this second dimension. I can speak from personal experience that there have been times when served the people in the church, did the duties in the church but wasn’t spending time serving the God of the church. I know it’s easy to become comfortable in that place. As I’ve been studying this, I began to ask God why this happens and this is what he shared with me Saturday night.
He took me to Genesis 32 where Jacob wrestled with God. After the busyness of his day, Jacob went to bed to prepare to meet his brother Esau; but he could not sleep. He got up sent his family and his possessions across the Ford of Jabbok to where he was left alone with God. He wrestled with God all night and refused to let go even at daybreak, even with a dislocated hip. God said we’re/I’m not hungry and thirsty enough for Him. Even before he wrestled with God he spent the day planning and working so he had to be exhausted but he was desperate for God. At the end of our day, we’re too tired to wrestle with God or even spend time with him; we’re not hungry enough for him and we forget our first ministry.
Luke 17:7-10 and page 69 in “Ministering to the Lord”Remember the basketball player that was suspended and couldn’t play in the games. Well when his suspension was over and he was back to playing in the games, fulfilling his reason for being in the league, he’s able to live a more fulfilled life. When we are able to fulfill our intended reason for being, which is to dwell in that third dimension, in the Kingdom, and then we are able to live a more fulfilled life. Make sure that nothing keeps you from going in to that third dimension. As the rest of the world goes further away from God we must be like the priests in verse 15 and 16.
Ezekiel 44:10-16
When an NBA player is drafted into the League, what’s their primary purpose? To play in the game, right? Practicing, traveling, the money; all of these things come with it but their primary purpose is to play on game night. What happens when their behavior gets them suspended from playing in the games? They can still practice, travel some, and still have the money but they can’t fulfill their primary purpose. They can even help the team get better in practice but at the end of the day it was all for not because their purpose can’t be fulfilled. Is that a good place to be or safe place to be?
We as believers are not much different from them. Our primary purpose, main reason for being saved is to have fellowship with God, or our ministry to God. Ministry or to minister in its simplest terms means to serve. As I serve my Pastor as his armorbearer, I’m learning that in order to serve him most effectively, I must know him. I have to know his likes, dislikes, habits, moods, his heart, the way he thinks, etc. the only way to know these things is to fellowship with him or fellowship with someone who knows these things.
Matthew 6:33 “But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things will be given to you as well.” I used to think the “seek” in this verse was the same as the seek in Hebrews 11 where it says that God will reward those that earnestly seek him. But the seek in Hebrews 11 means to make a concerted effort, while the “seek” in Matthew 6:33 means to give attention or priority to, to desire. We are to give the kingdom of God and his righteousness priority in our lives; this is our primary purpose. There are other aspects to being a believer but they become empty when we don’t fulfill our primary purpose; ministering to the Lord.
To the text
Priest: descendants of the family of Aaron (tribe of Levi). Consisted of males 25-50. They were required to maintain a special standard of purity. They performed the day to day duties in the temple. They were to guard and preserve an intimate relationship between God and the people. They were intercessors or mediators. As a priest, you were permitted into the Holy of Holies to minister to the Lord. Old Testament Priest = New Testament Believers
Levites: deal with the day to day duties of the temple and serving the people. The distinction between the Levite and Priest was the priest could minister to the Lord (enter the holy of holies) AND minister/serve to the people.
Vs. 10 God addresses those [priest] who fell away to idols as Levites and because of their fall away they had to deal with the consequences of their sin. For the sake of making it easy to understand, we’ll say that the Levites and Priests are the mature believer or leaders in the church. The Levite’s fall came during a time when the rest of the people did not follow God and chose to do what the flesh desired (sounds like the times of today). The Bible says that they went after their own idols and an idol is anything that we put before God; so it could be selfish ambition, serving others, pride, whatever.
Verse 11 and 12 says that they can still minister in the temple and to the people. Because they ministered to the people in the presence of their idols, they lost their ability to function as priest. They went from walking in destiny to walking in purpose. As priests they could go into the Holy of Holies to become impregnated by God, to receive power but because of their sin they could no longer enter that place. They were left to do the menial tasks, things that anybody could do and did do. In the verses preceding what we read it talked about how they let the uncircumcised in heart and flesh work in the temple. This scared me because the menial tasks were EVERYTHING ELSE. The menial task is not the parking lot ministry but everything else; teen pastor, usher, praise team, preacher.
All this because they went after their own idols and led the people astray. The fall happened years prior to God giving Ezekiel these regulations concerning the temple, so their consequence wasn’t immediate. God was reestablishing divine order so that he could once again and for all come and dwell in the temple. I truly believe that’s what he’s doing today; reestablishing divine order so that he may return and dwell in and among us. But he must first rid his temple; we are the temple, of everything that is not like him.
1 Corinthians talks about how as a mature believer we must be very mindful that we don’t lead the weak astray and when we do, we actually sin against Christ. If our desire is for the world to see Christ then we have to make sure we don’t become a stumbling block that makes them fall.
This fall kept them from walking in the priestly duties (vs. 13); “They are not to come near to serve me as priests or come near any of my holy things or my most holy offerings; they must bear the shame of their detestable practices.”
What a scary place to be; able to work in the Lord’s house but not able to come near the Lord of the house. What is scarier is that we can go on like that and think we’re alright because we’re working or ministering in the church; the second dimension. But we’ll be in for a rude awakening because based on Matthew 7:22-23 “Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you workers of iniquity!” These are people that worked in the church, served the people but never entered the third dimension of the Kingdom. They were never able to fulfill their intended purpose or destiny which is to minister or serve the Lord.
It’s so easy to become content and blinded in this second dimension. I can speak from personal experience that there have been times when served the people in the church, did the duties in the church but wasn’t spending time serving the God of the church. I know it’s easy to become comfortable in that place. As I’ve been studying this, I began to ask God why this happens and this is what he shared with me Saturday night.
He took me to Genesis 32 where Jacob wrestled with God. After the busyness of his day, Jacob went to bed to prepare to meet his brother Esau; but he could not sleep. He got up sent his family and his possessions across the Ford of Jabbok to where he was left alone with God. He wrestled with God all night and refused to let go even at daybreak, even with a dislocated hip. God said we’re/I’m not hungry and thirsty enough for Him. Even before he wrestled with God he spent the day planning and working so he had to be exhausted but he was desperate for God. At the end of our day, we’re too tired to wrestle with God or even spend time with him; we’re not hungry enough for him and we forget our first ministry.
Luke 17:7-10 and page 69 in “Ministering to the Lord”Remember the basketball player that was suspended and couldn’t play in the games. Well when his suspension was over and he was back to playing in the games, fulfilling his reason for being in the league, he’s able to live a more fulfilled life. When we are able to fulfill our intended reason for being, which is to dwell in that third dimension, in the Kingdom, and then we are able to live a more fulfilled life. Make sure that nothing keeps you from going in to that third dimension. As the rest of the world goes further away from God we must be like the priests in verse 15 and 16.
Sep 11, 2008
The Transformed Mind
About a week and a half ago the Lord began to deal with me concerning my mind. Romans 12:2 says, “to no longer conform to the pattern of this world but be transformed by the renewing of the mind…” My Pastor has often said that the place of your greatest stronghold will be the place of your greatest anointing and up to a week and a half ago my understanding was clouded. My understanding was that I would go from “deliverance” to ministering to people that deal with the same stronghold helping come out or stay out. I failed to understand the transformation that must take place in me, first. The anointing is for you first and then for the lives of others so the place of your greatest stronghold must be transformed to God’s glory. The impure must become pure. My greatest stronghold was sexual perversion and everything that came with it. Some associations with that include: done in secret and no one else knows unless revealed to them, done late at night while most are sleep, in strange places where other people wouldn’t, done to relieve stress, it takes the mind off of everything else, it became a natural response or routine. Now we must understand that intimacy in the flesh leads to sex and the like, while intimacy in the spirit leads to worship.
In order for this transformation to take place the unclean must be done away with. As I was studying, God took me to Daniel 4 with King Nebuchadnezzar and his dream. In his dream he had a vision of a tree that was cut down to a stump and this was symbolic of what would happen to him. The stump represented him before all the stuff and that God would rebuild him from that stump. In understanding the before place based on Jeremiah 1:5 there is a place in us that was pure and holy. When we came in to this world we took on the 1st Adam’s sinful nature and began to become tainted. We must keep that in mind in the transformation of our minds. The deliverance comes when we allow God to chop us down to a stump in those impure areas so that he may rebuild us to bring him glory. The stump is the lowest point of a tree, without it being completely destroyed.
God has been chopping me down to that stump in the area of intimacy because that’s the root of sexual perversion. I know I have come a long way and am almost to that stump. The other night in prayer I asked God why I would have these random impure thoughts that would come out of the blue. It’s not that I dwelt on them but they catch me off guard because I thought I was past most of them. This is what he shared with me: “It’s the residue; you’ve dealt with the big stuff and now its time to do a deep cleansing. A complete renewal of the mind means that it is pure to its core so not even a remnant of impurity is to remain.” At that my flesh began to doubt saying that no one’s mind is completely pure so you’re alright where you are. But immediately the Holy Spirit posed the question as he did to Abraham, “is anything too hard for God? You’re almost at the stump; don’t settle for good when greatness is within reach.” As I was sharing this last part with E last night the Holy Spirit spoke, “pressure washer”. The purpose of a pressure washer is to get the stuff that the regular flow of water could not get, the residue. It’s the same water just with more pressure and intensity. What he was saying was that I must turn up the force in which I intake the word of God in order to get rid of the residue because we understand that our minds are transformed by the word of God.
Remember, earlier when I was sharing the associations that I went with sexual perversion, well in a transformed mind those impure things become pure. Now let’s looks at the evidence of my mind transformed from sexual perversion, understanding its root is intimacy and its pure or holy form is worship. I worship in a secret place out of view of men, done late at night when most are sleep, in strange places where other people wouldn’t, done to relieve stress and take my mind away from everything else, it becomes a natural response or routine (lifestyle).
Don’t settle for good when greatness is within reach. God desires to completely transform your mind, give him those strongholds so he can show you there intended purpose to bring him glory. A transformed mind is that foundation of our relationship with Christ so we can build on a faulty foundation, make it a sure foundation.
God Bless!
In order for this transformation to take place the unclean must be done away with. As I was studying, God took me to Daniel 4 with King Nebuchadnezzar and his dream. In his dream he had a vision of a tree that was cut down to a stump and this was symbolic of what would happen to him. The stump represented him before all the stuff and that God would rebuild him from that stump. In understanding the before place based on Jeremiah 1:5 there is a place in us that was pure and holy. When we came in to this world we took on the 1st Adam’s sinful nature and began to become tainted. We must keep that in mind in the transformation of our minds. The deliverance comes when we allow God to chop us down to a stump in those impure areas so that he may rebuild us to bring him glory. The stump is the lowest point of a tree, without it being completely destroyed.
God has been chopping me down to that stump in the area of intimacy because that’s the root of sexual perversion. I know I have come a long way and am almost to that stump. The other night in prayer I asked God why I would have these random impure thoughts that would come out of the blue. It’s not that I dwelt on them but they catch me off guard because I thought I was past most of them. This is what he shared with me: “It’s the residue; you’ve dealt with the big stuff and now its time to do a deep cleansing. A complete renewal of the mind means that it is pure to its core so not even a remnant of impurity is to remain.” At that my flesh began to doubt saying that no one’s mind is completely pure so you’re alright where you are. But immediately the Holy Spirit posed the question as he did to Abraham, “is anything too hard for God? You’re almost at the stump; don’t settle for good when greatness is within reach.” As I was sharing this last part with E last night the Holy Spirit spoke, “pressure washer”. The purpose of a pressure washer is to get the stuff that the regular flow of water could not get, the residue. It’s the same water just with more pressure and intensity. What he was saying was that I must turn up the force in which I intake the word of God in order to get rid of the residue because we understand that our minds are transformed by the word of God.
Remember, earlier when I was sharing the associations that I went with sexual perversion, well in a transformed mind those impure things become pure. Now let’s looks at the evidence of my mind transformed from sexual perversion, understanding its root is intimacy and its pure or holy form is worship. I worship in a secret place out of view of men, done late at night when most are sleep, in strange places where other people wouldn’t, done to relieve stress and take my mind away from everything else, it becomes a natural response or routine (lifestyle).
Don’t settle for good when greatness is within reach. God desires to completely transform your mind, give him those strongholds so he can show you there intended purpose to bring him glory. A transformed mind is that foundation of our relationship with Christ so we can build on a faulty foundation, make it a sure foundation.
God Bless!
Aug 31, 2008
The Afterbirth
September is the 9th month the month of birthing. As we prepare to enter this 9th month, the month of giving birth, it was timely for me to be at KAEC this morning. The message that came forth in the first service discussed assimilation along with a lot of other pertinent information. Assimilate means to take in and understand information; absorb and digest. I don’t know much about giving birth and pregnancy but God was able to show me in its simplest form what’s going on. As our session went on this morning, we were focusing on the moment of giving birth. As I sat there the Holy Spirit began to speak to me. Looking at the pregnancy, the mother and father are excited about the day they give birth but most of their focus is spent on preparing to handle the child once it manifest into the physical. You cannot separate giving birth from the afterbirth. We look forward to and anticipate the moment of giving birth but we can’t be so focused on a moment that we forget about the responsibility after birth. We learned that everything up to this point has been preparation for delivery, ensuring a healthy delivery; purging of unclean lifestyles, mindsets, dying to self (once you give birth you can’t think about yourself anymore so God had to allow us to die to ourselves before we give birth).
The Afterbirth
You must understand your new role, preparing for going from carrying to the afterbirth; your role changes.
John 8:36 “So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.” Think about what it means to be free in the natural; you were in prison and you are released, freed from the prison walls. When Christ sets you free, you are free physically and through his word, mentally; meaning a change has been made, mental and physical. The internal has manifested into the physical.
Galations 2:20 “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” I stated earlier that in giving birth we lose the right to live for ourselves and we must die to ourselves. We no longer live but Christ lives in us, we offer ourselves as living sacrifices that He may live/shine through us. Next the scripture says that we live by faith and we learned in class that faith is being one with God. Being one with God means we are completely obedient to Him so that we can nurture and raise what we gave birth to. We were impregnated by the spirit, we’ll give birth through the Spirit, and the afterbirth will be no different. Galations 3:3 “After beginning with the Spirit, are you now trying to attain your goal by human effort?” What is birth by the Spirit will be maintained by the Spirit. Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God. We know the word of God is Jesus Christ (John 1:1).
As we enter this 9th month of giving birth do not separate giving birth from the afterbirth. You can only prepare so much for the labor pains but know that it will be intense but short and will pass. Focus on what you’re giving birth to and the responsibility that comes with giving birth.
The Afterbirth
You must understand your new role, preparing for going from carrying to the afterbirth; your role changes.
John 8:36 “So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.” Think about what it means to be free in the natural; you were in prison and you are released, freed from the prison walls. When Christ sets you free, you are free physically and through his word, mentally; meaning a change has been made, mental and physical. The internal has manifested into the physical.
Galations 2:20 “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” I stated earlier that in giving birth we lose the right to live for ourselves and we must die to ourselves. We no longer live but Christ lives in us, we offer ourselves as living sacrifices that He may live/shine through us. Next the scripture says that we live by faith and we learned in class that faith is being one with God. Being one with God means we are completely obedient to Him so that we can nurture and raise what we gave birth to. We were impregnated by the spirit, we’ll give birth through the Spirit, and the afterbirth will be no different. Galations 3:3 “After beginning with the Spirit, are you now trying to attain your goal by human effort?” What is birth by the Spirit will be maintained by the Spirit. Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God. We know the word of God is Jesus Christ (John 1:1).
As we enter this 9th month of giving birth do not separate giving birth from the afterbirth. You can only prepare so much for the labor pains but know that it will be intense but short and will pass. Focus on what you’re giving birth to and the responsibility that comes with giving birth.
Aug 25, 2008
I Believe, help me overcome my unbelief
"I'm going to South Africa later this year." This statement alone will not put me in South Africa; its not until my belief in what I stated is followed by some action. I thought I believed that I was going but because there was no action, there was no true belief. As I realized this truth, I took it before God and this is what he gave me:
“I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief” Mark 9:24b
In Luke 9 there is a passage that deals with a father and his child who is filled with an evil spirit. The man is surrounded by disciples and when Jesus walks up there was a lot of arguing. The man tells Jesus that he brought Him his son but instead of waiting on Jesus he allowed the disciples to try to cast out the spirit, in which they were unsuccessful. Jesus rebukes his disciples and then addresses the man. After a brief conversation the man says to Jesus, “but if you can do anything…”. Jesus seems offended and tells him that everything is possible for him who believes. Immediately the boy’s father jumps back at him and says I do believe but even as he spoke he realized that he didn’t really believe, leading him to the statement in verse 24. After Jesus cast it out, the onlookers thought that the boy was dead.
This is what God had me to read during prayer time Saturday morning and even as I read he began to reveal what he wanted to show me. So let’s break it down…
“I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief” Mark 9:24b
In Luke 9 there is a passage that deals with a father and his child who is filled with an evil spirit. The man is surrounded by disciples and when Jesus walks up there was a lot of arguing. The man tells Jesus that he brought Him his son but instead of waiting on Jesus he allowed the disciples to try to cast out the spirit, in which they were unsuccessful. Jesus rebukes his disciples and then addresses the man. After a brief conversation the man says to Jesus, “but if you can do anything…”. Jesus seems offended and tells him that everything is possible for him who believes. Immediately the boy’s father jumps back at him and says I do believe but even as he spoke he realized that he didn’t really believe, leading him to the statement in verse 24. After Jesus cast it out, the onlookers thought that the boy was dead.
This is what God had me to read during prayer time Saturday morning and even as I read he began to reveal what he wanted to show me. So let’s break it down…
- The man tells Jesus that he brought his son to see Jesus but when Jesus wasn’t there he settled for a representative who failed at casting out the demon. This was the cause of the argument that Jesus interrupted. He knew he had a problem that only Jesus could fix and was on the right track but somehow was convinced that a representative could do the job. When they failed, I believe his faith failed as well.
- This is seen in his response to Jesus when he says but if you can do anything. He may have had the faith to believe and seek out Christ but after that encounter disappointed him, his faith began to waiver.
- Jesus calls him on his unbelief and he immediately jumps to the defense. Being in Christ’s holy presence there is no room for falsehood so he corrects himself asking Jesus to help his unbelief.
- After the demon is cast out the people that were around thought the boy was dead but I believe the man’s faith was restored because he knew it wouldn’t make sense for Jesus to cast out a demon to kill the boy.
- At the end of it all, Jesus tells his disciples that some things only come out by prayer and fasting.
Belief is shown by actions, not just in thoughts and words. He had a problem that no one could fix but Jesus but because of influence or impatience he allowed others to try what they weren’t prepared for. Because they weren’t able to fix his problem his faith was shaken. Are we as believers in a position where when God wants to do miracles through us prepared or will we cause someone’s faith to be dashed because we’re not prepared? On the other side, when we face some things and we know they can only be fixed through Christ, do we settle for seeking to get it fixed by man or do we have the patience to wait for Christ?
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