He replied, “Because you have so little faith. Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.”
Matthew 17:21
Yesterday, we started examining the event on the transfiguration mountain with a close focus on Jesus’ prayer there. We noted three things that the prayer of Jesus instantly produced on the mountain to include his transformation (transfiguration), his encounter with older saints and the encouragement and details they brought him about his mission (which was to die in Jerusalem).
However, there was something else that happened following that transformation but it was not immediately visible on the mountain. The next day, when they came down from the mountain, a large crowd met him. Why this large crowd? A man in the crowd called out, “Teacher, I beg you to look at my son, for he is my only child. A spirit seizes him and he suddenly screams; it throws him into convulsions so that he foams at the mouth. It scarcely ever leaves him and is destroying him. I begged your disciples to drive it out, but they could not.” (Luke 9:38-40)
Notice this father’s complaint, ‘the disciples of Jesus Christ tried to cast out the evil spirit without any success’ Meanwhile, when Jesus rebuked the spirit, the boy was instantly healed. The question is why? Earlier in this chapter 9 of Luke, the bible noted in verse 1 that Jesus gave them power and authority to drive out all demons and to cure diseases, 2 and he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal the sick (Luke 9:1-2). Consequent to this, the bible says that “…they went from village to village, proclaiming the good news and healing people everywhere” (Luke 9:6). The question is what happened between verse 6 and verse 38 that they suddenly couldn’t cast out demons anymore? They became carnal!
While Jesus was harnessing the energy of the Spirit through prayer on the mountain, the disciples that went with him there were busy sleeping; the ones that didn’t go to the mountain were busy thinking and arguing about carnal things like you will see in verse 46 where “An argument started among the disciples as to which of them would be the greatest”. How can they be so earthly conscious and still hope to bring the government of heaven down? Jesus summed up their problem in verse 41, they were “unbelieving and perverse”
He went further to provide the solution in Matthew’s account of the same story. “…Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.” (Matthew 17:21). Can anything possibly be smaller than a mustard seed? Imagine how reduced the faith of these disciples have become when their focus became carnal than spiritual. It’s time to upgrade your faith! How? “But ye, beloved, build up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Ghost” (Jude 1:20).
Start now!
PRAYER
Heavenly Father, thank you for your gift of the Holy Spirit and the power it brings to strengthen my faith. Please help me to focus on the things that please you so that I might increase in my walk of faith and possess greater spiritual authority.
