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“I believe, help me overcome my unbelief!” - Mark 9:14-32
By Steve Jeantet | April 12, 2007
Just this morning, I got a call from a pastor friend of mine who is caught in the midst of church politics. There is a rift between his local church and the denomination. One of the trustees of the church threatened to quit. And he is caught in the middle of having faithfully served this congregation for several years and their unwillingness/inability to provide for him. Though giving is 25% ahead of budget for the year, he is struggling to pay his bills. And this was his question to me: is it ok to question to my call? He is caught in the tension between his call to serve and the harsh reality of church politics.
Meanwhile, I am on the verge of graduation from seminary. I have worked hard to obtain good grades and prepare myself for ministry. Yet I have no idea where I am heading after graduation. We are going to New Orleans for the summer, but after that, who knows? I’m torn because God has called me to pastoral ministry and I am nearing the end of my training, but don’t know where I am going to serve. I’m caught in the tension between wanting to control the situation and waiting for God’s provision.
Which brings me to Mark 9. There are certain chapters in the Bible that reassure me of its truth because it is so brutally honest. Romans 7 is a great example as it expresses the tension that all of us experience is wanting to be done from sin, yet still knowing the wickedness of our own heart. We have been freed from the penalty of sin, but not yet from its presence.
Likewise, I love Mark 9 because it is so honest and real. It is the story of the encounter between Jesus and a man whose son has been seized by a demon. Grab the image of this boy, “Whenever it [the demon] seizes him, it throws him to the ground. He foams at the mouth, gnashes his teeth and becomes rigid” (vs 18). What a vivid word picture Mark paints for us. The love of the man for his son brings him to take his son to Jesus’ disciples, who are unable to cast out the demon. So now, the man stands before Jesus pleading his son’s case. Jesus tells the man, “Everything is possible for him who believes” (vs 23). And right here, this is what I don’t want you to miss, is the response of the man to Jesus, “I believe, help me overcome my unbelief!” (vs 24).
What a profound, honest prayer. He wanted so desperately to believe in God’s power, provision, faithfulness and love. Yet he struggled to believe. Can’t you relate with this dad? I can. That is how I often feel, especially now as I look forward to a future that is so cloudy to me. I want to believe, yet it’s really hard to believe sometimes. I thank God for the honest reply of this loving father because it reminds me that I’m not the only one who has ever been caught in the tension between belief and unbelief. So how does Jesus respond? He demands the demon out of the boy and then, when it looked like the boy was dead on the ground, bent down and took him by the hand, and helped him to his feet.
Even as I was typing this, my sister sent me an instant message about a friend of ours with whom she works that passed out this morning, instantly arousing fear of the baby in her womb. I’m sure that right now she can relate with this dad’s struggle between belief and unbelief. But thanks be to God, who is good and true and trustworthy. That if we have the faith of a mustard seed, we will see him do great things.
Topics: Devotionals, Mark |