26 Apr Give God a Little Credit, Would Ya?

There is a passage in Mark 9 that may be one of the most perplexing in all the New Testament. The chapter opens with the Transfiguration. Jesus had taken three of his disciples to a mountain where they were exposed to the full glory of God in all its brilliance (and a visit from Moses and Elijah). Then they descend the mountain, back to reality.

There, we discover the rest of his disciples have been unable to heal a demon-possessed boy. So, Jesus asks the father to bring the boy to Him. Jesus then asks the father how long his son has been this way:

“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 one who believes.”24 Immediately the boy’s father exclaimed, “I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!” Mark 9:23-24 (NIV)

At first glance, this passage appears to be about a lack of faith. Jesus’ disciples lacked the faith to heal the boy, and the father appears to lack the faith to believe that Jesus can heal the child. Jesus seems to severely admonish His disciples for a lack of faith, but he lets the father get off the hook with a possibly snarky “If you can?”

The disciples, despite what they had seen Jesus accomplish to this point, still lacked the faith to tap into the power with which he had provided them. The father wasn’t displaying a lack of faith in Jesus’ ability to heal his son. He was expressing doubt that Jesus would heal his son. This should be tremendously reassuring for us.

Despite the man’s doubt, Jesus still healed his son. In fact, he spoke honestly to Jesus about his doubt. We can do the same. If we doubt Jesus will act because we think our ask is too big or too small, he won’t turn His back on us. When we’ve waited a long time and Jesus hasn’t moved and we’ve come to doubt that He will, He hasn’t abandoned us. For a powerful example of this, check out John 11.

Martha and Mary are dumbfounded that Jesus didn’t come to their home in Bethany immediately when they got word to Him that their brother and His friend Lazarus was ill. When He waited two days and Lazarus died, they not only doubted that Jesus would do anything; they now doubted that he could do anything. All of that changed when Jesus called Lazarus out of the grave. The sisters loved Jesus and knew who He was, but they didn’t give Him enough credit to not doubt that He could still save Lazarus. What about you?

What is in your life that you’ve come to doubt Jesus will fix? A relationship? A health issue? A financial situation? Whatever it is, you can rest assured that Jesus won’t abandon you because you doubted. Even if you’ve been waiting (and doubting) for years, giving Jesus a little credit will go a long way.

Pastor Jerry Bader