The Power of Believing Prayer

                                                    MARK 9:14-29

                                                      LESSON 29
    ¹⁴ When they came back to the disciples, they saw a large crowd around them, and some scribes arguing with them. ¹⁵ Immediately, when the entire crowd saw Him, they were amazed and began running up to greet Him. ¹⁶ And He asked them, “What are you discussing with them?”   
   ¹⁷ And one of the crowd answered Him, “Teacher, I brought You my son, possessed with a spirit which makes him mute; ¹⁸ and whenever it seizes him, it slams him to the ground and he foams at the mouth, and grinds his teeth and stiffens out. I told Your disciples to cast it out, and they could not do it.” ¹⁹ And He answered them and said, “O unbelieving generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring him to Me!” ²⁰ They brought the boy to Him. When he saw Him, immediately the spirit threw him into a convulsion, and falling to the ground, he began rolling around and foaming at the mouth. ²¹ And He asked his father, “How long has this been happening to him?” And he said, “From childhood. ²² It has often thrown him both into the fire and into the water to destroy him. But if You can do anything, take pity on us and help us!” ²³ And Jesus said to him, “‘If You can?’ All things are possible to him who believes.” ²⁴ Immediately the boy’s father cried out and said, “I do believe; help my unbelief.” ²⁵ When Jesus saw that a crowd was rapidly gathering, He rebuked the unclean spirit, saying to it, “You deaf and mute spirit, I command you, come out of him and do not enter him again.” ²⁶ After crying out and throwing him into terrible convulsions, it came out; and the boy became so much like a corpse that most of them said, “He is dead!” ²⁷ But Jesus took him by the hand and raised him; and he got up. ²⁸ When He came into the house, His disciples began questioning Him privately, “Why could we not drive it out?” ²⁹ And He said to them, “This kind cannot come out by anything but prayer."
   Note the last two words, "but prayer.
   But what kind of prayer pleases God? 
   v. 23 (end), "All things are possible to him who believes."
   Note last word, "believes."
   God desires believing prayer.
   I have come to believe in equal access.  Worship team sings for 20 minutes; they should pray for 20 minutes. Special number last 5 minutes, they must pray for 5 minutes.  I preach for 30 minutes, I must pray for 30 minutes before the message.
   This will release the power of God.
   It is believing prayer that will bring down the power of God.
   Little faith, little prayer; little prayer, little power; little power, little miracles.
   There is no shortcut for God's power.
  The disciples failed because they tried to cast out the demon in their own power.
   Unlike previous Sundays, our passage today is a long passage, consisting of 16 verses.
   This is an important account that is mentioned by all three synoptic gospels: Matthew 17:14-20;, Mark 9:14-29;, and Luke 9:37-43.  But of all three, Mark is the most lengthy and detailed. 
   Luke indicates when this miracle of deliverance took place.  Luke says it was "on the next day."  That is, the day after the Transfiguration.
  The word "transfigured" in Mark 9:2 is "metamorphothe," from where we get our word "metamorphosis."
   v. 14, "When they came back to the disciples."
   The "they" refers to the Lord Jesus, Peter, James and John, who came down from the mount of Transfiguration to meet the other 9 disciples left behind at the foot of the mountain. 
   This is a very dramatic and moving scene, for we see the anguish of a youth who is possessed with a demon; an unclean spirit.

 LESSON 1: DEMONS EXISTS

   Demons exist and do the work of Satan.  Demons are Satan's emissary. 
   Demons, like Satan, are invisible. 
   Demons, like Satan, disguise  themselves as angels of light.
   Demons pretend they are good, nice, caring, moral beings, which they are not.
   Demons, like Satan, have one common goal: to discredit Jesus, so people will not believe in Him and be saved.
   Why are people lost? Satan has deceived them.
   Demon are not nice creatures.
   v. 20, "Immediately the spirit threw him into a convulsion, and falling to the ground, he began rolling around and foaming at the mouth."
   Satan has great power.  But God has greater power. 
   No matter what attacks the devil may throw against you, God is there to protect you.

LESSON 2: PRAYER IS THE KEY TO DELIVERANE
   This boy was freed from demon possession because of faith and prayer.
   A.  Faith
   v. 19 - "O unbelieving generation."
   Unless they believe, this boy will not have been delivered.
   Faith is one key to deliverance.
   B.  Prayer
   Bold statement: I believe no one is saved unless someone has prayed for him or her to be saved.
   Hence, the need for me to pray for the unsaved to be saved.
   Now, the Bible teaches that Jesus is in heaven praying for sinners to be saved.
   Heb. 7:25, " Therefore He is able also to save forever those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them."
   Jesus is praying for unbelievers to come to Him and find deliverance and salvation.
   But that does not excuse us from praying for the unsaved as well.
   Here is a frightening verse.
   1 John 5:19, "and that the whole world lies in the power of the evil one."
   Prayer will free them from the power of the evil one.
   And because the world lies in the power of the evil one, we need to guide them to Jesus.
   v. 19, "Bring him to Me!"
  We have a great ministry to point people to Jesus.

LESSON 3:  JESUS ALWAYS COMES TO THE DEFENSE OF HIS PEOPLE

   v. 14, "some scribes arguing with them."
   The scribes were arguing, mocking, belittling the disciples because they could not deliver the boy.
   And here comes Jesus to defend His disciples from the accusation of the scribes.
   We have a defense attorney, and one who knows all the tricks of the enemy and the strategies of the enemy.
   1 John 2:1, "we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous;"
   The word "Advocate" literally means someone who pleads your cause in a court of law.

 LESSON 4: ALWAYS COME TO GOD WITH RESPECT

   v. 17 the man calls Jesus "Teacher."  So also in Luke.  In Matthew the man calls Jesus "Lord."
   "Teacher" and "Lord" were titles of respect.
   The father of this boy did not say to Jesus: "Hey Dude."
   We live in a generation that has lost respect for authority.
   If you don’t respect those in authority: government officials, the police force, your supervisor who you can see, how will you respect God who you cannot see.  
   In this church we have a very high view of God.  We come to Him with the highest respect.

LESSON 5: IN OUR DARKEST MOMENT GOD IS OUR HOPE

   This boy was demon possessed since his "childhood" (v. 21).  No one could help but Jesus.
   In your darkest hour there is a God who cares so much for you and will work in your behalf.

LESSON 6: GOD ACCEPTS IMPERFECT FAITH

   Notice the words of this father.
   v 22. "But if You can do anything."  Father had doubts.
   v. 24, "Help my unbelief."
   God accepts our imperfect, wavering, weak, trembling, doubting, feeble faith.
   God does not expect perfect faith; this is impossible.
   God expects from us imperfect, wavering, weak, vacillating, trembling, doubting, feeble faith because that is all we can offer him.
   What is important is not the degree of our faith but the object of our faith.
   Our faith, though weak, must be on Jesus.
   Strong faith on the person is powerless; but weak faith Jesus is powerful.

INVITATION

   While the text does not say so, I believe that this father and son came to believe in Jesus and were saved.
   Have you come to Jesus for your salvation.
   There is a difference between existence and life.  All have existence but not all have life.
   Come to Jesus and have life everlasting.