Rachel Workman:14 When they came to the other disciples, they saw a large
crowd around them and the teachers of the law arguing with them. 15 As
soon as all the people saw Jesus, they were overwhelmed with wonder and ran to
greet him.
16 “What are you arguing with them about?” he asked.
17 A man in the crowd answered, “Teacher, I brought you my son,
who is possessed by a spirit that has robbed him of speech. 18 Whenever
it seizes him, it throws him to the ground. He foams at the mouth, gnashes his
teeth and becomes rigid. I asked your disciples to drive out the spirit, but
they could not.”
19 “You unbelieving generation,” Jesus replied, “how long shall
I stay with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring the boy to me.” I
think it must have been a lack of belief that didn't allow the
disciples to cast out the demon. Or it could have a lack of believe on
the other people. I've read several times where Jesus was unable to
perform miracles because of the lack of belief of other people.
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John Burnett: 14 When they came to the other disciples, they saw a large crowd around them and the teachers of the law arguing with them. 15 As soon as all the people saw Jesus, they were overwhelmed with wonder and ran to greet him.
16 “What are you arguing with them about?” he asked.
17 A man in the crowd answered, “Teacher, I brought you my son, who is possessed by a spirit that has robbed him of speech. 18 Whenever
it seizes him, it throws him to the ground. He foams at the mouth,
gnashes his teeth and becomes rigid. I asked your disciples to drive out
the spirit, but they could not.”
19 “You
unbelieving generation,” Jesus replied, “how long shall I stay with
you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring the boy to me.” Jesus
told it like it was and never sugar coated anything and he called them
out for their unbelief. Jesus taught with no consideration for how he
might offend someone. His message was exclusionary and very hard to
hear for many. Unlike the soft spines of the preachers today who are
more concerned about how they sound as opposed to preaching the truth of
the gospel, you are a sinner and you need Jesus’s imputed righteousness
to be saved.
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Allen Michaels: 14 When they came to the other disciples, they saw a large crowd around them and the teachers of the law arguing
with them. 15 As soon as all the people saw Jesus, they were overwhelmed with wonder and ran to greet him.
16 “What are you arguing with them about?” he asked.
17 A man in the crowd answered, “Teacher, I brought you my son, who is possessed by a spirit that has robbed him
of speech. 18 Whenever it seizes him, it throws him to the
ground. He foams at the mouth, gnashes his teeth and becomes rigid. I
asked your disciples to drive out the spirit, but they could not.”
Why couldn’t the disciples drive out the evil spirit when in 6:13
we read that they drove out demons while on their mission to the
villages? Perhaps God gave them the ability only for that trip, or
perhaps their faith was faltering.
Mark tells this story to show that the battle with Satan is a
difficult, ongoing struggle. Victory over sin and temptation comes
through faith in Jesus the Christ, not through our own efforts.
Another theory is that they may no longer have had the power of the Holy Spirit within them.
There
is but one indwelling of the Holy Spirit, one rebirth of the Holy
Spirit, and one baptism of the Holy Spirit -- all of which occur when we
receive Christ.
Being filled with the Holy Spirit, however, is not a once-for-all experience. There are many fillings referred to in the Bible, one of which is made clear in Ephesians 5:18,
“Do not get drunk on wine, which leads
to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit,”
In the original Greek, "be filled" means "keep on
being filled constantly and continually." Living a godly life is a
vital part of this process.
I think of it as being like a rechargeable battery. Unless we recharge
it, (ask the Holy Spirit back into our hearts) it we’ll soon be running
on empty. If you’re a faltering, or not 100% committed to Christ, like
me, you can really be fooling yourself. I’m
sure there have been many times when the Holy Spirit has said to me
“see ya!” without me even knowing it. However, if we live a continuous
Godly, Christian life, we will keep that Spirit within us and remaining
very strong.
19 “You unbelieving generation,” Jesus replied, “how long shall I stay with you? How long shall I put up with you?
Bring the boy to me.”
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Tomorrow's reading for Mark 9:20-29
21 “How long has this been happening?” Jesus asked the boy’s father.
He replied, “Since he was a little boy. 22 The spirit often throws him into the fire or into water, trying to kill him. Have mercy on us and help us, if you can.”
23 “What do you mean, ‘If I can’?” Jesus asked. “Anything is possible if a person believes.”
24 The father instantly cried out, “I do believe, but help me overcome my unbelief!”
25 When Jesus saw that the crowd of onlookers was growing, he rebuked the evil[f] spirit. “Listen, you spirit that makes this boy unable to hear and speak,” he said. “I command you to come out of this child and never enter him again!”
26 Then the spirit screamed and threw the boy into another violent convulsion and left him. The boy appeared to be dead. A murmur ran through the crowd as people said, “He’s dead.” 27 But Jesus took him by the hand and helped him to his feet, and he stood up.
28 Afterward, when Jesus was alone in the house with his disciples, they asked him, “Why couldn’t we cast out that evil spirit?”
29 Jesus replied, “This kind can be cast out only by prayer.[g]”
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