Seventeenth Sunday after Pentecost

“And when [Jesus] had entered the house, His disciples asked Him privately, ‘Why could we not cast it out?’ And He said to them, “This kind cannot be driven out by anything but prayer.’"

+In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.      
 
The evangelical Bible teacher Joyce Meyer once said, “When trouble comes, do you go to the phone or to the throne?” To put it another way, if you believe that God loves you and that He answers prayer, does your prayer life reflect that belief?
Today’s Gospel lesson from St. Mark addresses a fundamental question that we all must address for ourselves: How much faith do I have in God?

Our passage today involves an encounter between Jesus and His disciples and a man whose son is possessed by an evil spirit. Now we all remember that Jesus gave His disciples the authority to go out in His name and preach the Kingdom of God and heal the sick and cast out demons. Here we have an instance where a man whose son is afflicted by an evil spirit goes to the disciples, but they are not able to cast the demon out.

When Jesus is presented with this, His response is one of frustration and anger. He says, “O faithless generation, how long am I to be with you? How long am I to bear with you?” We’re used to seeing Jesus being patient and kind in most situations, but this time, Jesus’ frustration comes out. We see this with Jesus during His encounters with the members of the Jewish religious establishment (the Pharisees and the scribes), and with His own disciples. Despite Jesus’ many miracles, despite His teaching, and despite the miracles that the disciples themselves perform, their faith is lacking. On so many occasions, people do not respond in faith, but in unbelief.

Jesus then asks that the boy (and his father) be brought to Him. The boy immediately bursts into convulsions, and Jesus begins to question the father about what is going on with his son. And after explaining to Jesus the situation, the father then says, “If you can do anything, have compassion on us and help us.” Jesus is dismayed by the father’s words “if you can,” indicating the father’s lack of faith. Jesus says, “If you can! All things are possible for one who believes.”

Sadly, for most of us, we’re like the father of that demon possessed boy. We wonder if God can or will do anything. We don’t really believe that prayer works. So, we fret, we complain, and do pretty much anything except prayer. Nothing really improves, and our mood gets worse. We find ourselves either slipping into despair or resentment.

Fortunately, the father’s response to Jesus’ exhortation is helpful here. He says, “Lord I believe; help my unbelief!” It is this honesty and transparency that God can use. The father confesses that while he does believe, he knows that his faith is weak and that he needs help, not just with the problem, but with his own unbelief! Do we have the courage to show that kind of honesty with God? Are we willing to humble ourselves and ask for more faith?

Jesus responds to the father’s heartfelt plea and heals the man’s son. And when the episode is over, Jesus’ disciples approach Him privately and ask Him point blank, “Why could we not cast it out?” And Jesus replies to them, “This kind cannot be driven out by anything but prayer.”

Have you ever wondered why God seems to be at work in the lives of others, but appears to be doing nothing with yours? Do you feel like God is not listening to your prayers? The problem is not with God. The problem is with you. It is your faithlessness reflected in your lack of prayer. Jesus is telling His disciples that because their faith is weak, that their prayer life (or lack thereof) reflects that level of faith. We say that we need something from God, but we offer up halfhearted prayers. We say that something is very important to us, but we spend very little time in the throne room with God talking to Him about it.

There’s a scene from the movie “The Untouchables” where lawman Elliot Ness (played by Kevin Costner) is talking to his friend, the Chicago beat cop, Jim Malone (Played by Sean Connery). Elliot Ness is frustrated at his lack of progress in bringing down Al Capone. The police and the courts cannot be trusted, as they are bought by Capone. And Malone says, to Ness, “What are you prepared to do?” Malone tells Ness that if he is going to beat Capone, he’s going to have to go much farther and harder than ever before.

What are you prepared to do to get your answer from God? Jacob wrestled with an angel. Hannah went to the temple every day for years to pray. Throughout the Bible we read about people praying for years, often with tears, and fasting too. You see, the point of prayer is not to let God know our need. The point of prayer is two-fold; to give us time with God and then to be changed by our encounters with Him. It’s pretty straightforward: more time with God in prayer leads to closer fellowship with God, which in turn leads to greater faith in God.
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+In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.