Do It For Us

This time of social distancing from friends, family, co-workers, and church family has proved one thing.  The church is not a physical building.  The body of Christ is the church.  And the church is expanding and thriving right now.  Sunday’s worship experience in my home reiterated this fact.  The Spirit of God was all in my home as I shared an online worship experience with my church family.  Let’s dig into the sermon recap.

My pastor preached a mighty word from Mark 9:14-29.  The verses record the story of a father who was searching for help for his demon possessed son.  The father knew of Jesus and His healing power, so he brought his son to Jesus.  Jesus was not there, but His disciples were.  The disciples attempted to cast the spirit out but were unable to do so.

Jesus approaches the crowd gathered to watch the disciples failed attempts.  He asks what’s going on.  The father replies that he brought his son to be healed.  And then he shares that the disciples were unable to get the job done.  Jesus tells the disciples that they are a faithless generation and asks them to bring the boy to Him.  Then Jesus does what the disciples could not do.  He rebukes the spirit out of the boy.

The story doesn’t end there.  Although the spirit has been removed, the boy lays there lifelessly.  He is so still that some in the crowd declare that he is dead.  Jesus takes the boy by the hand.  He lifts the boy up.  The boy has life!  He has been completely restored.

Certainly, God wants to remove the demons and strongholds in our lives.  But He wants more than our liberation from demons.  He wants to restore everything that was lost when the demon grabbed us.  He wants us to be brought back to life.  This point in the sermon resonated with me.  I’ve been delivered from some sad situations, and it’s encouraging to know that God doesn’t just want my deliverance.  Christ provides complete restoration.

The disciples wait until they are alone with Jesus to ask a very pertinent question.  They have walked with Jesus and seen Him perform miracles.  They have sat at His feet and listened to His teaching.  They are in intimate relationship with Him, and yet they still couldn’t rebuke the demon that was tormenting the boy.  So, they ask Jesus why they could not cast the demon out.  Jesus responds that that kind of demon only comes out by prayer and fasting.

In essence, Jesus is saying that they tried to do it in their own strength.  And when disciples, followers of Christ, do things in their own strength, failure is inevitable.  One important aspect of having a right relationship with God is laying everything at His feet.  EVERYTHING!  I’m guilty of making moves without consulting God.  I’m guilty of operating in my strength, and it never ends well.  I could go to church all day online.  I could write a million blogs.  And it’s all fruitless if God is not in control of my life.

Jesus healed a boy that was tormented by demons.  The boy’s father came expecting a miracle, and his faith wavered when encountering disciples that didn’t live up to the calling that was placed on their lives.  Thankfully, Jesus stepped in and turned a shaky situation into a celebration.  He’s still doing that for us today.  Let’s be disciples that recognize that true power comes from Christ.  Let us be mindful of our obligations as Christians to live a life that is worthy of our callings.  Let’s do it for Him.  #wepreach