415. Thursday after Twenty-first Sunday after Trinity.
Lord Jesus, help us to believe;
that we may see thy glory. Amen.
Mark 9, 17-27. And one of the multitude answered and said, Master, I have brought unto thee my son, which hath a dumb spirit: and wheresoever he taketh him, he teareth him; and he foameth, and gnasheth with his teeth, and pineth away; and I spake to thy disciples, that they should cast him out; and they could not. He answereth him, and saith, O faithless generation, how long shall I be with you? how long shall I suffer you? Bring him unto me. And they brought him unto him: and when he saw him, straightway the spirit tare him; and he fell on the ground, and wallowed foaming. And he asked his father, How long is it ago since this came unto him? And he said, Of a child: and ofttimes it hath cast him into the fire, and into the waters, to destroy him: but if thou canst do anything, have compassion on us, and help us. Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth. And straightway the father of the child cried out, and said with tears, Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief. When Jesus saw that the people came running together, he rebuked the foul spirit, saying unto him, Thou dumb and deaf spirit, I charge thee, come out of him, and enter no more into him. And the spirit cried, and rent him sore, and came out of him: and he was as one dead; insomuch that many said, He is dead. But Jesus took him by the hand, and lifted him up; and he arose.
❦
In this scripture lesson there are especially two thoughts which stand out in strong relief: 1) Jesus, and he only, is able to deliver from the sorest need. 2) He does not reject even the weakest faith. — We have a strong Savior, who is able to rebuke all devils, and deliver us from all spirits that vex us. There is no power of hell strong enough to resist him. This child in our text presents a striking picture of the lowest depths of human misery; and the heart of the father must have been torn into shreds by the cruel spirit. He would rather have seen his son a corpse than witness this horrible gnashing of teeth and these demoniacal features. Wretched parents, is there none can save you? No, none other; but Jesus is able to do all things. He charges the spirit to “come out of him, and enter no more into him’’; and intimately as the spirit had entwined itself with every fiber of the child’s soul and body, it is compelled to come out of him and spare his life. No man on earth has been so badly torn and maltreated by Satan, whether spiritually or bodily, that Jesus cannot save him; and no misery is so great that Jesus cannot change it into joy. If you be sore vexed by the devil, you still are so fortunate that Jesus is here and wishes to help you, — do but believe! As long as you refuse to call upon the Lord, and to believe that he is mighty to save, he cannot manifest his power to you. Remember this, however: He can and will save you out of the direst need, if you will ask it of him with believing heart. Let your mind dwell on this thought; and he shall create prayer and faith in your troubled soul. There are thousands even now living who could tell you of his power to save. — If there be any who feels that his faith is altogether too weak, let him remember that for his special benefit the Spirit of God caused our Bible lesson to be written. Jesus must speak even of his apostles as a “faithless generation”; and they certainly were not likely to strengthen the man’s faith. And the man himself; what does he say to Jesus? He says: “If thou canst do anything, have compassion on us, and help us.” “If thou canst do anything”; — there is in the man very little faith. But he is honest, and sensible of his weakness; therefore he cries out, and says with tears: “Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief.” To our merciful Lord Jesus this faith is sufficient; and he crowns it in glorious fashion. — As no power is so great that Jesus cannot cope with it, even so there is no faith so weak that he will not accept it, if we do but seek him with uprightness. Where can be found the man who sought of him assistance against sin and the devil, and did not receive it?
Lord, we heartily thank thee for that thou dost not break the bruised reed, and dost not quench the smoking flax. O that we might be found to be upright, and that thou mightest sustain and strengthen our weak faith. This we humbly beseech of thee, merciful Lord Jesus. Amen.*
If thou impart thyself to me,
No other good I need:
If thou, the Son, shalt make me free,
I shall be free indeed.
From sin, the guilt, the power, the pain,
Thou wilt redeem my soul:
Lord, I believe, and not in vain;
My faith shall make me whole.
* Here the head of the family says a short morning or evening prayer in his own words, and closes with the Lord’s Prayer and the Benediction. This is to be done every day. If the stanzas are not sung, they may be read in their proper place before the impromptu petition and the Lord’s Prayer.