CLEAN – podcast 16, Father & Son

For additional notes and resources check out Douglas’ website.IntroductionYesterday: mother/daughter; today: father/son.New life -- not just for the boy, but for the dadChildren have the power to hurt us -- just as spouses do. In today's passage, the pain that is breaking the parent's heart is unwitting (beyond the control of the child).Context: While Jesus and the Three were up on the Mount of Transfiguration, the other disciples failed to exorcise a demon who was destroying a family.Scriptural study: Matt 17:14-20Notice the man’s posture (v.14). Like so many who beg Jesus for release from leprosy or demons, he's on his knees. He deeply desires a miracle for his son’s sake.The demonic attacks are beyond the control of the boy, harming him by exposing him to death by burning or drowning.The Canaanite woman approaches Jesus first; the man in today’s account went first to Jesus' disciples (v.16). Not to his three most trusted, however, who were with him on the Mount of Transfiguration.Even when we've been following Christ for a while--like the nine, who had been Jesus' disciples for nearly three years--we still have far to go.I wonder how the 9 disciples felt when the man says these words to Jesus!Lack of faith is a serious problem (v.17). It is unnatural. We should have faith, and failure to trust God is culpable.Sometimes we need to bring our problems to the Lord, when those persons we had hoped could help fail to fix the problem.The demon is rebuked (v.18); it ought not to be inhabiting a human being.Instant healing—not in multiple stages, nor partial healing.Faith is the issue (v.20).The disciples were apparently not praying enough, or with sufficient faith.Mustard seed = smallest seed known in Palestine, though not the smallest of seeds globally. Jesus is speaking in a way they can relate to, not with perfect biological precision. In fact, all the science in the Bible is of the ancient variety. (It’s not a science book, even remotely.)No mountains are literally moved by faith. (Consider, for example, the other impossible deeds of 1 Cor 13:1-2.) Yet we instinctively—and correctly—spiritualize Jesus’ words, because then they make sense, and are applicable to our lives.Renewal and relief come to this family, although the passage seems to be more a lesson for Jesus' disciples -- and for us -- about faithful prayer.Thought questionsHow is my prayer life? What things may I be prevented from accomplishing for lack of prayer?As with the Canaanite woman, the transition for the children from possession to freedom is tremendously faith-building for the parents -- not just for the child. In the same way, disciples of Christ need to see the miracle of the new birth on a regular basis. How long has it been since you have helped someone to make the radical transition from the slavery of the world to the freedom in Christ?