Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, “Why could we not cast it out?” He said to them, “Because of your little faith. For truly, I say to you, if you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you.” — Matt. 17:19–20
And when he 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.” — Mark 9:28–29
Sometimes you come across something in the Bible that seems small and innocuous at first, but over time you realize what you thought was little is actually a lot bigger. Jesus is really good at doing that when he is teaching us things. In this case, the little thing I came across was a small difference in how Matthew and Mark relate the healing of an epileptic, demon-possessed boy. This scene takes places immediately after the transfiguration of Jesus. The disciples were not able to cast the demon out, and the Pharisees mocked them for it. Jesus, of course, was able. After Jesus and the disciples entered the privacy of the house they were staying in, they asked Jesus why they weren’t able to drive the demon out. That’s where the difference in the stories comes in, as well as the revelation the Holy Spirit impressed upon me.
As you can see above, Jesus gives a different answer in Matthew compared to Mark. But it’s not actually a different answer, and that’s the part that’s stuck with me for the past few days. What did the disciples need to drive the demon out, more faith or more prayer? Yes. You see, faith and prayer are intrinsically linked together. As William Hendriksen writes, “Where there is little faith, there is little prayer. Conversely, where there is an abundance of genuine, persevering faith, there is also fervent, unrelenting prayer.” When our faith lags, our trust in God erodes. If we aren’t trusting in God, then why would we pray, for is not prayer itself an act and expression of trust? The more deeply I trust in God, the stronger my faith will be, the more constant will then be my prayers.
It is hard, sometimes, to know how our walk with the Lord is going. If someone were to ask you, “how strong is your faith today?” how would you know what to say? It’s such a subjective question. We can often think our faith in God is strong, when we aren’t actually trusting in Him very much at all. However, being asked, “how is your prayer life going?” is much more concrete and objective. As the Holy Spirit has needled at me about this, I’ve come to see a strong and direct correlation between my prayer life and my trust in God. I encourage you to look at your prayer life as well. Are you trusting in the Lord as much as you say or think you are? Does your prayer life reflect that trust and faith? There’s no time like right now to pray!
Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. Do not quench the Spirit. — 1 Th. 5:16–19
Blessings,
Rev. David Garrison
