DONE AND DUSTED!

When Jesus saw that a crowd was running to the scene, He rebuked the impure spirit. ‘You deaf and mute spirit,’ He said, ‘I command you, come out of him and never enter him again.’ The spirit shrieked, convulsed him violently and came out. The boy looked so much like a corpse that many said, ‘He is dead.’ But Jesus took him by the hand and lifted him to his feet, and he stood up. After Jesus had gone indoors, His disciples asked Him privately, ‘Why couldn’t we drive it out?’ He replied, ‘This kind can come out only by prayer.’ (Mark 9: 25-29). 

Where did this happen? Possibly in Capernaum, Jesus’ hometown. Perhaps Jesus had left the other disciples there while He took Peter, James and John on an excursion to the mountain where He was transfigured. Wherever it happened, there was a large crowd of people, always ready for a sensation.

Jesus refused to make this boy and his troubled father another cause for entertainment. This child must have been well-known in the town. No sooner did the father seek out the disciples for help in the absence of Jesus, than the crowd began to gather, looking for an opportunity to watch another miracle if they could. When Jesus arrived on the scene, they were delighted. Now they were about to see something spectacular because this boy had a demon big time.

So vicious was this evil spirit that it threw the boy around like a rag doll. Imagine the father’s distress when he watched his son being tormented over and over again, and he was powerless to help him. When he heard that the healer’s disciples were in the vicinity, he lost no time in getting his son to where they were. He figured that, if they were disciples of this rabbi, they must surely be able to do what He did. Imagine his disappointment when they were as powerless to deal with spirit as he was.

When Jesus and His three “specials” arrived back in town, He took action quickly. People were flocking from all over to watch the spectacle and He was not about to provide them with something to talk about for weeks to come. With the voice of authority He commanded the demon to leave and never to return. Imagine the cheek of this tormenting spirit! It didn’t go quietly! It made sure that everyone there knew that it belonged to the dominion of darkness. If it refused to heed the command of the disciples of Jesus, it was forced to obey the Son of God, but not without resistance.

Screaming, shrieking and flinging the boy about like a dog with a rat, it finally left. The boy was so exhausted by its terrible strength that he lay pale and limp on the ground. The people said he was dead. Perhaps he was dead. Perhaps the demon had had the last laugh after all. But Jesus was there. He would complete what He started. Nothing but perfect healing was His goal. He took the lad by the hand, lifted him to his feet and returned him to his father alive, sane, whole and well.

As feeble as the father’s faith was, it was enough to achieve what he craved He wanted his son back, a normal, healthy boy who would grow up by his side like the other members of his family.

The disciples were puzzled. Still smarting from Jesus’ rebuke, they questioned Him afterwards, when the excitement had died down and the crowd had dispersed. “Why couldn’t we do that?’” they wanted to know. After all, hadn’t Jesus given them authority to cast out demons? Hadn’t they done just that on other occasions? Why were they so powerless with this one? What did Jesus mean by His reply, “This kind can only come out by prayer?” What kind?

This was not a tame spirit. Its response, even to Jesus, indicated that it was a particularly defiant and stubborn spirit, resisting authority and acting with vicious intent. It was a killer spirit, doing all in its power to destroy the boy. It certainly resisted the disciples and even Jesus, giving way reluctantly and with a last attempt to do as much damage as it could.

What did Jesus mean by prayer? Did the disciples immediately connect what He said to what they knew of Him – many hours spent in prayer, during the night, in the early morning, out in the hills, in solitude away from the crowds? Prayer – Jesus’ connection to the Father, strengthening the bond, seeking the Father’s will, learning to be a son through submission and obedience to the Father? Is this what they lacked – the authority that comes from personal and intimate interaction with the Father, the authority that flows from humility and submission?

They still had a lot to learn on this journey to becoming true followers of Jesus, and so do we.

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

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