"Help Thou Mine Unbelief"
"And straightway the father of the child cried out, and said with tears, Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief." Mark 9:24
Remember this event?
"At the foot of the mountain they found a great crowd surrounding the other disciples, as some teachers of religious law were arguing with them.
The crowd watched Jesus in awe as he came toward them, and then they ran to greet him.
"What is all this arguing about?" he asked.
One of the men in the crowd spoke up and said, "Teacher, I brought my son for you to heal him. He can't speak because he is possessed by an evil spirit that won't let him talk. And whenever this evil spirit seizes him, it throws him violently to the ground and makes him foam at the mouth and grind his teeth and become rigid.* So I asked your disciples to cast out the evil spirit, but they couldn't do it."
Jesus said to them, "You faithless people! How long must I be with you until you believe? How long must I put up with you? Bring the boy to me."
So they brought the boy. But when the evil spirit saw Jesus, it threw the child into a violent convulsion, and he fell to the ground, writhing and foaming at the mouth.
"How long has this been happening?" Jesus asked the boy's father.
He replied, "Since he was very small. The evil spirit often makes him fall into the fire or into water, trying to kill him. Have mercy on us and help us. Do something if you can."
"What do you mean, `If I can'?" Jesus asked. "Anything is possible if a person believes."
The father instantly replied, "I do believe, but help me not to doubt!"
Mark 9:14-24 New Living Translation
so...By what are men justified?
"Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ." Rom. 5:1.
Then how are the just to live?
"Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, My soul shall have no pleasure in him." Heb. 10:38.
Why did not Israel of old attain to the law of righteousness?
"Because they sought it not by faith." Rom. 9:32.
When one told Christ of the disciples' failure to heal his afflicted son, what did He say of that generation?
"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." Mark 9:19.
What did the Saviour say to Thomas when He met him, because he did not believe the testimony of his brethren that had seen Christ alive after His crucifixion?
"Reach hither thy finger, and behold My hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into My side; and be not faithless, but believing." John 20:27.
Notice how much Jesus is willing to do to help one who does not believe, to believe.
In view of the great cloud of witnesses of faith presented by the apostle in the eleventh chapter of Hebrews, what does Paul exhort all to do?
"Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us." Heb. 12:1.
Why were most of the children of Israel prohibited from entering the promised land?
"And to whom sware He that they should not enter into His rest, but to them that believed not? So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief." Heb. 3:18, 19.
How was their unbelief regarded, and how did it affect God?
"But with whom was He grieved forty years? was it not with them that had sinned, whose carcasses fell in the wilderness?" Heb. 3:17.
What lesson does the apostle exhort us to draw from the course of the Israelites?
"Let us therefore fear, lest, a promise being left us of entering into His rest, any of you should seem to come short of it." Heb. 4:1.
What should we all labor to do?
"Let us labor therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief." Heb. 4:11.
Should one lose heart when trying to be a Christian, even though he feels that God is chastising him?
"My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of Him." Heb. 12:5.
Who are they that seem to have the greatest amount of affliction?
"For whom the Lord loveth He chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom He receiveth." Heb. 12:6.
If one has no chastisement to bear, how may he regard himself?
"But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and not sons." Heb. 12:8.
When the disciples became almost discouraged at one of Christ's sayings, and asked, "Who then can be saved?" What answer did Christ make?
"But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible." Matt. 19:26.
When God made a promise to Abraham that it seemed almost impossible to fulfill, how did the patriarch receive it?
"He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God." Rom. 4:20.
For what was Abraham's faith under these circumstances counted?
"For what saith the scripture? Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness." Rom. 4:3.
What should be the burden of one's prayer, who is troubled with unbelief?
"Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief." Mark 9:24.
What do the Scriptures say of him who believes that he receives the things for which he asks?
"Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them." Mark 11:24.
"...I am not ashamed: for I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that HE is able to keep that which I have committed unto HIM against that day.
2Timothy 1:12
Remember this event?
"At the foot of the mountain they found a great crowd surrounding the other disciples, as some teachers of religious law were arguing with them.
The crowd watched Jesus in awe as he came toward them, and then they ran to greet him.
"What is all this arguing about?" he asked.
One of the men in the crowd spoke up and said, "Teacher, I brought my son for you to heal him. He can't speak because he is possessed by an evil spirit that won't let him talk. And whenever this evil spirit seizes him, it throws him violently to the ground and makes him foam at the mouth and grind his teeth and become rigid.* So I asked your disciples to cast out the evil spirit, but they couldn't do it."
Jesus said to them, "You faithless people! How long must I be with you until you believe? How long must I put up with you? Bring the boy to me."
So they brought the boy. But when the evil spirit saw Jesus, it threw the child into a violent convulsion, and he fell to the ground, writhing and foaming at the mouth.
"How long has this been happening?" Jesus asked the boy's father.
He replied, "Since he was very small. The evil spirit often makes him fall into the fire or into water, trying to kill him. Have mercy on us and help us. Do something if you can."
"What do you mean, `If I can'?" Jesus asked. "Anything is possible if a person believes."
The father instantly replied, "I do believe, but help me not to doubt!"
Mark 9:14-24 New Living Translation
so...By what are men justified?
"Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ." Rom. 5:1.
Then how are the just to live?
"Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, My soul shall have no pleasure in him." Heb. 10:38.
Why did not Israel of old attain to the law of righteousness?
"Because they sought it not by faith." Rom. 9:32.
When one told Christ of the disciples' failure to heal his afflicted son, what did He say of that generation?
"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." Mark 9:19.
What did the Saviour say to Thomas when He met him, because he did not believe the testimony of his brethren that had seen Christ alive after His crucifixion?
"Reach hither thy finger, and behold My hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into My side; and be not faithless, but believing." John 20:27.
Notice how much Jesus is willing to do to help one who does not believe, to believe.
In view of the great cloud of witnesses of faith presented by the apostle in the eleventh chapter of Hebrews, what does Paul exhort all to do?
"Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us." Heb. 12:1.
Why were most of the children of Israel prohibited from entering the promised land?
"And to whom sware He that they should not enter into His rest, but to them that believed not? So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief." Heb. 3:18, 19.
How was their unbelief regarded, and how did it affect God?
"But with whom was He grieved forty years? was it not with them that had sinned, whose carcasses fell in the wilderness?" Heb. 3:17.
What lesson does the apostle exhort us to draw from the course of the Israelites?
"Let us therefore fear, lest, a promise being left us of entering into His rest, any of you should seem to come short of it." Heb. 4:1.
What should we all labor to do?
"Let us labor therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief." Heb. 4:11.
Should one lose heart when trying to be a Christian, even though he feels that God is chastising him?
"My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of Him." Heb. 12:5.
Who are they that seem to have the greatest amount of affliction?
"For whom the Lord loveth He chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom He receiveth." Heb. 12:6.
If one has no chastisement to bear, how may he regard himself?
"But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and not sons." Heb. 12:8.
When the disciples became almost discouraged at one of Christ's sayings, and asked, "Who then can be saved?" What answer did Christ make?
"But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible." Matt. 19:26.
When God made a promise to Abraham that it seemed almost impossible to fulfill, how did the patriarch receive it?
"He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God." Rom. 4:20.
For what was Abraham's faith under these circumstances counted?
"For what saith the scripture? Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness." Rom. 4:3.
What should be the burden of one's prayer, who is troubled with unbelief?
"Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief." Mark 9:24.
What do the Scriptures say of him who believes that he receives the things for which he asks?
"Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them." Mark 11:24.
"...I am not ashamed: for I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that HE is able to keep that which I have committed unto HIM against that day.
2Timothy 1:12
posted by Michael A. Redwine at Tuesday, August 30, 2005
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