Text: Mark 9:14-29

23b “All things are possible for one who believes.”


Galatians 2:20 “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”

Question: What is FAITH?

Answer: Faith simply means believing that something is true, and then committing our lives to it. In the Bible, “faith” means believing in God, and in what Christ has done for us to make our salvation possible–and then committing ourselves to Him.

FAITH is a choice!

Acts 16:31 “And they said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.”

I choose to believe in Jesus Christ... that He died for my sins... that by believing in Him... my sins will be forgiven.

I NEED faith to become a Christian.

Ephesians 2:8-9

8 “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God,

9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast.”
FAITH is taking action upon things.... Things...
• That are not seen
• That are not tangible
• That are not visibly there

2 Corinthians 5:7 “We walk by faith, not by sight.”

Hebrews 11:1 "Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for,
the conviction of things not seen.”

• We trust in a God .... But we cannot see Him

• We trust in a Christ ... But we cannot see Him

• We trust in an Holy Spirit ... But that we cannot see Him

• We embrace a death and resurrection... That we have not seen

• We believe in a justification ... That we haven not seen

• We believe in a heaven ... That we have not seen

Prayer Makes All Things Possible

1 Peter 1:8-9

8 “Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory,

9 obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.”
We are not talking of a blind faith... It is faith based on evidence!
For us today... That evidence IS God’s Word... God’s Word anchors our
FAITH!

Romans 10:17 “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.”

Prayer Makes All Things Possible

Mark 9:14-29

14 “And when they came to the disciples, they saw a great crowd around them, and scribes arguing with them.

15 And immediately all the crowd, when they saw him, were greatly amazed and ran up to him and greeted him.

16 And he asked them, “What are you arguing about with them?”

17 And someone from the crowd answered him, “Teacher, I brought my son to you, for he has a spirit that makes him mute.

18 And whenever it seizes him, it throws him down, and he foams and grinds his teeth and becomes rigid. So I asked your disciples to cast it out, and they were not able.”

19 And he answered them, “O faithless generation, how long am I to be with you? How long am I to bear with you? Bring him to me.”

20 And they brought the boy to him. And when the spirit saw him, immediately it convulsed the boy, and he fell on the ground and rolled about, foaming at the mouth.

21 And Jesus asked his father, “How long has this been happening to him?” And he said, “From childhood.

22 And it has often cast him into fire and into water, to destroy him. But if you can do anything, have compassion on us and help us.”

23 And Jesus said to him, “‘If you can’! All things are possible for one who believes.”

24 Immediately the father of the child cried out and said, “I believe; help my unbelief!”

25 And when Jesus saw that a crowd came running together, he rebuked the unclean spirit, saying to it, “You mute and deaf spirit, I command you, come out of him and never enter him again.”

26 And after crying out and convulsing him terribly, it came out, and the boy was like a corpse, so that most of them said, “He is dead.”

27 But Jesus took him by the hand and lifted him up, and he arose.

28 And when he had entered the house, his disciples asked him privately, “Why could we not cast it out?”

29 And he said to them, “This kind cannot be driven out by anything but prayer.”

In Mark 6:7-13... Jesus gave authority to the disciples to cast out demons. They had done it before... It wasn’t anything new to them..
But this time was different.

Jesus... Is teaching them a lesson.... A lesson about their great faith... in themselves. He was teaching them... How powerless they really are. Mark 9:28-29 And when he had entered the house, his disciples asked him privately, “Why could we not cast it out?” 29 And he said to them, “This kind cannot be driven out by anything but prayer.”

Two Quick points today...
Jesus’ answer... reveals to them how much faith they had in themselves... how self-reliant they were.

Matthew 17:20...”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.’”

Phlippians 3:3 “For we are the circumcision, who worship by the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put NO confidence in the flesh.”

Romans 10:17 “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.”

Mark 9:29 “This kind cannot be driven out by anything but prayer.”