NOTES for Mat 17:14-27
14 And when they were come to the multitude, there came to him a certain man, kneeling down to him, and saying, |
15 Lord, have mercy on my son: for he is lunatick, and sore vexed: for ofttimes he falleth into the fire, and oft into the water. |
16 And I brought him to thy disciples, and they could not cure him. |
17 Then Jesus answered and said, O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? how long shall I suffer you? bring him hither to me. |
18 And Jesus rebuked the devil; and he departed out of him: and the child was cured from that very hour. |
19 Then came the disciples to Jesus apart, and said, Why could not we cast him out? |
20 And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you. |
21 Howbeit this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting. |
22 And while they abode in Galilee, Jesus said unto them, The Son of man shall be betrayed into the hands of men: |
23 And they shall kill him, and the third day he shall be raised again. And they were exceeding sorry. |
24 And when they were come to Capernaum, they that received tribute money came to Peter, and said, Doth not your master pay tribute? |
25 He saith, Yes. And when he was come into the house, Jesus prevented him, saying, What thinkest thou, Simon? of whom do the kings of the earth take custom or tribute? of their own children, or of strangers? |
26 Peter saith unto him, Of strangers. Jesus saith unto him, Then are the children free. |
27 Notwithstanding, lest we should offend them, go thou to the sea, and cast an hook, and take up the fish that first cometh up; and when thou hast opened his mouth, thou shalt find a piece of money: that take, and give unto them for me and thee. |
Hide
Did the disciples really not have faith even as small as a mustard seed, since they could not cast the demon out of the young man? But we have read that earlier they had succeeded in doing this: the Lord Himself gave them authority over unclean spirits.
Apparently, the strength of faith is not simply the degree of our confidence in one or another truth about God or the world. The Lord connects faith and prayer, that is, communion with God, into one whole. This means that the issue is not confidence, but nearness to God, inward unity with Him. It is no accident that the Lord mentions fasting: when fasting, a person draws life-giving strength not from food, but from communion with God, living by His life. Such unity is not given to us once and for all. Today we may be closer to God, tomorrow farther from Him, although this is not always determined by our subjective feelings. Therefore, what separates faith from unbelief is not doubt about God's existence, but inner closedness to Him: prayerlessness, a lack of striving toward Him.
After registering, you can subscribe to any Bible reading plan. Personalized settings and other services for registered users are planned, so we recommend registering now. Registration is free. | ||
