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!" (Mark 9:19-24)

The Faithless Generation

Jesus' response to the scene was one of sorrow. He cried out, asking, "O faithless generation, how long am I to be with you? How long am I to bear with you?" (19). Jesus was pained by the lack of faith in that generation. Maybe this is a glimpse into how Jesus felt about everyone there that day. Perhaps he was grieved by the lack of faith in his own men. But Jesus was overcome with sorrow at the lack of faith in that scene.

Bring Him to Me

But, notice, Jesus' grief did not paralyze him. As he looked at the entire generation, it felt hopeless. Faithlessness abounded. But rather than decry the big problems of the world and move on without doing anything, Jesus turned his attention to the father and the boy. He might not be able to solve the generation, but he could help this little family. So he said, "Bring him to me" (19).

Jesus stands out as a good example for us in this regard. We live in a generation and during a time of high exposure to the world's problems. Like no generation before us, we carry little devices in our pockets that keep us up to date on the chaos around us. And we might get discouraged or overwhelmed by all we see.

This is why it is good to notice how Jesus responded. He saw the big problems but also did the little things that would help this man and his son. At that moment, he did what he could. So should we.

Jesus interviewed the father to discover the gravity of the situation. The father told him just how bad his son's demonic possession had become. The father concluded that they were trying to "destroy" his son (22).

If You Can Do Anything

Then the father blasted forth a request. He said, "If you can do anything, have compassion on us and help us" (22). If you can do anything. He said this to Jesus, the one we know as the Creator and Sustainer of all things, the glorious God who became our Savior. But this man is honest with Jesus. *I don't know if you can, but if you can, help my son."

In the first chapter of Mark, a leper came to Jesus. He wondered if Jesus was willing to help him, saying, "If you will, you can make me clean" (Mark 1:40-45). The leper didn't doubt Jesus could but wondered if he wanted to help. This father thinks Jesus wants to help, but wonders if he can help. It's as if he says, "If you can, I know you would love to help my son."

People often feel this way about God. They believe he either cares but is powerless to help, or is powerful to help but doesn't care. As Christians, we believe God is both all-powerful and all-loving. He certainly can and wants to help.

"If You Can"!

Jesus shot back to the man -- "'If you can'!" (23). Of course, Jesus can. But this man had been disillusioned by the failure of Jesus' disciples, so his hope in Jesus waned.

Jesus told the man the problem did not lie in his inability, but in the quality of the man's faith. He said, "All things are possible to him who believes" (23).

This is Jesus putting the responsibility squarely on the man's shoulders. This father needed to believe.

Real Faith

In response, the man said one of the most human things in all of the gospels: "I believe, help my unbelief" (24). This is real faith.

The man knew his faith was not perfect. Too often, believers think their faith needs to be of the superhuman quality. And there is no shortage of faith healers and miracle chasers who tell us we must have bold, lion-like faith. But this man shows us Jesus is only looking for a humble, honest, mustard-seed-sized, small faith.

Jesus Uses Imperfect Faith To Accomplish His Perfect Work

You see, Jesus uses imperfect faith to accomplish his perfect work. It isn't about our faith's grandiosity, but about the grandiosity of the One we put our faith in.

It wasn't about the father's great faith that day, but about Jesus. The man even asked Jesus to help him have greater faith when he said, "Help my unbelief!" (24). He knew he needed Jesus' help -even help to believe in Jesus in the first place!

True faith is conscious of its smallness and inadequacy. True faith is not confident in the self but hopes and looks to God for help. True faith throws itself on the mercy of God. This father had true faith.