37 On the next day, when they had come down from the mountain, a great crowd met him. 38 And behold, a man from the crowd cried out, “Teacher, I beg you to look at my son, for he is my only child. 39 And behold, a spirit seizes him, and he suddenly cries out. It convulses him so that he foams at the mouth, and shatters him, and will hardly leave him. 40 And I begged your disciples to cast it out, but they could not.” 41 Jesus answered, “O faithless and twisted generation, how long am I to be with you and bear with you? Bring your son here.” 42 While he was coming, the demon threw him to the ground and convulsed him. But Jesus rebuked the unclean spirit and healed the boy, and gave him back to his father. 43 And all were astonished at the majesty of God.
Jesus Again Foretells His Death
But while they were all marveling at everything he was doing, Jesus said to his disciples, 44 “Let these words sink into your ears: The Son of Man is about to be delivered into the hands of men.” 45 But they did not understand this saying, and it was concealed from them, so that they might not perceive it. And they were afraid to ask him about this saying. Luke 9: 37-45 ESV
Luke 9: 37-45 Concealed
1Now faith is the assurance of what we hope for and the certainty of what we do not see. 2 This is why the ancients were commended. 3By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible.… Hebrews 11: 1-3
For he is my only child - A son carries the family name, and this was very important to people back then. To be childless was often looked down upon as being under some sort of judgement, but here is the heir, and the only child, the hope of the next generation and someone to look after you in your old age. Those are the practical implications that even the coldest heart could understand, but there is also the pain of watching your child suffer and not being able to stop it, or in God the Father's case, being able to but letting it continue for the greater good.
9He was assigned a grave with the wicked, and with a rich man in His death, although He had done no violence, nor was any deceit in His mouth. 10Yet it was the LORD’s will to crush Him and to cause Him to suffer; and when His soul is made a guilt offering, He will see His offspring, He will prolong His days, and the good pleasure of the LORD will prosper in His hand. 11After the anguish of His soul, He will see the light of life and be satisfied. By His knowledge My righteous Servant will justify many, and He will bear their iniquities.… Isaiah 53: 9-11
A spirit seizes him - Takes over, causes him to cry out, and then violently throws him down to cause injury. In Matthew and Mark's accounts it goes on to describe the harm intended by the demon, that it often throws the boy into the water to drown him and also into the fire to burn him. Those that embrace the devil, his ways, often think it is only for a little while, and though it may feel warm and enticing at first, his intent is your harm. Humans have been offered forgiveness and reconciliation with God through Christ Jesus, and this has not been extended to the fallen angels. Like a man on death row, who believes this life is all there is, Satan has nothing to lose.
…21Jesus asked the boy’s father, “How long has this been with him?” “From childhood,” he said. 22“ It often throws him into the fire or into the water, trying to kill him. But if You can do anything, have compassion on us and help us.” 23“If You can?” echoed Jesus. “All things are possible to him who believes!”… Mark 9: 21-23
…43Why do you not understand what I am saying? It is because you are unable to accept My message. 44You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out his desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, refusing to uphold the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, because he is a liar and the father of lies. 45But because I speak the truth, you do not believe Me!… John 8: 43-45
And will hardly leave him - This is a very severe case, and some have thought it to be only epilepsy, but Luke goes on to call it a demon in verse 42, where it throws the boy down as he approaches Jesus, and Jesus also addresses it as a demon, "rebuked the unclean spirit".
And I begged Your disciples to cast it out, but they could not - Why would the man go to the disciples? Well, if you remember back, Jesus had commissioned the disciples to go out and preach the gospel of the Kingdom, and the sign of their authority to do so, that they were of Him, bearing His message, was power over sickness and unclean spirits. Remember, the authority was over all demons, so why was it different for the disciples in this case?
1Then Jesus called the Twelve together and gave them power and authority over all demons, and power to cure diseases. 2And He sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal the sick.… Luke 9: 1-2
Jesus answered, "oh faithless and twisted generation, how long am I to be with you and bear with you" - Jesus answer was that the disciples lacked faith, and he calls them perverse, His own disciples. This demon should be included in the all of Luke 9:1, but for whatever reason the disciples lacked faith. It was the same for the religious leaders of that time, they asked for signs, but still did not believe. The disciples have seen a lot of signs, but this is where faith comes in, and this should help us who are struggling to see what faith actually is. It is not that the disciples let go of a thought, failed to exercise their own will, neglected the power of positive thinking, these are all wrong ideas characteristic of much of the so called modern "church" today. The prosperity gospel would have it that faith is something you conjure up, or a blind belief in the hope of getting something you want, but the simplest way to see faith is how J Mac puts it, "believing the God you say you believe in." The disciples had the power to cast out demons because why? Because God said so. Faith is believing what God says and the manifestation, the fruit of that is obeying what God says. If He says, "pray", then we pray, and if He says "don't do this because it is sin", then we don't do it. It is not faith that is blind, but unbelief, it sees the miracles yet doesn't understand what they mean; it sees the prophecies that Jesus fulfills, but fails to recognize Who He is.
…27Yet on the seventh day some of the people went out to gather, but they did not find anything. 28Then the LORD said to Moses, “How long will you refuse to keep My commandments and instructions? 29Understand that the LORD has given you the Sabbath; that is why on the sixth day He will give you bread for two days. On the seventh day, everyone must stay where he is; no one may leave his place.”… Exodus 16: 27-29
…10But the whole congregation threatened to stone Joshua and Caleb. Then the glory of the LORD appeared to all the Israelites at the Tent of Meeting. 11And the LORD said to Moses, “How long will this people treat Me with contempt? How long will they refuse to believe in Me, despite all the signs I have performed among them? 12I will strike them with a plague and destroy them—and I will make you into a nation greater and mightier than they are.”… Numbers 14: 10-12
…6And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who approaches Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him. 7By faith Noah, when warned about things not yet seen, in godly fear built an ark to save his family. By faith he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness that comes by faith. 8By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, without knowing where he was going.… Hebrews 11: 6-8
38Then some of the scribes and Pharisees said to Him, “Teacher, we want to see a sign from You.” 39 Jesus replied, “A wicked and adulterous generation demands a sign, but none will be given it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. 40For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.… Matthew 12: 38-40
Faith isn't believing for something that you want, it is trusting God that He knows best and trusting Him still even when things are at their worse. I remember realizing that I was failing as a father according to the commands that God had given to parents. I wasn't teaching my kids about God, I wasn't praying for them like I ought, or with them. When I believed, when I actually acted on faith, which is itself a gift from God, was when I started to do Bible time, and you know what the response was? They hated it. It was boring, it was too late to start because they were gaming or wanted to watch something on tv or Playing on their phones, and so my faith was tested immediately. I obeyed what God said and the response was less than ideal. If I stopped then it wasn't faith, because there was no obedience, and I would be perverse because I bowed to the generation, to the darkness of the age. The sign isn't is this well received but rather is this what God said to do?
MacArthur says You unbelieving and perverted generation "encompassed the entire nation of Israel, whom He denounced on other occasions as a generation of “vipers” (Matt. 12:34+; cf. Mt 23:33), an “evil and adulterous generation” (Matt. 12:39; 16:4), a “wicked generation” (Luke 11:29), and an “adulterous and sinful generation” (Mark 8:38). They were acting as if they were no different from their fathers, whom Moses characterized as “a perverse and crooked generation” (Deut. 32:5). Deficient in their knowledge of the true and living God, the people of Israel had become perverse, twisted, and faithless—the ultimate manifestation of which was their rejection and murder of His Son. Sadly, the specific targets of the Lord’s rebuke on this occasion appear to have been His own apostles. Though not lacking in saving faith like the unbelieving crowd, their faith too was perverted in that they consistently failed to believe what He told them. His exclamation, “How long shall I be with you and put up with you?” reflects the disappointment and pain that their constant failure to believe and trust in what He told them caused Jesus." (See The MacArthur New Testament Commentary) - J Mac
Let these words sink in to your ears - Pay attention, hold on to this, it is important.
The Son of Man is about to be delivered in the hands of men - He has told of His approaching death before, and it is really getting close.
21Jesus strictly warned them not to tell this to anyone. 22“The Son of Man must suffer many things,” He said. “He must be rejected by the elders, chief priests, and scribes, and He must be killed and on the third day be raised to life.” 23Then Jesus said to all of them, “If anyone wants to come after Me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow Me.… Luke 9: 21-23
So that they might not perceive it - Even though He had spoken very directly about His approaching trial and death in the past, yet the plain meaning is hidden from them.
…2“Do you see all these things?” He replied. “Truly I tell you, not one stone here will be left on another; every one will be thrown down.” 3While Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately. “Tell us,” they said, “when will these things happen, and what will be the sign of Your coming and of the end of the age?” 4Jesus answered, “See to it that no one deceives you.… Matthew 24: 2-4
And they were afraid to ask Him about this saying - At other times the disciples had asked the meaning of parables, and usually when I don't ask it's because I am afraid of the answer. He said earlier in this same chapter that He must suffer, be rejected and killed, but this is something they are still not completely on board with. They like hearing about the Kingdom, the explanation of and teaching on Isaiah, but in that same book of the prophet it is very clear that the Messiah has to die. There is no push from the Spirit here to even make them want to ask, but interestingly enough, the feebleness of their faith is no deterrent for Christ to do what He sees the Father doing. He is our example in this, as frustrating as these knuckleheads are, yet Christ bears with them, continues to teach them, and reveals how impossible a thing our salvation is, only God could accomplish something like that. It is interesting that they didn't ask Him to clarify this, especially since He told them to "let these words sink in".
…2You crave what you do not have; you kill and covet, but are unable to obtain it. You quarrel and fight. You do not have, because you do not ask. 3And when you do ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may squander it on your pleasures. 4You adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Therefore, whoever chooses to be a friend of the world renders himself an enemy of God.… James 4: 2-4
…4Allow perseverance to finish its work, so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. 5Now if any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. 6But he must ask in faith, without doubting, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind.… James 1: 4-6
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