"Lord, I Believe”: A Concerned Father Series

Introduction: Jesus, along with Peter, James, and John, had just come down from the Mount of Transfiguration (verses 1-13). This is one of the most wonderful events ever recorded in the Bible: seeing the Lord Jesus Christ “transfigured” before them, and speaking with both Moses and Elijah. The three disciples didn’t know what to do or say—would anybody?—but they never forgot that experience. But now, they’re coming down from the mountain and they, along with a multitude, are about to see a much different kind of experience.

A man brought his son to the disciples, asking them to heal him. They couldn’t. People were watching and waiting. Then Jesus came by and healed this desperate father’s son. For this Father’s Day month, we could pray and hope that even more fathers want to bring their children to Jesus, too.

I The Lord’s encounter with the multitude

[Mark 9:14, KJV] 14 And when he came to [his] disciples, he saw a great multitude about them, and the scribes questioning with them. 15 And straightway all the people, when they beheld him, were greatly amazed, and running to [him] saluted him. 16 And he asked the scribes, What question ye with them?

These three verses set the stage for the events to follow. As mentioned, Jesus had taken Peter, James, and John with Him to the summit of the Mount of Transfiguration (exact identity never specified). Now they have come back down from the mountain, expecting, perhaps, to reconnect with the other disciples. But they were in for a surprise: when instead of the nine disciples, they found a multitude!

Of course, the disciples had encountered multitudes of people before: the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7), the feedings of the Five Thousand and the Four Thousand, and other occasions. This time, though, something unusual was happening. They saw, of course, the other disciples, but along with a “great multitude”, there were some scribes—and the scribes were questioning the multitude! Who knows, they may have been questioning the other disciples, too.

The result of this meeting, so to speak, was that the multitude ran (!) to Jesus, greeting Him. Again, this had happened before: as an example, after Jesus fed the Five Thousand (John 6), they found Jesus had left and was going someplace else. They found Him and asked a rather awkward question: “Rabbi, when did You get here (John 6:25, paraphrased)?” Jesus of course knew their thoughts and told them, “You came to me because I gave you plenty to eat. Stop working for food that doesn’t last and start focusing on the “bread” that will last forever (John 6:26-27, paraphrased).” Now they’re running to Him, but we aren’t told specifically why.

Now Jesus asked a question of the scribes: “Why are you asking them your questions (paraphrased)?” Notice that the scribes didn’t say a word to Jesus in reply to His question.

But the disciples, and the Lord Himself, were about to find out what was really going on..

II The Lord’s discussion with a father

[Mark 9:17] And one of the multitude answered and said, Master, I have brought unto thee my son, which hath a dumb spirit; 18 And wheresoever he taketh him, he teareth him: and he foameth, and gnasheth with his teeth, and pineth away: and I spake to thy disciples that they should cast him out; and they could not.

Here in these verses, Mark tells us about the discussion between our Lord and the man who turned out to be the boy’s father. One of the people in multitude spoke up, and told Jesus he had brought his son, who was demon-possessed, to the disciples, hoping they could cast out the demon. The boy would foam at the mouth and make unusual facial expressions (paraphrased); the demon also “teareth” or caused the boy to most likely go into convulsions. Clearly there wouldn’t be any visible cuts or scars from literal tears on the body. Aware of this, the disciples tried to cast out the demon.

They couldn’t do it!

Mark’s narrative doesn’t disclose how the attempt to cast out the demon led to the multitude coming and why the scribes were there, too. But the fact remains, the multitude, including the scribes, saw something that didn’t happen—the demon stayed inside the boy—and now the scribes are questioning the multitude. One wonders why.

As mentioned, the boy’s father explained what had happened: the demon had possessed his son, causing the boy to endure several different kinds of ailments. Whether or not the father had taken his son to the doctor is not mentioned, but it’s a good guess the father did all he could for his son.

What kind of father would do anything less?

Clearly none of it worked so the father tried to get his son to Jesus. Where this narrative fits into the Lord’s earthly ministry is not certain but there is no doubt others had heard about Jesus and His ability to heal. One of the first miracles the Lord performed, in fact, was casting out a demon from a man in Capernaum at the synagogue (Mark 1:21-28). Now imagine the heartbreak this father must have felt, traveling from an unspecified distance, and his son still had the same problem that he started with.