Matthew 17: Glory and the Grind (4)

Pray Psalm 63.1, 2
O God, You are my God;
Early will I seek You;
My soul thirsts for You;
My flesh longs for You
In a dry and thirsty land
Where there is no water.
So I have looked for You in the sanctuary,
To see Your power and Your glory.

Sing Psalm 63.1, 2.
(Nun Danken: Now Thank We All Our God)
O God, You are my God, and earnestly I seek You!
My soul thirsts and my flesh in weariness now greets You!
Thus I would see Your face, with glory and pow’r arrayed,
In this Your holy place – Your beauty here displayed.

Read Matthew 17.1-21; meditate on verses 19-21.

Prepare.
1. What did the disciples want to know?

2. What did Jesus say they needed?

Meditate.
Jesus shows us that, while there can be great glory in times of worshipful retreat with the Lord, there is also glory to be realized in the daily grind of serving God. The healing of the epileptic child surely brought great joy to him and his father; and we can be sure the crowds around the situation rejoiced and gave thanks and praise to God.

The disciples asked the right question of Jesus: Why could they not cast out the demon? (v. 19) That’s what true learners do: they try to learn from their mistakes and failures, so that they can improve and grow.

Jesus responded by saying their faith wasn’t up to speed (v. 20). He understood that, while they meant well, and wanted to help, they didn’t really believe their efforts would have any effect. Don’t we all do that from time to time? We go through the motions of faith – reading our Bibles, going to church, praying – but we don’t really expect God to do much in or through us. We don’t need a lot of faith to get beyond this impasse, just enough of the right faith. Faith that believes God can do what seems impossible is faith that changes lives and empowers them for serving Jesus.

Jesus is not counseling us to pursue faith-tricks. He’s saying, in effect, that what may seem impossible to us – that we could ever get past some besetting sin, or love our co-workers more, or share the Gospel with a neighbor – can actually come to pass, if we believe that God can do this in us, and obey Him in the matter. Our problem is not God’s inability to do great things in and through us; our problem is failing to ask, believe, and obey Him for such things (Eph. 3.20). What you think is impossible today is a symptom of weak faith. Weak faith needs exercise. Ask God for big things, then go expectantly to obey Him for them.

Verse 21 is not actually in the best Greek texts – those which are earliest, shortest, and clearest. The NKJV is based on the KJV Bible, which was translated before some of the best and most reliable Greek texts came to light. It’s a good translation, but it needs correcting here and there, and usually a marginal note will tell you when that should be done. Verse 21 seems to have been extrapolated into this passage from Mark 9.29, where the best ancient texts have “prayer” but not “fasting.” Let’s assume that Jesus did say “this kind does not go out except by prayer”. So when did Jesus pray? We don’t see any evidence of His stopping to pray, either here or in the accounts in Mark or Luke. Jesus was always in prayer, just as He expects us to be always in prayer (Lk. 18.1), always communing with our Father, and always offering everything we do to Him.

And as you’re praying, ask Jesus for more of the right faith. Then go out and move some mountains.

Reflect.
1. What can we learn from the disciples here about being a disciple (a learner)?

2. What can we learn from Jesus about being a disciple?

3. How can Christians help one another have more of the right faith?

The disciples wonder that the power which they once possessed has been taken from them; but they had lost it by their own fault. Christ therefore attributes this want of ability to their unbelief, and repeats and illustrates more largely the statement which he had previously made, that nothing is impossible to faith. John Calvin (1509-1564), Commentary on Matthew 17.19

Give me right faith today, Lord, so that I may…

Pray Psalm 63.3-11.
Thank God for His abundant lovingkindness. Seek His protection and grace for this day. Go forth rejoicing in Him, and to live for His glory.

Sing Psalm 63.3-1.
Psalm 63.3-11 (Nun Danken: Now Thank We All Our God)
Your steadfast love, O Lord, than life is better to me.
So I will praise Your Name, and bless You, Lord, most truly.
My soul is richly blest; to You my hands I raise,
and open now my mouth to offer joyful praise.

By night, Lord, fill my mind with pleasant meditation;
for You have been my help as ‘neath Your wings I station.
My soul clings, Lord, to You; I rest in Your Right Hand;
may all who seek my life in Your displeasure stand.

Unto the sword’s strong pow’r let our foes be delivered!
Pursue them to devour their mortal lives forever!
In God will we rejoice and glory in His grace;
but all who live by lies shall perish from His face.

T. M. Moore

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Except as indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. All quotations from Church Fathers from Ancient Christian Commentary Series, General Editor Thomas C. Oden (Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2006). All psalms for singing are from The Ailbe Psalter (available by clicking here).