What they missed...
When Jesus saw that a crowd was running to the scene, He rebuked the evil spirit. "You deaf and mute spirit," He said, "I command you, come out of him and never enter him again."
The spirit shrieked, convulsed him violently and came out. The boy looked so much like a corpse that many said, "He's dead."
But Jesus took him by the hand and lifted him to his feet, and he stood up.
After Jesus had gone indoors, His disciples asked him privately, "Why couldn't we drive it out?"
He replied, "This kind can come out only by prayer." (Mark9:25-29) |
Imagine the scene with me...
The disciples have been trying to cast out the evil spirit.
A crowd has gathered. They know the story. They're hoping for a resolution.
The disciples are trying their best.
They're using every formula of exorcism they can think of.
They're invoking the name of Jesus and using all the gestures and rituals.
But it isn't working. The crowd starts losing interest. They're drifting away...
Jesus arrives and the disciples and the dad and boy gather around Him.
Then the boy starts convulsing and the crowd starts dashing back to the scene.
Jesus responds quickly. He doesn't want the boy to become a spectacle.
He authoritatively commands the spirit to leave.
The boy, after being tormented for so long, collapses in a faint but Jesus lifts him to his feet.
Later on the disciples quiz Jesus: "Why couldn't we drive it out?"
They had tried. They had perhaps even said the right words. After all, earlier in Mark 6, Jesus had given them authority to cast out demons, and they had successfully driven out demons on their missionary outreach. So what happened here?
Jesus' answer is simple, but profound and it is linked to His earlier exasperated comment: "O unbelieving generation," Jesus replied, "how long shall I stay with you? How long shall I put up with you?"
"This kind can come out only by prayer."
What Jesus is saying is that they had forgotten to pray.
They'd relied on formula, ritual and past experience.
They'd used the words, repeated the actions, and gone through the motions.
But their faith was in the ritual and their "muscle memory."
They weren't actually connecting to and relying on God.
They weren't in communion and contact with their Heavenly Father, they were relying on technique, ritual, and formula. When it is actually about relationship and dependence.
(Some later manuscripts add "and fasting" but the same point is being made: "You weren't relying on God, but on yourselves.
The disciples had grown confident in their abilities. Perhaps they thought they could handle it themselves. But real spiritual power doesn't come from methods - it comes from communion with God.
Prayer is not just a religious activity.
It's our lifeline to the Father.
It is the place where we draw strength, authority, perspective, and compassion.
This moment was a sobering reminder for the disciples, and for us, that:
- We never graduate from needing God.
- We are never so "spiritually mature" that we can operate on autopilot.
- Power in ministry flows from a heart anchored in prayer.
The contrast is striking:
The father brought a reaching faith, filled with doubt and desperation - and he received a miracle.
The disciples brought technique and confidence - and failed...
