IT DOESN'T TAKE MUCH
MATTHEW 17:14-20
MATTHEW 17:14-20 NKJ
14 And when they had come to the multitude, a man came to Him, kneeling down to Him and saying, 15 “Lord, have mercy on my son, for he is an epileptic and suffers severely; for he often falls into the fire and often into the water. 16 So I brought him to Your disciples, but they could not cure him.”
17 Then Jesus answered and said, “O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I bear with you? Bring him here to Me.” 18 And Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of him; and the child was cured from that very hour.
19 Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, “Why could we not cast it out?”
20 So Jesus said to them, “Because of your unbelief; for assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you.
Jesus had given His disciples the authority and ability to cast our demons. People would bring their sick to the disciples and they typically had good results. But not this time.
A man had brought his son, who had been tormented by a demonic force that would try to cause the boy to kill himself. Please note that this tormenting destructive behavior was a result of Satan's work, not God's. When the boy was brought to the disciples, they were unable to deliver any positive results. However, Jesus dealt with the demon, and the boy walked away healed and free.
So now, the disciples were perplexed. Why couldn't we cure the boy? And Jesus' answer was very direct. Because of your unbelief, some translations read little faith. One translation indicates their want of faith. I prefer want of faith or their lack of faith because of what Jesus says next. He went on to say if you have faith as a mustard seed, you would say, and nothing would be impossible for you. There is a whole lot contained in those words. Jesus actually put the responsibility back on His disciples and then told them what to do.
Faith as a mustard seed. Mustard seeds are tiny, but they have the ability to produce very large plants. Mustard seeds have to be planted to produce. So the good news is that it doesn't take mountain size faith to move mountains just a little faith can produce great results.
APPLICATION
Don't wait until you feel as if you have enough faith to do something. Begin to act on the faith you do have even if it seems small. One way to act on your faith is to speak what you believe. This act of speaking is how we received eternal life. We believed with our hearts and confessed with our mouths that Jesus is our Lord (Rom 10:9-10), and we were saved.
Speaking words of faith may seem so small, so insignificant. But then so are mustard seeds. Another 'mustard seed' of faith would be to give thanks to God and rejoice, especially for things that have not yet happened. Seems so small to thank God, but it is an act of our confidence and trust in Him. So, make it a point to plant seeds, mustard seeds of faith every day. You'll be surprised at what big things can come from such small seeds. It doesn't take much.
PRAYER
Dear Father, show me even clearer as to how I can plant mustard seeds of faith in You every day. Your seeds produced great things.