This chapter has more accounts of Jesus including the transfiguration, healing of a demon-possessed boy, another prediction of His death and resurrection, and a miracle concerning paying the temple tax.
“Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, ‘Why could we not cast [a demon] out?’ He said to them, ‘Because of your little faith. For truly, I say to you, if you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, “Move from here to there,” and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you.’ ” (v16-17)
The disciples fail to cast out a demon to heal a boy, yet Jesus is able to rebuke the demon without any issue. Why couldn’t the disciples do this? Because they apparently ‘did not have enough faith’. Jesus says that nothing will be impossible for us if we have even the smallest amount of faith – we can figuratively move mountains.
According to scripture “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” (Heb 11:!) It stands to reason that the disciples would have had faith in Jesus at this point (they have declared He is the Son of God, and witnessed hundreds of healings), so their lack of faith may have been in themselves.
I completely understand lacking faith in myself. The broken record in my head continually plays refrains such as “you’re not good enough” or “God can’t use you, you’re broken”. Yet that is not loving ourselves and seeing ourselves through God’s eyes.
God sees us as beloved, forgiven, healed children in whom He delights. If we begin thinking of ourselves in this way, we can then have faith in our own God-given value and abilities as we serve Jesus. Maybe then we can move mountains and cast out demons with the power of Jesus flowing through us, and the confidence that we are Jesus’ hands and feet in this world.
If we feel less-than-effective for God’s kingdom, then I suggest we seek to have a God-shaped view of ourselves. When we look at ourselves through God’s eyes, we can love ourselves properly, as Jesus does, and realize that we have the power of Jesus coursing through us to accomplish anything the Spirit leads us to do in accordance with our Father’s will – God makes us unstoppable forces for His kingdom.
Heavenly Father, Holy God, the Great I Am, we worship and adore You. You have made us intricately and wonderfully, loving us deeply before we were even born. Please help us to have a scriptural and Christ-centered view of ourselves, knowing that we are bearers of Your name and power. May we use all of Your gifts to Your glory and for Your kingdom, forever and always, from this day forward, amen.
~ Conqueror in Training