Series: Short Stories with Jesus
Message: Faithless
Preacher: Japhet De Oliveira
Reflection: Karl Haffner
Live Wonder: Zan Long
Live Adventure: Zan Long
Live Purpose: Jessyka Albert
Editor: Becky De Oliveira
Refresh: Begin with prayer. Ask for the Holy Spirit to open your heart to new understanding and for God’s character to be revealed.
Read: Mark 9:17-27 in the New Living Translation (NLT). Note 1–3 insights or questions.
Reflect: In verse 19, it seems as if Jesus is frustrated. He asks, “How long shall I stay with you? How long shall I put up with you?” Max Lucado comments,
“Where is the faith in this picture? The disciples have failed, the scribes are amused, the demon is victorious, and the father is desperate. You’d be hard-pressed to find a needle of belief in that haystack” (p. 100).
William Barclay adds,
It sometimes happens that people get less than they hoped for from some church or from some servant of the Church. When that happens, they ought to press beyond the Church to the Master of the Church, beyond the servant of Christ to Christ himself. The Church may at times disappoint us, and God’s servants on earth may disappoint us. But when we battle our way face to face with Jesus Christ, he never disappoints us
(p. 253).
Have you ever been disappointed by the church? Has a Christian ever let you down? How might this story help you to process these inevitable failures of God’s church and His children? When you fail others in God’s name, how might you point people directly to Jesus?
Recalibrate: What miracle are you hoping for? Pray about it.
Respond: Pray to remember that you do not need a mountain of faith, only a mustard seed. All you need is enough faith to come to Jesus. As Max Lucado reminds us, “The power is not in the prayer; it’s in the one who hears it” (p. 98). Research: Read the shorter version of this story in Matthew 17:14-21.
Remember: “Everything is possible for one who believes.” —Mark 9:23 (NIV)
Karl Haffner gets to hang out with some fabulous folk at the Kettering Seventh-day Adventist Church in Ohio where he serves as pastor. He's blessed with his wife, Cherié, and their two daughters, Lindsey (a senior at Walla Walla University) and Claire (a junior at Spring Valley Academy). They also have a mutt named Skip.
Talk to Jesus about your child today. As you prepare meals, pray for nourishment; as they sleep, pray for rest; as they play, pray for joy and strength; and as they cry, pray for comfort. You are not alone.
The power of prayer is that you are talking to Jesus. Sometimes I talk to everyone else about my problems and forget to talk to Jesus about them. He is the one who knows what I need. Jesus wants to be your best friend and mine, the one we turn to in good times and bad. Who do you turn to when things are good or bad?
What are some things about church or religion that you feel have gotten in the way of your relationship with Jesus? Why do you think those things have affected you so much? How much do you let those things affect your faith?