Warrior - Faith-Shaking Battles

If you grew up in the ‘90s, you probably remember Church Lady from Saturday Night Live. Dana Carvey played this over-the-top, judgmental Christian woman who interviewed celebrities, politicians, and dictators like Saddam Hussein. And when she criticized them for wrong, then asked why they did it…she would squint her eyes, purse her lips, and ask in a high pitched voice “Could it be… Satan?” That phrase, along with “Well isn’t that special…” became one of the most iconic catchphrases on television at the time.

Honestly, we blame the Devil for a lot that goes wrong in our lives…If you are running late and hit every red light on the way to work? The devil is testing my patience. You forgot your anniversary, and your spouse is upset? The enemy is attacking my marriage. We often play the "The Devil Made Me Do It" card.

We all know, that not every battle we face is caused by the devil.

Mark 9:14-29 (NLT2)
14  When they returned to the other disciples, they saw a large crowd surrounding them, and some teachers of religious law were arguing with them. 15  When the crowd saw Jesus, they were overwhelmed with awe, and they ran to greet him. 16  “What is all this arguing about?” Jesus asked. 17  One of the men in the crowd spoke up and said, “Teacher, I brought my son so you could heal him. He is possessed by an evil spirit that won’t let him talk. 18  And whenever this spirit seizes him, it throws him violently to the ground. Then he foams at the mouth and grinds his teeth and becomes rigid. So I asked your disciples to cast out the evil spirit, but they couldn’t do it.” 19  Jesus said to them, “You faithless people! How long must I be with you? How long must I put up with you? Bring the boy to me.” 20  So they brought the boy. But when the evil spirit saw Jesus, it threw the child into a violent convulsion, and he fell to the ground, writhing and foaming at the mouth. 21  “How long has this been happening?” Jesus asked the boy’s father. He replied, “Since he was a little boy. 22  The spirit often throws him into the fire or into water, trying to kill him. Have mercy on us and help us, if you can.” 23  “What do you mean, ‘If I can’?” Jesus asked. “Anything is possible if a person believes.” 24  The father instantly cried out, “I do believe, but help me overcome my unbelief!” 25  When Jesus saw that the crowd of onlookers was growing, he rebuked the evil spirit. “Listen, you spirit that makes this boy unable to hear and speak,” he said. “I command you to come out of this child and never enter him again!” 26  Then the spirit screamed and threw the boy into another violent convulsion and left him. The boy appeared to be dead. A murmur ran through the crowd as people said, “He’s dead.” 27  But Jesus took him by the hand and helped him to his feet, and he stood up. 28  Afterward, when Jesus was alone in the house with his disciples, they asked him, “Why couldn’t we cast out that evil spirit?” 29  Jesus replied, “This kind can be cast out only by prayer.”

Jesus addresses two battles in this story: the demon and the lack of faith.

NOT ALL BATTLES ARE CAUSED BY THE DEVIL

Notice what happens. The father assumes this is a demonic issue, and the disciples assume they have the power to fix it. But Jesus doesn’t rush to conclusions—He asks questions.

And alternatively, sometimes, we assume a battle is purely spiritual when, in reality, it’s something else entirely. Think about how often we do this in our own lives. Something goes wrong, and we immediately assume that the devil is attacking us.

If your marriage is struggling, it must be spiritual warfare.
If your finances are a mess, the enemy must be stealing your blessing.
If you feel exhausted, the devil must be trying to wear you down.

But, what if your marriage is struggling because you stopped making time for each other?
What if your finances are a mess because you spend more than you earn?
What if you are exhausted because you don’t have healthy boundaries?

Yes, Satan attacks. But sometimes, the battle we are in is the result of life in a fallen world.

James 1:14-15 (NLT2)
14  Temptation comes from our own desires, which entice us and drag us away. 15  These desires give birth to sinful actions. And when sin is allowed to grow, it gives birth to death.

James does not say, “Satan drags us away.” He says our own desires drag us away. This means the battle we are fighting isn’t always demonic—it’s often a battle against our own flesh. Sometimes, the real enemy isn’t the devil—it’s our own decisions. Sometimes, what we call a “spiritual battle” is just reaping what we’ve sown.

Now, look what Jesus addressed initially.  First, he focuses on the people’s faith.

Mark 9:19 (NLT2)
19  Jesus said to them, “You faithless people! How long must I be with you? How long must I put up with you? Bring the boy to me.”

Can you hear the frustration in his voice? Jesus was frustrated with the people because the demon wasn’t their biggest issue.  They were sitting around arguing because their biggest issue was their imperfect faith.

When Jesus asked the dad about his boy’s condition, the father told him exactly what was going on, then said:

Mark 9:22c (NLT2)…Have mercy on us and help us, if you can…

IMPERFECT FAITH CAN GROW

The father in this story had faith. He wouldn’t have brought his son to Jesus if he didn’t believe something could happen. He had hope. He had seen or heard enough about Jesus to believe a miracle was possible.  But, he had his doubts. And, it is important that we all understand that Faith is almost always mixed with some level of doubt.  We do not have perfect faith, we have imperfect faith.  And the good news is that imperfect faith can grow…and imperfect faith can still see a miracle happen.

We see in verse 24 that this father had faith, but it wasn’t perfect. It wasn’t unwavering. It was faith that struggled. Faith mixed with doubt. Faith that said, “I believe, but I still have questions.” Jesus didn’t rebuke him. Jesus didn’t tell him to come back when his faith was stronger. Jesus didn’t say, “You need 100% certainty before I will work in your life.” Jesus didn’t demand perfect faith before He healed his son and worked a miracle.

Some people think they need a flawless, doubt-free faith before they can trust God. They believe that if they have even the smallest amount of uncertainty, God won’t move in their lives. But that is not how faith works. Faith is about trusting God even when you don’t. Trusting God even when I don’t… what? Even when I don’t see results? Even when I don’t feel it? Even when I don’t understand?

Yes. All of the above.

Faith isn’t about having everything figured out. It is about trusting God when you don’t have all the answers. When you don’t know how He is going to work things out. When you don’t see the progress. When you don’t feel strong. When you don’t understand why things are happening the way they are.

Jesus took the imperfect faith the man had and brought a miracle anyway. Faith is trusting God even when you don’t have all the answers, don’t see how things will change, and even when you don’t feel strong. God isn’t waiting for you to have perfect faith. Just bring what you have. If you feel like your faith is weak, bring what you have to Jesus. Because faith, even when mixed with doubt, is still faith. And God can grow it.

Now, as we see in this story, faith doesn’t always lead to instant answers. Sometimes, it actually feels like things are getting worse before they get better.

BATTLES CAN FEEL WORSE BEFORE THEY GET BETTER

That is exactly what happened. When Jesus commanded the demon to leave, the boy didn’t immediately sit up, healed and whole.

Mark 9:26 (NLT2)
26  Then the spirit screamed and threw the boy into another violent convulsion and left him. The boy appeared to be dead. A murmur ran through the crowd as people said, “He’s dead.”

Imagine being that father. At that moment between faith and waiting – he thought his son had died. The boy isn’t moving. He isn’t speaking. He looks dead. The crowd murmurs, people whisper, and the father is standing there. He brought his son to Jesus to heal him, Jesus took action, and now his son is dead.

Have you ever been there? You trust God with a situation, and for a moment, it looks like it got worse instead of better. You pray for healing, but the symptoms intensify. You trust God with your finances, but an unexpected bill comes. You step into a new occupation, and get hit with unexpected obstacles.

We assume that if God is in it, things should immediately get better. We assume that the presence of struggle means the absence of God. BUT, if we stop trusting God in that moment, you might walk away before you see the miracle.

The boy looked dead. The crowd thought it was over. But Jesus wasn’t finished.

Mark 9:27 (NLT2)
27  But Jesus took him by the hand and helped him to his feet, and he stood up.

One touch from Jesus, and the battle that looked like a loss, became a victory.

What if you are in that moment right now? What if things are feeling worse because the enemy wants you to give up before you see what God is about to do? Maybe today, your faith is being tested. I know for some of you the battle has been long, and you feel like things are getting worse instead of better. Do not walk away before a miracle happens.

Hold onto your imperfect faith. Keep praying. Keep trusting.

PRAYER ACTUALLY WORKS

When Jesus is finally alone with His disciples, they ask the question that has been bothering them…

Mark 9:28b (NLT2) 28  Why couldn’t we cast out that evil spirit?

Jesus points them to something they had neglected.

Prayer.

He says:

Mark 9:29 (NLT2) 29  Jesus replied, “This kind can be cast out only by prayer.”

This means the disciples had been trying to cast out the demon without praying. Think about that for a moment. They had done this before, so they thought they knew what to do. They had experience. They had seen results. They likely thought, “We’ve got this. We don’t need Jesus. But their past success made them overconfident in themselves. And Jesus calls them out for it.

This wasn’t about using the right words. It wasn’t about trying harder. It wasn’t about saying the name of Jesus louder. This was about dependence on God.

How many times do we make the same mistake? We try to fix the situation on our own before we ever take it to God. We step into the battle in our own strength and wonder why we are exhausted. We treat prayer like an emergency button instead of our first move.

Jesus reminds us today, some battles will never be won without prayer. Not because prayer is a ritual. Not because prayer is magic. But because prayer keeps us dependent on God.

When we pray, we are acknowledging, “God, I cannot do this without You.” When we pray, we are shifting the battle from our strength to His.

PRAYER ACTUALLY WORKS!

Maybe today, you feel like the disciples—you have tried everything, but you keep hitting a wall. Maybe you are in a battle, and nothing seems to be working. Maybe you have been relying on your own strength, your own wisdom, your own ability—and you are exhausted.

It is time to stop fighting in your own strength. It is time to stop trying to handle it on your own. It is time to pray. Because prayer actually works. So, I invite you to come forward to pray.  To cast all your anxiety, all your fears to God, because He cares for you. To Pour out your heart to God because he is a refuge for you.