Matthew 17:19-21 Working

Matthew 17:19-21 Working

Then the disciples came to Jesus in private and asked, (Suggests they were too embarrassed to admit their failure in front of the crowd.) “Why couldn’t we drive it out?” (The “We” suggests they were focusing on their own strength rather than on God. Or they were able and expected to do it, having done it before.-(Matt. 10:1, 8) yet here they couldn’t.)²⁰ He replied, “Because you have so little faith. (Distrust, skeptical, misplaced. Not that the disciples lacked faith, for they would not have tried to cast the demon out in the first place. But rather the misplacement of their faith, focusing on their own abilities, rather than on God’s power.)Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, (Lit. 1 millimeter. About the size of a sharp pencil point. Not in quantity, but in quality.) you can say to this mountain, (Mtn. Hermon.) ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you. (Expresses how even the smallest amount of faith rightly placed in God can accomplish the impossible. Not that God will grant us whatever we pray for. But only that which is in accordance to His will.) 21″[However, this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting.]”–(K.J.V.-Not found in the most authentic Greek MSS. Suggests victory in our Christian walk is dependent and rooted in a disciplined life of prayer, communion, and devotion to God.)

Continued From Book

“Teaches the wisest thing we can do is to take ownership of our failures and go to the Lord as to where we went wrong.” ⇒ The disciples may have failed to drive out the demon, but they did the right thing by coming to Jesus. When you fail in your Christian walk, come to Jesus. Talk it out with Him. Ask Him what’s wrong. Don’t be afraid. I know this is uncomfortable. Most people won’t do it because it can be painful to see where you’ve failed. But it’s an important step. Turning a blind eye to our weaknesses and failures is a surefire way to keep yourself from growing.

“Teaches it’s not the amount of faith, but the object of your faith. (Its not the size of your faith, but on the size of your God.)” ⇒ If you focus on your faith. You will never find the confidence you seek that way. After all, how much faith is enough faith? How do you know the quality or degree or depth of your faith? Where can you look to find confidence? Not in your faith, but in the object of your faith. Look to God. Trust that even when your faith is small He can still act. This isn’t to say that our faith is irrelevant or not important, but it shouldn’t be the focus of our attention. What we focus our eyes towards is a great God who can work even when our faith is small. To paint a better example is picture a frozen lake in front of you. And two people are going to walk across that lake. One is in a big strong box of great faith. The other is in a tiny box of weak faith. Which one is going to make it across the lake and why. It doesn’t really matter because it’s not about size of their box’s, but the thickness of the ice. At the end of the day It’s what your faith is in and on that matters!

“Displays how it’s not a lack of God’s power or willingness, but rather about our small-mindedness and misgivings.” ⇒ Often we say we have faith, but the truth is, we just really, really hope that the problem will solve itself.

“Even today, it’s not the quantity, but the quality of faith that matters. Its not about how hard you pray. It’s not about how you do ministry. But rather are you believing and acting on the power and authority of God. Do you believe God is who He says He is and can do what He says He can do” ⇒ Another good example between quantity and quantity is when it comes to reading and studying the bible. Do you read the bible just to check it off your daily list. It doesn’t change you, and you walk away the same person as before? Or while studying the bible if a word strikes you do, you allow it to change you and deepen your knowledge and faith of God?

More Notes & Applications

When Jesus talks about a mustard size faith that can move a mountain. He is not talking about what we think He’s talking about. That if we believe just a little bit harder we tell that Mountain to get out of the way. Have you ever tried that. Because if you had, you’d probably find out it just doesn’t work like that. Because what Jesus is really saying is “To trust is to obey”, that “Obedience” is what moves mountains. That a little obedience goes a long way. That it’s not about building up all this faith by praying, reading the bible, and going to church. But rather acting on what God has already said. Faith that moves mountains is obeying faith in doing what God says!

Note: Depending on the bible version you are using you may have noticed that verse 21 is omitted by some bible translations (e.g. NIV,  ESV ) While other translations (e.g. KJV, ASV) have verse 21 in brackets. The reason for this is that the earliest and best authentic Greek manuscripts do not have that verse in the book of Matthew. But because it is found in the book of Mark in the same story we know that the saying is authentic. It may have been an addition added later by some bible translations to clarify what Jesus is saying.