Opposition To The Truth….

We are constantly surrounded with distractions and bombarded with things that oppose the truth. You may hear “it’s my truth”, but truth isn’t owned by any one person. Jesus is the truth. It’s when we align our lives and our thinking with His, that truth reveals itself. Truth isn’t a concept, it’s a Person. Everything thing about Jesus exudes truth. How we think, behave, our attitude, outlook, and our desires must line up with God’s ways, His character, and what He wants from us. The problem arises when we think we know better. We step into the role of God without having any of the qualifications necessary to fulfill the role. We can’t “fake it until we make it” with God. Our pride, our unbelief, our rebellion, and our selfishness, are what stand in the way of growing in Grace and deepening our faith. It’s not until we come to the realization of this truth that we can make progress is the sanctification process. It all starts with honesty, being honest with oneself. The father here in Mark chapter 9 gets reprimanded for questioning if Jesus can heal his demon-possessed son. When confronted by the Truth (Jesus), the man asks, “help me overcome my disbelief“. We all need to read this passage over and over again, until it starts to sink in. If we never understand the basics of salvation, then we will continue struggle for the rest of our lives trying to figure it out on our own. And worse yet, we have Satan trailing behind us, every where we go, trying to steal, kill, and destroy. Truth matters. Belief matters. These are the two core foundations of the Christian faith. We believe in the Truth. Without them, no one can stand firmly on the Solid Rock.

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.” Mark 9:14-29