WEBVTT 00:00:02.560 --> 00:00:05.200 Thank you for joining us on the CCW podcast. 00:00:05.440 --> 00:00:11.119 Make sure you connect with us on social media to stay up to date on ministries and events happening at CCW. 00:00:11.279 --> 00:00:15.039 We hope you're encouraged, inspired, and motivated by today's message. 00:00:15.199 --> 00:00:19.120 To find out how to connect with us, keep listening after the message ends. 00:00:27.120 --> 00:00:28.960 Church is always good. 00:00:30.000 --> 00:00:32.159 But something's different today. 00:00:32.479 --> 00:00:42.079 I can't tell you what it is, but something happened to me out there singing about the tears of the desperate at the feet of the Father. 00:00:43.039 --> 00:00:49.840 I have doubt a lot, but I do not doubt that God has ordained what is going on here today. 00:00:50.960 --> 00:00:58.960 I'm excited to be here to continue in the Gospel on the Ground series and talk to you about the gospel belief. 00:00:59.359 --> 00:01:02.960 And if you would turn in your Bibles to Mark chapter 9. 00:01:03.280 --> 00:01:06.879 We're going to be looking at verses 14 through 29. 00:01:07.840 --> 00:01:12.959 And I'm going to read it in its entirety first, and then we'll discuss. 00:01:13.680 --> 00:01:24.560 Mark chapter 9, verse 14, says this, and when he came to the disciples, he saw a great multitude around them, and scribes were disputing with them. 00:01:24.719 --> 00:01:29.920 And immediately when they saw him, all the people were greatly amazed, and running to him greeted him. 00:01:30.079 --> 00:01:33.200 And he asked the scribes, What are you discussing with them? 00:01:33.439 --> 00:01:41.040 Then one of the crowd answered and said, Teacher, I brought you my son, who has a mute spirit, and whenever it seizes him, it throws him down. 00:01:41.200 --> 00:01:45.519 He foams at the mouth, gnashes at his teeth, and becomes rigid. 00:01:45.760 --> 00:01:49.920 So I spoke to your disciples that they should cast it out, but they could not. 00:01:50.719 --> 00:01:55.200 He answered him and said, O faithless generation, how long shall I be with you? 00:01:55.439 --> 00:01:56.879 How long shall I bear with you? 00:01:57.040 --> 00:01:58.000 Bring him to me. 00:01:58.239 --> 00:02:06.319 And then they brought him to him, and when he saw him, immediately the spirit convulsed him, and he fell on the ground and wallowed, foaming at the mouth. 00:02:07.439 --> 00:02:10.879 So he asked the father, How long has this been happening to him? 00:02:11.120 --> 00:02:12.719 And he said, From childhood. 00:02:12.879 --> 00:02:17.439 And often he has thrown him both into the fire and into the water to destroy him. 00:02:17.599 --> 00:02:21.199 But if you can do anything, have compassion on us and help us. 00:02:21.759 --> 00:02:27.039 Jesus said to him, If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes. 00:02:27.280 --> 00:02:33.759 And immediately the father of the child cried out and said with tears, Lord, I believe. 00:02:34.080 --> 00:02:35.599 Help my unbelief. 00:02:36.240 --> 00:02:44.960 When Jesus saw that the people came running together, he rebuked the unclean spirit, saying to it, Deaf and dumb spirit, I command you, come out of him and enter him no more. 00:02:45.280 --> 00:02:54.560 And then the spirit cried out, convulsed him greatly, and came out of him, and he became as one dead, so that many said he is dead. 00:02:54.879 --> 00:02:58.800 But Jesus took him by the hand and lifted him up, and he arose. 00:02:58.879 --> 00:03:04.719 And when he had come into the house, his disciples asked him privately, why could we not cast it out? 00:03:05.199 --> 00:03:09.840 And so he said to them, This kind can come out by nothing but prayer and fasting. 00:03:10.159 --> 00:03:12.000 Will you pray with me today? 00:03:13.439 --> 00:03:20.240 Father God, I come to you today thanking you for the privilege to be here and to open your word and share your word. 00:03:20.479 --> 00:03:27.840 And God, I come here and just ask you to remove the distractions that may be here today. 00:03:27.919 --> 00:03:35.520 And God, I believe that you have a word of encouragement, a word of conviction, a word that may change someone's life. 00:03:35.599 --> 00:03:45.360 And if even one person receives that word today and changes, God, it will be worth everything that we have done here this morning. 00:03:45.599 --> 00:03:47.520 In Jesus' name, amen. 00:03:48.560 --> 00:03:53.439 So a story like this, I think the best place to start is to talk to you about mountains. 00:03:53.759 --> 00:03:56.960 We're going to the mountains next week, my family and I. 00:03:57.120 --> 00:03:59.759 We're going to look at some colleges and some mountains. 00:04:00.080 --> 00:04:01.360 We like mountains. 00:04:01.599 --> 00:04:05.439 We went to a mountain a couple of years ago in New Hampshire, Mount Washington. 00:04:05.520 --> 00:04:09.120 They say it's like the highest point east of the Mississippi or something like this. 00:04:09.199 --> 00:04:09.680 I don't know. 00:04:09.840 --> 00:04:17.839 What I do know is that we drove like 40 minutes on this road back and forth with a deep drop-off to get to the top of the mountain. 00:04:18.000 --> 00:04:26.720 And we made it up there, and now we like mountains, but we don't like them as much as the bedraggled looking people that we saw who had hiked to the top of the mountain. 00:04:27.040 --> 00:04:37.360 And it was cold up there, and the air was a little bit thinner, and the wind was blowing, and Luke was arguing with Ella because she wouldn't give him her jacket or something like this. 00:04:38.240 --> 00:04:43.360 And we were on Mount Washington and we saw the summit, and then we drove back down, and you have to rest your brakes on the way. 00:04:43.439 --> 00:04:46.480 I don't first time I ever had to rest my brakes, but it's a thing. 00:04:46.639 --> 00:04:54.720 And so we drove back down the mountain, and having that mountain experience last summer, we felt like we were equipped to go to Mount Rainier. 00:04:54.879 --> 00:04:59.600 And we were going to do some hiking at Mount Rainier in Washington State. 00:04:59.680 --> 00:05:07.279 And we get to Mount Rainier at the base camp, and it doesn't take long to realize that we don't have shoes like everybody else has at Mount Rainier. 00:05:07.600 --> 00:05:12.879 And as I start exploring this, I realize that Mount Rainier is training ground for Mount Everest. 00:05:13.279 --> 00:05:19.920 And so we drove a little bit up Mount Rainier in the snow in May, and we get to this thing called Paradise Valley. 00:05:20.079 --> 00:05:25.920 And we go up to Paradise Valley in a snowstorm and take a picture in front of what looks like a Christmas tree. 00:05:26.079 --> 00:05:28.720 I don't have the picture, but it was on Memorial Day. 00:05:28.800 --> 00:05:30.079 We took our Christmas picture. 00:05:30.319 --> 00:05:31.439 Mount Rainier. 00:05:31.839 --> 00:05:36.000 We like mountains, but we don't really know that much about mountains. 00:05:36.160 --> 00:05:40.399 What I love the most about the mountains, though, is definitely the view. 00:05:41.040 --> 00:05:44.800 Man, the world looks so perfect from the top of the mountain. 00:05:44.959 --> 00:05:53.360 You can't see the sin, you can't see the pain, you can't see the hurt and the dirt and the grime when you're up at the summit of the mountain looking out. 00:05:54.800 --> 00:06:00.079 But it's a fact of the matter that you can't stay on top of the mountain forever. 00:06:00.319 --> 00:06:03.279 But still, I want you to think about the majesty of the mountain. 00:06:03.360 --> 00:06:04.959 That's point one on your outline. 00:06:05.199 --> 00:06:07.519 The majesty of the mountain. 00:06:07.920 --> 00:06:19.519 I tell you about mountains because in verse 14, the Bible says, when Jesus came to his disciples, he saw a great multitude around them, and I asked the question, where is Jesus coming from? 00:06:19.759 --> 00:06:22.399 I thought that they all just kind of hung out together. 00:06:22.639 --> 00:06:31.120 But here, where this story picks up, Jesus, Peter, James, and John have been on a mountain, and it's the mountain where Jesus transfigured himself. 00:06:31.519 --> 00:06:40.639 And they have been up there meeting with Elijah and Moses, and Peter liked it so much up there, he says, Lord, why don't we just build three tabernacles up here? 00:06:41.040 --> 00:06:44.160 He was gonna stay because he liked it there. 00:06:44.240 --> 00:06:47.199 And then God came and said, This is my son. 00:06:47.680 --> 00:06:55.360 Listen to him, and then Moses and Elijah weren't there anymore, and they had to come back down the mountain. 00:06:56.399 --> 00:06:58.639 You can't stay on top of the mountain forever. 00:06:58.720 --> 00:07:08.160 And a lot of times in my experience, when I've had a pinnacle experience with the Lord, when I've been on the mountaintop, I don't just walk down onto flat ground. 00:07:08.399 --> 00:07:12.079 I come all the way down into the pit of somebody else's valley. 00:07:12.399 --> 00:07:19.279 And I think maybe that is the situation that Jesus and Peter and James and John are walking into here. 00:07:19.600 --> 00:07:26.160 When we read, he sees a great multitude around the disciples, and the scribes are disputing with them. 00:07:26.480 --> 00:07:29.120 Jesus reconvenes with nine disciples. 00:07:29.279 --> 00:07:33.199 He's been gone, and what have the disciples been getting into in the meantime? 00:07:33.439 --> 00:07:42.319 Well, there's a dispute, and it seems like the disciples have had the opportunity to publicly defend themselves in front of the scribes. 00:07:42.560 --> 00:07:45.839 And Jesus asked the scribes, what is this dispute about? 00:07:46.240 --> 00:07:59.519 Now we read dispute, and I don't know exactly what dispute means, but I do know that we had a pastor here before, Pastor Danny, and he always said that he and his wife, Miss Susan, never fought or argued. 00:07:59.839 --> 00:08:04.000 But sometimes they would have conversations that the neighbors could overhear. 00:08:05.680 --> 00:08:13.439 And I just wonder maybe if the disciples and the scribes are having conversations that you could hear down the street, this dispute. 00:08:13.680 --> 00:08:15.680 It seems like that to me. 00:08:16.399 --> 00:08:21.199 Number two, in your outline, this is a disaster for the disciples. 00:08:21.439 --> 00:08:23.519 They're in the middle of a disaster. 00:08:23.759 --> 00:08:26.000 Jesus asked, What's the dispute about? 00:08:26.160 --> 00:08:39.039 And before the scribes can answer, a man steps forward in verse 18 and he says, I brought my son who has a mute spirit to the disciples to cast it out, but they could not cast it out. 00:08:39.440 --> 00:08:49.519 And I just believe that when the disciples couldn't heal this man's son, the scribes were right there questioning whether or not they really had any power. 00:08:49.679 --> 00:08:54.080 And the scribes were right there, probably saying we ought to kill these false prophets. 00:08:54.240 --> 00:09:04.159 The Bible doesn't tell us that, but when I read all this together, the disciples couldn't do it, and now the scribes are arguing with him in front of a crowd, and here Jesus walks into this. 00:09:05.039 --> 00:09:06.240 It's a disaster. 00:09:06.399 --> 00:09:10.000 And make no mistake, now the disciples had been given power before. 00:09:10.159 --> 00:09:16.960 In Mark chapter 3, the Bible tells us that they were given power to heal the sick and to cast out demons, and they had done it. 00:09:17.120 --> 00:09:22.000 In Mark chapter 6, they report back that we've been healing the sick and casting out demons. 00:09:22.240 --> 00:09:23.120 You know what they had? 00:09:23.200 --> 00:09:31.759 They had a track record of success, they had solid experience, they trusted their ability. 00:09:32.080 --> 00:09:40.799 So when I think about this scene here, the man brings his son to the disciples, and Jesus isn't there. 00:09:41.440 --> 00:09:43.919 And I wonder what happened, because Peter wasn't there. 00:09:44.000 --> 00:09:47.440 I know what would have happened if Peter was there, but Peter was on the mountain trying to build a tabernacle. 00:09:47.600 --> 00:09:49.200 So I wonder if Matthew went first. 00:09:49.279 --> 00:09:54.399 And they brought the child to him, and Matthew laid his hand on the child's head and said, Be healed. 00:09:55.279 --> 00:09:56.879 But he wasn't healed. 00:09:57.200 --> 00:10:02.639 And so he called Bartholomew, be healed, no healing. 00:10:03.039 --> 00:10:04.399 I don't know what's going on, man. 00:10:04.480 --> 00:10:05.759 We've done this a lot. 00:10:06.159 --> 00:10:08.240 Judas, think about that. 00:10:08.720 --> 00:10:14.879 Judas is part of these nine disciples who've been casting out demons and healing. 00:10:15.039 --> 00:10:17.919 And when it didn't work, and there's hot water. 00:10:19.039 --> 00:10:23.120 What do you do when what's always worked stops working? 00:10:24.720 --> 00:10:29.279 What do you do when the way you've always done things doesn't get the results anymore? 00:10:29.759 --> 00:10:31.840 Are you willing to change? 00:10:33.039 --> 00:10:35.679 Or do you just keep doing it the way you've always done it? 00:10:35.919 --> 00:10:39.440 These disciples definitely had confidence in their own ability. 00:10:40.159 --> 00:10:41.039 They had done it. 00:10:41.279 --> 00:10:43.279 They knew exactly what to do. 00:10:43.759 --> 00:10:50.000 And I know this, I believe confidence in my own ability inhibits my prayer life. 00:10:50.720 --> 00:10:58.080 Because if I know that I can do it, I don't always necessarily have to pray. 00:10:59.200 --> 00:11:01.679 And I think that's what's going on with these guys. 00:11:01.919 --> 00:11:09.279 When the man brings his son, they can't cast out the demon, the scribes gather around, the crowd gathers around. 00:11:09.600 --> 00:11:11.759 Thank goodness Jesus shows up. 00:11:12.320 --> 00:11:15.039 Number three, the condition of the child. 00:11:15.840 --> 00:11:19.919 The father tells the condition of the child in verses 17 and 18. 00:11:20.159 --> 00:11:30.080 He has a mute spirit, doesn't talk, seizes him, throws him to the ground, gnashes his teeth, foams at the mouth, and becomes rigid. 00:11:30.320 --> 00:11:36.399 From what I understand, medicine will tell you that this looks like a grandma seizure, like epilepsy. 00:11:36.639 --> 00:11:44.000 In fact, in Matthew's account of this story, chapter 17, verse 15 of Matthew, the father tells Jesus this. 00:11:44.399 --> 00:11:48.480 He says, My son is epileptic and suffers severely. 00:11:48.559 --> 00:11:55.919 So epilepsy was a thing, but the devil, through his demons, is using this medical condition of the child. 00:11:56.240 --> 00:12:02.960 I think the biggest support of this is in verse 22, the spirit throws him into the fire and the water. 00:12:03.200 --> 00:12:07.679 I've seen a couple of seizures, and they are not like magnetized to fire and water. 00:12:07.840 --> 00:12:13.440 So the demon is using the condition that the child is in, trying to destroy the child. 00:12:13.840 --> 00:12:20.320 Luke chapter 9 goes on to tell us that the spirit comes and goes with great difficulty, bruising the child. 00:12:20.799 --> 00:12:31.279 And then this man comes out of the crowd, and the disciples haven't been able to fix it, even though they thought they should have been able to. 00:12:32.480 --> 00:12:39.440 And he talks to Jesus, and I believe that he's just helpless, desperate, and completely vulnerable. 00:12:40.240 --> 00:12:46.559 And Matthew chapter 17, verse 14 tells us that he kneeled down and begged for mercy. 00:12:47.759 --> 00:12:53.279 He kneeled down in the crowd with the fight going on around him, and he begged for mercy. 00:12:54.720 --> 00:12:59.600 Where the tears of the desperate meet the feet of the Savior. 00:13:00.000 --> 00:13:02.000 That's what we see right here. 00:13:03.039 --> 00:13:10.240 He's crying out, begging for mercy, with the scribes and the disciples arguing all around him. 00:13:10.799 --> 00:13:16.320 Public place, not worried what anybody thinks, not worried what anybody says. 00:13:16.799 --> 00:13:18.799 He takes a submissive stance. 00:13:18.960 --> 00:13:23.120 That's number four on your outline today, a submissive stance. 00:13:23.519 --> 00:13:24.960 He's desperate. 00:13:25.759 --> 00:13:27.679 And I don't like desperate. 00:13:27.919 --> 00:13:33.039 I try very hard to structure my life so that I don't have to fool with a lot of desperate. 00:13:33.519 --> 00:13:40.879 I wear my seatbelt, go to the gym, get checkups, try to eat, right, and exercise. 00:13:41.120 --> 00:13:42.720 I got some coverage. 00:13:43.039 --> 00:13:47.039 I know who to call when the thing goes sideways. 00:13:48.879 --> 00:13:52.480 And I think that keeps me from taking a submissive stance. 00:13:53.200 --> 00:13:58.879 It's been 22 years ago since Amanda and I were shopping for our first house. 00:13:59.120 --> 00:14:03.600 I was young and full of energy, and I knew just what I wanted. 00:14:03.840 --> 00:14:05.600 I wanted a three-bedroom house. 00:14:05.679 --> 00:14:07.519 I wanted it in a good school district. 00:14:07.679 --> 00:14:11.120 I'd like an acre of flat land with green grass if possible. 00:14:11.360 --> 00:14:13.679 Wanted two bathrooms, but I would settle for one. 00:14:13.840 --> 00:14:16.080 It would be great if it had a basement. 00:14:16.639 --> 00:14:20.720 And we wanted to get all of this for about$84,000,$85,000. 00:14:23.039 --> 00:14:24.240 But I was determined. 00:14:24.320 --> 00:14:28.000 And we looked at houses from Locust Fork to Million Dollar Lakes. 00:14:28.159 --> 00:14:32.080 From Blunt County all the way to Tuscaloosa, all over Jefferson County. 00:14:32.240 --> 00:14:36.399 Didn't dip into Shelby County because there was nothing for 84-9 down here then. 00:14:38.399 --> 00:14:39.759 Twenty years ago. 00:14:40.000 --> 00:14:48.399 Finally, Amanda got wore out, and the poor little real estate agent that we were working with, he said, I just, you got to find some stuff and then we'll go look at it. 00:14:48.559 --> 00:14:54.720 So on a Friday, I pulled from the Realty South website, because it worked different on the internet back then. 00:14:54.879 --> 00:14:57.759 So I went to the Realty South website and I got my papers. 00:14:57.919 --> 00:15:03.039 Nine things I was going to go look at, and I plugged all those addresses into MapQuest, and I got my papers. 00:15:03.120 --> 00:15:10.080 And I go out that next Saturday morning all alone with my stack of papers, and I have to go find us a house. 00:15:10.480 --> 00:15:26.720 And the first one I come up to in Gardendale, which is where I said I would never live, is on a dead-end street by a nursing home, and it's a little white house, and it's got like an acre and a half of flat green grass surrounded by woods. 00:15:27.039 --> 00:15:30.639 And it was like the haze lifted, and here's this house. 00:15:30.879 --> 00:15:33.279 Now, this house was an L-shaped house. 00:15:33.440 --> 00:15:48.399 You walk into the house, into the kitchen, you've got the living room over here, and then you go down and you've got on the left in the hallway the bathroom, and then you've got the door that leads to the basement, and then it turns right, and you've got three bedrooms down the back of the house. 00:15:48.559 --> 00:15:50.960 The farthest one on the end was the master. 00:15:51.039 --> 00:15:58.240 And I know it was the master because it had a five-foot by five foot ensuite with a two and a half foot shower. 00:15:58.960 --> 00:16:00.000 It was just right. 00:16:00.159 --> 00:16:07.759 Three bedrooms, two baths, good school district, big bunch of greengrass, basement that was a little bit dungeon-esque. 00:16:07.919 --> 00:16:13.519 Like you go down wood steps and it's got like a half wall, so if you go about three steps and trip, you could fall straight to the floor. 00:16:13.679 --> 00:16:19.200 Alright, cinder walk, cinder block, concrete floor, that's where the washer and dryer was. 00:16:20.000 --> 00:16:31.440 And we were gonna renovate this thing because the lady who owned the house was in nursing home, and her kids were selling it, and it was going into the estate 84-9. 00:16:32.480 --> 00:16:38.960 So we got the house, and for our wedding, we got$3,000 worth of Lowe's and Home Depot gift cards. 00:16:39.039 --> 00:16:42.720 And they used to send you this little 10% off coupon when you moved. 00:16:42.799 --> 00:16:49.519 So we held on to that thing, and right before it expired, we carried all of our gift cards up to Lowe's on a Friday night, and we filled up like eight buggies. 00:16:50.080 --> 00:16:53.519 And we got 10% off, like$350 off of$3,500. 00:16:53.600 --> 00:16:54.320 It was amazing. 00:16:54.480 --> 00:16:56.240 We put it all in the basement in a couple of weeks. 00:16:56.320 --> 00:17:00.559 It rained real hard and the basement leaked because that's what it did. 00:17:01.360 --> 00:17:03.120 But we had our house. 00:17:04.000 --> 00:17:11.839 My grandmother, Nana, she lived in Gardendale in a place called Peachtree, a mobile home community. 00:17:12.000 --> 00:17:16.960 And she was super excited that we lived in Gardendale because we could see each other more than we had before. 00:17:17.119 --> 00:17:21.920 And she would come out and like pick up sticks in her yard and check her mail if we weren't there and all this kind of stuff. 00:17:22.079 --> 00:17:31.440 And we'd been living there about a year, and long about September of 2004, the whole state was like preparing for hurricanes. 00:17:31.680 --> 00:17:35.359 And I was kind of mad because I didn't like to have to think about hurricanes. 00:17:35.440 --> 00:17:38.160 Like I'm a tornado guy, but hurricanes? 00:17:38.640 --> 00:17:40.000 Hurricane Ivan? 00:17:40.960 --> 00:17:44.960 And Nana called and said, Hey, can I come stay with y'all for the hurricane? 00:17:45.039 --> 00:17:46.720 I don't want to stay in my mobile home. 00:17:46.960 --> 00:17:50.160 And I was thrilled that she was gonna come and stay with us. 00:17:50.480 --> 00:17:57.200 So we filled up like a five-gallon thing of water, and we had some oil lamps and some matches and maybe some beanie weenies or something. 00:17:57.279 --> 00:17:57.599 I don't know. 00:17:57.680 --> 00:18:02.559 We weren't that far away from being prepping for the Y2K, so I knew how to do that. 00:18:02.960 --> 00:18:05.680 We had dinner, and we see the winds coming. 00:18:05.759 --> 00:18:16.240 You could see them blowing the trees, and we went to bed, and long about midnight, I believe it was, I heard what sounded like a tree fall on the house. 00:18:16.400 --> 00:18:20.559 And I jumped up and I ran down to Nana's room. 00:18:20.799 --> 00:18:21.759 No tree. 00:18:22.559 --> 00:18:23.680 But no Nana. 00:18:24.799 --> 00:18:32.960 And from her room, I could see down the hallway and that basement door, we had not latched it open or latched it closed. 00:18:33.039 --> 00:18:48.480 And she got up in the middle of the night thinking that it was the bathroom, and in the dark, she stepped off down eight steps around a landing, falling down onto the concrete floor. 00:18:49.119 --> 00:18:55.359 And I ran downstairs and I called for Amanda to call 911. 00:18:56.160 --> 00:19:06.880 And here is my grandmother, Nana, the one who always dried my tears and bandaged my boo-boos, and the one who always took the fear away and told me that it was gonna be okay. 00:19:07.119 --> 00:19:16.799 And she's laying here on the basement floor at my house, and she looks up at me with terror in her eyes, and she says, David, help me. 00:19:18.319 --> 00:19:20.000 And she was 82. 00:19:22.240 --> 00:19:23.680 I called Amanda. 00:19:24.400 --> 00:19:26.079 Amanda called 911. 00:19:26.400 --> 00:19:31.839 I stayed down with Nana holding her hand, resisting the urge to get her up because I'm dumb and I would have done that. 00:19:32.160 --> 00:19:36.640 Patting her head, telling her it was all gonna be okay. 00:19:37.519 --> 00:19:39.599 Telling her it was all gonna be okay. 00:19:40.319 --> 00:19:44.799 Well, the paramedics got there, and thank goodness, thank you, Lord. 00:19:45.279 --> 00:19:49.599 One of the paramedics was my sister-in-law's brother-in-law. 00:19:49.680 --> 00:19:50.880 That may sound complicated. 00:19:51.039 --> 00:19:56.240 He was married to my sister-in-law's sister, and they were close, like he had been to Thanksgiving, right? 00:19:56.400 --> 00:19:58.000 We had seen him a couple of weeks before. 00:19:58.160 --> 00:20:02.400 He knew that this was not just some lady laid in a floor, this was Nana. 00:20:03.519 --> 00:20:14.160 And so I went upstairs, I left them alone, and I got down on my knees in the bedroom with my head on the bed where Nana had been sleeping. 00:20:14.400 --> 00:20:18.000 And I said, Please, Lord, help Nana. 00:20:19.039 --> 00:20:22.319 Please, Jesus, let her be okay. 00:20:24.799 --> 00:20:33.119 Complete helplessness, complete desperation, submissive stance, crying out to God. 00:20:33.680 --> 00:20:39.119 They loaded her in the ambulance, and we had to go to Princeton Hospital all the way across the city. 00:20:39.200 --> 00:20:42.799 We passed like five hospitals to get to Princeton because that's where her doctor was. 00:20:44.079 --> 00:20:51.279 I followed the ambulance in my car, and that storm that was so big didn't matter anymore. 00:20:53.759 --> 00:20:56.000 Because there was nothing I could do. 00:20:57.519 --> 00:21:10.000 And I think that that was the last time that I got down on my knees desperately begging God to do something that I couldn't do because I don't like being desperate. 00:21:10.319 --> 00:21:12.880 And that's what I see with this father here. 00:21:13.039 --> 00:21:22.880 He's crying out, he's begging Jesus to do something completely submissive, no matter what anybody has to say or thinks. 00:21:24.000 --> 00:21:31.519 And Jesus, interestingly enough, says this, O faithless generation, how long shall I be with you? 00:21:31.680 --> 00:21:33.680 How long shall I bear with you? 00:21:34.079 --> 00:21:35.759 This man's kneeled down in front of you. 00:21:36.400 --> 00:21:37.039 What? 00:21:37.359 --> 00:21:38.880 Who's Jesus talking to here? 00:21:38.960 --> 00:21:41.119 Surely he's not talking to this man. 00:21:41.440 --> 00:21:43.279 And I don't think he's talking to the scribes. 00:21:43.440 --> 00:21:44.960 Everybody knows they don't have any faith. 00:21:45.440 --> 00:21:48.319 I think Jesus is talking to his disciples. 00:21:49.279 --> 00:21:53.440 Because, see, this miracle is a transition point for the disciples. 00:21:53.599 --> 00:21:59.599 They've been with Jesus, they've seen some things that Jesus does, they've watched him do mighty things, but they're headed into a time. 00:22:00.160 --> 00:22:03.519 Where they're going to need to believe things that they do not see. 00:22:04.640 --> 00:22:08.480 And they're not going to be able to rely on their track record and their ability. 00:22:08.640 --> 00:22:10.799 They're going to have to have faith. 00:22:11.839 --> 00:22:15.039 Jesus tells his disciples over and over that they have to have faith. 00:22:15.200 --> 00:22:20.319 Here he says, Oh, faithless generation, but in Matthew chapter 6, he says, Oh, you of little faith. 00:22:20.559 --> 00:22:22.400 Matthew chapter 8, oh you of little faith. 00:22:22.559 --> 00:22:24.319 Matthew 14, oh you of little faith. 00:22:24.559 --> 00:22:27.440 Matthew 16 and Luke 12, oh you of little faith. 00:22:27.599 --> 00:22:32.799 It seems like one of the things the disciples who were walking with Jesus heard the most was, oh you of little faith. 00:22:33.839 --> 00:22:39.279 And after this rebuke of his disciples, Jesus tells them to bring the boy. 00:22:39.680 --> 00:22:41.680 Bring him to me, verse 20. 00:22:41.920 --> 00:22:51.599 And the Bible says, when he brought the boy, the demon saw Jesus and he convulsed and wallowed on the ground, foaming at the mouth. 00:22:52.559 --> 00:22:58.720 And with all this going on, Jesus asked the Father, How long has this been happening? 00:23:00.480 --> 00:23:02.400 Why in the world will he need to know that? 00:23:02.640 --> 00:23:05.119 Like if it's been three years, I can't do anything. 00:23:05.359 --> 00:23:07.440 If it's only been a couple of days, I'm good. 00:23:07.680 --> 00:23:10.720 Why does Jesus need to know how long has this been going on? 00:23:12.559 --> 00:23:13.759 I'm going to tell you this. 00:23:13.920 --> 00:23:16.799 I think Jesus wants to be more than just our fixer. 00:23:18.000 --> 00:23:25.920 I think Jesus wants to be our listener and the one we tell our story to and the one who empathizes with us. 00:23:26.240 --> 00:23:29.839 He can fix it, but he doesn't want to just be that. 00:23:30.079 --> 00:23:33.759 And so he asked this father to find out how long has it been going on. 00:23:34.000 --> 00:23:37.759 He wants to hear from you, even if there ain't nothing to fix. 00:23:39.119 --> 00:23:49.680 And the father tells him this the father says, since he was a child, and the demon cast him into the fire and the water to destroy. 00:23:51.119 --> 00:23:54.240 Verse 9, chapter 9, verse 22. 00:23:54.559 --> 00:23:59.440 The end, the father has this strange thing that he tells Jesus. 00:23:59.599 --> 00:24:05.920 He says, But if there is anything you can do, have compassion on us and help us. 00:24:06.400 --> 00:24:11.920 Kneeled in front of Jesus, crying out, Jesus, if there is anything you can do. 00:24:19.920 --> 00:24:33.200 God, I know you're willing and I know you can, but even if you can't, I think what the Father is saying right here is he's saying, Jesus, I know you would, but I'm not sure if you can. 00:24:34.720 --> 00:24:37.680 I think he has a feeble faith. 00:24:38.079 --> 00:24:39.839 That's number five on your outline. 00:24:39.920 --> 00:24:43.759 The Father has a feeble faith, and we all have a feeble faith. 00:24:44.559 --> 00:24:48.319 Jesus, I know you would, but I don't know if you even can help. 00:24:48.799 --> 00:24:56.880 And I've thought about this man's wavering belief, this feeble faith, and why he got so destroyed. 00:24:57.119 --> 00:25:04.960 And all I can think of is that the man's faith was shaken because of his interaction with Jesus' people. 00:25:07.279 --> 00:25:11.440 His faith was decreased by what happened with the disciples. 00:25:11.839 --> 00:25:16.079 He brought his son, they couldn't do it, even though they had done it a hundred times before. 00:25:16.319 --> 00:25:19.599 They worked in their own power and experience and ability. 00:25:20.240 --> 00:25:21.200 Didn't work. 00:25:21.359 --> 00:25:24.960 And now we have this man questioning whether God can even do it. 00:25:27.200 --> 00:25:33.599 God, I pray that my words and actions don't do anything to diminish anyone's faith. 00:25:34.000 --> 00:25:47.680 If it's possible, I would love to help people have their faith increased through what I do and say, but please, Lord, don't let me be a hindrance or a stumbling block so that people will leave me with less faith than they started. 00:25:49.920 --> 00:25:57.200 Jesus responds to the man and he says, If you can believe, all things are possible to those who believe. 00:25:58.160 --> 00:26:03.039 Some of the earliest transcripts read differently on this, and some of your Bibles may. 00:26:03.200 --> 00:26:08.880 Some Bibles say, if you can, believe, all things are possible to him who believes. 00:26:08.960 --> 00:26:10.480 It's almost like Jesus is taken back. 00:26:10.640 --> 00:26:14.319 If you can, all things are possible to him who believes. 00:26:16.000 --> 00:26:20.319 Let's not forget, while we're doing all this talking, there's a boy rolling around convulsing on the ground. 00:26:20.559 --> 00:26:22.160 That's still happening here. 00:26:22.640 --> 00:26:27.519 And the Father cries out this honest and sincere prayer. 00:26:28.559 --> 00:26:32.160 He says, Lord, I believe, help my unbelief. 00:26:32.640 --> 00:26:38.000 And I think we should pray this prayer every day unless you have perfect belief. 00:26:38.240 --> 00:26:44.720 Lord, I believe, help my unbelief, forgive my unbelief, strengthen my unbelief, reduce my unbelief. 00:26:44.880 --> 00:26:46.559 God, help my unbelief. 00:26:49.759 --> 00:26:52.000 Thank you, God, for this story. 00:26:52.720 --> 00:26:56.480 And thank you for this principle that our belief does not have to be perfect. 00:26:56.799 --> 00:26:59.039 It does not even have to be good. 00:27:01.119 --> 00:27:04.160 And you will meet us where we are. 00:27:04.480 --> 00:27:09.839 We see that from this man on his knees crying out with his feeble faith. 00:27:12.559 --> 00:27:15.599 Number six, the bolstered belief. 00:27:18.960 --> 00:27:20.960 The crowd comes running. 00:27:22.079 --> 00:27:28.799 Jesus rebukes the spirit and he says, Deaf and dumb spirit come out of him and enter him no more. 00:27:28.960 --> 00:27:38.079 It's important that Jesus says, enter him no more, because you see in Matthew chapter 12, sometimes when a spirit leaves a house, it will go find seven more wicked than itself and come back. 00:27:38.160 --> 00:27:44.319 So Jesus doesn't just clean the house, he locks the door with this young boy as the crowd is gathering. 00:27:45.599 --> 00:27:50.319 What Jesus does for this father who's saying, Lord, I believe, help my unbelief. 00:27:51.200 --> 00:27:52.880 He helps his unbelief. 00:27:53.759 --> 00:27:56.640 It doesn't anger Jesus that the man is doubting. 00:27:56.880 --> 00:28:00.000 In fact, Jesus does something to prop up his belief. 00:28:00.079 --> 00:28:05.119 He does something to shore it up, to make it a little more firm, a little more sturdy. 00:28:06.319 --> 00:28:09.200 He does it in the form of a miracle. 00:28:10.000 --> 00:28:12.880 And I think Jesus still does that today. 00:28:13.279 --> 00:28:18.960 I think the way God bolsters belief is by doing the unbelievable. 00:28:20.160 --> 00:28:24.880 We see it in the Bible, and you see it in your life if you look around. 00:28:25.200 --> 00:28:26.799 You know some of these stories. 00:28:27.039 --> 00:28:32.240 I don't know what happened between the first scan and the second scan, but it's not there. 00:28:33.279 --> 00:28:36.319 The power bill was due and we didn't have any money. 00:28:36.720 --> 00:28:45.920 The day they were coming to cut it off, it was$307.25, and for some reason there was a check in the mailbox that morning for$307 and 25 cents. 00:28:47.279 --> 00:29:06.880 I was in Georgia a few weeks ago when I still had my boot on at this pastor's conference, and there were some young dudes there that were like running around, and I was determined that I would not be knee scootering around this hotel, and I was not going to use my crutch, but they didn't let me out of the boot. 00:29:07.200 --> 00:29:14.079 So I'm limping down this long corridor to the registration table. 00:29:15.119 --> 00:29:18.720 And there's an old man who's up there and he's limping too. 00:29:19.599 --> 00:29:22.720 And he didn't know it, but we entered a limp race. 00:29:26.880 --> 00:29:30.079 And I got up and was about to pass him on the left. 00:29:33.839 --> 00:29:36.720 And he looked over at me and said, What happened to you? 00:29:36.960 --> 00:29:42.799 And I told him about my foot surgery and crooked toes and all this, and gonna get out of it in a couple of weeks. 00:29:42.960 --> 00:29:44.319 And I said, What happened to you? 00:29:44.400 --> 00:29:45.759 And he said, Well, I had surgery too. 00:29:45.839 --> 00:29:49.200 He said, I got this limp after my brain cancer surgery. 00:29:49.440 --> 00:29:50.880 His name's Bobby Jones. 00:29:50.960 --> 00:29:52.400 He's from Dublin, Georgia. 00:29:52.640 --> 00:30:01.359 And Bobby had brain cancer surgery and come out of it with a limp, but that was okay because the doctor said that he only had eight to twelve months to live if the surgery went well. 00:30:01.599 --> 00:30:03.359 But what had happened was while Mr. 00:30:03.440 --> 00:30:09.039 Jones was in the operating room, some angels showed up and told him that wasn't how it was going to be. 00:30:09.279 --> 00:30:16.960 And so whenever he finished up his chemo and radiation and surgery in 2019, he became a chaplain. 00:30:18.000 --> 00:30:22.640 And now he's got this limp, and everybody that asks him about it, he tells about how good God is. 00:30:23.920 --> 00:30:30.720 I met with a man just this week, 44 years ago, in rehab. 00:30:31.279 --> 00:30:36.720 I think he'd been in and out of jail, and he said the drugs had this obsession on me. 00:30:36.960 --> 00:30:40.640 And he told me straight up, Dave, I don't know what else to do. 00:30:40.960 --> 00:30:43.359 I didn't know who else to ask. 00:30:44.240 --> 00:30:51.119 And I told Jesus, Jesus, if you'll take this obsession away from me, I'll walk through anything you give me. 00:30:52.400 --> 00:30:54.240 44 years ago. 00:30:54.720 --> 00:30:56.160 He's in the room. 00:30:56.480 --> 00:31:03.039 Two years ago, he retired from being the executive director of that very rehab where Jesus changed his life. 00:31:03.359 --> 00:31:05.279 Miracles are all around, guys. 00:31:05.599 --> 00:31:12.319 God's given us stuff to bolster our belief if we just look and pay attention. 00:31:13.359 --> 00:31:19.920 We got to Princeton that night with Nana, and they took her in on the spine board to the emergency room. 00:31:20.079 --> 00:31:28.640 My brothers and my wives, and we gathered together and we prayed, cried, talked, waiting to see how bad it was going to be. 00:31:29.119 --> 00:31:36.079 The Bible tells me in James chapter 5, verse 16, that the effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much. 00:31:36.480 --> 00:31:39.440 And I can't tell you that that's true or not. 00:31:39.759 --> 00:31:58.480 But I can tell you from my experience, on that day, September 17th, 2004, the down on his knees, helpless, desperate, completely vulnerable, crying out prayer of a 25-year-old punk kid was heard, and it was answered, and it availed much. 00:31:58.559 --> 00:32:15.279 Because about 4 o'clock that morning, the doctor came out to see us, and they had run CT scans and ultrasounds and all kind of whatever blood work, and Nana didn't have a single break, and Nana didn't have any head trauma, and Nana didn't have a concussion, and she didn't have any internal bleeding. 00:32:15.519 --> 00:32:17.279 Nana had nothing. 00:32:18.640 --> 00:32:23.039 And about two hours later, they told me they were gonna send her home. 00:32:23.200 --> 00:32:26.000 And I said, No, because you don't get it. 00:32:26.079 --> 00:32:27.599 She just fell down the stairs. 00:32:27.680 --> 00:32:30.559 And I'm arguing with these doctors, and you know what it was? 00:32:30.799 --> 00:32:33.279 God had answered my prayer, and I did not believe it. 00:32:34.720 --> 00:32:44.160 Sometimes it can be hard while you're waiting on God to answer your prayers, but sometimes when he answers them, it Nana went home that day. 00:32:46.079 --> 00:32:51.680 And she stayed with my brother because I wasn't responsible enough to keep. 00:32:52.960 --> 00:32:54.480 They locked their basement door. 00:32:54.559 --> 00:32:56.400 I invited them here today, they're here. 00:32:56.720 --> 00:32:57.759 Say hey to my brother. 00:32:57.839 --> 00:32:59.920 He's the older, better looking version of me. 00:33:02.000 --> 00:33:03.279 They stayed with them. 00:33:03.440 --> 00:33:15.279 She stayed with them a couple of weeks, and then she went back home, and then she started walking and cleaning and cooking and driving again, and she lived by herself independently for eight more years. 00:33:15.680 --> 00:33:20.960 Until her heart finally just gave out a little after her 90th birthday. 00:33:23.519 --> 00:33:29.279 God does the unbelievable to bolster our belief. 00:33:29.519 --> 00:33:31.119 So, what's your story? 00:33:32.000 --> 00:33:36.799 Do you have a story of the goodness and the mercy and the compassion of the Savior? 00:33:37.039 --> 00:33:42.640 A story that it's so hard for you to believe you don't even think you ought to share it. 00:33:43.279 --> 00:33:45.759 Do you share it over and over again? 00:33:46.079 --> 00:33:51.039 You know, a lot of you guys have known me a long time, and many of you have never heard that story. 00:33:52.079 --> 00:33:55.039 And I think the reason is is because I'm embarrassed. 00:33:55.359 --> 00:34:01.759 I'm embarrassed that I haven't gotten down and desperately prayed like that again, even though I saw the miracle that God did in my life. 00:34:02.000 --> 00:34:11.599 And I think the devil will use your embarrassment, and he'll use your doubt to keep you from telling your story. 00:34:11.679 --> 00:34:16.480 Because the stories are there to bolster belief. 00:34:16.719 --> 00:34:19.840 The devil can't do anything about the story, but he can shut our mouth. 00:34:21.119 --> 00:34:22.239 What's your story? 00:34:22.480 --> 00:34:23.599 Do you have one? 00:34:24.079 --> 00:34:26.559 I pray that you'll have an Acts 420 story. 00:34:26.639 --> 00:34:29.599 Oh, we can't help but speak of what we've seen and heard. 00:34:30.159 --> 00:34:33.199 Because there are people out here with feeble faith. 00:34:34.800 --> 00:34:35.599 Shaken. 00:34:35.760 --> 00:34:39.360 And you might just be the way God is helping someone's unbelief. 00:34:41.119 --> 00:34:45.760 In verse 26, we see this. 00:34:46.159 --> 00:34:53.119 The Spirit cried out and convulsed him greatly, came out of him, and he became as one dead, so that many said he is dead. 00:34:55.519 --> 00:34:56.960 He looks dead. 00:34:57.199 --> 00:35:00.480 The miracle sure doesn't look like the miracle at first, does it? 00:35:00.719 --> 00:35:03.119 I'm sure the scribes had something to say about it. 00:35:03.199 --> 00:35:04.960 Oh, Jesus has killed him. 00:35:05.440 --> 00:35:06.800 Be my guess. 00:35:07.920 --> 00:35:10.639 But then Jesus reached down and took the boy by the hand. 00:35:10.800 --> 00:35:13.440 Now keep in mind, Jesus didn't have to take him by the hand. 00:35:13.840 --> 00:35:17.599