Glory to Jesus Christ! Glory forever!
In the Name of the Father, and of the + Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Today’s Gospel account follows closely on the heels of our Lord’s theophany on the Mount of Transfiguration on which He revealed His divine glory to His Disciples “as far as they could bear it” (Transfiguration Troparion). Having made the revelation of His divinity in all of its glorious majesty, our Lord descends the mountain, along with Peter, James, and John, to enter into the camp of the Disciples waiting for them, much like Moses when he had come down from his divine encounter on Mt. Sinai, returning to Israel encamped at the base of the mountain (Ex. 32:1-35). Today, however, it is not a mere man who comes to the waiting people, but the God-Man, Jesus Christ, the New Moses, the God-made-flesh, Who condescends to encounter man, to meet broken humanity in the depths of our degradation. The divine glory and majesty of our Lord, overwhelming as it had been on the mountain, is now veiled. It will be revealed, however, not as it had been in the Transfiguration which caused Peter, James, and John to fall to the ground overwhelmed by what they had seen. But, it will be made known this time in a more subdued manner in the healing of a sick young man possessed by the evil one.
By all accounts, the Disciples are clearly stumped by their failed efforts to free the demon-possessed youth. Previously, when Jesus had sent them out on a mission to spread the Kingdom of Heaven by preaching the Kingdom’s presence, healing the sick, cleansing lepers, raising the dead, and casting out demons, they did so with remarkable success (Mt. 10:5-15; Mk. 6:7-13; Lk. 9:1-6). But, now they failed when needed by a desperate father, and their failure created all sorts of concern and consternation for both them and for those gathered about, especially so for the father of the boy (Mk. 9:14-29).
This is what the transfigured Lord finds upon His return – a camp turned upside down in disarray and in turmoil (Mk. 9:14-29), with accusations flying about. “Lord, I brought my boy to Thy Disciples, but they couldn’t do anything for him! Lord, I beg of Thee to have mercy on my son who suffers severe spells of seizures and self-harm!” Our Lord’s immediate response is like that of God Who laments the hard-heartedness of ancient Israel and their faithless obstinance in light of all that He has done on their behalf. “’O faithless and perverse generation,’” cries our Lord, “’how long shall I be with you? How long shall I suffer you? Bring him hither to Me.’”
It is not absolutely clear just who our Lord is lamenting whether it be the apparent faithlessness of His Disciples or that of the father and all those who had crowded about, not out of faith but out of curiosity, whose concern wasn’t necessarily the tragic state of the possessed young man but moreso the lack of the Disciples’ ability to help. We should recall the frequent tense encounters of Jesus with those not interested in faith but who are into signs and miracles, who are looking for entertainment instead of discipleship. There’s a good chance that the father brought his son to Jesus and His Disciples as a last resort because nothing else worked and no one else knew what to do. Thus, it wasn’t faith in our Lord or in the true and living God of Israel that drove him, though to his credit he was compelled by the severe need of his child.
Perhaps this father isn’t unlike others who come to the Church because they’ve heard good things or because they don’t know what else to do or where to turn, but then become disillusioned and disappointed because of a lackluster encounter or because their expectations (whatever they may be) go unsatisfied and unfulfilled according to what they wanted much like the leper Namaan, whom you might recall, was initially not at all impressed with the proposed cure of his leprosy. He thought the Prophet of God would come out calling on God and waving his hands about like some magician. Instead, he had been instructed to go and wash seven times in the Jordan River where he would find healing. You might recall, Namaan nearly lost his opportunity for healing because of his irrational obstinacy had it not been for his faithful servants who reasoned with their master (4 Kg. [2 Kg.] 5:1-27). Such souls will invariably find fault with God or His Church or His methods when, in fact, their own faithlessness has contributed to the failed encounter!
We aren’t privy to the circumstances surrounding this boy’s spiritual and physical condition. To say the least, it is dire. Anytime someone is possessed by a demon, it isn’t good. Something has happened that has allowed the powers of evil, not simply to oppress him or harass him, but to possess him. Somewhere, somehow a door has been opened and permission given for evil to take up residence in this young man whether he gave the devil the opening or his family. Demons do not nor cannot simply take up residence willy-nilly without our permission. They can tempt us, try us, harass us, and oppress us. But, they can’t possess us without our opening the door to them through such things as dabbling in the occult, magick, and witchcraft; tarot cards, fortune tellers, Ouija Boards and other similar occult-like games focused on participants gaining spiritual powers from the “other side.”
At the same time, we can’t give the Disciples a free pass. Quite simply, they weren’t prepared. Previously in the Gospel, they had been able to relieve human suffering, but now they found themselves inexplicably unable to. We know lack of faith can stymie even Jesus Who is the God-made-flesh. It happened in His hometown of Nazareth “because of their unbelief,” the Gospel tells us (Mt. 13:58; Mk. 6:5). It certainly isn’t the case Jesus lacked authority or power. But, the people lacked the faith necessary to receive God’s active grace even though His grace was present in the Son of God. We can obstruct God from working in our lives. Faith in Him is absolutely essential, if not necessary. Somewhere, somehow the Disciples had allowed their faith in God to flag. Had they gotten caught up in the impressive stuff they had done in the Name of Jesus, thus misplacing their faith in themselves instead of in God Who had granted them such grace, or mistaking that they were the source of what they had accomplished instead of God? In doing so, they may even have become lax in their prayer and fasting, which is the strength of faith, the Fathers teach us. And, which Jesus points out.
Success can cause us to lose sight of God, as it may well have done to the Disciples. This is why the Fathers teach us that humility is our very best friend. It keeps us honest and focused on God and rightly-ordered spiritually. “Put not your trust in princes, in sons of men, in whom there is no salvation. When his breath departs, he returns to his earth; on that very day his plans perish.” But, “the Lord will reign forever, thy God, O Sion, to all generations” (Second Antiphon – Ps. 145 [146]). The successes in this world – as amazing as they might be and as intoxicating as they no doubt are – are nonetheless nothing more than a reed which, if leaned upon and trusted in, breaks, piercing the hand, says the Prophet (Is. 36:6).
Faith, beloved, is the power of the Christian. “’[F]aith as a mustard seed,’” Jesus says. Faith, no matter its size (for how does one quantify faith? What does a pound of faith look like? What does 12 inches of faith look like?). Faith, even the minutest perhaps by our standards, has great power, not because the power resides in faith, but faith and trust placed in the God Who is Power and Life can do great things for His glory and honor, praise and worship! If we have that kind of humble faith, strengthened by prayer and fasting, Jesus promises, we will be empowered to do what we thought not possible for the glory of God and His Kingdom.
Through the prayers of our holy Fathers, O Lord Jesus Christ our God, have mercy on us and save us. Amen.
Glory to Jesus Christ! Glory forever!
PROPERS:
1 Cr. 4:9-16
Mt. 17:14-23