Daily Devotional For Monday, December 15, 2025
Good morning! It is a frigid cold one with this winter vortex. Thank you for taking the time to read and meditate on these devotionals. We are making our way through the Gospel of Matthew, taking it slowly so we can glean from it the depth of God’s truth for us. We are currently in Matthew 17 and today we are looking at part 2 of Matthew 17:14-21:
“When they came to the crowd, a man came up to Jesus, falling on his knees before Him and saying, (15) ‘Lord, have mercy on my son, for he is a lunatic and is very ill; for he often falls into the fire and often into the water. (16) I brought him to Your disciples, and they could not cure him.’ 17 And Jesus answered and said, ‘You unbelieving and perverted generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring him here to Me.’ (18) And Jesus rebuked him, and the demon came out of him, and the boy was cured at once. (19) Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, ‘Why could we not drive it out?’ (20) And He said to them, ‘Because of the littleness of your faith; for truly I say to you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible to you. (21) But this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting” (NASB).
Nothing is probably more paralyzing for a parent who has a child with a terminal or chronic untreatable illness in the child. That child needs that parent for everything and many times parents will go nearly bankrupt seeking a cure. This is our story today. We pick up where we left off yesterday. The father had brought his demon possessed son to Jesus’ disciples and they were unable to heal him even though Jesus had given them power to do so (see Matt. 10:1). We know from Mark 6:13 that the disciples had been successful in doing this. So, why not now? Healing is with God and not us.
When we look at verse 17 and following, it seems Jesus is lashing out at His disciples for their lack of faith. It seems in verse 17 that Jesus is irritated with His disciples for their lack of faith in utilizing the power He had given them. It is possible Jesus is irritated with the religious leaders for pressing and even possibly mocking His disciples for their inability to do this. “Generation” refers to all of the current Jewish people. Jesus called them “perverted.” This is the Greek New Testament word [διαστρέφω; diastrepho]. It means “to twist, to bend.” It was often used to refer to clay that was twisted by the craftsman or twisted under the heat of the kiln and was later discarded. Here “perversion” is a reference to everyone’s faith.
Jesus’ reaction seems to parallel Mose’s reaction in Deuteronomy 32:5 and Deuteronomy 32:20. It seems to parallel God’s frustration with His people in Numbers 14:11 and Isaiah 63:8-10. Jesus was not embarrassed or ashamed of His disciples, but angry at the religious leaders for their lack of faith and in their apparent demand for a sign. Jesus’ disciples simply reflected the attitude of unbelief of all in their day and if the truth were told, our generation today.
Jesus rebuked the demon and it came out of the boy. Seeing this, Jesus’ disciples ask why they could not do this since He had given them the power to do it. Jesus was quick in His response – unbelief. The text does not tell us but it is possible that their previous success at doing this had gone to their head. So now, they were attempting to do this through their own strength and ability and as a result, they had egg on their faces. Anytime we attempt to do anything for God on our own and not through His power, we will fail. A focus on self will result in a stoppage of God’s power in our lives.
Mustard seed? – this was the smallest seed known in the first century. It is the power of God, not our faith, that moves mountains though faith must be present. It is amazing how a seed so small can grow into such a large tree (see Matt. 13:31-32). In other words, there is great power even in a little faith. When our problems, challenges, struggles, anxieties, worries and concerns appear to be a mountain, then we should turn our eyes on the bigness of God. The Bible tells us that nothing is impossible for God (see Luke 1:37).
This means it is not the amount of faith that matters; rather, it is the power of God available to anyone with even the smallest faith. We will never fail with faith. New Testament scholar Bruce B. Barton writes this:
“Jesus underlined the importance of faith and suggested that none of our mountains can stand before it. This remarkable statement has been wrongly used to mean:
- If you’re sick and prayers do not seem to make a difference, you’ve got a serious problem with faith.
- Anything you pray for should happen. You’ve got a magical power over other people and events.
- The Himalayas themselves should be portable, if your faith is strong enough.
"So let’s get clear: Faith is not a carte blanche to supernatural power. Faith does not make God your personal genie. But …Faith is the strongest power in the world, for it connects with God. God rewards faith, even weak faith, and God loves our trust of Him, even beginning trust. Where faith is alive and growing, God is present and active. Every day, pray for faith to grow. Every day thank God for the connection that assures us we are not alone” (Source: Bruce B. Barton, The Life Application Bible Commentary, “Matthew,” p. 347).
Verse 21 has been scrutinized for years because other manuscripts leave out the word “fasting” (see Mark 9:29). As I said earlier, Jesus’ rebuke seems not to be directed totally at His disciples, but everyone standing there – the father of the boy, the crowds and the religious leaders. Jesus showed that He was not bound nor limited by the unbelief of others. Mark’s Gospel tells us that when the boy was brought before Jesus the demon threw the boy into convulsions (see Mark 9:20). This is how demons feel about God. Matthew’s Gospel says that Jesus “rebuked” the demon, but Mark’s Gospel tells us specifically how Jesus did this (see Mark 9:25).
This must have been a sight. The demon threw the boy into convulsions and everyone there probably gasped and stepped back in fear. And then with a simple rebuke by Jesus, the demon immediately left the boy. I imagine the father cried with joy and everyone, especially the religious leaders stood there with their mouths wide open in shock, embarrassment and red faced due to their criticism of Jesus. What does this mean to us today?
- First, this story started with a mountaintop experience of the Transfiguration. This means we should never forget what the Lord taught us in such experiences like a revival, or a retreat or a worship service or our own personal quiet time. He does speak to us in mountaintop experiences and we will do well to go back, remember what the Lord tight us as we must now live in the valley.
- Second, never allow the size of any problem to eclipse our faith. It is easy when we are under demonic attack to forget all that the Lord has taught us and done for us in the past. It is as if we view mountain size problems as too big for God. We should never be intimidated by them because of how big our God is.
- Third, never think that previous failures indicate we will fail in the present or the future. It is easy for us to let past failures define us and be our identity. All that past failures reveal is that you failed in the past. Faith in the present will drive out those demons of unbelief.
New Testament scholar Walter Hansen writes this:
“The gospel writers paint their portraits of Jesus using a kaleidoscope of brilliant “emotional” colors. Jesus felt compassion; He was angry, indignant, and consumed with zeal; He was troubled, greatly distressed, very sorrowful, depressed, deeply moved, and grieved; He sighed; He wept and sobbed; He groaned; He was in agony; He was surprised and amazed; He rejoiced very greatly and was full of joy; He greatly desired, and He love” (Source: Walter Hansen, “The Emotions Of Jesus And Why We Need To Experience Them,” Christianity Today, February 3, 1997, pp 43-46).
I conclude this devotional with the words of New Testament scholar Frederick Bruner: “At the top of the mountain, Jesus had shone and glowed; at the foot of the mountain He moans and groans. There we saw His Deity; here His humanity” (Source: Frederick Bruner, The Churchbook, p. 188).
Assignment: How often do you think Jesus “moans and groans” over your unbelief in Him? What concerns are there in your life that appear to be mountainous? Would you really give them to the Lord rather than stare at the size of them? Climbing mountains is arduous, difficult, exhausting and wearisome. These are the results when we attempt to move our “mountains” ourselves. Instead of attempting to do this on your own, invite the Lord to do it for you.
Scripture To Meditate On: Luke 18:27, “Jesus said, He replied, ‘What is impossible for people is possible with God’” (NLT).
Prayer To Pray: “Dear Lord, please forgive me when I keep my eyes on the size of my mountain-size problems instead of You. You are so patient with me. Thank You. Help my unbelief. I love You Lord. In Jesus’ name, Amen!”
I love you Southside! – Pastor Kelly