A Study In Luke - Day 33

DAY 33 - LUKE 9:37-43
 
37 The next day, after they had come down the mountain, a large crowd met Jesus. 38 A man in the crowd called out to him, “Teacher, I beg you to look at my son, my only child. 39 An evil spirit keeps seizing him, making him scream. It throws him into convulsions so that he foams at the mouth. It batters him and hardly ever leaves him alone. 40 I begged your disciples to cast out the spirit, but they couldn’t do it.”

41 Jesus said, “You faithless and corrupt people! How long must I be with you and put up with you?” Then he said to the man, “Bring your son here.”

42 As the boy came forward, the demon knocked him to the ground and threw him into a violent convulsion. But Jesus rebuked the evil spirit and healed the boy. Then he gave him back to his father. 43 Awe gripped the people as they saw this majestic display of God’s power.

“Choosing to suffer means that there must be something wrong with you, but choosing God’s will—even it if means you will suffer—is something very different. No normal, healthy saint ever chooses suffering; he simply chooses God’s will, just as Jesus did, whether it means suffering or not.” Oswald Chambers.

We realize here that life cannot be lived on the mountaintop; we eventually have to come back to the reality of our lives. And sometimes, that reality is disappointing. 

One voice rises above the crowd, a father begging for help for his only child. The disciples had tried to exorcise the demon, but they could not. And this demon created disturbing effects on the boy. Seizures and violent acting out were part of what this boy had to endure. As he walked up to Jesus, the demon threw one last violent attack at the boy, knocked the son to the ground, and threw him into convulsions. But Jesus took charge, commanding the demon to depart. Then he took the boy and gave him back to his father. 

Awe was the result. In this translation, it says that “Awe gripped the people. . . “ When was the last time you were gripped by awe? When you were flabbergasted by what God is doing in your life and in the life of others around you?

Now, Jesus had a moment in this pericope where he was upset and called these people faithless and corrupt. That is a pretty clear accusation to hurl toward those who he walked with every day. He wasn’t just speaking to the disciples, but he was indicting the whole generation. However, the good news is that he was soon to go to the cross in order to not only glorify God with his sacrifice, but also to save that faithless and corrupt generation. 

1. Do you think you would fit into the category of “faithless and corrupt?”
2. Has God ever healed you miraculously? What was that like? 
3. How can you be sure you are not part of a faithless generation? What steps can we take in order to stay close to the source of life?