“And when Jesus saw that a crowd came running together, he rebuked the unclean spirit, saying to it, ‘You mute and deaf spirit, I command you, come out of him and never enter him again.’ And after crying out and convulsing him terribly, it came out, and the boy was like a corpse, so that most of them said, ‘He is dead.’ But Jesus took him by the hand and lifted him up, and he arose. And when he had entered the house, his disciples asked him privately, ‘Why could we not cast it out?’And he said to them, ‘This kind cannot be driven out by anything but prayer’” (Mark 9:25-29 ESV).
This incident is preceded by the Transfiguration–a moment at which Jesus’ deity is clearly revealed. Never has Jesus appeared stronger. Never has he seemed mightier. Yet here we find Jesus dependent and needful: “This kind cannot be driven out by anything but prayer.” The statement describes why the disciples could not drive out the boy’s demon. They relied on their own power. They did not ask for help from above. Yet it also describes why Jesus could drive out the boy’s demon. Though not explicitly stated here, it seems Jesus did not rely on his own power. He asked for help from above. At some point “in between the lines” of this text, Jesus prayed. Not even the Transfigured Messiah could do this alone.
“This…cannot be [accomplished] by anything but prayer.” Are you willing to believe that there are some things that cannot be accomplished except through prayer? What in Highland’s future cannot be accomplished but through prayer? Now, pray.
