“And ofttimes it hath cast him into the fire, and into the waters, to destroy him: but if thou canst do any thing, have compassion on us, and help us. Jesus said unto him, if thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth. And straightway the father of the child cried out, and said with tears, Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief” (Mark 9:22–24).
We see here a desperate father bringing his demon possessed son to Jesus Christ, exhibiting what might be called doubting faith. This man was not really sure that Jesus could heal his son, nor was he sure that he had the faith that Jesus demanded of him. How desperate and lost he must have felt—so much was at stake.
Note these Scriptural appraisals of faith. “But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord. A double minded man is unstable in all his ways” (James 1:6–8). “Without faith it is impossible to please Him: for he that cometh to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him” (Hebrews 11:6).
This man was literally tossed to and fro between faith and doubt. His soul was in anguish, and through his desperate tears he cried out to Jesus: “Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief.” The honest confession of the struggle within him was exactly what Jesus responded to, by either accepting the man’s desire for faith or by granting him sufficient faith. This is evident because Jesus did heal the boy.
What a joyous hope to know that we can come to Jesus and tell him of the struggles within our own souls. As we open our hearts in prayer and give Him access to all of our weaknesses, confessing our doubting faith, Jesus can respond as if to pure faith. DAE
