Introduction
10
In Mark 9, a man brought his son to the disciples. The son was having seizures, and they tried to
do something with him, but they couldn’t get him free. Do you know, a lot of people would have
started a new doctrine right then? They prayed for him, they worked with him, and he did not get
free. They could have said, “Well, you know it’s not always the will of God, and we just don’t
know why,” but that is
not
in the Bible.
They brought him to Jesus, and the man said in verse 22, “If You can do anything, have
compassion on us, and help us.” Does He believe it’s all up to Jesus? Is he putting the whole
thing in Jesus’ hands and saying, “Lord, if You can do anything…”? He thinks it’s all up to Him.
What did Jesus say in the very next verse? “Well,
if it’s God’s will
...” No. Did He say, “If you
can believe, all things are possible…
if it’s God’s will
”? He could have said it. “All things are
possible
if you’ve got Me here because I’ve got the power, and because I’m the Son of God, and
I can do this, but don’t try this at home...
” Couldn’t He have said something along those lines if
He had wanted to? He said, “All things are possible to him that believes.”
There are approximately 19 cases of individuals being healed in the Gospel accounts: Matthew,
Mark, Luke, and John. Depending on how you count them, there are more than that. There are
several places where it says that multitudes were healed. There are places where it says
demoniacs were delivered. Malchus had his ear chopped off, but Jesus healed him. Anyway, if
you look at the cases where there’s some detail about what happened to them and how they were
healed, there are only about 19.
But, in 10 of the 19 cases, the individuals’ faith was specifically referenced just like this.
Let me list them for you. With the nobleman’s son, the Bible says the man believed the word that
Jesus had spoken to him, and he went his way. We see that the son, his boy, began to get better
and was healed and made whole.
Concerning the paralytic man who was let down through the roof, the Bible says, “Jesus saw
their faith,” and He spoke to them, and the man was healed.
Jesus said to the centurion, concerning his servant, “Go your way, and as you have believed, so
be it done to you.”
To the woman with the issue of blood, He said, “Daughter, be of good comfort. Your faith has
made you whole.”
For the two blind men, He touched their eyes and said, “According to your faith be it unto you.”
He told the 10 lepers in Luke 17, “Your faith has made you whole.”
To Blind Bartimaeus, He said, “Your faith has made you whole.”
Concerning the Syrophenician’s daughter, He said to her, “Woman, great is your faith. Be it unto
you even as you will.”