April 26th, 2026
Read Matthew 17:14-20
When they came to the crowd, a man approached Jesus and knelt before him. “Lord, have mercy on my son,” he said. “He has seizures and is suffering greatly. He often falls into the fire or into the water. I brought him to your disciples, but they could not heal him.” “You unbelieving and perverse generation,” Jesus replied, “how long shall I stay with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring the boy here to me.” Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of the boy, and he was healed at that moment. Then the disciples came to Jesus in private and asked, “Why couldn’t we drive it out?” He replied, “Because you have so little faith. Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.”
When the disciples asked, “Why couldn’t we drive it out?” Jesus replied “Because you have so little faith. Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.”
At first read, this sounds like a contradiction; however let’s take a minute to evaluate His reference: the mustard seed. The mustard seed is a tiny seed – I mean A REALLY TINY speck of a seed. It is no bigger than the dot of an “i” or a period at the end of this sentence. So Jesus is essentially saying the disciples have no faith in God. Jesus appears frustrated with the disciples for their continued struggle with self-reliance. Jesus is the teacher who desires so deeply for his students to understand the lesson. He has been trying to show them that God is in control of EVERYTHING!!
“With God nothing is impossible” (Luke 1:37), serves as an additional reminder that divine power overcomes human limitations. Because the disciples were relying on their own abilities, they failed. Jesus succeeds but only because He fully relies on God.
What mountain could you move with your faith?
Dear Lord, We come to You with an earnest desire for BIG FAITH, but Your Word reminds us that big faith is not necessary. Just like the tiny mustard seed, faith starts out small but has the potential to become great when we fully surrender and put our trust in You. Thank You for Your Word and the repetition of examples of Your mighty power. When we are doubting and afraid, You never fail to remind us of Your presence. Alone, we are not able to do anything, but with You, we can move mountains; for with You, nothing is impossible! We cannot wait to see what You are going to do today!! Amen
