Sermon Tone Analysis

Mark 9:14–29 (NIV)

When they came to the other disciples, they saw a large crowd around them and the teachers of the law arguing with them.

As soon as all the people saw Jesus, they were overwhelmed with wonder and ran to greet him.

“What are you arguing with them about?” he asked.

A man in the crowd answered, “Teacher, I brought you my son, who is possessed by a spirit that has robbed him of speech.

Whenever it seizes him, it throws him to the ground.

He foams at the mouth, gnashes his teeth and becomes rigid.

I asked your disciples to drive out the spirit, but they could not.”

“You unbelieving generation,” Jesus replied, “how long shall I stay with you?

How long shall I put up with you?

Bring the boy to me.”

So they brought him.

When the spirit saw Jesus, it immediately threw the boy into a convulsion.

He fell to the ground and rolled around, foaming at the mouth.

Jesus asked the boy’s father, “How long has he been like this?” “From childhood,” he answered.

“It has often thrown him into fire or water to kill him.

But if you can do anything, take pity on us and help us.”

“ ‘If you can’?” said Jesus.

“Everything is possible for one who believes.”

Immediately the boy’s father exclaimed, “I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!”

When Jesus saw that a crowd was running to the scene, he rebuked the impure spirit.

“You deaf and mute spirit,” he said, “I command you, come out of him and never enter him again.”

The spirit shrieked, convulsed him violently and came out.

The boy looked so much like a corpse that many said, “He’s dead.”

But Jesus took him by the hand and lifted him to his feet, and he stood up.

After Jesus had gone indoors, his disciples asked him privately, “Why couldn’t we drive it out?”

He replied, “This kind can come out only by prayer.”

Mark 9:29 (KJV 1900)

And he said unto them, This kind can come forth by nothing, but by prayer and fasting.

Introduction

Where are all of my church kids at?

Where are all my folks who grew up sleeping under the pews?

If that’s not you, don’t feel left out because I haven’t got to my punchline yet.

Are there any church things that you genuinely believed as a child that you had to unlearn as an adult?

Let’s be honest… our Sunday School teachers did their best… but maybe they got something’s a little wrong.

Or a lot wrong.

For me, growing up, my church had me terrified of going to the movies.

You see I grew up in a Pentecostal Holiness Church that set a lot of well intentioned boundaries.

I said well intentioned, and I mean it.

But there were times when things just didn’t make sense.

So for me, we were taught that going to the movies was bad.

Now the principle is going to the WRONG movie is bad.

Absolutely.

There are movies that no Jesus follower should watch.

Ever.

But we weren’t talking about that.

We were talking about good movies.

Movies that were good enough to watch at home, but don’t you dare watch them in a theatre because the theatre is bad!

You see what I’m talking out?

I’ll never forget when that movie The Passion of Christ came out.

Oh, let me tell about some churches...

Some churches in our fellowship were vehemently against the movies that even a Christian movie was off limits!

So there were Pastors who instead went and bought a black market/ bootleg version of the movie, set up a projector in the fellowship hall of their church, and watched The Passion of the Christ together as church.

In their effort to “not sin” they broke the law...

Transition

That’s what I mean by having to unlearn some things about your faith as you get older… and that’s something we’re going to do with Revival as well.

Revival

Revival is not a complicated topic, and yet it is so often misunderstood.

Growing up Revival was an event.

We would have 3 or more consecutive evenings of church services with invited speakers, worship leaders, and an emphasis on the move of the Holy Spirit.

Revival was thought to be a season of growth, miraculous healings, or mass salvations.

Revival was fire in the church, and emotions running high.

And while all of the above can be descriptors of what happens when Revival comes, they are not in and of themselves Revival.

Revival is to make alive again.

Alive again.

Alive again.

I think some of what we called Revival before was just great programming.

And the reason we don’t see revival in the church today is becuase we are unwilling to admit when something is dead.

Oh be careful now… you can’t say you want a Revival with first admitting that something is dead.

If it’s still alive, call it a Renewal, but don’t call it a Revival.

Something has to die in order for it to be Revived.

And I think God wants to bring Revival but we have to be willing to be honest enough and admit when something is dead...

Can I make it more personal?

Our marriages are on life support, but on Sundays we put on our best face and pretend that everything is OK.

We have severed relationships with our kids but we never tell anyone the pain we are carrying.

We were abused as a child and we have buried the pain but it manifests itself with our trust issues and our insecurity.

We want the resurrection that comes with Revival, but we don’t want to admit that there has been death that precedes Revival.

So the first step of a personal Revival is to acknowledge that there are some things that are no longer alive in us.

Perhaps we weren’t aware of it, or perhaps we haven’t identified what is no longer alive, but if you will begin by turning to God in prayer, you will begin to see the things that need to come to life again.

The Text

Here in our text we encounter the story of a father who knows that his son is not alive.

His son is possessed by an evil spirit and this child of his is no longer the child he held in his arms as an infant.

This child of his is no longer the child he taught to throw a ball.

This child of his is not the child that he taught to walk.

Could you imagine the despair the father endured as he looked at this shell of a boy who is not alive.

This child of his is possessed and no longer in control of his faculties and this father is desperate for answers.

He is running out of options, but his love won’t let him quit on his son.

He brings his son the disciples of Jesus begging for a miracle.

Begging that the disciples bring his son back to him.

Jesus is not there, and with him is Peter, James and John.

Jesus has gone to a mountain to pray and be with His father.

When Jesus returns from the mountain there is a scene that awaits him.

People are arguing with each other and people are blaming each other for their inability to help this boy.

The other nine disciples have done everything they can and now the Pharisees are taking shots at them.

The crowd is beginning to wonder if these group of men who claim to have been with Jesus were nothing more than frauds.

But when Jesus arrives the crowds are silenced and everyones attention is now turned to this Rabbi with miraculous power to heal and deliver.

Jesus engages with the father and it is in this exchange that Jesus uses the opportunity to teach those who are there, and those who would read this story from their Bible thousands of years later, about the power of prayer and fasting.

Jesus said, “this kind can only come out by prayer and fasting.”

Prayer and fasting are the seeds of Revival.

The Seed of Prayer