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Matthew 17:18-20

¹⁸Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of the boy, and he was healed from that moment. ¹⁹Then the disciples came to Jesus in private and asked, "Why couldn't we drive it out?" ²⁰He replied, "Because you have so little faith. I tell you the truth, 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."

Faith is like being pregnant. There is something in your womb or there isn't. It is not about how mature it is, but how certain it is. When the disciples were asked to heal this boy, something in them said, "We can't." They must have said and done all the right things, but it is not about a formula. It is about faith. Faith is the substance of things hoped for. It is the evidence of things unseen. Jesus had no problem casting out the demon, because He knew it was God's will and God's time and that God had the power. He was certain.

"Why couldn't we do it?" they asked. They lacked sufficient faith. It doesn't take much. A mustard seed is much smaller than a pinhead. If you have that much faith you can move a mountain. Indeed, nothing would be impossible to you! That doesn't mean you can run around rearranging mountain ranges. In Jesus' day, moving a mountain meant moving an insurmountable difficulty or obstruction. When you are sure of God's will, your words spoken into a situation are His command to the natural or supernatural world.

Some texts add, "This kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting." It is my humble opinion (I am not a scholar) that these additions were placed in the text by early copyists for clarification. IF that is the case, or if someone relayed later that Jesus did say that, then prayer and fasting are the means of certainty in knowing the Father's will and timing in any given matter. With that certainty one can act in faith. The principle is true, with or without the additional text.

Consider: We must take time in God's presence to know His will in any given situation if we are to be the channel for His power.