"Let not your heart be troubled; believe in God, believe also in Me.
John 14:1 (NASB)

Are there degrees of belief from "strongly held" to "hardly?"

Or is belief simply a response of "yes" or "no?"

When Jesus suggested that one could have faith
the "size of a mustard seed" did he mean that there
are degrees of belief? What is the relationship
between what I believe and what I do?

Is there any?
If I say I believe in something but do
not "obey" that belief do I really believe it?

The Bible suggests that demonic forces
"believe" everything a Christian should believe.

Satan believes that Jesus is God's Son and is the Savior
of the world. Satan believes in God. Satan believes
that prayer is a powerful force. What is the difference
between the belief Satan has and the belief
that Jesus says a person can have
which brings one into eternal life?

Two children stand at the edge of the pool.
The father stands in the water urging them
one a time to jump and he will catch them.

One believes his father will catch him and jumps.

The other believes his dad will catch him but
still refuses to jump. Both said they believed.

George Muller was a man recognized as a man of great faith.
He said "The beginning of anxiety is the end of faith,
and the beginning of true faith is the end of anxiety."

And yet when Jesus went to the tomb of Lazarus
John records "When Jesus therefore saw her weeping,
and the Jews who came with her, also weeping,
He was deeply moved in spirit, and was troubled."
John 11:33 (NASB).

The word troubled is the same Greek word for troubled
that we find in John 14:1.

If George Muller is right does that mean Jesus
stopped having faith when he became troubled?

I don't think so.

Jesus, you "trouble" me.
I want to always jump when you call.
But sometimes I seem unable to jump.
Sometimes I jump quickly.
I pray to you as the man in Mark 9:24, who "cried out to you,

"Lord, 'I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!'"
(Mark 9:24)

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© Swope Park Baptist

The Healing of a Boy with an Evil Spirit

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."

"O 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 him 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 evil 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. "
 

Confess your trespasses to one another,
and pray for one another, that you may be healed.
The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much
James 5:16


If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer."
Matthew 21:22

...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."
Matthew 17:20