I must first preface this study with a disclaimer- mental problems are not always synonymous with demon possession.
There are so many different things that go on in the brain, some that we probably aren't even aware happen, yet. If some of these are out of balance, it can cause some pretty odd behavior. The Bible shows that there is a distinction between mental problems and demon possession.
Matthew 4:23-24- And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all manner of sickness and all manner of disease among the people. And his fame went throughout all Syria: and they brought unto him all sick people that were taken with divers diseases and torments, and those which were possessed with devils, and those which were lunatick, and those that had the palsy; and he healed them.
As you can see in the passage above, those who are possessed with devils are a separate item than those which are lunatick. In the Webster's 1828 dictionary, a lunatick is defined as a person affected by insanity, supposed to be influenced or produced by the moon, or by its position in its orbit; a madman.
Noting this distinction, we will read through three gospel accounts of a demon possessed boy and glean what we can from these Scriptures.
Matthew 9:14-18- And when he came to his disciples, he saw a great multitude about them, and the scribes questioning with them. And straightway all the people, when they beheld him, were greatly amazed, and running to him saluted him. And he asked the scribes, What question ye with them? And one of the multitude answered and said, Master, I have brought unto thee my son, which hath a dumb spirit; And wheresoever he taketh him, he teareth him: and he foameth, and gnasheth with his teeth, and pineth away: and I spake to thy disciples that they should cast him out; and they could not.
The disciples had been sent out two by two and given the power to heal all manner of diseases. However, once they were back with Jesus, they found there was this one particularly stubborn case in which they had no power to prevail.
Matthew 17:14-15- And when they were come to the multitude, there came to him a certain man, kneeling down to him, and saying, Lord, have mercy on my son: for he is lunatick, and sore vexed: for ofttimes he falleth into the fire, and oft into the water.
Among the multitude there was the father of the demon possessed. In the gospel of Matthew, he tells Jesus that the boy is a lunatick. But, the gospel of Luke gives us some further information.
Luke 9:38-40- And, behold, a man of the company cried out, saying, Master, I beseech thee, look upon my son: for he is mine only child. And, lo, a spirit taketh him, and he suddenly crieth out; and it teareth him that he foameth again, and bruising him hardly departeth from him. And I besought thy disciples to cast him out; and they could not.
Not only does the boy have mental problems, but he is also demon possessed. Luke also tells us that this is the man's only child.
We know that Jesus can easily heal this boy. And, we also know that He doesn't do anything without a reason.
Mark 9:19-20- He answereth him, and saith, O faithless generation, how long shall I be with you? how long shall I suffer you? bring him unto me. And they brought him unto him: and when he saw him, straightway the spirit tare him; and he fell on the ground, and wallowed foaming.
Why did Jesus call them a faithless generation? Perhaps there is more to the story that we were originally told.
Mark 9:21-22- And he asked his father, How long is it ago since this came unto him? And he said, Of a child. And ofttimes it hath cast him into the fire, and into the waters, to destroy him: but if thou canst do any thing, have compassion on us, and help us.
The man tells Jesus that his son has been like this since a child. This means that this is probably not a young boy and this family has been dealing with this for a long time. Was it something the parents allowed in their home that brought a devil to prey upon their son? Perhaps there were some friendships they should have said "no" to that ended up putting this boy in this position? There's a reason Jesus wanted the father to answer this question.
Mark 9:23-24- Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth. And straightway the father of the child cried out, and said with tears, Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief.
Somewhere there is a lack of faith.
The father is pleading with the Lord that if it is with him that the Lord would grant him faith.
Mark 9:25-27- When Jesus saw that the people came running together, he rebuked the foul spirit, saying unto him, Thou dumb and deaf spirit, I charge thee, come out of him, and enter no more into him. And the spirit cried, and rent him sore, and came out of him: and he was as one dead; insomuch that many said, He is dead. But Jesus took him by the hand, and lifted him up; and he arose.
The gospel of Mark tells us that this spirit was "dumb and deaf". I believe that means the person who has been possessed can neither hear nor speak. This spirit certainly heard Jesus' command, and came out in a very harsh manner.
Luke 9:42- And as he was yet a coming, the devil threw him down, and tare him. And Jesus rebuked the unclean spirit, and healed the child, and delivered him again to his father.
The gospel of Luke tells us that this spirit didn't want to come anywhere near Jesus, nor did it want to leave. This is a very powerful demon. We will understand a little later that there are levels of power among the devils of this world.
Matthew 17:18- And Jesus rebuked the devil; and he departed out of him: and the child was cured from that very hour.
When Jesus heals a person, it's not an isolated incident. This boy was not only healed from the demon possession, but he was also cured from his lunacy.
This next part is something that most "faith healers" don't want you to know.
Matthew 17:19-20- Then came the disciples to Jesus apart, and said, Why could not we cast him out? And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.
It has nothing to do with the patients faith. Remember, Christ was rebuking the faithless generation, but we find out in Matthew 17:20 that it was the disciples lack of faith that He was calling out.
The men who saw all the miracles that Jesus did. The few who saw Him transfigured on the mountaintop surrounded by Moses and Elijah. Those men who had been given the ability to work miracles in Jesus name, had a lack of faith. Why?
Luke 9:43-45- And they were all amazed at the mighty power of God. But while they wondered every one at all things which Jesus did, he said unto his disciples, Let these sayings sink down into your ears: for the Son of man shall be delivered into the hands of men. But they understood not this saying, and it was hid from them, that they perceived it not: and they feared to ask him of that saying.
It's because they didn't understand. Nor did they try to understand.
Fear keeps us from getting ahead quite often.
But there is one other piece of information that you should note here. This devil was a particularly powerful one. Jesus was the only one able to cast it out because He was the only one that was praying and fasting!
Mark 9:29- And he said unto them, This kind can come forth by nothing, but by prayer and fasting.
There are only two verses in the entire Bible that tells you this. One in Mark and one in Luke.
Luke 17:21- Howbeit this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting.
These two verses are missing from almost all of the new Bible translations. Why do you suppose that is? It's because when a devil sets up a stronghold in a person, they don't want you to know how to tear it down.
The real question is, "Why would men who profess to want to make the Bible easier to understand remove such an important piece of information from their translation?"
