What kind is it; the demon or the unbelief – Part 1?

Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, “Why could we not cast it out?”…So Jesus said to them, “Because of your unbelief…However, this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting.” (Matthew 17:19-21).

In Matthew 17, after the disciples had failed to cast out a demon from an epileptic boy, they asked Jesus why they could not cast the demon out. The fact that they asked the question meant they expected or knew they should have been able to cast it out. And they were right in feeling so because we read earlier in the chapter that “Jesus summoned His twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every kind of disease and every kind of sickness” (Matthew 10:1). Jesus told them they failed to cast the demon out because of their unbelief but also added that “However, this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting (Mathew 17:21). What “kind” was Jesus referring to? The unbelief or the demon?

The Greek word translated “kind” in the Scripture above is “ghenos”, which means “kindred, offspring, family, tribe, stock, nation, nationality or descent from a particular people, the aggregate of many individuals of the same nature, kind, sort. So from Jesus’ own words, what He said could only be driven out by prayer and fasting was in reference to a being . Which means that, the Scripture in Matthew 17:21 actually quotes Jesus as saying, “however this type of demon or demonic being does not go out except by prayer and fasting”. But in the case of the disciples, even if they had fasted and prayed, Jesus pointed out that their unbelief would have still limited them from casting that demon out. Nevertheless, Jesus was emphatic that in addition to faith, prayer and fasting was needed to cast out this particular demon. We therefore need to align our Theology and beliefs with what Jesus Himself actually taught. This is how we can succeed in all He has called us to do.

To quote Jesus verbatim in the gospel of Mark, He said “These signs will accompany those who have believed: in My name they will cast out demons…” (Mark 16:17). We have rightly understood through Scripture that it does not simply take mentioning His name but adding faith at the mention of His name. If we have rightly included faith when we mention the name of Jesus, we should by no means  struggle to include prayer and fasting when Jesus actually indicates that it does not take faith alone but also prayer and fasting for us to prevail over some kinds of demonic opposition. Failure to heed this instruction from Jesus may be the cause of many casualties Christians have suffered – simply because men and women failed to rise up and take hold of prayer and fasting.

-Dr. K. Omari
December 15, 2019.

A Very Important Message

For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life (John 3:16). For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans 6:23). Therefore, If you do not know Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour, I invite you to put your faith in Him. Pray the prayer below to accept Jesus Christ as your Saviour:

“I come to you God in Jesus’ name and surrender my life unto you. I repent of my sins and I ask You to forgive me all my sins. I confess with my mouth that Jesus is Lord, and I believe with my heart that God has raised Jesus from the dead. I thank you God for saving me, in Jesus name, Amen.

If you sincerely prayed this prayer, believe and be assured that you are saved, for the Bible says that whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved (Romans 10:13, Romans 10:10, Acts 16:31). Find a Bible believing church to attend so that you can be discipled to grow in the ways of God. You can also email me ([email protected]) and I will be happy to grow together with you in Christ.