Yesterday I introduced us to four rebuking incidents from Luke 9. Let’s explore the first one in more detail:

The next day, when they came down from the mountain, a massive crowd was waiting there to meet them. And a man in the crowd shouted desperately, “Please, Teacher, I beg of you, do something about my boy. He’s my only child. He’s possessed by an evil spirit that makes him scream out in torment and hardly ever leaves him alone. It throws him into convulsions and he foams at the mouth. And when it finally does leave him, he’s left with horrible bruises. I begged your disciples to drive it out of him, but they didn’t have enough power to do it.” Jesus responded, “You are an unbelieving people with no faith! Your lives are twisted with lies that have turned you away from doing what is right. How much longer should I remain here, offering you hope?” Then he said to the man, “Bring your son to me.” (Luke 9.37 – 41, Passion Translation, emphasis mine)

As I write this, the Internet writing assistance program Grammarly rightly diagnosed Jesus as angry.

What was Jesus angry about? It’s clear: “you are an unbelieving people…” It sounds harsh, but he’s talking to the disciples here.

The gospels record that Jesus “marveled” only twice. Once was at the faith of the centurion:

For I too am a man set under authority, with soldiers under me: and I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes; and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.” When Jesus heard these things, he marveled at him, and turning to the crowd that followed him, said, “I tell you, not even in Israel have I found such faith.” (Luke 7.8, 9, ESV)

The other was for the people of Nazareth’s lack of faith:

And Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor, except in his hometown and among his relatives and in his own household.” And he could do no mighty work there, except that he laid his hands on a few sick people and healed them. And he marveled because of their unbelief. (Mark 6.4 – 6, ESV)

Here his reaction is anger. Why? These are the same disciples who just returned from a successful ministry trip that involved healing people and casting out demons. I wrote about it a couple of weeks ago. Now they can’t cast out a demon, and Jesus tells them, “You are an unbelieving people with no faith! Your lives are twisted with lies that have turned you away from doing what is right.” What lies? That this demon was too strong for them? That since they weren’t on an official mission trip the power they had before wasn’t there? We don’t know. But Jesus was not pleased.

I believe he simply wanted them to believe in and exercise the power that Jesus had given them.

 And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him. (Hebrews 11.6, ESV)

[Abraham] did not waver at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God, and being fully convinced that what He had promised He was also able to perform. (Romans 4.20, 21, NKJV)