We scrape and manipulate on the job to climb the ladder of success. Do not fool yourself, we all want some power.

We want electrical power to make our lives easier.

We want influential power, or... as the young people say... "Juice," to have people’s respect... to be in control and not out of control.

One man wrote a book entitled "How to Win Friends and Influence People." To have power over people and not have them turn against you.

We love Jesus but we want power in the church.

We hold onto our titles.

We hold onto our positions.

We hold onto our seat.

However, if you are not doing God’s will, you are a nothing.

You can be a preacher...  you can be a deacon...  you can be a trustee...   you can hit the "High C" on the choir...  

Without God, you are nothing. We need to be careful about our titles and positions in the church.

I never take myself seriously. I take my job seriously, but not myself. I am just a man. If you do not believe me, just ask my wife.

Peter, James and John saw the Glory of God on the mountaintop. They went from the heights of success to the nadir of struggle. When you have a great experience, satan comes to knock you down.

In verse 14, we see a man with a son who was mentally ill and suicidal.

In verse 16, we see a stinging indictment of the disciples. They could not cure the man’s son. This was a resounding defeat for them and for their Teacher, Jesus. The nine disciples could not do anything for the boy.

There are two things to notice here:

The Disciples Should Have Been Able To Cure The Boy

In Matthew 10:7-8, Jesus gave His disciples the ability to work miracles. Yet, in our text, they had no power.

Some of us in the church are frustrated by our failures. The devil is always stepping on us. We are the children of the Most High God, yet we can’t produce because we have no power. We have form and fashion, but we deny the power thereof (2^nd Timothy 3:5).

We need people who don’t pray with eloquence, but they pray with power. They call on God until God answers.

If we are so saved, why can’t we live holy?

If we are so saved, why is your family messed up?

If we are so saved, why have you never lead anyone to Christ?

If we are so saved, why do you have pain wracking your body?

If we are so saved, why is it that your mountains can not be moved?

If we are so saved, why can’t we move mountains?

We need to be able to tap into the power of God. We need to be able to walk in the power of God.

There Were Nine Disciples Working On This One Boy... All At The Same Time... And They All Failed!

By the sheer numbers, they were nine against one. Yet, they were not able to cure the boy.

Some churches have full pews and full bank accounts, yet they have no power. I would rather be in a run down storefront church that is full of Holy Ghost power, than to be in a grand cathedral full of people without power.

When we come to pray and intercede for others, there should be power. When we pray, there should be power. There should be power in the house of God.

In verse 17, Jesus got angry with those nine disciples. They were faithless. They were perverse. "How long," Jesus asked, would He have to deal with them? Jesus had a right to be angry. Those disciples had the authority and the responsibility, but they messed up the opportunity.

Does the Lord lose patience with us when we live beneath our calling?

Does the Lord lose patience with us when we talk the talk without walking the walk?

Does the Lord lose patience with us when we sing "Just as I am" and then leave the church just as we were?

Does the Lord lose patience with us when we trust Him with our lives, but we fail to trust Him with our money?

Does God ever get mad with us? Well, one thing I do know is that He never gives up on us. We get second, third and fourth chances. When we falter, He takes us back.

Jesus is not in the rejecting business, He is in the accepting business. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us (1^st John 1:9). If you slip and fall, just get up in the name of Jesus.

After expressing His anger, Jesus rebuked the devil and healed the boy.

In verse 19, the disciples went to Jesus in a private moment so as to not show in public what losers they were. They called out... "Master?" "Rabboni?" "Why couldn’t we?" It was because of their unbelief.

Without faith, you can’t move mountains. You must have faith. God can do anything but fail.

Where are all the miracles today?

No faith, no power. Without faith, it is impossible to please God (Hebrews 11:6). With faith, all things are possible.

You do not need a lot, just as a grain of mustard seed. A little faith will take you a long way.  The Syro-Phonecian woman in my sermon a couple weeks ago only wanted a few crumbs from the table to get her child healed. We need that kind of faith.

Where is your faith this morning? How do you develop this faith? We see, in verse 21, that it comes by way of prayer and fasting.

If Siloam is to be God’s house of healing and wholeness, we must be a church of prayer and fasting. Spend quality time in prayer and turn your plate over.

If you want family fixing power, you need to fast.

If you want joy restoring power, you need to fast.

If you want hope lifting power, you need to fast.

If you want miracle working power, you need to fast.

Prayer is communing and communicating with God. No fancy words, just cry from the depths of your heart.

Fasting is denying yourself food and drink to cut your dependency on things and to learn how to depend upon God.

We all pray, but we do not like fasting. We diet, but we do not turn our plates over to give ourselves to God.

Prayer will produce faith, but fasting will produce mountain moving faith.  Fasting masters the flesh.  Fasting destroys demons.  Fasting crucifies the flesh.  Fasting builds our faith.

When we fast for two or three days, our faith is built up and great things happen.

Back when Rev. Minus was pastor, an empty lot was available for sale. The church wanted it for a sanctuary, or maybe a parking space. The people told Rev. Minus that the lot was not for sale, but they did not know Who they were messing with. The church fasted and prayed for three days. They set a price, then asked God to let them have it for that price. When they went to the owner, the lot suddenly became available for sale at the very same price God had promised them.

If we trust and never doubt, God will surely bring us out.

Fasting will move opposition...

Fasting will move secret sins...

Fasting will move turmoil...

Fasting will move family strife...

Fasting will move physical problems...

Fasting will move employment hassles...