Once again with the help of God I would like you to turn with me to the Gospel according to Mark chapter 9 and the text you will find in verse 17. And one of the multitude answered and said, Master, I have brought unto thee my son which hath a dumb or a mute spirit. goes on to explain to the Lord Jesus exactly what this spirit was having an effect upon the young man's body, throwing him into fits, And wherever he taketh him, he teareth him, and he foameth, he gnashes with his teeth, he pineth away. And I spoke to thy disciples that they should cast him out, but they could not.

This is the next miracle of the Lord Jesus Christ and we have seen over the many months that Christ demonstrated his authority over sickness but also over the kingdom of darkness that there was, especially in the time of the Lord Jesus Christ, a great manifestation of the kingdom of darkness and evidencing itself in possession, that demon possession where those who were unregenerate outside of Christ could be filled with a fallen angel or an evil spirit. and that spirit would influence the that that person would take over their body as we are as as a believer is indwelt by the holy spirit of god they are possessed by the spirit of god and he enables them to overcome sinful inclinations, so demonic possession manifests itself in various forms in the bodies of those to whom that demon is. as I was in Kenya, I think I've told you, I read up many books about this demon possession because part of the ministry of the charismatic movement there, the Pentecostal movement, is heavily focused upon demon possession and the casting out of demons and People would go to the church every single week, especially women, having demons cast out. They would say that, you know, something bad's happened in my life. The preacher would say, oh, you're demon-possessed, and he would pray over them, and they would shake and tremble, fall on the floor, and he would say, oh, the demon's gone. then next week they would come again and the same process would continually take place.

But if we look at true demon possession, where someone is truly indwelt by an evil spirit from the kingdom of darkness, that manifests itself in various ways. where that demon literally is able to speak through the body of the person that that demon is indwelling in. And there were many cases in Africa, in India, where they dabble in spiritual satanic worship and praying to various demons and dabbling in the kingdom of darkness.

During the time of the Lord Jesus Christ, those demons manifested themselves in a greater way. You remember that the Lord Jesus came to overthrow the kingdom of Satan. He came to overthrow the kingdom of darkness. Satan had really been allowed free reign in the Gentile nations. God focused upon the people of Israel. They were his people. And so Satan held the world in darkness.

And we see the evil that took place in the many nations that were around about Israel, and how Satan influenced the darkened minds of people, how they sacrificed their children to gods, to their gods, and how they how they worship these idols, which the Bible tells us were their gods, but they're no gods at all.

But even today, we see those things that were taking place in the Old Testament with the killing of children, and self-mutilation, and other manifestations, immoral behavior, and such like. We see it in our own country manifesting itself. And so although Satan was defeated and the power of Satan was defeated by the Lord Jesus Christ upon the cross at Calvary and that his influence has been subdued, it has not been eradicated. Man is still evil by nature and still manifests those evil tendencies that were rife in the Old Testament and in satanic worship that is throughout the world.

And so as Christ begins, or as Christ walks the earth, The kingdom of darkness is as though it is trembling. It knows that its time is near. They know who Jesus Christ is. We've seen how they speak. What have thou to do with us, Jesus, thou son of the most high God? They know who Jesus is. Do not, do not, those demons they said, do not torment us. And so they know who Jesus is. And as Jesus is walking this earth, the kingdom of darkness is trembling.

And so it is manifesting itself in various ways. And one of those ways was a high volume of demon possession. And as I was thinking of this, you know, when you're boiling water, when you look at water, it doesn't look like it has any air in it. It just looks like it's this clear substance you can drink. But when you add the heat, then you begin to see it all bubbling and it becomes disturbed. And so as Christ Jesus walked the earth, the kingdom of darkness is like it's boiling. It is bubbling. Satan is trembling.

He knows that his time is limited. He doesn't know exactly who the Lord Jesus Christ is. He doesn't know exactly what is going to take place, but he knows something is happening. His time, his kingdom is limited. And so we see this young man who has been possessed by a spirit manifesting itself as a mute spirit, causing that young man not to be able to speak, but also throwing this boy into fits and to spasms so that he foams at his mouth uncontrollably. The boy is not able to control when these things take place. Could be by the river. He says he throws him into the river. Could be by the fire and he throws him into the fire.

We know that that also can happen in a normal illness. So there is a demonic possession that causes our bodies to behave in certain ways in fits and spasms but there is also diseases that cause our bodies to act in various ways. We have epileptic fits and things like that where the body loses control and there is a spasming, the person doesn't understand, they can't control what is going on and they can injure themselves and it can also cause death. But we must distinguish the sickness is different from demon possession. We cannot say someone who has an epileptic fit is possessed by a demon. But a demonic person, a demon, may cause symptoms of fits, muteness and other things.

So at the time of the Lord Jesus Christ there was this, as it were, a bubbling up of the kingdom of darkness as they knew that their time was now limited. This man, he did the right thing. He takes his son and he brings him to the Lord Jesus Christ and knowing that the Lord, or believing that the Lord Jesus Christ would be able to heal him. But as I looked at this chapter, I was, as I've been trying to say to you, you know, Jesus, he does these things, he does these miracles, he causes these things to happen in the forefront of a background that he has already set. He does it in the context of something that he is seeking to teach his disciples, his apostles, and to speak to us today. As the Lord Jesus is with his apostles Peter, James and John, he goes up into a mountain with them and he is transfigured, he is changed. His visible body begins to shine as a light. His clothing goes as white as snow. and there is a voice from heaven.

This is my beloved son. Hear him. And what I saw is this great contrast. We have God the Father as it were, shining the light on his son, the Lord Jesus Christ, in his perfection, in his divinity, in his holiness, in his sinlessness. He is as white as snow. Remember David, he prays, wash me and make me whiter than snow. And so we see the Lord Jesus Christ spotless and without sin. holy and divine, showing his glory. It is shining forth. That glory that had been veiled in flesh is now witnessed by Peter, James, and John.

And he is speaking with Moses and Elijah. They are speaking about the departure of the Lord Jesus, the exodus of the Lord Jesus Christ. They are speaking about his death. But God the Father speaks and he says, this is my beloved son, hear him. And then as he comes down from the mountain, he is met by a father, an earthly father. And he presents to the Lord Jesus, he is my son. He is my son. And the other gospel, it says, have mercy upon him. And so we have the beloved son of God, the holy, spotless, glorious Lord Jesus Christ coming down from the mountain. And he is presented with a pitiful situation, a pitiful case the the depths to which satan is seeking to destroy the human race a man comes to the lord jesus and says this is my son totally overtaken by the kingdom of darkness.

He can't speak because his tongue is bound by an evil spirit. He can't continue the day because he's thrown all the time onto the floor into fits. He can't even go to the water because he could be thrown into the water. He can't even go to the fire because he might be thrown into the fire. He is my son. This is what Satan has done to my son.

You see the contrast. Christ in his perfection. and the evidence and the effect of the fall upon the human race. And so as Christ had been speaking to Elijah and Moses about his death, he comes face to face with the reason why the Lord Jesus Christ had to come to earth. You think if the Lord Jesus Christ never came to earth and never drew people out of their sin, what a hideous place this would be. The only reason why there is any good in this earth is because the Lord Jesus Christ came down to earth to die for sinners, to bring them and to release them from the kingdom of darkness and from the grip that Satan held upon this earth. If Jesus Christ never came, imagine what it would be like. But he came to free sinners from the kingdom of darkness and to pay the penalty, the cost for their sin.

And that is what Moses and Elijah wanted to speak about. They wanted to speak of his departure, Matthew 5 from 17. it tells us there, think not that I am come to destroy the law or the prophets, I am not come to destroy but to fulfil. For verily I say unto you, till heaven and earth pass away and One jot nor title shall in no wise pass from the law until it be fully fulfilled.

What had Moses and Elijah been looking for? They'd been looking for this promised Messiah that would come. Moses is the law giver. Elijah, the head of the prophets. What have they been looking? They've been looking for the fulfilment of the law. They've been looking for that final prophet that would come.

And as they speak to the Lord Jesus Christ, they speak to him of his departure, that he came to fulfil all the prophecies regarding himself. all that Moses spoke about, all that Moses longed for as he continued shedding blood every single day for the sins of the people. He was looking for that perfect sacrifice, the Lamb of God, the Lord Jesus Christ. And so what did they want? They wanted to speak about the Lord's departure. In Luke 9, in verse 31, who appeared and behold they were talking with two men which were Moses and Elijah who appeared in glory and spake of his decease which he should accomplish at Jerusalem.

This decease, the word literally means exodus, that they came to speak about his exodus, how he was going to leave this world, how he was going to depart a type, Moses being a type of the Lord Jesus Christ as he as he led the people out of Egypt as a type of the Lord Jesus now he comes face to face with the one who he was a type of not the shadow but the very image of God Moses led the people out of Egypt and the Lord Jesus Christ was going to lead his people out of the kingdom of darkness, release them from the clutches and snatch the chains of Satan.

Just like God defeated those 10 plagues, God defeated those the gods of Egypt by the 10 plagues. He gained a victory over those gods by showing them to be nothing. And so the Lord Jesus Christ was going to show his victory over the kingdom of darkness by releasing his people from the clutches of Satan.

We turn to Hebrews. chapter 2 and verse 14 it says for as much then as the children are the partakers of flesh and blood he also himself likewise took part in the same that through death he might destroy him that had power of death that is the devil And so as Moses and Elijah speak with the Lord Jesus Christ, they speak of his exodus, exodus out of this world, how he was going to complete the work that the father had given him to do, how he was going to defeat Satan, who had the power over death, how he was going to rescue sinners from the consequences of their sin. What does the Bible tell us? The wages of sin is death. And so Jesus Christ came to receive those wages that were due to his people by experiencing the full wrath of God in those three hours upon the cross.

He came to rescue his people. Moses, wasn't he, was raised up as the rescuer. He was drawn up out of the water. He lived in the palace of Pharaoh. He goes then into the wilderness. He's then led by God back into Egypt to deliver the people of Israel, the Lord's people. And so the Lord Jesus Christ, where was he?

He was in glory. in glory with the Father. And it's shown there upon the mountain, he was transfigured before them. He shone like lightning. His clothes were as white as snow, picturing Christ, as it were, in heaven. But then he comes down from the mountain and comes face to face with the full manifestation of the kingdom of darkness in the life of this little boy. This is the work that the Father has given me to do. This is the cup, as we looked at the other day, this is the cup which the Father has given me to drink. Shall I not drink it? I think there was an Attleboro. Shall I not drink it?

In Colossians chapter 1 and verse 13 it says, who has delivered us from the power of darkness and has translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son, in whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins, who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature. at the time of the Lord Jesus Christ.

That is why we see so much demonic possession and so much agitation in the kingdom of darkness because Christ came to overthrow Satan and the power that he had over the human race. the accuser of the brethren, Christ came to pay the debt or to receive the wages that was due to his people, releasing them from the clutches of Satan. And so the time of the Lord Jesus was a great turning point in that spiritual battle.

You think of the contrast here, We think of the contrast of Jesus coming from heaven and then coming to earth, being born of a woman into this world. We see it in a glimpse here. The contrast. This is my beloved son, hear him shining. greater than Moses, greater than Elijah.

Then we see him coming down from the mountain, coming face to face with the total depravity of the human race and its effect, and it has been affected by sin. Might say, sometimes we say, don't we, come back down to earth with the bump. A shock at the contrast that is being shown to us in this chapter. It is so vast down into the depths of the ruin of the human race and the greatness of Christ.

What a motivation we could say. a motivation to continue in the work that the Father had given him to do. This was the reason that he had come, not just to heal people from their sicknesses, not just to cast out demons, but to finish the work that the Father had given him to do, to gain the victory over Satan and his hold over the human race. In Matthew,

17. And verse 15, the man says to the Lord Jesus, after in Mark it tells us, Master I have brought unto thee my son which hath a dumb spirit. In verse 15 it says, Lord or sir have mercy on my son for he is a lunatic and sore vexed and oft times he falls into the fire and often into the water and so as Jesus comes down he's faced with these words my son is a lunatic now this word lunatic is probably a word which we would call archaic I suppose we wouldn't we wouldn't use it anymore would be seen as offensive but it literally means moonstruck. Whether it's true or not that there is greater manifestations of the kingdom of darkness or the pull of the moon on a full moon has an impact upon the minds of people, I don't know, but that's where the word comes from. that to do with the lunar cycle, the cycle of the moon that has an effect upon the brains of people and it had an effect upon the brain or the spirit that indwelt within this person and so they called him a lunatic or we could say a crazy person, someone who was out of their mind We know the Bible tells us that we are to renew our minds by meditation upon the word, by communion with the saints, by communion with God in prayer. We know Adam and Eve had a perfect mind. and a perfect brain, but through the effects of sin, and especially with this boy, through the indwelling spirit, it had caused him to be what they termed a crazy person, someone who is out of control, someone who is unpredictable.

They came to the one who had the perfect mind, who was of a sound mind. They came to the one, the Lord Jesus Christ.

This boy is a picture of the human race by nature. The human race by nature is on a self-destruct course, a self-destructive course. As Jesus begins to speak with this man, the man opens up a bit about what is taking place in this boy. In Mark 9 it says, in verse 22, it says, It has cast him into the fire and in the waters to destroy him. But if thou can do anything, have compassion on us and help us. Satan wants to destroy. Satan wanted to destroy this boy. The kingdom of darkness wants to destroy all of those that are held captive in it. Their minds are blinded. They're as blinkered animals. They're going to the slaughter. They're on, as it were, death row.

Satan wants to destroy. He wants the multitudes to continue on the broad road that leads to destruction. He desires that hell will be filled with people. And so his work is to continue on holding people in blindness and to create any manner of things that will occupy them to cause them from thinking and looking to the Lord Jesus Christ. He desires destruction. He is a liar and the father of lies. And this boy, the father says, the spirit in him wants to destroy him. What does the Spirit of Christ do? The Spirit of Christ gives eternal life. The Spirit of Christ sustains and upholds and gives strength every single day. But Satan and his kingdom wants to destroy and he wants to create means by which people will be held under his power and influence.

If you look at the prodigal son, what was his desire? It was to enjoy himself. His desire was to separate himself from his father's household and to go and spend his money on riotous living. Who was behind that or what was causing him to do that? was the kingdom of darkness. The kingdom of darkness wanted this young, in the parable, wanted this young man to go and to destroy himself. by wasting his money on riotous living.

He abandons the father's house. He abandons God. He abandons his upbringing. And he goes to seek a life for himself. But behind that, in him seeking life, was him seeking death. Not just physical death, but eternal death. And so that's what Satan does. He wants to destroy. He wants the young people, he wants the old people to continue on in their blindness, and so that they may end in death.

Verse 30 of Luke 15, as soon as this thy son was come, which has devoured thy living with harlots, I was killed for him, the fatted calf. That summed up his life. Wasting his substance, seeking to satisfy his flesh, thinking that he was living the dream, living the life that everybody else wanted to live. but he was sinking lower and lower and lower into the kingdom of darkness. And if it hadn't been for the grace of God, the boy would have been totally lost in his sin.

But by the grace of God, he is brought to repentance and to turn from his sinful path, that path of self-destruction, and to come and trust again in the true and living God. The Father says, It was right that we should make Mary and be glad. What does the Bible tell us? The kingdom of heaven rejoices over one sinner that repents. It is right that we should make Mary and be glad for this, thy brother was dead and he is alive again, was lost. and is found. That is why the Lord Jesus Christ came into this world.

Yes, he transfigured on the mountain, but he came down into the depths of this earth and come face to face with the full manifestation of the kingdom of darkness and the destruction that kingdom does to people. And he takes those that are dead who don't deserve any mercy. He takes them and he makes them alive again. He takes them that are lost in the kingdom of darkness. He takes them and he finds them and he brings them into the safety of the sheepfold. He delivers them or translates them from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of light.

We see this working out in the life of the dad first. The father comes to the Lord Jesus and says to him, and oft times it casts him into the fire and into the waters to destroy him, but if thou canst do anything. Have compassion on us. If. He doesn't fully believe that the Lord Jesus Christ is able to do anything. He puts an if there. He has some doubt. He has some unbelief within his heart.

Matthew 9. Remember that we looked at the leper and he says to Jesus, not if you can, but if you are willing. Now there's a difference. The leper in the Gospel of Matthew 9 verse 29 That's a different one. But the leper says to Jesus, if you are willing, there's a difference.

He believes that the Lord Jesus Christ is able, but he puts it into the mind of the Lord Jesus. He understands that this man is sovereign. He has all the power. But if he is only willing to help such a wretch as me, then I know he is able to do it. Whereas this father, he puts the if under the ability of the Lord Jesus. Not the willingness of the Lord Jesus, but the ability of the Lord Jesus Christ. And so Jesus sees that this man is not fully ready. He has to probe him a little deeper. He has to draw out of him. He has to remove from his mind this if. And so he turns it round to him and says, if you believe. If you can, Jesus says, if you believe.

All things are possible to him that believe. And so now we see this progress. The man goes from an if, doubting the ability of the Lord Jesus Christ, to knowing that the strength and the ability that he needs to believe must come from the Lord Jesus Christ. And straightway, immediately, the father cries out and says with tears, Lord, I believe.

Help thou my unbelief. And so there we see that tension that suddenly manifests itself in the life of this man. He goes from doubting the Lord Jesus to then realizing that himself, in himself, he does not have the capacity to fully believe in the Lord Jesus. And so he asks for help, help my unbelief. I do believe that you are able, but there's still that conflict within my mind. Within my spirit there is that measure of doubt in his life. According to your faith, Jesus often says, let it be done. And here Jesus was growing the faith of this man. And we see the power then of the Lord Jesus, the help that he He was to this father and son in the helpless situation.

We know that as we were to continue reading, we come then to the work of the Lord Jesus dying upon the cross and defeating the kingdom of darkness, rising again on the third day. we see within the world, although Satan is defeated, although he is suppressed, we see that tension still there. The kingdom of light continues to advance, sinners are brought to a saving knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ, they go from saying if to I believe, I believe that you can do all things, I believe but help thou my unbelief. Although Christ has gained a victory for his people yet there is still a warfare for them to walk, there's still a vicious road for them to continue to walk down. Satan is still active, although he is a defeated foe.

If you read in the Old Testament, you will find that when the people of Israel invaded their land, they would often hamstring the horses, which means they would make them lame. They would not be suitable for battle or use anymore. And Satan is, as it were, hamstrung. He is limited in his power, in his ability.

His influence is still seen in the world today. and he does have a measure of power, though that power is restrained by the Lord Jesus Christ and no amount of power that is given to him can ever stop the advancement of the kingdom of Christ. I will build my church and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. The Lord Jesus Christ will break open any stronghold of Satan to bring out his people. But there is still that work for us to do.

The man says, help my unbelief. None of us have perfect faith. None of us have perfect repentance. None of us have a perfect knowledge of Christ, a perfect knowledge of God, the perfect knowledge of the scripture, a perfect knowledge of the will of God in our lives. And so we must come always to that point of understanding our limited understanding.

Help my unbelief. I do believe. Help thou mine unbelief. Maybe you are waiting today for a perfect belief, a belief without doubt, without fear, but you'll never get it this side of the grave. You will never have a perfect, a perfect knowledge of Christ, a perfect knowledge of salvation. You will always be suppressed with doubts and fears. But we cry out, Lord, help my unbelief.

Even the apostles had to learn this lesson. The man said, I went to your disciples and they could not cast him out. And Jesus says, oh, faithless generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I suffer you or bear with you? Bring him unto me. verse 29 it says, this kind can come forth by nothing but by prayer and fasting. The Lord taught his apostles a lesson. In your own strength you can do nothing. Vain is the help of man. What did the apostles need to learn?

They couldn't just swing a two-second prayer to deal with every situation. No, there were some situations in life that needed deep prayer, that needed fasting, that needed the laying aside of the normal things of life and to giving themselves to devotion to God. They needed to realise that they needed Christ. and that they needed to come to the throne of grace to plead with him, asking for strength and help and ability. And that that need was to be a greater need than the physical need for food and sustenance for their own bodies. That there were situations in life that needed a total devotion to God.

This man had a situation and he came to the Lord Jesus Christ. He needed Jesus. Jesus had to teach him who he was, his ability. His disciples also needed teaching. They needed Jesus more than they realised. that they needed to, as it were, press through the crowd. and to lay hold and to draw that virtue from him at the throne of grace by prayer and by fasting.

And so here we have these two boys, these two males, these two sons, the Lord Jesus Christ in all his glory coming down from the mountain and being presented with a young boy in all of his, in all the effects of sin, the fool manifesting itself in the life of this boy.

We thank God that the Lord Jesus Christ prevailed, cast out the demon. We thank God that the Lord Jesus Christ prevailed upon the cross at Calvary and defeated Satan and death, rose again the third day for his people and we thank God that he's at the right hand of the Father where we can come to him.

Yes, there are times for those short prayers but there is those times also for prayer and supplication, prayer and fasting. Let our requests be made known unto God. May the Lord add his blessing. Amen. Just one more notice that I forgot earlier, there is the next youth meetings on this Friday evening at 7.30 for young people ages 13 to 23.

Now let's sing our closing hymn from Hymns for Worship number 125. 125. just as I am, without one plea, but that thy blood was shed for me, and that thou bid'st me come to thee, O Lamb of God, I come. Hymns for Worship 125. And that Thou bidst me come, to Thee, O Lamb of God, I come, I come. Just as I am, and waiting not to rid my soul of one dark thought, to Thee whose park and glens each photo light, I come, I come.

Just as a young man knows a lot, with many a conflict they will doubt. O say can you see, by the dawn's early light, What so proudly we hailed at the twilight's I come, I come, I come, I come. Just as I am, thou wilt receive, Wilt welcome modern days with thee, Because thy promise I believe, O Lamb of God, Just as I am.

O'er the ramparts we watched, were so gallantly streaming? And the rocket's red glare, the bombs bursting in air, Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there. O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave? And now may the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God the Father, with the fellowship and communion of the Holy Spirit, to abide with you each now and forevermore. Amen.