1. The disciples struggled with limitations like lack of faith, exclusivity, and desire for primacy. Even though they failed at times, Jesus never abandoned them but instead corrected their behavior and guided them on the right path. 2. Jesus taught lessons about avoiding exclusivity and desiring greatness or primacy over others. He used the example of welcoming a child to show they should see themselves as equal. 3. Other issues Jesus addressed included the disciples' lack of faith stemming from insufficient prayer and scripture study. He warned against anxiety over material things and stressed the importance of forgiveness.

1. LESSON 9
May 31, 2015
The disciples’ limitations
Golden Text
“I begged your disciples to drive it out, but they could not.” (Lk 9:40)
Useful Practice
Throughout his ministry, Jesus was followed by simple, imperfect and
limited men, but even so he never ruled them out.
Scripture Reading
Luke 9 : 38-42,46-50
38 - A man in the crowd1
called out, “Teacher, I beg you to look at my
son, for he is my only child.
39 - A spirit seizes2
him and he suddenly3
screams4
; it throws him into
convulsions so that he foams5
at the mouth. It scarcely ever leaves him
and is destroying him.
40 - I begged your disciples to drive it out, but they could not.”
41 - “You unbelieving and perverse generation,” Jesus replied, “how
long shall I stay with you and put up with you? Bring your son here.”
42 - Even while the boy was coming, the demon threw him to the
ground in a convulsion. But Jesus rebuked6
the impure spirit, healed the
boy and gave him back to his father.
46 - An argument started among the disciples as to which of them would
be the greatest.
47 - Jesus, knowing their thoughts, took a little child and had him stand
1
Multidão
2
Apodera
3
De repente
4
Gritos
5
Espuma
6
Repreendeu

2. beside him.
48 - Then he said to them, “Whoever welcomes this little child in my
name welcomes me; and whoever welcomes me welcomes the one who
sent me. For it is the one who is least among you all who is the
greatest.”
49 “Master,” said John, “we saw someone driving out demons in your
name and we tried to stop him, because he is not one of us.”
50 “Do not stop him,” Jesus said, “for whoever is not against you is for
you.”
General objective
To make believers want to cultivate true Christian virtues.
Specific objectives
I – TO HIGHLIGHT that the best way to be filled with faith is by prayer
and knowledge of the Word of God.
II – TO SHOW that exclusivity has nothing to do with the teaching of
Jesus.
III – TO EXPLAIN the danger of an avaricious7
heart and its
consequences.
IV – TO ENCOURAGE believers to forgive one another.
Introduction
The disciples of Christ demonstrated, in certain moments of life,
exclusivity, selfishness, immaturity, parochialism, etc. They did wrong
when they were expected to do right (Luke 9:40,41). Jesus rebuked
such behavior and corrected the group, but did not abandon his
disciples.
In this lesson we will see how, in different circumstances, the disciples
acted in the opposite way that the Lord had taught them and how Jesus
led them to the right course of action. These facts show that the
followers of Christ were not supermen, but rather human beings who
lived their limitations and, as such, depended on God to overcome them.
These examples serve to guide us in our journey of faith so that we can
cultivate true Christian virtues.
7
Avarento

3. I - DEALING WITH DOUBT
1. Prayer and faith. Shortly after calming the storm on the Sea of Gali-
lee, Jesus asked his disciples, "Where is your faith?" (Luke 8:25). That
was not the only time the Lord rebuked the disciples for not showing the
necessary faith in God. When he saw the ineffectiveness of the disciples
in front of a demon-possessed boy, He said, " You unbelieving and per-
verse generation,” Jesus replied, “how long shall I stay with you and put
up with you?"(Luke 9:41). There is something in common in these Bible
passages - they are related to the devotional life of the disciples. The
timidity shown during the crossing of the sea (Luke 8:25) and the lack8
of authority to cast the demon out of the boy were fruits of a poor devo-
tional life. Little prayer, little power! No prayer, no power! The parallel
passages in Matthew and Mark demonstrate this principle (Mt 8:23-27;
17:14-20 ...).
2. The word of God and faith. If the lack of prayer brings about
disbelief, on the other hand, the lack of knowledge of God's word
produces a similar effect. This is what the story of the two disciples on
the road to Emmaus shows (Luke 24: 13-35). On the same day he was
risen, the Lord appeared to two of them as they walked to the village of
Emmaus, about 12 kilometers away from Jerusalem. After having a
dialogue with them, Jesus realized how unbelieving they were. The
Master rebuked the unbelief of the disciples and called them foolish, that
is, devoid of knowledge or insight (Lk 24.25). Still today, many who claim
to be disciples lack knowledge, insight and faith in the movement of
God. May the Lord Jesus fill our hearts with faith so we can live and
preach his word!
II - DEALING WITH PRIMACY AND EXCLUSIVITY
1. Avoiding primacy. Luke records that "An argument started among
the disciples as to which of them would be the greatest. Jesus, knowing
their thoughts, took a little child and had him stand beside him" (Lk
9:46,47). The disciples needed to learn a lesson about humility. The ex-
ample of Jesus when he took a child was excellent and, certainly, they
could see how selfish and ambitious they were.
The comparative adjective meizon, translated as "greater", in this
text, retains the sense of "stronger than". The idea here is of primacy!
Who's first? Who’s the strongest? Who’s the fittest? Thoughts like these
do not reflect the mind of Christ, but a worldly and secularized mind.
8
Falta

4. Unfortunately, many problems in the churches are caused by laypeople
and clergymen who want to exert primacy. In Christ Jesus, all are equal.
We are not superior nor inferior to anyone.
2. Avoiding exclusivity. Jesus also fought the exclusivity that is
revealed through the mindset of a closed group (Lk 9:49,50).
The reason given by the apostles to stop the action of that man was
that he was not part of the group. Jesus shows that the fact of casting
out demons by the authority of his name and sharing the same beliefs of
the apostles gave that man the right to exercise his ministry. Although9
he was not part of the group of the Twelve, he shared the same faith. It
is not therefore about validating sectarian or heretical beliefs and
practices, but about not allowing religious exclusivity to blind us so that
we can only see our group.
III - DEALING WITH AVARICE
1. Reversed values. In Luke's account, Jesus had just encouraged his
disciples to depend on the Holy Spirit (Luke 12:12) when a man who
was in the crowd said, "Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance
with me" (Luke 12:13). This request was against the teachings of Christ
and therefore got his reproach: "Jesus replied, “Man, who appointed me
a judge or an arbiter between you?"(Luke 12:14). As Jesus was teach-
ing about how to avoid a legalistic and materialistic attitude, this man
acts in a diametrically opposed way to what had been taught. He was
concerned about the inheritance! As many do today, he was not con-
cerned about following the teachings of Christ, but about using it as a
springboard to achieve his goals – material satisfaction.
2. Avoiding anxiety10
. Soon after, Jesus utters one of the most beautiful
teachings on how the life of a true disciple should be (Luke 12:22-34).
Jesus teaches about the worries of life. As disciples of Christ we cannot
be anxious about the things of this life. We must learn to trust in God,
our provider.
Jesus' words also reveal two ways of seeing the world – he shows
how "the pagan world" (Luke 12:30) understands the reality around it
and how his disciples were to act under the same circumstances. They
are two completely different and opposing worldviews from each other.
9
Embora
10
Ansiedade

5. While one interprets the reality of life by basing itself on merely material
values, the other sees it from absolute spiritual values.
IV. - DEALING WITH BAD FEELINGS
1. The need for forgiveness. Jesus knew how evil unforgiveness and
resentment are. In fact, the Bible shows that the root of bitterness is an
evil that should be avoided at all costs (Eph 4:31). Unforgiveness is
seen as a root that produces extremely evil sprouts (Hebrews 12:15). In
the third Gospel, Jesus teaches us that the correct way to stay free of
this poison is to have a ready attitude to forgive. "If your brother or
sister sins against you, rebuke them; and if they repent, forgive
them. Even if they sin against you seven times in a day and seven times
come back to you saying ‘I repent,’ you must forgive them"(Luke 17:3,4).
2. Forgiveness a two-way road. Jesus also showed that forgiveness is
a two-way road (Luke 6:37). When he taught about forgiveness in the
Lord's Prayer, Jesus was adamant in saying that whoever does not
forgive will not be forgiven either, " But if you do not forgive others their
sins, your Father will not forgive your sins" (Matthew 6:15). There is no
doubt that there are many Christians with psychosomatic illnesses
simply because they are not able to forgive. They keep hard feelings in
their soul like one who keeps money in the bank! James Dobson, a
famous Christian psychologist, said he would discharge eighty percent
of his patients if they could forgive or feel forgiven!
CONCLUSION
As we study the limitations of the disciples, some facts become
evident. We observe that the incapacity to face Satan in Luke 9:40 is
justified in Matthew 17:20 by lack of faith; the unbelief of the disciples on
the road to Emaus (Luke 24.13-35) is justified by the lack of knowledge
of the Scriptures (Luke 24.25-27); the desire for greatness and primacy
(Luke 9.46-48) is a consequence of their having been molded into the
culture of the world, and unforgiveness exists because people do not
recognize the forgiving nature of the heavenly Father.