I am willing to say you thought the title should be ‘demons of unbelief’ but there is no mistake. We meant to say ‘demons or unbelief’ as in, one or the other. We read how, on one fateful day, a man brought his son to the ones he saw following Jesus. You could say they are like today’s Christians because they were of the party of Jesus. This man’s poor son used to fall into the river often and also into the fire just as frequently.
The boy was an epileptic and evidently, his case was severe and the father was rightly distraught. He had seen Jesus raise Lazarus from the dead and came believing his followers should be able to cure epilepsy. Alas, they could not cure him, and he consequently abandoned them and sought Jesus out for himself. Remember, he was at his wit’s end and made up his mind he was not returning home with his problem.
There was no point in taking the boy back home since the epilepsy was going to be the death of the boy anyway. He knew nothing of demons or unbelief; that was something he left to the disciples and their master. With one word, Jesus chased the demon of epilepsy out and the man went home rejoicing.That cleared the way for the disciples to wonder why, after they could not cast out the demon. 
Keep in mind, they had been following him for a thousand days. If your apprentice cannot gain his freedom in three years, there is something very much the matter. And that brings us to this ‘demons or unbelief’ scenario.
Jesus Spoke of Unbelief
Jesus told them that the reason they failed to cure the boy was their unbelief. Because it is so important to understand what Jesus said, we copy and paste the verse right here. It is from Matthew 17.20 “Because of your unbelief. For assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain. ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you.”
Please read that passage again and tell me if there is any mention of demons. I don’t see any and therefore do not understand why some churches claim Jesus was speaking about demons. From where did the Pentecostal movements get their doctrine of demons? It is a question that we need to address so we don’t waste prayer time chasing demons.
The very next verse says “However, this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting.” I suspect this is the justification for harassing God about demons. But was Jesus talking of demons or unbelief? How many demons do you think there are in the world? In one man alone, the bible recorded five thousand two hundred demons (legion). Little wonder then, that those who believe the passage is referring to demons spend all night praying and sweating.
Is this passage about Demons Or Unbelief?
For pastors who like to subjugate their members, it is easy to project demons onto that last verse. But where in the entire Jesus speech is a demon mentioned? Allow me to answer my question. In verse 18, the bible, not Jesus, says, “Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of him. And the child was cured from that very hour.” In fairness to the demon-focused preachers,a that verse does mention a demon.
The demon came out and therefore pastors teach that demons do not go forth except by prayer and fasting. But did Jesus teach about demons at all? Was his teaching about demons or unbelief? To let us see that his concern was for things surrounding faith and unbelief, we look at verse 17. Please do not think that because of all these references, this is a bible study for its sake. Not at all.
The purpose of this post is to save you from praying amiss. Think of all the night vigils you have had and what little results you have to show for them. You have to understand whether your problem is demons or unbelief. although the boy’s problem was a demon, the disciples’ problem was not demons at all. It was unbelief. We now return to verse 17 which we mentioned earlier. It says, “O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? Bring him here to Me.”
The Disciples’ Problem Was Faithlessness
Boom! Their problem was faithlessness, aka, unbelief. Jesus needed to build their faith, to move them from unbelief to faith. So, after healing the boy, he continued with His prescription for that. “This kind (of unbelief) does not go forth without prayer and fasting.” In other words, you cannot get rid of unbelief unless you fast and pray. There is no talk of demons. Jesus was saying if you wish to become a man or woman of faith, fast and pray.
Please decide for yourself after reading this post whether Jesus was speaking about demons or unbelief. Then amend your prayer life accordingly. I know what my decision is. I am going to pray and fast to build my faith and get rid of unbelief. With that built-up faith, let all the demons beware. Demons or unbelief? You decide.
Maranatha!
