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All Things Are Possible
by Elizabeth Marks Jesus said to him, "If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes." Mark 9:23 NKJV I believe most peoples have heard "all things are possible to him who believes" quoted in various ways. But have you ever stopped to check out the context in which it was said? Mark 9:14:-29 NKJV is the account where the disciples couldn't heal a certain boy and Jesus rebukes them as a faithless generation. The boy's father desperate to help his son, comes to Jesus asking, "But if You can do anything, have compassion on us and help us." How does Jesus respond? Jesus said to him, "If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes." I love this about Jesus. He got right to the point, the reason the boy wasn't healed was because of unbelief. Yet, Jesus is gentle to the man because He knows how hard it must have been to watch the son being tormented. The rest of the passage is about Jesus healing the boy and the disciples asking why they couldn't heal the boy. Getting back to the opening verse, Jesus teaches us "all things are possible" if we believe. Does it say some things are possible? No. Does it say only one thing is possible? No. He said "all things are possible to him who believes". All in its adjective form is an inclusive word, it literally means any and everything you can think of and even the stuff you haven't thought of yet. If Jesus said all things are possible, then it means ALL things are possible to him who believes, doesn't it? Yes it does. It means you can be freed from the power of sin, you can overcome an addiction, your heart can be made new, your marriage can be restored, your faith can increase and many more things are possible to him who believes. What are you choosing not to believe today? If you find yourself holding on to unbelief, do what the father did in our story today. Mark 9:24 NKJV says the father cried out, "Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!" You can be assured that's a prayer Jesus will answer. In Matthew's (17:19-21) account of the same story, Jesus said to them, "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." As God's word teaches, I encourage you to believe nothing will be impossible for you. Lord Jesus, thank you for your clear teaching all things are possible to those who believe. As the father cried out, help our unbelief. In Your name, Jesus, we pray Amen. Copyright Elizabeth Marks, author of ThinkOnIt Devotions, has a heart for encouraging believers with God's Word. Please visit http://www.ThinkOnItDevotions.com for more devotions, bible studies, book reviews and more! Article Source: http://www.faithwriters.com |