“ARE ALL THINGS POSSIBLE?"

23 And Jesus said to him, “‘If you can’! All things are possible for one who believes.”

Mark 9:23

The Bible teaches that God can accomplish anything because He has the power to do anything. He caused Sarah, an old lady way past the age of childbearing, to get pregnant and give birth to Isaac. He brought Lazarus back to life after being dead for 4 days. When Jesus sent His disciples, He gave them the power to heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, and cast out demons. But the question is this, “Do Christians have this power today?

I used to believe that if I had enough faith, nothing would be impossible for me to achieve. One of my “dreams” was to prevent someone from dying by praying for him. There were times when the people I prayed for claimed they received healing, while others did not. One time, I asked God to keep someone from dying. I prayed hard—really hard, but he died. I believed that he would live, but he died. Does this mean that I did not have enough faith? If I had the right amount of faith, would it have stopped that person’s death?

In our verse of the day, Jesus returns from the Transfiguration along with His three disciples. Meanwhile, the other nine failed to heal a child who was being tortured by an unclean spirit. The boy’s father came to Jesus and reported the disciples' inability to help his child. This perhaps led the father to doubt Jesus and His power to heal. Also, the scribes, who were watching Jesus closely, denied that His power came from God. Taking these things into consideration, the people’s lack of faith in Him threatens to prevent the miracle.

Jesus said that all things are possible for one who believes. This doesn’t mean we can achieve anything we desire if we have enough faith. Genuine faith understands that God alone reserves the right to determine the accomplishment of things. He decides who gets healed and who doesn’t.

The question is why did the nine disciples fail to heal the boy when Jesus gave them the authority to do so? One thing that comes to mind is that because they were away from Christ at the time. They may have been careless about their spiritual life, particularly in the area of prayer. That is why Jesus emphasized the importance of prayer in dealing with such a spirit.

The lesson of this event is that the power Jesus gave His disciples is only effective if they depended on Him, which is best demonstrated through prayer. Faith is a gift from God but its development rests in the believer’s spiritual discipline and continued reliance on God. Apart from Him, we can do nothing. However, there is no guarantee that God will heal everyone we pray for. But here's the truth: you can influence how others see God.

As a Christian, you are God’s representative to the unbelieving world. They cannot see God but they can see you. How you live out your faith determines how the unsaved will perceive God. Does your life cause them to believe that our God is indeed all-powerful? Do you help them see the life-changing power of the Holy Spirit? How is your prayer life? You may not be able to keep someone from dying but if you live a life that glorifies God, you may still well be able to lead someone to Christ.

Pursue the Saviour today!