Mark 9:23 Jesus said to him, If you can believe, all things are possible to him that believes. The expression does not mean, in this connection, "It is possible for the believer to do all things," but "It is possible for the believer to get all things." Omnipotence is, in a sense, at his disposal. But the universality of things contemplated by our Lord was not, as the nature of the case makes evident, the most absolute conceivable. We must descend in thought to the limited universality of things that would be of benefit to the believer. We must, indeed, descend still farther. We must consider the benefit of the believer not absolutely, or unconditionally, but relatively to his circumstances, thus relatively to the circumstances of the other beings with whom he is connected. With these limitations — inherent in the nature of the case — "all things" are possible for him that believeth. But why only for him that believeth? Because faith in the fact of Christ's Divine power or authority, or, at all events, in the propitiousness which is involved in that fact, is, in the nature of things, absolutely necessary to the enjoyment of the highest spiritual blessings. By making it a prerequisite for the obtaining of material blessings, Christ made His visible life a parable of high invisible realities, and flashed light on the inner by the reflective power of the outer. It was the perfection of symbolism. (J. Morison, D. D.) Parallel Verses KJV: Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth.WEB: Jesus said to him, "If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes." |
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