Editor's note: Dr. David Jeremiah reminds us that God is the God of the Impossible. We can pray to God about what seems impossible and in His hands, it's a different story. Enjoy this excerpt from his book Ever Faithful.
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God of the Impossible
Jesus said to him, “If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes.”— Mark 9:23
The word impossible occurs nine times in the New King James Version of the Bible, and most of the references tell us that this word doesn’t appear in God’s regular vocabulary.
- Matthew 17:20: “Nothing will be impossible.”
- Matthew 19:26: “With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”
- Mark 10:27: “With men it is impossible, but not with God.”
- Luke 1:37: “With God nothing will be impossible.”
- Luke 18:27: “The things which are impossible with men are possible with God.”
Hebrews 6:18 tells us it is impossible for God to lie, and Hebrews 11:6 adds that without faith it is impossible for us to please Him. It demonstrates how important it is to cast our impossibilities in God’s hands. Just as He parted the sea for Israel, reversed the events in Esther, raised Jesus from the dead, and converted Saul of Tarsus, God is capable of reversing our irreversible problems.
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What Is Possible?
There is a part of the body of Christ that has adopted a slogan from the secular self-help movement: “If you can conceive it and believe it, you can achieve it!” If you can conceive of yourself as an astronaut or a star player in the NBA, and believe it with all your heart, are you likely to achieve such a goal? The answer for most adults is no.
What’s good about the “name it and claim it” school is that it encourages us not to limit ourselves or God. What’s wrong with this approach is that it misapplies the words of Jesus. For example, a corollary of Jesus’ words in Mark 9:23 is that “all things are possible for [God]” — words Jesus spoke on the night of His arrest in the Garden of Gethsemane (Mark 14:36). Jesus believed it was possible for Him not to go to the Cross, and He also believed it was possible for God to keep Him from that suffering. Yet He went to the Cross anyway.
Our beliefs and possibilities have to be in line with the will of God.
That’s how Jesus lived His life and how He taught His disciples to live (John 5:30). When our lives are lived in obedience to God’s will, nothing is impossible. Dream big — but dream biblically!
Excerpted with permission from Ever Faithful by Dr. David Jeremiah, copyright David Jeremiah.
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Your Turn/ Pray to God
What’s impossible in your life right now? What prayers for reversal are you praying that are in line with the will of God? Believe big! God is the God of the impossible! Come share your thoughts with us. We want to hear from you! ~ Devotionals Daily
RESOURCES
Check out Dr. David Jeremiah's website.
Read this Q&A with Dr. Jeremiah about how we should pray.