"Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth." Mark 9:23 Our unbelief is the greatest hindrance in our way; in fact, there is no other real difficulty as to our spiritual progress and prosperity. The LORD can do everything; but when He makes a rule that according to our faith so shall it be unto us, our unbelief ties the hands of His omnipotence. Yes, the confederacies of evil shall be scattered if we can but believe. Despised truth shall lift its head if we will but have confidence in the God of truth. We can bear our load of trouble or pass uninjured through the waves of distress if we can gird our loins with the girdle of peace, that girdle which is buckled on by the hands of trust. What can we not believe? Is everything possible except believing in God? Yet He is always true; why do we not believe in Him? He is always faithful to His word; why can we not trust Him? When we are in a right state of heart, faith costs no effort: it is then as natural for us to rely upon God as for a child to trust his father. The worst of it is that we can believe God about everything except the present pressing trial. This is folly. Come, my soul, shake off such sinfulness, and trust thy God with the load, the labor, the longing of this present. This done, all is done.

Another classic from the pen of C.H. Spurgeon that will challenge and inspire you on your daily path to Heaven.

Charles Spurgeon's Faith's Checkbook

The "All" of Belief

A certain man had a demoniac son, who was afflicted with a dumb spirit. The father, having seen the futility of the endeavours of the disciples to heal his child, had little or no faith in Christ, and therefore, when he was bidden to bring his son to him, he said to Jesus, "If thou canst do anything, have compassion on us, and help us." Now there was an "if" in the question, but the poor trembling father had put the "if" in the wrong place: Jesus Christ, therefore, without commanding him to retract the "if," kindly puts it in its legitimate position. "Nay, verily," he seemed to say, "there should be no 'if' about my power, nor concerning my willingness, the 'if' lies somewhere else." "If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth." The man's trust was strengthened, he offered a humble prayer for an increase of faith, and instantly Jesus spoke the word, and the devil was cast out, with an injunction never to return. There is a lesson here which we need to learn. We, like this man, often see that there is an "if" somewhere, but we are perpetually blundering by putting it in the wrong place. "If" Jesus can help me-"if" he can give me grace to overcome temptation-"if" he can give me pardon-"if" he can make me successful? Nay, "if" you can believe, he both can and will. You have misplaced your "if." If you can confidently trust, even as all things are possible to Christ, so shall all things be possible to you. Faith standeth in God's power, and is robed in God's majesty; it weareth the royal apparel, and rideth on the King's horse, for it is the grace which the King delighteth to honour. Girding itself with the glorious might of the all-working Spirit, it becomes, in the omnipotence of God, mighty to do, to dare, and to suffer. All things, without limit, are possible to him that believeth. My soul, canst thou believe thy Lord to-night?

This timeless classic from Charles Spurgeon will help to both start and end your day with wonderful insight into God's Word.

Charles Spurgeon's Morning & Evening

"Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe." - Mark 9:23

Evening Devotional

Many professed Christians are always doubting and fearing, and they forlornly think that this is the necessary state of believers. This is a mistake, for "all things are possible to him that believeth"; and it is possible for us to mount into a state in which a doubt or a fear shall be but as a bird of passage flitting across the soul, but never lingering there. When you read of the high and sweet communions enjoyed by favoured saints, you sigh and murmur in the chamber of your heart, "Alas! these are not for me." O climber, if thou hast but faith, thou shalt yet stand upon the sunny pinnacle of the temple, for "all things are possible to him that believeth." You hear of exploits which holy men have done for Jesus; what they have enjoyed of him; how much they have been like him; how they have been able to endure great persecutions for his sake; and you say, "Ah! as for me, I am but a worm; I can never attain to this." But there is nothing which one saint was, that you may not be. There is no elevation of grace, no attainment of spirituality, no clearness of assurance, no post of duty, which is not open to you if you have but the power to believe. Lay aside your sackcloth and ashes, and rise to the dignity of your true position; you are little in Israel because you will be so, not because there is any necessity for it. It is not meet that thou shouldst grovel in the dust, O child of a King. Ascend! The golden throne of assurance is waiting for you! The crown of communion with Jesus is ready to bedeck your brow. Wrap yourself in scarlet and fine linen, and fare sumptuously every day; for if thou believest, thou mayst eat the fat of kidneys of wheat; thy land shall flow with milk and honey, and thy soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness. Gather golden sheaves of grace, for they await thee in the fields of faith. "All things are possible to him that believeth. "

"All things are possible to him that believeth." - Mark 9:23

"If thou canst do any thing," said the man, "have mercy upon us and help us." The question is not, says Christ, what I can do; but what thou canst believe. All things are possible to me; but this will help thee little. Have faith, and then all things will be possible to thee. My power is given to faith; and fills every channel that faith provides. Christ has all power in heaven and in earth; and he is with his servants, even unto the end of the world: but something beside these facts is necessary that Christ's mighty power may be manifested among men. It is still true that faith determines the exhibitions of his power; he could not do many mighty works in Nazareth because of their unbelief; and it is doubtless because of the Church's unbelief that he doeth so few mighty works in this our day. Compare the power that accompanied the Christian Church in her first evangelistic, steps with what we behold now. See how she clothed herself with thousands in the city of the crucifiers, day by day; how these thousands had all things in common and were filled with love and joy; how a Saul was converted; an Ananias and Sapphira hurled lifeless back from the church they wished to desecrate; how Peter came to Lydda and Saron, and straightway all that dwelt in Lydda and Saron turned to the Lord; how he came to Joppa, and immediately many believed; how Philip went to Samaria and the people with one accord gave heed unto his preaching. Ask the world if it sees any such unequivocal displays of Christ's power in these days; it will reply to you thus: - We see nothing like it; we see that the Church is moving forwards with the general impulse of the age; participating in and profiting by the many facilities of these latter times; the press aids her, but it aids infidelity and everything else. So too with the providential movements of the day; what they do for her they do for her in common with numberless other systems; and she has so far accommodated herself to the spirit of the times we live in, that men can join her communion without sustaining any particular worldly loss or inconvenience. If we may believe what is written, from the days of Abraham to the days of the apostles, divine power was exerted in behalf of the Church in ways that were quite distinctive, and so as to give testimony concerning the people of God apart from other people: and this would seem to be the only kind of testimony available for the object in view. Well, the Lord's arm is not shortened that it cannot save. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. But our faith is feeble. We cannot suppose that he is any more loth to answer the prayer of faith, any more loth to be revealed in connection with his people than he was in former times. The spirit of Egypt was not drowned in the Red Sea, but appeared afterwards in the camp of the Israelites to the grievous detriment of the chosen people: and the Church is by no means emancipated from the spirit of the dark ages.

A daily devotional written by a Baptist Missionary to India, Reverend George Bowen (1816-1888) over 150 years ago.

Bowen's Daily Meditations

"If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth," - Mark 9:23  

Matthew 9:18-34"A ruler came and knelt before him and said: My daughter has just died. But come and put your hand on her, and she will live."Only comparatively few of our Lord's healings are recorded. He seems never to have refused to heal any who came to Him or were brought to Him. Besides, He healed some for whom no one interceded. Here was a ruler - an exceptional case, for the rulers were not His friends. Probably this man's great distress led him to seek healing for his child even in spite of his dislike of Jesus. The ruler and his prejudice, were lost in the father .Trouble comes just as inevitably and as resistlessly, to the mansions of the great and rich - as to the homes of the lowly and poor. None are exempt. We can build no walls and set up no doors to exclude sickness and death! This is one lesson.Another lesson, is that when sickness or any other trouble comes to us - we ought to send for Christ. We are to send for physicians, too, in sickness. They are God's ministers of healing. Usually God requires our cooperation in all that He does for us. But we should also send for Christ. He alone has original power to heal. Life is His gift and is under His care. Health is His alone to give. Medicines unblessed by Him - give no relief. Only at His bidding can anyone be restored from illness. While we use all the means within our reach - we should use them with prayer for Divine blessing on them, and in dependence on Divine power. Whenever anyone is sick in our house - we should send for Jesus and put the case in His hands.Jesus was always eager to help those in trouble. He arose at once at the ruler's request, and followed him to his home. It seems strange, when we think who the man was, probably unfriendly to Jesus, that He should so quickly rise and follow this ruler. But it was always thus. He did not wait to make inquiry concerning the man, whether he was worthy or not, before going with him. The man that needed Him - was the man He wanted. In this alacrity in doing good Jesus was only showing the alertness of Divine love. In heavenly glory now, He is as quick to hear and as prompt to answer our cries - as He was that day in His earthly humiliation. He is always at our call. He never has so much to do or so many calls to answer - that He cannot attend to our case. Indeed, when we come to Him with any need, He has no other thing to do - but attend to us! We should be like our Master in all this. We should be quick to respond to the calls of need and distress about us. We ought to train our hearts to sympathy and thoughtfulness, and our hands to quick, gentle ministry in Christ's name.Then came an interruption as the Master was hastening with the ruler to his house. "Just then a woman who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years came up behind him and touched the hem of His garment." The street was thronged with people waiting for an opportunity to get near to the Healer. The "hem of His garment" is always within reach of earth's sufferers. He has gone up now on high, out of our sight - but His garment floats everywhere. We never can get beyond the sweep of its folds. We can always come near enough to Christ - to reach out a trembling finger and touch His garment and find healing!Of course, we must not make a mistake about this hem. It is not a crucifix, nor is it some relic of a dead saint, nor is it even a bit of the wood of the cross. It is not even the Bible, for touching the Bible will do no one good. Nor is it the Church and its ordinances; for we may belong to the Church and observe its ordinances, and get no benefit to ourselves. To touch the hem of Christ's garment - is to touch Christ Himself. His garment is His life, His love, His Spirit, His grace.A human physician, if hurrying on such an errand, would probably have refused to listen to any calls for help on the way, as the ruler's child was actually dead. But Jesus stopped quietly and turned to see the woman who had touched Him. Mark says that He asked, "Who touched My garments?" How did He know that one touch amid all the jostling of the crowd? The multitudes were close about Him, pressing up against Him. Many of them touched Him. The disciples thought it strange that He should ask such a question. The people could not help touching Him. But there was one touch different from all the rest. There was something in it which sent a thrill through Him. There was a heart's cry in it, a piteous, earnest supplication. It was a touch of faith. It was not like the jostling of the crowd - an accidental or unconscious touch, the mere touch of nearness. It was intentional. There was a soul's cry in it. So, amid all the crude pressure of the multitude, He felt that touch, and turned about to see the one who had touched Him.Jesus always knows the touch of true faith and prayer among all the touches of this great world. In one sense all men are near to Him, for He is everywhere present. We cannot move without pressing up against Him. But when among all earth's millions one person intentionally reaches out a hand to feel for Him, to touch Him with a purpose, with a longing or a desire, to seek for some blessing, or to beg some help - and He instantly knows the pressure of that touch and turns to answer it. He knows when a hungry heart wants Him - no matter how obscure the person, how poor, or how hidden in the crowd.Notice His graciousness in answering the woman's prayer. "Jesus turning and seeing her said, Take heart, daughter, your faith has healed you." This was a bit of Christ's wayside work. He was hastening with Jarius to his home, to restore his dying child - and healed this poor woman on the way. We would call it incidental work, unpurposed, unplanned. The things we set out in the morning to do - are not by any means all the things that we do in any well-spent day. If we have the life of Christ in us, everyone that touches us gets some blessing from us. While busy at our work, we speak kindly to those who meet us or who are near us - and an influence of warmth, cheer or encouragement, or an inspiration toward better living - goes from us to them. We meet one in trouble as we hurry by - and stop to give a word of comfort. We hear of a case of distress - and we send or carry relief. Thus, if we have the spirit of Christ, our wayside service will be a most valuable and important part of our work in this world.We do not know how long Jesus was detained in healing and comforting the woman on the way. "Jesus entered the ruler's house and saw the flute players and the noisy crowd." The child was dead and they were preparing for the funeral. So it seemed that He had tarried too long along the way. To us it appears, that He ought not to have stopped at all to heal or talk with the woman. She could have waited. But when we read the story through to the end - we are glad that He did stop to help the woman. We learn form His delay - that Jesus never is in a hurry. He is never so much engrossed in one case of need, that He cannot stop to consider another. He is never so pressed for time, that we have to wait our turn. No matter what He is doing, He will always hear instantly our cry for help.Another thing we learn from this delay - is that Jesus never comes too late; He never waits too long. True, the ruler's child died while he lingered - but this only gave Him an opportunity for a greater miracle. He delayed, that He might do a more glorious work for this family. There is always some good reason for it - when Christ seems to delay to answer our prayers or come to our help. He delays, that He may do more for us in the end."The girl is not dead - but asleep ." This was Christ's word always about death. He said His friend Lazarus was asleep. He says the same of all His friends. They are not dead. Indeed, they never lived so really, so richly, so fully - as they live, when we call them dead! They are away from all the limitations of earthly life, set free from the hampering prison of the flesh, cleansed of all sin, "spirits of just men made perfect."Christ changed the whole aspect of death for His people! To them death is but the passage to life - rich, blessed, glorious life. Even bodily death is a sleep - and sleep is not a terrible experience. It is restful and refreshing, and then we wake again from sleep and live on beyond it. So the body sleeps, and will rise again renewed and wearing immortal beauty. Christ called this child from her sleep very soon ; it will be longer before He will call those whom we lay down in death's sleep - but He will surely wake them in His own time, in the blessed, glorious morning. It is wonderful comfort to us - to know that Christ has care of our sleeping dead and has the keys of their graves and can call them when He will.Another phase of human need is met in the next incident. "Two blind men followed Him." There are a great many people, who are blind in another way. They can see certain things - but certain other things, they cannot see at all. They can see mountains and plains and blue skies, and human faces, and money and real estate, and all earthly things; but they cannot see God, nor heaven, nor the beauty of holiness, nor the inheritance of believers, nor any of the unseen things of blessedness and Divine glory. They can see only material things, which are neither enduring nor eternal; but they cannot see spiritual things, which alone are real. Natural blindness is a sore loss. A blind man misses all the glorious beauty of this world. He cannot see where to go - and has to be led by the hand. But spiritual blindness is an infinitely more sore loss. Christ alone could give sight to the blind. He opened eyes, that had always been closed. He alone can open the eyes of the spiritually blind. If we cannot see spiritual things, we should call upon Christ to have mercy upon us.<div class="center-it mtb10">Always faith was required. "Do you believe that I am able to do this?" The men must have faith, before Jesus would heal them. When we come to Him asking Him to do anything for us, He wants to know if we believe that He is able to do it. Once a father came to Him for his demon possessed son, and his prayer was, "If You can do anything, have compassion on us, and help us." But the "if" marred the request - the father was not sure that Jesus could cure his son, and Jesus sent him back to get a better faith. "If you can!" He answered. "All things are possible to him that believes ." As soon as the man could say, "Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!" Jesus cured the boy (Mark 9:22-24). May it be that the reason why many of our prayers are not answered, is because we do not believe that Christ is able to do what we ask of Him? If we can believe - He can give what we ask. If we cannot believe - He will not do anything for us.</div>

A unique type of devotional from the writings of James Russell Miller, published between 1908 and 1913.

Devotional Hours Within the Bible

Matthew 9:18-34

The Power of Faith

In his strength he struggled with God. Yes, he struggled with the Angel and prevailed; he wept, and sought favor from Him. § [Abraham] did not waver at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God. Have faith in God. For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, “Be removed and be cast into the sea,” and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says.  Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them § If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes. § Blessed is she who believed, for there will be a fulfillment of those things which were told her from the Lord. Increase our faith.

Daily Light on the Daily Path or Daily Light is a Christian daily devotional scripture reading published by Bagster & Sons about 1875. It has been reprinted continually since then. It consists of brief groupings of scripture passages which speak to prominent Biblical themes—two themes (morning and evening) for each day of the year. It appends no commentary, but simply allows scripture to speak for itself.

Morning Daily Light

 Your name shall . . . be called . . . Israel; for you have struggled with God and with men, and have prevailed. 

Not being weak in faith, [Abraham] did not consider his own body, already dead (since he was about a hundred years old), and the deadness of Sarah’s womb. He did not waver at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God. § Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, “Your sins are forgiven you,” or to say, “Arise, take up your bed and walk”? § If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes. All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. § Why are you so fearful? How is it that you have no faith? § Look at the birds of the air … your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? § Why do you reason among yourselves because you have brought no bread? Do you not … remember the five loaves of the five thousand? My God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.

Evening Daily Light

 Why do you reason about these things in your hearts? 

23 <woj>“‘If you can’?”</woj> said Jesus. <woj>“Everything is possible for one who believes.” </woj>

<woj>“‘If you can’?”</woj> said Jesus. <woj>“Everything is possible for one who believes.”<cr>1</cr> </woj>

Mark 9:23

 23 “‘If you can’?” said Jesus. “Everything is possible for one who believes.”  

From Wikipedia: 

The New International Version (NIV) is an English translation of the Bible first published in 1978 by Biblica (formerly the International Bible Society). The NIV was published to meet the need for a modern translation done by Bible scholars using the earliest, highest quality manuscripts available. Of equal importance was that the Bible be expressed in broadly understood modern English.

The NIV is published by Zondervan in the United States and Hodder & Stoughton in the UK. The NIV was updated in 1984 and 2011 and has become one of the most popular and best-selling modern translations.

OT: Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia; additional sources;
NT: UBS Greek New Testament; Novum Testamentum Graece; additional sources;

New International Version

 “‘If you can’?” said Jesus. “Everything is possible for one who believes.”

<woj>“‘If you can’?”</woj> said Jesus. <woj>“Everything is possible for one who believes.” </woj>

 “‘If you can’?” said Jesus. “Everything is possible for one who believes.”  

Bible Verse of the Day

February 23, 2022

Mark 9:23 NIV

Verse by Verse Bible Study

More on the web

Group of Brands