Mark 10:27 KJV
“And Jesus looking upon them saith, With men it is impossible, but not with God: for with God all things are possible.”
There are moments in life when human ability reaches its limit.
You have tried everything you know to do.
You have spoken to the right people.
You have made the calls.
You have planned.
You have prayed.
You have waited.
And still, the situation seems impossible.
That is exactly where this statement from Jesus becomes so powerful:
“With men it is impossible, but not with God.”
Jesus did not say that everything is possible with men.
He acknowledged the reality of human limitation.
There are things men cannot fix.
There are doors men cannot open.
There are situations human wisdom cannot solve.
There are battles natural strength cannot win.
But Jesus did not stop with impossibility.
He added:
“But not with God.”
That changes everything.
The Limit of Man Is Not the Limit of God
One of the biggest mistakes we make is judging God by what people can or cannot do.
We look at the doctor’s report.
We look at the bank balance.
We look at the economy.
We look at our qualifications.
We look at our age.
We look at our background.
We look at the available opportunities.
Then we conclude:
“This cannot happen.”
But Jesus teaches us to separate what is impossible with men from what is possible with God.
Human limitation is real.
But it is not final.
Men may say:
“There is no way.”
God says:
“I am the way.”
Men may say:
“There is nothing more we can do.”
God says:
“My power has not been exhausted.”
Men may say:
“This is impossible.”
Jesus says:
“But not with God.”
The Context Makes This Even More Powerful
Jesus made this statement after speaking with the rich young ruler.
The man had asked what he needed to do to inherit eternal life.
He had kept many commandments outwardly, but Jesus exposed the deeper issue in his heart.
He was attached to his possessions.
When Jesus told him what was required, the man went away grieved.
The disciples were astonished and asked:
Mark 10:26 KJV
“And they were astonished out of measure, saying among themselves, Who then can be saved?”
Then Jesus answered:
Mark 10:27 KJV
“And Jesus looking upon them saith, With men it is impossible, but not with God: for with God all things are possible.”
In context, Jesus was teaching them that salvation itself is beyond human achievement.
A person cannot save himself.
Religion cannot save.
Good works cannot save.
Human discipline cannot produce the new birth.
Only God can do what man cannot do.
This means the verse is not merely a slogan for getting anything we want.
It is first a revelation of the supernatural ability of God to accomplish what human ability cannot.
God Specialises in What Is Beyond Human Reach
Look through Scripture and you will repeatedly find God stepping into impossible situations.
Abraham and Sarah were too old to have a child.
Yet Isaac was born.
Israel was trapped between Pharaoh’s army and the Red Sea.
Yet the sea opened.
Jericho was heavily fortified.
Yet the walls fell.
Goliath looked unbeatable.
Yet David defeated him.
Lazarus had been dead for four days.
Yet Jesus called him out of the grave.
The greatest impossibility of all was the salvation of sinful humanity.
Yet through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, God made a way.
The Bible is full of situations where man reached the end of himself and God demonstrated that He had not reached the end of His power.
Stop Making God the Size of Your Experience
Sometimes we unconsciously reduce God to the size of what we have seen before.
If we have never experienced something, we assume it cannot happen.
If we do not know anybody who has done it, we conclude it is impossible.
If we cannot understand how it will happen, we struggle to believe that it can happen.
But God does not need your previous experience in order to perform His next work.
He is not limited by your history.
He is not restricted by your connections.
He is not confined by your resources.
He does not need circumstances to look favourable before He acts.
Jeremiah 32:27 KJV
“Behold, I am the LORD, the God of all flesh: is there any thing too hard for me?”
That is the question.
Not:
“Is this hard for me?”
Not:
“Is this hard for people?”
Not:
“Has this ever happened before?”
The real question is:
Is anything too hard for God?
Faith Begins Where Human Confidence Ends
As long as we believe we can handle everything ourselves, we often lean heavily on human strength.
But impossible situations expose our dependence.
They teach us to look beyond ourselves.
They teach us to pray differently.
They teach us to trust differently.
They teach us to depend on God.
Paul learned this principle:
2 Corinthians 12:9 KJV
“And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness.”
Weakness does not always mean defeat.
Sometimes weakness becomes the stage on which God demonstrates His strength.
“All Things Are Possible” Does Not Mean God Must Approve Every Desire
This verse must be understood correctly.
Jesus was not teaching that God is obligated to perform every idea we can imagine.
Faith is not using God to accomplish our personal agenda.
Biblical faith works in agreement with God’s will.
1 John 5:14 KJV
“And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us.”
God can do anything consistent with His nature, purpose and will.
So our confidence is not:
“Whatever I want must happen.”
Our confidence is:
“Nothing God has purposed is impossible for Him to accomplish.”
That is stronger.
Your Situation May Be Impossible, but God Is Not Intimidated
Perhaps you are facing something today that looks completely beyond you.
You do not know where the answer will come from.
You do not know how the door will open.
You do not know how the situation will change.
You do not know how long it will take.
That does not mean God has run out of options.
The fact that you cannot see a way does not mean there is no way.
The fact that you cannot explain the answer does not mean God cannot produce one.
The fact that people have given up does not mean Heaven has given up.
Your impossibility may be the exact place where God wants to reveal His ability.
Do Not Worship the Impossible Situation
Sometimes we give more attention to the size of the problem than to the greatness of God.
We rehearse the difficulty.
We study the obstacles.
We repeat what cannot happen.
We discuss why it will not work.
We gather evidence for impossibility.
Then we wonder why our faith feels weak.
Faith does not deny facts.
Faith simply refuses to make facts greater than God.
Abraham did this.
Romans 4:19–21 KJV
“And being not weak in faith, he considered not his own body now dead, when he was about an hundred years old, neither yet the deadness of Sara’s womb:
He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God;
And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform.”
Abraham knew the facts.
But he also knew God.
That is the difference.
Ask Yourself: Who Has the Final Word?
People may have spoken.
Circumstances may have spoken.
Statistics may have spoken.
Fear may have spoken.
But God must have the final word.
When Jesus said:
“With men it is impossible, but not with God,”
He was teaching the disciples to stop allowing human limitation to define divine possibility.
There are times when you must say:
“Yes, this is impossible for me.”
“Yes, this is beyond human ability.”
“Yes, I do not know how it can happen.”
“But not with God.”
That final phrase must stay in your spirit:
But not with God.
Three Words That Can Change Your Perspective
But not with God.
The doctors cannot do more.
But not with God.
The money is not enough.
But not with God.
The opportunity looks closed.
But not with God.
The situation has lasted too long.
But not with God.
The relationship looks beyond repair.
But not with God.
You do not know the next step.
But not with God.
Those words do not guarantee that God will act exactly as you expect.
But they remind you that divine ability remains available even where human ability has ended.
God Is Not Asking You to Be Omnipotent
Sometimes believers put themselves under unnecessary pressure.
You do not have to know everything.
You do not have to fix everything.
You do not have to control everything.
You are not God.
Your responsibility is to trust Him, obey Him, pray, act on His Word and follow His leading.
The impossible belongs to God.
Your part is obedience.
His part is power.
The Question Is Not “Can I?” but “Can God?”
When you face something beyond your ability, change the question.
Do not only ask:
“How can I do this?”
Also ask:
“What can God do here?”
Do not only ask:
“Who can help me?”
Ask:
“Lord, what are You saying?”
Do not only ask:
“What resources do I have?”
Ask:
“What resources does Heaven have?”
When God is involved, the equation changes.
Remember Who You Are Walking With
The Christian life was never designed to be lived by human strength alone.
Jesus said:
John 15:5 KJV
“I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.”
Without Him, we are limited.
With Him, we enter into the realm of divine possibility.
That does not make us all-powerful.
It makes us dependent upon the One who is.
What Should You Do When You Face the Impossible?
First, acknowledge the reality of the situation without surrendering to fear.
Second, take the matter to God in prayer.
Third, search His Word for His mind concerning the matter.
Fourth, obey whatever He tells you to do.
Fifth, refuse to let human impossibility become your final conclusion.
Sixth, keep your confidence in God rather than in the outcome you imagined.
Faith is not pretending the mountain is small.
Faith is knowing your God is greater.
The Greatest Example: Salvation
Perhaps the deepest application of Mark 10:27 is this:
You cannot save yourself.
No amount of religion can remove sin.
No amount of good behaviour can produce the new birth.
No amount of human effort can reconcile sinful man to a holy God.
But what was impossible for man, God accomplished through Jesus Christ.
John 3:16 KJV
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”
If you have never received Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour, the God of the impossible is able to give you a new life.
Final Thought
There are two sides to Mark 10:27.
“With men it is impossible.”
That keeps us humble.
Then:
“But not with God.”
That gives us hope.
And finally:
“For with God all things are possible.”
That gives us faith.
Your strength may be limited.
Your resources may be limited.
Your understanding may be limited.
Your connections may be limited.
But God is not limited.
So when you come to the end of what man can do, do not assume you have come to the end of what can be done.
You may simply have reached the place where you must discover what God can do.
With men it may be impossible. But not with God.
Prayer
Father, in the name of Jesus, thank You because You are the God of the impossible.
Help me never to reduce You to the size of my experience, resources or understanding.
Where human ability ends, teach me to trust Your power.
Where fear says there is no way, remind me that You are not limited.
Where circumstances look impossible, help me to remain fully persuaded that what You have promised, You are able also to perform.
Give me wisdom to know Your will, faith to believe Your Word, and courage to obey Your instructions.
I refuse to make human limitation the final word over my life.
I choose to believe the words of Jesus:
“With men it is impossible, but not with God: for with God all things are possible.”
In Jesus’ name.
Amen.
Cornelius Bella, The Message Bearer
