Mark 11:23
”I tell you the truth, if anyone says to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done for him.”
Reading this passage I would initially say it is about faith- faith that can move mountains. But the flip side of that coin is of course doubt. When doubt consumes me, it is very hard to move forward. There is first the doubt in my own abilities. There may be doubt about whether God cares or is interested in my struggles. But there is no room for doubt when I reach out to God and move forward. God will give me all the power I need.
Holy Father, your presence in my life leaves no room for doubt, but sometimes doubt creeps in anyway. Help me to stay strong, God, with you. Amen
Becky, transforming
Mark 11:23 I think what Jesus was saying to the disciples was believe in God, believe in yourself, believe you are capable of things you didn’t think possible. They have been witnessing Jesus’ miraculous healings. He was telling them that these things happened because of God’s will. I am sure they had doubts about their own abilities. Jesus reassured them that God‘s will would be there for them. Prayer, Gracious God remind me to pray My needs to God and accept that his will may be done not mine. Amen
Mark 11:23 Truly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain be taken up and thrown into the sea and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says will come to pass, it will be done for him. I struggle with doubt and unbelief. It would seem impossible to move a mountain into the sea but Jesus only used this picture to say that God can do anything. Doubt and unbelief are big problems.They are negative and discouraging. They cause me to make poor choices, which make life difficult. They cause me to say things like, I wish I could lose weight, or or I wish I could keep my house clean, or I wis…
Mark 11:23 ”I tell you the truth, if anyone says to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done for him.”
If I had been in Jesus’ audience I would not have believed that I could do this no matter how strongly I believed. Why would Jesus encourage people to doubt themselves even if they believed that Jesus could do what he said? I don’t believe that giving people an unattainable goal is a way to build their faith, so I have never understood this statement by Jesus. Jesus is giving them an extreme example, but how many had doubts that…
Mark 11: 23 “Truly I tell you, if anyone says to this mountain, , ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and does not doubt in their heart but believes that what they say will happen, it will be done for them.”
I don’t think that everything I pray for will be answered in the way I would like. God has his plan and it does not always go along with my wishes. And yet, I continue to pray for all the people and things I feel are important to me. I let God do the work and wait to see what requests will be answered. I don’t doubt that he hears me. I just leave it up to God …
Mark 11:23
I feel a bit contrarian this morning. This is a famous and oft-quoted verse and has much to say to believers. On the other hand, the perception among many non-believers is that we take every word of Scripture literally and their lived experience tells them this verse is ridiculous. I suppose what I am saying is that as Christians we hold to the spiritual truth of Jesus’ call to faith. As people who try to disciple others we need to be prudent in how we present Scripture. The Holy Spirit must do the work of bringing a person to faith and removing their doubt through the Word of God without my bumbling interference.
Prayer - Mountain-moving God, let…