GREAT THINGS ENTERPRISE
CLAUDE BLACK
Mark 10:27
All Things Are Possible
There is a story about a man working on a construction project. One part of the work involved burying a large tank. When the tank arrived on the job site, a crane lifted it off the truck and set it on supports. As soon as workers released the crane’s cables, the tank started to roll. A worker ran and braced his back against the tank, but it kept rolling—it rolled right over him. Fortunately, the supports on which the tank rested and the softness of the ground were enough to prevent the man from being crushed.
In St. Mark’s account of the rich young ruler who came to Jesus seeking to inherit salvation, Jesus told the young man to sell all he had and give the proceeds to the poor. Jesus then stated that anyone who clung to possessions would find it as difficult to enter the Kingdom of God as it would be to push a camel through the eye of a needle. This statement astonished those who witnessed the exchange, and they wondered who could be saved—who could enter the Kingdom of God at all. Mark wrote, “Looking at them, Jesus said, ‘With men it is impossible, but not with God; for all things are possible with God.’” (Mark 10:27)
The word “looked” (ἐμβλέπω, emblepō), used by Mark in this passage, is a compound verb whose prefix intensifies the action; therefore, it may be understood “looked with deep love and concern.” Jesus perceived the disciples’ perplexity and explained that entering the Kingdom of God is impossible for anyone who trusts in himself or his possessions—but not impossible for God, for with God all things are possible.
It was impossible for the worker to stop the rolling tank, just as it is impossible for anyone to enter the Kingdom of God through personal effort or possessions. Yet it is not impossible for the Father to bring someone into His Kingdom, if that person trusts in Him.
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