Belief When Believing Seems Impossible
Feb. 17, 2024
In a Bible class, a question was raised about Jesus’ statement in Matthew 17:20, “For truly, I say to you, if you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you.” Was Jesus speaking literally or hyperbolically, and did it apply to only his disciples at the time, or does it apply to us today? I raised my hand, at age 17, still nervous to comment in an “adult” Bible class. I said that if Jesus said we could move mountains by faith, then we believe him. An older man sitting in the pew ahead of me turned around and said defiantly, “Have YOU ever moved a mountain?”
This statement by Jesus is very difficult. Jesus says that with only the faith of a mustard seed (a very small thing), we could tell a mountain to be moved from here to there. But I have never moved a mountain by simply telling it to. And I’m pretty sure that if I went up to a mountain today and declared it to move with as much faith as I could muster, that it would certainly remain where it has been for generations immemorial. There is a disconnect with what Jesus said and what we know (at least what we think we know) to be true about mountains. So we try to explain away the contradiction. Jesus must have been specifically talking about his apostles and not us, or Jesus was speaking metaphorically or hyperbolically. He didn’t really mean a mountain would move, did he?
There is an account of a very dire time in Israel’s history in 2 Kings 6 and 7. The city of Samaria was besieged by Syrians and in a famine. Food had become so scarce that a donkey’s head (not the most appetizing meal) was sold for 80 shekels of silver, and a small portion of dove’s dung (extremely unappetizing) sold for five shekels. King Jehoram came across a woman lamenting another woman refusing to let her baby be eaten after they had boiled and eaten the first woman’s baby. It’s almost impossible to fathom such desperation and suffering.
During this crisis, the prophet Elisha declares, “Thus says the LORD, Tomorrow about this time a seah of fine flour shall be sold for a shekel, and two seahs of barley for a shekel, at the gate of Samaria” (2 Kings 7:1). Try to put yourself mentally (if it’s even possible) in the place of a Samarian dealing with a famine so severe that some people have resorted to eating their own children. The Syrians are just outside the walls, intent on starving out the city. There is nothing that can be done to change the situation, especially not in a day. Perhaps you can understand the king’s captain declaring to Elisha, “If the LORD himself should make windows in heaven, could this thing be?” (2 Kings 7:2). The relief that Elisha said will come was so unbelievable the captain cannot imagine how it could be so even if God were to open a window directly from heaven.
Elisha tells the captain that he will see the prophecy fulfilled but will not partake. The rest of chapter seven reveals that God made the Syrians hear what they thought was a large mercenary army. The Syrians fled in great haste, leaving behind their wealth and supplies. Four desperate lepers just happen upon the abandoned wealth and came back to tell everyone else. In a day, the fortunes of these people completely reverse. The siege is over, and the spoils include such an abundance of food that the famine is over. In the rush of excitement, the captain who expressed incredulity at Elisha’s prophecy was trampled over by the throngs of people at the city gate.
Consider how the captain reacted to the oracles of God. He could not fathom how God could do such a thing, so he decided that God could not do it. Is that how we might treat the statement of Jesus about moving mountains? Because we cannot fathom how faith could move a mountain, we’d rather search for the solution that says it’s not possible? I fear going down the path that limits the power of God. Admittedly, Jesus’ statement challenges me still, and even if I cannot fully grasp “how” faith might move a mountain, I’d prefer to be like the man looking to Jesus for healing even when Jesus’ disciples could not heal, “I believe; help my unbelief!” (Mark 9:24). What did Jesus tell the man right before this profound statement? Jesus said, “All things are possible for one who believes” (Mark 9:23). Did you catch that? All things. Not just moving mountains. And no limitations on this applying to just the apostles (in fact, in this story, Jesus’ disciples failed to heal this man’s son).
What is harder? Causing a mountain to move, or rising from the dead? If we have already come to accept that Jesus rose from the dead, and that through his life we too shall find hope in His resurrection, then why do we find the statement about moving mountains so difficult? Moving mountains is nothing compared to the promises of eternal life God has given to us through his Son. Which is more difficult: removing a mountain, or removing the guilt of our sin? I would posit that removing the guilt of sin is harder. With enough time and determination, men might be able tear down a mountain piece by piece. But who can remove the stain of sin upon the soul? Only Jesus can move that mountain that resides within each and every one of us. So let us not limit him by our inability to understand how. Let us cry out, “I do believe, help me in my unbelief,” and figure out the “how” later if God so chooses to give us such an understanding.