The most common rebuke Jesus utters in the gospels is directed at people for their lack of faith. Interestingly enough, I can’t recall ever hearing a pastor issuing a similar word of challenge from the pulpit. This is a curious aspect of my experience in evangelicalism.

Have you ever noticed in the story from Mark 9 just how Jesus responds when the father says, “If you can do anything, have compassion on us and help us.” He says, “all things are possible for me.”

Oh wait, no he doesn’t.

He says, “all things are possible for one who believes“.

There are multiple occasions in the New Testament where a miracle appears to be directly related to the measure of faith of the recipient.

• The faith of the Canaanite women (Matthew 15)
• The women who had a discharge of blood (Mark 5)
• The healing of blind Bartimaeus (Mark 10)
• The cleansing of the lepers (Luke 17)
• The lame man Paul heals in Lystra (Acts 14)
• The faith of a centurion (Matthew 8)

It seems to make a difference how much faith a person has.