Submitted for Your Consideration

Most of us (those who read this blog) are firmly set against the "health and wealth," "your best life now," "prosperity gospel" (which is not another gospel (Gal 1:6-7)). The only thing, they tell us, that is keeping us from being healthy and wealthy is our lack of faith. If we had faith, they tell us, all good things would come to us. But we know better. We know that Christ promised tribulation in this world (John 16:33). We know that there will be suffering (1 Peter 4:12). And we know that it isn't all bad (2 Cor 12:7-10; James 1:2-4). We're smarter than that. Okay, wiser. Right?

I suspect that this false doctrine we rightly usher out the front door often ends up getting smuggled back in the back door. Consider.

When Jesus was in His hometown, He complained, "A prophet is not without honor, except in his hometown and among his relatives and in his own household" (Mark 6:4). The text goes on to say, "And He could do no mighty work there, except that He laid his hands on a few sick people and healed them. And He marveled because of their unbelief" (Mark 6:4-5). Now, you tell me what we've learned. What I am nearly universally told is that Jesus was unable to perform miracles when those for whom He would perform them had no faith. Right? I mean, that's what it says, right? So how is that different than "You aren't getting what you want from God because you don't have enough faith"? Is it actually true that our lack of faith can prevent God from accomplishing His plans? Is God's power limited by our faith? (I'm sure you can see the clear implication: God is not Omnipotent if His power is limited.) Is this the required conclusion from this text? And if so, how is that different than the "Your lack of faith prevents God from giving you all the good things He wants to give you" position?

I don't think it is required. First, note, it does not say "He could do no mighty works there because of their unbelief." That is not what it says. It says He marveled because of their unbelief, and it says He could do no mighty works there. The two are not connected in the text. In the parallel text it says He did not do mighty works there because of their unbelief (Matt 13:58), so it true that "no mighty works" is connected to "unbelief," but Mark doesn't connect "could not" with unbelief. Why does that matter? If Christ is actually incapable of performing mighty works in the absence of faith, we have a problem. On one hand, the repeated claim of Scripture that God can and does do whatever He pleases is without merit. That is, Scripture is wrong. On the other hand, we have lots of biblical examples of mighty works done without faith or even permission. People were raised from the dead, healed, made to walk or see again, many times without any evidence of faith primarily because they didn't know it was coming. So if the lack of faith can prevent an Omnipotent God from being Omnipotent, we have a faulty Bible and a faulty God.

So what could it mean when Mark says "He could do no mighty work there" if not "He lacked the power to perform them because of their lack of faith"? Well, we routinely use the word "could" (or "could not") to mean something other than having or lacking the power to do something. Let me give you an example. I remember overhearing my son on the phone talking to a friend who was encouraging him to lie to his father about going somewhere. "Oh," my son answered, "I couldn't do that." Really? "Couldn't"? Did he mean he lacked the power to lie? Of course not. He meant that something else was preventing him from exercising that power. For us to do something, it requires two things -- ability and will. So "cannot" could mean "I lack the ability" or "I lack the will." Lacking the will, clearly, makes is impossible to do something. If I will not, I cannot.

It is entirely reasonable, then, that Jesus lacked the will to do mighty works there because they lacked faith. One commentator suggests that if they lacked faith, they wouldn't ask and He wouldn't answer. Jesus was all about glorifying God; if they lacked faith would it have brought God any glory to do mighty works among skeptics? Jesus was all about loving others; would it have been in their best interest to do mighty works for those who wouldn't believe?

We have abilities and we have will. Sometimes our abilities don't measure up to our will, and we can't do what we will. Sometimes our will doesn't fit our abilities, and we won't do what we can. In either case it can rightly be said, "I cannot do it." I would suggest that Christ "could do no mighty works there" not because human free will limits God's ability to act, but because God (the Father, the Son, the Spirit) may lack the will to do mighty works if we refuse to believe. This perspective would maintain an Omnipotent God and agree with Scripture. What say you?