And he said, The things which are impossible with men are possible with God. Yes, impossible, the Divine Teacher repeated, from a man's point of view; impossible from the platform of legal obedience on which the young ruler (Luke 18:21) had taken his stand, or the Pharisee in his prayer (Luke 18:11, Luke 18:12); but it was not impossible with God.
He might give this salvation as a perfectly free gift, utterly undeserved, perfectly unmerited, as he did to the prodigal son when he returned, or to the publican when he beat his breast in almost voiceless mourning, or still more conspicuously, not many days later, to the penitent thief dying on the cross.