The Acts of the Apostles 25

Subtitle: Stephen's Defense I

Sorry about the delay.  We lost power this week for several days :)

Acts 7:1-8.  This sermon was preached by Pastor Marty Bonner on November 27, 2022.

Stephen has been arrested and put in front of the Sanhedrin.  They have charged with multiple counts of blasphemy.

This chapter is Stephen’s answer, or defense, before the court.  It will take a while to get through this chapter, but Stephen is pretty much making the same argument through a multitude of examples from the history of Israel.  He is simply obeying God like Abraham did, like Joseph, like Moses, and like all the prophets.  They, however, are resisting the Holy Spirit just like the tribal patriarchs, the Israelites in the days of Moses, and all of those who persecuted the prophets.

This whole chapter begs the question, “Just who is on trial here?”  Or, we might ask it this way.  Stephen knows that he is on trial before the Jewish Sanhedrin, but he also realizes that they are all on trial before the God of heaven.  If anyone is being blasphemous here, it is the council who continually sits in the seat of Moses, contravening the truth of God.

Let’s get into our passage.

Remember Abraham (vs. 1-8)

The high priest asks Stephen what he has to say in regards to the charges against him.  Stephen starts with reminding them of the patriarch Abraham.  He is extremely important to Israel, the father of the faith.  God’s covenant with Israel was an extension of a prior covenant, or a greater Promise, that God had made with Abraham, their forefather.

Clearly, these men have not forgotten about Abraham per se.  Rather, they have forgotten what is most important about Abraham, and how that should impact their activity.  The most important thing about Abraham is found in Genesis 15:6, “He believed in the LORD, and He accounted it to him for righteousness.”  So, how was this belief, this faith, of Abraham displayed in his life?

First, God had called Abraham to leave Ur and to travel to the place that God would show him.  When you read Genesis 12, it appears that God speaks to Abraham while he is in Haran (a town on the Turkish side of the border with Syria).  Ur is a city much further south between the Euphrates and Tigris rivers.  We would call this Iraq today.  Historically it is also called Babylonia, Chaldea, Sumer, and Mesopotamia.  Yet, in Genesis 15, God tells Abraham, “I am the LORD, who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans, to give you this land to inherit.”  God seems to date His call upon Abraham back to his time in Ur.  This was the traditional understanding in the first century AD as well.

Abram displayed his faith by leaving his home country and heading out on the road.  He first moved into Northern Aram, Syria.  There he lived until his father died, and then he moved south into Canaan.

It is not clear how to read this.  Was Abraham disobeying to stop in Haran?  Of course, God said that He would show Abraham, as in, Abraham did not know the destination yet.  It is quite possible that God first moved Abraham out of Ur, and then later told him to head south into Canaan.  There is no hint in the Bible that Abraham’s stop in Haran was a moment of wavering faith, so we should not try to force it into that narrative.  Stephen’s language is “He [God] moved him [Abraham] to this land in which you now dwell.” (Acts 7:4 NKJV).  I believe it is best to see this as God leading Abraham in a staged fashion.

Ultimately, Abraham is depicted as one who believed God.  He believed God to the degree that he held nothing of his family and ancestors sacred.  He let it all go in order to follow God.  Imagine God speaking to you such a thing today.  Of course, God’s calling is not always about geography as it was with Abraham.  However, it is always about the things that make us comfortable and shroud the truth of God to us.  Abraham needed to leave Mesopotamia, and eventually Haran, if he wanted to fully know God.  We too will have to let go of things in order to fully know God and walk in the inheritance that He has for us.

Once Abraham was in Canaan, God promised the land to his descendants.  Abraham lived as a nomad in the deserted areas between the cities and towns of Canaan.  Thus, Stephen says that he did not have an inheritance.  Abraham lives the rest of his life in a land that he has no inheritance in and has faith in God’s promise that it would be given to his descendants. 

There are two facts that add to the amount of faith that Abraham displays.  First, Abraham was 75 years old when he left Haran and 99 years old when Sarah became pregnant.  So, this whole time he believed that God would help him, even though he did not have any offspring.  Yes, even back then, Sarah was considered past child-bearing years.

In fact, this is what led to the whole Hagar fiasco.  Sarah’s lack of faith led Abraham to also stumble in trusting God.  Yet, that stumbling was not without recovery.  God help us as spouses to be careful in this area.  We do not want to be a stumbling block to our mate.

All of us will have difficulty walking in faith with God without stumbling.  We must be quick to admit our fault when the Lord holds us accountable, and we must be quick to repent and turn back to the proper path.  In Abraham’s case, repentance would not erase the effects of his lack of faith.  God can redeem these things, even though they will add difficulty to our path.  Abraham learned a valuable lesson about waiting upon the Lord.  God always has a better plan than we can make for Him.

The second fact that adds to the amount of faith Abraham had is that God revealed to him that his descendants would be slaves in a foreign land and not return to take up this promise for 400 years.  God makes some awesome promises to Abraham about judging that nation, and giving Canaan into their hands, but why let them become slaves in the first place.  Also, it would be such a long time down the road.  Can you imagine God calling you to a place in which you have no inheritance and dwelling as a nomad all your life, and it won’t truly “pay-off” for your descendants until 400 years down the road?

Knowing the future is not all that it is cracked up to be.  God in His mercy reveals enough of the future that we can have confidence, yet not so much that we would be overwhelmed.  Of course, people lose confidence in God every day, and feel overwhelmed with life.  However, this is not a lack of God’s grace, but a lack of my faith.

Following God is never easy.  It always calls us to live a life of faith and pass the torch on to the next generation.  Abraham’s life seems grand in the telling of it, but it was quite domestic in the overall living of it.  Long periods of time can grind a weak faith into powder.  However, that same time can increase our faith little upon little, layer upon layer.  Abraham’s journey to a life of great faith was a series of days in which he kept trusting God.

Stephen then touches on something that Israel took great pride in.  They were the circumcised as opposed to the uncircumcised Gentiles.  In Genesis 15, God cuts a covenant with Abraham, but it is in Genesis 17 that God reconfirms His covenant and gives Abraham a task.  He must circumcise himself and his offspring.  This circumcision is a sign, a symbol, or a token, of the covenant that God was making with Abraham.

Now, the Apostle Paul in Galatians chapter 3 makes a big deal about the fact that this covenant with Abraham is technically a Promise, whereas the covenant at Sinai had a great number of requirements that Israel had to do.  Yes, Abraham needed to walk before God in blamelessness and circumcise his offspring, but Israel would receive a whole set of laws that involved stuff beyond the moral realm of right and wrong.  This covenant of Sinai and its laws become the works of the Law versus the fruit of the Spirit shown in Abraham’s life.

May God give us a heart like Abraham’s that was not afraid to follow God into new places that we have never seen.  You will stumble along the way, but He will be faithful.  He will always show you your fault, and He will always point out the door of repentance.  Let’s walk through that door into life every day!

Defense I audio

The Acts of the Apostles 20

Subtitle: Run-in with the Law #2

Acts 5:17-32.  This sermon was preached by Pastor Marty Bonner on October 9, 2022.

In today’s passage, the leaders of Israel are going to haul the apostles in because they continue to preach salvation and forgiveness of sins in the name of Jesus.

It is important to pay attention to the attitude of these men as they disobey earthly authorities in order to obey God.  Some people use the idea of obeying God rather than man as a moral cover for selfish reasons.  The fruit of their life bears out the message that they are simply using it as a license for immorality. 

May God help us to be led by the Holy Spirit, rather than man.  But, may we also understand that His plan is always to give a witness to all those who are watching, whether leaders or not.  This is a holy matter and we should be careful not to muddy the waters of what God wants to say to others.  If we attempt to use this as an excuse, we will one day stand before Him with no excuse.

Let’s get into the passage.

The apostles are imprisoned (vs. 17-21)

The first arrest of any of the apostles was at the beginning of chapter four.  Peter and John were arrested, questioned, threatened and then released.  Now we have a second arrest.

It is the high priest of Israel and his religious party, the Sadducees, are filled with indignation that these men continue to teach in the name of Jesus.  The word translated “indignation” is often translated as “zeal.”  It refers to the heat and passion to defend or pursue something.  In this case, they are going to defend their actions with Jesus, and pursue the goal of shutting up these disciples of Jesus.

We must always hold our passions in check before the Lord to determine whether they are motivated by righteousness and His Spirit, rather than by our own flesh and the world around us.

The phrase “they laid their hands on the apostles” simply means that they had them arrested, most likely by the temple guards.  It is most likely that all of the apostles are arrested this time since Luke made it clear in chapter four that it was only Peter and John.  He only says “apostles” in this chapter.

The apostles are held over night in the common prison.  However, God has different plans in mind.  He sends an angel to release them that night.  The angel simply “opens the doors,” with no mention of the guards in these verses.  In a bit, we will see in verse 23 that the guards are still outside the jailhouse and don’t know that anything has happened the next morning.  Most likely a spiritual sleepiness came over them because there is no mention of them being afraid and running away as in the case of the resurrection of Jesus.

Of course, angels don’t need keys.  In Acts 12, an angel will rescue Peter from prison and it basically says that the “chains fell off his hands,” and that a large iron gate opened “of its own accord.”  The word is the Greek term automate that has the idea that it opened by itself, without the intervention of something else.

Thus, the disciples found themselves freed late at night without the soldiers and the high priest knowing what had happened.

The angel then gives them a message from the Lord.  They are to go to the temple, and “speak to the people all the words of this life.”  It is most likely a reference to the eternal life that Jesus promised to his followers and those who believed upon him through their preaching.  However, we should not separate this eternal life from the here and now.  Christian believers already have the eternal life of Christ welling up in them like a spring.  The Christian life is itself an expression of God’s life flowing through us day by day, and will climax at the resurrection when this mortal flesh is overwhelmed by the power of God’s eternal life!

When it comes to angels, the bible is clear that angels are ministering spirits on behalf of those who are being saved (Hebrews 1:14).  Their work is generally unseen.  However, from time to time and as it suites God’s purposes, they operate in a way that enables people to see them, or recognize after the fact that they have been active.  We shouldn’t address them, pray to them, or try to direct them.  We pray to God and let Him decide how we should be helped!

The apostles then waited until the temple opened that morning.  They then boldly marched up onto the temple mount, no doubt setting up in Solomon’s Colonnade, and began to declare the words of life through faith in Jesus!  At this point their lives are totally surrendered to what Jesus has for them.  There is no discussion about what is wise and what is foolish.  If the Lord gives a command, then we need to obey.  May God help us to develop and walk in such courage.

There is a sense of humor that the apostles are preaching in the temple as the Sanhedrin is gathered in order to question them, and determine their fate.  God doesn’t always do things the same way.  These men are sprung from jail, whereas, Daniel was protected in it.  Others went on to be executed, and have their heads cut off.  We need to learn to trust Jesus, to exercise our faith in him no matter what may happen.

The apostles are on trial again (vs. 22-32)

As we see, they are going to be arrested again and brought before the council of Israel, but first, there is the question of where they are.  When the council sends for the apostles to be brought before them out of the prison, the officers cannot find them.  They go back to the council and report that everything looks like it should, officers are still guarding it, the doors are locked, and yet there are no apostles.  Wasn’t that nice of the angel to lock up after they left? 

This leaves the council wondering what was going on.

At this point, someone comes from the temple and reports that the apostles are preaching on the temple grounds!  Of course, this can’t be allowed to stand, so they are arrested again “without violence”, mainly because they were afraid that the people might stone them.

This is a common problem among those who stand in the place of the law.  The power to arrest is supposed to be done in service of righteousness, and doesn’t always require violence.  However, some men do require strong force to bring them into custody.  Yet, at the same time, power can go to people’s heads, even law enforcement officers.  Those giving arrest orders, and those carrying out the arrests, can completely overstep their proper authority when their ego gets over-involved.  Thus, you can lawlessly execute a lawful order, or even lawlessly execute a lawless order.

The apostles are set before the council and the high priest addresses them.  He reminds them that previously they had been commanded not to teach “in this name.”  Apparently, he doesn’t even want to say the name of Jesus.   Yet, they have gone out and filled Jerusalem with their teaching, and appear to be intent on making “us guilty of this man’s blood.”

Think about it this way.  A lawful execution of a wicked man is not murder.  This is what the leaders want to be the official narrative.  However, the apostles are saying that the execution was not valid and that God had overturned it through resurrection.  This means that the leaders are guilty of the blood of Jesus.  His blood is on their heads in the way of guilt.

Peter serves as the spokesman for the group and gives their answer.  You can compare this answer with the one that he gave last time in Acts 4:19-20.

In Acts 4, he used the verb “listen,” but here, it is “obey.”  Also, in chapter 4 it is put forward as a question for the council to decide upon, but now Peter makes a statement.  Here are both forms.  Chapter 4: “Which is right in God’s eyes: to listen to you, or to him? You be the judges!”  Chapter 5: “We must obey God rather than human beings!”    The question should never be, “What do men want me to do?”  Rather, it should always be about what God wants!

Peter then details what God has done and what He is doing just as he did in chapter 4.  God raised up Jesus whom they murdered by hanging.  Of course, the Romans did the killing, but it would not have happened without the rulers pushing it.  To add insult to injury, they chose hanging to be the form of death knowing that the Law of Moses claims that a man who hangs on a tree is cursed of God.

God then exalted Jesus to His right hand in order to make him two things.  First, it is in order to make him to be Prince.  The word prince is used here in the sense of the principal leader of a something and is synonymous with king.  This is connected to Daniel 9:25 where Messiah the Prince is prophesied to be executed.

Second, Jesus is raised to the right hand of the Father in order to make him to be Savior.  Remember that this term involves more than just dealing with sins.  It may better be translated as Deliverer- like the Judges of old.  Just as Israel needed a savior all those years ago, we too need a Savior today.  Praise God that He has already given us Jesus!

Jesus was also giving to Israel repentance and forgiveness of sins.  That is a powerful statement.  How long had they gone as a society without repenting for their past and present sins?  It had been a long time.  Through Jesus God was granting them repentance.  I would that God would grant to the United States of America repentance and forgiveness of sins for it seems that we are bent on doubling down on our sins.

Peter declares again that the apostles are witnesses of all of these things.  They don’t just have two or three witnesses, but twelve!  On top of that, there are two classes of witnesses.  The apostles are the human witnesses, but the Holy Spirit bears witness as well by healing powerfully through the disciples.

Peter ends with the statement that God is giving the Holy Spirit to those who obey.  In a sense, this is put before them laden with potential.  If they simply dropped the ego and admitted they were wrong, then they too could participate in the blessed promise of the Holy Spirit.  Alas, it was not to be so.

May God help us to make the choice today.  We will either be a part of the remnant that is receiving the Spirit of God and moving forward into blessing or we will be part of the larger group that is receiving the judgment of God and moving forward into His wrath.  Choose this day whom you will serve!

Run-in audio

The Acts of the Apostles 14

Subtitle: The Threats of the Powerful

Acts 4:13-22.  This sermon was preached by Pastor Marty Bonner on August 21, 2022.

Peter and John are in front of the leaders of Israel in Jerusalem.  Last week, we looked at Peter’s response to the questions they had given them.  Now, we are going to see the decision of Israel’s top Council, the Sanhedrin.

Let’s get into the passage.

The council members confer among themselves (vs. 13-17)

Luke again gives us commentary about what was going on inside the minds of the council, to which later threats and actions give evidence.  In verse 15, they had Peter and John taken out of the council chamber while they confer among themselves.  However, they are having difficulty processing what these Galilean fishermen have done.

In short, they are amazed by the disciples of Jesus.  First, they are amazed at the healing of this man that everyone knows was lame from birth.  They are not going to be able to say anything that will neutralize the healing that has happened.  How do you convince people that this was not a good thing?

Yet, Peter’s response to the council added to their amazement.  They are amazed at his boldness.  How many men have they brought in before these powerful men and blanched at the gravity of their situation?  Yet, these fishermen from Galilee were bold.  By the way, let’s not interpret boldness as arrogance.  Peter went out of his way to put all the credit at the feet of Jesus.  It is not about him.  It is about Jesus.  Neither was he employing some kind of psychological trick or manipulation.  It was the result of the Holy Spirit within them.  We all need more boldness, and it can only come through spending time with Jesus and the Holy Spirit.

They are also amazed that these uneducated and untrained men are able to respond in the way that they have.  They then took note that these men “had been with Jesus.”  There is an uncanny similarity between these men and Jesus of Nazareth, whom they thought they had dealt with.

Here’s an important question for every Christian to ask themselves.  Have I been with Jesus?  If I have been with Jesus, then others will take note.  That doesn’t mean they will like it.  Have I been with Jesus?

These men hadn’t been trained and educated according to the system of the Sadducees or the Pharisees.  However, they had been trained and educated by Jesus over the last 3 ½ years, who is the best rabbi ever!  That didn’t fit in their system, the way they did things.

Let me just say that education or lack thereof is never the problem or the solution.  Peter was an uneducated fisherman, but Saul/Paul had been trained in all the teachings of the Pharisees.  For all of his education, he was blind to the identity of Jesus and he persecuted those who were see that Jesus was the Messiah.  Yet, he too came to believe in Jesus.  There is nothing wrong with education, but it cannot take the place of God’s Spirit in our hearts and minds.  If people are only amazed at my education credentials, then they will not be looking at the right thing, and most likely miss what God is trying to give them.

In verse 16, the leaders confess that they are in a tight spot.  What can you do to men who have performed an obvious miraculous sign?  The people of Jerusalem are convinced that God has done an amazing miracle through these men.

Now, the word translated “notable miracle” here is literally a sign.  It is an amazing event that points people to what God is doing.  It has meaning beyond the miracle itself.  Jesus did similar signs that pointed to the reality that at least a great prophet was in their midst, and likely that Messiah was here.  Yet, he was then put to death.  Of course, the resurrection was rumored about, but only the believers saw the evidence for it.  This amazing miracle, however, was like a neon sign pointing out that the powerful works of Jesus were back through his disciples.  Must not God be behind this?

At this point, the leaders are afraid that this teaching will spread if they do nothing.  They don’t want it to spread beyond Jerusalem to the rest of Israel.  In short, they are standing in the way of God.  God help us to work with Him and not against Him.  It is not enough to point to a pedigree, or a passage in the Bible that says you are doing what God said.  We must truly be walking in such a way that we are humbly looking for the leading of God’s Spirit, and saying yes when He speaks.

Their solution is to threaten them severely not to speak in the name of Jesus any more to anybody.  If you will not embrace the seductions of this world that use the flesh to draw us in and entangle us through sin, then the threats will come forth in one way or another.  You will get the carrot or the stick from this old world.

Yet, Jesus has shown us that we do not need to fear these threats.  In one way, they are not empty threats.  In the natural, this world and its ruler can make things very hard for a follower of Jesus.  However, God will take the very things that we fear and use them to do even more powerful things through us.  In this sense, they are empty threats.  The enemy cannot truly hurt you, in the ultimate sense.  We need boldness to walk the path, that Jesus puts before us, over the top of all the fears that the enemy will try to point out to us.  We must walk “in his name” by walking in His power and His authority.  Another way to think of that last sentence is to seek to walk in what He is empowering and to do what He is authorizing.

The disciples are further threatened (vs. 18-22)

In this section, we have the severe threats given to the disciples.  First, they are commanded not to speak in or teach in the name of Jesus.  It may be that they feel like this is a concession on their part.  “You can teach, but just not about Jesus!” It sends the not-so-subtle message.  “This thing that you are doing is only going to get you in more trouble, so go back to fishing in the Galilee.”

Peter speaks again in a bold way.  There is most likely a part of Peter that is intimidated by the threats, but another part of them cannot deny who Jesus is.  The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and Peter cuts to the heart of the issue.

Whom should we obey, man or God?  This is an important question that we can abuse to cover rebellion.  However, when the authority commands you to obey them rather than God, they have stepped out of bounds.  It is possible that we can try to manipulate this by saying that God wants what we want all of the time.  However, that would not be a fear of the Lord.  We are not talking about a justification of our actions.  When we focus on obedience, we can miss the fact that this comes down to whether you love the Lord or not.  These disciples are not merely obeying God.  They are following the one who has opened their eyes to the truth.  They are following God Himself.  The threats are very real, and those authorities will most likely punish, but to suffer for the sake of Christ is glory on the battle field. 

The disciples had seen and heard amazing things from the Messiah himself.  How could they not talk about it?  It is like the story in 2 Kings 7.  It was during the days of Elisha and King Jehoram of Jerusalem.  The Syrians had besieged the city, and it had run out of food.  Four lepers who were outside the gate decided to go to the Syrian camp at twilight, hoping to get some food, and yet it was empty of soldiers.  After eating food and carrying off silver and gold to bury in the field, they realized that they should go tell the people in the city.  If it is found out later that they knew and didn’t make the city aware of it, then they would be in trouble.

How can we keep from speaking about what we have seen and heard?  That is the key.  What are you seeing and what are you hearing?  Only those with ears to hear and eyes to see will hear what the Spirit is saying to the Churches.  We need to wake up and be about our Father’s business regardless of the threats of the world around us.

It then says that they threatened the disciples further, and release them.  Really, they are at a loss of what to do.  If they were giving credit to a foreign god, then they could punish them for heresy.  However, this is only a short window of mental confusion.  They will become more and more desperate, until they start the physical torments: whippings, stocks, imprisonments, fines, seizures of property, and even execution.  The cognitive dissonance will not last long because these are very powerful people of the world who are used to accomplishing what they want.  They will eventually turn the threats into punishments.

We need to be a people who are walking in faith in Jesus, not a faith that says, “I can’t be touched,” and not a faith that says, “I can do whatever I want.”  Rather, we need a faith that follows Jesus wherever he may lead us, be it a lion’s den, or a cross.  We can only do this by the Spirit of God.

Threats audio

Seated at the Right Hand of God

Mark 16:15-20.  This sermon was preached by Pastor Marty Bonner on April 11, 2021.

The authority and power of Jesus is something that the world pays little attention to.  It seems to have no bearing upon the process of answering the problems of our society.  Yet, God’s Word tells us that Jesus is seated at the right hand of God the Father.

May God help us to hold on to this truth, and to live it out in a society that is increasingly casting off the truth of Jesus.  Don’t give up your inheritance for a bowl of beans.  Don’t cast aside the only thing that can give your life meaning today, and prepare yourself for the eternity that awaits once you die.

The textual issue of Mark 16:9-20

I did not go over this last week, but will do so now.  There is an issue with the text of Mark 16:9-20.  The NKJV just has a footnote that mentions that these verses are missing in Codex Sinaiticus & Codex Vaticanus, but are in nearly all other manuscripts- codex simply means a book.  This makes it sound like there is little contrary evidence to retaining these verses.  The NIV states, “The earliest manuscripts and some other ancient witnesses do not have Mark 16:9-20.”  This makes it sound like most of the evidence, or at least the best evidence, is on the side of omitting these verses.  The NLT actually lists a shorter ending, and a longer ending and gives some footnotes.  So, what is up with these verses and should they be in the Bible?

Let’s look at the manuscript evidence first.  We do not have the originals of any biblical books and, in fact, do not have whole copies of the New Testament that date any further back than the 4^th century, or the 300’s AD.  So, the two codices (plural for codex) that the NKJV list are considered the most ancient full copies of the Bible, even though they are old and have some pages missing, etc.  There is another codex called Codex Alexandrinus that is considered just as important as the other two mentioned.  They were created within 50 years of each other.  In this case, Sinaiticus and Vaticanus omit the verses and Alexandrinus retains the verses.  It is important to know that Sinaiticus and Vaticanus do not always agree in textual issues.  For example, there are times when Sinaiticus agrees with Alexandrinus against Vaticanus, and other times that Vaticanus agrees with Alexandrinus against Sinaiticus.  This should give us pause and make us ask why this would be so in this case.

Another issue regarding the manuscripts is that 99% of the manuscripts have the verses in them.  However, two of the most ancient copies of Mark that we have do not have the verses.  This causes a pause for all scholars.

Another line of evidence is found in ancient translations.  The Latin translation by Jerome that was done in the 300’s AD has the verses in them.  Interestingly, Jerome mentions some of the manuscripts from his day (we do not have these) did not have verses 9-20.  Weighing the evidence of his day, he determined that they should be retained.  There are some other translations to other languages that occur later, which leave these verses out.  However, this only reiterates the reality that there was a question in this area.  Most ancient translations retained the verses.  So, this line doesn’t really help to determine anything more than that a question existed from the 300’s on that most scholars chose on the side of retaining the verses.

Lastly, we do have evidence that is older than the 300’s and this comes from writing of the early Church Fathers, or Leaders.  Some of these are from the 100’s AD and some from the 200’s AD.  Tatian created a harmony of all 4 gospels between 150 and 170 AD.  He essentially collated the verses in an approximate order so that all 4 gospels were in one book.  He has these verses in his harmony, called the Diatessaron.  Irenaeus, in his book Against Heresies, quotes from these verses (this would be around 180 AD).  There are no writers from the 100’s AD that dispute its veracity.  It is in the 200’s that we begin to run into writers that mention some manuscripts not having the verses.  So, now we know that the issue at least goes back to the 200’s, and that if it was known about earlier, either no one felt it important enough to point out, or were unaware of any issue.

This leaves scholars to try and come up with a scenario that would explain these facts.  The most likely of the proposed scenarios so far is that it is possible that the original copy of Mark’s Gospel had its last page/leaf/(scroll) damaged or lost.  Perhaps later when it was being copied the verses were supplied from memory (by Mark? Or someone else?).  It is difficult to know for sure.  It is hard to believe that someone could just add verses that had no connection to the Gospel without others disputing it.  So, the verses must have been original or very close to the original so as to cause no alarm. 

The main problem with omitting these verses is that verse 8 of chapter 16 would be a strange place to stop for the Gospel.  I believe that the evidence points to the fact that they should be included, but even then, everything that we find in these verses can be verified from the other Gospels and the book of Acts.

The mission of the followers of Jesus

Back on January 24, 2021, we looked at the Great Commission from all four Gospels.  There, we recognized that they clearly detail the same event, but have different emphases.  Jesus was getting ready to leave his disciples in the sense that he would not be physically appearing to them again, like he had been doing for nearly 40 days.  Thus, he gives them the work, or mission, that he wants them to focus on as they move forward.

The scope of this mission is “all the world,” and “to every creature.”  Previously, they were restricted to go to the “House of Israel,” but now Christ is expanding their task.  They are to go to all the world.  This was not an idea that the world of those days held.  Pagans saw the world as controlled by territorial spirits.  You appeased the spirits of your location.  It wouldn’t make sense for everyone to worship only one God.  On the other hand, Jews saw the nations as rejected by God, though they would teach those who were interested, but that was it.

Christ would no longer leave the nations in the dark, but sends his disciples out with the truth that would set the Gentiles free from the long servitude under ignorance and the false teaching of evil spirits, and fallen angels.  “Every creature” emphasizes that which is created by God, and clearly is focused on humans.  God had created all of humanity to bear His image, not just Israel.  It was time to aggressively enter the nations and remind them of this truth, and the Good News of Jesus.

We have our marching orders and should not stop until our commander returns.

The activity of this mission is to preach the Gospel.  Mark emphasizes proclaiming the Gospel (the word translated preach is a simple proclamation made by anybody).  From the other Gospels, we know that this is to include discipling those who believe.  It is a critical component of the teaching of Jesus that we are to persuasively proclaim him to others.  However, the idea that Christians should leave others alone in their belief systems is growing in its adherents today.  At the same time that a case for Christians leaving others alone is made, there is an aggressive proselytizing of Christians to believe what the world wants us to believe.

The hallmark of Christianity is the arena of ideas and truth claims.  Christians are not to be afraid to go toe to toe with other religions or philosophies because we have been sent by the Truth.  Yet, we should also remain humble.  We are not the Truth itself.  To the degree that we rightly represent Christ is to the degree that we are right.  This point has often been transgressed much to the harm of the cause of Christ.

The response to this proclamation will be either belief or rejection.  Many will reject the Gospel and Jesus that we proclaim, but some will believe.  Mark mentions that those who believe and are baptized will be saved.  This is not a statement of what saves, I.e., one is not saved until baptized, but of what should happen.  Baptism was seen as symbolic of what had happened in responding hearts, and a public declaration of a person’s inclusion into the Christian Community, and identification with them and Jesus.

Christians should always be a community that makes room for new believers, who are new spiritual babies.  We are to be a family that is learning to become like Jesus together.  This requires a lot of work beyond baptism, which Matthew calls “teaching” and “discipling.”  Of course, God’s response will always be to save those who believe.  That gives us three important “responses:” the believer who responds to Christ’s command by proclaiming the Gospel, the receiver of the Gospel who believes the message, and God who responds to that faith by saving them.

The signs that follow the mission that is done in Christ’s name are noted as: casting out demons, speaking in new tongues, not harmed by venom or poison, and healing of the sick.  It is important to note the wording here.  “These signs will follow those who believe.”  Though Christ is in heaven, he would be with his disciples by the Holy Spirit.  Christ would confirm the Gospel preached by his disciples with powerful signs at his determination.  Thus, this is a list of the types of things that would happen and not a command for us to do them.  We can be guilty of associating too closely the gifts of the Holy Spirit and the person through whom they happen.  This wording is a balance to that.  The power is always in Jesus and from Jesus, not us.  We are to be faithful and he will confirm as he determines.  Our mission is the proclamation, not doing signs and wonders.

None of these signs should be controversial among believers, but they sometimes are.  Casting out demons may not be acceptable to secular psychologists, but it is clear that their theories do not explain all things.  Speaking with new tongues is a reference to Acts chapter two, and outpouring of the Holy Spirit.  The venom of snakes and poison is not a test of faith, nor a statement that no true Christian can be harmed by them.  The Bible even records an example of this in Acts 28.  Notice in that story that Paul is not purposefully looking for a serpent to prove himself.  The healing of the sick, has sometimes become a mockery and a scam by the activity of pretenders.  This is a tragedy and a sin against Christ.  In all of these things, we should recognize that these are signs that would happen from time to time, and they did, and they are even today.

The ascension of Jesus

In verse 19, the translation “received up” is probably better translated “taken up” due to its usage today.  From Acts 1, we know that Jesus lifted up into the air until he went into the clouds, and they could no longer see him.  This would function to cement in their minds that they would not see him again, until he came back on the clouds in judgment.  The continual appearances that had happened in the weeks after the Resurrection had now come to an end.  Jesus was now residing in heaven, at the right hand of God the Father.  Thus, Jesus has come full circle, back where he started.  However, now he has the additional nature of a man, and the only rightful claim to the earth’s title.

We are then told that Jesus sits at the right hand of God.  This speaks to the closeness with the Father, he is the right-hand man of God, and it speaks to his authority and power.  Romans 8:34 adds that in that place Christ is interceding for believers.  We have a savior who intercedes on our behalf before God the Father daily.  This ought to comfort us a great deal and should always quash the idea that God doesn’t care about us, or doesn’t know about our problems.

Ultimately, we see that the disciples began the work that Christ gave them, and Christ fulfilled his duties.  He worked with them by confirming the word that they preached with signs.  How important it is for us to make sure that we are proclaiming the words of Jesus and the Bible.  If we are proclaiming our ideas and opinions then why would Christ confirm those?  We aren’t always right, but He is!

May this be our testimony today that we are a people living out the word of Christ and sharing that with others.  May we be a people who are making room for those who are being saved, and may we be helping them to become followers of Jesus, and imagers of God, along with us.

Seated at the right Hand audio