Another Look, The Confusion of Christanity

Earl Gillespie

Another Look,
The Confusion of Christianity

Not long ago, after making my rounds of hospital and doctor’s visits, Mark 16:14-18 was quoted to me by several religious pundits.  Each one surgically removed a small segment of these verses that allowed them to drive their point home.  At the end of the day there were three or more interpretations floating around inside my head and just as many condemnations,  confusion reign supreme. As a practicing  Christian I am often confused by other practicing Christians, imagine the confused front we must present to those (infidels) who seek to follow our lead?  That night I tried to clear my mind and prayed to God to fill it with his knowledge.  I am not claiming a divine revelation, because many times the answer is in the Word of God and the requirement is to study.

 Mark 16:14-18, Afterward he appeared unto the eleven as they sat at eat, and upbraided them with their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they believed not them which had seen him after he was risen.  And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned. And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.

The purpose of this study is not to prove or disprove the supernatural involvement of God, but in a world, a society, a community that is straying further and further away from the once accepted standards of God it is time we ask ourself the question why.   The state of marriage has long lost its battle and now alternate lifestyles is the next item on the agenda, and the Bible is no longer considered to be a reliable witness. The question should be if God does not change, why is he changing his directives so fast.  If the church, or the pastor's don't address these issues then they must be addressed by the individual, the ones that Jesus referred to the overcomers.  

There is an element of confusion surrounding the meaning or interpretation  and application of these as well as other verses in the bible.  This scripture provides the fodder for many great performances by those who are serious and others who are nothing but bad actors.  The confusion exists, whether the performers or hearers openly state it or not.  Because of this element of doubt or confusion many find themselves in the awkward position of trying to defend God.  Many take a Carte Blanche position on any statement made in the Bible and when the result is not forthcoming,  resort to cliches to defend what seems to be the inactivity of God.  For instance, in Sunday School we are indoctrinated into a belief that God will answer ALL of our prayers.  Matthew 7:7  Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:  It becomes as simple as that, but is it that simple?

When the young man prayed for God to bless him to pay his light bill, there was no consolation in being told after his lights were turned off that, "He might not come when you want him, but he is always on time."  What thoughts were going through the old man's mind when he stood on the banks of the flooded creek an asked God to part the waters?   If he did it once he will do it again.  What consolation is there for the Sunday School teacher sitting by the bed of his cancer stricken daughter praying for the healing virtues of God to manifest itself, only to be told after her passing that, "God knows what he is doing."  A lady is overcome with a sickness at church, while waiting for a family member, the pastor and other members prayed and laid hands on her.  The family member came and took her to the hospital.

Now no one thought to ask the question. "What happen?"  As I sit through these performances, I remember in the scripture where Jesus just spoke the words and it was done.   A miracle was a supernatural event that couldn't be explained by the rules of common sense.  God always moved in such a manner that all of the glory for the act or deed could only be attributed to him. Jesus did not say to the woman with the issue of blood, go home and wait for your healing or plant a seed of faith and watch it grow.   Nor did he send her to the doctor for her healing.  She touched, he spoke and she was healed.  Are we guilty of redefining the power and the works of God in an attempt to make oneself look spiritual.

A young pastor was bitten by his yellow timber rattlesnake at an evangelistic event in a state park in the isolated southern tip of West Virgina.  The pastor enjoyed handling snakes during worship services, but it's a tradition that has killed about 100 practitioners since it started in East Tennessee hills in 1909.  Pentecostal serpent handlers, they use "serpent" over "snake" out of deference to the Bible.  They are known for collecting dozens of snakes expressly for church services.  At church, they’re also known to ingest a mixture of strychnine, a highly toxic powder often used as a pesticide and water, often from a Mason jar. These same believers will bring Coke bottles with oil-soaked wicks to the church so they can hold flames to their skin. 

The key to understanding this culture are a pair of verses from the Gospel of Mark in the New Testament: “And these signs will follow those who believe: in My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will recover.”  Mainstream Christians - Pentecostals included - do not believe Mark 16:17-18 means that Christians should seek out poisonous snakes or ingest poisonous substances, but to the mainstream Pentecostals  laying on of hands is and acceptable practice. 

If a question arises concerning any of the above practices the religious right will quickly quote Matthew 4:4 , But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God. Yet many who uses that scripture as the bases of their support for their doctrinal belief is guilty of selective application.

Another interpretation according to, "People New Testiment Commentary", Mark 16:17, These signs shall follow them that believe. It is generally held that this is a promise limited to the apostolic age and to a few of the disciples of that age. Perhaps the plural "them" does not have for its antecedent the singular "he" in Mark 16:16, but the plural "them" in Mark 16:14. If it does not, why is the number changed in Mark 16:15-16? The grammatical construction requires us to look to Mark 16:14 for the antecedent of them in Mark 16:17. In Mark 16:14 the apostles are "upbraided for their unbelief because they believed not them who had seen him after he had risen." They are commanded to go and tell the glad story, and assured that miraculous credentials shall be given to those of "them who believe" and tell the wonderful tidings.  In my name shall they cast out devils, etc. See Acts 2:4; 5:16; 8:7; 16:18; 28:3.  Thus the context may be better understood if we understood who is talking, who is being spoken to and what is the purpose of this conversation.

Many people have been "turned off" to the concept of God's healing because they have seen or heard about so many "fake healers,"  Sadly there are quite a number of conniving individuals who use Christ name for all types of unbibibical idea and concepts, including a totally wrong and sometimes almost blasphemous approach to divine healing.   Some of these false ministers hold a big meeting in expensive auditorium where they yell and scream at the sick individual as though the power of their yelling was going to bring about the healing.  Some even used chicken parts and blood to demonstrate the divine healing power of God. There was a shelf life on  this type of showmanship, as people began to see through this fakery.  When Jesus performed miracles or healings he usually took the person aside from the crowd  (Matthew 9:25; Mark 7:33).  Putting on a big show was completely contrary to the acts of Christ and the original Apostles.

In todays society the healing power of God is expressed through going to the hospital undergoing a surgical procedure and testifying of how you were healed by God.  To many this is okay, but to me it just don't seem right.   Paul had a painful problem and he prayed for deliverance, God spoke and said his grace was sufficient. 

Let us consider  the Albert Barnes's Notes On The New Testament another widely accepted source of the interpretation of those verses.  Albert Barnes wrote: Mark 16:17:Verse 17. And these signs. These miracles. These evidences that they are sent from God.  Them that believe. The apostles and those in the primitive age who were endowed with these powers. The promise is fulfilled if it can be shown that these signs followed in the case of any who believed, and it is not necessary to suppose that they would follow in the case of all. The meaning is, that they should be the result of faith, or of the belief of the gospel. It is true that they were. They were shown in the case of the apostles and early Christians. The infidel cannot say that the promise has not been fulfilled, unless he can show that it never occurred; the Christian should be satisfied that the promise was fulfilled if these miracles were ever actually wrought, though they do not occur now; and the believer now should not expect a miracle in his case. Miracles were necessary for the establishment of religion in the world; they are not necessary now.

In my name. By my authority, and using the power that would in such cases, if bodily present. This was done: and in this they differed essentially from the manner in which Jesus himself wrought miracles, He did it in his own name. He did it as possessing original, underived authority. See the account of his stilling the sea, (Matthew 8:26, etc.) of his healing the sick, Matthew 9:5-6; of his raising Lazarus, John 11:1. The prophets spoke in the name of the Lord. The apostles did likewise, Acts 3:6, etc. There was, therefore, an important difference between Jesus and all the other messengers that God has sent into the world, He acted in his own name; them in the name of another, he wielded his own power; they were the instruments by which God put forth the omnipotence of his arm to save. He was, therefore, God; they were men of like passions as other men, Acts 14:15. Shall they cast out devils. Cmt. on Matthew 4:24. Comp. Acts 16:16-18. Shall speak with new tongues. Shall speak other languages than their native language. This was remarkably fulfilled on the day of Pentecost, Acts 2:4-11. It existed also in other places. See 1Co 12:10,18.

{e} "in my name" Luke 10:17; Acts 5:16; 8:7; 16:1; 18:1-28; 19:12

{f} "speak with new" Acts 2:4; 10:46; 1Co 12:10,28

William Burkitt's Expository Notes

Mr 16:17: Here we have a gracious promise of Christ, that in order to the spreading and propagating the gospel, as far as may be, the Spirit should be poured forth abundantly from on high upon the apostles, and thereby they should be enabled to work miracles, to cast out devils, to speak strange languages, which we read they did, Ac 2:1-47. And this power of working miracles, continued in the church an hundred years after Christ's ascension, until Christianity had taken root in the hearts of men. Iraeneus, lib. 2. chapter. 58. says, that many believers, besides the apostles, had this power of working miracles; as new-set plants are watered at first, till they have taken fast rooting, so, that the Christian faith might grow the faster, God watered it with miracles at its first plantation.

Yet observe, That all the miracles which they had power to work, where healing and beneficent; not terrifying judgments, but acts of kindness and mercy. It was our Saviour's design to bring over persons to Christianity by lenity, mildness, and gentleness, not to affright them into a compliance with astonishing judgment, which might affect their fear, but little influence their faith: for the will and consent of persons to the principles of any religion, especially the Christian, is like a royal fort which must not be stormed by violence, but taken by surrender.

Most churches that embrace the Pentecostal doctrine is selective in claiming the apostolic gifts.  The rule of five senses seems to apply.  A prayer group that was once notorious for raising people from the dead through no documentation was ever provided,  was called to pray for a pastor that had died while preaching.  Their response to the request was, "God knows what he is doing and God gave you five senses."  The call to prayer was never answered and it took the acts of the state Bishop and the local sheriff to resolve the conflict between those who believed a miracle was forthcoming and those who accepted death.

There are those who are dancing in the sunshine of life and they are quick to tell you, "if he did it once he will do it again."  Have we taken too liberal approach to our God and have caused the generation that proceed us to doubt our values?  Today we are presented with this picture of God doing more and more things for us,  but many live in doubt of obtaining the faith necessary to believe  in the spiritual manifestation of God.   The testimonies of the church should be indicative of faith building but  a person who underwent triple bypass heart surgery is not an indicator of faith.   Nor is the testimony of a person being healed of a headache two hour after receiving prayer indicative of the supernatural power of God.

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James 5:13-16
If any sick among you...... 

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