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Mark 16:9–20 (ESV)
[Some of the Earliest Manuscripts do not include 16.9-20]
9 Now when he rose early on the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, from whom he had cast out seven demons. 10 She went and told those who had been with him, as they mourned and wept. 11 But when they heard that he was alive and had been seen by her, they would not believe it. 12 After these things he appeared in another form to two of them, as they were walking into the country. 13 And they went back and told the rest, but they did not believe them. 14 Afterward he appeared to the eleven themselves as they were reclining at table, and he rebuked them for their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they had not believed those who saw him after he had risen. 15 And he said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation. 16 Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. 17 And these signs will accompany those who believe: in my name they will cast out demons; they will speak in new tongues; 18 they will pick up serpents with their hands; and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not hurt them; they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will recover.” 19 So then the Lord Jesus, after he had spoken to them, was taken up into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God. 20 And they went out and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them and confirmed the message by accompanying signs.
Does your bible have this written just before verses 9-20?
[Some of the Earliest Manuscripts do not include 16.9-20]
Biblical scholars will tell you that these last verses of Mark most certainly were written later on and added to Mark’s Gospel. These verses are still very old and part of scripture, but they don’t sound anything like the rest of Mark’s Gospel.
The writing doesn’t fit with Mark’s style throughout the Gospel, as these verses are a formal, general statement of faith regarding what happened with the disciples and the Gospel message after Easter.
That’s not to say that we can’t learn something from them or that there’s something broken about scripture. What I love is how the disciples move from struggling to understanding it all and to having faith, but not just timid faith. This is a full faith and belief in Jesus that propels and compels them to go out and share the Gospel with the world (something attested to and in agreement with the endings of the other Gospels, the whole of Acts, and the rest of the New Testament).
So, while the ending may not be part of the oldest manuscripts and out of step with Mark’s style of writing, these verses nonetheless push us to think about our own response as Jesus’ disciples.
Are we holding back and keeping our faith and the Gospel to ourselves, saying that our faith is a personal matter? Are we reserving our faith discussions and considerations only for those times when we are at church or part of some ministry class or event?
Or are we pressing on? Are we sharing the Gospel, the Good News about Jesus’ birth, life, death, resurrection, and all the hope it harbors for our hungry and thirsty souls with everyone we encounter? In other words, are you blessing others with Jesus and for His glory?
The witness and testimony of all the Gospels and the New Testament is that God has given and sent His Son into the world so that we might be freed from our sin through His death on the cross. We have an incredible story to tell!
In fact, take a moment to go back and read chapters 14-16. Try to read it in one sitting and just soak in the narrative. Take note of the people and their response to Jesus in these chapters. Some of them are plotting, others are arguing, some weeping, some panicking, but all are drawn into this moment when God fulfills His promises. This is it. Through Jesus, this is the moment when God is renewing, forgiving, and freeing. It all happens in the terrible and yet beautiful death of Jesus and the incredible hope of Jesus’ resurrection, which belongs to all who entrust their lives to Him.
And here’s the best thing of all, we get the privilege and opportunity to share the story of God’s love and forgiveness through His Son, Jesus, with a world that desperately needs what you and I already possess to overflowing.
So what will you do?
God bless you, and know that you are constantly in my prayers!
Scott
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