Mark 16:15-18 "The Great Commission"

Good Morning Calvary Chapel Lake City!

This past week the Bible was read from cover to cover… from Genesis to Revelation here in Winona Lake.

Jen… I heard you had the blessing of closing out the OT and beginning the New?

I’m confident the Lord and His word was magnified this past week. Well done to all you good and faithful servants who were involved.

Well… let’s continue to magnify the Lord and His word. Please open your Bibles to Mark 16. Mark 16:15-18 today…

Last time… we looked at some of the appearances Jesus made post-resurrection. Mark simply records His appearance to Mary Magdalene… and to the Emmaus Road disciples… and the to the Eleven Apostles.

And, after each appearance… and the subsequent testimony carried back TO the Eleven FROM Mary Magdalene and FROM the two disciples traveling on the Emmaus Road…

After each testimony that Jesus was risen… that He appeared to them in person… Mark was inspired to note this of the eleven… “they did not believe.”

So, while in Jerusalem… as noted in Luke 24 and John 20 (in greater detail)…

While the doors were shut where the disciples were assembles… for fear of the Jews…

Jesus came and stood in the midst of them…

And said “Peace be with you.”

The disciples were terrified and frightened… thinking they saw a spirit…

And Jesus would both reassure them not to doubt… showing them His hands and feet… even eating food to prove His physical presence… and instructing them to touch Him “for a spirit does not have flesh and bones” as He did.

After this John notes “the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord.”

Then He challenged them… rebuking their unbelief… for not believing the testimonies of those who saw Him risen…

… and, as He said to the Emmaus road disciples.... for being foolish and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken… that Messiah should suffer and enter into glory.

Regardless of their unbelief… Jesus stooped down to lead them out of unbelief to belief.

He walked with them on the road… He expounded the scriptures… He showed them His wounds… He even let Thomas put his hand into His side.

And Jesus said, “Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”

Well… it’s during this time, the Jesus next will share “The Great Commission” which is our message title today.

This is a command found in all four Gospels… and absolutely a command still for ALL of us Christians today… which essentially outlines what Jesus expected His church age disciples… to do in His absence.

Let’s pray, and then look at this most important instruction from our Lord.

In reverence for God’s word, please stand as I read our passage.

Mark 16:15-18 “And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. 16 He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned. 17 And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; 18 they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.”

Praise God for His word. Please be seated.

So often when WE… maybe not you, but certainly this is true for ME… when I hear “The Great Commission”… my mind thinks of Matthew 28:18-20 “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations…”

But, each of our four Gospel writers… Matthew, Mark, Luke and John… ALL have a rendition of the Great Commission.

And my hope today is that by looking at all four Great Commission messages… you see a broader picture of the Great Commission beyond what we know in Matthew’s version.

Kind of like how the four Gospels present a different picture of Christ… Matthew presents the King, Mark the Suffering Servant, Luke the Son of Man, and John presents Jesus as the Son of God.

So too… do there Great Commission messages present a different angle… and by harmonizing the Gospels… only then do we see a complete picture of all the Great Commission is about.

So… beginning with the book we are in… in Mark’s Gospel…

Let me quickly address the skeptics to the end of Mark’s gospel…

Since Mark’s Great Commission falls in verses 9-20 of Mark 16… what some scholars call the “longer ending”… what they think as not original… this Great Commission message is not quoted nearly as much as Matthew.

But… it indeed has merit… it holds truth.

Paul echoed similar words as what we read in Mark… in his epistle to the Colossians.

Mark wrote “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.”

Paul echoed writing that the Gospel come to the Colossians and in Col 1:6 wrote “as it has also in all the world...”

Again, Mark wrote “… preach the gospel to every creature.”

Paul echoed this in Col 1:23 saying the gospel “was preached to every creature under heaven.”

So… this mandate for a universal proclamation of the gospel is not unique to Mark… Paul understood this… we observe this happening in Acts… and in church history.

So, we can trust the content of what Mark wrote as truth.

Mark and Matthew are unique in their Great Commissions in that there is an imperative… meaning a ‘command’ written into their message.

Jesus tells His disciples this command is not an elective course… it’s a core course… it’s mandatory.

It seems like some Christians today misinterpret Jesus’ instruction to be “The Great Omission” because there is an absence of sharing Jesus in their walk.

And, this is disobedience.

Henry Ironside wrote, “Interest in missions is not an elective in God’s university of grace. It is something in which every disciple is expected to major.”

And the mission field is all around you… the Great Commission is NOT reserved for mission trips, but for Parents and Grandparents and the young ones in their family… for the people you rub shoulders with at work and school… for the stranger you meet and strike up a conversation with.

The mission field is every town… and every state… and every country…

In the Olivet Discourse… Matt 24:14 Jesus said, “… this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.”

The whole world is going to hear the gospel before Jesus returns…

And so… Jesus commands His disciples in the Great Commission… and in Mark 16:15 that command is “preach”… “preach the gospel to every creature.”

NOT “Go”… as in “Go into all the world”… so often we think “Go” is the required action, but it’s not.

Go is a participle in the original Greek and is an indirect command.

Going supports preaching because you have a limited audience if you don’t go.

Sitting in your pajamas home all day and never getting out into the world limits those whom you can preach to.

Hey… and I get it. I’m an introvert… I’m a homebody. Covid was the worst nightmare for you extroverts.

For me… my former job told me… ‘you’re not allowed to come into the office… we have to zoom call… you have to work from home.’

I thought, “This is fantastic!” It was an introverts dream come true.

But there’s no Covid restrictions placed on the Great Commission… the command is preach… and you this is directly linked to going into the world and interacting with “every creature.”

And, don’t over think what it means to “go.” This does not mean sell all you have… raise support… and become a foreign missionary.

We go into the world all the time… some stay in our Jerusalem of sorts… others go much further.

If the idea of what you do when you go is uncomfortable for you… it was also for the early disciples…

Evangelism to the Gentile world was NOT part of Jewish thinking… you see this plainly in the Book of Acts.

Just read in Acts 10 & 11 of Peter’s vision and then him being summoned to the house of the Centurion Centurion.

Peter was big time on the struggle bus.

In Acts 1:8… Jesus said go from Jerusalem to Judea… Samaria (big red flag there… Jews hated Samaritans)… and then the uttermost ends of the earth…

And what did the disciples do? They hung out in Jerusalem…

UNTIL Acts 8 when great persecution arose scattering them to Judea and Samaria.

Had persecution not come… would the disciples have gone into the world?

I don’t know. Probably eventually. But, persecution got God’s program moving.

And… stepping out of one’s comfort zone is also part of God’s program.

God calls you to talk to people and to even preach to them.

“But Pastor Marc… no one likes to be preached to.”

Not if you’re obnoxious… and don’t read body language… and are not led by the Spirit…

BUT if you share truth and do it in love… what a preacher you can be.

What a cool glass of water you can be on a hot day. Refreshing to the soul.

What light you can offer in this dark world. Offering hope and life.

“So… do I go stand on a box on a corner street… and preach “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!”

I don’t know… I’ve never felt called to do that. If you do… it will go a long way to also be clothed with camel’s hair and a leather belt… eating locust and wild honey… and to have a gnarly beard…

I don’t know if John actually had a gnarly beard, but isn’t that how we all picture him? Gnarly beard and disheveled hair.

Preaching… doesn’t have to be a public spectacle.

By def. “preach” in Gk kērussō means to herald especially divine truth.

The context of heralding is public proclamation… which is why Pastors are sometimes called “preachers”, but you can also herald a message of truth individually.

The truth you are to share… the preaching you are to do… what does Mark say?

“Preach the gospel...”

Gospel by def. is “good news”…

And, this is to be preached to “every creature.”

Creature by def. is creation… and each person in the world is God’s creation… they may not be bearing His image well, but still each individual is God’s creation.

And, God wants His heralds to bring the Gospel… the Good News TO each created being.

And, there is Good News… there’s also Bad News.

The Bible shares there is Bad News about us… and Good News about God.

The Bad News is Rom 3:23 “… for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God...”

We’re all sinners. Sin is an archery term meaning to miss the mark.

No one is always on the bullseye of God’s perfect standards… we all fall short… when we hate, lie, gossip, steal… even white lies… even stealing time… even prayer gossip.

We fall short of God’s standard of perfection…

We sin in our attitudes… in our actions… in our drifting from God… in our lust for the world and the things of it…

We were born into a fallen world with a fallen nature.

And, the bad news gets worse because the Bible also says Rom 6:23 “… the wages of sin is death.”

If you work… for your hours worked, you are paid a paycheck.

If you sin… and you do… the wages of sin is death.

James 1:15 concurs, “...when desire [our own sinful desires] has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death.”

The bible says the penalty for sin is death… meaning that because of our sin we deserve to die and be separated from God forever.

All of that is really bad news.

BUT, there is good news. Since we all fall short… since we all sin… and cannot enter heaven and go to God based on our perfectly keeping His standards.

The Bible says that God came to us.

John 1:14 states, “… the Word became flesh and dwelt among us...”

The Word is none other then Jesus Christ.

John 1:1 “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God.”

1 John 1:1… very similar… declares “That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, concerning the Word of life.”

God came to us… the Word… Jesus Christ… was God…

The Apostles heard, saw, and touched Him. He came to us…

In love… and with the purpose of redeeming us back to God.

Rom 5:8 declares, “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

If you had a terminal illness and were about to die…

And it were possible for me to take that disease from you… and I did… what would happen?

I would die and you would live. I would die in your place.

This is what Jesus did for us.

1 Pet 2:24 declares “who Himself [speaking of Jesus] bore our sins in His own body on the tree...”

And three days later Jesus rose from the dead proving sin and death were conquered and His claims to be God were true.

And in all this, Jesus satisfied God’s wrath on sin for us.

1 John 2:2 states, “He Himself is the propitiation for our sins...”

Jesus propitiated or satisfied God’s wrath on sin.

As a perfect judge, God had to judge sin… or there is no justice… but Jesus paid the penalty on our behalf… He took our terminal illness.

And, there is more Good News… in order to receive this gift that Jesus bestows upon us… you don’t have to work for it… it’s not like sin where you have to earn the wages of death.

Jesus gives us a free gift that we simply need to receive through faith in Him.

Eph 2:8–9 “For by grace [meaning “undeserved favor’] you have been saved [delivered from sin’s penalty] through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast.”

Faith means “assurance” or “trust” especially “reliance upon Christ for salvation.”

You must place your faith in Jesus Christ and Him alone to forgive you and give you eternal life.

Because no good works… or church attendance… or growing up in a Christian home… will save you.

Even just saying the words of a salvation prayer… without faith in the object of the prayer… Jesus Christ… will NOT save.

You SHOULD say a prayer of salvation IF you believe that Jesus is the Christ… to communicate to God that you have placed your faith in His Son.

Pray something as simple and honest as “Dear God. I know I am a sinner and my sin deserves to be punished. I believe Jesus Christ died for me and rose from the grave. I trust Him alone to save me. Thank you for forgiving me and for giving me eternal life. In Jesus’ name. Amen.”

So when Mark wrote, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.”

There it is. Share the good news and the bad news… and how through faith in Jesus Christ… salvation if freely given.

I think it’s important to note… that When you feel called to share the gospel… you are responsible to share the gospel… NOT for whether the other person receives the Gospel and receives the free gift of salvation through faith in Jesus Christ.

And, historically… when God has sent a messenger… this has been the standard.

The messenger is responsible for being faithful for sharing the message… NOT for the hearer receiving the message and responding favorably by repenting from evil and turning to the Lord.

At the Every Word event… I began reading in Ezekiel… actually go ahead and turn to Ezekiel 2.

Just before Daniel… after Isaiah and Jeremiah…

In the Ezekiel 2 passage we are going to read… I saw this same truth about responsibility to share the message only impressed upon Ezekiel by the Lord.

God spoke to Ezekiel in chapter 2 and told him to stand on his feet… then the Spirit entered Ezekiel and the LORD spoke this to him…

Ezekiel 2:3–8 “And He said to me: “Son of man, I am sending you to the children of Israel, to a rebellious nation that has rebelled against Me; they and their fathers have transgressed against Me to this very day. 4 For they are impudent and stubborn children. I am sending you to them, and you shall say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God.’ 5 As for them, whether they hear or whether they refuse—for they are a rebellious house—yet they will know that a prophet has been among them. 6 “And you, son of man, do not be afraid of them nor be afraid of their words, though briers and thorns are with you and you dwell among scorpions; do not be afraid of their words or dismayed by their looks, though they are a rebellious house. 7 You shall speak My words to them, whether they hear or whether they refuse, for they are rebellious. 8 But you, son of man, hear what I say to you. Do not be rebellious like that rebellious house; open your mouth and eat what I give you.”

And, Ezekiel would eat the scroll… the message from the LORD in which were writings of lamentations, mournings and woes.

In chapter 3, verse 11 God would again repeat “...speak to them and tell them, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD,’ whether they hear, or whether they refuse.”

And then… in Chapter 3:17-19… the LORD lays this responsibility on Ezekiel… “Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel; therefore hear a word from My mouth, and give them warning from Me: 18 When I say to the wicked, ‘You shall surely die,’ and you give him no warning, nor speak to warn the wicked from his wicked way, to save his life, that same wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood I will require at your hand. 19 Yet, if you warn the wicked, and he does not turn from his wickedness, nor from his wicked way, he shall die in his iniquity; but you have delivered your soul.”

If Ezekiel were faithful to deliver the message from the LORD, he would deliver himself from any responsibility of their coming judgment.

People who rejected the message of the LORD would only have themselves to blame.

And, the principal is the same when we share the Gospel… when we share the truth of the LORD… when we share the Gospel…

We offer a message of life, but not all will receive it.

We live in a land of rebellious people and many of them shake their fist at God.

Just as God spoke about Israel… so is true of the world today… ‘they are impudent and hard-hearted… they are rebellious… and they do not listen to God...’

But Ezekiel was faithful… faithful in sharing the words of the LORD… even though the LORD knew the people would not listen.

Today… there are some who are just the same… some who will not listen… the majority in fact…

Jesus said, “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.”

But, there are those who do enter the narrow gate… you are a testimony of this.

In your testimony… someone was faithful to share the Gospel message with you… and the seed fell on good soil… and it yielded a crop.

Truly… the reality of the church today… the faithful true church…

… THAT church stands as a testimony of men and women since the first century who have not hidden their light under a basket…

They were obedient to the Great Commission… preaching the gospel to every creature.

Now… turn back to Mark 16 … in Mark 16:16 Jesus said, “He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned.”

And this is one of those verses often misunderstood… and some would erroneously misapply this verse and assert that to be saved one must A) believe and B) be baptized.

But notice… the second part of this verse regarding condemnation ONLY applies to the person who “does not believe” NOT to a person who is NOT baptized.

The basis for condemnation is unbelief… not failure to get baptized.

Now… it’s also wrong to downplay the importance of getting baptized in obedience to the Great Commission.

Both in Matthew and Mark… Jesus instructs for believers to be baptized… this is the pattern in the Book of Acts for new believers… it pictures the new life we have in Christ… and it is a public expression of one’s new faith…

Again… NOT essential for salvation, but YES essential for obedience to Jesus’ Great Commission.

Before we move on to vv 17 & 18 in Mark 16… let’s quickly look at the Great Commission passages in the other Gospels.

Turn over to Matthew 28. I mentioned earlier that Matthew’s rendition of the Great Commission is the most widely recognized… so this should sound familiar.

Matt 28:18-20 “And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.”

Matthew was inspired to emphasize the imperative… the command to “make disciples.”

A disciple is a a student or one who receives instructions from another.

The participles in Matthew 28 are “go”, “baptize” and “teach”… this is how we fulfill the the command to “make disciples”…

A disciple therefore would have faith in Jesus Christ and His teachings… and observe or continue in His commands…

They should be baptized… and I baptize in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit… as we read here.

And they should subsequently go to make disciples themselves.

Now I want to quickly point out that Mark says “preach” and Matthew says “teach.”

A friend of mine once said, “Jesus was a teacher and not a preacher.”

And, while I personally am more of a teacher than a preacher… while I lean in the teaching direction…

… when I read scripture it’s clear that Jesus was BOTH a teacher and a preacher.

Matt 11:1 reads “Now it came to pass, when Jesus finished commanding His twelve disciples, that He departed from there to teach and to preach in their cities.”

Following suite… the Apostles too were teachers and preachers…

Acts 5:42 “And daily in the temple, and in every house, they did not cease teaching and preaching Jesus as the Christ.”

To Timothy, Paul instructed the same…

2 Tim 4:2 “Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching.”

There’s a time and place for both… a time to herald a message, and a time to instruct.

And both teaching and preaching are part of the Great Commission.

Now… turn over to Luke gospel Chapter 24.

In Luke 24… we also read a Great Commission… though no imperatives… no commands to teach or preach.

However, Luke will emphasize the necessity of the Holy Spirit and the Baptism with the Holy Spirit in order to be an empowered witness in sharing the Great Commission with the world.

Luke 24:46-49 “Then He said to them, “Thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day, 47 and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. [that’s the Gospel and the Great Commission] 48 And you are witnesses of these things. 49 “Behold, I send the Promise of My Father upon you; but tarry in the city of Jerusalem until you are endued with power from on high.”

And, this is a beautiful picture of the trinity.

The Promise originates from the Father… He is the source.

Jesus is the Giver of the Promise.

The Holy Spirit is the Gift.

Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

And, Jesus sends the Promise of the Father… by means of prayer.

In John 14:16, Jesus said, “And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever...”

And, this promise is established right at the beginning of the Book of Acts.

It’s foundational to the entire Book of Acts.

Because… without the Promise of the Father… there would be no Book of Acts… No early church…

And, the Promise of the Father remains significant today… as we live in the same dispensation of time… the Church Age… which began in Acts 2… when the Holy Spirit descended.

Which leads us to the Book of Acts… go ahead and turn to Acts 1…

Luke also authored this book under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit… and this is where we see the consummation of the promise of the coming Holy Spirit…

Jesus ascends to heaven in Acts 1… and then the Holy Spirit descends in Acts 2 at Pentecost.

But before Jesus ascends… Luke captured Jesus’ additional instruction in Acts 1:8.

And, many understand Acts 1:8 as part of the Great Commission “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

Notice the order… first the early disciples were empowered by the Holy Spirit and THEN they were witnesses to Jesus throughout the earth.

And that’s exactly what happened in the Book of Acts starting in chapter 2.

That’s exactly what happened with Paul… radically transformed by the Holy Spirit… and then called into ministry as a missionary to the Gentiles.

And today… that’s exactly what happened to me.

A lot of you know my testimony… which I found as a Rhema word of God years ago in Pro 1:23 “Turn at my rebuke; Surely I will pour out my spirit on you; I will make my words known to you.”

Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever… and this is how He operates.

The Holy Spirit comes upon the person and then they go fulfill the Great Commission.

And if you don’t have the Holy Spirit empowerment… then you are striving in the flesh… and that is a work doomed to fail and a fizzle out.

No work of the flesh is sustainable.

Jesus’ instruction to His disciples was… stay in Jerusalem and wait for the Promise of the Father.

Wait to get baptized with the Holy Spirit… get empowered… then be witnesses everywhere.

For one to truly fulfill the Great Commission… Luke emphasizes the role of the Holy Spirit… which in Acts 1:5 Jesus said, “… you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.”

The Baptism with the Holy Spirit is an empowerment… Jesus said you will be “endued with power”…

Chuck Smith liked to call it the “overflowing of the Holy Spirit.”

And, I don’t know how one can be successful to share the Gospel and be obedient to the Great Commission if the Holy Spirit has not empowered them.

The purpose of this Baptism… as stated in Acts 1:8 is to be a witness to Jesus.

Starting in Jerusalem and branching out… to Judea… then further to Samaria… and then the rest of the known earth…

And throughout the Book of Acts… this is what they did…

In Jerusalem (Acts Chapters 1-7)…

In Judea and Samaria (Acts Chapters 8-12)…

And the ends of the earth (Acts Chapters 13-28)…

And the Book of Acts continues today… as Spirit filled believers take the Gospel to every nation, people, tribe and tongue.

And, so putting the Great Commission together…

Matthew captures the command to “make disciples” of all nations… by going, baptizing them and teaching them to observe Jesus’ commands.

Mark captures the command to “preach the gospel”… He who believes will be saved and subsequently baptized. He who rejects the gospel will be condemned.

Luke captures the importance of being empowered first by the Holy Spirit in order to then be a witness to Jesus as we go into the world.

And, lastly John… turn to John 20.

John grants the authority to the disciples to carry the Gospel message.

John 20:21-23 So Jesus said to them again, “Peace to you! As the Father has sent Me, I also send you.” 22 And when He had said this, He breathed on them, and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. 23 If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.”

Jesus came to earth as sent by the Father… and now He gives this same mission to His disciples.

And, this is probably the most simply capturing of the Great Commission, but it shows us that the disciples were not acting on their own accord.

They were sent by Jesus… who was sent by the Father.

Just as a messenger from a king carries a scroll… that messenger has the authority to deliver the message because it originated from the king.

And the Great Commission to carry the message of the Gospel… is one that originates from the KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS and there is NO GREATER AUTHORITY in time present… or times past… or time yet future.

The Gospel is the most important message that has ever gone out… because it determines the eternal destination of the soul who either receives or rejects the message.

Which is what John also records after Jesus breaths on the disciples… sealing them with the Holy Spirit… which is different from the Acts 2 Baptism and empowerment…

They are now saved believers, and still will need to be empowered…

But after this, John records, “If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.”

Again this is the picture of the authority Jesus gives to the disciples…

Not that they inherently have this power, but as they carry the Gospel message…

And one accepts the Gospel… they, and you, have the authority to announce their sins are forgiven.

And if one rejects the Gospel… they, and you, have the authority to warn them that they will be accountable to God for their sins and they will not stand.

Inherently… you don’t have this power, BUT as an ambassador of the KING OF KINGS… you carry HIS message… His Good News… and because you are sent BY HIM…

You do have this authority because the message you carry is FROM GOD… it is His Gospel message.

David Guzik wrote, “This lays down the duty of the church to proclaim forgiveness to the penitent believer, and the duty of the church to warn the unbeliever that they are in danger of forfeiting the mercy of God.”

And, that’s what the Great Commission is… it’s a duty.

After we are empowered by the Holy Spirit to be a witness for Jesus…

By the authority of Jesus… who came by authority of our Father in Heaven…

We are commanded by Him to preach the Gospel to every creature…

And to make disciples by going into the world… and baptizing believers in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit…

And to teach them to observe all the commands Jesus gave us in the Holy Scriptures.

So they too can fulfill the Great Commission.

The Great Commission gives us insight into the heart of God… He “desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth” (1 Timothy 2:4).

In the Parable of the Ten Minas… the King commanded His servants, “Do business till I come.”

And so Christian… I must ask. are you a faithful servant… whom God can entrust greater authority when He returns?

Are you obeying the King to preach the Gospel… and to make disciples?

Which was not just a command for the apostles… disciples… men and women… were scattered everywhere…

And they took the Gospel message to the world…

Paul and Silas… went to Thessalonica… and for three Sabbaths “… reasoned with them from the Scriptures, 3 explaining and demonstrating that the Christ had to suffer and rise again from the dead, and saying, “This Jesus whom I preach to you is the Christ.”

And, by envious evil men… they were accused of ‘turning the world upside down.’ (Acts 17:6)

Let the same be said of you.

But, listen to me… you CANNOT do this on your own.

You need to be empowered by the Holy Spirit to carry the message of the King.

Just as you prayed in faith to accept Jesus as your Savior… pray in faith after service with one of our Elders… and ask God to empower you to be a witness for Him.

That’s Step 1 of the Great Commission… and it’s a beautiful charge the the Lord gives us.

To offer the free gift of salvation… just as we received.

To make students of the Lord and His word… just as we have become.

This go and do.

Well… we need to wrap up… but there are those two tricky verses in Mark 16… verses 17 & 18… which make many believers rather uncomfortable…

Let’s read them again, “And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; 18 they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.”

So… Elders… can you break out the snakes and the poison?

That’s just a joke… we’re not one of those Appalachian churches that actually think these are signs to test your faith today.

No snakes today.

These verses are not intended to lay out a test to measure your faith by handling snakes or drinking poison.

One scholar wrote, ‘An interpretive rendering would be, “And if they be compelled to pick up snakes with their hands and if they should be compelled to drink deadly poison, it shall by no means harm them.”’

Which would be more of a promise when persecutors force believers to do these things.

Like the account of John being boiled in oil, but exiting unscathed.

Exactly what the intent of these verses are though… for sure commentators differ on their interpretations.

We do see many of all these signs… except for drinking poison… in the Book of Acts…

The disciples cast our demons and spoke in tongues… which was an understandable language in Act 2…

Paul was bitten by a snake in Act 28 and the poison did not effect him.

And, I think the context is that upon going out to share the Gospel… there would be both amazing signs and dangers that followed.

And this is true.

Worship team please come. Next week we will finish the Book of Mark looking at the Ascension of Jesus Christ…

And then… the long awaited Book of Romans.

Read ahead.

Let’s Pray!

Today, you heard a clear presentation of the Gospel. There’s bad news about us, but good news about God.

Our Elders are coming forward to pray with anyone who wants to tell God they place their faith in Jesus Christ.

Or if you want to pray to be empowered to share the Gospel and fulfill the Great commission… please come forward.

Or if you just have prayer needs… lay them at Jesus’ feet before you go.

May the Lord bless you and keep you and cause His face to shine upon you in the week ahead.