Wherefore seeing we also are compassed
about with so great a cloud of
witnesses, let us lay aside every
weight, and the sin which doth so easily
beset us, and let us run with patience
the race that is set before us, looking
unto Jesus the author and finisher of
our faith; who for the joy that was set
before Him endured the cross, despising
him that endured such contradiction
of sinners against himself, lest ye be
wearied and faint in your minds.
Hebrews 12:1-3
Authentic Christians are without excuse to have Authentic Christian Faith for we have "a cloud of witnesses," witnesses of faith so that we have examples of what it means to have faith in all circumstances. Furthermore, we have the greatest of all examples: Jesus Christ who suffered the cross and by doing so a despising upon Satan who has set himself to cause sinners to contradict all that God has provided and that provision is faith in the Savior Who has purchased everlasting life for all who believe upon Him. All this should cause us not "be wearied or to faint in our minds."
This leads us to a faith called "Temporal Faith." What is it? This faith is a persuasion of the truth of religion that is accompanied with some promptings of conscience and a stirring of the affections, but is not rooted in a regenerated heart. Jesus spoke of such faith: "But he that received the seed into stony places, the same is he that heareth the word, and immediately with joy receiveth it; yet hath not root in himself, but dureth for a while: for when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word, by and by he is offended" (Matthew 13:20-21). This faith is temporary faith, because it has no abiding character and fails to maintain itself in days of trial and persecution. Shall we call this faith "hypocritical?" No! Those who have this type of faith really believe that they have Authentic Christian Faith, yet it can be called imaginary faith, it seems genuine but a fading away or vanishing character. This type of faith is hard to distinguish from true saving faith, but it can be said to be temporal for it is grounded in the emotional life and seeks personal enjoyment rather than the glory of God. I find this to be true of those who are either a student or a congregant of the Bethel Church School of the Supernatural where they are euphorical in their desire to worship God and run around trying to pray for strangers, and do miracles all seeming to be for their own aggrandizement rather for God. Many Churches have succumbed to a form of worship and faith that is all about emotion even if they say it is for the glory of God.
Here is the difference between temporal or historical, or to have faith in miracles, all may have some association with this faith but fails in times of trial and persecution. This faith: True Saving Faith is a faith that has as its seat in the heart and is rooted in the regenerate life. A person hears the word of God from which faith is found and this is a free gift, you cannot earn it but you must accept it and then this faith must be planted or rooted in your heart. This faith implanted into the heart by God is that which can actively exercise faith. True saving faith grows to a mature faith by consciously exercise of it for then it will form a habit, and this habit becomes powerful so that you will stand firm against any circumstance that attempts to harm you. This faith has one this to aid you for you are not alone in this walk and growth in Authentic Christian Faith: you have the power of the Holy Spirit who speaks to you, to your heart, and by this you receive the Gospel to be truth, and by this you come to rely heartily on the promises of God in Jesus Christ.
Pray to God that He will continue to aid you by the Holy Spirit to remain faithful, and for others who need your prayer for God answers this type of prayer, a prayer of intercession.
Now, about Mark 16:14-18 verses that have caused much controversy. Let us see if we can come to an understanding. "Afterward he appeared unto the eleven as they sat at meant, 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 p serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover" (Mark 16:14-18).
These verses have been so misused and used to give credence to things that are so unScriptural and has nothing to do with True Saving Faith. Let us look at the context to aid us: first there was a report of the Emmanus travelers (Luke 24:36-49; John 20:19-25). Luke and John do not create the impression that Jesus scolded them for their unbelief and hardness of heart, but that He recognized how hard it was for them to believe, and Jesus sought to remove that difficulty by offering proofs of His resurrection. Allow me to stop this nonesense that baptism saves you, it does not and the above verses prove that point, it is belief not baptism that saves, but baptism is that which a believer does as a sign of his belief. Some have used the above verses to prove that not only baptism but the ability to do those miraculous works shows that they are truly saved. About those verses 17-18, they could well have reference to occurrences in the early Church as recorded in Acts. Even if these verses were unquestionably genuine, and I do believe they after my critical study of them, they could not reasonably be used as a basis for the deliberate and presumptuous handling of snakes and drinking of poison which are practiced by certain extreme religious sects. These verses in Mark appears only in this book and should indicated the need for caution in the use of these verses as proof-text.
Their big argument is based upon the fact that there are three really
old Greek manuscripts (Sinaiticus, Vaticanus & Alexandrian) that
are highly respected in the eyes of many merely for their age and two of
them (Sinaiticus & Vaticanus) don't include verses 9 through 20 in
Mark 16. Sinaiticus doesn't include verses 9 through 20 at all, while
Vaticanus doesn't include them either, but Vaticanus leaves space for
them at the end of Mark for it (where it was omitted!). The Alexandrian
on the other hand, does include all these verses. Some people assume
that since two of these respected manuscripts omit verses 9 through 20,
that it must have been lost and somebody made up these verses. A very
weak argument to say the least.Satan has tried to question and cast doubt upon the validation of God's Word from the very beginning (Genesis 3:1), and this is just another prime example of the enemy's tactics at work today.
While there are a small handful of Greek manuscripts that omit these verses, there are thousands of other Greek manuscripts that include them! Furthermore, both of these primary Greek manuscripts used in their argument have been through heavy modification by gnostics (cult members) to tamper with scripture to make it support their teaching. These manuscripts have left out massive amounts of scripture! Each of these two corrupt manuscripts have thousands of omissions in the 4 gospels alone! Not to mention, the Vaticanus has left out dozens of entire chapters in the Bible!
Here's the straw that broke the camels back in my opinion. Before 200AD, none of our three oldest manuscripts existed. Before any of these manuscripts were written, there were several very well known individuals in the early church, who have quoted many Bible verses that were cut out of of the Sinaiticus and Vaticanus in their writings. There's ample proof alone from these writings that the ending of Mark was indeed in place in the original manuscripts. One good example is where Irenaeus of Lyons, who knew the apostle John personally, around 100AD wrote, "But Mark in the end of his gospel says, 'And the Lord Jesus, after that He had spoken to them, was received up into heaven, and sat at the right hand of God.'" Without further to say, I believe this is hard proof that the ending verses of Mark were indeed a part of the Bible long before those 2 ancient manuscripts were even written! Taken from: http://www.greatbiblestudy.com/mark_16_9-20.php
This blog was long, but since I will be out of commission next week as I have surgery for my cancer I felt that I should answer this question about these verses. I leave it up to you to examine for yourselves the various views and come to your own conclusion.
Thank you for prayers on my behalf and for the success of my surgery. Faith, it is Faith, not in anything else but faith in Jesus Christ and by this faith, not only am I saved, but I will live with Him forever. Praise God!
Thy word is a lamp unto my feet,
and a light unto my path. I have
sworn, and I will perform it, that I
will keep thy righteous judgments.
I am afflicted very much: quicken me
O LORD, according unto thy word.
Psalm 119: 105-106
Ensure that your faith is True Saving Faith
Richard L. Crumb
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