Good to see everyone this morning.
Just join me in prayer, just briefly, before we get going.
! Holy Father, we thank you for our chance to be together this morning.
! You have brought us from so many different places,
so many different stages of life and things that we're dealing with.
And God, we come together to not just dwell on the things that burden us
and make us anxious that we've come to dwell on you
and to behold your glory and your word.
And God, I just ask this morning that you would use me
and to build up your people.
And God, I just thank you for this opportunity.
So, Holy Spirit, work in and through us today for Christ's sake.
And we pray that in His name. Amen.
Amen. So, Mark 16.
We're going to start in verse 9.
It says,
Now after He had risen early on the first day of the week,
He first appeared to Mary Magdalene,
from whom He cast out seven demons.
She went and reported to those who had been with Him
while they were mourning and weeping.
And when they heard that He was alive and had been seen by her,
they refused to believe it.
After that, He appeared in a different form to two of them
while walking along the road in the country.
And they went away and reported to others,
but they did not believe them either.
And afterward, He appeared to the eleven themselves,
and they were reclining at the table.
And He reproached them for their unbelief and hardness of heart,
because they had not believed those who had seen Him,
that He had risen.
And He said to them,
Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation.
He who has believed has been baptized and will be saved,
but who has disbelieved shall be condemned.
And these signs will accompany those who have believed.
In My name they will cast out demons,
they will speak with new tongues,
they will pick up serpents,
and if they drink deadly poison,
it shall not hurt them.
They will lay their hands in the sick,
and they will recover.
So then when the Lord Jesus had spoken to them,
He was received up into heaven,
and He sat down at the right hand of God.
And they went out and preached everywhere,
while the Lord worked with them
and confirmed the Word by signs that followed.
So, that's kind of what we're dealing with today.
But if you have a study Bible,
or a New American Standard Bible,
or an ESV Bible,
there probably is a footnote
connected to this passage.
If you can find it, just look at it.
And it says,
basically,
most of, or some of,
the early manuscripts do not contain
verses 9 through 20.
So, what do we do with that?
Well, we're definitely going to deal with that this morning.
But,
right off the bat,
I just kind of want to say just two things,
two goals
that I really hope and pray
that will happen this morning
for me and for you.
The first one is that we would increase
our love and our wonder
for God and His Word,
the Scripture.
and also to
bring maybe a proper ending
to the Gospel of Mark
that we've been in for a long time now
and to increase our love
and wonder for the Savior.
So, with that in mind,
I really hope that
you treasure the Word of God.
when I first became a believer,
probably around 2001,
I couldn't put it down.
It was just something
I was always wanting to be in,
something I always wanted to read
and have my mind in.
This was my first copy I had
that I started reading
when I first became a believer.
It started falling apart
and good many years ago,
my grandmother took it from me
and had it rebound
and she put
Solideo Gloria on the back of it
to God alone be the glory.
This is the new American standard.
Back in my early days
as a believer,
I was like a highlighting maniac.
I highlighted everything
before the whole book
was kind of highlighting.
There was really no point
in highlighting.
And I loved the Word of God.
I spent many nights
in the hospital
kind of battling
with life and death
with this Bible.
And I just put my face
in it every night.
And the promises
that were in it
gave me hope.
And it speaks to us today.
This is not a book
that is not relevant
to our lives,
but in fact,
most relevant.
Those of you
who have been to my house
and been in my room
and seen,
I have this on my desk,
but it's something
that my mother wrote
to me a long time ago.
She used to give
my brother and I
scripture.
I mostly got this
when I was at least
five or six,
but it has Joshua 1,
8 and 9 on it.
Do not let this book
of the law
depart from your mouth
and meditate on it
day and night
so that you may be careful
to do everything
that is written in it.
Then you will be prosperous
and succeed
and will have success.
Have I not commanded you?
Do be strong
and courageous.
Do not be terrified.
Do not be discouraged
for the Lord your God
will be with you
wherever you go.
And I'm just telling you
that this is such
a precious gift
and so few people
have any idea
about how we actually
got this in front of us.
It didn't just shoot
out of a factory
and just come before you.
It has been a process.
The stuff that we just
sang about
are you listened to
more or less.
Ancient Words
is such an awesome song
of how we got the Scripture.
So,
that's kind of the goals
for this morning.
And so,
hold that in your hand.
Hold the Word of God
in your hand
and participate
in a little activity
but just hold the Word
in your hand.
If you have it on your phone,
you can't participate
in this activity.
Just kidding.
But,
just to be encouraged
by an older brother
in the faith.
So,
when I first became
a believer,
I was introduced
to the writings
of a man
who had a huge impact
on my life.
He's dead now
but he still speaks.
And,
those of you
who love John Piper,
this is where
John Piper gets
a lot of his stuff
from.
But,
Jonathan Edwards
is one of my heroes.
And if you guys,
particularly college students
who are really into
wanting to read
some stuff
that's really scripturally
in-depth
and cause you
to want to live for God
and die for God,
get into Jonathan Edwards.
Edwards
was a Puritan pastor
in colonial America.
He went to Yale
when he was 13.
And he graduated
at the top of his class
when he was 17.
He knew Greek,
Latin,
and Hebrew.
He pastored a church
in Connecticut.
And,
in 1758,
he became
the president
of Princeton.
So,
pretty smart guy.
Encyclopedia
Britannica,
which is not
a Christian source,
I remind you.
It voted
Jonathan Edwards
the most brilliant mind
America has ever produced.
So,
all these things
are,
these stats
are impressive.
But,
those of you
who really want
to know Edwards
will see more
of his heart
rather than
just
these stats.
See,
this man
loves
and adored
the Savior.
So much so
that even after
he experienced
some rejection
from his church,
he went to be
a missionary
to the Indians
in colonial America.
And,
he loved the Savior.
And,
the things
around his mind
that you hear him
say the most
are the glory
of God.
How can I live
for the glory
of God?
So,
as you hold the Bible
in your hands
this morning,
just listen to something
he says
about the Scripture.
He says,
you all have
by you,
this,
a treasure
of divine knowledge
and that you
have your Bible
in your hands.
Therefore,
do not be
contented
with just
possessing a little
bit of this
treasure.
God has spoken
much to you
in Scripture.
Labor
to understand
as much
of what he
has said
as you can.
God has made
you all
reasonable
creatures.
Therefore,
let not
the noble
faculty of
reason
or understanding
lie
neglected.
Content
not yourselves
with divine
truth
you accidentally
gained in
conversation,
but
let it be
very much
your business
to search
for it
and that
with the
same
diligence
and labor
with which
men ought
to dig
in the
mines
for silver
or gold.
This is
such a
precious
gift
and we
need to
have our
minds
and our
hearts
in it
on a
daily
basis
and to
labor
for it
the way
that men
labor for
silver
and gold
to have
divine
truth.
As a joke,
some of you
in the earlier
days don't
remember,
I like
Jonathan
Ewers so
much that
a friend
of mine
in Ireland
bought me
this.
Jonathan
Ewers is
my own
boy.
It's a
little too
small for
me right
now,
so this
is the
only thing
I can
use it
for.
Something
like
this.
So to
keep in
mind,
we're going
to talk
about just
the Word
of God
this morning
and then
at the
end kind
of bring
it back
into the
Gospel of
Mark.
But we
need to
understand
that because
of our
sin and
because of
our rebellion
against such
a wonderful
Creator,
we don't
deserve
anything.
God could
have just
chosen to
keep us
in the
dark,
keep us
in silence,
dealing with
the consequences
of our sin,
left in
eternal
darkness,
left us to
our sin
indefinitely.
He could
have.
Y'all
understand
that when
the angels
rebelled
against God,
God did
not save
one of
them,
not one,
to the
fact that
He even
tries or
is going
to work
in the
hearts of
man,
such a
grace.
So God
could have
left us
in silence
and in
the darkness,
but yet
He spoke.
He chose
to speak
to us,
foretelling
of a Savior
to save
us,
to bring
redemption.
And so we
have to see
this book
as a
precious gift
of grace.
It really
is.
And it
hasn't come
to us
really in
an easy
way.
Martyrs,
people who
have shed
blood to
bring the
word to
us.
Scripture
is such a
gift.
So many
people in
the world
don't have
it,
as some
of you
are aware.
But Scripture
is what we
call a specific
revelation.
Nature is
general revelation.
It's enough
to tell us
that there
is a God,
that He
is powerful,
that He
should be
adored.
That's why
you can go
to many
places in
the world
and they
know that
there's a
God,
they know
that there
is a
Creator.
I always
use the
Native
Americans
as an
example.
I really
love the
Cherokee
a lot.
I go up
there a
good bit
and they
believe
that there
is an
ancient
Creator
who made
all things.
He needs
to be loved
and revered.
Out west,
the Apaches,
some of you
have heard of
the Apaches
before,
Geronimo,
Cochise,
all of them.
They believed
in Yosin
who is the
one God
and the
Father of
all men.
So that is
what general
revelation is,
but Scripture
is specific
because it
tells us
who God
is,
who we
are,
and what
we have
to do
to live
right before
Him and
to be
saved by
Him.
You can't
get that
in nature
alone.
So this
is specific
revelation.
And before
we go
further,
I know
there's a lot
of questions
that you're
going to
have that
I won't
be able to
answer this
morning.
I'm already
worried I'm
going to go
over time,
so if I
start,
Daniel Swanson
Esquire is
going to let
me know if I'm
going over time
this morning.
But just,
I'm always about
resources,
but one book
you can look at
is called
Nothing But
the Truth,
The Inspiration,
The Authority,
and The History
of the Bible
by Brian Edwards,
Nothing But
the Truth.
So,
this is called
the Word of
God,
and it's not
called that
for no reason.
God Himself
defines truth,
has inspired
truth in this
Word,
and He's
revealed it to
us,
though we were
lost and
separated from
Him.
Holy Scripture
is a witness
to us about
who God
is,
the true
knowledge of
God and how
He relates
to us.
So,
unlike any
other book,
it claims to
be the Word
of God.
In the Old
Testament alone,
that phrase is
used 2,000 times
alone.
In the New
Testament,
the term Word
of God is
used 40 times.
So,
it is an
actual book
that calls
itself the
Word of
God,
over and
over.
So,
I'm pretty
sure you
only have
like two
or three
places to
look this
morning,
but look
at 2 Timothy
chapter 3,
verse 16.
Paul writing
to his
young
apprentice
Timothy.
So,
those of you
who are
around here
are no
strangers to
this verse,
but I'm
begging you
to refuse
for it to be
familiar to
you.
Don't allow
it to be
familiar.
When you
really put
your mind
on what
this says,
it will
just spin
your world
around.
So,
chapter 3,
verse 16,
says,
all scripture
is breathed
out by
God and
is profitable
for teaching,
for reproof,
for correction,
for training
in righteousness,
that the man
of God may
be complete,
equipped for
every good
work.
So,
amazing words.
All of
scripture is
there,
again,
for us to
know God,
to be saved
by Him,
to live
rightly before
Him.
And if you
see here,
it is all
valuable,
it is profitable,
and it is
useful.
There are
not parts
of it that
don't have
some meaning
for us
today.
It all is
relevant and
speaks just as
loud today.
But the
phrase I want
you to really
look at is
right at the
beginning.
It says,
scripture is
breathed out
by God.
And in
this text,
Paul uses
a word that
is not used
in any other
ancient Greek
text.
and it's
not used
in any
other Bible
Greek text.
So,
it's almost
saying like
he put this
word together
to really
emphasize
a point.
This is the
word
theopneustos,
God,
theopneustos,
which is where
we get our
word pneumatic
or pneumonia
from,
this idea of
breathing out.
That's what it
means.
It means that
God literally
breathed out
that God
spoke to us
in the dark.
of sin.
It expresses
the divine
origin,
inspiration,
authority of
scripture.
So,
it's a huge,
huge word
that he put
together to
emphasize a
point that
scripture has
a divine
origin.
All of it
is beneficial
for our
souls and
to help us
to know
God.
Very
similarly,
flip over
to 2 Peter.
We're doing
all eternity
now and you
can just
listen the
rest of
the time.
But,
2 Peter
chapter 1,
2 Peter
chapter 1,
verse 19.
Alright,
Peter just
described the
transfiguration
and how they
were with
Christ on the
mountain.
verse 19.
He says,
And we
have the
prophetic word
more fully
confirmed,
to which you
would do
well to pay
attention,
as a lamp
shining in a
dark place,
until the day
dawns and the
morning star
rises in your
hearts.
Knowing this,
first of all,
that no
scripture,
no prophecy
of scripture
comes from
one's own
interpretation.
For no
prophecy was
ever produced
by the
will of
man.
You see
that?
Like,
man did
not do
this,
but man
spoke from
God as
they were
carried along
by the
Holy Spirit.
Look at
verse 19.
It gives
us the idea
that paints a
picture of the
darkness of a
fallen world
and sin,
right?
And that the
word of God
is the lamp
that shines
light into the
darkness.
Into the
dark places.
God spoke.
Alright?
And then it
says,
as the day
dawns,
until the day
dawns,
and the
morning star
rises.
So God's
word is like
bringing about
a new creation,
a new heaven
and a new
earth,
and it is a
process.
It is here
now and it
is now coming.
It will be
fully here one
day when Christ
returns.
But then he
goes on and he
says that this
has not come
from man.
This is something
that God has
done.
So where we get
our term,
the idea of
inspiration of
scripture.
Now, when
man wrote God's
word, it
wasn't like he
just sort of
possessed them
and they became
just a machine
and they started
writing stuff.
And they were
like out of
their minds.
God used
them.
This phrase
here where it
says carried
along by the
spirit.
It's this idea
of a leaf or
something else
like that that
could be in a
river that's being
carried along by
this flow of
the river.
And God is
involving them in
the process of
writing his word.
He used their
experiences, their
own vocabulary.
He used their
backgrounds.
Everything unique.
But God involved
them in the process
so that all the
Bible writers could
say, like David
said in 2 Samuel
23, David said,
the spirit of the
Lord speaks by
me.
His word is on
my tongue.
The God of
Israel has spoken.
The rock of
Israel has said
to me.
Right?
So God worked
in the hearts of
men and the
souls of men and
they spoke and
wrote the words
of God.
And it's amazing
because I hope
you realize that
your very life
right now,
very life,
like the
heartbeat you have,
the air in your
lungs, is being
sustained by the
word of God.
When Jesus says,
man shall not
live by bread
alone, but on
every word that
proceeds out of
the mouth of
God, it's like an
active tense of
God speaking.
All right?
So literally, in
him we live and
move and have our
being.
And in him is our
life, breath, and
everything.
He sustains us by
his word.
By his word.
So the Bible
really has no
equal.
There's no other
text in ancient or
modern literature at
all that compares to
the Scripture.
It's not written by
one man in a short
period of time who
claims that he heard
from God, like the
Koran, for instance.
But rather, the
Bible was written
over the course of
1,500 years,
roughly.
It has 66 different
documents that span
that 1,500 years,
and at least 40
different authors
that contributed to
this.
And what's crazy is
like you have that
large span of time,
all these different
men telling you the
same story, that
there is a creator,
that we have rebelled
against him, that
there is sin, that
there is a Messiah
coming.
That's crazy.
That's just simply
astounding.
And including in
that, the Bible is
composed of many
different types of
literature, law, poetry,
history, everything in
there, prophecy.
It's all there.
So, such a variety
just in the Bible
itself, literature.
And when we talk
about this idea
that no matter the
1,500 years that
God has done this,
the Bible is
astoundingly
consistent in its
themes, its message,
and its truthfulness.
Right?
That's what we refer
to by, you've heard
the term inerrancy.
We could talk about
inerrancy a long
time, but it really
just means that the
original Bible
manuscripts, okay,
the original Bible
manuscripts do not
affirm anything
contrary to fact or
truth.
Right?
That it was literally
from God and that
they wrote it down.
So, the harmony of
the Bible is, it
kind of, it blows
us away.
It is so consistent.
And those of you
who looked and really
read, like, you
learn that the Bible
is also a very real
book.
It shows the
ugliness of sin,
how there's no hero
in the Bible that
doesn't have some
serious screw-up.
Abraham sold his
wife out, at least
twice, and was a
coward and ran.
David committed
adultery, murder,
and scandal.
The Bible is a very
real book.
Very real book.
And it exposes how
needy we are, okay?
It's unlike fantasy at
all.
One writer said,
Behold, the works of
all our philosophers
with all their pompous
dictum, how mean and
contemptible they are in
comparison with the
scriptures.
It is possible that a
book at once so simple
and sublime should never
be merely the work of
man.
Another writer, he
says, the Bible is not
such a book a man would
write if he could, or
could write if he
would.
It's just not
possible.
And so today, we
could talk about the
Old and New Testament,
but just because we're
in Mark, we're going to
focus on the New
Testament particularly.
So we're just going to
look at three questions.
So, the first one won't
take as long to answer,
but what are the origins
of the New Testament
manuscripts?
Where do we get the New
Testament?
Well, for the originals,
God's own word was
written by men who were
chosen and prepared by the
Spirit of God to do
this.
The original copies of
the Old Testament were
written in the first
century, A.D., the same
time as Christ lived and
walked the earth, days of
the early, early church.
And it's not reflecting
back on events that
happened hundreds and
thousands of years ago.
It's reflecting on
recent events that
happened.
So, those of you who
study history know that
the longer the time
gaps, the more danger
you would have being
inconsistent.
And God shows his joy
and his wisdom by
choosing a large variety
of different types of
men to write.
Rabbis, tax collectors,
fishermen, doctors,
scholars, all contributed
to the New Testament.
God loves variety, and so
he elected these men.
So, we're blessed to have
this New Testament.
And God chose also to pick
one of the most descriptive
and precise of all languages
that's ever been around.
Koine Greek, most of the New
Testament written in Koine Greek,
a very precise language,
that God would choose that
language to write the
Scripture.
Pretty awesome.
So, that's a very simple
answer to that one.
What are the origins?
So, these men in the first
century wrote the New
Testament.
Okay?
So, a little bit longer here.
Number two, how do we get
our current New Testament?
Like, how do we get this?
Alright?
Because, there are no original
manuscripts left.
Alright?
We have no original copies of
any of the New Testament.
But don't be alarmed by that.
We're going to get into that.
So, there's two reasons mainly
why we don't.
The first one is the materials
that they use to write,
papyrus or papyri,
not the most durable material.
It would crack and crumble
pretty easily.
And most ancient writings
are written in that.
There's no originals that exist.
Any kind of physical mistreatment
or bad weather can destroy
papyri.
And secondly,
in the second and third
centuries particularly,
there was immense
persecution.
And not just
on the believers themselves,
but on the Scripture.
Particularly under Domitian,
Trajan, Marcus Aurelius.
They really tried to
annihilate the Scriptures.
Like, find all that we can
and burn them.
Just destroy them.
So, there was an immense
persecution
in those early centuries.
They felt like it was
their responsibility
to stamp out
Christianity
and the Scriptures.
So,
are we lost
because we don't have
any of the originals?
The answer is no,
we are not.
And why?
Because we have
copies
upon copies
of the originals.
Alright?
If you went to
some of the college
you guys have heard
some of this stuff before,
but
I can just get over it
and hear it again.
If you went to
Washington, D.C.
And,
I love colonial history
in America,
but if you went to
Washington, D.C.
and you saw the,
you can go and see it,
the Declaration of Independence.
Right there.
I've seen it.
With these very eyes.
I've seen the
Declaration of Independence.
Yeah.
You can go and see it.
So,
let's just say
that there was
a massive fire
that occurred
and
something happened
and the Declaration
of Independence
was completely
obliterated.
So,
would we
at one time
say,
wow,
I guess we just
don't know
what the Declaration
of Independence
says anymore.
And,
and why is that
so,
you know,
absurd?
And,
the reason is
we have
copies of copies
of copies
of the Declaration
of Independence.
Tons of them.
So many
that if there was
a small difference
we could tell
because of the other
99.99% of them
say this
and not that.
So,
God
is the sovereign
preserver
of Scripture.
Y'all do,
y'all do know
that like he says,
like when I have
a purpose
that cannot be thwarted.
I've declared
the beginning
from the end.
I work all things
according to the
counsel of my will.
No man can stop me
or say,
what have you done?
This is God.
So,
even though
Satan
and the world
have sought
to destroy
the Word of God
by persecution,
listen to this,
there are roughly
5,366 copies
made of the original
New Testament
manuscript.
Alright?
So,
just as God
is the author
of Scripture,
he also is
the preserver
of Scripture
to pass down
to us
his Word.
Alright?
He moved
on the preservers
to make sure
the Scripture
stayed true
and pure
throughout history.
Some of the
early church fathers,
when you get
into the 4th century,
particularly,
the emperor
Constantine
made Christianity
kind of like
the state religion.
Maybe it wasn't
even the best thing
that could have
happened,
actually,
but probably
not,
definitely not
a Christian.
But,
he made it
legal
to follow Christ
and
when that happened,
copies of the Scripture
began to pop up
everywhere.
There was a huge
kind of resurgence.
And around
325,
the Council of Nicaea,
there was two
manuscripts,
particularly,
of the New Testament.
Alright?
The first one
is called
Synecetus
and it's actually
in a British
museum today
and it's about
350 A.D.
and it's the
entire New Testament.
Entire New Testament.
The second
is called
Vaticanus
and it's actually
at the Vatican
in Rome
325 A.D.
and it's also
the whole Bible.
So,
these two
full,
complete
New Testaments
are there
for us to see
and very close
to,
again,
the originals.
So,
think about this.
The writings
of the early
church fathers,
alright?
We're talking
just in
the second,
third,
fourth centuries.
They quote
from the New Testament,
direct quotations
from the New Testament
32,000 times.
Alright?
Their writings
are contained
in libraries,
museums,
you can go
and see it.
And there's
so many
quotations
of the New Testament
that you literally
can reconstruct
the entire
New Testament
just on their
quotations.
Pretty awesome.
And there's
over 19,000
quotations
from the
Gospel writings.
So,
the early
church fathers,
again,
preserved,
helped preserve
the New Testament.
So,
in our New Testament,
you can always
look at your
table of contents,
but what you see
in front of you,
I remember
when I was
an early
Christian,
every Bible study,
I went to
turn to
so-and-so,
and everybody
like,
I'd be like,
you know,
didn't know
where to turn.
But you look
at the
table of contents
and the New Testament
that you see
before you
was kind of
decided on.
There was a
series of
church councils
that met,
and one
particularly,
397 A.D.,
the Council
of Carthage,
they used
certain criteria
to decide
whether or not
books belonged
in the Scriptures
or not.
So,
here's these
three criteria,
and they're
very good.
You couldn't
come up
with better
criteria.
The first
one was
whether or
not the
document was
written by
an apostle
or one
in close
association
with an
apostle.
So,
he was one
or he talked
to the guy
who was
there.
So,
not from
this guy,
from this guy,
from that guy.
Very close
to the
knowledge
itself.
Secondly,
whether or
not the
document was
recognized as
authoritative
by the early
church.
meaning that
if there was
some crazy
writing out
there,
that the
apostles could
have said,
like,
that writing,
stay away
from it.
This guy,
stay away
from it.
And did they
use those,
did they
affirm each
other?
Peter and
Paul actually
talk about
each other
in their
letters.
They say,
what Peter
says,
what Paul
says.
They affirm
the truth
back and
forth.
And thirdly,
a good
blanket one
here,
whether or
not the
document
conformed to
the high
standards and
truths taught
already by
recognized
scripture.
Is it
consistent with
what we know
is scripture?
Alright,
so from what we
know about the
character of God
from the Old
Testament,
what we know
about the
writings of
John and
Mark and
guys who
were there,
is it
consistent?
Does it
tell the same
story?
right?
So those are
great criteria,
and that's
how you get
your New
Testament.
And so
just for
fun,
this is
definitely,
this is just
where I nerd
out,
so sorry,
it's just,
I'm a history
guy,
and this is
kind of where
I nerd out.
But the
New Testament
manuscripts
compared to
other ancient
writings from
the ancient
world,
there's nothing
that compares
to them.
There really
isn't.
Both in
their uniformity
and consistency,
all right?
So you
should just
know that
we have no
copies of
any original
ancient writing,
none whatsoever.
So let's
just take a
well-known
one,
Homer's
Iliad,
what was
written in
the archaic
period of
Greece,
800 B.C.
is when he
was supposedly
penned the
Iliad,
all right?
So,
but the
earliest copy
we have of
the Iliad
is from
400 B.C.
So there's
a 400-year
time gap
between when
he wrote
his original
and the
ones we
actually have
today.
And then
there's only
643 copies
of it,
all right?
Herodotus,
who wrote
about the
Persian Wars,
you know,
Leonidas,
Thermopylae,
all of that,
Marathon,
he wrote in
480 B.C.
And the
earliest copy
we have of
Herodotus is
in 900 A.D.,
the
1300-year
gap,
and there's
only eight
copies.
Plato,
from the
classical
Greek period,
400 B.C.
is when he
supposedly wrote
his stuff.
The earliest
copy we have
is 900 A.D.,
again,
a 1300-year
gap,
and there's
only seven
copies of
Plato.
And so,
compare that
to the New
Testament.
The largest
time gap,
it was written
around 50 to
100 A.D.,
the New
Testament,
and we
have anywhere
from 50 to
100 years
in the time
gaps.
It's not
hundreds,
not thousands.
The New
Testament has
the shortest
time gaps
between the
originals and
the ones we
have today,
so you're
looking at
a huge
difference
there,
and there's
5,366
copies of
it,
which dwarf
all the
others put
together.
643 copies
of the
Ilias,
nothing
compared to
5,366
copies of
the New
Testament.
So,
think about
that.
So,
these Greek
manuscripts
that we
have today
are from
the 2nd
and 3rd
century.
Christ
walked the
earth in
the 1st
century.
That is a
tiny,
tiny time
gap.
So,
we have
large fragments
of the
Gospel of
John that
were found
from 100
A.D.
in Christ,
oh,
excuse me,
John wrote
that in
the 90s,
and that's
the earliest
copy we
have,
it's like
from 100
A.D.
very close
to the
originals.
So,
if that's
an argument,
then it's
a really
terrible one
because you
have to
throw away
all the
stuff from
ancient history
along with
it.
Very poor
argument.
So,
praise God
for his
preservations.
So,
with such,
here's a
question that
may come
up.
You may
ask,
with such
a large
wealth of
copies,
are there
any errors
or discrepancies
at all
in the
copies?
And the
answer is
yes,
but they
are very
small and
insignificant.
Scribes may
have put in
a wrong
word,
a wrong
spelling,
and they
might have
tried to
clarify what
a writer
was saying,
but even
those minor
discrepancies
don't threaten
anything really.
And the
reason why is
because we
have so
many
manuscripts.
again,
if you
have,
I mean,
this is an
example,
if you
have,
let's
say,
you know,
99
manuscripts
that say
all the
same
thing,
and you
have one
that has
a tiny
little
discrepancy,
what are
you going
to do?
Like,
what do
you do?
By logic,
like,
you take
what the
99 says
and you
correct that
one.
It's
very simple,
it's not
rocket science
at all,
it's just
how it is.
There are
so many
copies of
it.
In our
English
translation,
this is a
whole other
deal,
how we
got our
English
Bibles,
but the
translations
that you
have in
your hand,
if it's
one of the
literal
equivalent
translations,
English
Standard
Version,
New
American
Standard
Version,
King
James,
just a few
of the
literal
translations,
you're
holding a
very accurate
translation in
your hand.
English
language is a
very rich
language,
and can give
us very
close to what
the original
writers meant,
in a lot
of ways.
That's why
you can look
up the
Greek,
and you'll
be like,
what's the
Greek say?
It says
exactly what
the English
says a lot
of the time.
But if you
hold certain
translations in
your hands,
you may have a
paraphrase or
something like
that.
It's called a
paraphrase for a
reason.
It's not as
close to the
original as you
can get,
so I really
encourage you to
get an ESV or
a New American
Standard.
There's a whole
other, all
kind of stuff I
can say on
that.
But one
scholar says,
named A.T.
Robertson,
the vast array
of manuscripts
has enabled
textual scholars
to accurately
reconstruct the
original text
more than
99.9%
accuracy.
Pretty crazy.
So we have
a great gift
in front of us,
and it's come
by way of
that.
So, third
question, what
should we do
with this
postscript and
mark?
What do we do
when there is
something like
this in
Scripture?
So, just
personally,
after I've
studied this,
I don't think
it belongs
there.
I don't think
that it's a
part of the
original
manuscript of
Mark.
And there's
three reasons
why.
Firstly,
it is not
in the
earliest
manuscripts
we have
of Mark.
The oldest
one is from
100 A.D.,
and it's
excluded from
that one.
And then the
two most
important ones
we have that
I mentioned
earlier,
the ones you
can see at
the Vatican
and at the
British Museum,
they also
end at
verse 8.
They don't
continue.
And then,
secondly,
the early
church fathers,
they wrote
all the
Greek manuscripts
down to the
New Testament,
and most
all of them
end at
verse 8,
again.
So it's not
really recognized
by a lot of
the early
church fathers
that it was
there.
And
Ysidobos
wrote,
the Greek
manuscripts
do not
include these
endings,
and they are
not a part
of the
originals.
That's in
the 4th
century when
he wrote
that.
And then,
thirdly,
it's kind
of disjointed
it from
the other
gospel accounts.
It kind
of just
seems like
it was
just thrown
in there
at the
very end
of the
gospel of
Mark.
So this
doesn't
really flow
that well
really from
a literary
standpoint.
So,
understand,
those are the
three main
reasons that
most people
don't think
they belong
there.
But,
here's why
we include
them,
okay?
First of
all,
just honesty,
alright?
The vast
majority of
scholars,
though they
don't believe
it belongs
there,
they're just
trying to
say,
look,
this is
out here,
we're not
trying to
hide it
from you,
here it
is,
this is
what we
think about
it.
So I think
that's actually
pretty cool.
They're just
kind of wanting
to keep
stuff out in
the open
and say,
here it is.
And they
also encourage
you to read
it with
caution.
You know,
on the way
here,
I was just
joking with
Daniel,
he asked,
are we going
to have
some snakes
busted out
at the end
and some
other things?
And I said
no,
and he
wanted me
to take
them home
because we
weren't
going to
have
snakes.
So,
like,
some weird
stuff can
be drawn
out of
these
verses,
for sure.
But,
here's the
other reason
why we
include it,
number two,
is there's
no serious
doctrine
compromised,
okay?
So,
in other
words,
regardless of
whether this
postscript is
authentic or
not,
it doesn't
contradict any
kind of
Christian doctrine
that we
believe.
Nothing is
threatened by
it being
there or
not being
there.
All right?
That's really
just kind of
the point.
So,
just the
text absence
or presence
doesn't threaten
anything we
believe,
necessarily.
And one
textual scholar
named Christopher
Ash wrote
this,
says,
since we
do not
have access
to any
of the
original
manuscripts,
this means
that scholarly
work of
textual
criticism
is necessary.
Textual
criticism is
the discipline
of examining
manuscripts
we don't
have while
working back
from those
that we do
have from
the originals.
It is an
honorable skill
and one that
has been well
honed over the
years.
And this is what
he says here,
thank God we
have excellent
and strong
manuscript evidence
that it is not
difficult to
become very
confident indeed
about the
large majority
of the Bible's
words.
No Christian
doctrine depends
on those
parts where
there are
small
uncertainties.
So,
meaning that,
like,
we don't base
our whole belief
system on a
tiny little deal,
I guess,
based on what
the whole thing
says.
And that's
very clear.
So,
that's why
we keep it
in there,
those two
reasons.
Honesty and
then no
doctrinal compromise,
really.
So,
just look
back at
Mark,
Mark 16,
and how
should we
end the
Gospel of
Mark,
what we've
been in for
quite a while
now.
Alright.
If you just
look at it,
there's,
it's very,
very clear
that you
can find
most of
all this
just in
other
Gospel
accounts.
Okay?
For
example,
verse 12
is taken
from Luke
24,
the road
to Emmaus.
Very clear.
He appeared
to them on
the road,
two of them
while walking.
And then
verse 12,
or excuse me,
verse 15
is really the
Great Commission
right out
of Matthew
28.
Like I
said,
verse 17
and 18
are definitely
just a little
odd.
If we
lean on that
too much,
we're going
to be
breaking the
commandment
by putting
God to
the test.
the early
apostles did
have the
power to
do some
of these
things.
If
Pentecost,
this kind
of stuff
happened.
But at the
same time,
just realize
that we can
reconstruct this
entire section
just based on
what other
Gospel accounts
say.
So again,
not really
too big of a
problem.
But just at
some point,
at some point,
some of these
guys who were
writing down Mark
felt like there
should be a better
ending to the
Gospel of
Mark.
And so they
probably added
this in,
more than
likely.
But when you
think about it,
look at
verse 8.
That's what I
just kind of
want to focus
on, which is
where Mark
probably ended
his Gospel.
Okay?
It says,
And they went
out and fled
from the tomb,
for trembling
and astonishment
had seized
them.
And they
said nothing
to anyone,
for they were
afraid.
Alright?
So, that's
where Mark
probably ended
his Gospel.
But is that
a bad ending?
And I really
don't believe
so at all.
The resurrection
is shocking.
If you were
there, I don't
know what you
would have
done.
You probably
would have
done the
same.
That's why
the angels
and everybody
else is like,
fear not,
don't be alarmed,
don't be afraid,
because people
are literally
terrified.
That word
for afraid
is like the
word phobia,
right?
It's where we
get this
bewildering,
irrational
experience.
We just
can't explain
it.
And they're
left speechless.
They're overwhelmed
and they run.
They're terrified.
And so,
is the resurrection
to me and
to you,
is it
overwhelming?
Does it
astonish us?
Are we
amazed that
Christ is
risen in
his love for
us?
Right?
This morning,
like this morning,
the saddest
cases here are
people who have
been lovingly
chosen by the
Father,
graciously saved
by the Son and
his blood,
and dwelt by the
Spirit and have
lost the wonder
of that.
A lot of us
have.
It'll show
probably in the
next few hours
about what you
talk about,
how quickly it's
just snuffed out
after you leave
here.
It's sad.
Our faith has
become thin,
drab,
colorless,
stale,
unimaginative.
we know it
all,
we've heard it
already,
and we've
lost the
wonder of the
Savior.
One writer,
he said,
sometimes I
think the
people to
feel the
most satisfied
for are
people who
once knew
what profoundness
was,
but who
lost or
become numb
to the
sensation of
wonder.
We have to
be bewildered
at the
resurrection
that our
Savior lives
today.
I struggle
to keep
Christ in
the forefront
of my mind
on a daily
basis.
I struggle
with all the
same stuff
you do.
Some of you
students kind
of put me
up in a
higher place,
and it is
not that way.
Those of you
who know me
well know
that's not
true.
I have
fears.
I have
sin in my
life.
I struggle,
and I need
a risen Savior
to save me.
But I know
at the same
time,
all that's
true,
that when I
put my
mind and
my heart
on Christ,
love for
Him and
all of
Him begins
to take
me over,
and His
fellowship drives
away any
darkness that
I'm presently
living in,
and that's
the power
of the
risen Lord.
And I'm
ready after
those moments
when I know
that Christ
is with me,
I'm ready to
live for Him
and die for
Him in any
context He
asked me to,
to engage
the lost,
to make
disciples for
His glory.
the risen
Lord is
with us
today,
He is
present with
us.
Don't lose
the wonder
of that.
Ask that
God rekindle
your wonder
in your
all,
and live
for Christ.
Let the
present reality
of the living
King change
you,
right?
So with
that,
let's just
devote ourselves
to Christ
this morning
anew.
Just close
with me in
prayer.
Amen.