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Results from: Answered Bible Questions, Answers, Unanswered Bible Questions, Notes Ordered by Verse | ||||||
Results | Verse | Author | ID# | |||
1 | Mat 5:27-28. Adultery. | Prov 5:1 | Hank | 178740 | ||
Hello, Edwin - Of course, no one in the New Testament is reported to have handled snakes nor to have been commanded to do so, which makes the argument sophistic and the illustration academic. ...... When I was growing up in eastern Tennessee many years ago, there was a "holiness" church near Chattanooga that practiced snake handling. It was quite a spectacle and people came from far and wide to see it. The nearest present-day counterpart to the carnival atmosphere that surrounded the snake handlings would be the faith healings staged by Benny Hinn and others of his feather. I recall vividly still the big news event occasioned by one of the practictioners having become the victim of a fatal bite by an uncooperative rattle snake, whereupon civil authorities moved in and put an end, at least temporarily, to the snake handling nonsense, much to the disappointment of those who had come to depend on the events as sprightly amusement. I am not aware whether this religious cult ever resumed the dangerous practice, which, it seems to me, is an example par excellence of putting God to the test. But not any more than invoking the name of God and yelling "Be healed" to a person with a terminal illness. What truly is amazing, my British brother, is the ease with which human beings can find Bible loopholes where there really are none, speak loudly on those issues about which Scripture is silent, and blissfully ignore other issues about which Scripture fairly shouts! O, if only finite man would inculcate 2 Timothy 2:15 into his soul, print it, as it were, indelibly on his heart and commit it to his memory cells, what a difference it would make in Christianity today! If Christians round the world became Bereans instead of blind sheep, it would put the charlatans out of business. --Hank | ||||||
2 | Mat 5:27-28. Adultery. | Prov 5:1 | ebrain | 178766 | ||
Hi Hank. You say. "Of course, no one in the New Testament is reported to have handled snakes". Might I with respect draw your attention to Acts 28:3-5, I will refer to these verses again when dealing with the last part of Mark's Gospel. Thank you for what you have said about "Snake Handling", I have heard of this before in respect of a group of pentecostals operating in the area of the Catskill Mountains. I believe that verses 9 through 20 of Mark Ch 16 are human additions, but allowed to be there with Divine permission in order to give believers yet another opportunity to exercise that faith without wich it is impossible to please God, see Hebrews 11:6. Let me explain. False teaching is allways introduced, and disguised by being liberally surrounded with plenty of good sound teaching, I have no problem whatsoever with eleven of these twelve verses, but v 18, is where the "Deadly Poison" is introduced, and see with what subtly the first part of this verse is used to introduce you to it, some readers will say, "Why yes, Paul handled a deadly snake, and it did not do him any harm, therefore the rest of this verse must be ok. It has been said that the Holy Spirit will not tempt people to put God to the test, and this is of course true. It was not the Holy Spirit that tempted Jesus, but the Devil, although it was in fact the Holy Spirit who wrote Psalm 91:11-12. It will not be the Holy Spirit who will ask you to drink deadly poison, but a servant of the enemy of God, who will say something like "If you really are a christian, then do this for it is written, ect, ect". Need I say any more, no doubt I will. but for the time being this will have to do. ebrain. |
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