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NASB | Mark 4:11 And He was saying to them, "To you has been given the mystery of the kingdom of God, but those who are outside get everything in parables, |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Mark 4:11 He said to them, "The mystery of the kingdom of God has been given to you [who have teachable hearts], but those who are outside [the unbelievers, the spiritually blind] get everything in parables, |
Subject: Some things are withheld |
Bible Note: The Bible Does Not Contain All of Jesus' Teachings Mark 4:11-12 and 16:12-20 – Some things are withheld. Was it only the meaning of parables that were hidden from the ordinary people (see also Luke 9:21 – how can we be sure the apostles wrote everything down?). The earliest Bibles (such as the Codex Sinaiticus) do not contain the last verses of Mark. This is important, since Mark is apparently the oldest gospel, and was used a source by the other gospel writers. Were these last twelve verses invented hundreds of years after Mark died? If these twelve verses are true, then they must have been written down in the first century, but kept separate for hundreds of years until it was decided to add them to the public version of Mark. So the early church kept some parts of scripture secret! Then we cannot assume, just because we have the Bible, that we have everything the early church ever taught. That is what the Mormons have said all along. N.B. the controversial scholar Morton Smith claims to have found evidence for the secret portions of Mark. His theory is based on a reference in a letter of the respected church father, Clement. Smith describes the evidence in his book The Secret Gospel. The very next verse after the last verse of Mark is Luke 1:1. This plainly states that "many" have written about Jesus before Luke did. Where are these "many" gospels? The good news is, while many of the ancient texts are lost forever, the lost teachings have been restored again from heaven through modern prophets and can be found in the Book of Mormon, Doctrine and Covenants, and the book The Pearl of Great Price. Hidden Teachings: Naturally, the traditional churches fight against the evidence for hidden teachings. Their whole theology is based on the Bible being the final and complete word, so all other evidence must be denied. What is the other evidence? Of Course There Are Hidden Teachings! Every field of truth has different layers of understanding. Hence we have basic mathematics, and advanced mathematics. Basic history and advanced studies in history. Basic childcare and advanced courses in childcare. Basic haircutting and advanced haircutting. The only types of knowledge that do not have advanced versions are simple stories that are not true. If the gospel is true, than obviously the basics will be taught first, and the whole grand scheme will not be included in the initial books. It would not make sense to include a chapter on superstring theory or quantum mechanics in an introduction to physics! The fact that some teachings are hidden does not mean that they are shameful or that they contradict the basics, but simply that they are inappropriate for new students. The scriptures we have are the public scriptures – those that were given to non-members and new members. If there was nothing else, if there were no additional teachings, then by analogy with every other field of truth we could conclude that this was a false gospel. Finally, if a teaching was secret, obviously it would not be contained in the Bible. So to say that "all secret teachings must be referred to in the Bible" is clearly nonsense. Scriptures About Hidden Teachings: Matthew 13:11 – Only the apostles (not the general public) are to understand the mysteries. 1 Corinthians 3:1-2 – Milk before meat. Note that 1 Corinthians contains very deep doctrine, yet this is referred to as just "milk" (1 Cor. 3:2 – the saints were STILL not able to cope with the meat). Examples of Hidden Teachings: 1 Corinthian 12:1-4 – Paul talks of the third heaven – without explaining what he means – and says that some things he heard were not to be repeated. 2 Thessalonians 2 – Paul refers to "that which withholdeth," a force that was keeping the apostasy at bay. He told the people in person, but would not write it down. The book of Revelation – Plenty of mysteries here! |
Down View Branch | ID# 95436 | ||
Questions and/or Subjects for Mark 4:11 | Author | ||
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gbennett76 | ||
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BradK | ||
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spoontoss |