4/25/15- Presbyterian Frogs

15He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation. 16Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. 17And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; 18they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well.” (Mark 16)

Thoughts: I have always thought it ironic that some think progressive means not doing miracles.  To me that seems a bit regressive.  Progress has always had a positive connotation, but if people say, "No, no, no we can't do miracles here"  then it seems they are putting their hands over their ears.
    Then on the other hand are passages like this one.  Some just handle it by saying it was a later text added to Mark.  But it really is a part of our current Bible- and our current canon. Some handle it by saying it is superstitious-- written in times before we had modern medicine and see things from a materialistic point of view.  When I ministered in western North Carolina, each year someone would be bitten by a rattlesnake in a snake handling church, and it would be blasted and ridiculed all over the news.   The other day my dog was barking near my grandaughter.  My wife thought there was a snake and called me to go "handle" the situation.  When I got there it was just a frog- and the frog was faking deadness- playing opossom. I moved it away from the dog and it hopped off.  I thought to myself about this passage.  We have watered down the power of God so much these days- almost so that handling snakes is seen as handling frogs.
     Really what this passage is saying is that we can be bold.  We do not need to fear those who would persecute us (making us drink poison) or even the dangers that we face as we go to share the gospel.  I still have missionary friends that talk excitedly about how they have seen God work in miraculous ways as they go to share the good news of Christ.  Those who are bold enough to share the good news of Christ will be blessed and see God's hand work in unusual and miraculous ways. 

Prayer: Lord, keep me from denying your power.  Help me to not test you but to be bold in you as I speak to others of your love and reality.