~Dave Parks

Isaiah 55.10-11:  For as the rain comes down, and the snow from heaven, and do not return there, but water the earth, and make it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower and bread to the eater, ¹¹ So shall My Word be that goes forth from My mouth; it shall not return to Me void, but it shall accomplish what I please, and it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it.

This winter of 2014 has been marked by repeated snows.  We’ve had some kind of winter storm event come through just every few days – usually on Sundays and Wednesdays – the days of the week when we conduct our church services.  We’ve had every kind of variety of inclement weather there is: freezing rain, sleet, ice, and snow.

Our scheduled services have been cancelled numerous times.  It is extremely difficult to maintain any kind of continuity when our assemblies and worship services are repeatedly interrupted.  In fact, I am writing this on a Lord’s Day evening in lieu of going to worship service.  We’ve had another front of freezing rain, sleet, and snow move in this afternoon after our morning worship service.

It would be very easy to become frustrated with it, but we are people of faith – which means we place all our trust and confidence in the sovereign wisdom and purposes of God.

So, here are some lessons I have learned and tried to apply in my responses to these otherwise frustrating and discouraging circumstances:

1. GOD IS IN CONTROL OF ALL EVENTS…EVEN WEATHER EVENTS.

Weather events are no different than all other events that happen in our world –GOD RULES OVER THEM ALL.  This Isaiah Scripture is God’s own personal statement of ownership and control over all events that come down to earth from Heaven.

The primary comparison God makes here is that rain and snow come down to earth from Heaven just like His Word does.  He sends them both.  Just like God says He ‘sends’ His Word from His mouth, so He also ‘sends’ the rains and snows from Heaven by His same Word.

Psalm 104.10, 13-14:  He sends the springs into the valleys; they flow among the hills. ¹³ He waters the hills from His upper chambers; the earth is satisfied with the fruit of Your works. ¹⁴ He causes the grass to grow for the cattle, and vegetation for the service of man, that He may bring forth food from the earth… 

Job 37.6:  For He says to the snow, ‘Fall on the earth’; likewise to the gentle rain and the heavy rain of His strength.

2. GOD IS WATERING THE EARTH FOR FUTURE HARVESTS WHEN HE SENDS THE SNOWS.

Many times I have gotten up on a Lord’s Day morning only to find that we are ‘snowed in’ or ‘iced out.’  Or, I have followed the progress of an approaching snow event that will cancel out our MidWeek Worship service.  My first impulse is to get agitated and to fret.

But, what is God doing?  He rules over everything that happens on the earth and makes it all fulfill His own sovereign, wise, and good purposes.  According to His own Sovereign Executive Order, He is depositing more water on the earth for the upcoming growing and harvest season.  What does He say?  ‘Just like the rain and snow come down from Heaven, and do not return, but water the earth, and make it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower and bread to the eater…’  Do you see what God is saying here…and what He is doing?  He is sending down and laying down deposits of water for the coming Spring and Summer growing seasons – so there will be food for us to eat in the harvest to follow.  He is providing for our food to grow in coming days and weeks.  He is taking care of us in advance.

3. GOD IS ALSO ENCOURAGING US TO FAITHFULLY PROCLAIM HIS WORD AND WAIT FOR HIS HARVEST.

We always want to see an immediate return, response, and growth from the Word of God which we continuously proclaim and sow.  We become discouraged when we don’t see it immediately grow, bud, and produce fruit.  We might even fret and despair that maybe it just ‘evaporated’ and went away without effect.

But, God promises otherwise.  Is it His Word that we proclaim?  It is coming down from Heaven, from His own mouth?  If it is, then be encouraged to wait for Him to make it grow!

He never wastes a word of His Word.  Every word of His Word ‘comes down from Heaven’ ‘from My mouth,’ and God NEVER speaks and sends a word that is ‘void’ or without effect.  Every word God speaks and sends ‘shall accomplish what I please and prosper in the thing for which I sent it.’

We may have to wait for it to grow – but just like the rains and snows are deposited for future returns of growth, so will His spoken Word be also.

And these signs will follow those who believe:  In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues;  they will take up serpents;  and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them;  they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.  [Mark 16.17-18]

Attention has been drawn to Kentucky – and to our part of Kentucky in particular – by the recent death of the snake-handling pastor.  Since the story is so prominent – and especially around here – and since people are talking about it – and since you will probably be asked about it, I want to make some observations.

None of what I will say here is motivated by any personal animosity toward those who practice snake-handling in their religious exercises.  I have no need to ‘tear them down’ just for the sake of tearing them down.  And, I have no doubt they are very sincere in what they believe.  They sincerely believe they are obeying Jesus Christ and exercising necessary ‘faith’ in Christ by their practices.  Even the producers of the National Geographic series [“Snake Salvation”] that featured them testified that they were genuinely impressed with the religious beliefs of these snake-handling churches and pastors.  One of the producers of the series said something to the effect that their beliefs were not just Sunday-beliefs, but every-day-of-the-week beliefs.

But, mere sincerity in what one believes is not saving faith.  The Scripture is full of examples of religious practitioners of malpractices who believed very strongly and were deeply sincere, but wrong.  Witness Paul’s testimony to his former sincerely-believed and strongly-held religious beliefs before Jesus Christ called him to true saving faith

Galatians 1.13-14: For you have heard of my former conduct in Judaism, how I persecuted the church of God beyond measure and tried to destroy it. ¹⁴ And I advanced in Judaism beyond many of my contemporaries in my own nation, being more exceedingly zealous for the traditions of my fathers.

But, I do feel compelled to differentiate between ‘religion’ and the Gospel, and between religious works [however sincere they may be] and true saving faith in Jesus Christ.

1. SNAKE-HANDLING IS NOT THE GOSPEL.

Jesus Christ has not commanded us to handle snakes.  He has commanded His churches to preach the Gospel.  The Gospel is one thing, and one thing only – and that is the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ to put away our sins.

1 Corinthians 15.1-4:  Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand, ² by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. ³ For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, ⁴ and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures…

The Great Commission to the churches is NOT “Go into all the world and handle serpents” or any other such practice.  Jesus’ commission and mandate to His churches is “Go into all the world and preach the Gospel…”

Believing, preaching, and practicing any belief system other than the Gospel as your core religious tenet is not just eccentric, fringe, irregular, or off-beat – it is ‘not the Gospel’ and is cursed by God!

Galatians 1.6-9:  I marvel that you are turning away so soon from Him who called you in the grace of Christ, to a different gospel, ⁷ which is not another; but there are some who trouble you and want to pervert the gospel of Christ. ⁸ But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed. ⁹ As we have said before, so now I say again, if anyone preaches any other gospel to you than what you have received, let him be accursed.

2. SNAKE-HANDLING IS NOT HOW WE ARE SAVED FROM OUR SINS

The church’s primary mission and message is to proclaim to the world that Jesus Christ saves us from our sins by our believing in and trusting in His substitutionary death on the Cross and resurrection from death.

The handling of snakes is in no way related to our most essential need:  to be saved from our sins.    But, for some reason, when these same snake-handlers participated and were featured in their National Geographic series, they called it ‘Snake Salvation.’  I really don’t know what they believe or preach about how sinners are saved from our sins, but it is obvious that the handling of snakes cannot be separated from their way of salvation.

When our local newspaper printed a front-page story and featured article on the death of the pastor, there was a very prominent picture with the story.  It showed the deceased pastor’s son who is now leading the church.  They were in one of their services.  And, of course, he was handling a rattlesnake.  Also, on a table behind him were the other symbols of their ‘faith’: jars of poisons to drink and a propane blowtorch to pass their hands through.   So, what is their message?  The message is that those symbols represent the core beliefs and practices of their ‘faith.’  Whatever else they may say or do, the essential message is that these practices define and identify who they are.  They could not maintain their existence and identity without handling snakes.

The essential message that Jesus Christ has given His churches is how we are saved from our sins.  That is the message of the Gospel.  That is evangelism.  And, when any other belief or practice takes priority and preeminence over how we are saved from our sins, then that distracting message becomes their way of ‘salvation.’

3. SNAKE-HANDLING IS NOT ESSENTIAL TO OBEYING CHRIST.

The very foundation of their ‘orthodoxy’ is that Jesus Christ commands us to take up serpents.  The deceased pastor has stated that “Jesus’ command to take up serpents is just as much a commandment to be obeyed as ‘Thou shalt not commit adultery.’ ”

The only problem is: “Thou shalt not commit adultery” is a commandment.  The words “Thou shalt take up serpents” is not a commandment.  Even assuming the words of the text in Mark 16 were in the inspired original writings [it is questionable that they were], it is still not a commandment that Jesus’ followers must handle snakes to be obedient to Him.

If it is anything, it is a Jesus’ promise to His apostles [miraculous signs to authenticate and credentialize an apostle of Jesus Christ, 2 Corinthians 12.12 and Acts 4.30] that if they should encounter a venomous serpent in the course of their obedient service to Him, that He would supernaturally deliver them from harm.  And, there is no record or evidence that even any apostle deliberately sought out a snake to handle or handled serpents in any of their preaching of the Gospel to either demonstrate their faith in God or His power to deliver them.  The only instance at all of this sign being experienced is when the viper unexpectedly sprang out of the fire that Paul and the shipwrecked party were setting at Malta to relieve them from the discomfort of the rain and cold.

Here is that story recorded in Acts 28.1-6:

Now when they had escaped, they then found out that the island was called Malta. ² And the natives showed us unusual kindness; for they kindled a fire and made us all welcome, because of the rain that was falling and because of the cold. ³ But when Paul had gathered a bundle of sticks and laid them on the fire, a viper came out because of the heat, and fastened on his hand. ⁴ So when the natives saw the creature hanging from his hand, they said to one another, “No doubt this man is a murderer, whom, though he has escaped the sea, yet justice does not allow to live.” ⁵ But he shook off the creature into the fire and suffered no harm. ⁶ However, they were expecting that he would swell up or suddenly fall down dead. But after they had looked for a long time and saw no harm come to him, they changed their minds and said that he was a god. 

The Lord Jesus did save him from harm at that time.  But, even then, Paul did not deliberately ‘take [it] up’ to handle it.  He didn’t go looking for this serpent.  It came to him in the course of his faithfully obeying following and obeying Jesus Christ to “go into all the world and preach the Gospel…”

4. SNAKE-HANDLING IS DELIBERATELY TEMPTING GOD.

“Tempting God’ means to deliberately put yourself in some situation of danger or jeopardy and then impose on, require, or expect God to save you from the harmful consequences.  When Satan tempted our Lord in the desert, one of his tests for Him to ‘prove’ He is the Son of God was to climb up on one of the pinnacles of the temple and throw Himself down, expecting God to save Him from smashing and killing Himself on the pavement below.

Jesus rejected that unnecessary and disobedient demonstration of His ‘faith’ by responding to Satan with the words of God from Deuteronomy 6.16: “You shall not tempt the LORD your God…”  NOT tempting God is, by the way, another clearly-expressed commandment from God that we must obey just as much as “Thou shall not commit adultery.”

Any time we deliberately place ourselves in any situation God does not expressly command us to do – and which is not necessary for us to do in our course of obedient service to Christ – and expect God to deliver us from the dangers and harmful consequences of that activity, we are overtly DISOBEYING rather than obeying God by tempting Him.

5. SNAKE-HANDLING IS ANOTHER PART OF ‘THE LIE’

Satan has a very simple approach when he wants to lead his blinded followers into his destructive deceptions to blind them to the true Glory of Christ and true faith in Jesus Christ and His Gospel [2 Corinthians 4.3-5].  Satan’s philosophy of religious deception is “as simple as A-B-C” and here it is: “Anything But Christ.”  Paul sums up all the un-truths Satan propagates in the name of ‘religion’ as ‘The Lie’ in 2 Thessalonians 2.11:  And for this reason God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe The Lie…

We pray for you, that God will keep you from this part of The Lie, and all the other deceptive beliefs and practices of the same Lie – and that He will give you true faith to see your need of believing in Jesus Christ and His true Gospel.

“But we are bound to give thanks to God always for you, brethren beloved by the Lord, because God from the beginning chose you for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the Truth, to which He called you by our Gospel, for the obtaining of the Glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.”                                        2 Thessalonians 2.13-14.