Mark and Thomas: Two Tales of Salvation
Attempting to reconstruct the life of Jesus through historical records is difficult, tedious, and often frustrating. The few writings and records that have survived the perilous 2,000 year journey into our hands can tell drastically different accounts of what really transpired all those years ago. The Gospels of Mark and Thomas are no exception, especially when tackling the topic of “salvation” or rather “How Does Jesus Save People?” The respective Gospels have vastly different accounts on this subject matter. Mark is fairly clear in his teaching that Jesus died on the cross to save humanity; however, in an extremely metaphoric manner, Thomas dictates that it is good faith in your heart that leads to salvation.
To best discuss Mark’s account on this subject matter, it is best to start at the conclusion. “He said to them, ‘Go into the whole world and preach the gospel to every creature. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved; whoever does not believe will be condemned. These signs will accompany those who believe: in my name they will drive out demons, they will speak new languages. They will pick up serpents (with their hands), and if they drink any deadly thing, it will not harm them. They will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.” (16: 15-18). In …show more content…
Thomas emphasizes the faith in your heart while Mark emphasizes the death of Jesus as unlocking the path to salvation. All in all it is difficult to know what either author was truly thinking or feeling when they wrote their respective books. We can only interpret them to the best of our ability, in that the Gospels are quite the compelling mystery and we can only hope to one day unlock their
Attempting to reconstruct the life of Jesus through historical records is difficult, tedious, and often frustrating. The few writings and records that have survived the perilous 2,000 year journey into our hands can tell drastically different accounts of what really transpired all those years ago. The Gospels of Mark and Thomas are no exception, especially when tackling the topic of “salvation” or rather “How Does Jesus Save People?” The respective Gospels have vastly different accounts on this subject matter. Mark is fairly clear in his teaching that Jesus died on the cross to save humanity; however, in an extremely metaphoric manner, Thomas dictates that it is good faith in your heart that leads to salvation.
To best discuss Mark’s account on this subject matter, it is best to start at the conclusion. “He said to them, ‘Go into the whole world and preach the gospel to every creature. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved; whoever does not believe will be condemned. These signs will accompany those who believe: in my name they will drive out demons, they will speak new languages. They will pick up serpents (with their hands), and if they drink any deadly thing, it will not harm them. They will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.” (16: 15-18). In …show more content…
Thomas emphasizes the faith in your heart while Mark emphasizes the death of Jesus as unlocking the path to salvation. All in all it is difficult to know what either author was truly thinking or feeling when they wrote their respective books. We can only interpret them to the best of our ability, in that the Gospels are quite the compelling mystery and we can only hope to one day unlock their