Dear Gino,
You did an excellent job of reconciling the Gospel of John with Paul's Gospel. It did send me back in time when I was involved with institutionalized Christianity. Looking back, I can now see that these churches that proclaim John's Gospel, sometimes to the exclusion of Paul's Gospel, really had the effect of watering down the Gospel of Grace, especially if one goes further into the Jewish scriptures where the Faith + Works Gospel is the norm.
I actually love the Jewish scriptures but I think I would have loved them even more if they were put in their proper context. I can only imagine what all this confusion looks like to the outside world. I had to leave institutionalized Christianity in order to regain my objectivity.
You quoted Mark 16: 15 but left out 16, 17, 18, 19, and 20:
Mark 16:15 And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.
16 He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.
17 And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues;
18 They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.
19 So then after the Lord had spoken unto them, he was received up into heaven, and sat on the right hand of God.
20 And they went forth, and preached everywhere, the Lord working with them, and confirming the word with signs following. Amen.
I would really like to see the denominations take up serpents and drink deadly things without ill effect but nobody talks about those types of things. There are other issues involved with those verses. Do you see what they are?
I did find some Jewish based explanations for the John verses you wrote me about:WHAT DOES JOHN 3:16 REALLY MEAN? IS IT THE GOSPEL OF GRACE?
Is John 1:29 really a reference to Calvary?
Bonus: A list of articles that explain Bible Contradictions & Confusing Verses:
Blessings,Mike