Mark Tabata’s Weekday Devotionals:
Friday November 28 2025
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Jeremiah 5:31-The prophets prophesy falsely, And the priests rule by their own power; And My people love to have it so. But what will you do in the end?
As we approach the end of our studies on Jesus and Mary Magdalene, we have learned several things.
The New Testament Scriptures were written by the Apostles and their companions within a few years of Jesus’ death. These were confirmed miraculously by the Holy Spirit and their genuineness and credibility is attested by multiple sources. Furthermore, these Books were understood to be the authority in the church after the death of the Apostles, and were well known as attested to by over a million quotations from the church fathers between the first and fourth centuries A.D. These Books do not record that Jesus and Mary Magdalene were married, and the indirectly argue that Jesus was single.
The Gnostic scriptures were written decades after Jesus died by those who did not know Him and who had a philosophical agenda to combine the teachings of the Bible with paganism. The different sects of the Gnostics bear tribute to the genuineness and authority of the New Testament, even though they claimed to have superior knowledge of Jesus than His Apostles did. Their scriptures were never accepted into the canon of Scripture because they were written long after Jesus had died. Their books do not teach that Jesus and Mary were married.
The Council of Nicaea did not create the New Testament canon of Scripture, since these Books had been quoted and recognized as canonical for three hundred years before this church Council. They did not invent the teaching of Jesus’ Divinity or His humanity, since these had been taught for centuries before the Council in the Old and New Testaments (and as authenticated further by the teachings of the disciples of the Apostles, the so-called “church fathers”). These did not remove the idea of Jesus and Mary being husband and wife, since that whole idea was never taught in the Bible to begin with!
The whole idea of Jesus and Mary being married was the invention of conspiracy theorists long after the time of Jesus. As such, we need to consider in this study why so many people have rejected the truth for lies. To answer this question, we may provide at least four reasons.
First, people have simply not studied these matters. God’s people are often destroyed for lack of knowledge (Hosea 4:6), and people err by not knowing the Scriptures nor the power of God (Matthew 22:29). Several that I have known over the years have been swept away by every wind of doctrine because they have not studied in-depth to find the truth. They rely on the latest conspiracy theories revealed by a Google search instead of truly investigating and looking into matters. We need to be diligent seekers of the Lord (Hebrews 11:6), and seek Him with our whole heart (Jeremiah 29:13). Sometimes people do not have access to the resources needed to study into matters, which is why it is important to utilize the resources that are available.
Second, sometimes people are quick to accept lies because they are offended by the truth and by those who speak the truth. A great case in point is the Gnostic, Marcion. He was disfellowship by the early church for seducing young women. In his anger, he joined forces with a couple of other Gnostic teachers and set up a rival church.
Third, sometimes people reject the truth of God and embrace lies because of the imperfect witness of the church. Witherington notes:
“In a particularly candid and confessional part of Elaine Pagels’s beautifully written Beyond Belief, she speaks of how she had been “burned” by an evangelical church and alienated from the Christian faith while in high school. When a Jewish friend died, Pagels’s fellow Christians told her the person was not born again and so was going to hell. This turned her off from the church, though not from the New Testament, which she studied in the Greek in college. Then Pagels did doctoral work at Harvard. She recounts her reaction to hearing the Jesus saying from the Gospel of Thomas: “If you bring forth what is within you, what you bring forth will save you.” She comments, “The strength of this saying is* that it does not tell us what to believe but challenges us to discover what lies hidden within ourselves; and, with a shock of recognition, I realized that this perspective seemed to me self-evidently true.” This is an appeal to personal impressions or experience as the final authority. In such cases the person in question takes comfort from not being asked to believe specific things. The individual is the measure of truth, which is found within. Pagels’s story is similar to the stories of many others. They tell tales of being turned-off by conservative churches. Sadly, some orthodox churches are the worst witnesses for orthodoxy. But there is something else going on in Pagels’s story, namely, the desire not to be told what to believe, not to be under the authority of others, not to submit to a truth that decidedly comes from outside herself. This isn’t an uncommon reaction in a culture of individualism that resents institutions and prides itself on bucking authority figures. What we see in Pagels’s often moving testimony of suffering and betrayal is a long, spiritual journey toward reconfiguring Christianity into a form of self-actualization. The Gnostic texts encouraged her to go in that direction. But this is just the opposite of the good news of Jesus, who says, “If any want to be my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me” (Mark 8:34). Or as Paul says, “I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me” (Galatians 2:20). This is hardly a call to self-actualization or finding the light or truth within. Notice that in Mark Jesus doesn’t say that we should deny ourselves something (for example, material goods, pleasure, etc.). It says we should deny ourselves. In the Pauline saying, the self is crucified.” (Ben Witherington, III, The Gospel Code: Novel Claims About Jesus, Mary Magdalene and Da Vinci., 128-129 (Logos Edition): Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press)
All Christians fall short in many ways (1 John 1:8), which means that there is room for growth in all of us. However, with that being said, the imperfections of the church do not give people the right to reject the perfection of the Christ and His Word.
Fourth, a reason why a lot of people reject the truth and embrace lies is because the lies are often a lot more appealing in the short term (Hebrews 11:24-26). Think about it! How many people have gotten rich off of the lies promoted by fiction like that presented in Dan Brown’s Da Vinci Code? How many people would rather indulge the temporary pleasures of the flesh than to consider the latter end of things (Deuteronomy 32:29; Lamentations 1:9)? “Follow the money, honey” is, sadly, a principle that applies in many aspects of life.
Today, let’s give some thought to reasons why the teaching of Jesus is so often hated and rejected. What are some sacrifices that Jesus calls you to make? Consider what God’s Word teaches in Luke 14:25-35 and John 12:42-43 as you meditate on these things.
Lord, thank You for Your Word. Help us learn to love and apply it better in our lives. Amen.
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