Reflections with Andy - Mark 16: 1-8 - Mark 16: 9-20 – Power in the Name of Jesus

In the Gospel of Mark 16:9–20, even with its textual complexity, we see a clear message: Jesus Christ is risen, He appears to His followers, and He sends them out with both a mission and His power. While the passage includes signs that may feel unusual, the heart of it is that there is authority in Jesus’ name over fear, evil, and anything that tries to hold us captive. Because of the resurrection, we don’t have to live bound by fear, guilt, or uncertainty—we are free to live with hope, courage, and joy, trusting that if even death could not defeat Christ, then nothing we face has the final word.

Join us for our daily reflections with Andy. In 10 short minutes, he’ll dig a little deeper into Scripture and help you better understand God’s Word.

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ell, good morning. It’s good to be with you on this Tuesday morning as we continue walking together through this week after Easter—just spending a little time each day in these post-resurrection passages and asking what they mean for us as people who now live on this side of the empty tomb.

Today we’re in Gospel of Mark 16:9–20, what’s often called the “longer ending” of Mark. And if you’ve got a more modern translation—NRSV, NIV, ESV, something like that—you probably noticed there’s a note there. It may say something like, “Some of the earliest manuscripts do not include these verses,” or it might bracket the section off a little bit. And that can feel confusing at first, but really, what it is is the translators showing their work. We don’t have the original copy of Mark’s Gospel—we have thousands of manuscripts, copies of copies—and when scholars compare those, they sometimes find differences. So they include notes like this to be transparent, to help us understand what’s going on.

And I actually think that’s a good thing. It shows us that Scripture has been carefully preserved and thoughtfully studied. It invites us not just to read, but to think. And at the end of the day, like one of my professors used to say, the question we always come back to is: is it true, and what does it mean for me?

So when we look at this passage, regardless of how or when it was included, the message is consistent with everything we’ve seen after the resurrection. Jesus Christ appears to His followers. At first, they don’t believe—it takes them a minute to catch up, just like it did with the women at the tomb. But then He commissions them: “Go into all the world and proclaim the good news.”

And then we get this language about signs—casting out demons, speaking in new tongues, handling snakes, overcoming deadly things, healing the sick. And I know, if we’re honest, that can feel a little strange. It can raise questions. But if you step back and look at the heart of it, what’s being said is this: there is power in the name of Jesus.

Power over evil. Power over fear. Power over the things that threaten to undo us.

And here’s where I think this connects to our lives. Because we may not be out there handling snakes—and I’m okay with that—but we do face things that feel just as dangerous. Fear. Anxiety. Guilt. Shame. The weight of our past. The uncertainty of our future. Those things can feel like they have a grip on us.

But the resurrection says otherwise.

It says those things don’t get the final word.

If sin couldn’t hold Him, if death couldn’t hold Him, if the grave couldn’t hold Him—then what do we really have to be afraid of?

That doesn’t mean life isn’t hard. It doesn’t mean we won’t feel fear. But it does mean we don’t have to live in it. We don’t have to be defined by it. We don’t have to be trapped by it.

Because we are people of the resurrection now.

There is power in the name of Jesus—not just to save us one day, but to transform how we live today. To free us. To give us courage. To remind us that we are not alone.

So maybe that’s the word for today: don’t be afraid.

Not because everything is easy, but because He is with you. Because His power is real. Because His victory is already won.

So go live in that. Live with hope. Live with joy. Live with confidence—not in yourself, but in Him.

Thanks for being with me today. We’ll pick up again tomorrow as we continue walking through these post-resurrection moments together.