They Shall Take Up Serpents
"And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; 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. Mark 16 -18 These are the last words of Jesus on earth according to the book of Mark and these last words have created quite the interpretations and practices, from speaking in gibberish that truly has only meaning as an outburst and no further "hidden" meaning, to the more deadly practice of literally "taking up venomous serpents" putting their lives and even the lives of children at risk. If these are the last words of Christ then the reverence of them are correct they are just completely misplaced in literalism. the simple order that Christ laid out in his last words are just his teachings completely simplified and the easiest way to see this is by looking at each command in their order. 1. Cast out devils 2. Speak with new tongues 3. take up serpents 4. deathly drinks will not hurt 5. heal the sick This is a very simple way to put the complex ideology of what Christ was teaching using simplistic ideas that were commonly used and understood then as well as now. Casting out devils means to cast out the devils within yourself. to understand the ideas that are harming you and to break from them. This is the first step. The second step is Speaking in new tongues. This means to begin to understand the ways of the spirit and that understanding will, therefore, make you wiser in the spirit and when you are speaking of these things they are a new form of knowledge to those never exposed so it's a "foreign tongue" an unfamiliar concept. The third is to Take up serpents. and this is a very old concept of the Kundalini the twin snakes climbing the staff. From the brazen Nehushtan serpent, YHVH commanded Moses to build when the children of Isreal were bitten by fiery serpents, to the staff of Hermes, and the modern medical staff, this symbol understood by many cultures throughout time represents the flow of the spiritual energy throughout the human being. The Taking up of the serpents simply means to increase your spiritual energy higher and higher through your devotion and practice in life. By not letting the figurative "energy serpent" stay on its belly but rising it (by devotion, compassion and a never-ending seek to become ever so more understanding in the ways of the spirit ), into the highest levels of consciousness possible. The fourth, drinking anything deadly and it not hurting you is just saying that with your spirit in its highest state nothing ill can harm you the ill whatever it may be (war, sickness or even actual poison) cannot harm you because you are more than your flesh you are one with your perfect spirit, Not saying immortality but that harm is understood in a different way, any harm done to can never harm the spirit, this echoes especially true to the tune of spirit in the community. A community made of dedicated, true believers, no matter how much harm may befall upon each the spirit will live on through others seeking the same truth. The Fith healing the sick. are not simply showing the miracles that Christ achieved and taught others to achieve as well, Rember Peter healing the sick in the book of Acts. But this is also a perfect Call to action "Lay hands on the sick and they shall recover" Meaning Teach the spiritually sick and they can learn how to grow as a spiritual being, and recover, thus casting off their own devils and continuing the orboro of spiritual seeking learning and teaching.
