Greg Chandler
09/08/13
Throughout the writings of the New Testament, the Apostles and other writers warned that false teachers would arise and challenge the truth as laid down by Jesus Christ. In the second century, numerous men began teaching various doctrines far different than those found within the word of God. One such man was Marcion. Near mid-century, Marcion began teaching that the “Jew’s god” was actually a demiurge (lesser god) who had created a world where pain reigned. This genocidal god did not offer hope and, in fact, was the inventor of evil. He believed that Jews who accepted this god, including those who wrote the Old Testament, had fallen to deception and thus their writings were false and should be rejected. Borrowing a page from the Gnostics, he taught that there was another god far different from that of the Jews and that this god wanted only good things for man.
Jesus Christ, according to Marcion, was not the Messiah in the sense described in Jewish writings, but rather a Savior sent from the secret god made up only of goodness and mercy. Jesus, while man only in appearance, was sent to bring mankind into reconciliation with this previously secret god. Since many of the books in the New Testament canon seemed to support the idea of Jesus as the answer to Jewish prophecy, Marcion taught that they, like those of the Old Testament, must be ignored. The only exceptions to this were the gospel of Luke and ten of Paul’s epistles. Even with these books, heavy editing was done to make sure that any support for the concept of Jesus as Messiah was removed. Tragically, many accepted the words of this false teacher and were led astray. For several centuries, his teachings made great inroads before finally falling into disrepute.
Though Marcion and his followers are long gone, commonalities with Marcionism can still be found in the twenty-first century. One example of this is the belief that there is a difference between the God of the Old Testament and the God of the New Testament. Sadly, many purport to believe this, yet never take the time to study the two testaments in their entirety nor seek to understand how neatly the two fit together. In the Old Testament, God did choose to deal with wickedness in a much more direct manner than in the New, many times with instant physical punishment. This is seen in the nations that God allowed to be destroyed because of their rebellion against Him. Still, a study of the Old Testament reveals that that God desired repentance so that punishment would not have to be given. A very good example of this is the Assyrian Empire. While this nation was made up of those who flatly rejected God, two prophets were sent to seek to bring them to repentance. Both Jonah and Nahum were commissioned to bring God’s message to the Assyrians. A much broader example is seen in the nation of Israel. When they rejected God, He promised that punishment must come. Still, He sought on many occasions to bring them back and exercised great patience with them. A touching example of this is found in Hosea 11, where the Lord seeks the return of His people as a father does a wayward child. These are only two examples of the love that God shows throughout the recordings of the Old Testament. The New Testament goes to great lengths to show Jesus Christ as the fulfillment of promises made by the Lord in the Old Testament. Throughout these writings, Jesus and the New Testament writers make it very clear that He came to do the will of the Father in fulfilling these promises made by a loving God to His creation.
A second characteristic of Marcionism still found today is the propensity to ignore anything in the Bible which might challenge one’s own beliefs. Rather than seeking to reconcile teachings, Marcion simply chose deletion. This is still a practice found nineteen centuries later. Some fall to the temptation by simply ignoring portions of the Bible which demand a change of lifestyle. Like Marcion, many dismiss these writings as illegitimate and refuse to believe them. When one is confronted with this temptation, it is important to remember the words of the Apostle Paul: “All Scripture is breathed out (inspired) by God and is profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness” II Timothy 3:16. Rather than challenging the authority of God, one should humbly accept His instruction so that life can be remade in His image.
Does Marcionism still live? Absolutely! Though the form may change, the same basic temptations remain. As God spoke through His prophet Malachi, He stated that He does not change (3:6). Comfort can be taken that the same God who spoke the world into existence and who gave His Son for man’s salvation is the same God in whom mankind can depend today.