Mark 16:11-15

Mark 16:11 (KJB)
And they, when they had heard that he was alive, and had been seen of her, believed not.

Since the disciples were now under the belief that the body of Jesus was stolen, they would not believe the fact that Mary Magdalene had seen the Lord alive. The disciples were hoping that Jesus was going to form the Kingdom of God on earth and that they would be rulers in that Kingdom. Once Jesus had gone to the cross, the disciples had slid into doubt and despondency so they disbelieved the fact that Jesus was risen from the dead. When they were doing ministry with Jesus, He had mentioned many times that He would be killed and then rise again from the dead. They did not heed what He said and that caused them to become despondent.

Mark 16:12 (KJB)
After that he appeared in another form unto two of them, as they walked, and went into the country.

Then Jesus appeared to the two disciples on the road to Emmaus. (Luke 24:13 KJV) And, behold, two of them went that same day to a village called Emmaus, which was from Jerusalem about threescore furlongs. (Luke 24:15 KJV) And it came to pass, that, while they communed together and reasoned, Jesus himself drew near, and went with them. The Scripture states He appeared in another form which means in His glorified spiritual body, He was able to veil the glory and look again like a normal human being, thus hiding His identity. Jesus may have changed His identity to that of an itinerant teacher. (Luke 24:27 KJV) And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself.

The Lord stayed with them and the two disciples finally realized who He was. (Luke 24:32-34 KJV) And they said one to another, Did not our heart burn within us, while he talked with us by the way, and while he opened to us the scriptures? {33} And they rose up the same hour, and returned to Jerusalem, and found the eleven gathered together, and them that were with them, {34} Saying, The Lord is risen indeed, and hath appeared to Simon. When they finally knew, they had gone back to Jerusalem and found the apostles and confirmed to them what Mary Magdalene had previously told them, that Jesus was alive.

Mark 16:13 (KJB)
And they went and told it unto the residue: neither believed they them.

Residue - The rest

The two disciples had come back and told the other disciples that Jesus was alive. Again, they remained in disbelief because the news sounded too good to be true. Here the Lord was confirming to the disciples with three witnesses that He was alive and in all cases they chose to remain in unbelief.

Mark 16:14 (KJB)
Afterward he appeared unto the eleven as they sat at meat, and upbraided them with their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they believed not them which had seen him after he was risen.

Upbraided - Scolded or reproach

Then Jesus appears to the eleven as they were eating their supper. Jesus had then upbraided them because they had received testimony from three different people that He was alive and because of their constant state of unbelief they did not believe any of those three. Thomas was not present at this time so the term “eleven” was more of a collective title. In essence, there were only ten disciples present. Their unbelief had caused them to have hard hearts which means not only a callousness but a turning away from Jesus. This was only a temporary state because of the events of the weekend. They would all turn on the day of Pentecost when they receive the Holy Spirit in conjunction with receiving the Great Commission.

Mark 16:15 (KJB)
And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.

The Great Commission is not only given to the eleven but to every believer on earth that the Gospel is to be taken to the entire world and proclaimed. Not every one will become saved but it is our responsibility to give the Gospel the widest outreach possible. Once the Gospel is preached then if there are any of God’s Elect hearing, they can at that moment become saved. For the first time in history, the Gospel is now available in every country in the world because of the Internet and because of instant access, one need not wait weeks or months for Christian materials.

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