February 25, 2024 Mark 8:27-38 Series B Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God, our Father, and our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, who loves you with his very life. Amen.
Our text this morning from Mark is such a pivotal passage. We this bold confession of Peter and then we have a different kind of confession of peter, well, more of an admission. Peter doesn’t fully understand what it means that Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah. Peter stands up in front of the disciples, in front of the idols of Caesarea Philippi, and makes this bold confession of Jesus - you are the Christ!” Bold. Assured. Confident. He knows who Jesus is.
But does he though? The next paragraph casts doubt on that. Jesus tries to explain to his disciples what it means that he is the Christ, how he must suffer and die, and then rise again, but Peter doesn’t understand. In fact, he takes it as an affront of Jesus’ honor. I will never let that happen! Peter rebukes him! He’s like, “no jesus, you aren’t allowed to do that. I will never let you die! You are much too important!” And Jesus rebukes him. Loudly, calls him Satan. That’s a big deal.
If you were with us on transfiguration, we spent some time talking about this event, and how the transfiguration, which is the next event in the Gospel of mark, changes Peter from wanting to deny or stop Jesus death, to trusting that Jesus meant what he said, that he would rise again. And then it adds that he doesn’t really know what that means. Nonetheless, Peter puts his faith, trusts in Jesus.
Between these events, Jesus addresses the crowd. Us. He’s addressing us. Hear again what he says, “And he called to him the crowd with his disciples and said to them, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel’s will save it. For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his life? For what can a man give in return for his life? For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him will the Son of Man also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels”
Peter just confessed boldly, in very unsavory place, that Jesus is the Messiah, that Jesus is the one whom God sent to save us from our sins. SO he’s not ashamed of Jesus, not at all, but Peter’s actions here, taking Jesus aside to rebuke him over his plans to save the human race, well, Peter is ashamed at that plan, of those words.
Well why is that? IN those days, there was this idea that the Messiah, the Christ, whom God would send, would save the people of Israel. Only the people thought that God meant to save them in this world, to make them into a strong temporal nation, like King David from the Old Testament. They had this idea that Jesus would come and establish a new earthly kingdom and reign from Jerusalem. And Israel would be a global superpower.
So Peter hearing from Jesus that his plan was to be arrested, to be mocked, to die, and to rise again, doesn’t sound very much like what he had planned, what he thought God was supposed to do. So he told Jesus off. We don’t have the exact words, but something like, “I will never let this happen! I won’t let you die, this isn’t what you’re supposed to do,” are all in the realm of things Peter said. Peter didn’t like Jesus' words. He didn’t like his plan.
So being in the crowd, the crowd that Jesus turns to and tells these words about taking up crosses, about our souls, about being ashamed of Jesus, where do we stand?
Are we like Peter? Do we act like Peter in the Decapolis and make bold confession about Jesus? Well yeah! Absolutely we are! You worship here, in public, making your confession known. You were confirmed, a public, bold confession of what you believe. Maybe you wear a cross necklace. Maybe you offer to pray for your family and your friends, or your coworkers. Maybe you stand up for your faith at school, to your friends or teachers.
But sometimes, sometimes we act like Peter. Sometimes we are ashamed of who God is and what God has done.
We like Peter - trust in Jesus words and promises, even if it’s hard to understand. This is faith.
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