Peter's Confession of Christ
13Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, He was asking His disciples, "Who do people say that the Son of Man is?"
14And they said, "Some say John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; but still others, Jeremiah, or one of the prophets."
15He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?"
16Simon Peter answered, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."
17And Jesus said to him, "Blessed are you, Simon Barjona, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.
18"I also say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.
19"I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; and whatever you bind on earth shall have been bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall have been loosed in heaven."
20Then He warned the disciples that they should tell no one that He was the Christ.
Jesus Foretells His Death
21From that time Jesus began to show His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised up on the third day.
22Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, "God forbid it, Lord! This shall never happen to You."
23But He turned and said to Peter, "Get behind Me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to Me; for you are not setting your mind on God's interests, but man's."
Discipleship Is Costly
24Then Jesus said to His disciples, "If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me.
25"For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.
26"For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?
27"For the Son of Man is going to come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and WILL THEN REPAY EVERY MAN ACCORDING TO HIS DEEDS.
28"Truly I say to you, there are some of those who are standing here who will not taste death until they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom."
Words, phrases that stuck out:
*** 17And Jesus said to him, "Blessed are you, Simon Barjona, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.: Just yet another example I see of any revelation of God coming from God himself, not by any person "convincing" me of it. Sure, others may be used by God to that end...but it was God doing it. Carry on...
*** 23But He turned and said to Peter, "Get behind Me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to Me; for you are not setting your mind on God's interests, but man's.": I have often been perplexed by this passage over the years. But once I started really looking at it, I saw one thing shining through: Peter, while simply trying to protect his friend and leader, was letting his wants get in the way of what God had planned. I know this desire all too well, and I think Peter even had some noble motives here. There have surely been times in my life where I was seeking "noble things"...but they still weren't what God wanted. They may not have been sinful, or hurting others, but they still flew in the face of what God's will was. Now, Peter likely didn't understand God's design here, and surely in many of the similar times in my life, I didn't either, at least at first. But often we start sensing God's direction...and we wait. Or we complain. Or we just flat-out say "NO!" My prayer needs to be one of having ears to hear where God is leading me...and then the courage and trust to move in that direction. I need to get out of God's way...
*** 24Then Jesus said to His disciples, "If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me.
25"For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.:...and then, as I get out of God's way, I need to get right back in it. More specifically, I need to say, "Ok, God...I am surrendering to YOUR plans...so let's go, warts and all..." This, just like getting out of the way, is very tough because the concept of taking up a cross (think Jesus here...sacrifice...pain..."not my will but yours") just doesn't make us go "yay!" very often. And losing life...to find life? Say what, God? Aren't you supposed to make all things better? Make life easier and more fun? Well...no. And sadly, I know many who "became Christians" under the pretense that God would magically fix all bad situations, would heal everyone, and would make life a cake walk. Not so. If that's why I call myself a "Christian"...then I'm not so sure I am. But if I realize (due to the Holy Spirit's revelation to me) that I am naturally against God, and that only through Christ's sacrificial atonement on the Cross am I welcomed into eternity with the Lord, then it should result in my complete humility, allegiance, and surrender to Christ. And that should look like being willing to suffer for my Lord. Being willing to put my wants and desires on the back burner (and maybe even in the trash) for the sake of Jesus. Yeah, that knowledge doesn't make tons of folks (in their own understanding) run to Christ in droves. But, when God shows someone their fallen, anti-God state, lets them realize that they then deserve eternal death...but that through Christ the penalty has been paid, then it should result in a compelling motivation to take up the cross, to "lose" one's life for Christ's sake...
Questions for me today:
What are/have been some things in my life that "weren't bad"...but are/were not what God wants/wanted?
What does "taking up my cross" look like for me? In what ways do I "lose" my life for Jesus' sake?
Do I truly realize that by losing my life (wants, desires, plans), I am in fact gaining life?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment