Jesus and his disciples went on to the villages around Caesarea Philippi. On the way he asked them, “Who do people say I am?”
They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets.”
“But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?” Peter answered, “You are the Messiah.”
Jesus warned them not to tell anyone about him.
He then began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and after three days rise again. He spoke plainly about this, and Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him.
But when Jesus turned and looked at his disciples, he rebuked Peter. “Get behind me, Satan!” he said. “You do not have in mind the concerns of God, but merely human concerns.”
Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me and for the gospel will save it. What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul? If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of them when he comes in his Father’s glory with the holy angels.” (Mark 8:27-38 NIV)
Who is the real Jesus? It kind of depends on whom you ask. Everyone from politicians to movie stars throws Jesus’ name around to support whatever cause they’re passionate about. We hear that Jesus was a good teacher or a defender against injustice or a protector of the poor or a preacher of peace or a moral crusader or a great prophet. So which is it? It’s like Jesus is going through an identity crisis. Who is the real Jesus? I finally found the definitive answer. I looked Jesus up on Wikipedia. “Jesus Christ was a first century Jewish preacher and religious leader.”
What do you say? If a TV interviewer were to put a microphone in your face and say, “I’m here with a real live Christian from Tulsa, OK. Who is the real Jesus?” What would you say? I hope you’d know what to say. Because this is really the most important question in life. Not “whom am I going to marry.” Or “do I have enough saved for retirement.” The most important question in life is, “Who do you say Jesus is?” Your answer to that question is the difference between life and death, between heaven and hell. Don’t ignore it. Don’t put it off. Who do you say Jesus is?
Jesus once asked his disciples, “Who do people say I am?” The disciples didn’t hesitate. They knew exactly what everybody else was saying. Who was Jesus? “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets.” At first glance, those were tremendous compliments. If people thought Jesus was John the Baptist or Elijah, they were convinced that Jesus was an important prophet who had been raised from the dead. That’s a pretty high opinion of Jesus! If someone were to compare me to Elijah, I would say, “I can live with that. Thanks!” But were they right about who Jesus really was? No! They didn’t go far enough. Jesus is more!
So Jesus asked his disciples, “But what about you? Who do you say I am?” There should be a drumroll…. In one of the greatest moments in the Bible, Peter said, “You are the Messiah.” Peter didn’t say what everyone else was saying. He didn’t follow the crowd. He knew the truth. Jesus is the Messiah! But what does that mean? The word Messiah isn’t a name. It’s a title. It means “Anointed One.” It was the Hebrew title for the coming Savior: The Messiah. You also know the Greek word for “Anointed One.” Can you think of it? Christ. It’s the same word. The same title. In the middle of the confusion of the world, the disciples got it. Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah.
A Christian from last century named C.S. Lewis liked to say it like this: Jesus is either a Liar, a Lunatic, or the Lord. Have you heard this? Jesus considered himself to be God and the Savior of the world. According to C.S. Lewis, that leaves us only three options: Jesus is either a Liar, a Lunatic, or the Lord. When Jesus says he’s God, he could be lying, right? People lie all the time. Jesus could be a liar. Or when Jesus says he’s God, he could be a lunatic. He could be crazy. Or when Jesus says he’s God, he could be telling the truth. Then he would be the Lord! Understand? C.S. Lewis said that the one thing Jesus can’t be is just a good preacher. Sorry Wikipedia! Is a preacher who lies or is crazy a good preacher? No way! Who is the real Jesus? The Messiah!
But that isn’t enough. The moment the disciples understood Jesus is the Messiah, “he then began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and after three days rise again.” It wasn’t enough to know Jesus’ title—the Messiah. They needed to know what Jesus came to do. So what did Jesus come to do? To suffer many things. To be rejected. To be killed. And then to rise again. You can’t know Jesus without the cross and the empty tomb. This is the gospel!
But Peter didn’t like it. Those words were barely out of Jesus’ mouth when Peter interrupted him: “Never, Lord! This shall never happen to you!” (Matthew 16:22). What do you think Peter expected Jesus to do? It’s pretty easy to read his mind. “If Jesus is the Messiah, Jesus is going to bring us glory! Jesus is going to win our freedom from the Romans. Jesus is going to establish a powerful kingdom here on earth. Jesus is finally going to bring glory to God’s people.” “So, Jesus, stop talking about dying. Stop talking about a cross. You’ve got big things to do, Jesus!”
And Jesus wanted none of that. He looked straight at Peter. His eyes burned like fire. And he said, “Get behind me, Satan! You do not have in mind the concerns of God, but merely human concerns.” Wow! Can you imagine Jesus staring you in the eye and calling you Satan? May that never happen! On that day, Peter spoke for the devil. Because Peter was fighting against the very thing Jesus came to do. The heart of Christianity is the cross of Jesus. “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners” (1 Timothy 1:15). Jesus had “big things” to do: Die to save us sinners!
You need to know that there are two competing ideas in Christianity today about what Jesus came to do. They’re called the “Theology of Glory” and the “Theology of the Cross.” Have you heard of those terms? This is important. The theology of glory is the belief that Jesus came to bring glory here on earth. That was Peter’s idea of Jesus: Success. Power. Wealth. Glory! That’s what we want to believe by nature, isn’t it? Jesus came to make us great! To make life great!
On the other side of this “Theology of Glory” is the “Theology of the Cross.” It couldn’t be more different. The theology of the cross is the belief that Jesus came to suffer, to be rejected, to die on a cross to save us from our sins. That Jesus’ life wasn’t about glory here on earth. It was to win for us eternal life in heaven. So which is it? Who is the real Jesus? Did he come for glory or for a cross? A cross! Jesus is the Messiah who came to suffer and die and rise to save us from our sins.
But that isn’t everything. It’s still not enough to know both Jesus’ title and what he came to do. We need to know what that means for us. Jesus called the crowd to him and said, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me and for the gospel will save it.” Let those words sink in. That cross isn’t just for Jesus. If you and I follow Jesus, what should we expect to face every day? A cross. Suffering. “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.” Deny yourself. Take up your cross.
What do you think? Can I be honest? I hate it. I don’t want Jesus to say that. I don’t want suffering in my life. Do you? I don’t want to deny myself and my desires. I want to have all of my desires. I don’t want people to reject me. I want people to praise me. I want Jesus to say, “If anyone would come after me, people will speak highly of him and love him. His family will be filled with joy and happiness. They will have a good life here on earth and live forever with me in heaven.” A cross? “No, please.” Can you see the problem? If I’m looking for an easy life, I’m not following the real Jesus. If I’m looking to avoid the cross, I’m not following the real Jesus.
I read an article recently about a man who angrily left one of our WELS churches. In fact, the article was about how awful our churches are, and how this man found what he was looking for in a different church. The interviewer asked him what it was that drew him to his new church. He said, “I finally found a church that doesn’t expect me to change.” I’ve been thinking about that. “I finally found a church that doesn’t expect me to change.” Watch out! If you’re all about saving your way of life on earth, you’re going to lose it. Jesus loves you the way you are, but he doesn’t leave you the way you are. He calls you to repent. To change. To deny yourself.
Jesus has such strong words: “What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul? If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of them when he comes in his Father’s glory with the holy angels.” Ooof. If we’re ashamed of Jesus and his Word, what is Jesus going to be? Ashamed of us! What good is it to gain the whole world and forfeit your soul? No good. You can’t take it with you. “What can you give in exchange for your soul?” What thing on earth is worth eternal life for your soul? Of course, the answer is nothing!
Actually, that’s not true. There was one thing that someone gave in exchange for your soul. Do know what it was? Jesus’ life. Money or popularity or pleasures can’t gain your soul. But Jesus did. He gave up his life to save yours. He denied himself and took up his cross. How much he loves us! Then he rose from the dead, just like he said. Who does that? He calls you to follow him, to walk the same path he walked, knowing that eternal life is waiting in heaven. Who is the real Jesus? Jesus is the Messiah who came to suffer and die and rise to save us from our sins, and who calls us to deny ourselves and take up our crosses. Are you ready to follow the real Jesus?
Then here are a few things to remember. First, “Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you” (1 Peter 4:12). Know who wrote that? Peter! This same Peter. He learned the theology of the cross. Don’t be surprised when life is hard. I am. I am continually surprised when life doesn’t go the way I want. I shouldn’t be. Don’t be surprised when you face crosses for being a Christian. Suffering in life isn’t a sign that God has abandoned you. It just means you’re following Jesus!
Second, realize that Jesus is going to change you. You can’t see Jesus’ cross and turn around and live your life the same way. You can’t watch Jesus deny himself for you and then turn around and live for yourself. The closer you grow to Jesus, Jesus is going to change you. Because there is something bigger in life than you. There are things in life worth denying yourself for. Jesus is going to change you. To change the way you look at money, at sexuality, at anger, at yourself.
Finally, remember that the real Jesus is the only One who can give you real life. I told the kids earlier about Paul Gerhardt. He had lots of crosses. Three of his children died as babies, and a fourth died as a child. Then his wife died too, leaving him with one six year-old son. After all that, he wrote: “Why should cross and trial grieve me? Christ is near, with his cheer, never will he leave me. Who can rob me of the heaven that God’s Son for me won when his life was given?” As he told his 6-year-old that mom wasn’t coming home, he wrote: “God gives me my days of gladness, and I will trust him still when he sends me sadness.” How could he say that? Because he was following the real Jesus. The One who died for him. Who rose for him. Who promised him: “Whoever loses their life for me and for the gospel will save it.” The real Jesus!
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