I have over 15 versions of the bible on my
computer. There are hundreds of versions. It is helpful to me to read the same
passage with different words. The following are two versions of our scripture
lesson. The first, The New Revised Standard Version and the second the Message
version.
Mark 8:27-38 (NRSV) 27 Jesus went on with
his disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi; and on the way he asked his
disciples, "Who do people say that I am?" 28 And they answered him,
"John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; and still others, one of the
prophets." 29 He asked them, "But who do you say that I am?"
Peter answered him, "You are the Messiah." 30 And he sternly ordered
them not to tell anyone about him. 31 Then he began to teach them that the Son
of Man must undergo great suffering, and be rejected by the elders, the chief
priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. 32 He
said all this quite openly. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him.
33 But turning and looking at his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said,
"Get behind me, Satan! For you are setting your mind not on divine things
but on human things." 34 He called the crowd with his disciples, and said
to them, "If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and
take up their cross and follow me. 35 For those who want to save their life
will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of
the gospel, will save it. 36 For what will it profit them to gain the whole
world and forfeit their life? 37 Indeed, what can they give in return for their
life? 38 Those who are ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and
sinful generation, of them the Son of Man will also be ashamed when he comes in
the glory of his Father with the holy angels."
Mark 8:27-38 (MSG) 27 Jesus and his
disciples headed out for the villages around Caesarea Philippi. As they walked,
he asked, "Who do the people say I am?" 28 "Some say 'John the
Baptizer,'" they said. “Others say 'Elijah.' Still others say 'one of the
prophets.'" 29 He then asked, "And you—what are you saying about me?
Who am I?" Peter gave the answer: "You are the Christ, the
Messiah." 30 Jesus warned them to keep it quiet, not to breathe a word of
it to anyone. 31 He then began explaining things to them: "It is necessary
that the Son of Man proceed to an ordeal of suffering, be tried and found
guilty by the elders, high priests, and religion scholars, be killed, and after
three days rise up alive." 32 He said this simply and clearly so they couldn't
miss it. But Peter grabbed him in protest. 33 Turning and seeing his disciples
wavering, wondering what to believe, Jesus confronted Peter. "Peter, get
out of my way! Satan, get lost! You have no idea how God works." 34
Calling the crowd to join his disciples, he said, "Anyone who intends to
come with me has to let me lead. You're not in the driver's seat; I am. Don't
run from suffering; embrace it. Follow me and I'll show you how. 35 Self-help
is no help at all. Self-sacrifice is the way, my way, to saving yourself, your
true self. 36 What good would it do to get everything you want and lose you,
the real you? 37 What could you ever trade your soul for? 38 "If any of
you are embarrassed over me and the way I'm leading you when you get around your
fickle and unfocused friends, know that you'll be an even greater embarrassment
to the Son of Man when he arrives in all the splendor of God, his Father, with
an army of the holy angels."
Most of the New Testament was written well
after Jesus death. The book of Mark was most likely written over 30 year later.
It was written first. The author of Mark focuses on three primary themes:
(1) Jesus’ suffering
servanthood,
(2) The person and
authority of Jesus, and
(3) Total commitment
involved in life as a disciple.
The intent, however, appears to be showing who
Jesus was.
The exchange between Jesus and his disciples,
especially Peter, addresses the question of who Jesus was. His stern order for
them to not tell anyone about him was a signal that Jesus didn’t want to be
identified with what people of that day understood about the nature of “the
Messiah.” Jesus signals a radical shift in understanding who and what the
Messiah was. In Jesus’ day, that person was expected to be a powerful political
or military leader. We have the benefit of hindsight and the knowledge of
Jesus’ crucifixion and resurrection. But for his disciples, this was a big
change to their way of thinking. This was an affront to their faith.
What happens next in the text clearly
highlights the point about the suffering Jesus. Jesus continues his discussion
with the disciples explaining the Son of Man must “undergo great suffering” (v.
31), eventually be killed, but rise again after three days. This caused quite a
reaction. Peter’s rebuke of Jesus who then, himself, rebukes Peter, calling him
Satan. Jesus’ next words again express the divine nature of the Messiah as he
tells Peter and the disciples that they were focusing on human things rather
than on divine things (v. 33). Jesus was saying the disciples simply didn’t
understand what was really involved in his Messiahship and, therefore,
he didn’t want the disciples proclaiming him as the Messiah based on their
misunderstanding.
The third point above comes through loud and
clear in the later passages of the text. Jesus makes clear that to follow him
requires denying oneself, taking up one’s individual “cross,” and following
him. As the late German theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer describes it in his book
by the same name, there is a “Cost of Discipleship.” Scholars have posited the
idea of denying oneself goes far beyond simply not indulging in one thing or
another as we might during the Lenten season. They suggest what Jesus meant was
that to follow him involves putting others before oneself. This is especially
difficult in our cultures where individualism and the “self” reign supreme. It
has been called the “ME” generation.
He again reiterates that “you are setting your
mind not on divine things but on human things” (v. 33). The Apostle Paul put it
differently in his letter to the church in Rome, “do not be conformed to this
world” (Romans 12:2). Paul was seemingly suggesting disciples of Jesus should
not follow worldly ways or be concerned about human or earthly comfort or
pleasure of self, but instead should focus on “divine things” and live out the
gospel in the world.
How easy this is to follow the ways of the
world. I remember after getting out of college the first new car that I bought.
It was my pride and joy. The emphasis was on pride. For the first 10 years that
I owned it, I would not let anyone else drive it. To say the least it was my
god. Finally I saw that error of my ways, and tuned back to the more important
things in life. That is trying to live a life that Jesus commanded us to live.
I than realized that possessions were secondary and people were number one.
When I saw a need I tried to meet that need by helping people. This still is my
focus most of the time.
Jesus’ expectations of disciples are not just
about sacrificial giving. His admonition includes the promise that “those who
lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it” (v.
33). That is always a hard question to answer. Stewardship is paramount in this
pursuit. I am not just talking about finances. However they are a step in the
right direction. When we control how we spend our time and money then we become
closer to becoming a follower of the one who died for us.
Each year I re-read the book “The Richest Man
in Babylon” by George S Clason. The setting is in ancient time. However the
principles still apply today.
He says: “What each of us calls our ‘necessary
expenses’ will always grow to equal our income unless we protest to the
contrary.”
It is so easy to spend everything that we earn.
We used to talk about just wants. A good friend said that he just wants this,
and just wants that. Just getting rid of credit card debt can make a big
difference. Because the neighbor got something new does not mean that we need
to also get one.
Life is full of choices and as followers of the
Lord Jesus we must make wise choices. Each of us needs to figure out what
Christ’s mission is for us, and how we can make it our mission. That does take
prayer and study. It was a different world when Jesus walked this earth. His
life and preaching was not written and compiled as scripture for many years
after his death and resurrection. Some of the stories are suspect but still
overall the scriptures are a guide that we need to follow.
Few of us will be required to give up our
physical life but we are all called to put the gospel first in our lives. That
is not easy. Would you rather sit and watch TV or do something for another
person. Most of us have telephones and can at least call someone to say hello
and find out what is happening in their life. How we spend our time is very
important in the cause of the kingdom.
What will you do today?
Controlling our mouth is also paramount. In the
book of James we read:
James 3: (MSG) . 5 A word out of your
mouth may seem of no account, but it can accomplish nearly anything—or destroy
it! It only takes a spark, remember, to set off a forest fire.
That is difficult. I am sure that I have set
off several large fires during my lifetime. Often we should count to 10 before
we react. Saying something bad about another person is gossip.
If our mission is to become Christ’s mission,
than control is necessary. Jesus said that we would have to suffer also. How we
react is strictly up to us. We can go with the flow or we can fight it. Life is
full of hard choices. When we make the right choice life becomes a lot more
pleasant.
Life is good and we can enjoy it and still
follow him. There is joy in building the kingdom.
There is a lot of good in the world if we will
just look for it.
The story is told of a boy whose parents took
him to Florida to spend the winter. He returned to his city home, disgusted
with the country he had been in. It was dull, stupid, and uninteresting, he
said. During the next few months, however, he was in charge of a tutor who was
an enthusiastic botanist, and he kindled the boy's interest in his favorite
study. The boy learned about orchids, and their strange life. His tutor took
him to a conservatory, that he might see some of them growing.
"You should see them in Florida," the
tutor said, "they are much better there; but these will give you an
idea."
The boy looked at him in amazement.
"I have been in Florida," he said,
"but I never noticed any of them."
"Perhaps you did not look for them,"
the tutor answered; "but they will not escape you the next time."
That is often the way with the Bible. A man may
see no beauty in it; but the Holy Spirit is ready to open the eyes of our
understanding and teach us. It may be by some sermon or book which will lift a
truth out of its hiding-place, and give it an application to our life it never
had before. --author unknown
We can look for the beauty in God’s creation
and the people that we come in contact with. Or we can just listen to the news
and only dwell all the problems in the world and in our communities. I do not
watch TV news because of this. I keep informed by other means.
I subscribe to a magazine call WIRED. This last
issue reports on good things that people are doing. A lady from India is
training people with very little education to work at call centers. Most of the
trainee’s had no hope of every getting out of total poverty. With this training
they are finding employment and improving their situation. There is a lot of
good going on in the world. Yes there are still many major problems but after
reading some history the world is in a lot better place now.
What do people see in you when they observe
you?
"That man must have been in the army, or
in a military school," I said to a friend once.
"Yes," he said; "how did you
know?"
"By the way he walks." You can tell
that some people have been with Jesus by their walk” --author unknown
How do you spend your time? How much time is
spent vegging? We need time to refresh but it should not be the majority of our
life.
“Think of the privilege, my friends, of saving
a soul. If we are going to work for good we must be up and about it. Men say,
"I have not the time." Take it. Ten minutes every day for Christ will
give you good wages. Have you several men working for you? Take them by the hand.
Some of you with silver locks, I think I hear you saying, "I wish I were
young; how I would rush into the battle." Well, if you cannot be a
fighter, you can pray and lead on the others. There are two kinds of old people
in the world. Some grow chilled and sour; others light up every meeting with
their genial presence, and cheer on the workers. Draw near, old age, and cheer
on the others, and take them by the hand and encourage them.” –author unknown
Will you take up your cross and do something
for mankind today? I hope so.
Amen
