Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me

 

 Now Jesus and His disciples went out to the towns of Caesarea Philippi; and on the road He asked His disciples, saying to them, "Who do men say that I am?"  So they answered, "John the Baptist; but some say, Elijah; and others, one of the prophets."  He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?"  Peter answered and said to Him, "You are the Christ."  Then He strictly warned them that they should tell no one about Him.  

And He began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again.  He spoke this word openly.  Then Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him.  But when He had turned around and looked at His disciples, He rebuked Peter, saying, "Get behind Me, Satan!  For you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men."

When He had called the people to Himself, with His disciples also, He said to them, "Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.  For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel's will save it.  For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?  Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?  For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him the Son of Man also will be ashamed when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels."   And He said to them, "Assuredly, I say to you that there are some standing here who will not taste death till they see the kingdom of God present with power."

 

- Mark 8:27-9:1 

 

Yesterday we read that the Pharisees came out and began to dispute with Jesus, seeking from Him a sign from heaven, testing Him.  But he sighed deeply in His spirit, and said, "Why does this generation seek a sign?  Assuredly, I say to you, no sign shall be given to this generation."  And He left them, and getting into the boat again, departed to the other side.  Now the disciples had forgotten to take bread, and they did not have more than one loaf with them in the boat.  Then He charged them, saying, "Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod."  And they reasoned among themselves, saying, "It is because we have no bread."  But Jesus, being aware of it, said to them, "Why do you reason because you have no bread?  Do you not yet perceive nor understand?  Is your heart still hardened?  Having eyes, do you not see?  And having ears, do you not hear?  And do you not remember?  When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of fragments did you take up?"  They said Him, "Twelve."  "Also, when I broke the seven for the four thousand, how many large baskets full of fragments did you take up?"  And they said, "Seven."  So He said to them, "How is it you do not understand?"  Then He came to Bethsaida; and they brought a blind man to Him, and begged Him to touch him.  So He took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the town.  And when He had spit on his eyes and put His hands on him, He asked him if he saw anything.  And he looked up and said, "I see men like trees, walking."  Then He put His hands on his eyes again and made him look up.  And he looked up and said, "I see men like trees, walking."  Then He put His hands on his eyes again and made him look up.  And he was restored and saw everyone clearly.  Then He sent him away to his house, saying, " Neither go into the town, nor tell anyone in the town." 

 Now Jesus and His disciples went out to the towns of Caesarea Philippi; and on the road He asked His disciples, saying to them, "Who do men say that I am?"  So they answered, "John the Baptist; but some say, Elijah; and others, one of the prophets."  He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?"  Peter answered and said to Him, "You are the Christ."  Then He strictly warned them that they should tell no one about Him.  My study Bible comments that, "Who do you say that I am?" is the greatest question any person can ever face, for it's the question that defines Christianity.  As Peter answers correctly, this prevents the Christian faith from being seen as merely another philosophical system or path of spirituality, as it names Jesus as the Christ.  That is, the one and only Son of the living God (Matthew 16:16).   This position, it says, excludes all compromise with other religious systems.  Peter's understanding cannot be achieved by human reason, but only through divine revelation through faith (1 Corinthians 12:3).  Christ means "Anointed One."  It is equivalent to the Hebrew title "Messiah."  My study Bible also asks us to note that Christ first draws out erroneous opinions about Himself.  He does so in order to identify these incorrect ideas, as a person is better prepared to avoid false teachings when they've been clearly identified. 

And He began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again.  He spoke this word openly.  Then Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him.  But when He had turned around and looked at His disciples, He rebuked Peter, saying, "Get behind Me, Satan!  For you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men."  Here, following Peter's confession of faith that He is the Christ, Jesus reveals the true nature of His messiahship:  this is the mystery of Christ's Passion.  My study Bible explains that it was expected that the Messiah would reign forever, so the idea that Christ would die was perplexing to Peter and remained scandalous to the Jews even after the Resurrection (1 Corinthians 1:23).  Here Peter unwittingly speaks for Satan, as the devil did not want Christ to fulfill His mission and save humankind through suffering and death.  

When He had called the people to Himself, with His disciples also, He said to them, "Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me."    The cross was a dreaded instrument of Roman punishment, reserved for the worst of criminals.  But it is also a symbol of suffering by Christians in imitation of Christ.  My study Bible comments that we practice self-denial for the sake of the love of God and the gospel.  To accept this suffering is not a punishment, and neither is it an end in itself.  Rather, it's a means to overcome the fallen world for the sake of the Kingdom and to crucify the flesh with its passions and desires (Galatians 5:24).  

"For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel's will save it."  My study Bible notes that the central paradox of Christian living is that in grasping for what is temporal, we lose the eternal.  But in sacrificing everything in this world, we gain eternal riches which are unimaginable (1 Corinthians 2:9). 

 

"For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?  Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?  For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him the Son of Man also will be ashamed when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels."   Jesus asks, "What will a man give in exchange for his soul?"  My study Bible says that this question emphasizes the utter foolishness of accumulating worldly wealth or power, for none of this can redeem a fallen soul, nor benefit a person in the life to come.  

And He said to them, "Assuredly, I say to you that there are some standing here who will not taste death till they see the kingdom of God present with power."  This is a reference to those who would witness the Transfiguration (tomorrow's reading), as well as those in each generation who will experience the presence of God's Kingdom.  

My study Bible emphasizes Christ's gospel of the Kingdom as making that presence real to those who may experience it through faith.  Jesus will teach, as reported in Matthew's Gospel, "Where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them" (Matthew 18:20).  Here in today's reading, Peter's confession that Jesus is the Christ makes the presence of God's kingdom real and palpable in the midst of the disciples, for He is the only-begotten Son.  Therefore, Christ's final comment in today's reading is illumined through His real identity as the Christ.  He introduces the great paradox of saying that, although that kingdom of God may be present with power to some, nonetheless that Kingdom will be achieved and claimed for Him with all authority through the means of a tremendous sacrifice, His suffering and death on the Cross.  There are many, many things that can be inferred and understood from this sacrifice, Christ's mission in the world as the Incarnate Son of God and human being Jesus, and no doubt many more to come.  But for now let us pause to consider that in teaching the disciples about taking up their own crosses, He invites us into perfect participation in His life, death, and Resurrection.  These things do not simply mean the life of this one human and divine Person, but the entirety of the life of the Kingdom.  For in so doing, Jesus invites us to live the life of the Kingdom, and for that Kingdom to be present to us even in the here and now.  Let us remember that through His mission and the Cross, Jesus assumes all authority as Lord.  So, He teaches here, "Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.  For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel's will save it.  For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?  Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?"  How will we know what life of the soul is in store for us?  How can we understand these grave questions except in terms of participating in the life of the Kingdom, and what that holds for us?  There is no other way, except to understand that in imitation of Him, and through His invitation to us here to take up our own crosses, He invites us into that eternal life of the Kingdom, that "more abundant" life with Him.  We are asked to participate in His sacrifice ourselves so that we may also participate in His life and Kingdom.  Let us understand this great mystery, and the tremendous invitation to the gift of this life and this Kingdom.  Moreover, the gift of the soul is the gift of identity, and the "more abundant" life possible therein.  We can look at the saints and understand their sacrifices for the life of the Kingdom, and note that these lives are dynamic and powerful, people becoming somehow "more" themselves through such sacrifice, not less.  That door is open to us, and He is the Door Himself.