For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?

 

 From that time Jesus began to show to 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 the third day.  Then Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, "Far be it from You, Lord; this shall not happen to You!"  But He turned and said to Peter, "Get behind Me, Satan!  You are an offense to Me, for you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men."

 

Then Jesus said to His disciples, "If anyone 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 will find it.  For what profit is it to 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 the Son of Man will come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and then He will reward each according to his works.  Assuredly, I say to you, there are some standing here who shall not taste death till they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom."

 

- Matthew 16:21-28 

 

Yesterday we read that when Jesus came into the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, saying, "Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?"  So they said, "Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets."  He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?"  Simon Peter answered and said, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."  Jesus answered and said to him, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.  And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.  And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven."  Then He commanded His disciples that they should tell no one that He was Jesus the Christ.

 

  From that time Jesus began to show to 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 the third day.  Then Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, "Far be it from You, Lord; this shall not happen to You!"  But He turned and said to Peter, "Get behind Me, Satan!  You are an offense to Me, for you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men."  My study Bible informs us that, after St. Peter's confession (see yesterday's reading, above), Jesus reveals the true nature of His messiahship:  the mystery of His Passion.   It was expected that the Messiah would reign forever, so the idea that Christ would die was perplexing to St. Peter and remained scandalous to the Jews even after the Resurrection (1 Corinthians 1:23).  Here St. Peter unwittingly speaks for Satan, for the devil did not want Christ to fulfill His mission and save humankind through suffering and death.  

 

 Then Jesus said to His disciples, "If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me."  According to my study Bible, the cross, a dreaded instrument of Roman punishment, is also a symbol of suffering by Christians in imitation of Christ.  It says 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.  This is, in fact, a means by which 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 will find it."  My study Bible calls this the central paradox of Christian living: in grasping for temporal things, we lose the eternal -- but in sacrificing everything in this world, we gain eternal riches that are unimaginable (1 Corinthians 2:9).

 

 "For what profit is it to 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 the Son of Man will come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and then He will reward each according to his works."  Jesus asks, "What will a man give in exchange for his soul?"  My study Bible comments that this question emphasizes the utter foolishness of accumulating worldly wealth or power, as none of these things can redeem a fallen soul, nor will it benefit a person in the life to come.  

 

"Assuredly, I say to you, there are some standing here who shall not taste death till they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom."  My study Bible tells us that this is a reference to something that occurs in the reading to follow; it refers to those who would witness the Transfiguration (Matthew 17:1-9), and also those in every generation who will experience the presence of God's Kingdom.

 

Jesus speaks in a powerful way about exchange.   Jesus says, "If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me."  If we look closely at today's reading, Jesus is addressing this problem of St. Peter insisting that Jesus should not die, should not go to His death on the Cross, His Passion, and therefore all that follows.  While each of us can understand St. Peter's perhaps horrified response to this news that Jesus will be put to death in this horrific and scandalous way, it is nonetheless that St. Peter is responding in the voice of Satan.  That is, there is a taught contradiction between how God will work in the world to bring all to the possibility of salvation and eternal life, and the purely human, secular perspective about what is good and what should not happen.  St. Peter wants to preserve the life of Jesus, his Lord, at all costs.  But Jesus is, in fact, Lord, and Christ teaches what will happen and must happen, as hard as it might be to bear, to hear, to accept.  And St. Peter, like all the rest of us, must be prepared to make that exchange between his personal human point of view, and the one that God, the Lord, is showing to him.  That is a leap of faith that would be tremendously difficult for any of us to make in the same circumstances, I would dare to say.  But nevertheless, we know who Christ is, and that He speaks with the voice of God and teaches the reality of God in the world.  ("He who has seen Me has seen the Father" - John 14:9.  So, in some sense to deny what Christ is teaching them about what must come is not simply speaking with the voice (or desire) of Satan, but also blasphemy against the Spirit.  And here, further, through St. Peter, as happens in so many instances (but most notably after his denial of Christ outside the home of the high priest in Matthew 26:69-75), we find that even a kind of blasphemy of the Spirit is forgivable through repentance, for we know that St. Peter repents of his words to Christ here.  And this is the remarkable thing about the Gospels and about St. Peter, for simply imagine enduring such a rebuke from Christ, in front of his fellow disciples, as to be called "Satan" by the Lord.  While St. Peter's impulsiveness and even enthusiasm seem to occasionally get him into trouble (such as his changeable response to Christ washing his feet at the Last Supper; see John 13:5-10), the one constant we do see is his devotion to Christ, and in particular, his capacity for humility -- in both enduring the rebuke in today's reading and continuing as apostle, and in his return to all of them and to Christ following his humiliating failure in his three-time denial of Christ while Jesus was on trial inside the home of the high priest.  It is St. Peter who teaches us so much about the continuing journey of our faith in Christ, to return in repentance and continue with Christ.  Eventually, we know that St. Peter accepts the unacceptable, even asking to be crucified himself upside down so as not to be considered equal to his Master.  St. Peter comes to embody the principle of Christ's teaching in today's reading.  He willingly, through his life and the living of his faith, finds his life by losing it for Christ's sake -- and this happens not only literally in St. Peter's death, but also figuratively in so many ways throughout his life.  In today's reading, Jesus says, "For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?  Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? "  St. Peter answers Christ's questions for us with a depth of affirmation that there is nothing more precious in the whole world than the value of the soul, and the life to be found in Christ.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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 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 Him, 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, to 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 to 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 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 calls Jesus' question, "Who do you say that I am?" the greatest question a person can ever face, for the reason that it is this question that defines Christianity.  Peter answers correctly, and this answer prevents the Christian faith from being understood as just another philosophical system or path of spirituality.  In St. Matthew's Gospel, St. Peter adds to his answer here; he says that Jesus is "the Christ, the Son of the Living God."  This is a unique, singular identity that excludes all compromise with other religious systems.  My study Bible comments that St. Peter's understanding cannot be achieved by human reason, but only by divine revelation through faith (1 Corinthians 12:3).  Christ means "Anointed One," and is the equivalent of the Hebrew title "Messiah."  Moreover, my study Bible points out that Jesus 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 are 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."  Following the confession of St. Peter, made on behalf of all of the apostles, Jesus now reveals the true nature of His messiahship.  This is the mystery of His Passion.  My study Bible comments 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).

Peter unwittingly speaks for Satan, as the devil did not want Christ to complete His mission and save humankind through His experience of suffering and death.   

 

 When He had called the people to Himself, with His disciples also, He said them, "Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me."  The cross was the most dreaded instrument of Roman punishment, crucifixion being reserved for the worst of criminals.  But for Christians, and in the language of Jesus here, it's a symbol of suffering in imitation of Christ.  My study Bible explains that we practice self-denial for the sake of the love of God and the gospel.  This does not glorify suffering in the sense that to accept it is not a punishment, not an end in itself, but rather a means whereby the fallen world is overcome for the sake of the Kingdom, and the flesh crucified with its passions and desires in exchange for higher purpose (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 comments here that the central paradox of Christian living is that in grasping for temporal things, we lose the eternal; but in sacrificing everything in this world, we gain eternal riches that 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 comments that this question emphasizes the utter foolishness of accumulating worldly wealth or power, for none of this can redeem a person's fallen soul, nor will it 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."  My study Bible suggests that this is a reference to those who would witness the Transfiguration (which follows in our next reading), as well as to those in every generation who will experience the presence of God's kingdom.

 

Jesus asks, "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?"  With language like this, Jesus makes it clear that -- at least spiritually speaking -- there is an exchange taking place, and this is one that is always with us, whether or not we recognize it.  There is the way of the world, that seeks to gain the whole world, and then there is the way of the soul.  That is, there is a way not simply to gain one's soul, but to feed and magnify it, even to save it.  This language puts life and the ways in which we face life and our choices in life into stark contrast.  We have two ways, apparently, to choose.  There is the way of the world (also sometimes referred to as "the flesh") and the way of the cross, the way for the soul.  We might think of "passions and desires of the flesh" noted by my study Bible as those things which belong strictly to the body, but this would be a false kind of equivalence, a wrong inference.  These would be akin to that which seeks to gain the whole world, and yet cannot recognize the loss of the soul, nor the value of the soul.  It is a kind of material focus that does not recognize the great value of the soul, our potential for all the things of the soul, including beauty and holiness, and the possibility of eternal life.  The Cross in this perspective offers us an exchange, and it is all about what we choose.  Through His Passion and death on the Cross, and His Resurrection and Ascension, Christ brings about the potential for union with the divine for all of us, the potential for eternal life with Him.  Had He chosen instead the "worldly" life of ease and forgetfulness, not heeding His divine mission, we can imagine what would have been lost for the entire world, and the whole history of humankind and of creation.  In a similar sense, our own personal crosses offer us that same kind of exchange.  We can follow our faith to save, magnify, and feed our souls for all the potential of the soul and the spiritual reality Christ offers to our lives (both in this world and beyond), or we can follow the way of "the flesh" or "the world" and be distracted from every spiritual joy and beauty, seeking only that which feeds us in the moment, ignoring grace, seeking a foundation in what is temporal and does not touch the heart of a human being in the inner life.  Jesus chooses His mission from the Father, for all of us, but He invites us, too, to take up our own crosses and do likewise.  For we may all participate in His life, Passion, death, Resurrection, Ascension.  We are meant for greater things than survival, consumption, the distraction of competition around us, what the "worldly" can offer to us.  There is a transcendent joy promised in faith, a way to build for a future we don't quite know, for values that accrue within us through grace, a life built upon the rock that is the foundation of faith.  When Jesus says to Peter, "Get behind Me, Satan" He makes it clear that it is through His own forbearance, even His suffering, that it becomes possible for the divine to sanctify what is human, to offer to all of us the chance for holiness, to be "like God."  This is not something reserved only for the great saints of history, but on offer -- even commanded in discipleship -- for all of us.  Jesus says, ""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 we are meant to be mindful not simply of the things of men, but of the things of God, and in that exchange to be capable of something much greater.

 

 

 

 

Get behind Me, Satan! You are an offense to Me, for you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men

 

 From that time Jesus began to show to 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 on the third day.  Then Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, "Far be it from You, Lord; this shall not happen to You!"  But He turned and said to Peter, "Get behind Me, Satan!   You are an offense to Me, for you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men."

 

Then Jesus said to His disciples, "If anyone 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 will find it.  For what profit is it to 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 the Son of Man will come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and then He will reward each according to His works.  Assuredly, I say to you, there are some standing here who shall not taste death till they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom."  

 

- Matthew 16:21–28 

 

Yesterday we read that when Jesus came into the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, saying, "Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?"  So they said, "Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets."  He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?"  Simon Peter answered and said, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."  Jesus answered and said to him, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.  And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.  And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven."  Then He commanded His disciples that they should tell no one that He was Jesus the Christ.

 

From that time Jesus began to show to 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 on the third day.  Then Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, "Far be it from You, Lord; this shall not happen to You!"  But He turned and said to Peter, "Get behind Me, Satan!  You are an offense to Me, for you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men."  My study Bible comments that, after  Peter's confession (see yesterday's reading, above), Jesus reveals the true nature of His messiahship:  the mystery of His Passion.  It was expected that the Messiah would reign forever, so the idea that Christ would die was perplexing to Peter, and it remained scandalous to the Jews even after Christ's Resurrection (1 Corinthians 1:23).  Peter unwittingly speaks for Satan, as the devil did not want Christ to fulfill His mission and save mankind through suffering and death.  

 

 Then Jesus said to His disciples, "If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me."  The cross was dreaded instrument of Roman punishment, my study Bible explains, and at the same time it is a symbol of suffering by Christians in imitation of Christ.  It notes that we practice self-denial for the sake of the love of God and the gospel.  To accept this suffering is not punishment and neither is it an end in itself; it is rather a means whereby the fallen world is overcome 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 will find it."  According to my study Bible, the central paradox of Christian living is that in grasping for temporal things, we lose the eternal -- but in sacrificing everything in this world, we gain eternal riches that are unimaginable (1 Corinthians 2:9). 

 

"For what profit is it to 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 the Son of Man will come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and then He will reward each according to His works."  This question places emphasis on the foolishness of accumulating worldly wealth or power, my study Bible says, for none of these things can redeem a fallen soul of a human being, nor benefit a person in the life to come. 

 

 "Assuredly, I say to you, there are some standing here who shall not taste death till they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom."  My study Bible says that this is a reference to those who would witness the Transfiguration (Matthew 17:1-9, in the reading that follows), as well as those in each generation who will experience the presence of God's Kingdom.  

 

 Perhaps Jesus frames the tone of today's reading in this remark to St. Peter, after he protests that Jesus should not die: "Get behind Me, Satan!  You are an offense to Me, for you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men."   From here Jesus goes on to express the idea that it is not only He who must go to the Cross, but all of us have a cross to bear in order to follow Him:  "If anyone 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 will find it.  For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?  Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?"  As my study Bible explains it, and as Jesus characterizes what it means to take up our cross, doing so forms a kind of exchange.  The cross is a way of "crucifixion" of our lives, of transformation and change, but perhaps more explicitly we can think of it in terms of exchange.  We seek to transfigure our lives by offering to God whatever it is we have or do, whatever circumstances we face in life, in exchange for God's way of sanctification and holiness, God's way to meet the worldly.  If I must give up an abusive but nevertheless fond relationship in the pursuit of my faith, then this is a kind of crucifixion in which Christ offers me a better way than the worldly way I know and am used to.  If I must make sacrifices for one whom I love who is ill, in order to care for them and nurture a truly loving relationship, this is a call to the cross, a transfiguration of my life into one committed and dedicated to love and compassion.  Such a sacrifice takes me beyond myself and my previously understood limits, teaches me what more I can be than I had previously understood.  If I am capable of following the fasting practices of the Church, I learn a discipline of the body that makes me a stronger person than I thought I was, more capable of saying "No" to things that are not good or healthy, in whatever dimension of life we might be speaking of:  over-consumption of destructive online content, indulging in gossip or unnecessary fighting, spending my time in ways that are more productive than wasting it -- perhaps giving time over to prayer.  In this way, any manner or aspect of life may be "crucified" and we take up our crosses to become more like Christ, transfigured, reshaped in His light.  Jesus will go to the Cross exchanging His worldly life as Jesus for His Resurrection and Ascension; taking even human flesh to God, crushing the gates of death, and opening the door to heaven and eternal life for all of us.  This is not just a sacrifice, but salvation, a triumphant liberation for all of the world and all of creation, for He is our Savior, our Lord, the only One who could do it and show us the way to our own crosses, and even to the holiness of God.  Let us understand the holy exchange in which we take up our own crosses, and save our souls in so doing.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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.

For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?

 

 From that time Jesus began to show to 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 the third day.  Then Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, "Far be it from You, Lord; this shall not happen to You!"  But He turned and said to Peter, "Get behind Me, Satan!  You are an offense to Me, for you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men."

Then Jesus said to His disciples, "If anyone 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 will find it.  For what profit is it to 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 the Son of Man will come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and then He will reward each according to His works.  Assuredly, I say to you, there are some standing here who shall not taste death till they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom."

 

- Matthew 16:21-28 

 

Yesterday we read that when Jesus came into the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, saying, "Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?"  So they said, "Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets."  He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?"  Simon Peter answered and said, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."  Jesus answered and said to him, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.  And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.  And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven."  Then He commanded His disciples that they should tell no one that He was Jesus the Christ. 

 

  From that time Jesus began to show to 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 the third day.  Then Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, "Far be it from You, Lord; this shall not happen to You!"  But He turned and said to Peter, "Get behind Me, Satan!  You are an offense to Me, for you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men."  My study Bible points out that after Peter's confession, Jesus here reveals the true nature of His messiahship:  the mystery of His Passion.  It explains that expectations were that the Messiah would live forever, so the notion that Christ would die was perplexing to Peter, and it would remain scandalous to the Jews even after the Resurrection (1 Corinthians 1:23).  Here Peter unwittingly speaks for Satan, for the devil did not want Christ to fulfill His mission and save humankind through suffering and death.  

Then Jesus said to His disciples, "If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me."  The cross was a most dreaded instrument of Roman punishment, but, as my study Bible puts it, it is also a symbol of suffering by Christians in imitation of Christ.  We therefore practice self-denial for the sake of the love of God and the gospel.  To accept this type of suffering is not punishment, and neither is it an end of itself.  It is rather 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 will find it."  My study Bible calls it the central paradox of Christian living:  that in grasping for temporal things, we lose the eternal; but in sacrificing everything in this world, we gain eternal riches that are unimaginable (1 Corinthians 2:9).  

"For what profit is it to 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 the Son of Man will come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and then He will reward each according to His works."  Christ's questions regarding the soul emphasize the total foolishness of accumulating worldly wealth or power for its own sake -- none of this can redeem a fallen soul, nor benefit a person in the life to come.  

"Assuredly, I say to you, there are some standing here who shall not taste death till they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom."  My study Bible says this is a reference to those who would witness the Transfiguration (Matthew 17:1-9; in tomorrow's reading), as well as those in every generation who will experience the presence of God's Kingdom.

In today's reading there is a deep and repeated concern with exchange.  Christ asks, "For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?  Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?"  Here Christ gives us a statement of exchange:  "For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it."  There is the attempt to save which results in loss of life; and the willingness to lose which results in finding.  But Jesus juxtaposes the things that make up this exchange in His first response to Peter's remark that He should avoid the Cross:  "Get behind Me, Satan!  You are an offense to Me, for you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men."  There are the things of God and the things of men.  Moreover, Peter's remark has the tinge of Satan, who does not desire Christ's salvific sacrifice and mission.  So there is the question posed to us:  what do we exchange for this heavenly reality, this grace that comes and permeates life so that we, also, may be participating in the kingdom of heaven?  What is the exchange that redeems the soul, that gives it values and meaning so that we enter into a movement of deepening closeness to God, and one which can stand us in good stead at that time of Christ's reward of each according to his works?  Of course, we have the image of Christ on the Cross so strongly in our minds and consciousness; this was the ultimate sacrifice for us all, so that each of us may be redeemed into this Kingdom to be with Him.  But what are we asked to give and to exchange?  We participate with Him on the Cross also, as He indicates when He says that we each must take up our own cross.  If we think about it, there is practically nothing in this world which we know of that can be gained without sacrifice.  If your dream is of owning a home, then one must give one's time to work for that.  Even theft, while always a sin, requires some effort (and unrepented sin may result in the loss or sacrifice of one's soul, opening ourselves up to Christ's question -- what is worth that?).  But if we tell ourselves no sacrifice is necessary in life for any reason, then we fool ourselves entirely.  Even the lives of the indigent are filled with burdens of simply trying to survive.  In this context of understanding and accepting that sacrifice is simply a part of life on any level, let us revisit Christ's words and accept them as promising something much, much more infinitely valuable than anything we can know which is purely "worldly."  That is not to deny that all of creation is of God and is therefore good, but rather it is to say that without God, without the saving nature of grace, creation falls into a state of something without its intrinsic beauty and timeless value that is offered to us therein.  We won't see it, we won't find it for ourselves and our souls.  There's an interesting concept in the letters of St Paul.  In two places St. Paul advises his flock to "redeem the time."  This is another emphasis on exchange, and we'd do well to pay attention.  In the letter to the Colossians, St. Paul writes, "Walk in wisdom toward those who are outside, redeeming the time. Let your speech always be with grace, seasoned with salt, that you may know how you ought to answer each one" (Colossians 4:5-6).  In his letter to the Ephesians, St. Paul says something similar:  "See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil" (Ephesians 5:15-16).  A redemption is an exchange; to redeem is to gain something by some form of payment, but it has the added sense of repurchase, gaining value that was otherwise lost, salvation.  In these references to redeeming the time, St. Paul speaks of the great gift of our lives, our time which is given to us by God, with which we may redeem the world through our choices of exchange.  We may use our time to walk in wisdom, and thereby to continually give glory to God, effectively exchanging our worldly time for securing the things of God in the world, God's grace that may be at work in us even through the smallest things.  If the "days are evil," as St. Paul writes, then we may "walk circumspectly, not as fools but wise" and thereby redeem the time.  These small statements are mighty powerful in their allusion to the idea that we may redeem the substance of our lives and the lives of others through how we use our time, how we walk in the world.  They are compact illustrations of what it means to exchange a worldly set of purposes for God's purposes and make them effective even in redeeming the world, redeeming the time of our lives and even of others' lives whom we touch.  In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus teaches, "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven" (Matthew 5:16).  This is St. Paul's redemption of the time, a way to exchange the things of men for the things of God.  It is the way to live Christ's teaching to take up our own crosses, and sacrifice one for the other, redeeming the time of our lives which is inseparable from our place in the world and all that is in it.  On the passage I've cited from Ephesians, my study Bible comments, "The goal is not to abandon the world, but to keep oneself in Christ and salvage as much as possible from the evil world.  Christians renounce the fallenness of the world [my italics], not creation itself."  Let us follow Christ in sacrificing fallenness for the things of God, and redeem the time.  Let us consider carefully that sacrifice will be asked of us no matter what, by that which seeks to enslave and give death, and by the One who comes to make us free and give us life (John 8:31-36).  Which is your preference?

 

 

 

 

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

 

 From that time Jesus began to show to 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 the third day.  Then Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, "Far be it from You, Lord; this shall not happen to You!"  But He turned and said to Peter, "Get behind Me, Satan!  You are an offense to Me, for you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men."  

Then Jesus said to His disciples, "If anyone 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 will find it.  For what profit is it to 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 the Son of Man will come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and then He will reward each according to his works.  Assuredly, I say to you, there are some standing here who shall not taste death till they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom."

 

- Matthew 16:21-28 

 

Yesterday we read that when Jesus came into the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, saying, "Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?"  So they said, "Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets."  He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?"  Simon Peter answered and said, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."  Jesus answered and said, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.  And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.  And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven."  Then He commanded His disciples that they should tell no one that He was Jesus the Christ. 

 From that time Jesus began to show to 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 the third day.  Then Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, "Far be it from You, Lord; this shall not happen to You!"  But He turned and said to Peter, "Get behind Me, Satan!  You are an offense to Me, for you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men."  In yesterday's reading (that is, the verses just prior to these), we read St. Peter's confession.  He said, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."  But just afterward, Christ goes on here to reveal the true nature of His messiahship.  At its center is the mystery of Christ's Passion.  My study Bible comments 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).  It adds that here, as Jesus indicates, Peter unwittingly speaks for Satan, as the devil did not want Christ to fulfill His mission and save humankind through suffering and death.  

Then Jesus said to His disciples, "If anyone 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.  But it is also a symbol of suffering by Christians in imitation of Christ.  My study Bible says that we practice self-denial for the sake of the love of God and the gospel.  To accept this is not a punishment, nor an end in itself.  It is rather 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 will find it."  My study Bible comments that the central paradox of Christian living is that in grasping for temporal things, we lose the eternal -- but in sacrificing everything in this world, we gain eternal riches that are unimaginable (1 Corinthians 2:9). 

 

"For what profit is it to 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 the Son of Man will come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and then He will reward each according to his works."    The questions Christ asks here emphasize the foolishness of accumulating worldly wealth or power at the expense of the soul -- accumulation of wealth or power cannot redeem a fallen soul nor benefit one in the life to come.

 

 "Assuredly, I say to you, there are some standing here who shall not taste death till they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom."  My study Bible calls this a reference to those who would witness the Transfiguration (Matthew 17:1-9), as well as those in every generation who will experience the presence of God's Kingdom. 

What does it mean to make sacrifices?  The nature of Christ's sacrifice on the Cross is often seen as a kind of payment -- as if to say that somehow it all adds up because He "pays" in blood what we've neglected in life.  But in the history of the Church, this is actually a rather recent development and was not the understanding throughout most of its history.  For the Eastern churches, Christ's sacrifice in willingly going to His human death and His Crucifixion meant the transfiguration and defeat of death itself for humankind.  What Christ touches becomes transformed, even in the same sense that touching the hem of His garment creating healing for people.  In the case of the Cross, the instrument of cruelty and deep suffering to death became -- through Christ's transfiguring power -- became the instrument of salvation and eternal life for human beings.  That is, for that "life more abundantly" that He preached to us (John 10:10).  For in undergoing human death, the Son of God made possible our own resurrection that we might join to His, that He will raise us up at the last day (John 3:14-16; 6:44).  The Cross (Christ's Passion, death, and Resurrection) was the final great sign of His ministry, which He called the "sign of Jonah" in a recent reading.  But it was not Christ's only sacrifice made for us, for His ministry to us.  He said of Himself that the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head -- and the deprivations, conflicts, persecution and difficulties (even including knowing He might lose His followers through their own difficulties in this mission of following Him) all accompanied His mission to us.  In effect, Jesus gives us an exchange of one kind of life for another, one "worldly" world for His Kingdom, which dwells among us (Luke 17:20-21).  He also calls upon us to follow Him, and to carry our own crosses.  He doesn't do all of this work Himself, He commands His followers to do the same.  As He is the Son, He is the One within whom originates all the power to do so, and who has the authority even to defeat death for us.  But He asks us to do our own work of transfiguration, of taking what we find that is broken in our own lives and transfiguring that through faith.  We give up what is, in effect, "dead" in our lives, in exchange for the life -- even life abundantly -- that He offers.  This is one sense of what forgiveness is; we exchange something hard, sad, hurtful for God's way of dealing with our circumstances and those who've harmed us.  Every exchange asks for a sacrifice of some kind.  Christ gave His very life for us, and even underwent the suffering of the Cross for us, the experience of human death.  We might be asked to give up our old ways of looking at things, or cherished relationships that are actually bad for us, or something to which we cling, in order to more fully embrace that Kingdom among us and within us, and help to bear it into the world, following Him.  Let us remember His command, for we are surely all included in this if we're to be His disciples and followers.  

But I tell you truly, there are some standing here who shall not taste death till they see the kingdom of God

 

 And it happened, as He was alone praying, that His disciples joined Him, and He asked them, saying, "Who do the crowds say that I am?"  So they answered and said, "John the Baptist, but some say Elijah; and others say that one of the old prophets has risen again."  He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?"  Peter answered and said, "The Christ of God."   

 

And He strictly warned and commanded them to tell this to no one, saying, "The Son of Man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised the third day."

 

Then He said to them all, "If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.  For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it.  For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and is himself destroyed or lost?  For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words, of him the Son of Man will be ashamed when He comes in His own glory, and in His Father's, and of the holy angels.  But I tell you truly, there are some standing here who shall not taste death till they see the kingdom of God."

 

- Luke 9:18–27 

 

 On Saturday, we read that Jesus called His twelve disciples together and gave them power and authority over all demons, and to cure diseases.  He sent them to preach the kingdom of God and to heal the sick.  And He said to them, "Take nothing for the journey, neither staffs nor bag nor bread nor money; and do not have two tunics apiece.  Whatever house you enter, stay there, and from there depart.  And whoever will not receive you, when you go out of that city, shake off the very dust from your feet as a testimony against them."  So they departed and went through the towns, preaching the gospel and healing everywhere.  Now Herod the tetrarch heard of all that was done by Him; and he was perplexed, because it was said by some that John had risen from the dead, and by some that Elijah had appeared, and by others that one of the old prophets had risen again.  Herod said, "John I have beheaded, but who is this of whom I hear such things?"  So he sought to see Him.  And the apostles, when they had returned, told Him all that they had done.  Then He took them and went aside privately into a deserted place belonging to the city called Bethsaida.  But when the multitudes knew it, they followed Him; and He received them and spoke to them about the kingdom of God, and healed those who had need of healing.  When the day began to wear away, the twelve came and said to Him, "Send the multitude away, that they may go into the surrounding towns and country, and lodge and get provisions; for we are in a deserted place here."  But He said to them, "You give them something to eat."  And they said, "We have no more than five loaves and two fish, unless we go and buy food for all these people."  For there were about five thousand men.  Then He said to His disciples, "Make them sit down in groups of fifty."  And they did so, and made them all sit down.  Then He took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, He blessed and broke them, and gave them to the disciples to set before the multitude.  So they all ate and were filled, and twelve baskets of the leftover fragments were taken up by them.

 

  And it happened, as He was alone praying, that His disciples joined Him, and He asked them, saying, "Who do the crowds say that I am?"  So they answered and said, "John the Baptist, but some say Elijah; and others say that one of the old prophets has risen again."  My study Bible comments here that, as in every generation, what the crowds have to say about Jesus is usually unpredictable and misguided.  

He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?"  Peter answered and said, "The Christ of God."   My study Bible notes that who do you say that I am? is the ultimate question in Scripture and in all theology.  How this question is answered will define the universe.  Christ (in Hebrew, Messiah) means "Anointed One."  This declaration of Peter that Jesus is the Christ of God is a revelation that Jesus is not simply another anointed king or prophet, but in fact the long-awaited Savior.

And He strictly warned and commanded them to tell this to no one, saying, "The Son of Man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised the third day."  Why does Christ wish to keep His identity a secret?  My study Bible comments that He wishes to avoid popular political and theological misunderstandings.  Only after His Passion and Resurrection can His identity as Messiah be properly understood.   My study Bible adds to this reason the growing hostility of the religious leadership; the people's belief that the Messiah will be an earthly, political leader; and that Christ's desire is to evoke genuine faith not based solely on marvelous signs.  Jesus' words hearken to Isaiah's prophecy of the Suffering Servant, including the mission to the Gentiles (see Isaiah 42:1-4).

 

 Then He said to them all, "If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.  For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it.  For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and is himself destroyed or lost?  For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words, of him the Son of Man will be ashamed when He comes in His own glory, and in His Father's, and of the holy angels."  My study Bible asks that we note two things.  First, that each person must take up one's own cross.  The burden in this world is different for each person, for each has been chosen by God to bear certain struggles for one's salvation and for the salvation of those around oneself.  Second, our cross is to be taken up daily.  Commitment to following Christ is not simply a one-time event.  It is, in fact, the continual practice of faith and obedience, even to the point of being shamed and persecuted by the world.  

"But I tell you truly, there are some standing here who shall not taste death till they see the kingdom of God."   My study Bible calls this verse a reference to those who will witness the Transfiguration (in Friday's reading, Luke 9:28-36), as well as to those in each generation who experience the presence of God's Kingdom.

The emphasis found on our last verse by my study Bible seems to be very important at this time.  It's essential that we understand the responsibility for this experience and the living out of faith that falls on each generation.  The presence of the kingdom of God is an important experience and understanding.  We might feel this presence "where two or three are gathered together" (Matthew 18:20), and so we learn that kind of fellowship that is present in such circumstances.  It is a subtle experience, that might make itself understood only after the gathering and in retrospect, but so often there is a hidden current running through such times that make them special.  Upon reflection, we find insights that come from inside the group or the meeting that don't happen elsewhere.  We can find this with Bible Study circles as well, in which important questions are asked and answered, and there is a group experience of a hidden thread of common experience that feeds each one somehow -- each with one's own life experiences, and one's own answer.  Often it is in the practice of worship that we will find "quiet moments" although we are in the midst of many people, and a transforming type of energy gives insight, or space to reflect and accept what we never manage to otherwise, even alone with no one else present.  These are common, subtle experiences of the presence of the Kingdom with us.  It is important that we recognize such things when they occur for us in our lives, because each experience is a testimony to that presence, and serves us as a foundation for forward movement, deepening faith, and our own testimonies we may wish to give to people and so share the gospel message.  The emphasis my study Bible places on each generation is important, because while we can rely on "the Church" and all the myriad ways we see efforts to evangelize, and ever-expanding translations of the Bible and biblical literature that publishers will place on the market, ultimately the Church rests upon each one of us to carry on, and carry into the world in every generation.  There will never be a substitute for this, nor a doctrine promoted that substitutes, nor even a book published that does the same.  This is because the presence of God is something that gives life to everything else, and without that reality somewhere in our vocabulary of life, we're not going to understand the Gospels or the Bible anyway.  This is not an abstract exercise, and Jesus did not give us purely theoretical concepts to think about and judge.  He gave us commandments, most notably the "new commandment" to love one another.  For it is that love that really forms the Church, makes it real, makes it work in our lives, and helps us to share it with others.  There is no substitute for this.  Jesus was asked what the greatest commandment was, and He gave two as His answer:  to love God with all one's heart and soul and strength, and to love neighbor as oneself.  In Luke's Gospel, we will read a version of this question and answer in which Jesus is also asked, "Who is my neighbor?" as a follow up question.  He then responds with the parable of the Good Samaritan, found only in Luke's Gospel (see Luke 10:25-37).  These "greatest commandments," and also the parable, affirm for us the importance of faith as based in living, in action.  If we follow Christ's command to love one another, then we find that our lives are equipped with something that all the slogans and doctrines and theories in the world cannot give, and that is love.  Our Scriptures tell us that God is love (1 John 4:8), and so we may conclude that where two are three are gathered in the name of Christ. so love is there with us.  If we are truly living our faith, this is what we will find that binds us, giving a sense of what we can give and share with others, even if we feel our own resources are scarce, for this is truly what the parable of the Good Samaritan teaches us.  We will find that we have something that is a part of us that we won't find elsewhere, and that is love.  It is in this linked sense in which we deny ourselves, and take up our cross daily, as Jesus teaches.  For the practice of love is about giving, and in so doing we strangely gain.  We find that our lives our saved by "losing" and then "finding" ourselves in this sense.  Christ's commandments are commandments of love, and the living of love.  It is a power that supersedes all others, because nothing else is like 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?

 

 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 Him, 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 to 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 that 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 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.  As we have been following the map of Christ's journeys with the disciples, let us note that He has now headed north from Bethsaida, deeper into what is nominally Gentile territory although mixed with Jewish populations.  So, in some sense reminiscent of how He told the healed blind man not to return to Bethsaida in yesterday's reading (above), this revelation takes place outside of the reach of the Pharisees.   Let us first note that some say Christ is John the Baptist returned, as we hear that Herod suspects (see this reading).  It was prophesied that Elijah would return before the Messiah (Malachi 4:5-6); elsewhere Jesus says that this role was fulfilled by John the Baptist (Matthew 11:14).   My study bible comments that "Who do you say that I am?" is the greatest question that any person can face, because it is the question which defines Christianity.  Peter's correct answer prevents the Christian faith from being simply another philosophical system or path of spirituality, because it names Jesus as the Christ.  In Matthew's Gospel, this confession names the Christ as the Son of the living God (Matthew 16:15-16).  This position, my study bible adds, excludes all compromise with other religious systems.  Peter's understanding cannot be achieved by human reason, but only by divine revelation through faith (1 Corinthians 12:3).  Again, in Matthew's version, Jesus adds, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven" (Matthew 16:17).   Christ means "Anointed One," and is equivalent to the Hebrew title "Messiah."

 

 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."   After Peter confesses that Jesus is the Christ, Jesus goes on to reveal the nature of His messiahship, and that 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 strange to Peter, and would remain scandalous to the Jews even after the Resurrection (1 Corinthians 1:23).   Peter thereby unwittingly speaks for Satan, as the devil didn't want Christ to fulfill His mission of saving 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 the most dreaded instrument of Roman punishment, crucifixion a death penalty reserved for the worst criminals.  The cross is also a symbol of suffering by Christians in imitation of Christ.  My study bible says that we practice self-denial for the sake of the love of God and the gospel.  To accept such suffering isn't punishment, and neither is it an end in itself.  It is rather a means to overcome the fallen world for the sake of the Kingdom, and to "crucify" the "flesh" with its passions and desires which can lead us away from God's purposes that are best for us (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."  Again, a note tells us that the central paradox of Christian living is that in grasping for the temporal, we lose the eternal.  But in sacrificing everything in this world -- that is, putting our lives into the hands of God and seeking God's direction for all things, we gain eternal riches that 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."  This question regarding the soul is an emphasis on the foolishness of accumulating worldly wealth or power for its own sake.  It cannot redeem a person's soul, nor benefit them in the life to come.  Of incomparable value is the health and vibrant life of the soul, which cannot be purchased on worldly terms, and in turn magnifies all of one's life, and 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."  My study bible says this is a reference to those who would witness the Transfiguration (in our following reading), but also those in every generation who will experience in their own lives the presence of God's Kingdom.  

What does it mean to experience the presence of God's Kingdom?  How does this work hand in hand with our lives in this world?  Some might think that we live a life here in this world that is utterly separate from whatever "afterlife" we feel there might be for us.  But in my opinion, this would be a false reading of the Gospels.  When Jesus sends the disciples out into the world on their first apostolic mission, His instruction is that they should tell the people they encounter, "The kingdom of God has come near to you" (Luke 10:9).  In other words, they carry with them the presence of that Kingdom, and so we should think of ourselves as engaging in and following within that work of the disciples as we practice our prayer, worship, and other practices of the Church designed to shore up and expand our faith.  Our real goal is what we pray in the Lord's Prayer:  "Your Kingdom come.  Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven."  We don't live in what Fr. Stephen Freeman describes as a "two-story universe."  Father Freeman makes the point that we live in a one-story universe.  That is, one in which the Kingdom is everywhere present, as an Orthodox prayer to the Holy Spirit proclaims (see the top prayer at this page).    If one simply looks around at the interior of an Orthodox Church, one sees icons of saints and of angels, of Christ, and stories from the Gospels.  We understand this great cloud of witnesses to be present with us.  In Christian worship, we understand that we participate together with the angels who are continually worshiping God.  This is not a "someday" kind of understanding, but one meant to let us know the presence of the Kingdom and all its inhabitants with us.  In today's reading, Jesus gives us the understanding of the formula for building the presence of the Kingdom even as we live our lives in this world.  It is done as an exchange.  We live our lives as He did, placing everything in the hands of God, even all we possess and all the things we choose in how we live our lives.  It is in this sense that we each bear our own cross.  Just as the disciples left everything behind to become apostles, even following Christ's instructions on their first journey as they were sent out to take no special care for life on the road (Luke 9:3), so we also will find through a prayer life that we are asked to leave some things behind, to change our ways of thinking, and to be transformed by that life of the cross.  We are promised myriad ways in which the "life of the flesh" -- meaning a worldly life minus the awareness of the presence of the Kingdom -- and the life in Christ will conflict.  We come to see a worldly or entirely material way of thinking conflicts with the ways that God asks us to live so that God may live in us.  The practice of mercy is part and parcel of the reality of God, wherein a simplistic or self-righteous sense of justice only teaches us to vanquish what stands between a selfish or self-centered vision of what we desire and ourselves.  Our walk with Christ, on the other hand, invites us to continually expand our understanding of the good, even to see forbearance, and suffering for the sake of love and the Kingdom, as a good, precious, even rewarding gift.  The Cross is meant to transfigure our lives, to bring us to a greater sense of ourselves, a higher experience of life itself and what it can mean, and even bring salvation into a world beset with evil and suffering.  Let us remember that we live the Kingdom here, that is in our midst, within us and among us (Luke 17:20-21).  This does not happen merely through nominal "good deeds" or moral principles, but through our willingness to participate in that life of the Cross, to take up our own cross as He says, to be transformed in His likeness, and not to find salvation in self-righteous victory or victimization of others whom we don't like.  The Kingdom lives through the forward movement in spiritual freedom toward God and God-likeness, and this is where Christ asks us to go (see John 8:31-36).  We can see it in His own mission, in the things the disciples are asked to take on and to discard, even in the rejection they must accept, and the joy of their fulfillment.  We all have that choice for the soul, even as we live our lives in this world (John 17:9-19).