Sermon Text: Mark 8: 27-38
Peter Declares That Jesus Is the Messiah
27 Jesus and his disciples went on to the villages around Caesarea Philippi. On the way he asked them, “Who do people say I am?”
28 They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets.”
29 “But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?”Peter answered, “You are the Messiah.”
30 Jesus warned them not to tell anyone about him.
Jesus Predicts His Death
31 He then began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and after three days rise again.
32 He spoke plainly about this, and Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him.
33 But when Jesus turned and looked at his disciples, he rebuked Peter. “Get behind me, Satan!” he said. “You do not have in mind the concerns of God, but merely human concerns.”
34 Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.
35 For whoever wants to save their lifewill lose it, but whoever loses their life for me and for the gospel will save it.
36 What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul?
37 Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul?
38 If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of them when he comes in his Father’s glory with the holy angels.”
Morning Message:
I believe that God gives all mankind the basic understanding of who God is and what his ways are. I believe that for most human beings it takes a real effort to ignore the things of God. In our first scripture reading this morning we hear that wisdom calls out everywhere for any who want to hear and listen. The proof of God’s creation is all around us and if we fail to see God in all that He has done and made, we are avoiding the obvious. I think that this reading from Proverbs can teach us a lot about ourselves and how we react and fail to react to the things of God. We never think of ourselves as hating knowledge, but how does God view our lack of response to his Word. Once we realize that God is always right, and we still decide to go the other way and ignore what God is saying, how else could God see that but foolishness. When we go the wrong way God rebukes us. If you are a Christian and you decide to do what is opposite of what God calls you to do he will rebuke you. Playing chicken with God is a losing proposition. Have you ever been foolish like this? The amazing thing about our human nature is that we will go the wrong way, and God will rebuke us, and we will continue in what we are doing wrong so God will have to rebuke us over and over again. This is the definition of insanity, and everyone does it. God says repent at his rebuke. When true wisdom finally catches up with you, and you hear God clearly rebuking you, repent and then God will give you true understanding. We know this, but we still insist on our own way. Do you remember the story of Jonah? Think about this and then think about your resistance to God.
There is something that I find both amazing and unsettling at the same time. We, God’s people, go astray. Sometimes we intentionally walk the wrong way. When our waywardness finally catches up with us we cry out to God and he saves us from a terrible situation. In many cases he does this in a way that could only be described as a miracle; something that only God could have done. It’s an answer to a prayer that you have been praying for a long time. So, God brings us through and sometimes people simply go astray again. In the face of miracles, we choose to disobey. There is a story in my devotional this week about a doctor who is on an airplane and hears the flight attendant call for a doctor. So he goes to the front of the plane where he finds a woman about to give birth who was only 29 weeks along. As the doctor prepares to deliver this very tiny, premature baby he looks around for help and finds that he is surrounded by three other passengers on the plane who are neonatal intensive care unit nurses. Afterwards the doctor said that it was a total miracle and the NICU team saved the child, a baby boy. God still performs miracles in the lives of his children. But here is what I want us to consider today. In my devotional it’s called the turning point. How quickly we forget God’s great deliverances in our lives. How easily we take for granted the miracles he has performed in our past.
Today’s scripture is one of my favorites because it gives us the simple wisdom of the gospel. If you want to understand it you can. It’s not an easy text to live out, but there is so much Godly wisdom here that goes against the wisdom of this foolish world. The disciples discover something about Jesus that should have been obvious all along. Jesus is the Messiah. He is the Son of God; the Savior of the world. This is the simple truth of the gospel. You either believe it or you don’t. Then Jesus complicates matters a little. The disciples are fine with him being the Messiah; they are ready for him to save them right now. Come on Jesus, I believe in you; let’s book our flight for heaven and get out of this messy world. This is how all of us would like for it to go. I’m saved; take me now; after all, it is all about me.
Jesus gives them the bad news. The good news is your saved; the bad news is you have to stay here for a while, and by the way, we are going to be mistreated and ridiculed and there will be pain and death involved before I rise again in three days. Not what any of us want to hear. The wisdom of God is perfect. I told you last week that God said to Adam and Eve that if you sin you will surely die. God’s word must always be fulfilled because God only speaks truth. Jesus says if you want to follow me and be my disciples you must give up the things of this life, pick up your cross and follow me. You can’t have it both ways, but oh how we try. We have every excuse in the book for why we should be able to live as we want and still call ourselves the saved of God. You can’t have your cake and eat it too. You have to die to this world and deny these fleshly things in order to follow Jesus to the cross and into eternal life. This is not foolish wisdom; this is God’s perfect plan to save a sinful people.
I want you to listen and hear the most common sense wisdom ever written. To ignore this shows just how foolish earthly wisdom is. Are you ready? What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Or, what can anyone give in exchange for their soul? You could have everything that this world has to offer and live your life enjoying every pleasure imaginable, but you will still die and your soul will live for eternity. The question is: Is the world during this lifetime worth sending your soul to hell for eternity? Will you listen to God’s wisdom or foolish wisdom?
In Christ’s Love and Peace
Pastor Bob
Views: 8
