WHO AM I?
Mark 8:27-33

INTRO:

Our text this morning is from the 8th chapter of Mark’s gospel beginning at verse 27. Mark 8:27-33 – “27. 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?'' 28. And they answered, "John the Baptist; but some say, Elijah; and others, one of the prophets.'' 29. He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?'' And Peter answered and said to Him, "You are the Christ.'' 30. Then He charged them that they should tell no one about Him. 31. 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. 32. He spoke this word openly. And Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him. 33. 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.''”

The text I have read is a parallel passage to the better known one in the 16th chapter in Matthew’s gospel. In Matthew’s account, of course, is the famous “upon this rock” statement with the promise that Jesus would build His church.

On this particular occasion Jesus has begun to look toward the cross and His atoning death. On this journey with the disciples, with the apostles especially, He apparently begins to talk with them about things He has not shared with them before—things that concern the ultimate course of His ministry, the ultimate cause of His being present among men and what finally would happen to Him.

It becomes painfully apparent that the apostles where hearing things that were very strange, that were very different to them, that they had not heard before, things that they had not yet grasped. They didn’t grasp the full circumstance of the situation of His earthly ministry.

Then there is this interesting “exchange” between Peter and Jesus in which Jesus seems to place Peter in Satan’s camp. There is much in this little reading to be said and understood about this.

I. Let’s begin with a little geography lesson.
A. Caesarea Philippi was a little city in the tetrarchy of Herod Philip. Through the work of Herod Philip this had become a Romanized place.
1. It was not in Galilee.
2. It was really a city, in a region, northeast to the Sea of Galilee.
3. We are told that nearby there was a cave out of which flowed a spring which is thought by many to be headwaters of the Jordan River.
B. What of this area religiously speaking?
1. It was an area which from the very earliest days had been one in which the Baals of the Canaanites had been worshiped. The Baals were the storm and fertility gods which they worshiped.
2. In a cave nearby it was believed that the birth of the Greek god Pan took place. Pan, of course, is the god of musicians.
3. Here then we have the religion of the Canaanites, the religion of the Greeks and then high on a hill above a temple had been built to the honor of Tiberius Caesar. At this point in time Tiberius Caesar is thought to be a deity. In fact, Caesar worship was the worship of the Roman Empire.
4. In later days this would become part of why the Christians would suffer so much persecution at the hands of the Roman soldiers and the Roman authorities.
II. It is in this very pagan place—think about it—you’ve got the Canaanite gods, you’ve got the Greek gods, you’ve got the Roman gods...pagans. In this very pagan place, Jesus chooses to pose a critical and crucial question to the apostles.
A. Who do men say that I am?
1. By this time the apostles had been hearing all kinds of things about whom people thought that Jesus might be and so they responded.
2. Some think you’re John the Baptist. I know that Herod Antipas thought that He was John the Baptist. Remember in the sixth chapter of Mark at verses 14-16, Mark 6:14-16 – “14. Now King Herod heard of Him, for His name had become well-known. And he said, "John the Baptist is risen from the dead, and therefore these powers are at work in him.'' 15. Others said, "It is Elijah.'' And others said, "It is the Prophet, or like one of the prophets.'' 16. But when Herod heard, he said, "This is John, whom I beheaded; he has been raised from the dead!''”. Of course, Herod Antipas was not the only person who believed that Jesus must be John the Baptist.
3. Then there were those who thought He was probably Elijah because of the Old Testament. We know that there are those references to Elijah preceding the coming of the Messiah. Jesus had answered this question apparently extensively. I want you to turn your Bibles to the 17th chapter of Matthew’s gospel and listen to the explanation. We’ve read it before, but I’d like to read it again because I want us to remember what it is that Jesus says about these prophecies concerning Elijah being the predecessor of the Messiah. Matthew 17:10-13 – “10. And His disciples asked Him, saying, "Why then do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?'' 11. Then Jesus answered and said to them, "Elijah truly is coming first and will restore all things. 12. "But I say to you that Elijah has come already, and they did not know him but did to him whatever they wished. Likewise the Son of Man is also about to suffer at their hands.'' 13. Then the disciples understood that He spoke to them of John the Baptist.”
4. There was the rumor that He was John the Baptist. There was the rumor that He was Elijah. Jesus says no. Elijah has already come. He came in the form of John the Baptist.
5. There were others that said He’s one of the prophets because you know in the apocalyptic literature, the literature between the testaments, we have all this information concerning spiritual and religious things and among the things that are there we have discovered that Isaiah or Jeremiah will be the forerunner of Messiah. Remember in Matthew 16:14 in answering this question, the apostle’s answer was John the Baptist, Elijah, or one of the prophets, perhaps Jeremiah.
6. The reason I’ve gone through this little exercise is because I want you to understand that the best people could do in thinking about the person of Jesus and thinking about who He was, the best that they could do was say: He’s probably a forerunner of the Messiah. This is such a diminished view of the person of Jesus, isn’t it?
B. He asks the question: Who do men say that I am? Then He says OK. Who say you that I am.
1. Here’s impetuous Peter. I think that I will really like Peter in eternity. He played this foot in mouth game a lot, didn’t he? He had his foot in his mouth a lot of times, but most of the time he was ok. I’m a lot like that. I say things that I later regret. Here’s one of those times that I would have regretted what he said. Thou art the Christ. Underscore the word Christ. He didn’t say Jesus we’ve known you for years or you’re a relative of some of our group. Thou art the Christ.
2. That word is so significant. Christ is from a Greek word. Messiah is from a Hebrew word. Both words refer to one who is appointed or one who is sent. The word Messiah, in referring to one’s being anointed to a particular task, does refer to exactly that—one who is sent to accomplish a particular thing.
3. When Peter said thou are the Christ, I have a strong suspicion that in the back of his mind he was thinking in terms of the then pervasive idea of the Messiah because you see the Jewish idea of Messiah was certainly not God’s idea. The Jewish idea was that the Messiah was going to come and raise an army. He’ll be an earthly king and what he’s going to do is overpower the Roman forces and throw them out of the land of Palestine and we’re going to restore the pride and the glory of the kingdom of David. That was what most people in that day believed. That was the prevailing view.
III. Immediately then, Jesus began to teach them.
A. Let’s go back to the gospel of Mark to the 8th chapter and look at verse 30, Mark 8:30 – “Then He charged them that they should tell no one about Him.” Don’t tell people who I am. I have to wonder why He would say that. There are perhaps a couple of reasons.
1. One is that there might be those people who would want to take Him by force and make Him a king. In John’s gospel in chapter six at verses 15 and 16 here’s what we read: John 6:15-16 – “15. Therefore when Jesus perceived that they were about to come and take Him by force to make Him king, He departed again to a mountain by Himself alone. 16. And when evening came, His disciples went down to the sea,” There were people who wanted to take Him by force. They saw the miracles that he performed, verse 14, and they thought to themselves that surly this has got to be the king. We’ll take Him by force and make Him king. Jesus didn’t want that so He tells people don’t tell them who I am. You have confessed that I am the Messiah, but don’t tell.
2. The next reason is perhaps a little more subtle than the previous one. Jesus needed to teach His apostles the truth about the Messiah. If they were going to be His ambassadors, they needed to know about His death and the atoning nature of it. They needed to know about His resurrection. They needed to know about the nature of His kingdom. He said (recall?) to Pilate, John 18:36, My kingdom is not of this world. They needed to know all those things.
B. At verse 31 He began to teach them: Mark 8:31 – “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.”
1. Whoa. This was not what the apostles wanted to hear. It was certainly not what they expected to hear. I have no doubt whatsoever that they were virtually undone by the nature of what He is saying to them on this occasion.
2. They’d been going along with Him on His journeys and they had watched Him healing people and doing all these wonderful things. They heard Him teaching, but they hadn’t heard Him say much about being rejected, suffering, being killed. These are not the words of victory. These are not the words descriptive of the then current idea of the Messiah among the Jews.
3. You’ll notice in verse 31 that He says: The Son of Man must suffer. He uses that word must. This was not an optional exercise. This was not something that could have been avoided. This was something that was absolutely necessary if there was going to be redemption—if there was going to be atonement for sins for people like you and me.
4. As Luke would say, He set His face to go to Jerusalem. He was not going to be deterred on this great mission. I know, I know, I know. This is not what the apostles wanted to hear. I know that it was a message far from what they expected to hear as He began to teach them, but they needed to understand these things. Later on when they began to preach the great gospel of Jesus Christ and these things would make an impact, an impression, on the things they spoke to others.
C. Enter Peter again. Peter took Him and began to rebuke Him. In 16th chapter of Matthew’s gospel, verse 22, there’s a little bit more to this: Matthew 16:22 – “Then Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, "Far be it from You, Lord; this shall not happen to You!''”
1. I’m sure that Peter was responding to what Jesus had said very much in view of the common idea of the Messiah. We keep thinking about the Jews, but remember that the apostles were Jews. The apostles were steeped in the history and the tradition in the scripture of the Jews.
2. While it’s true that Jesus isn’t going to be the Messiah the Jews thought, the apostles too had a problem with this. They did not understanding what Jesus was saying about His ultimate death or His mission—not at least to this point. Peter says: That isn’t going to happen to you. I’m sure Peter spoke with the best of intentions. I have no doubt of that.
D. Here is an occasion where Satan is involved, very involved. Listen to what Jesus says: Matthew 16:23 – “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.''”
1. Did Jesus just call Peter Satan? Satan is speaking through the friend of Jesus. Let me ask you a question. Have you ever been enticed to do something you should not do through the words of a well-meaning friend? Oh, come on. It won’t hurt this time. That friend is not an enemy. It’s somebody you care about a lot. Have you ever been enticed to do something you shouldn’t do—Satan through the words of that friend is enticing us. Have you ever been discouraged by the words of a loving friend, someone about whom you care deeply? Discouraged from doing the right thing? Satan whispering in the ear of your friend.
2. I think, this is a personal opinion, I think that the most difficult attacks of Satan are not the frontal attacks where I recognize Satan is behind it. I think that the most difficult attacks are those kinds where Satan uses the enticing voice of someone I care deeply about to cause me to neglect my faith or to enter into some sinful situation. It’s so hard to say no because it’s a person I love. This is Peter and he loves Jesus.
3. Jesus will ask Him after His resurrection: Do you love me? Peters says: Yes, you know I love you. Do you love me? He asks him three times. Do you love me? Of course, Peter loved Him. Peter wants nothing to happen to his precious and dear friend Jesus whom he recognizes is the Messiah.
4. That may well be what part of the situation is here. Out of his recognition of His being the Messiah he says, I know this can’t happen to you because the Messiah is not supposed to die. He’s supposed to raise an army and throw out the Romans. What was Peter’s problem?
5. It’s identified here in verse 23: “you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men.'” Peter was looking at things as human beings look at them. In our lives we can be encouraged or discouraged by people who care about us—relatives or friends. We’re being encouraged or discouraged because these people are seeing things from an earthly perspective just like Peter was. Peter wasn’t seeing things from God’s point of view. He was looking through worldly eyes.

CONCLUSION:
Why are we mindful of the things of men? We all come out of the world and the world has had a big influence in shaping our understanding and expectations. Illustrated here we see the influence of the Jewish expectation of the Messiah on the apostles. Clearly they had difficulty wrapping their minds around what Jesus is telling them even in the face of all the miracles they have seen and the glory they saw on the mount of transfiguration. We think it should have been clear but it was not.

We are no different really. Through our life we are exposed to things that influence our thinking immensely. Remember the studies of nature vs nurture? Which has the most influence on a child growing up, their heritage or their environment? There was a lot of controversy on this. In fact, the nature versus nurture debate is one of the oldest issues in psychology. The debate centers on the relative contributions of genetic inheritance and environmental factors to human development. Sounds simple enough, doesn’t it? Then along came studies of identical twins, raised together by the same parents, virtually identical exposures to life and yet some of the studies showed differences. It is postulated that a cause of the differences may be our attention. For example a particular experience, perhaps something someone says, gets their attention to a greater degree then the other twin and they think on it more. This leads to one twin developing a slightly different world view.

The debate on this is not over though some call it a draw, but the point is we are all influenced by the world. We should not be surprised then that as we read God’s word it takes time and study for a mature Christian to develop. Like the apostles we have to get past some of the things we have learned in the past—some things that we have learned perhaps from the denominational world and some perhaps from the world in general. Take for example some phrases we have all heard like; “Cleanliness is next to godliness” or “God helps those who help themselves” or “money is the root of all evil”. Those and many others are not in the Bible. In these examples, people infer the first from the Mosaic law, the second is actually completely wrong because God saves those who can NOT help themselves (i.e. sinners) and the last one is a misunderstanding of 1 Timothy 6:10 which says; “For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil,” It is not money that is the root of evil but the LOVE of money.

Then Satan takes things where our understanding is not fully “mindful of the things of God” and uses them to undermine us. Just as Satan took Peter’s view of the messiah and used it toward Jesus. This is why the study of God’s word is so important to us. Yes, we do well to study our Bible at home. But we gain even more in Bible study here. Let me read something to you from “Reminiscences” written by Gen. Douglas MacArthur from his time at West Point.

“The first section was studying the time-space relationship later formulated by Einstein as his Theory of Relativity. The text was complex and, being unable to comprehend it, I committed the pages to memory. When I was called upon to recite, I solemnly reeled off almost word for word what the book said. Our instructor, Colonel Fieberger, looked at me somewhat quizzically and asked, "Do you understand this theory?"
It was a bad moment for me, but I did not hesitate in replying, "No, sir." You could have heard a pin drop. I braced myself and waited.
And then the slow words of the professor: "Neither do I, Mr. MacArthur. Section dismissed."
We can memorize the Bible but what we really need to do is work on our understanding of God’s word. Then we will know how to recognize and handle stumbling blocks.

No matter how loving the enticement is, no matter how loving the words of encouragement to do the wrong thing or discouragement to do the right thing may be we must deter in listening to them and obey the voice of God instead. Have we really comprehended the meaning of Messiah, you and I? Have we recognized, really recognized, the meaning of Jesus’ death? Is there room in your faith for a cross?

Is there someone you know and about whom you care who is beckoning to you and enticing you to do something that you should not do? I’m asking because I believe that it leads to a really serious question. -- How do we recognize when Satan slips something into the mix? -- In our first reading of Jesus’ response to Peter we could be excused for thinking “What!?” Being shocked that Jesus is calling Peter Satan! But with careful consideration we realize Jesus recognizes who is really speaking to Him through Peter. Using Peter’s incomplete understanding to try and slip in a stumbling block.

We sing the song: On a hill far away stood and old rugged cross, by the way one of my very favorite songs. I wonder if the impact of the cross on a hill far away has really been felt in our lives.

We’re pretty comfortable, you and me. We have no problems—not really. Things go well for us. The biggest decision we’ll make in the morning is to get out of bed and put on clothes or what clothes we’ll wear. We won’t have to worry about when we will find the next meal. Those are not the type of concerns that we have in this affluent place. I wonder if we really understand what the cross means.

There are days when I wonder if I understand what the cross really means and then I bow my head in prayer asking God’s forgiveness for such a thought and for His guidance and help in coming to terms with what that cross really meant. Yes, we all have to deal with friends who entice us.

What does it all mean? It comes back to this: “Thou art the Christ”... and why Jesus waits.

We’re going to be singing the invitation song that asks that question. Tonight as we sing the song if there are ones in the assembly that need to respond in a public way I want you to do that. What you will do in the course of your coming if you’re coming to be baptized into Christ as we discussed this morning then you will confess that I believe that Jesus is the Christ the Son of God.

That’s part of this whole process—the confession that one believes He’s the Son of God. Then, predicated on that confession of faith one is lowered into the waters of baptism to walk in newness of life all because Jesus is the Christ. He is the Messiah.
If there’s any reason for you come, we invite you while we stand together and sing.

Song 624 Why Keep Jesus Waiting

Reference sermon – Cecil A. Hutson – 4 November 2007