Last time, I used the parallel between passages in Mark (chapters 7 and 8)  and passages in Isaiah to point out that God had placed signposts along the way – for thousands of years – to identify the Messiah promised all the way back in Genesis: the Messiah that would crush the serpent’s head and deliver humanity from the bondage of sin. Yet, in His time, among His people, it seems no one made the connection. Why?

As John tells us at the beginning of his gospel:

John 1:9-11 The true light was that which, coming into the world, lightens every man. He was in the world, and the world had [its] being through him, and the world knew him not. He came to his own, and his own received him not…

What made it so hard for His people to recognize Him?

In this next passage, Jesus is asking that very question…

Mark 8:27-28 And Jesus went forth and his disciples, into the villages of Caesarea-Philippi. And by the way he asked his disciples, saying unto them, Who do men say that I am? And they answered him, saying, John the baptist; and others, Elias; but others, One of the prophets.

As we saw in the case of Herod, many people thought that the explanation for the miraculous deeds performed by Jesus was that he was a resurrected prophet, either John the Baptist or some other ancient prophet, or perhaps Elijah, who never died. Somehow the idea had arisen in their culture that such a person coming back from Paradise, from the presence of God, would bring with him extraordinary powers. Interesting as this bit of Hebrew mysticism is, the important point for us today is to notice the emphasis it places on miraculous powers.

Just like the Pharisees, the people looked to miraculous signs as Divine validation. But Jesus knew there was a very real danger in relying on that. As we discussed last time, God never told the people that His prophets’ credentials would be their miraculous powers. Rather, the sign of a prophet of God is the prophet’s unwavering loyalty and adherence to the Word of God.

This is why Jesus always taught the crowds before healing them or before doing miracles like the feeding of the 5000. This is why He refused to give the Pharisees a sign from heaven; and why He always told people He healed in private to go home and not tell everybody about the miracle… because then everybody would come to Him for the miracles.

If what we look for first are the miracles and the power, we render ourselves easy to be deceived.

We have known this since the time of Moses. Remember, the Pharaoh’s magicians turned their staffs into serpents too. They even could turn water into blood (… but not the other way around). The enemy, the devil, is a supernatural being… and we cannot be surprised at his power to do things beyond our human comprehension. And if we choose to make ourselves easy to fool, the enemy will be more than glad to give us any proof we crave to get us to follow him. This kind of deception will be widespread near the end: We have the Book of Revelation to warn us about it.

But there is another reason for us not to get “hung up” on the miraculous powers… the fact that they are powers. Power is also a dangerous thing because it is one of the great temptations that all human beings are susceptible to.

Who hasn’t been dissatisfied at one time or another with their job, particularly with the decisions the boss or management makes? Who hasn’t thought, “If I were in charge, I would do a whole lot better”? “If I were president of my country, I would do a whole lot better.”

You see, most of us are singularly impressed with our own capabilities. Which means that most of us, given the chance, would leap at the opportunity to be “in charge.”

Now, being in charge, carries with it a lot of responsibilities, among them, responsibility over the wellbeing of other people. And, normally, it is that responsibility that becomes the sobering force that tempers our actions so that eventually we can become good leaders. But here is where “power” can become a problem.

It is a fact that growth always involves making mistakes. We will make mistakes when we first become leaders; and therefore, by definition of our position, those mistakes will not only hurt us but they will also hurt the people we lead. The question we face then is: what do we do about it? Do we learn from those mistakes?

Don’t answer too quickly…

… because as part of that journey of leadership, some of the people I lead, people that work for me, are bound to complain about those mistakes. And why not? They too have a stake in the enterprise.

And here is where “power”, with its cousin “pride”, can rear their ugly heads… because it is embarrassing to fail. It is all the more embarrassing to be called out on it by your employees. So, what happens then, when they complain? Do we accept the facts of the failure with humility (and work at regaining the people’s confidence?) Or does the thought arise in my head: “Who is that guy to find fault with me?  Hey, if it were not for me, he wouldn’t have a job. He has no clue how hard this job is; he wouldn’t last a week if he had to do it.”

If Power is what motivates me, I can tell you what my most likely response is going to be: “If you don’t like it, you can walk out the door. I’m the boss, and I really don’t need anybody second guessing me. I can do whatever I want. In fact, you are fired!”

Power is one of the most ancient temptations that we all face. As the serpent told Eve: “Ye shall be like God.”

In the time of Jesus, His people longed for the coming of the Messiah. But as we discussed before, the prophecies regarding the Messiah presented two versions of that Messiah. One of them a conquering warrior, the other the suffering Messiah. Isaiah talks about both… but in particular, as he reveals the coming of Jesus, he makes clear that the plan of salvation, the forgiveness of sins, comes through the latter, not the former.

Yet if you were a fellow Jew, in the time of Jesus, seeing your country and your people subjugated by the powers of the world, which Messiah would you be crying for? And if the thought occurred to you that Jesus could be the Messiah, which one would you want Him to be?

Yes, the one with Power.

This is why His people missed recognizing Him: They wanted the powerful conquering Messiah. Even His disciples fell into that trap…

Who do you say that I AM?

After the disciples tell Jesus what the people thought about Him, He makes the question personal…

Mark 8:29 But *ye*, who do ye say that I am? And Peter answering says to him, *Thou* art the Christ.

Once Peter said it openly: “You are the Messiah, the Son of the Living God (Matthew 16:16)”, and Jesus accepted it (Matthew expands on that) there is no turning back. Jesus has confirmed to them that that is who He is and therefore that all the prophecies about the Messiah will be fulfilled in Him. And they believe Him…

But which Messiah is He? Is He here to overthrow Rome and return the Kingdom to Israel? If that were His mission, a military, political, mission, then that would call for spreading the word, telling everybody, and getting the whole nation ready to rise up and follow Him to victory.

Jesus’ instructions to them is totally unexpected:

Mark 8:30-32a And he charged them straitly, in order that they should tell no man about him. And he began to teach them that the Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected of the elders and of the chief priests and of the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise [again].

And he spoke the thing openly.

Not only should they not get the people up in arms, He tells them the complete opposite: He tells them plainly that He is not bringing about a miraculous military victory. Instead, His enemies, their enemies, are going to win! They will kill Him.

This is what He came to accomplish, and it must happen. Then and only then, will He rise again after three days.

Notice that last line: “He spoke this openly.” Different from the declaration of Him being the Messiah – which was reserved only for the twelve to know at that point – this truth about the mission of the suffering Messiah was meant for all to hear, all that chose to follow Him.

Did they “get it”?

Mark 8:32b-33 And Peter, taking him to [him], began to rebuke him, (Matthew 16:22b, [God] be favourable to thee, Lord; this shall in no wise be unto thee.)

But he, turning round and seeing his disciples, rebuked Peter, saying, Get away behind me, Satan, for thy mind is not on the things that are of God, but on the things that are of men.

I added the rest of Peter’s words from Matthew so that we understand clearly where he is coming from. Peter is not just chiding Jesus about having a defeatist attitude in front of His followers. Peter is sincerely shocked, distraught at the thought that God, Jesus’ Father, would let such a thing happen to Him. It is inconceivable…

Which Messiah did Peter want Jesus to be?

Which Messiah would we want Him to be?

We know what the wrong answer is because we saw Jesus’ strong reaction there. He looks at the disciples, at the fact that they are there hanging on Peter’s words, that they are also vacillating between two choices: the conquering Messiah or the Savior of the world; and He cannot afford to let them make the wrong the wrong choice.

He makes His point in the strongest terms possible for Him:

To choose the wrong mission is to reject God’s will.

To choose the wrong mission is to choose to serve Satan.

Today… Which Messiah do we want Him to be?

Is the answer any different?

Sometimes, the fact that 2100 years have passed since that conversation on the outskirts of Caesarea-Phillipi, can lead us to believe that the answer has changed. But just as it was with His people back then, it is incumbent upon us to read the prophets’ writings and recognize the signs of the times.

It is true much has changed since then. The world is a different place. Maybe some more prophecies have been fulfilled since then… but there is still a straightforward way to tell which Messiah we have been called to follow.

It is the same way Peter was meant to be able to tell. All we need to do is ask: Has the mission of the suffering Messiah been fulfilled?

Has the world been saved?

Just imagine Jesus walking up the side of a hill today and sitting down. And now imagine a crowd gathering all around that hill, sitting down to listen. And imagine Him beginning to say:

Blessed are you the poor and needy, the destitute – the poor through and through all the way down to your spirit – you are blessed for yours is the Kingdom of Heaven.

Blessed are you who mourn for all that has been lost and all that will never be in this world, for you will be comforted.

Blessed you who are meek and humble, oppressed by the powerful and rejected by the world, for you will inherit the Earth.

Blessed you if you still hunger and thirst for God’s righteousness even as you see the world ruled by the ruthless because you will be satisfied.

Blessed you who have chosen to be merciful even when no man has had mercy on you because you shall receive Mercy.

Blessed you that have kept your heart pure while the world glorifies depravity and invites you into its life of dissipation, for you will indeed see God.

Blessed you who choose to be peacemakers while the world praises the mighty and rewards the violent, for you will be called children of God.

Blessed are you when they persecute you and ridicule you because you choose to walk in the footsteps of the Messiah; blessed when you choose to die to this world like your Messiah, rather than partake of the spoils with the powerful… for yours will be the true Kingdom, the Kingdom of Heaven.

How do we respond to those words today? Are they still true today? Or have we “grown” past needing them…  My reaction determines the answer to the question…

Which Messiah are we following?

That was the crucial question that Jesus’ disciples had to answer. And understanding the right answer was not just for the inner circle, for the initiated, for the “strong”. It was for everybody. Jesus wanted all of us to understand what the Mission of the Messiah is about: that it is a life-or-death choice, a choice between the kingdom of Heaven and the kingdom of the world; its is the either or… 

Mark 8:34 And having called the crowd with his disciples, he said to them, Whoever desires to come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross and follow me.

Mark 8:35-38 For whosoever shall desire to save his life shall lose it, but whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel’s shall save it. For what shall it profit a man if he gain the whole world and suffer the loss of his soul? for what should a man give in exchange for his soul?

For whosoever shall be ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him shall the Son of man also be ashamed when he shall come in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.

Which Messiah…?

The answer to that question determines how we live… today.

Throughout history, many peoples have found themselves in the same place that Jesus’ people were in His time: faced with a hostile world, of ruin, wars, and sickness… so far from heaven that it is hard to imagine being any closer to hell.

At times like that, the temptation to cry out for the conquering messiah can be overwhelming… for, who else can rescue me, who else will be able to overcome my heartless enemy?

Yet, in the Sermon on the Mount, living in the middle of the Roman occupation, and fully knowing, as He did, that one day those Romans would destroy the Temple and massacre His people, Jesus’ response still was:

Matthew 5:43-45 Ye have heard that it has been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour and hate thine enemy.  But *I* say unto you, Love your enemies, [bless those who curse you,] do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who [insult you and] persecute you, that ye may be [the] sons of your Father who is in [the] heavens; for he makes his sun rise on evil and good, and sends rain on just and unjust.

Do you see it? Here it is again, the question and the challenge: Has the world been saved?

If my enemy still lives… then there is at least one more person left to bring to Christ.

Do you see it?

His mission of salvation, our mission, is not finished yet.

When will it be finished?

Only when He chooses to return. Until then, there is only One Messiah, only One worthy of being followed, only One worthy of being imitated: the suffering Messiah.