Faith in God’s Purposes
The Gospels are filled with such wondrous accounts of the awesomeness of Jesus. Every time I read through the Gospels, I’m always tickled at the thought of 12 men—who happened to follow Jesus everywhere—beholding His works and still ending up confused about who this miracle-worker is! Who else—besides the Son of God—could walk on water? Heal the sick in an instant? Restore sight? When Jesus questions the disciples, saying, “where is your faith?”, I’m like, “Get ‘em Jesus!” But then the Spirit reminds me how many times I’ve doubted, and I feel the Savior’s words begin moving in my direction—“O Caleb, where is your faith?” It’s in that moment that I begin to see all the ways I struggle to have faith in ALL that God has revealed Himself to be.
In Mark’s Gospel, chapter 8 begins with the account of Jesus feeding the 4000 from 7 loaves and “a few small fish.” What’s interesting is that not long after this amazing display of Jesus’ power, Jesus is trying to teach His disciples while on a boat heading to Bethsaida, saying, “Watch out! Beware of the leaven [fermented dough] of the Pharisees, and the leaven of Herod.” (8:15) The imagery of leaven seemed to spark conversation amongst the disciples concerning the fact that they didn’t bring enough bread onto the boat. Jesus, knowing this conversation was taking place, goes into a full rant:
Why are you discussing the fact that you have no bread? Do you not yet comprehend or understand? Do you still have your heart 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 broken pieces you picked up? … When I broke the seven for the four thousand, how many large baskets full of broken pieces did you pick up? … Do you not yet understand? — Mark 8:17-21
I think we can all see Jesus’ frustrations here. Over and over again He had shown not just His power, but also his heart of compassion. And yet, the disciples continually fell back into dealing with life as though Jesus was not right there with them. While it’s easy for us to read these accounts of Jesus’ ministry and stand on the sideline wondering why the disciples just can’t get with the program, the reality is that we often live life the very same way—as though Jesus is not right there with us; as though He hasn’t proved Himself again and again.
[27] Jesus went out, along with His disciples, to the villages of Caesarea Philippi; and on the way He questioned His disciples, saying to them, “Who do people say that I am?” [28] They told Him, saying, “John the Baptist; and others say Elijah; and others, one of the prophets.” [29] And He continued questioning them: “But who do you say that I am?” Peter answered and said to Him, “You are the Christ.” [30] And He warned them to 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 the chief priests and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise from the dead. [32] And He was stating the matter plainly. And Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him. [33] But turning around and seeing His disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, “Get behind Me, Satan; for you are not setting your mind on God’s purposes, but on man’s.” — Mark 8:27-33 (NASB20)
Jesus leads His disciples to Caesarea Philippi, which was a decent trek from Bethsaida (~30 miles as the crow flies). When my family gets stuck together in a car for a long ride, we’re known to start playing “Would you rather…” or swapping “dad jokes.” Of course we do this all in good fun and it helps us keep our sanity. Maybe Jesus and His disciples swapped some of their favorite “dad jokes” along the way. We don’t get those details here. What we do get is the question, “Who do people say that I am?” At this point in Jesus’ ministry, He had covered quite a bit of ground. There’s no telling how many people Jesus encountered—directly or indirectly—by the time of Mark 8:27. The disciples surely had many interactions along the way, which probably included some discussion of who Jesus really was.
In Mark 2, after Jesus healed the paralytic man, we read that, “they were all amazed and were glorifying God, saying, ‘We have never seen anything like this!’” (Mk 2:12) A little further in Mark and we read of the disciples’ response to Jesus calming the sea, saying, “Who, then, is this, that even the wind and the sea obey Him?” (Mk 4:41) When Jesus returns to Nazareth and begins teaching there, we read that, “many listeners were astonished, saying, ‘Where did the Man learn these things, and what is this wisdom that has been given to Him, and such miracles as these performed by His hands? Is this not the carpenter, the son of Mary and brother of James, Joses, Judas, and Simon? And are His sisters not here with us?’” (Mk 6:2-3) Wherever Jesus went, wonder flourished. Who is this man? Jesus asks his closest disciples, “Who do people say that I am?”
Verse 28, “They told Him, saying, ‘John the Baptist; and others say Elijah; and others, one of the prophets.’” This would have been great company for any of us to be compared to! What great men these were! But this doesn’t satisfy Jesus, because Jesus isn’t asking for an ego boost. So Jesus asks the question behind the question, “But who do you say that I am?” Up to this point in Mark, and even beyond this point, the disciples refer to Jesus as “Teacher” or “Rabbi.” So this moment for the disciples is a big one. Peter responds, saying, “You are the Christ.”
You, Jesus, are the Christ—the Messiah! The anointed one! This is far more than some endearing title. This is Peter confessing that Jesus is the fulfillment of the promise they’ve been hoping for. I imagine that Peter’s mind is filled with thoughts of Jesus as the one described in Isaiah 9:2-7, which says,
[2] The people who walk in darkness will see a great light; Those who live in a dark land, The light will shine on them. [3]You will multiply the nation, You will increase their joy, They will rejoice in Your presence as with the joy of harvest, as people rejoice when they divide the spoils. [4] For You will break the yoke of their burden and the staff on their shoulders, the rod of their oppressor, as at the battle of Midian. [5] For every boot of the marching warrior in the roar of battle, and cloak rolled in blood, will be for burning, fuel for the fire. [6] For a Child will be born to us, a Son will be given to us; And the government will rest on His shoulders; And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace. [7] There will be no end to the increase of His government or of peace on the throne of David and over his kingdom, To establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousness from then on and forevermore. The zeal of the Lord of armies will accomplish this. — Isaiah 9:2-7 (NASB20)
What glory! This is what Peter is saying—which proves to be more than he even understood as we’ll see in verses 32 and 33. Jesus, you are the Christ! The Mighty King whose reign will never end! What strength! What valor! Peter sees Jesus ruling over all the earth. Not just a prophet, but God in the flesh! Trinity—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; co-equal in deity and eternity; three in One. Verses 30 and 31:
[30] And He warned them to 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 the chief priests and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise from the dead. — Mark 8:30-31 (NASB20)
So Jesus tells the disciples, “Say nothing. I have to suffer and die. I’ll be dead for three days and then I’ll rise.” Peter’s lack of understanding shines through as Peter pulls Jesus aside and begins to rebuke Him. “Are you kidding me!? You will do nothing of the sort! You’re the Christ! Ascend to Your throne and establish Your kingdom!” (I’m taking a little liberty here, of course).
Why would Peter rebuke Jesus? It’s important that we understand that Peter grew up learning about the promised Messiah—the Christ—the One who would come and put Israel at the top of the food chain. Maybe the thought of Jesus being treated as a criminal didn’t quite fit into Peter’s ideas of Christ as King. Maybe the picture of this Child born to rule in Isaiah 9 and the suffering Servant of Isaiah 53 hadn’t come together in Peter’s mind just yet. Jesus’ response to Peter’s lack of understanding highlights the point of the message this morning,
[33] But turning around and seeing His disciples, He rebuked Peter and said, “Get behind Me, Satan; for you are not setting your mind on God’s purposes, but on man’s.”
God’s ways are higher than our ways; His thoughts are higher than our thoughts.
The first thing I want to point out is this — What you think about Jesus matters. Christianity isn’t a band-wagon religion where we subscribe to the version that seems most popular. While the world around us paints their own version of Jesus, true followers of Christ put down their paint brushes realizing that God is the artist. Peter gets so close. He attributes the right title to Jesus, but then Peter tries to box Him up into Peter’s own understanding of what Christ is supposed to be. Jesus swiftly rebukes him, reminding him and us that God alone is the author of the story. Thankfully, God has revealed Himself to us in His Word. Every one of us are capable of letting God teach us exactly who He is. But we have to get out of the way.
The second thing that we can apply from this text is this — Following Jesus is about God’s goals becoming our goals. Jesus rebuke of Peter hinges on this statement: “…you are not setting your mind on God’s purposes, but on man’s.” (Mk 8:33) This makes me think of Romans 8:28, which says, “And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.” Hearing Jesus’ foretelling of the crucifixion challenged Peter’s faith. His faith wasn’t standing on the purposes of God in that moment.
Our faith is challenged from time to time when life starts going in a direction that we weren’t expecting or may have even been expressly against. When we’re trying to discern God’s Will for our lives, we can’t come to God in the same way that you might go to a realtor when you’re looking for a house. “Well, God I’d like to go to heaven, but along the way I’m gonna need a nice home, a cushy job, and accessible amenities. I’m good with doing a few service projects here and there, just don’t send me to some place I’ve never heard of before.” True faith says, “I can’t, but, God, You can! I can’t see what’s next, but You hold the future in Your hand. I trust You.” True faith follows Jesus’ example, saying, “Father, not my will, but Yours be done.” So what is God’s purpose?
Mark 1:14b-15, “Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent and believe in the gospel.’”
Luke 19:10, “For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.”
Luke 4:43, “But He [Jesus] said to them, ‘I must also preach the kingdom of God to the other cities, because I was sent for this purpose.’”
Very clearly, God’s purpose is to grow His Kingdom. God has given us all a part in this goal, as we read in 2 Corinthians 5,
[17] Therefore if anyone is in Christ, this person is a new creation; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come. [18] Now all these things are from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation, [19] namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their wrongdoings against them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation. [20] Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. — 2 Corinthians 5:17-20 (NASB20)
As ambassadors for Christ, we’re called to be holy as God is holy, to be salt and light in the world. So when you’re considering your career, your job, your school, your family, your friends—make sure you don’t forget to filter it all through God’s purpose for you. In everything ask yourself, “What is God’s goal?” Remind yourself of what is truly most important and you’ll be amazed at how much joy you can have regardless of your circumstances.
Peter forgot about this all-important piece of the puzzle. When he said to Jesus, “You are the Christ,” he filled that title with all of the traditions that had been passed down to him. When you’re praying about a big decision, be careful not to fill the name of Jesus with a mixed bag of traditions that may not be gospel. You may end up praying to something other than the Jesus we find in Scripture. When our version of Jesus is based on experiences and the tradition/wisdom of others, we come dangerously close to idolatry. What you think about Jesus matters. The Holy Spirit will guide you into the truth of God’s Word, teaching you everything you need to know for life and godliness. Following Jesus is about God’s goals becoming our goals. As Paul teaches in Romans 12:2, we are to be “transformed by the renewing of [our] mind[s], so that [we] may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.”
If Jesus asked you today, “Who do you say that I am?” What would your answer be? Would it be that of a spectator, like those who said Jesus was John the Baptist, or Ezekiel, or some other prophet? Or would your answer be like that of a disciple, “You are the Christ!”—the Anointed One!
A crucial part of any sermon is the part where you consider what all of this means for you. Your response to this message may be one of repentance—one that says, “Lord, I’m sorry for making my relationship with You about what I want instead of surrendering to Your purposes, Your goals.” There’s joy in even the most dire of circumstances when we’re completely surrendered to God’s goals. It’s then that we begin to see the bigger picture. He is ruling and reigning. The increase of His government will see no end. The zeal of the Lord will accomplish it. God is building His kingdom—a kingdom of believers redeemed by the blood of Jesus, as we read about in Ephesians 2:19-22. It’s a kingdom of peace, justice, righteousness; A kingdom that will not fail and will not fade—eternally filled with His perfect love. Would you join Him in the work? He is making all things work together for good, for those who love Him and who are called according to His purpose (Rom. 8:28)
