Readings for the Day:
Sermon:
Original Manuscript:
People seem to complain the most about a story if it doesn’t have a happy ending. That seems to be one of the things we value the most. As long as things turn out okay in the end, we, for the most part, seem to fine with everything else.
That is Peter’s problem this morning. Jesus begins talking about how he will suffer, be rejected, and be killed. Yes, He will rise on the third day, but He must endure all this awfulness first.
Peter wants nothing to do with any of this. In his mind, suffering and death is not how Jesus’ story is supposed to go. ‘You can’t say things like that’, Peter tells Jesus. Then Jesus gives Peter that famous line, “Get behind me Satan.”
Jesus’ words may seem harsh, but they are not. Peter has assumed he knows what is best. He has assumed he knows how God acts. He has assumed what it means to be a follower of Jesus.
He has assumed that walking with Jesus means winning all the time and only good things. That is not what following Jesus means at all. It means telling the truth when it seems no one is listening. It means suffering at the hands of the world because you refuse to serve it and instead serve God. It means losing in the eyes of the world. It even means being willing to lay aside our lives to save others, whether that is metaphorical and literal.
Like Peter, we often assume what it means to be followers of Jesus. Like Peter, we can sometimes get it wrong. Take a look back at yourself and your own thoughts. If, like Peter, you are making the wrong assumptions of what it means to follow Jesus, then this is your wake up call. Don’t look at your own way of thinking to determine what being a Christian means. Look at God’s way. You may be surprised by what you see. It is not all about wining. It is about something greater. It is about leading others to Christ Jesus. It is about Jesus bringing us to salvation and hope. It is about finally being set free.