Tag Archives: ashamed

THE GOSPEL OF MARK – JESUS’ YOKE MEANS SUFFERING

Bible Study, ,

JESUS’ YOKE MEANS SUFFERING

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.

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 o be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. 35 For whoever wants to save their life will 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.”

​1 And he said to them, “Truly I tell you, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see that the kingdom of God has come with power.” Mark 8:27 – 9:1

Why did Jesus confide in His disciples about His impending suffering and death? Was it only to prepare them so that they would not be taken by surprise? It was much more than that. There was something more in His yoke that they had to grasp to be both accurate and powerful imitators of their Messiah. Jesus was alerting them to the very heart of true discipleship. The world hates God but, since it cannot take out its hatred on Him, it chooses to vent its hatred on God’s children. The only way to overcome the world is to let it abuse us without retaliation. “When they hurled their insults at Him, He did not retaliate. When He suffered, He made no threats. Instead He entrusted Himself to Him who judges justly.” 1 Peter 2:23.

By resisting this part of Jesus’ yoke, Peter was revealing his embarrassment over Jesus’ way in the presence of his fellow- disciples. He was exposing his yet-unrefined and unregenerate heart which relied on violence, force and control to get his own way instead of allowing his Rabbi to lead him.

Jesus warned that an attitude like this would cut him off from union with his Master because he refused to share his Master’s union with the Father. Without that union with the Father and the Son, he would not fit in in the company of the Godhead. No union, no fellowship – it’s that simple.

Jesus concluded by warning them that this whole dramatic saga was closer that they imagined. The natural human inclination is to put off taking action when it comes to spiritual things. There is this inbuilt crazy notion that “I can do something about it tomorrow.” Jesus said, “Don’t do it.” This is all going to happen much sooner than you imagine. Now is the time to determine to embrace the Rabbi’s yoke in its totality, including the choice to trust God when we fall foul of the world because we refuse to avoid suffering the rejection, ridicule and contempt of the world because of our stand for Jesus and for His truth. They were soon to be confronted with their Master’s personal demonstration of His yoke.

To Live Or To Die

Bible Study, , , ,

TO LIVE OR TO DIE

“Yes, and I will rejoice, for I know that through your prayers and God’s provision of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, what has happened to me will turn out for my deliverance. I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but will have sufficient courage so that now, as always, Christ shall be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.” Philippians 1:18b-21.

This man, Paul, continues to amaze me! His concern was not to get out of prison but to have the courage to stand for Jesus whether it meant life or death. He relied on two things, the prayers of his fellow believers, and the Holy Spirit whom God had given to him at his new birth. Paul saw deliverance, not as freedom from imprisonment in Rome but freedom from his own fleshly nature which cowered at the thought of dying a gruesome death.

Prayer is a mystery, isn’t it? Why should the prayers of his brothers and sisters in Philippi make any difference to his attitude? Surely God was with him and the Holy Spirit in him there in Rome. What difference could their prayers make to him, whether he was courageous or cowardly in the face of impending martyrdom? That was his greatest concern. To face the sword or the wild beasts without flinching was more important to him than getting out of prison or staying alive.

Paul would rather die without shame than deny his Lord, and there was every possibility that he would be called on to make the choice of confessing that Caesar was Lord or facing the consequences. And with Nero there was no mercy. He hated Christians so fervently that no torture was too heinous to make them suffer for their loyalty to a Galilean Jew whom the Romans had crucified.

The thought of dying held no terror for Paul. His hope was in Jesus. He had met Him face-to-face on the Damascus road. He knew He was real, alive and with him. He knew that the moment he stepped out of his mortal body, he would be with Him forever and in the glory of the Father’s presence. In fact, he yearned for that day, the day of his release from the flesh, which had been his enemy from birth.

Living in his human, mortal body was a journey – daily dying to the demands of his sinful nature and learning to rely on the Holy Spirit who energised his spirit with the life of Jesus. He used every opportunity to rely on His strength in his human weakness. Paul was dead to himself and alive by the life of Jesus in him but, nevertheless, he found the thought of martyrdom at the hands of Nero daunting, to say the least.

The thought of the prayers of his beloved brothers and sisters in Philippi comforted him. In a way that only God understood, prayer was God’s way of engaging with His people to do His will. Of course He would give Paul the courage and strength to endure, but how much better when His people partnered with Him through prayer. Instead of feeling helpless, they could do something positive to help Paul face his trials with courage and know that, because God was a loving Father to them and to Paul, they could trust Him to do whatever was necessary to give Paul the victory.

Can you imagine life without prayer? What would it be like if we had no way of engaging with God in our suffering and in the suffering of those dear to us? How could we do God’s will if we had no way of communicating with Him? What would we do with our anxieties and fears if we could not cast them on the Lord? How could we express our love to Him and worship Him if we could not draw near to Him? We would not even be able to offload our misgivings and mistrust of Him if we could not talk to Him.

Prayer means a thousand things to us, and God knew that when He invited us to draw near to Him. Prayer is one of the greatest gifts a loving Father could ever give His child. Unlike many human fathers who are either too busy or too indifferent to listen to their children, God is passionate about our coming to Him, so passionate in fact, that He sent His Son to clear the obstacles out of the way so that we can approach Him without fear.

“Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, His body, and since we have a great high priest over the house of God, let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water.” Hebrews 10:19-22.

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.