...time to stand up and be counted...

“18 Once when Jesus was praying alone, with only the disciples near Him, He asked them, ‘Who do the crowds say that I am?’ 19 They answered, ‘John the Baptist; but others, Elijah; and still others, that one of the ancient prophets has arisen.’ 20 He said to them, ‘But who do you say that I am?’ Peter answered, ‘The Messiah of God.’

21 He sternly ordered and commanded them not to tell anyone, 22 saying, ‘The Son of Man must undergo great suffering, and be rejected by the elders, chief priests, and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised.’

23 Then Jesus said to them all, ‘If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me. 24 For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will save it. 25 What does it profit them if they gain the whole world, but lose or forfeit themselves? 26 Those who are ashamed of Me and of My words, of them the Son of Man will be ashamed when He comes in His glory and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels. 27 But truly I tell you, there are some standing here who will not taste death before they see the kingdom of God’” Luke 9:18-27.

Jesus asked an awful lot of questions in this passage from Mark. But these questions weren’t just a quiz, sitting around a fire one night. Jesus wasn’t curious here, no, Jesus wanted to make sure that the disciples got His message, and that they had worked through it. For sure, when Peter said to Jesus that Jesus was “the Messiah of God” he wasn’t answering an easy question, because Jesus hadn’t done a lot of things that the Messiah was supposed to do. Jesus wasn’t an “anointed king” and He hadn’t freed Israel from Rome or rebuilt the Temple in Jerusalem. No enemies of Israel had been destroyed, and He had not brought justice and peace to the world with a new form of government.

What made Peter so great, and his answer so remarkable, is that Peter would have had to take a breath before giving Jesus that answer. Look at Peter’s answer: You’re the long-awaited Messiah, because you’re the Messiah of God! You’re the King, the Coming One. You’re not just a prophet. You’re the One. You’re the One we’ve been waiting for!

Now friends, if Jesus is who He says He is — the Messiah — then you better be committed to following Him! And so Jesus tells Peter and the others — including you and me — I thank God that you know who I am! But now let me tell you what it really means to follow Me. Let Me tell you what it means that really am God’s Messiah: If any of you want to become My followers, you have to deny yourselves and take up your cross daily and follow Me. For whoever wants to save your life will lose it, and whoever loses your life for My sake will save it. What does it profit you if you gain the whole world, but lose or forfeit yourselves? Those of you who are ashamed of Me and of My words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of you when He comes in His glory and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels.

So today Jesus is asking you and me this question: Who do you think I am?

Now tell Jesus your answer! Tell Him how much you love Him, and ask for His mercy for not doing things that are difficult for you to do! Ask Jesus to give you a share of His courage and faithfulness to follow Him from here-on-in! Forever! No matter the cost! Because your days and my days are numbered!

Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the Living God,

have mercy on me a sinner.