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. He spoke plainly about this, and Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. - Mark 8:31-32
Which disciple best describes you? Are you like John, contemplative and thoughtful, someone who takes time to ponder spiritual truths? Or maybe you are like James, brash and full of action? Is Philip more your style, always bringing people to Jesus? Or do you feel closer to Bartholemew, someone faithful but sitting in the background? Me? I’m like Peter. Too often, I find myself saying something I wish I could take back. I speak before I think, and I leap before I look.
Peter is a man of intense faithfulness; he desires to live as close to Jesus as possible. But he often puts his foot in his mouth. As hard as Peter tries, he never quite gets things exactly right. Perhaps the biggest example of this is his rebuke of Jesus. Jesus describes his upcoming crucifixion, and Peter fires off a rebuke that does nothing but highlight his own misunderstanding.
I am happy that Jesus chose Peter to be a disciple because he echoes our own experience of faith. As hard as we try, none of us are as perfect as we want to be. We say or do the wrong thing from time to time. And sometimes, like Peter, we claim to know more than we do. Dare I suggest that, at times, we may have even rebuked the Lord?
Peter’s rebuke of Jesus reveals how easy it is for us to fall into such a trap. Peter bases his rebuke on three misconceptions, misconceptions that we can make about our faith.
Misunderstanding the Kingdom
Peter's rebuke shows a misunderstanding about the way of redemption. Peter believed redemption was about vanquishing Israel’s enemies and establishing national glory. The problem, of course, was that God’s redemptive plan wasn't politically based. Jesus came not to be an earthly king but a heavenly one. Thus, the road to glory was utterly different. "Jesus began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, chief priests, and teachers of the law, that he must be killed and after three days rise again. Jesus spoke plainly about this” (Mark 8:31). Jesus used no flowery language, no metaphors, parables, or stories. Jesus spoke openly about his suffering and death. This was the way of the Kingdom.
But Peter didn't want to hear it. He rebuked Jesus and, in doing so, suggested that Jesus didn’t understand the messianic job description. By rebuking Jesus, Peter puts Jesus under his authority and demands that he follow Peter’s understanding of how the Kingdom of God would be brought about.
Before criticizing Peter too much, we should ask ourselves: Do we try to muscle Jesus into our plans? Do we force Jesus into a preconceived box and demand that he serve our wishes and understandings? When we do so, we assert that we know more about the kingdom of God than he does. We effectively rebuke the Lordship of Jesus and place ourselves as the arbiter of the Kingdom. Such an attitude betrays the spirit of humility that we are to inhabit. The Lordship of Christ is not something that we wield for our benefit or control. Faith means we bow before the Lord in humility, trust, and obedience.
Embracing the World
When Peter rebuked Jesus, he suggested he knew more about God’s redemptive plan than Jesus did. Yet his understanding was limited and finite, based solely on human conceptions and ideas. For the Jewish people of the day, the term “Messiah” carried the expectations of power, prestige, and Kingly rule. The Messiah would come to the people, end Roman tyranny, and reestablish the glory of Israel. This is how Peter understood the role and mission of the Messiah.
Peter isn’t alone in this, either. James and John ask Jesus to sit on his right and left, thereby assuming positions of glory and power (Mark 10:37). The disciples believed that Jesus’ exultation somehow “spilled over” to themselves. The human-based glory of Jesus would mean the human-based glory of the disciples.
But this understanding of God’s redemptive plan is false. God’s kingdom is not one of worldly success or power. Jesus says to Peter, ‘Get behind me, Satan! You do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men” (Mark 8:33). Peter's finite understanding stood in opposition to God’s redemptive plan because he was thinking only in terms of human power.
Jesus did not come for human glory but for the glorification of God. His redemptive plan was seen in sacrifice and vulnerability, not in wielding political strength. Similarly, we are called to turn away from worldly concepts of power. Pursuing worldly fame, prestige, or influence necessary betrays our allegiance to Christ. James writes, “Don’t you know that friendship with the world is enmity with God” (James 4:4). Following Jesus necessarily puts us at odds with the world around us. Faith in Christ means we embody his way of grace, love, and self-sacrifice.
Refusing the Cross
Jesus is clear: the way of the Kingdom is the way of the cross. Jesus says, “If anyone would come after me, they must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me” (Matthew 16:24). Make no mistake, Jesus is calling his disciples to walk a road that would lead to martyrdom. For the followers of Jesus, the cross was a symbol of extreme punishment and death. To take up their cross meant that they were willing to undergo shame, ridicule, torture, and death for the sake of following Jesus.
Refusing to walk the way of sacrificial love suggests that the way of the cross is mistaken. It is to favor our comfort and ease more than our allegiance to Christ. Instead of pursuing Christ’s kingdom, we look to the maximization of our own glory.
But this misunderstands the cross. For as much as the cross is the way of sacrifice, it is also the way of resurrection. In Peter’s enthusiastic refusal of the cross, he missed this important teaching. Jesus is clear that he will be crucified but that he will be raised on the third day. Jesus was open about the resurrection and the way of eternal life. Paul writes about how we share in the suffering of Christ so that we may share in his resurrection (Romans8:17-18). To follow the way of the cross is to embrace our resurrection.
Do we embrace the cross? Are we willing to accept the reproach of family or friends because of our faith? Or do we shun the cross and keep it at a safe distance? Do we rebuke all the hard stuff of faith, such as the call to self-denial or repentance? Do we like to be found in the way of Jesus only for short times - while the rest of our life is lived in pursuit of our own leisure or entertainment?
Embracing the words of Jesus can be demanding at times, even uncomfortable. Because of this, it may be tempting to base our Christian life on our own faulty understandings. And in those moments, we are more like Peter than we may realize. But the good news is that our Lord is eternally gracious towards us. He does not cast us off or discredit our faith. He calls us back to himself so we may know him more deeply and walk in faith and obedience.
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