Take Up Your Cross

Gospel of Mark. You'll remember that the Gospels tell the story of Jesus and his life and his death

and his resurrection. And we'll be continuing this week in Mark chapter 8 starting at verse

Mark 8 · chapter mention

31. You'll remember from last week we hit this hinge in the book, this high point where Peter

finally confesses Christ, understands his identity not just as Jesus a man but also as God himself.

But we'll find out here as we continue that Peter knows very little of what he's saying.

And so as we continue I'm going to invite you to turn now with me. You can turn with me in your

Bible. You can turn with me in your worship guide. You can turn with me in your phone. No matter where

you turn remember that this is God's word and God tells us that his word is a lamp to our feet

and a light to our path which means that God has not left us to stumble alone in the dark

but instead he's given us his word to show us the way to go. And so that's why we read now together

Mark chapter 8 starting at verse 31.

Mark 8 · chapter mention

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 again. And he said this plainly

and Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. But turning and seeing his disciples he rebuked Peter and said

get behind me Satan for you are not setting your mind on the things of God but on the things of man.

Verse 34. And calling the crowd to him with his disciples he said to them if anyone would come after

me let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it

but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospels will save it. For what does it profit a man's

again the whole world and forfeit his soul? For what can a man give in return for his soul?

For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation

of him will the Son of Man also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.

I invite you to pray with me as we come to this portion of God's word.

Our Father in heaven we come to you as we often do easily distracted with our minds on many different

things. We ask that you would help us to focus now on one thing. That is you speak to us in your word

like a good father to his children. That you would help us to be attentive. That you would

open our ears and our eyes. That you'd clear our minds. That you'd soften our hearts. That we would be able to

hear and see and understand and believe everything that you've written in your word. We ask these things in the

mighty name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

I know that many of you are familiar with the 1987 cult classic, The Princess Bride,

which tells the story of a woman named Buttercup who

has true love with a farmhand named Wesley, but of course she

encounters a variety of obstacles. One of which is that she's kidnapped

by three men.

And one of those three is a Sicilian

named Vizzini who has this favorite word that he likes to say

over and over again,

which is

inconceivable.

The problem is that he uses this word in situations that are extremely conceivable.

He sees something happening right in front of him and then he says,

well of course this can't be happening. And so it reaches this tension point.

There's another kidnapper named Inigo Montoya who finally says to him

these famous words.

You keep using that word.

I don't think it means what you think it means.

Mark chapter 8 verses 31 through 38 is Jesus' Inigo Montoya moment with Peter.

Mark 8:31–38

Peter has just confessed Christ.

He has said that Jesus is the anointed one.

He is not just a prophet or a priest or a king.

He is the prophet, the priest, and the king.

And Peter, like Vizzini, has no idea what that word actually means.

He is using the right word for Jesus and he has the wrong meaning.

And so that's why in this story Jesus jumps in explaining things, verse 32,

to them plainly.

He is no longer doing what he did in Mark chapter 4

Mark 4 · chapter mention

where he would explain things in parables that needed to be understood with additional explanation.

Instead, he tells them clearly that being the Messiah, being the Son of Man,

means something different than what Peter and the Jews of that time expected.

It meant that he would suffer, be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes,

and be killed.

And this is the opposite of what they expect.

If Jesus is the Christ, does that not mean that he is the king?

And what is it that kings do?

Kings do not die.

Kings don't get killed.

Kings do the killing.

Jesus has flipped something upside down.

This is complete nonsense that he is talking.

And so Peter here so helpfully steps in once again

to get Jesus back on the right track.

Verse 32, Peter takes him aside and begins to rebuke him.

This is similar to what we saw in chapter 6

when Jesus was feeding the 5,000.

Remember, the disciples pulled him aside to remind him

that these people who'd been listening to him for so long

obviously needed to leave and get something to eat.

It is hard to keep Jesus on track.

In fact, it may seem at times to the disciples

that Jesus is so heavenly-minded that he is of no earthly good.

And so Peter here just needs to help Jesus understand

what it is that it means to be the Christ or the Messiah.

No, Jesus, you're not going to be killed.

You're going to kill.

You're not going to be trampled.

You're going to come and crush the Romans for us.

You're either going to be the one who finally brings

the dreams and hopes of the Jewish nation to a culmination.

But it is Peter, like Venzini, who is completely wrong.

It is Peter who does not know what the word Christ means.

And so that's why Jesus here, verse 33,

turns and rebukes him.

There's a parallel here.

Verse 32, Peter rebukes Jesus.

Verse 33, the same word, Jesus rebukes Peter

in these strong words.

Get behind me, Satan, for you are not setting your mind

on the things of God, but on the things of man.

Now, Peter here has not somehow mysteriously

transformed into Satan.

He's not been possessed in some way.

What Jesus is saying is that the work of Satan

is the work that takes Jesus away from the cross.

And so the words that Peter is speaking

are words that are opposed to Jesus and his mission.

It's at this moment with this background

that Jesus then calls in this larger group.

He wants to talk to more than just the 12

about the true meaning of this word.

That's why verse 34, we see him call the crowd

together with him, together with his disciples

before he gives them this important teaching.

In his rebuke to Peter, he helps us understand

that there are two ways and only two ways

to live in this world.

Look with me at verse 33.

You are not setting your mind on the things of God,

but the things of man.

The things of God versus the things of man.

And Jesus is going to explain that here.

Verses 35 through 37, we begin to understand

what the things of man look like.

Verse 35, for whoever would save his life will lose it,

but whoever loses his life for my sake

and the gospels will save it.

Verse 36, he goes on to explain what it means

to try to save your life.

For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world

and forfeit his soul?

For what can a man give in return for his soul?

In other words, living by the things of man

means that we want power, wealth, honor,

influence, and success now.

The person who wants the things of this world,

there's an economic undertone.

Verse 37, what can a man give in return for his soul?

In other words, how much money would it take

to buy your soul?

Never enough.

You can never experience so much success in this life

that the economic trade-off is worth it.

How would you do that though?

How would you gain the entire world?

How is it that you would experience that honor and success,

that glory, everything that you want right now?

Jesus makes it clear to us.

Verse 38,

for whoever is ashamed of me and of my words

in this adulterous and sinful generation.

In other words,

there are many nice and wonderful and kind people

who are living according to the way of the world.

There are many nice and wonderful and kind people

whose beliefs and views and commitments change

based on what is best for me right now.

They are gaining temporary things

that this world has to offer at the expense of Jesus.

You can save your life,

and when Jesus says save your life,

he means save it now.

You can save your life and gain the whole world,

but you'll be ashamed of me and my words.

You cannot have Jesus

and everything that this world has to offer right now.

You cannot have Jesus

and everything this world has to offer right now.

Peter is looking for a conquering king here and now.

He is looking for Jesus to do something in that time

and that place that will look extremely powerful

in the eyes of the world.

And Jesus is saying that his power and his kingdom

in all its fullness and glory

is something that is saved for the future.

Because right now,

it is suffering and sacrifice.

Here's what the things of God really look like.

Verse 34.

Deny yourself,

take up your cross,

and follow me.

Now, it's important for us to remember

that the idea of the cross,

the image of the cross,

was not something sentimental at this time.

It would not have been something

that people would have worn as necklaces

or as jewelry.

Instead, the cross was this symbol

of incredible shame and dishonor and suffering.

The cross was only for people

who were outcasts of society.

It would have been typical

if someone was crucified

for the vertical piece of the cross

to already be waiting for them.

And so Jesus is giving them a real image

that they would have understand.

Someone who carried their cross

would have taken that horizontal bar

and they would have put it on their shoulder

as they took the trip to their crucifixion.

To carry your cross then

meant at least two things.

First, it meant you were on your journey to death.

If you saw someone carrying that horizontal bar,

you knew that within a matter of hours,

they would no longer be alive.

In addition, it meant that you were an object

of incredible shame.

If someone saw you carrying your cross,

they would know that you were the worst of the worst.

They would know that you were not just a regular criminal,

you were a terrible criminal.

They would know that you hadn't just made a small mistake,

but that you had denied the world.

And so Jesus is telling Peter here,

you are looking to honor and success and victory now.

But instead, if you follow me,

you are going to lose pleasure and comfort and ease.

You are going to lose social status.

You are going to lose this world

to be connected with me and my words.

In other words, there is an inevitable conflict

and collision with this world

if and when and as we follow after Jesus.

We cannot escape it.

There will always be a loss.

Christianity is not an extracurricular

to add on to an otherwise beautiful life.

It is instead the way of life.

It is a completely different orientation

with different loves and goals and objectives.

It's like we've talked about before

that Christianity is a keystone commitment,

not an accessory commitment.

It will limit how much we experience

of the goodness of this world

as we look forward to the goodness in the future.

When we were going through 1 and 2 Peter,

I told you some stories from the book

Candles Behind the Wall,

which tells the story of the church under communism.

One of the stories it tells is of the pressures

that teenagers experienced during this time

is they were strongly encouraged

to take part in communist youth organizations.

Even more than strongly encouraged,

it was known that if you did not take part

in these organizations,

you would be limited in two ways.

You'd be limited in the type of school

you would be able to attend

or whether you'd be able to attend school at all,

and you would be limited in the type of job

that you would be able to have.

In other words, Christians made a lot less money

if they chose to remain faithful.

Doors were closed.

Opportunities were closed to them.

And so she tells the story of two sisters,

Marsha and Vera Borisov,

who were on their way to becoming incredible surgeons.

They had studied hard in school

and they were extremely successful.

The only problem is they had to meet each of them

with a commission who would examine them

as to whether they would be allowed

to continue in their education.

They were told they met

and they're asked this question,

why was she not a member

of this communist youth organization?

Maybe it's because you're a Christian believer.

One of the examining professors ventured probingly.

Both girls had read the Bible since their childhood

and they knew well the passage where Jesus said,

I tell you, everyone who acknowledges me before others,

the Son of Man also will acknowledge

before the angels of God.

But whoever denies me before others

will be denied before the angels of God.

And that's from Luke chapter 12.

Luke 12 · chapter mention

As Marsha stood before the committee of 30,

all of whom were waiting for her answer,

she remembered this verse.

She imagined the company of heaven

looking on at that moment

to see how she would answer the question.

She knew what answer she had to give

regardless of what the commission thought.

Yes, she said, I am a Christian.

Interrogated separately,

her sister Vera gave the same answer.

The result of the committee's examinations

of both girls was predictable.

They were rejected.

Because they knew the word of God,

they stood firm and confessed Christ.

Those girls knew the truth of what Jesus says here.

Whoever would save his life will lose it,

but whoever loses his life for my sake

and the gospel's will save it.

Everyone wants to be a gangster

until it's time to do gangster things.

Everyone wants to be a disciple of Jesus

until it's time to do disciple things.

Following Jesus means loss in this world.

In our economic lives,

it is difficult,

if not impossible,

to live a life of constant consumption

and peak experiences

if we are following Jesus' call

to a life of radical generosity

and hospitality and service.

in our community lives,

it is difficult,

if not impossible,

to only hang out with those

who look like us

and think like us

if we are following Jesus' call

to base our communities around the gospel

rather than our preferences and hobbies.

It is difficult,

if not impossible,

in our vocational lives

to make it all the way up

the corporate ladder

in the world of the West

unless you're willing to celebrate lies

and sexual perversion.

It is difficult,

if not impossible,

to teach the next generation

to love and follow Jesus

without sacrifices and trade-offs.

Following Jesus in this world

comes at a cost.

There is a price

for valuing him

above everything else.

So I've made a pretty bad sales pitch here.

And the question is this,

why would you choose that?

Why would you want to lose out

on all those good

and wonderful and beautiful things?

Why would you say no

for gathering

with an awkward group of people

like us on Sunday morning?

Thankfully, Jesus does not just provide

a call to obedience here.

He also helps us understand

what gives us the motivation

and the power and the love

to keep going.

And it is this,

that Christians live

for something greater and higher.

Christians have a more expansive view

of the world

and view of the future.

Remember from that story,

what was it that she imagined

all around her,

but the angels looking on

to hear her answer

to the question

from that commission.

Why would you deny yourself

unless there is something greater

and more precious

and more valuable?

How do we put aside

the temptations of this world?

Well, the answer is here

right for us in this text.

Verse 34 provides a sandwich

at the beginning

and at the end

of this suffering

that he talks about.

If anyone would come after me,

suffering, suffering, suffering, suffering,

follow me.

Jesus is at the beginning

and the end.

He is the sandwich

of this statement.

This begins and ends

with us keeping Jesus clear

in our sights

as he is the vision

that we have in front of us.

We are trading honor now

for honor later.

Verse 38 tells us

what it is

that we're headed for.

If whoever is ashamed of me

and my words

in this adulterous

and sinful generation,

of him will the Son of Man

also be ashamed

when he comes

in the glory of his Father

with the holy angels.

If that's true

for those who are ashamed,

what is true

for those who remain faithful?

Well, it's the opposite.

Whoever is associated

with Jesus

and his words

no matter what

in this adulterous

and sinful generation,

of him

will the Son of Man

come back

and say,

well done,

good and faithful servant.

of him

will the Son of Man

come back

and welcome

into his kingdom.

Of him

will the Son of Man

give a large embrace.

Christians are able

to put aside

the things of this world

that might pull us away

because we have

such a greater

and brighter future

to look forward to.

We are not carrying

our cross, period.

we are carrying

our cross

following Jesus.

Jesus is the reason

that this

is worth it.

He tells us

in verse 38

that he is

coming back

and so Christians

look forward

to that day.

In the spring

of 2009,

I went on

a traveling

study abroad program

that I have

mentioned a few

other times

over the years

and one of the places

that we went to

was Italy

and we spent

about two weeks

in the city of Rome.

While we were in Rome,

there was a point

at which we were

supposed to go out

to this fancy dinner

with some alumni

of our college

who were going to

teach us some things

about wine.

It was sort of

decided by many people

in this group

that we were going

to dress up

for this event.

Now,

one of my friends

was on this trip

and right before

she left,

she had started

dating a man

that she was

madly in love

with him

and he was

madly in love

with her.

She had already

committed to

the study abroad

trip.

So they started

dating maybe

two months

before she left

the country

for four or five

months.

And so they did

their best

to keep in touch

and of course

he was looking

forward to the day

and she was

looking forward

to the day

when she would

come back

to the United States

and they would

be reunited.

As we went

to this dinner

she did not

dress up

unlike all

the other girls

on the trip.

As I talked

to her on the way

she explained

to me

I only want

to dress up

for him.

I don't care

what anyone

else thinks.

Brothers and sisters

as we go

through this

world

we are

looking forward

to the verse

38 moment

when we are

reunited with

Christ and the

Son of Man

is coming on

the clouds.

We do not

care what

anyone else

thinks.

We do not

dress up

for anyone

else.

We only

want to look

good for

him.

Jesus

opinion

is the

only

opinion

we

care

about.

That's

why we

come back

week after

week and

gather

together

that we

can

remind

one

another

of

what

is

true

in the

present

and

what

would

be

true

in

the

future

that

we

would

never

lose

sight

that

our

perspective

would

say

true

that

the

horizon

line

that

we

look

toward

would

be

the

correct

one

it

would

be

the

one

that

is

high

enough

there's

a woman

named

Zane

Asher

who's

currently

a news

anchor

for

CNN

National

and

in

April

of

this

year

she

released

her

autobiography

called

Where

the

Children

Take

Us

and

she

tells

this

unlikely

story

of how

she

was

raised

by a

mom

who

was

both

a

widow

and

an

immigrant

from

Nigeria

in

South

London

and

despite

her

difficult

circumstances

against

all

these

odds

Zane

goes

on

to

become

a

student

at

Oxford

she

then

goes

on

to

work

for

CNN

much

of

it

because

of

her

mom's

vision

when

Zane

was

13

years

old

her

mom

created

this

dream

for

her

that

she

was

going

to

attend

Oxford

University

now

at

the

same

time

that

her

mother

had

given

her

this

vision

this

dream

of her

future

Zane

also

discovered

how

fun

it

was

to

party

and

so

about

a

year

later

she

had

found

out

that

she

could

sneak

out

at

night

and

if

she

was

careful

she'd

be able

to

experience

everything

that

London

had

to

offer

and

then

she

could

sneak

back

and

her

mom

would

be

none

the

wiser

until

one

night

she

came

in

around

3

a.m.

and

her

mom

finally

caught

her

now

you

have

this

strict

mother

with

great

dreams

for

her

daughter

what

do

you

expect

to

happen

at

this

point

you

expect

maybe

she

would

be

grounded

maybe

there

would

be

increased

discipline

and

punishment

but

in

fact

her

mother

does

something

very

different

she

tells

us

this

she

was

angry

but

rather

than

punishing

me

as

she

ordinarily

might

have

she

took

me

back

to

visit

Oxford

less

than

a year

after

our

first

trip

we

made

the

60

mile

pilgrimage

once

again

to

wander

those

hallowed

streets

this

time

we

stayed

a little

longer

and

again

we

returned

happy

and

inspired

in

this

way

a

mother

daughter

tradition

was

born

that

spanned

the

entirety

of my

teenage

years

whenever

I

misbehaved

or stayed

out

later

than I

should

I

was

never

grounded

or spanked

or forced

to do

chores

instead

my mother

would take

me back

to visit

Oxford

to show

me something

better

to aspire

to

brothers and

sisters

when we

are tempted

to turn

away

from Christ

when we

believe that

what this

world

has to

offer

is better

than what

Jesus

gives

us

the

answer

is not

greater

discipline

or self

control

the answer

is that

we fill

our minds

and our

hearts

again

with the

vision

of the

future

that is

true

we

remember

that

Jesus

is coming

on the

clouds

and we

will let

nothing

get in

the way

and a

few years

later

Zane

became a

student

at Oxford

verse 35

for whoever

would save

his life

will lose

it

but whoever

loses his

life for

my sake

and the

gospels

will save

it

for whoever

is ashamed

of me

and of my

words

in this

adulterous

and sinful

generation

of him

will the

son of

man

also be

ashamed

when he

comes

in the

glory

of his

father

with the

holy

angels

let's

pray

our

father

in heaven

we

thank you

this morning

that you

don't

simply

call us

to

obedience

but you

have adopted

us as

your sons

and your

daughters

and you've

given us

all the

privileges

that come

with that

that we

have an

inheritance

that is

protected

and safe

to look

forward

to

and even

more than

that

we have

you

with us

physically

separated

from sin

and death

and suffering

forever

we ask

that you

would create

a vision

in our hearts

and our minds

that would be

greater than

anything else

that this world

could offer

that you

would let

large things

eclipse

small things

that beautiful

things

would block

out ugly

things

we thank you

that you do

this by your

word and we

ask that you

continue

to grow us

to love

and follow

you

we ask

these things

in the mighty

name of

Jesus Christ

amen