"The Suffering King: Embracing the Path of the Messiah" | Mark 8:27-9:13 | The Gospel of Mark Series | Hillside Baptist Church

Transformation is often hidden, slow, and painful, long before it becomes beautiful.

We see this lesson in creation when a caterpillar disappears into a cocoon.

What follows looks like silence, stillness, even death.

But in the darkness, the creator is quietly shaping life.

A lowly, crawling creature is being remade, cell by cell, into something entirely new.

And when the time is right, it emerges in glory, once lowly, now radiant, forever changed.

And that image is more than just a wonder of nature, it's a living picture of the Christian faith.

When Jesus calls someone to follow him, he's not offering a life of ease.

He calls us to die, to lay down our pride, to let go of comfort, and to walk the hard road of obedience.

The path of discipleship isn't paved with convenience, but often with rejection, sacrifice, and suffering.

It's the same road our Lord walked before us, a road he paved himself, marked by blood and crowned with thorns.

But that is not the whole story.

In fact, it's not even the end of the story.

We suffer with him, that we may also be glorified with him.

For those in Christ, suffering is never the final word.

Glory is coming.

And even now, in the present age, God gives us glimpses, moments that pull back the veil and remind us that following Jesus is not in vain.

This morning, we come to a passage where that tension between suffering and glory comes to the surface in a powerful way.

The disciples are learning what it means to follow Jesus, not just to admire him, but to walk his path.

And that path is far more costly and far more glorious than they could ever imagine.

Let's open our Bibles to Mark chapter 8, beginning in verse 27.

Mark 8 · chapter mention

As we come to this point in Mark's gospel, it's helpful to remember what we've seen so far.

From the very beginning, the proclamation of the good news through Jesus' powerful ministry of teaching, miracles, and growing opposition, this question continued to linger.

Who is this man, Jesus?

Slowly but surely, we begin to see that Jesus is more than just a man.

He does what only Yahweh can do.

And yet, there still seems to be a mystery and some confusion about his full identity and his purpose.

It's still a bit blurry, like the first part of Jesus' healing, the blind man, in the previous episode.

Now we enter into what some call act two of Mark's gospel, where the focus begins to shift from Jesus' identity to Jesus' mission.

And with that in mind, let's prepare our hearts to receive God's word this morning by going to Him in prayer.

Let's pray.

Father, we we ask for your help this morning as we open your word.

We know that it's only your Holy Spirit who gives us eyes to see, ears to hear, to be able to understand, to be able to see your Son Jesus truly for who he is, to understand his mission.

God, let these not just be words on a page this morning, but would you work in our hearts that we would grow in our love and our worship for you?

We pray all this in Jesus' name.

Amen.

Mark chapter 8, verses 27 through 30.

Mark 8:27–30

And Jesus went out along with his disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi, and on the way he was asking his disciples, saying to them, Who do people say that I am?

And they told him, saying, John the Baptist, others say Elijah, but others one of the prophets.

And he continued asking them, But who do you say that I am?

Peter answered and said to him, You are the Christ.

And he warned them to tell no one about him.

As we've grown accustomed to throughout Mark's gospel, Jesus is constantly on the move.

It seems like he can't stay in one place very long, and yet wherever he goes, it's with intention and purpose.

So when our gospel author tells us a particular location, it must be important.

Just before this, in verses 22 through 26, Jesus and his disciples were in Beth Seda, which is at the northern edge of the Sea of Galilee.

Now they've traveled even further north to the villages of Caesarea Philippi.

Now, this place carries deep historical and spiritual significance.

It was only a couple centuries earlier that it wasn't called that.

It was known as Panion, named after the Greek god Pan, who was worshipped in a cave there.

The area was also the site of a major military victory for the Seleucid king Antiochus III over Egypt, and later became part of Herod the Great's territory under Roman rule.

Herod built a stunning marble temple here to honor Caesar.

And after his death, his son Philip rebuilt and renamed the city Caesarea Philippi in honor of both Caesar and himself.

So here we have a city steeped in pagan worship, imperial power, and political ambition, a fitting place for Jesus to ask the most important question: Who do you say that I am?

Jesus begins by first asking his disciples, Who do people say that I am?

And it's no surprise by now that the disciples have heard people talking about Jesus.

And while many things could be said of Jesus, both positive and negative, depending on who was asked, it was clear that many of the people considered him to be at the very least a prophet of some kind.

After all, how else would he have been able to perform the mighty miracles that they all witnessed?

Comparisons to John the Baptist and Elijah are interesting to note.

One, if you remember just a few chapters earlier, was recently martyred and also a contemporary of Jesus, while the other has been long dead.

So how could he be either of these people?

Perhaps it has to do with the Jewish expectations of Jesus' day.

Suffering under the rule of Rome, they longed for their Messiah, who they believed would liberate them politically from Rome.

There were expectations that Elijah must come first before the Messiah is ushered in.

In fact, we'll see this expressed later in our passage today by the disciples themselves.

And Jesus confirms that Elijah did come first, alluding to the life and ministry of John the Baptist.

And so, as they witnessed the mighty works of Jesus, the prophetic ministry of John the Baptist, and Jesus' preaching of the kingdom, they can't help but to wonder if all of this was pointing to their coming Messiah.

But people only saw Jesus as among these prophets.

At this point, nothing more.

It's revealing in the disciples' response to Jesus' question of who do people say that I am?

They are right to identify him as a prophet, yet this label still falls short of his full identity.

It's incomplete.

Yes, he is a prophet, but he's so much more.

The question really then becomes who says that I am more than a prophet?

And so Jesus directs his initial question towards his own disciples.

But who do you say that I am?

This is a critical question.

Perhaps the single most important question a person must answer about Jesus.

It's as if Jesus is saying, okay, that might be what others say about me, but what do you have to say?

Who do you say that I am?

And of course, Peter, taking the lead among the disciples, he's the first one to say to him, You are the Christ.

In this moment, Peter declares that Jesus is the Messiah.

The word Christ means anointed one, a title uniquely reserved for God's promised King.

And aside from Mark's opening verse, where the narrator identifies Jesus as the Christ, the Son of God, this is the first time that anyone within the story recognizes and confesses him as the Christ.

But there's a problem.

Like many others, Peter has the wrong understanding and expectations of the Messiah.

And whenever Jesus knows that someone has an improper understanding of his identity and his purpose, he orders them to silence.

Jesus doesn't deny that he is the Christ, but he won't have Peter going around telling everyone that he is the Christ because Peter doesn't yet have a proper understanding of Jesus' mission.

Since many Jews at the time expected the Messiah to be a political figure, their expectations would also include the Messiah throwing off the oppressive regime of Rome and to re-establish Israel as an independent kingdom.

So if they found out about Jesus' identity, they might attempt to make him king to try and bring this about.

This would no doubt gain the unneeded attention from Rome.

Think about that.

How do you think Rome would respond?

It's likely they would respond pretty violently if they heard about someone claiming to be a competing king, this Jewish Messiah.

It's a threat directly to Rome.

And it would interfere with Jesus being able to freely preach and do what he was sent to do.

And so as a result, if that were to happen, it would cut short his ministry during a time when he had much work to do.

And so it becomes imperative that Peter and the disciples tell no one about him, since no one seems to understand Jesus' true mission that comes with a proper understanding of the Messiah.

That's why Jesus' identity had to remain hidden as part of, if you can remember, this messianic secret.

This is the first time that Jesus explains what must happen to him.

He, as 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.

Jesus states this very openly, very plainly to his disciples.

In other words, Jesus didn't hold back.

This goes against everything they believed and expected from the Messiah.

How can he reign if he's dead?

How will Israel be fully delivered from the oppressive rule of Rome?

No, this can't happen.

It won't happen.

At least not on Peter's watch.

Peter grows so concerned about it, he pulls Jesus aside and tries to talk some sense into him.

He treats Jesus as though this mission is an obstacle to God's rule.

Peter seems to think that he knows more about what needs to happen to secure God's reign than the king himself.

Peter, no doubt, felt that it was his duty as a leader of the twelve to speak up.

It's even possible that the others shared Peter's views and were watching to see how Jesus would respond.

And so Jesus rebukes Peter in the full presence of the other disciples for thinking according to the ways of the world and not setting his mind on the interests of God.

It was a rebuke for Peter, but in some ways it was a rebuke for all who shared in this mindset.

How often are we like Peter in this type of thinking?

Even when we confess Jesus as Lord, we still try to fit him into our own expectations.

We want a Messiah who aligns with our desires, one who blesses our plans, secures our comfort, and spares us from suffering.

And this self-centered view of discipleship shows up in real ways.

It shows up in how we pray.

It's not your will be done, but here's what I want.

It shows up in how we spend our time and money prioritizing convenience over obedience.

It shows up in how we choose comfort over sacrifice, ease over faithfulness, and safety over boldness for the kingdom of God.

We need this reminder to set our minds upon the interests of God above our own.

Continuing with verses thirty-four through thirty-eight.

And he summoned the crowd with his disciples and said to them, If anyone wishes to come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.

For whoever wishes to 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 to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul?

For what will a man give in exchange for his soul?

For whoever is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will also be ashamed of him when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.

What we see here is that true discipleship comes at a cost.

Jesus doesn't invite us to follow him on our own terms.

This isn't poetic language.

It's the language of death, of sacrifice, of walking willingly into suffering for the sake of God's kingdom interests.

And this isn't something he asks of us without doing it himself.

Jesus doesn't send us down a road he hasn't walked.

He leads the way to Calvary.

A disciple imitates Jesus best by doing as he did, to welcome suffering when it was in the interest of God, and to deny oneself of human ambitions.

Now it's not to say that we can't be ambitious for God.

It just comes with the caveat that God's business is our business, and we work for Him, not the other way around.

This language of taking up the cross has lost a bit of its effect to modern readers.

At the time when Mark's gospel was written and in the early church, it was common for Christians to be tortured, burned at the stake, and even crucified just as Jesus was crucified.

In fact, that was the fate of many of the disciples.

Peter himself would go on to be crucified.

So Jesus' words here carry significant weight as he addresses his disciples.

And for those who were condemned to crucifixion under the harsh capital punishment of Rome, they were made to literally carry their own cross, just as Jesus did when he would go on to be crucified.

At the very minimum, they were expected to at least carry the crossbeam.

Jesus doesn't soften the truth.

He tells his disciples plainly, following him means suffering.

It may even mean death.

Faithfulness to Christ could lead to public shame, scorn, and martyrdom.

This wasn't a metaphor, it was a warning.

It would lead to a cross.

And Jesus isn't vague.

He is dismantling their expectations piece by piece.

They had hoped for power.

For restoration, for a kingdom of glory now, but instead they hear words of loss, rejection, and sacrifice.

You can almost feel their hearts sink.

This was not what they imagined.

This was not what they thought they were giving their lives to, and yet it's the only path that leads to life.

Perhaps some of you are wondering what the Christian life is really all about.

You've heard the voices on TV, in books, on the radio, podcasts, offering all kinds of promises.

Some say it's about living your best life now.

Others talk about constant victory, health, and blessing.

As if following Jesus means nothing but upward momentum and personal success.

And maybe somewhere along the way, you started to believe it.

Maybe you thought Christianity was supposed to make life easier.

But now you're hurting, you're disappointed, you're confused, and you're wondering if you've missed something, if this is really what you signed up for.

If that's you this morning, hear the words of Jesus.

Whoever wishes to save his life will lose it.

But whoever loses his life for my sake in the gospels will save it.

When our desires and ambitions are focused on ourselves and what we can get from this life, we are set up for disappointment and eventually despair.

This world may have a lot to offer when it comes to our entertainment and pleasure, but it doesn't last.

Eventually, you find yourself feeling empty after receiving what you thought would bring you peace and joy, but yet you still find yourself wanting more.

There is a craving that nothing in this world can satisfy.

Some call it a Jesus-shaped hole in our hearts.

We chase and chase and chase for that which never brings us lasting satisfaction.

We make every effort to secure what we think will bring us lasting happiness, whether that be through a stockpile of money, a romantic relationship, a family, a clean bill of health, you name it, all these things will eventually fail you, or at least fail to meet your expectations, leaving you feeling empty again.

We have a way of doing this in the Christian life.

We set up these expectations that because we have made a decision to follow Jesus, that somehow all will go well with us.

We expect bad things to only happen to so-called bad people, that is, those who don't follow Jesus.

But what happens when you have been obedient to God and something bad happens to you?

Someone you love gets sick or even dies, you lose your job, or even your house, or maybe you find yourself in a season where it seems like nothing can go right.

You can't seem to catch a break.

Does that make you question God's love for you?

You might even look back at a time when you didn't follow Jesus and think, wow, my life was actually better then.

I didn't have half the problems I have now.

I was happier.

What happened?

Jesus doesn't promise us the good life as we tend to define it.

He doesn't offer us worldly success, comfort, or ease as we'd like to have it.

But what he does promise is far greater eternal life, real life, to all who trust in him.

What can anyone possibly give in exchange for their soul?

The heartbreaking truth is that our sinful hearts try to make this exchange every day.

We chase after money, approval, status, pleasure, power, hoping these things will fill the emptiness.

But they never do.

Because the world is passing away.

It can only offer what will fade, break, or die.

And in the end, the trade is always a lie.

It's always a loss, always too high a price.

And that's why I'm always struck by the words of Jim Elliott, the missionary who was martyred while bringing the gospel to an unreached tribe in Ecuador.

Long before he gave his life, he understood what Jesus was saying here.

He once wrote, He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose.

Those who place themselves first instead of the gospel will be unsuccessful in their self-preservation goals.

But following Jesus and making his mission our first priority leads to eternal life, the never-ending peace and joy that we were looking for all along.

And following Jesus means being opposed to the sinful interests of this world.

That requires us to stand for biblical truth, righteousness, and justice, especially when the world stands against these things.

That also requires us to stand for the authority and reign of King Jesus above every rule and authority on this earth.

In the context of Jesus' disciples in this passage, that meant preparing to stand against the Roman Empire's authority when it conflicted with the interests of God's kingdom.

Every true disciple of Jesus is called to follow him with boldness and faithfulness, even when it costs everything.

Jesus himself warns that those who are ashamed of him in this life, who reject, who deny him, they will find themselves denied before the Father when Jesus comes in glory.

And that is a sobering reality.

To reject Christ is to face the eternal judgment of God.

But the good news is this Jesus came not to condemn, but to save.

He bore the wrath of God in our place, suffering and dying on the cross, so that sinners like us could be forgiven, made new, and reconciled to God.

And he calls us to repent, to believe, and to follow him, not just with our lips, but with our lives, to lose your life for his sake, in the end, to truly find it.

In this way, suffering leads to glory.

Let's continue with Mark chapter 9, verses 1 through 13.

Mark 9:1–13

And Jesus was saying to them, Truly I say to you, there are some of those who are standing here who will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God having come in power.

And six days later Jesus took with him Peter and James and John, and brought them up on a high mountain, alone by themselves, and he was transfigured before them, and his garments were shining intensely white, as no launderer on earth could whiten them.

And Elijah appeared to them along with Moses, and they were conversing with Jesus.

And Peter answered and said to Jesus, Rabbi, it is good for us to be here.

Let us make three booths, one for you, and one for Moses, and one for Elijah.

For he did not know what to answer, for they became terrified.

Then a cloud formed, overshadowing them, and a voice came out of the cloud.

Listen to him.

And all at once, when they looked around, they saw no one with them any more, except Jesus alone.

And as they were coming down from the mountain, he gave them orders not to recount to anyone what they had seen until the Son of Man rose from the dead.

And they seized upon that statement, arguing with one another what rising from the dead meant.

And they began asking him, saying, Why is it that the scribes say that Elijah must come first?

And he said to them, Elijah does come first, and restore all things.

And yet, how is it written of the Son of Man that he will suffer many things, and be treated with contempt?

But I say to you that Elijah has indeed come, and they did to him whatever they wished, just as it is written of him.

As we see in verse one, Jesus promises that some will see the kingdom of God coming with power.

Now there's several different ways to interpret this verse, whether it points to some eschatological event, the resurrection, or something else.

But in the context of what follows, the statement is true for the three disciples who witness the transfiguration of Jesus.

Jesus brings Peter, James, and John with him, who begin to emerge as some sort of inner circle amongst the disciples.

And he brings them to the top of a high mountain, all by themselves.

That is, if this part of Mark's gospel is to be taken chronologically.

Mount Hermon is also by far the tallest mountain in ancient Israel, standing at a whopping 9,230 feet, which towers over its neighboring peaks and can be seen from dozens of miles away on a clear day.

Just as a reference, consider that Mount Washington is 6,288 feet tall.

And so Jesus and the three disciples climbed to the top of this high mountain.

We often like to climb high mountains for what we see when we get to the top.

But I don't think anything could have compared to what the three disciples saw when they got to the top of this mountain.

Verse 2 says that Jesus transfigured before them, and his garments were shining intensely white, as no launderer on earth can whiten them, and Elijah appeared to them along with Moses, and they were conversing with Jesus.

It means a dramatic change of form, not a change of identity.

Jesus doesn't become someone else on the mountain.

He is revealed in the radiant glory that has always belonged to him as the eternal Son.

What the disciples see is a physical, physical, visible glimpse of heavenly glory.

It's a foreshadowing of the resurrection.

One thing is changed into another thing, yet remains the same in its essence, like a caterpillar becoming a butterfly.

The form is gloriously altered, but the life is continuous.

Jesus' transfiguration points to when he will rise in glory, and to the promise that we too who are in him will be gloriously transformed in the resurrection.

Our lowly bodies will be made like his glorious body, hidden temporarily in death, but one day unveiled in splendor.

And just like we've seen elsewhere in Mark, there are no shortages of Old Testament references in this passage.

Jesus waits six days before ascending the mountain.

This recalls Moses waiting six days before ascending Mount Sinai, where he would go to encounter God.

Even the radiant clothing of Jesus during the Transfiguration echoes Moses' appearance when he descended from Mount Sinai.

And the reunion of Jesus with Moses and Elijah recount previous encounters on mountaintops, as Moses encountered God at Sinai in Exodus 24, and Elijah encountered God at Horeb in 1 Kings 19.

As we've already established previously in our sermon series on Mark, the preincarnate Jesus is the same Yahweh who appeared throughout the Old Testament in visible form to people like Abraham, Moses, and Elijah.

The transfiguration is truly a reunion, as Moses and Elijah would have already been familiar with Jesus.

Adding to this, we hear the voice of God the Father coming from a cloud, declaring, This is my beloved Son, listen to him.

As you might recall from the very beginning of Mark, during Jesus' baptism, the voice of God the Father spoke from the heavens to declare that Jesus is his beloved Son with whom he is well pleased.

This repetition echoes Psalm 2, verse 7.

Psalms 2:7

I will surely tell of the decree of Yahweh.

He said to me, You are my son, today I have begotten you.

As you can imagine, all of this must have been terrifying for the three disciples witnessing this event.

Some might say that this was some sort of hallucination or a really bad trip, but there's no denying the significance of the transfiguration in light of Jesus' resurrection and what it means for life after death for all of God's people.

Somehow the three disciples were able to recognize Moses and Elijah.

We know this because Peter awkwardly offers to build tents for them to stay in along with Jesus.

But this also reveals that Peter didn't understand what he was witnessing.

They weren't there to camp out.

We know this because it didn't take long before Moses and Elijah disappeared.

And in short order, Jesus and the three begin to make their descent.

Imagine that conversation on the way down.

Jesus strictly orders them to remain silent about what they saw until the Son of Man rose from the dead, which once again affirms that Jesus must die and be raised again as part of his mission.

To think that the three were able to witness something as incredible as the transfiguration and ordered to say nothing to anyone until after Jesus dies and rises again.

That must have been a tough secret to keep.

And once again, whenever there is misunderstanding that could jeopardize Jesus' mission, he orders them to remain silent.

Now it's not like the three understood the significance of the transfiguration, but all of this will eventually make sense in light of Jesus' resurrection, which comes later.

For the disciples and for us, the transfiguration is a glimpse of what lies beyond the cross.

It reassures us that the suffering we endure on the path of discipleship is not in vain.

It leads somewhere, it leads to glory.

Jesus didn't just predict his suffering, he revealed his glory, and in doing so, he gave his followers a reason to endure.

That's just as true for you and me today.

The road of discipleship is not easy, it's narrow, it's hard, it hurts.

Many of you know this firsthand.

And some of you are walking through seasons of deep sorrow, sickness, loss, or spiritual wariness, even now.

You don't need a reminder of suffering.

You carry it with you every day.

The cross you bear feels heavy.

At times, it feels like it's digging deep into your soul, and you're not sure how much farther you can go.

But be encouraged today.

You are not alone.

The Lord of the mountaintops is the same Lord of the valleys.

We have a Savior who knows what it is to suffer.

He walked the path before us, he endured the cross, despising the shame for the joy set before him.

Even he, in his moment of greatest weakness, was helped by another, Simon of Cyrene, who carried the cross with him.

And so too, in our weakness, God meets us with strength.

My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.

We don't have to be ashamed of our weakness.

It's the very place where Christ's power is most clearly seen.

And we don't walk this path alone.

We walk it together.

The church is called to help one another bear the burden of the cross.

Sometimes we need help carrying it.

And that's not a failure, that's a gift.

Remember the image that we began with, the caterpillar in the cocoon.

It disappears into darkness, silence, stillness.

It looks like death.

But within that hidden place, the creator is doing a miracle.

Transformation is happening.

The creature that went in crawling comes out flying.

Once lowly, now radiant, forever changed.

That's the promise of the gospel.

That's the path of discipleship.

For those who are in Christ, the cross is not the end.

It's the beginning of glory.

Therefore, we must endure and help each other along the way, lifting our eyes to Jesus, the suffering King, now risen and reigning in glory.

Paul writes in Romans 8 18, for I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us.

Let's pray.

Oh Lord.

We praise you this morning.

We thank you that you were willing to suffer.

You could have stayed in your place, in the heavens, and yet you came down and took on flesh to walk among us, to live as we live, and to suffer as we suffer.

And you suffered in the most horrific way imaginable.

And so you can sympathize with us when we suffer.

You suffered so that we would not suffer eternally.

That all who place their faith and hope in you will not ultimately perish, but to have eternal life.

And just as you revealed your glory in the transfiguration, you revealed your glory in the resurrection.

And so we can look at that and have hope that we too will be raised, that we too will be given bodies made in glory.

And it can help us to endure suffering even now.

So would you help us this morning?

As we struggle, let us be reminded that we are not called to bear our burdens alone.

We thank you for your church and that we can bear these burdens together.

Amen.