It was wonderful to be back in the pulpit this Sunday, and to look at Peter’s confession of Jesus as “the Christ” with you. As we talked about Sunday, “Christ” means “Messiah.” So Peter was saying to Jesus, “You are the Messiah.”

Now, this week, we will see that Jesus is going to say, “Here is what that means.” And it didn’t mean what Peter (or any of the disciples, or any of Jesus’ followers) thought it meant! They equated the Messiah with notions of success and winning, victory and glory. But Jesus tells them something very different, as we will see this week as we study Mark 8:31-38 and talk about, “What It Means To Follow Jesus.”

As you read and pray over the text in advance of this Sunday, meditate on the following:

• In verse 31 Jesus tells his disciples that he must suffer and be rejected and killed and rise again. Did any of this square with their expectations of the Messiah?
• In what way is Peter representing Satan’s agenda in verses 32-33?
• When Jesus talks about taking up a “cross,” what did that mean to first century hearers? How does it differ from what it means to twenty-first century hearers?
• Suppose you are a smashing success in the eyes of the world, but you lose your soul in the process. Is that a wise choice? Why not?
• In what ways are we tempted to be ashamed of Jesus?

Ponder these things. This text goes right to the core of what it means to follow Jesus, and we will dig into it this Sunday.

Speaking of following Jesus, it was such a blessing to hear from Nashaat this past Sunday. This brother has followed Jesus into some very dangerous places. Keep him in your prayers, and pray for the believers in North Africa. They can definitely understand Mark 8:31-38. How can we understand it more like them? Think about that, and I’ll see you this Sunday!

See you this Sunday!

Dr. Thurman Hayes, Jr.