You Can't - The Second Turn
Have you ever joined a conversation halfway through the story or only caught half the instructions for a task you’ve been given? You think you’ve got a decent idea about things, and then further down the road, you realize there was a lot more you should’ve known because it would’ve changed how you approached the situation.
We need all the information to make an educated decision.
This way, when questions are asked or we face tricky turns in the road, we know we have the complete picture.
There are many things we can do. There are many things Jesus tells us to do. But there are a few things He tells us we can’t do.
To give context, Jesus is explaining to the disciples that He must die. He’s giving them the plot, plain and simple. And we like this because it’s Jesus who does the dying. We think we don’t have to.
Matthew 16
13 When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” 14 They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” 15 “But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?” 16 Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”
17 Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven. 18 And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it. 19 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” 20 Then he ordered his disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Messiah.
But Jesus’ message doesn’t stop when we finally connect the dots of who He is. He commissions us into our calling. Unfortunately, that’s where a lot of us stop. It’s almost as if Jesus gets us to that point and then takes a dramatic turn. A turn a lot of us don’t make with Him.
Matthew 16
21 From that time on Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life.
22 Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. “Never, Lord!” he said. “This shall never happen to you!”
This response is similar to one we have when someone says something, and we don’t want them to feel bad, so we disagree with them playfully. For example, a friend may say something negative about themselves, such as, “I never do anything right.” And we respond with, “Yes, you do!”
However, Jesus’ response proves that it’s not a small thing like that.
Matthew 16
23 Jesus turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the concerns of God, but merely human concerns.”
In one breath (vs. 18), Jesus confirms Peter’s identity and mission, but in the next, he’s calling him Satan and a stumbling block! Peter loved Jesus and didn’t want Him to die, but it can also be true that Peter needed Jesus to be a certain kind of Messiah. It’s almost as if he had a picture of how things were supposed to go, and the role Jesus was supposed to play.
We do this all of the time with people. We expect them to play a role in the narrative we have sketched out in our heads. Our kids, spouses, or friends. But we also do it with Jesus.
It’s possible for us to know who Jesus is, but not understand how His mission works.
There’s a well-known verse in the Bible: For I know the plans I have for you says the Lord, plans to prosper and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future.
A lot of times, WE have plans for God. We’d never say we do, but we have this idea of how God needs to work, what He needs to do, and how He needs to do it. Many of us have a good idea of who we think God is, and it’s not accurate.
But then there’s how God works.
And whether we realize it or not, it’s really how WE would work if we were God. We have the best intentions most of the time, but then there’s how He actually works. And if we don’t make that second turn, we either miss God and become disillusioned, or we oppose the way of God.
In this scripture, the word “Satan” can be translated as “one who opposes.” Jesus calls Peter the one He just described as the foundation on which He would build His church, a stumbling block.
This was true with Peter and is also where we find ourselves too often. Sometimes, our good intentions for God trip things up.
So how do we make that second turn?
We know who Jesus is, and now He’s starting to move in a direction.
Matthew 16
24 Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. 25 For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it. 26 What good will it be for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul? 27 For the Son of Man is going to come in his Father’s glory with his angels, and then he will reward each person according to what they have done. 28 “Truly I tell you, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.”
What does it mean to "deny" yourself? It's bigger than fasting, Lent, or cutting down on sweets. No matter how small or big, this isn't something we like to do. It's giving up our own interests and way of doing things.
The word "deny" is found twice in the Gospel, here with Peter and at Jesus' crucifixion, where Peter denies Jesus 3 times. If we don't do the first, we'll do the second.
How do we do it? Jesus tells us to take up our cross – put something down our way and pick something up His way.
The way of Jesus will always involve dying to ourselves. Maybe not what we’re doing, but how and why we’re doing it.
Ironically, it’s in that dying that we find life that is truly life. We can gain the whole world, which could translate to the ultimate fruit of doing things our way. We can even know who Jesus is, do things our way, and gain the fruit of our way, but we’ll lose the life that is truly life in the process. We’ll lose ourselves and our souls.
Jesus finishes this passage by saying we'll be rewarded for our actions. Many of us have heard that before, but a subtlety in the original language gets lost a bit. Instead, we'll be rewarded for how we did it.
So, it’s time to ask ourselves:
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Want to play catch-up, or are you looking for a specific topic? Check out our collection of sermons here.
We need all the information to make an educated decision.
This way, when questions are asked or we face tricky turns in the road, we know we have the complete picture.
There are many things we can do. There are many things Jesus tells us to do. But there are a few things He tells us we can’t do.
To give context, Jesus is explaining to the disciples that He must die. He’s giving them the plot, plain and simple. And we like this because it’s Jesus who does the dying. We think we don’t have to.
Matthew 16
13 When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” 14 They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” 15 “But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?” 16 Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”
17 Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven. 18 And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it. 19 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” 20 Then he ordered his disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Messiah.
But Jesus’ message doesn’t stop when we finally connect the dots of who He is. He commissions us into our calling. Unfortunately, that’s where a lot of us stop. It’s almost as if Jesus gets us to that point and then takes a dramatic turn. A turn a lot of us don’t make with Him.
Matthew 16
21 From that time on Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life.
22 Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. “Never, Lord!” he said. “This shall never happen to you!”
This response is similar to one we have when someone says something, and we don’t want them to feel bad, so we disagree with them playfully. For example, a friend may say something negative about themselves, such as, “I never do anything right.” And we respond with, “Yes, you do!”
However, Jesus’ response proves that it’s not a small thing like that.
Matthew 16
23 Jesus turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the concerns of God, but merely human concerns.”
In one breath (vs. 18), Jesus confirms Peter’s identity and mission, but in the next, he’s calling him Satan and a stumbling block! Peter loved Jesus and didn’t want Him to die, but it can also be true that Peter needed Jesus to be a certain kind of Messiah. It’s almost as if he had a picture of how things were supposed to go, and the role Jesus was supposed to play.
We do this all of the time with people. We expect them to play a role in the narrative we have sketched out in our heads. Our kids, spouses, or friends. But we also do it with Jesus.
It’s possible for us to know who Jesus is, but not understand how His mission works.
There’s a well-known verse in the Bible: For I know the plans I have for you says the Lord, plans to prosper and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future.
A lot of times, WE have plans for God. We’d never say we do, but we have this idea of how God needs to work, what He needs to do, and how He needs to do it. Many of us have a good idea of who we think God is, and it’s not accurate.
But then there’s how God works.
And whether we realize it or not, it’s really how WE would work if we were God. We have the best intentions most of the time, but then there’s how He actually works. And if we don’t make that second turn, we either miss God and become disillusioned, or we oppose the way of God.
In this scripture, the word “Satan” can be translated as “one who opposes.” Jesus calls Peter the one He just described as the foundation on which He would build His church, a stumbling block.
This was true with Peter and is also where we find ourselves too often. Sometimes, our good intentions for God trip things up.
So how do we make that second turn?
We know who Jesus is, and now He’s starting to move in a direction.
Matthew 16
24 Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. 25 For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it. 26 What good will it be for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul? 27 For the Son of Man is going to come in his Father’s glory with his angels, and then he will reward each person according to what they have done. 28 “Truly I tell you, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.”
What does it mean to "deny" yourself? It's bigger than fasting, Lent, or cutting down on sweets. No matter how small or big, this isn't something we like to do. It's giving up our own interests and way of doing things.
The word "deny" is found twice in the Gospel, here with Peter and at Jesus' crucifixion, where Peter denies Jesus 3 times. If we don't do the first, we'll do the second.
How do we do it? Jesus tells us to take up our cross – put something down our way and pick something up His way.
The way of Jesus will always involve dying to ourselves. Maybe not what we’re doing, but how and why we’re doing it.
Ironically, it’s in that dying that we find life that is truly life. We can gain the whole world, which could translate to the ultimate fruit of doing things our way. We can even know who Jesus is, do things our way, and gain the fruit of our way, but we’ll lose the life that is truly life in the process. We’ll lose ourselves and our souls.
Jesus finishes this passage by saying we'll be rewarded for our actions. Many of us have heard that before, but a subtlety in the original language gets lost a bit. Instead, we'll be rewarded for how we did it.
So, it’s time to ask ourselves:
- Where has our expectation of Jesus gotten in the way of truly following him?
- Where do we simply know who Jesus is but haven't understood His mission yet?
- What is the Cross asking from us today?
- What is Jesus' invitation to us today?
For more LHC content, subscribe to our newsletter below or follow us on Instagram.
Want to play catch-up, or are you looking for a specific topic? Check out our collection of sermons here.
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