THE RULER WHO SERVES

RAY C. STEDMAN

EDITED BY JAMES DENNEY

The Ruler Who Serves @ 2002 by Elaine Stedman

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Book Design: Sherri L. Hoffman

Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture references are from the New International Version, @ 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Stedman, Ray C. [Ruler who serves] The ruler who serves: exploring the gospel of Mark / by Ray C. Stedman. p. cm. Originally published: The ruler who serves. Waco, Tex.: Word Books, cl976. ISBN 1-57293-085-3 1. Bible. NT. Mark VIII-XVI-Commentaries. I. Title.

Printed in the United States of America

Foreword by David Roper

Part Two: The Ruler Who Serves

15. The Way of the Cross (Mark 8:34-38)

16. Glory on the Mountaintop (Mark 8:38-9:29)

17. The Child in Our Midst (Mark 9:30-50)

18. What About Divorce? (Mark 10:1-12)

19. The Plight of the Overprivileged (Mark 10:13-31)

20. The Ambitious Heart (Mark 10:32-52)

21. The King Is Coming (Mark 11:1-25)

22. By What Authority? (Mark 11:27-12:27)

23. Top Priority (Mark 12:28-44)

24. Watch! (Mark 13)

25. Love's Extravagance (Mark 14:1-25)

26. Strike the Shepherd (Mark 14:26-52)

27. Jesus and the Priests (Mark 14:53-72)

28. Jesus and the Rulers (Mark 15:1-20)

29. The Awful Penalty (Mark 15:21-47)

30. A Rumor of Hope (Mark 16:1-8)

31. Alive Forever! (Mark 16:9-20)

Notes

Foreword

An author I read many years ago drew a distinction between those who manufacture servanthood and those who distribute it.

"Manufacturers" derive their motivation to serve from within themselves. They serve because they pity the needy or because they believe they have a duty to give something back to the world (noblesse oblige). Some have a compulsive need to be needed; others serve out of guilt and fear. In any case, "manufacturers" soon find their efforts dreary and empty, and they lose interest; for, as Ray Stedman continues to remind us, "the flesh [human endeavor] counts for nothing" (John 6:63).

"Distributors," on the other hand, serve out of an intimate connection to Jesus. They sit at His feet, listen to His words, learn from His great heart, respond to Him in prayer, drink in His love, draw on His power, and distribute His compassion to others. That's what keeps Jesus' servants going for the long haul. They give away all that He has given to them, a concept Ray weaves through the warp and woof of these studies.

It was my privilege to gather weekly with staff members at Peninsula Bible Church when Ray was first thinking his way through the gospel of Mark in preparation for preaching this material, and then I heard each text taught on subsequent Sundays. More importantly, I saw the texts lived out in Ray's life, for he was truly a leader who served over the long haul. He was my friend and teacher for many years, and I sorely miss him. But like Abel, though now in God's presence, he "still speaks."

David Roper

Boise, Idaho

Fifteen

The Way of the Cross

äMark 8:34-38

Some years ago, a Christian businessman and friend of mine, Howard Butt, wrote an article entitled "The Art of Being a Big Shot." One statement he made particularly impressed me as a powerful truth about the Christian life:

It is my pride that makes me independent of God. It's appealing to me to feel that I am the master of my fate, that I run my own life, call my own shots, go it alone. But, that feeling is my basic dishonesty. I can't go it alone. I have to get help from other people, and I can't ultimately rely on myself. I'm dependent on God for my very next breath. It is dishonest of me to pretend that I'm anything but a man--small, weak, and limited. So, living independent of God is self-delusion. It is not just a matter of pride being an unfortunate little trait, and humility being an attractive little virtue; it's my inner psychological integrity that's at stake. When I am conceited, I am lying to myself about what I am. I am pretending to be God, and not man. My pride is the idolatrous worship of myself. And that is the national religion of hell!

That is a profound restatement of what I call the way of the cross. It is an eloquent interpretation of what Jesus means when He says, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me." To follow the way of the cross means to give up all rights to run our lives, to submit ourselves to His leadership and His lordship.

To take the way of the cross is to follow in the footsteps of Jesus, for He was the first to walk that path. In this study, we will watch Him as He turns His footsteps toward that bloody instrument of terror and torture, and we will discover what it means to take up one's cross and follow Him.

Turning His Steps Toward the Cross

We now enter the second half of Mark's gospel. In the first half, we watched as Jesus, the Servant, came healing the sick, helping the hurting, comforting the brokenhearted, restoring shattered lives. His power and authority could be glimpsed as undercurrents of His ministry, but for the most part that power and authority remained cloaked by His role as a servant.

Now, however, the disciples know who Jesus is. This Servant is none other than the Christ, the Anointed One of God. He is the Servant who rules in all the far-flung creation of God.

And yet, no sooner have the disciples discovered who Jesus is than He begins to predict His suffering and death. This startling revelation of the approaching death of the Christ is disturbing for these disciples. They greet it with denial.

But this revelation represents the turning point in the gospel of Mark. From this point, Jesus is on His way to Jerusalem, trudging inexorably into the darkness of Gethsemane's garden, then toward the judgment hall of Pilate, then to the intolerable torture of the bloody whipping post, and finally to the grisly cross. Yet, all along the way, we see that He is still ministering to people, still healing, still comforting, and still bringing blessing to needy men and women.

His role has been transformed. From this point on, we see Him not as the Servant who rules but as the Ruler who serves.

Let's look at an outline of the second half of Mark's gospel. This second half falls into two major divisions. From Mark 8:34 through the end of Mark 13, we have the section I call 'The Way of the Cross." This section deals with our Lord's preparation of His disciples for the terrible events that await Him in Jerusalem. Mark 14-16 make up the section I call "The Cross and the Empty Tomb," the events of the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus.

In the first division, "The Way of the Cross," there are also two subdivisions. In the first our Lord prepares the disciples at Caesarea and at Capernaum and proceeds down the Jordan River valley. In the second we read about the events at Jericho, on the Mount of Olives, and in Jerusalem. In this study, we will look only at that portion of His preparation of the disciples that took place at Caesarea Philippi in the north of Galilee at the foot of Mount Hermon.

As we begin this first division of the second half of Mark's gospel, we must recall the context of events. Jesus has just announced the cross to His disciples. In response, Peter rebukes Jesus, for which Jesus rebukes Peter. At this point Mark records Jesus' next words:

Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. " (Mark 8:34)

Here Jesus tells us what it means to be a disciple. Notice that Jesus does something that raises questions in people's minds. He calls together not only His disciples but also the crowd. Some commentators have wondered what this means. Was Jesus seeking to make disciples? That is, was He evangelizing the crowd? Or was He primarily addressing His disciples and telling them what the cost of discipleship would be?

Many people read this passage and wonder, "Can I be a Christian and not be a disciple? Is discipleship the same as being a Christian, or is it a second and much more intense stage of Christianity? Are there many Christians but only relatively few disciples?" These are important questions. In this study, we will go to the Lord's words for the answers.

The Three Steps of Discipleship

As we look at Mark 8:34, the first thing we learn about Christian discipleship is that it is a three-step process. In the first step, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself." Notice that Jesus does not say, "He must hate himself." Jesus does not ask us to despise ourselves or destroy ourselves or neglect our basic needs. The word "deny" has a specific meaning, which we need to understand in order to grasp this first step of discipleship.

To deny means to "disavow a person or thing; to state that one has no connection whatsoever with someone or something." Interestingly, this is the very word used to refer to Peter's denial of Jesus a little later on in Mark's gospel. As Peter was standing in the courtyard of the high priest, warming himself at a fire, a servant girl said to Peter, "You also were with that Nazarene, Jesus." Mark records, "But he denied it." When the servant girl again accused him, Mark records, "Again he denied it." Later Peter again denies knowing Christ, sealing his denial with a curse on himself (see Mark 14:66-72).

It is important to understand that Jesus does not mean what we usually mean by the term "self-denial." By this we usually mean that we are giving up something. One example of self-denial is when people give up something they enjoy, such as eating meat or sweets or watching television, during the season of Lent. But Jesus is not talking about self-denial in this sense. He is never concerned so much about what we do as about who we are. To deny oneself in the sense that Jesus means is a different concept.

Denying self means that we repudiate our natural feelings about ourselves, our ownership of ourselves, and even our right to run our lives. We abdicate the right to decide what we are going to do or where we are going to go. At this point, Jesus is saying something fundamental and even shocking. It strikes at the heart of our existence, because the one thing that we, as human beings, value and defend above all else is our right to make our own decisions. We demand to be the captains of our fate, and we will fight to the death any outside attempt to overrule our wills.

Now, perhaps, it becomes clear that Jesus is not asking us to give up this habit or that privilege. He is demanding that we give up our selves. A statement from the New Testament sums up the first step of discipleship, and it is so profound a statement that it is carved on the wall of the sanctuary at Peninsula Bible Church: "You are not your own; you were bought at a price" (l Corinthians 6:19-20). If you are going to follow Jesus, you no longer own yourself. You give up all rights to yourself, and you yield those rights to Jesus. That is why we call Him Lord. A lord is a sovereign king, whose merest word is absolute law.

If Jesus is the Lord of your life, you are no longer the lord over your self. Jesus has all rights. You have none. You willingly surrendered those rights when you chose to follow Christ and walk the way of the cross. "If anyone would come after me," said Jesus, "he must deny himself." That is the first step of discipleship.

The second step immediately follows: "and take up his cross." What does "take up his cross" mean? I am sure that those words were almost incomprehensible to the disciples when Jesus first spoke them. They didn't understand why Jesus was talking about the cross, that instrument of Roman execution. They did not understand where Jesus was heading. But He knew. And He knew that after the awful events that were to come in Jerusalem, after the torture and anguish of the cross was answered by the joy and glory of resurrection, the disciples would remember those words. And they would understand.

Many people think that a cross is any kind of trial or hardship we have to endure: a harsh and despotic boss at the office, a spiteful mother-in-law, a disagreeable neighbor, a cantankerous car that refuses to start on cold mornings. "Well," we say, "I guess that's just my cross to bear." But that is not what Jesus means. In fact, such a view trivializes what the cross means. Jesus had obstacles, trials, setbacks, and opposition, but He had only one cross. That cross represented much more than mere problems or annoyances. The cross stood for shame, humiliation, torture, and death.

So what does it mean for us to take up our cross? It means that if any shame, pain, humiliation, or even death comes our way for the sake of following Christ, then we are to welcome it. Whatever happens to us for the sake of the gospel, we are to accept it, glory in it, and cling to it, because that is our cross. God will give us the grace to endure it. He will use that terrible circumstance in our lives to make us more like Christ, and the ultimate result will be resurrection and glory, just as the cross led to resurrection and glory in the life of Jesus. That is why the cross is so valuable to us.

Now, perhaps, you begin to see what a radical approach to life this is, and how different it is from the way the world tells us we should think and act. The world says, "If pain comes your way, escape it, avoid it, numb it with alcohol or drugs. If someone hurts you, get even. If someone humiliates you, strike back. Stand up for your rights. Assert yourself. Look out for number one." But the message of Jesus is, "Take up your cross." That is the second step of discipleship.

The third step is "follow me." What does it mean to follow Jesus? Quite simply, it means to obey Him. Before we were Christians, our lives were characterized by disobedience; it is only logical that our lives as Christians must move in the opposite direction, toward complete obedience to Christ.

I have been saddened and amazed, over the years, at the number of people I have met who call themselves Christians yet blatantly, even proudly, declare that they do not follow or obey Him. We all struggle in the area of obedience. I fail in this area on a continuing basis; this is the struggle we all contend with in our fallen humanity. But the Lord is not saying He expects perfection of His disciples. He is telling us what discipleship means, what it involves--and discipleship involves following Him. It means that we commit ourselves to carrying out His commands and looking to Him as our example and source of strength. When we fail, we repent and recommit ourselves to a new resolve to follow in obedience.

We see how obedience works in the lives of the Twelve. Jesus entrusted them with much of His ministry, and they obeyed Him. For example, when Jesus fed the multitudes, He gave them the bread and fish to distribute to the people, and in obedience, they did so. But the disciples could not supply the food. That was for Jesus to do. God supplies the resources, and disciples (like you and me) supply the willingness and obedience. That is what Christianity is all about.

What has Jesus commanded us to do? What commands are we to obey? He has told us to love one another (John 13:34-35), to love even our enemies (Matthew 5:44), to pray for those who hurt us (Matthew 5:44), to forgive those who offend us (Matthew 6:14-15), to show kindness even to the ungrateful and selfish (Luke 6:35), and to give as freely as we have received (Matthew 10:8). When we obey these commands of Christ, we are not only doing what He said, but also we are doing what He did, for Jesus exemplified all of these commands again and again in His life.

We won't always feel like showing love to the unloving and forgiveness to the unforgiving, but obedience is not about following our feelings; it is about following Christ. We are to obey even when obedience cuts across the grain of our feelings. Obeying Christ is not a natural thing to do; it is a supernatural act. "Follow me" means we live in obedience to these commands of Christ and to all the other exhortations found in Scripture. Jesus said, "Follow me." That is the third step of discipleship.

In the Greek, these three steps are stated in the present, continuous tense. That means, "Keep on denying yourself, keep on taking up your cross, keep on following me." This is not the decision of a moment but a program for a lifetime. These three steps, carried out simultaneously and continuously, present to us what it truly means to be a disciple or follower of Jesus Christ.

Jesus does not paint an attractive picture of discipleship, does He? His words surely struck the disciples and the crowd like a ton of falling bricks. In fact, John tells us that many who had followed Christ suddenly turned away and followed Him no more, because these words seemed too harsh and demanding (John 6:66). Jesus never invites people to follow Him without first telling them what it will cost. He does not seek followers under false pretenses. He wants us to understand that true discipleship will shatter us, change us, and make us into a different kind of people. It must. If it has any meaning in our lives, following Christ is going to shake us to the core of our being.

Living by Losing: The Great Paradox of Discipleship

Next Jesus gives us the right motive for authentic Christian discipleship. As Mark records, Jesus says:

"Whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me and for the gospel will save it." (Mark 8:35)

That is motive enough! Who is not interested in saving his or her life? In other words, who is not interested in making life worthwhile, making it rich and complete and worth the living? We all want that. God designed us with that hunger for life. "If life is what you want," Jesus says, "I'll tell you how to acquire it."

Here is a paradox. The only way you can save your life, says Jesus, is by losing it. In this paradox, Jesus underscores that there are only two possible attitudes toward life, and they are mutually exclusive. Everyone, without exception, lives by one or the other.

The first attitude toward life is that of the world: save your life in the here and now! Take care of yourself first. Focus on fulfilling yourself, on satisfying yourself, on gratifying yourself. In every situation, your first concern is what's in it for me. That is the attitude of the world. And if you live by this attitude, you will ultimately lose your life and all that is of eternal importance.

The other attitude toward life is that of Jesus: think nothing of your life, your self, your wants, your desire for pleasure and comfort and security. Fling all of that away and move out in obedience to God, in utter dependence on God, entrusting your temporal and eternal future to Him.

This is the attitude expressed by Paul, who said, "I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me" (Acts 20:24). This is to be a way of life, Jesus says. Trust God, obey Him, and put the responsibility for what happens on His infinitely broad shoulders. That is the life of a true disciple and follower of Jesus Christ.

There are only two attitudes toward life, and each attitude produces its own distinct and different result. If you choose to focus on clutching your life in the here and now, you will ultimately lose your life. That is not a mere platitude; Jesus is stating a fundamental, unbreakable law of life. Those who focus on saving and gratifying the self will end up with nothing but a handful of cobwebs and ashes. We see this tragic principle at work in the dying words of some of the most famous people in history.

As he was dying, the French philosopher Voltaire said to his physician, Dr. Fochin, "I will give you half of what I am worth if you will give me six months of life." The doctor replied that it could not be done. "Then I shall die," Voltaire moaned, "and go to hell!"

Thomas Hobbes, the seventeenth-century philosopher and skeptic, lay on his deathbed, pondering the loss of his soul. "If I had the whole world at my disposal," he said, "I would give it to live one day. I am about to take a leap into the dark."

Honore Gabriel Mirabeau, the French revolutionary and unbeliever, asked his doctor for an opiate as he lay dying in 1791. "Give me laudanum," he begged, "that I may not think of eternity."

"Nothing matters. Nothing matters," were the last words of film producer Louis B. Mayer, who died in 1957.

"I must end it. There's no hope left," read the suicide note of comedian Freddie Prinze, who shot himself while at the height of his fame and success in 1977.

But compare those words of loss, hopelessness, and despair with the dying words of Christians.

"I die hard but am not afraid to go," said George Washington, the first American president and a man of deep Christian faith, who died in 1799.

"See in what peace a Christian can die" was the final statement of writer Joseph Addison, who died in 1719.

John Hus, the great Reformer, calmly prayed as he was bound to a stake to be burned alive: "Father, into thy hands I commit my spirit."

Evangelist Dwight L. Moody's dying words were "Earth is receding, heaven is opening, and this is my coronation day."

David Brainerd, missionary to American Indians, lay dying of tuberculosis in 1747. "I am going into eternity," he said, "and it is sweet to me to think of eternity."

Augustus Toplady, theologian and composer of the hymn "Rock of Ages," died of tuberculosis in 1778, when he was thirty-eight years old. Moments before his death, he said, "I enjoy heaven already in my soul."

Adoniram Judson, the great American hymn writer and missionary to India and Burma, fell sick and died during an ocean voyage. Before his death, he said, "I go with the gladness of a boy bounding away from school. I feel so strong in Christ."

And another American missionary, Jim Elliot, wrote these words in his diary at the age of twenty-two: "He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose." A few years later, he was killed by South American Indians as he tried to take the gospel to them.

Jesus did not come to call us to a lifetime of misery, barrenness, darkness, and death. He called us to life, to richness, to enjoyment, to fulfillment. But He has told us that the path to all of these wonderful things leads through the cross. True Christian discipleship leads us to eternal life and fulfillment beyond anything we can imagine, but the only way we can find that infinite quality of life is by means of the cross.

That is the great and wonderful paradox of the Christian life.

True Discipleship: Deeds, Not Words

The final issue is set forth in our Lord's words in the closing verses of Mark 8:

"What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul?" (Mark 8:36-37)

These questions of Jesus are the most searching, penetrating questions of all. They pierce to the core of our humanity. What good is it to get all the things you want, only to lose your life and soul in the process? Is it not the essence of wisdom, if you are going to invest your time and energy in something, to make sure you will be able to enjoy the fruit of that investment? You can spend all you have on pleasure and possessions, but once your life is gone, what do you have left to barter with?

Many years ago, archaeologists discovered the tomb of Charlemagne, emperor of France (742-814). During his lifetime, Charlemagne's goal had to been to Christianize all of Europe. When his tomb was opened, the men who entered it found something amazing. The tomb was filled with treasures, and in the center of one large vault the men found a throne. Seated on the throne were the skeletal remains of Charlemagne. A Bible lay open on the lap of the skeleton, a bony finger pointing at the words of Jesus, "What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul?" What a tremendous lesson for us from history!

There is no way we can cheat or fake the life of discipleship. Either we are genuine disciples, or we will lose everything in the final analysis. Jesus says:

"If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his Father's glory with the holy angels." (Mark 8:38)

Deeds, not words, will tell the story. It is not what we say we believe that matters. It is how we show our belief by the way we live. A true disciple boldly acknowledges Jesus as Lord by the way he or she lives on a daily basis.

I once heard of a boy who was concerned about being teased by his classmates for being a Christian. He devised a way of praying over his lunch in the cafeteria without anyone knowing he was praying: he would bend over and pretend to be tying his shoe. Is that what Jesus means when He says, "If anyone is ashamed of me, I will be ashamed of him"? Yes, in a way, but I think little incidents like this are only peripheral to what our Lord is talking about. There are much bigger ways in which we show ourselves to be ashamed of Christ.

Most of us are nervous about making an open profession of faith in Christ. We wonder what people will think of us or how they will respond to us. We worry about appearing to be religious fanatics. But being nervous about witnessing is not sin; it is merely temptation. What our Lord is talking about here is a continuous, habitual way of life that outwardly calls itself Christian but inwardly adopts the values of the world. This, Jesus says, is what will be revealed in the Day of Judgment. At the close of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus said:

"Many will say to me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?' Then I will tell them plainly, 'I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!'" (Matthew 7:22-23)

Here, then, is the answer to the question we asked at the beginning: Can I be a Christian and not be a disciple? You can come to Christ, and all who come to Christ are given life, if they come to Christ in honesty and sincerity. But unless you take up the work of discipleship, this life is given in vain. Paul calls this "[receiving] God's grace in vain" (see 2 Corinthians 6:1). Only true disciples enter into the abundant life.

We are not all good disciples at all times. We are fallen human beings, and we will fail. But our Lord has made provision for failure in our lives. The test of true disciples is not whether or not they occasionally fail but whether or not the aim of their lives is to take up their cross and follow Christ. If that is truly the aim of your life, regardless of your occasional failures, then you are a disciple of Jesus Christ, and He is your Lord.

In Mere Christianity, C. S. Lewis suggests that we in the Christian church are a kind of invasion force, secretly and stealthily moving into an "enemy-occupied world," and the enemy, of course, is the devil. We are, Lewis says, "a sort of secret society to undermine the devil." Then he poses the question that many people ask: Why does God use a secret society in His war against the devil? Why doesn't He land in force and toss the devil out on his ear? We can't know for sure, says Lewis, but we can guess. God wants to give us the chance of freely, willingly joining His side, of becoming His disciples. We must choose to deny ourselves, take up our crosses, and follow Him--and we must choose now. Tomorrow may be too late. Lewis explains why:

God is going to invade, all right. But what is the good of saying you are on His side then, when you see the whole natural universe melting away like a dream, and something else--something it never entered your head to conceive--comes crashing in; something so beautiful to some of us, and so terrible to others, that none of us will have any choice left? . . . It will be too late then to choose your side. There is no use saying you choose to lie down when it has become impossible to stand up. That will not be the time for choosing; it will be the time when we discover which side we have really chosen, whether we realised it before or not. Now, today, this moment, is our chance to choose the right side. God is holding back, to give us that chance. It will not last forever. We must take it or leave it.

(C. S. Lewis, Mere Christianity, from The Best of C. S. Lewis (Washington, D.C.: Canon, 1969), 450. )

This is the same message Jesus gave to the people of His day. Becoming a Christian is not easy. It is radical. It demands nothing less of us than that we deny ourselves, take up our cross, and follow Jesus.

The way of the cross is a hard way, a narrow way. But it is the only pathway to life.

Sixteen

Glory on the Mountaintop

äMark 8:38-9:29

It was the last and most ambitious of all of the works of the great High Renaissance painter Raphael. It is called The Transfiguration.

Commissioned in 1517 by Cardinal Giulio de Medici for the Cathedral of Narbonne in France, The Transfiguration now hangs in the Vatican. The painting is divided into an upper level and a lower level. Dominating the upper half is a depiction of Jesus floating above the Mount of Transfiguration in an aura of brilliant clouds, accompanied on either side by Moses and Elijah. On the ground at His feet are Peter, James, and John, all shielding their faces from the Lord's brilliance.

The lower half of the painting presents the foreground of the scene. The other disciples at the foot of the mountain point upward, directing our attention to the transfigured Christ. To the right of the disciples, a demonized boy writhes, wide-eyed and contorted, waiting for the Lord to descend from the mountain and release him from his spiritual torment. The boy is held by his distraught father. The mother kneels nearby, begging for help from the disciples. It is the perfect juxtaposition of the people's misery and the Lord's majesty, of the Mount of Transfiguration rising above the valley of human despair.

Raphael died before he could put the final touches on The Transfiguration. The painting is technically unfinished, yet it seems perfect and complete. The last detail Raphael completed before his death was the face of Jesus. The features are serene yet strong, bold, masculine, and unforgettable. Raphael seems to have summoned every ounce of his creative strength to paint that memorable face.

And yet, for all its magnificent color and light, its powerful composition, and its emotional force, we know that Raphael's The Transfiguration is a pale and inadequate representation of this dramatic historical event. No artist could ever capture the blinding brilliance of the light that poured forth from the Mount of Transfiguration. No image summoned from a human mind could adequately express the awe and amazement that Peter, James, and John experienced in the presence of the transfigured Christ.

A painting like Raphael's, as beautiful as it is, presents a problem. The problem is that it takes an event from history and enshrines it in pigment and canvas, giving it the appearance of a scene out of mythology or folklore. It is important that we remember that the transfiguration of Jesus was a real, historic event that occurred atop a mountain in the land of Palestine some two thousand years ago. Although Raphael's painting conveys an ethereal, almost fantasylike quality, I hope we will begin to see this historical event with a tangible, three-dimensional realism.

So let's climb that mountain along with Jesus, Peter, James, and John. Let's look at this event through their eyes. Together, let's rediscover the meaning, the reality, and the wonder of the transfiguration of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Jesus Predicts His Transfiguration

The Transfiguration is one of the most dramatic events in Scripture, ranking only after the crucifixion and resurrection of our Lord. This event follows His announcement of the cross and of the way of discipleship. It is clear from Mark's account that Jesus knew the Transfiguration was approaching. He announced it at least six full days before it took place. Jesus had led the Twelve to the foot of Mount Hermon so they could prepare for this event, and I believe that the Transfiguration occurred on Mount Hermon, that beautiful snow-covered mountain north of the Sea of Galilee.

The account begins in the closing verse of Mark 8 and continues through the first thirteen verses in Mark 9. The chapter and verse divisions in Scripture, remember, were added long after the Bible was written and should not be considered inspired by God. As often happens throughout Scripture, these divisions in the gospel story serve to interrupt rather than enhance and organize the storyline.

As we begin reading, we are immediately struck by the fact that the Lord explains the reason for the Transfiguration before it ever happens. Mark records:

He said to them, "I tell you the truth, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the kingdom of God come with power." (Mark 9:1)

Some liberal commentators have misunderstood this passage. They claim that Jesus was predicting the time of His second coming, saying that He expected His return to occur within the lifetime of people who were alive at that moment. Obviously this has not taken place, and many people have been troubled by this interpretation. Some have even gone so far as to say that Jesus was mistaken as to the time of His return.

But if you link this statement with what immediately follows, Jesus' meaning becomes clear. He is referring to the Transfiguration, saying that some who were there at that moment would not taste death until they saw this manifestation of the kingdom of God and the glory of His coming. This then provides a clue as to what the event meant. It is a preview that Jesus gives of the coming glory. He states that it will manifest His coming into His kingdom with power. On subsequent occasions, as He is teaching the disciples on the Mount of Olives and other places, He speaks of that coming with power: "At that time the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and all the nations of the earth will mourn. They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky, with power and great glory" (Matthew 24:30).

Notice that Jesus has just referred to His triumphant return at the close of Mark 8:

"If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his Father's glory with the holy angels." (Mark 8:38)

That is the future event that three of the Twelve are allowed to preview. The fact that this is the case is made clear by Peter. Our Lord chose Peter and James and John to be with Him on the mountaintop. Peter later refers to this event in one of his New Testament letters:

We did not follow cleverly invented stories when we told you about the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty. For he received honor and glory from God the Father when the voice came to him from the Majestic Glory, saying, "This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased." We ourselves heard this voice that came from heaven when we were with him on the sacred mountain. (2 Peter 1:16-18)

Thus Peter confirms the purpose of the Transfiguration. Jesus was giving three of His closest disciples a foretaste of what it will be like when He comes again in power and glory, with all His holy angels.

Also implied in Jesus' words is the fact that this event also awaits the believer at death. Notice that Jesus says, "There are some standing here who will not taste death before they see the kingdom of God come with power." The implication is that in most cases, it is by the act of tasting death that the believer will see the kingdom of God come with power. Other passages confirm that when a believer dies, in that instant when the believer leaves time and enters eternity, he or she immediately witnesses the coming of the Lord with His angels. This is why the New Testament letter of Jude records,

Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied about these men: "See, the Lord is coming with thousands upon thousands of his holy ones. " (Jude 14)

This beautiful event awaits every believer at death. Whenever a loved one dies, remember this wonderful truth, and be comforted.

But here, before the Transfiguration, our Lord predicts that some who were then present would have a foretaste of this wonderful event before the end of their earthly lives. The Transfiguration, then, was to encourage the disciples. Jesus had just announced the way of the cross and His coming death in Jerusalem. This announcement was profoundly depressing and disheartening to the disciples. So Jesus gave them this incident to strengthen their faith, to encourage them that His mission on earth would not end in darkness and disaster, but that it would ultimately triumph. And this event should also encourage us in our lives as we must take up our cross. Whatever obstacles and tragedies we face in life, we know that our lives will ultimately end in glory and triumph.

Four Aspects of the Transfiguration

Now let us look at the event itself. As you read Mark's account, place yourself in the sandals of these three disciples. What would you feel if you experienced this event?

After six days Jesus took Peter, James and John with him and led them up a high mountain, where they were all alone. There he was transfigured before them. His clothes became dazzling white, whiter than anyone in the world could bleach them. And there appeared before them Elijah and Moses, who were talking with Jesus.

Peter said to Jesus, "Rabbi, it is good for us to be here. Let us put up three shelters--one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah." (He did not know what to say, they were so frightened.)

Then a cloud appeared and enveloped them, and a voice came from the cloud: "This is my Son, whom I love. Listen to him!"

Suddenly, when they looked around, they no longer saw anyone with them except Jesus. (Mark 9:2-8)

Four dramatic occurrences in this account rivet our attention.

First, there is the glorious change in the person of the Lord. The account in Matthew supplies a few additional details. Putting these two accounts together, we see that the face of Jesus began to shine with an intense light. His garments became white, and His whole being radiated glory. Some critics of the Bible interpret these details as suggesting that Jesus was praying on the mountaintop when the sun suddenly broke through the clouds and shone on Him, so that His appearance only seemed to be supernaturally changed. Assuming that is the correct explanation, how does it account for the appearance of Moses and Elijah? No, it is clear, as the gospel writers go to great lengths to underscore, that this was a supernatural event and that the change in Jesus' appearance was a supernatural change. Peter, James, and John were witnessing a brightness of light and a whiteness of white for which there was no earthly explanation.

What happened to Jesus? For a moment, a glimpse of eternity shone through the veil of His humanity. The disciples caught a glimpse of the glory that was the Son's long before He was born on earth as a human being. We catch a sense of the Son's pre-existent glory in the great prayer of Jesus that is recorded in John: "And now, Father, glorify me in your presence with the glory I had with you before the world began" (John 17:5). This glory, which belonged to God the Son before the moment of creation, was suddenly revealed to the three disciples on that mountaintop.

One implication that flows from this event is the fact that our Lord did not have to die. That is one of the meanings of the Transfiguration. He had no reason to pass through death. He could step back across the boundary of time into eternity without passing through death. You and I are bound by time. We must die, but He did not have to. When He laid down His life, He did so willingly and deliberately.

I am sure that this is what John refers to in his gospel when he writes, "The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory" (John 1:14). Although John was an eyewitness to the Transfiguration, he does not record the event in his gospel. Yet this statement, "We have seen his glory," leaves no doubt in my mind that John is referring to his vivid recollection of that astounding moment on the mountain.

The second dramatic occurrence in this account is the appearance of Moses and Elijah, who return from heaven and begin to talk with Jesus. It is interesting that the disciples have no difficulty recognizing these men. Jesus does not pause to make introductions: "Peter, James, and John, I'd like you to meet Moses and Elijah." The disciples knew instantly who they were. In glory there will be no need for introductions; we will know each other instantly. This account gives us a glimpse into heaven.

Many people have wondered why Moses and Elijah were chosen to be there. Why not Isaiah, Jeremiah, David, Abraham, or Noah? I believe it is because these two men were preeminently the representatives of the Law and the Prophets, the two great Old Testament sections that pointed to the coming of the Messiah. Moses was the great lawgiver. Elijah was the first and greatest of the prophets.

These two men represent the two ways by which people have entered heaven and will enter heaven. Moses left this life through the normal, natural process of death. No one was present when Moses died, but God buried him, the Old Testament says. Although the body of Moses still lies in some unmarked grave on a mountaintop beyond the Jordan River, Moses, in a resurrected body, was present on the mountain with Jesus.

Elijah, by contrast, was one of two men who were privileged to be caught up into heaven without experiencing death (the other was Enoch; see Genesis 5:24). We have the dramatic story in the Old Testament of Elijah's ascension into glory, caught up in a fiery chariot, without passing through the normal process of death (see 2 Kings 2:11).

We have a prediction of this same phenomenon in the New Testament. Believers today normally enter into glory through death, as Moses did. But Paul tells us that the generation of Christians who are living on the day of the Lord's return shall not taste of death.

Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed--in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. (1 Corinthians 15:51-52)

For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17)

So there are two ways by which believers can enter into glory, and these two ways are represented in the Transfiguration by Moses and Elijah.

I am always intrigued by the fact that Moses is present at the Transfiguration, because it means that he finally made it into the Promised Land. In the wilderness, God told Moses that he would not be permitted to lead the children of Israel into the Promised Land because of his disobedience. He could see the land but could not enter. That prohibition, however, was only in time. At the Transfiguration, Moses had passed from time into eternity, and so he was permitted to enter the land and stand on the mountaintop. I can imagine him looking all around and saying, "So here is the land I longed to see! I've been wanting to come here for ages, and I've finally made it!"

Luke gives us only the briefest account of the conversation among Jesus, Moses, and Elijah. He writes:

Two men, Moses and Elijah, appeared in glorious splendor, talking with Jesus. They spoke about his departure, which he was about to bring to fulfillment at Jerusalem. (Luke 9:30-31)

When he says that they "spoke about his departure," Luke means that they discussed Jesus' departure from earth by means of a cross and a resurrection just outside the city of Jerusalem. How I wish the disciples had thought to write down a full transcript of that heavenly discussion! Did Moses talk with the Messiah about how His sacrifice was the fulfillment of all the animal sacrifices demanded by the law? Did Elijah talk about how the death and resurrection of the Messiah would fulfill so many Old Testament prophecies? I think these matters were probably discussed, but we cannot know for sure, this side of eternity.

The third element of great interest in this account is the proposal made by Peter. After hearing these men discussing these strange events together, Peter, in his usual impulsive manner, interrupts: "Rabbi [that is, Master or Teacher], it is good for us to be here. Let us put up three shelters--one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah." In other words, Peter says, "This is tremendous! Let's construct three buildings, one for each of you. Then let's settle down here and make this our world headquarters." Peter evidently had in mind that they would transform that mountain into the headquarters for the worldwide reformation movement that Jesus was about to begin.

Mark and Luke make an interesting commentary on Peter's proposal. Mark 9:6 records, "He [Peter] did not know what to say, they were so frightened." And Luke 9:33 observes that Peter "did not know what he was saying." So the assessment of Scripture is that Peter spoke foolishly, without any understanding of what Jesus had been trying to teach him. Mark, who undoubtedly got this account from Peter's lips, indicates that the motive that led Peter to speak was fear. And it wasn't just Peter who was afraid; Mark includes all three of the disciples when he writes, "they were so frightened." It has been said that there are two kinds of people, those who have something to say and those who have to say something. Peter was someone who had to say something. He blurted out whatever came to his mind, without stopping to think whether it made sense or not.

Immediately after Peter made his foolish proposal, the fourth dramatic event occurred. Suddenly the disciples were overshadowed by a cloud. Matthew tells us it was a bright cloud, a cloud of light. I believe that this was the same cloud mentioned in the Old Testament, which hovered over the tabernacle during the day: the glory of God, called the Shekinah. Then Peter, James, and John heard a voice speaking out of the cloud, saying, "This is my Son, whom I love. Listen to him!" There is no doubt that this statement from God the Father came as a rebuke to Peter's foolish proposal. The Father was saying, "Peter, do not put Jesus on a par with Moses and Elijah. Listen to Him. He is the one of whom Moses and Elijah spoke. He is the one who fulfilled all the predictions of the prophets and who is about to fulfill all the sacrifices of the law. Listen to Him; this is no mere man like Moses and Elijah. This is my beloved Son."

On three occasions in the New Testament the voice of God spoke directly from heaven concerning the work of Jesus. One was at His baptism, when He began His ministry. There the words were addressed to Jesus: "You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased" (Mark 1:11). It is evident that the voice of God the Father came at that time to launch the ministry of Jesus. Here, on the Mount of Transfiguration, the Father speaks again, this time to correct a mistake the disciples are making.

The third account occurs in John 12, just before Jesus goes to the cross. When Jesus speaks of having completed the work the Father gave Him to do, He says in prayer, "Father, glorify your name!" In response, a voice comes from heaven saying, "I have glorified it, and will glorify it again" (John 12:28). This is a reference to the cross and the resurrection to follow. So three times we witness the voice of the Father from heaven: to launch Jesus' ministry; to correct a mistaken idea about Him; and to complete the testimony that Jesus gave by His life and ministry.

A Verbal Quarantine and a Misunderstanding

Mark ends this account by telling us that as the voice spoke, the scene suddenly faded. The world returned to normal. With majestic simplicity Mark states the transition: "Suddenly, when they looked around, they no longer saw anyone with them except Jesus" (Mark 9:8).

In the next section we have the discussion that ensued as Jesus, Peter, James, and John came back down the mountainside.

As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus gave them orders not to tell anyone what they had seen until the Son of Man had risen from the dead. They kept the matter to themselves, discussing what "rising from the dead" meant.

And they asked him, "Why do the teachers of the law say that Elijah must come first?"

Jesus replied, "To be sure, Elijah does come first, and restores all things. Why then is it written that the Son of Man must suffer much and be rejected? But I tell you, Elijah has come, and they have done to him everything they wished, just as it is written about him." (Mark 9:9-13)

Two features are important in this account. First, there is the verbal quarantine that Jesus imposes on these three disciples. Second, there is evidence that the disciples still do not understand what they have witnessed or what Jesus has been telling them. Let's look more closely at each of these features of the story.

First, the verbal quarantine. Once again Jesus forbade the disciples to talk of a miraculous occurrence they had seen. It seems that they were not even to discuss it with the other disciples. The obvious question is why Jesus does. Why does He show them His transfiguration and His glory, then swear the disciples to silence?

That brings us to the second feature of this account. Looking closely at this story, we can discover two reasons why Jesus commands them not to speak of what they have seen. Both reasons have to do with the fact that they do not understand what they have seen and heard.

For one thing, their information was incomplete. They could not understand what they had witnessed without the resurrection to put it into perspective. The disciples apparently ignored all Jesus had said about the resurrection. Apart from that fact, their message about the Transfiguration would be a sensational but ultimately meaningless jumble that would only mislead and misinform anyone they told.

For another thing, their understanding was incomplete. Not only was their information incomplete, but they even misunderstood the information they did have. They kept the matter to themselves but wondered what "rising from the dead" meant. Probably, like Martha (John 11), they thought that Jesus was talking about the great future resurrection, when all the dead would rise as foretold in the Old Testament. They did not understand that Jesus was speaking of His resurrection, even though He had been predicting His resurrection on the third day for some time.

This helps to explain why the disciples asked, "Why do the teachers of the law say that Elijah must come first?" It is clear that they believed that what they had seen on the mountain--Elijah and Moses speaking with Jesus--was the fulfillment of the prophecy of Malachi that Elijah must come before the great and terrible day of the Lord:

"Surely the day is coming; it will burn like a furnace…. See, I will send you the prophet Elijah before that great and dreadful day of the Lord comes." (Malachi 3:1, 5)

The disciples were baffled because it seemed that Elijah had come in the wrong order, after the appearance of the Messiah. They could not understand that, because they thought that the appearance of the Messiah was supposed to occur on "that great and dreadful day of the Lord." So they asked Jesus to explain: "Why do the teachers of the law say that Elijah must come first?" Note that the emphasis is on the word "first." They do not know how to tie the resurrection to this prophecy, and they do not know how to explain that Elijah did not come first and restore all things before Messiah appeared.

Jesus' answer to them is instructive. We must observe it carefully, because the pronouns are confusing at first glance. Jesus says to them, "To be sure, Elijah does come first, and restores all things. Why then is it written that the Son of Man [here Jesus refers to Himself, not Elijah] must suffer much and be rejected?" Notice that Jesus has changed the subject from Elijah to Himself. Then He says, "But I tell you, Elijah has come [here, Jesus shifts the subject to Himself again], and they have done to him everything they wished, just as it is written about him." Who does Jesus refer to in the rest of that sentence? Who do those pronouns refer to? If you do not read carefully, you would think they refer to Elijah. But in truth, they refer to Jesus, the Son of Man, not Elijah. This agrees with His previous statement that the Son of Man must suffer much and be rejected.

It is not written anywhere of Elijah that he would suffer and be rejected. This can only be a reference to the Messiah. So Jesus is saying, "Elijah will come; but as to Messiah, they are doing to Him whatever they please, as it is written of Him." He changes the focus of their question from Elijah to Himself. He is saying that the real issue is not that Elijah has come first but that the suffering and death of the Messiah must come first. That should be the disciples' focus. That is what Jesus continually tried to teach them in preparing them for the horror and despair of the cross.

We should also note that in Matthew's account of this event, Jesus refers to John the Baptist as having fulfilled, in metaphoric way, Malachi's promise concerning Elijah. You may recall that at the announcement of the birth of John the Baptist, an angel appeared to John's father and said that John would go before the Lord to prepare His way and that He would do so in the spirit and power of Elijah. The Bible does not tell us that John was the reincarnation of Elijah; John and Elijah were two distinct and different men. But John did come in the spirit and power of Elijah, fulfilling an Elijahlike ministry.

Our Lord makes clear that before Messiah appears in His second coming, Elijah will come first. But Jesus doesn't want the disciples to get caught up in far-future speculations about Elijah. He wants them to understand the looming issue that is fast approaching: the torture and death of the Messiah on the cross.

At the Foot of the Mountain

This account closes with the story of an event that took place at the foot of the mountain: the deliverance of the demonized boy. This is the same demonized boy who is depicted, along with his parents, in the lower portion of Raphael's painting. The painter understood that there was an important link between the transfiguration of Jesus and the healing that He performed after He came down from the mountain. Mark begins by recounting the failure of the disciples who had stayed behind at the foot of the mountain.

When they came to the other disciples, they saw a large crowd around them and the teachers of the law arguing with them. As soon as all the people saw Jesus, they were overwhelmed with wonder and ran to greet him.

"What are you arguing with them about?" he asked.

A man in the crowd answered, "Teacher, I brought you my son, who is possessed by a spirit that has robbed him of speech. Whenever it seizes him, it throws him to the ground. He foams at the mouth, gnashes his teeth and becomes rigid. I asked your disciples to drive out the spirit, but they could not."

"O unbelieving generation," Jesus replied, "how long shall I stay with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring the boy to me." (Mark 9:14-19)

We need to be understanding of these disciples. They lacked faith, just as Jesus said, but they faced a difficult problem. This boy presented an especially difficult case, as Jesus acknowledged. It was not a simple case of epilepsy, although the symptoms seem like classic symptoms of epilepsy. But the Bible records instances of epilepsy and demon possession and distinguishes between them. Here the problem was not caused by epilepsy but by demonic power. We will later see that Jesus asks the boy's father, "How long has he been like this?" The father replies, "From childhood." This was Jesus' clue that it was a difficult case. To make matters worse, while Jesus and the three disciples were up on the mountain, the disciples found themselves surrounded by unbelieving scribes ("teachers of the law") who opposed everything they did. So the disciples were asked to do a difficult task under extremely trying circumstances.

Why did they fail? The Lord put His finger on the basic reason: their lack of faith. But notice something crucial. We almost always think of faith as some kind of expectation that something is going to happen. If we can believe something is going to happen, it will happen. These disciples did believe a healing would happen, and they were surprised and dismayed when it did not. They had seen people delivered from demons before when they commanded the demons in Jesus' name. But this time it did not happen. So faith is not merely a sense of expectation that something will happen. Faith, as Jesus defines it, is something more. But what?

If you think about it, it becomes clear. The disciples had faith, but their faith was misplaced. Instead of having faith in God, they had faith in the process they had been following. They fell into the trap of thinking that if they said the right words and followed the right ritual, the demon would have to leave. Without realizing it, they had transferred their faith from the reality of God to the ritual of a formula.

That is so often what we do. We think that if we perform this ritual, say this prayer, give this offering, recite this creed, then a certain result will take place in our lives. We forget that it is not the ritual, prayer, offering, or creed that has power. The power resides in God alone. It is He who acts.

So Jesus reproved them for shifting their faith from God, who is real, to a formula, which is powerless. Our faith must be focused in God if it is to be a fresh, vital, and powerful faith. The power of that kind of faith is exemplified by our Lord. As Mark records:

So they brought him. When the spirit saw Jesus, it immediately threw the boy into a convulsion. He fell to the ground and rolled around, foaming at the mouth.

Jesus asked the boy's father, "How long has he been like this?"

"From childhood," he answered. "It has often thrown him into fire or water to kill him. But if you can do anything, take pity on us and help us."

"'If you can'?" said Jesus. "Everything is possible for him who believes."

Immediately the boy's father exclaimed, "I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!"

When Jesus saw that a crowd was running to the scene, he rebuked the evil spirit. "You deaf and mute spirit," he said, "I command you, come out of him and never enter him again. "

The spirit shrieked, convulsed him violently and came out. The boy looked so much like a corpse that many said, "He's dead." But Jesus took him by the hand and lifted him to his feet, and he stood up. (Mark 9:20-27)

Notice the father's honest doubt as he comes to Jesus. He said, "If you can do anything, take pity on us and help us." And Jesus gently challenges the man: "'If you can'? Everything is possible for him who believes." The question, says Jesus, is not whether He can accomplish the healing but whether the man has faith. And the man responds with heartrending honesty: "I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!" He believes, yet he also doubts. He is honest about his weakness, and he casts himself on the Lord of mercy, asking for help to increase his struggling faith. Such faith is small, but it is like a grain of mustard seed; focused on the power and person of God, this faith is enough to move mountains. The moment this father confessed his faith and his doubts, it was enough. God was ready and willing to act. Jesus spoke the word, and the boy was delivered.

As the demon leaves the boy, the severity of the case becomes obvious. The demon comes out of him violently and reluctantly, even though commanded by the Son of God. It cries out and convulses the boy, then leaves him as if he is dead. But Jesus lifts the boy by the hand, and all is well. In the final verses of this account, we discover the secret of the power that restored the boy:

After Jesus had gone indoors, his disciples asked him privately, "Why couldn't we drive it out?"

He replied, "This kind can come out only by prayer." (Mark 9:28-29)

Jesus does not mean prayer uttered at that moment, because Jesus did not pray when He cast out this demon. He is not talking about a certain kind of prayer that you say at the moment you want to deliver someone from a demon. Jesus is talking about a lifestyle of prayer. In other words, "This kind cannot be driven out except by a heart which is kept fresh and alive and in touch with God by continual prayer." That is where Jesus' power came from. He was always in touch with the Father. He was always drawing on his Father's power. He always walked in reliance on God. He referred every event of His existence to the God who lived within Him. He prayed to the Father with such constancy and consistency that prayer to Jesus was like breathing out and breathing in.

In closing, I want to go back to the beginning of this story for a moment. Remember that in Mark 9:1, Jesus said, "I tell you the truth, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the kingdom of God come with power."

What had these disciples just seen? They had seen the kingdom of God come with power into the life of a father and his boy. Why did it come? It came because Jesus lived in continual communion and communication with the living God. A lifestyle of prayer is the key to experiencing the kingdom of God, the power of God, in our daily lives.

Seventeen

The Child in Our Midst

äMark 9:30-50

The son of an English admiral, William Penn was born to wealth and privilege in 1644. He was aimless and unambitious in his youth. After being expelled from Oxford, he spent some time managing his father's properties in Ireland. In his early twenties, Penn heard a powerful sermon by Quaker preacher Thomas Loe, and Penn's life was transformed. He plunged into radical Christianity and became a champion of the poor and powerless. In fact, his activism landed him in prison on several occasions.

While he was imprisoned in the Tower of London at the age of twenty-four, Penn wrote a devotional book called No Cross, No Crown, which he called an attempt "to show the nature and discipline of the holy Cross of Christ; and that the denial of self. . . is the alone way to the Rest and Kingdom of God."

A few years later, in 1677, Penn sailed with Quaker leader George Fox to America, where he founded a city, Philadelphia, the City of Brotherly Love, and a colony, Pennsylvania, which he named after his late father. His goal in founding this city and this colony was to create a society of Christian love, brotherhood, and religious liberty, a "holy experiment," as he termed it, that he rightly predicted would become "the seed of a nation." Although America hasn't always lived up to Penn's dream, much of what is great about America flows from his vision.

Throughout his life, William Penn remained true to the words he wrote as a new Christian: no cross, no crown. If we are to receive the crown of God's favor in eternity, we must take up our cross and follow Jesus.

That is the lesson Jesus has gently but firmly been teaching His disciples: no cross, no crown. This is the lesson we all need to grasp, because if you are like me, you do not like the cross in your life. We Christians often make much of the joy and love and the glory of Christianity while downplaying the reality of suffering and persecution, of discipline and dying. It is easy to see why the church avoids such unpleasant subjects. But Jesus makes clear to His disciples--and to us--that there is no resurrection without a crucifixion. No cross, no crown.

As we continue our study in Mark, we will see how Jesus continues to prepare His disciples for the traumatic and shattering events to come, for the cross of Calvary and the crown of the resurrection.

A Debate on the Road

Mark tells us that following the Transfiguration and the healing of the demon-controlled boy, Jesus passed through Galilee again on His way to Capernaum. Mark underscores the teaching and training ministry of the Lord toward His disciples.

They left that place and passed through Galilee. Jesus did not want anyone to know where they were, because he was teaching his disciples. He said to them, "The Son of Man is going to be betrayed into the hands of men. They will kill him, and after three days he will rise." But they did not understand what he meant and were afraid to ask him about it. (Mark 9:30-32)

It is evident that Jesus took the back roads on the way to Capernaum. He deliberately avoided the crowds so that He could spend time with His disciples. All through the gospels you see that His target was these twelve men. He was intent on conveying truth to them, above all else.

As He instructs them and prepares them for what is to come, a new element is added: "The Son of Man is going to be betrayed into the hands of men." Jesus bluntly tells His disciples that His death will come as an act of betrayal. Only a friend could betray Jesus. What this meant to Judas we are not told, but Jesus knew what would happen.

Mark records that the disciples were baffled by what Jesus said--and afraid. They wanted to understand what He was telling them, but they were afraid to ask. Why? Were they afraid of His rebuke? For it is true that Jesus had rebuked them for lack of faith, yet there is no evidence in Scripture that He ever rebuked anyone for asking Him a question. So I don't think they feared His rebuke. Rather, I think they feared His answer. They didn't ask because they were afraid to know the truth. They preferred to bury their heads in the sand rather than find out what was going to happen to Jesus and who was going to betray Him.

Jesus tries to confront them with the fact of the cross, even though they don't want to hear it, because He wants them to be prepared when the time comes. But as we will later see, when the time comes they are unprepared. They have avoided the truth, but they cannot escape it. The fact of the cross is coming at them like a steamroller.

As they follow Jesus toward Capernaum, the disciples have a discussion on the road, and the subject of their discussion shows how little they understand of what Jesus is trying to teach them. They think that Jesus cannot overhear them as they whisper to each other, but He knows what is in their hearts. Mark writes:

They came to Capernaum. When he was in the house, he asked them, "What were you arguing about on the road?" But they kept quiet because on the way they had argued about who was the greatest.

Sitting down, Jesus called the Twelve and said, "If anyone wants to be first, he must be the very last, and the servant of all. "

He took a little child and had him stand among them. Taking him in his arms, he said to them, "Whoever welcomes one of these little children in my name welcomes me; and whoever welcomes me does not welcome me but the one who sent me." (Mark 9:33-37)