From that time on, Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and undergo great suffering at the hands of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, “God forbid it, Lord! This must never happen to you.” But he turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; for you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things.” Then Jesus told his disciples, “If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it. For what will it profit them if they gain the whole world but forfeit their life? Or what will they give in return for their life? “For the Son of Man is to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay everyone for what has been done. Truly I tell you, there are some standing here who will not taste death before they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.” (Matthew 16:21-28, NRSV)
Our plans are not God’s plans!
This reading makes that clear. Peter did not see the end of the plan and therefore did not understand what had to happen. he had in his mind what was going to happen, and when Jesus deviated from that, Peter asserted that Jesus was wrong and Peter knew how this was going to go…
When we look to our own hearts, wants and desires, we can not see what we need to see. We set our minds on our own desires and can not see the way God has set it out to be.
We need to know our proper place.
The words Jesus first speaks to Peter, He spoke to the other disciples as well. Earlier in the Gospel of Matthew in chapter 4:
“As he walked by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea—for they were fishermen. And he said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fish for people.”” (Matthew 4:19-20, NRSV)
Follow me – or get behind me… in the Greek these are the same phrase. You see it is about proper place. It is true that Jesus walks with us, and is our friend, but He is God, and we need to follow Him or be behind Him. If we are looking into His face, we are in the wrong place.
We need to see the back of His head, as we walk behind Him to follow where He is leading.
So set your mind on Godly things, and get in the proper place and follow Jesus through the plan as God has set it to be.
aSacredRebel 