From that time Jesus began to show His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised up on the third day. Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, “God forbid it, Lord! This shall 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 not setting your mind on God’s interests, but man’s.”
We know God is holy and perfect, and man is fallen and depraved. Logically, there is no way these two entities can think along the same line. Their thoughts and plans must be completely opposite and different. We don’t deeply realize this; whatever seems good to us humanly, we think that must be pleasing to God. The Bible everywhere repeatedly emphasizes that God’s ways and our ways are different. The glorious purposes and plans and acts of God are set against the blind, erring, sinful purposes of men.
Men see things one way and God sees things totally another way. For example, in Proverbs 14:12, it says, “There is a way which seemeth right unto a man but the ends thereof are the ways of death.” Luke 16:15: “And He said to them, ‘You are those who justify yourselves in the sight of men, but God knows your hearts; for that which is highly esteemed among men is detestable in the sight of God.'” Isaiah 55:8-9: “‘For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,’ saith the Lord, ‘for as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.’”
Men don’t think like God. We don’t know God’s thoughts. The human mind has no capacity to grasp God’s infinite ways and thoughts. We don’t know God’s ways, and we often wrongly assess and go wrong. In today’s amazing passage, Peter who made the great confession goes fully wrong about God’s plan, to an extent where he gives room to Satan, and he becomes a stumbling block to Christ. He gets a terrible rebuke like no one… all because Christ says in verse 23, “for you are not setting your mind on God’s interests, but man’s.” This highlights two things: God’s interests or man’s interests.
See, Peter is a believer, the leader of the apostles. If he can fall like this, not understanding what God’s plan for our life is… if things are not going as we think they should go, we can make our own plans at a human level, and then we may give room to Satan, even be a stumbling block to Christ and his gospel, all because we set our mind on not on God’s interests but man’s.
So this passage is very important for us to learn in humility and in the spiritual maturing process, to learn not to allow man’s interests to hinder us from doing God’s interests. If we do that, we give room to Satan and become an offense to Christ. This passage teaches us a profound principle of learning to live our lives according to the plan of God rather than the plans of men. Always be submissive to God’s plan, so we don’t give room to Satan. May God help us to learn this from the heart.
We have seen this is a most important passage – Peter’s Great Confession. This is the first mention of the church in the New Testament and the authority he gave to the church. The Lord just now said, “I am the Messiah, I am building my Kingdom, and the gates of death will not stop it.” Now, verse 21, he says how he will build his church. If he is Christ, the Son of the living God, through what means he will accomplish his messianic purpose… Verse 21 reveals how he will accomplish his great Messianic work. He reveals the divine plan.
We will understand the three verses with three headings. 1. We see the interests of God in the divine plan in verse 21. 2. We see the interests of man in Peter’s presumption in verse 22. 3. Then we see Jesus’ terrible rebuke for a mind set on the interests of men in verse 23. These show us how we must be careful not to substitute the things of men for the things of God.
1. The Interests of God in the Divine Plan
These disciples, the foundation stones, should understand the divine plan. So far, they understood he is the Messiah and he will build his church. But with their old thinking, they struggle to understand the divine plan. They cannot handle that the Messiah should suffer and die, that the Messiah, the King, the Anointed One, should suffer humiliation, rejection, and finally death is really not within the framework of their Messianic viewpoint.
They’re like all the rest of the Jews of whom Paul says in 1 Corinthians 1:18 that the cross is to the Jews a—what?—stumbling block. And to the Gentiles, foolishness. That you should have a King and a Messiah who is murdered is not in their thoughts. And because their understanding is so incomplete, Jesus reminds them in verse 20 not to preach it until they get it straight.
So now he is teaching them what the divine plan is. Verse 21: “From that time Jesus began to show His disciples.” This is the starting of new teaching to them. He will begin here; from the next chapters, he will regularly talk about this. “From that time forth,” is a very important phrase. Matthew apparently uses this phrase to mark a transition because it appears one other time in Matthew’s gospel, 4:17, where it says, “From that time, Jesus began”—to preach and say, “Repent for the Kingdom of heaven is at hand”—to mark the beginning of His public ministry to Israel. And now He uses the same phrase to mark the beginning of His central teaching of his ministry to the disciples. He began to teach… So we have moved into a new epoch in the life of Christ, a new era. It indicates a new level of Christ’s self-disclosure to His followers. He has not taught them this before.
Substance of this New Teaching
This teaching is the divine plan; this is the interests of God. It has four stages. Follow them, will you, in verse 21?
- Firstly, go to Jerusalem.
- Secondly, he would suffer many things (he speaks generally, but he knew every detail).
- Thirdly, Mark adds he would be rejected… and be killed (or murdered).
- Fourthly, be raised up on the third day.
This is the shock of the shock for the disciples and to Peter. It’s like a volcano eruption.
The Messiah suffering and death is a big shock, and another shock is that all these suffering and death will come from the highest courts of the leaders of Israel. The very court that must welcome and promote the Messiah will be the court that will cause him to suffer, and put to death… unbearable. So unbearable, so shocked that they couldn’t hear or grasp anything about the most important last point—what is it? Raised up on the third day. It didn’t register in their mind.
Now would you notice the word “must” in verse 21? It applies to all: “He must go to Jerusalem, must suffer many things, must be killed and must rise.” Now, that is the “must” of a divine imperative. That is the necessity. There is no plan B, folks. This is not whimsical. This is a must.
It is a “must” that is bigger than the moment in which we see it. It is a “must” that is older than the circumstances in which we hear it. It is a “must” that comes thundering out of eternity. It is not the must of human devotion to an ideal; it is the must of a divine imperative. It is an ageless must. It comes with the force of eternity. This is the plan of the divine God, set in motion before the foundation of the world. There is a compelling divine necessity about this ‘must.’ It is not simply advisable. It is not merely expedient or useful. It is not the best way under the circumstances. The expression shows that there is no other possibility.
Four things made it necessary. First, human sin and depravity. He had to die because men are sinners and they must have their sin paid for. Secondly, because of the divine requirement, without the shedding of blood, there could be no remission or justification/reconciliation with God. God’s justice, mercy, and wrath—all his attributes—require the death of Christ. And so, man’s salvation needed a death, and God’s justice required a death. And then you can add to that the divine decree, God by His determined counsel and foreknowledge brought it to pass. And then you could even add the prophetic promises; the prophets had said the Messiah would die.
Mark the tone of the language, the absolute certainty, details lie there before Him, a definite, fixed certainty; every detail known—the scene, the instruments of His suffering, death, His resurrection, and its date—all manifested and mapped out in His sight, and all absolutely certain.
God’s interested divine plan has 4 stages. Let us see them briefly.
Firstly, Go to Jerusalem.
The plan is to go to Jerusalem. Now from this calm and undisturbed, beautiful Caesarea Philippi… He must begin to set His face to Jerusalem and move in that direction… going from Galilee to Judea, going from the lakeside to the city of Jerusalem. This itself is very shocking.
They knew what awaited them there… a frying pan, a hot fiery furnace, like roaring lions waiting there to eat him. It was the center of hostility. All Jewish leaders were waiting to somehow kill him. The religion of Jerusalem couldn’t stand Jesus Christ. Its hypocritical, self-righteous, self-centered religion were overthrown by His truth, and they hated Him for it. They were waiting to catch him and kill him and planning that. But they would never have to hunt Him like a fugitive to kill him. He would go and offer Himself for He it was who said in John 10:18, “No man takes my life from me, I lay it down of myself.” He is standing in Caesarea Philippi… he has many roads to go anywhere into the world, all open for him. All that He had to do is take any one of them and just spend the rest of His life healing people, feeding, and teaching them, but He would not have fulfilled the plan of God. The one road He had to take was the road to Jerusalem, it was a must… a divine imperative.
By the way, Jerusalem means the city of peace, and that high city, elevated on a plateau 2500 feet above sea level, surrounded by hills, sparkling like a jewel in the sun, it became known as the Golden City. It is the place in Genesis 22, that very location, Mount Moriah, where Abraham goes to sacrifice Isaac and finds a substitute sacrificial animal who is a picture of Jesus Christ. He has to be sacrificed on the same mountain.
Jerusalem, the capital city of Israel, the city of David, the city of God, for God dwelt in the Ark there, Solomon’s grand temple was built here. Now it is not the city of God anymore. It was all against God. When Jesus was born, it tried to kill Him as an infant. The first Passover He went to the city, He took a whip in John 2 it says, and He had to clean out the defilement in the temple there. And hatred of Him was born at that moment. The second Passover of His life, He went there, violated their Sabbath tradition, and they tried to kill Him by stoning, had to escape for His life, says John 5. The third Passover of His ministry, He deliberately stayed away because of their hatred. Now he will go there for the last Passover and they kill Him. It is the city of sacrifices. He had to be the Passover Lamb. He had to die the death for sin. He could have gone anywhere, but he must go to Jerusalem because that was the divine plan.
Second phase of God’s plan was to suffer many things from the elders, chief priests, and scribes.
Now, those three groups of people constituted the Sanhedrin, which was the ruling tribunal in Israel. The Sanhedrin will be the official instrument to do this. It was made up of the elders, who are basically respected tribal heads that became leaders and judges all around the land. Then you have the chief priests who were primarily Sadducees and the scribes who were primarily Pharisees, and together they constituted the legal court, the tribunal of that land.
And Jesus is saying, “I’m going there, and I’m going to be tried there by the orthodox religious leaders of Israel, even though the trial is a mockery. From their viewpoint, it is a formal trial and condemnation.” Mark adds they will evaluate me and reject me. Suffer many things… how he just generally says… but how every detail of those sufferings he will be able to see now… how difficult for him knowing those to go to Jerusalem… if you and I were there, we would run away somewhere. See our Saviour saying, “I must suffer many things.” His enemies’ insatiable malice/bloodthirstiness, and his own invincible/infinite patience, appear in the variety and multiplicity of his sufferings.
3. There’s another must in verse 21. He says He must be killed.
The word here used is not a word of judicial execution. It’s a word that means to be murdered (to be robbed of life). The leaders didn’t justly give capital punishment, but unjustly killed him. There’s nothing of the executioner’s thought here, nothing of a just punishment for crime. And Jesus says, “I’m going to be killed.” And He breaks terrible news.
Mark 8:32 says stating the matter plainly, he spoke this openly and clearly. Look at the manner he says it. He said it plainly. It means without any figure of speech, parable, or proverbs. He said in a way that conceals nothing… very frankly. Before this, he didn’t speak like this. He made veiled references… “destroy this temple, I will rise it in 3 days”… he was speaking of death and resurrection. When they asked for a sign, he said the only one sign given as Jonah was 3 days and 3 nights in the fish belly, so the Son of Man will be 3 days in the heart of the earth. He spoke in parabolic language… up till now, no open teaching of his suffering, death, and resurrection. But now, and here on, he openly speaks.
4. This shocked them to the core… In this shock, they turned off their minds after the third element and they never heard the fourth one, verse 21, “And be raised again the third day.”
Oh, if they’d just listen to that one, there would be glory and there would be triumph. He adds the third day so that lest they think like the sister of Lazarus, “Oh yes, we know he’ll be raised at the last day.” This was unique. He would be raised in three days. He was not giving them some indefinite word.
He will continue to talk to them about His death and resurrection, which they never are able to grasp. And even after the death of Christ, as they walk the road to Emmaus, they are in utter confusion about what’s happened. Only after the Holy Spirit comes, and all of a sudden when the Spirit of God came, the lights went on and all these lessons and all their meaning became real to them, and then they’ll proclaim it with all their being and write it to give it as the legacy of God to the generations to follow.
So then we see the things of God—His divine plan—don’t we?—in verse 21. This is the plan of God. But let’s look at verse 22.
22 Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, “God forbid it, Lord! This shall never happen to You.”
The disciples couldn’t handle it. As soon as they heard He was going to be killed, they just bailed out mentally. Their heads started spinning. And they didn’t understand the plan. For Peter, he cannot handle a dead Messiah. Peter couldn’t reason it, couldn’t fathom it. And I guess it didn’t mean much to him that he had just heard Jesus say, “I will build my church and the gates of Hades couldn’t prevent the extension of the Kingdom, the building of the church.”
Now, when men come to the plan of God and they don’t like the plan, they offer their plan instead. And here we see the presumption of Peter. “Then Peter took Him,” and I remind you that the Greek word here means to catch hold of. And it literally means that he put his arm around Him and forcefully dragged Him off. I imagine maybe Jesus was starting to go on the Jerusalem road… maybe he took him to another route…
On one side we see the brashness/rudeness of Peter. On another side, the humanity of Jesus Christ. There must have been something so really, totally, consummately human about Jesus that Peter actually thought he could talk to Him as a man talks to his friend and drag him to another side. And so they’re walking along, he just puts his arm around the Lord, caught hold of Him, the Greek says, and hauled/dragged Him off to straighten Him out. “Lord, let us discuss offline, not before everyone.” Though he took him aside, it looks like he emotionally spoke loudly and everyone heard what they spoke.
What next? He began to rebuke… A strong word… it is like when Jesus spoke to demons and commanded them to come out. It is used when Jesus rebuked the angry waves… The word for rebuke is full of emotional vehemence; I mean, he really spoke very strongly.
What was the rebuke? Verse 22: “God forbid it, Lord! This shall never happen to You.”
Originally… “Mercy on you, Lord; this shall never be you…” May what you said as necessary may never, never come on you. “Be it far from thee, Lord,” it means pity yourself, have a little pity on yourself, Lord. I mean don’t do that to yourself, don’t go die. I mean it’s obvious you don’t need to go to Jerusalem, right? You’re here, everything’s fine, there are roads leading to every other place in the world, don’t go there. “Pity yourself, Lord.” “God be gracious to you, Lord” or “Heaven grant you something better than that” or “Heaven forbid.”
And then he adds, “This shall not be unto thee.” We’re just not going to have it. That’s it. That’s pretty bold stuff. That’s a flat-out rebuke. You see, he could not see a suffering Messiah. He couldn’t see a humiliated Messiah. He couldn’t see a crucified Messiah. It just didn’t fit the plan.
With agitated vehemence, and strong in volume as well, he says this shall never happen. This is the same spirit when he said, “If all men forsake you… I will never forsake you… never.” When Christ had said, “It must be,” he says, “it shall never be.”
Obviously, he does it out of love for Christ… as to what he thinks to be of Christ’s best interest. His motives appear to be human love. But this is presumptuous… maybe he is older than the Lord. It’s the brashness that comes with personal self-confidence, and he had a lot of that in his personality. It’s the strength of pride. It’s the sense of privilege that he had because he’d spent a long time with Jesus.
And then to add to all of that, the Lord had just told him, “O blessed art thou, Peter, for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto you but my Father who’s in heaven,” and “I give you keys to open and close doors of the kingdom of heaven.” In a wrong way, he took that authority now. He was beginning to feel like a spokesman for God. And all that stuff came together and he just presumed on all of that and he said, “Lord, I just want to get you on the right track and sort of… I just want to straighten out your wrong Messianic-mission view.”
You see, Peter had the power, glory, pomp, and majesty Messianic view. Jesus had the suffering, pain, being killed, and rising from the dead view. See this is how different God’s view and man’s view are. For man, it is such a hindrance and stumbling block to hear God’s divine plan, he proposes a better plan.
Next we see how hateful and terrible are the plans of man to God.
3. Jesus’ Terrible Rebuke for a Mind Set on the Things of Men
23 But He turned and said to Peter, “Get behind Me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to Me; for you are not setting your mind on God’s interests, but man’s.”
I couldn’t imagine anything more shocking to Peter than this response because Peter’s intentions seem honorable on the surface. He’s saying this out of love, he’s saying it out of ignorance, he doesn’t want the Lord to die, he doesn’t want the Lord to have the pain.
The Lord hit him with the most terrible rebuke in 23. “He turned and said to Peter,” the idea being that Peter had pulled Him off and apparently was talking to Him, you know, maybe with his arm around Him, and the Lord just turned around and looked him in the eyeball and said, “Get behind Me, Satan, you are an offense to Me.”
Now that’s a fairly strong rebuke. “Get thee behind me, Satan,” “Get, Satan. Begone. Leave.” Why does He say that? That’s a stinging, crushing, devastating response. I mean, and it says that Peter began to rebuke Him but he didn’t get finished, he got shot down in mid-flight and he landed with a devastating crash. And you ask yourself, “Does such a small sin deserve such a destructive blast of fury from the Lord?”
Well, as soon as Peter said this to Him, the Lord immediately knew the source and He said, “Hupage, Satana” – “Get away, Satan.” He’d said the same words once before, you know. In chapter 4, verse 10, when Satan took Him up and tempted Him, the whole purpose of the temptation was to divert him from the cross. He took Him on a mountain, he said, “Look, there it is, all you want, just go down and take it, it’s yours. Feed yourself, take care of yourself, don’t suffer, don’t be the humiliated Messiah, don’t be the suffering Messiah, Dive off the promontory of the temple and land safely and they’ll all go, ‘Ah, He must be the Messiah of God.’ And then I’ll give you all the kingdoms of the world and you won’t have to die and you won’t have to suffer, you can be a hero, you don’t have to depend on God, no humiliation, I’ll give you the whole deal.”
It may not seem as a big thing for us, but It was a great temptation for our Lord. Because the Son of God, living in all glory, reigning over everything, the Lord knew He was going to have to bear all the sins of all the people that ever lived on the face of the earth in His own body on the cross and that He would be separated from God the Father. The horror of that to one who knew no mark of sin in His life was to cause this to be a temptation. And it was a heavy weight, a heavy temptation, so much so that when it came to Him in the garden, He sweat, as it were, great drops of blood in the agony over that same thing.
Satan knows the cross is the place that crushes his head. Satan knows the cross is the place that destroys the power of death which he held. Satan knows the cross is the place where men’s sins are paid for and they are liberated from his dominion into the Kingdom of light to dwell with God forever. Satan despised and hated the cross. But when Jesus was crucified, he tried to keep Him dead and he couldn’t do that, either, because the gates of Hades can’t hold Him.
So in Matthew 4 he tried to stop him to take the way of the cross… after all the temptation was over, you know what he said? “Begone, Satan.” Luke tells us that Satan just waited for a more opportune time. And I believe that all the way through the life of Jesus Christ, Satan kept coming back trying to divert Him from the cross. He used people to make him king right and stop his way to the cross.
Now here Jesus recognized the Satan and his words. And Satan was using Peter’s human love and trying to divert him from the cross. He prompted Peter to think his thoughts so that Peter was reasoning along Satan’s thoughts. Whether Satan was actually in his mind, in his body dwelling, or whether Satan had actually infiltrated his thinking is not the issue and the text doesn’t tell us, but what we do know is that he was articulating the thing that Satan was continually articulating.
Satan always came to Jesus to get Him to avoid the cross, avoid the cross, avoid the cross, take the glory, take the power, take the earth without the cross. And here was the same old stuff again. And so He says, “Get behind me, Satan.”
Then He turns and says, “You’re an offense to me.” And I think that’s directed to Peter. Peter had become a trap. Peter had become a stumbling block. The word literally implies a “trap,” since it was a term used for the bait stick for trapping birds in a basket. “You are being used as bait to catch me. Peter was baiting a trap—a Satanic trap.” He recognized it.
Peter, you have taken me aside and now stand between me and the necessity of the suffering, death, and resurrection. Peter, you are in the wrong place… You are between me and the cross… get behind me. Satan means adversary.
The Lord didn’t say, “get behind me devil or serpent,” but he chose this name, meaning adversary… “get me behind… Satan.”
Then why have you become like this…? “for you are not setting your mind on God’s interests, but man’s.” For in speaking as you speak, Peter, you reflect the one whose mind is thinking not the thoughts of God, but thoughts of men… Not thinking thoughts of God how I shall accomplish my messianic mission… you are not thinking God’s thoughts… which regulate my life, my necessity, and my commitments… I told you… that the Son of Man must suffer, be rejected, and killed and raised… you are saying, “have mercy God on me… so this shall never be…” You are an adversary… Don’t stand between me and these necessities… You are thinking thoughts in carnal reasoning… in your way of thinking, suffering, rejection, and death doesn’t fit in messianic expectation… you are thinking as a man.
Well, you can imagine Peter’s shock. He could hardly have understood that by his attempt to dissuade Jesus from the cross he was being used by Satan as a baiting trap to catch Jesus… How subtle.
Application
Firstly, we see the infinite love of Christ.
How can we estimate the love of Christ?
The sufferings which awaited Jesus were such as no finite creature could have borne; yet when entreated to shun them, he not only refused to listen to the advice, but reproved it with a severity that he never used on any other occasion. ‘What! Spare myself? Avoid the sufferings that are necessary to expiate the guilt of my people, and to satisfy the demands of law and justice? How can I leave my people to perish in their sins? I cannot endure the thought: and I account him who suggests it to me as no better than Satan himself: yes, even the highly favored Peter appears to me in the light of that malignant fiend, when he would damp the ardor of my love to man, or discourage the execution of my plans for his redemption.’
His “love was not such as many waters could not quench, neither could floods drown it.” Towards those who inflicted his sufferings we behold nothing but kindness. To the man that betrayed him, “Friend, you betray me with a kiss?” To Peter, when denying him with oaths and curses, he spoke not a word, but gave him a look of pity and compassion. To his blood-thirsty murderers he also meekly submitted, praying and apologizing for them: “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” But when he was entreated to avoid those sufferings, his indignation was extreme; nor were any terms too strong to express it. Well indeed might it be said of his love, that “it passes knowledge.” In the same way, Apostle Paul, knowing there is danger, would go to Jerusalem; we admire the firmness with which St. Paul resolved to meet the sufferings that awaited him [Note: Acts 21:11-13]: “I don’t consider my life precious… I want to complete the ministry Jesus has given me.” But this was nothing in comparison of Christ’s love to us.
So strongly was he committed and engaged for our redemption, that they who but indirectly endeavored to divert him from it, touched him in a very tender and sensible part. It argues a very great firmness and resolution of mind in any business, when it is an offense to be dissuaded, and a man will not endure to hear any thing to the contrary. If somebody discourages us about something we do, and we strongly rebuke them, it shows how much we are determined to do that. Peter was not so sharply reproved for disowning and denying his Master in his sufferings, but in the name of love, trying to stop him from the cross and hinder him from dying for you and me.
Our Lord Jesus preferred our salvation before his own ease and safety. How we should praise our Father for such a faithful Savior! He suffered these things of his own voluntary will.
Secondly, the world may not see Jesus Christ as the Savior of the world according to men’s thoughts, but he is the only Savior of the world according to God’s plan.
Peter was saying, “we are not looking for this kind of humble, suffering Messiah.” And men are still saying that today. “We can’t be interested in Jesus who was rejected, murdered. That is not our king.” But do we realize God’s ways are not our ways? And God made His King, and exalted him above every name. If we don’t see it, it is our mind set on the things of men. And because we don’t see it, it doesn’t change it.
If you’re looking for a Savior, king, deliverer, or Messiah other than Jesus Christ who perfectly fulfilled God’s divine plan, if you are looking for one that better fits what you think He ought to be like, you’ve set your mind on the interests of men, and have given room to Satan, and are offensive to Christ.
That day, from God’s viewpoint, Jesus had to go to Jerusalem, suffer many things, and be killed. This was a divine must. But from man’s viewpoint, it was incomprehensible with their Messianic view. Men are the same today. And men still see the cross as a stumbling block, unnecessary, and avoidable. Do we avoid the cross in our thoughts and life? Then we have set our mind on the interests of men, not on God. You are an enemy of Christ. You are thinking thoughts of Satan. Romans 8 says the mind of the flesh is enmity against God.
Thirdly, this passage reveals the greatest interest of God is the suffering, death, and resurrection of Christ.
This is the divine plan, and this is the gospel, and this is God’s interests. This is what will save any soul. Have we set our mind on this? One translation says: “For you savor”—that means you enjoy, you have a taste for it. Do we savor and enjoy the truth of the suffering, death, and resurrection of Christ or is that a hindrance you want to avoid? Then you have set your mind on the things of men, and you’re not thinking the things of God.
Let us learn, from these verses, that there is no doctrine of Scripture so deeply important as the doctrine of Christ’s atoning death.
We cannot have clearer proof of this, than the language used by our Lord in rebuking Peter. He addresses him by the dreadful name of “Satan,” as if he was an adversary, and doing the devil’s work, in trying to prevent His death. He says to him, whom he had so lately called “blessed,” “Get behind me, Satan! You are an offense unto me.” He tells the man whose noble confession he had just commended so highly, “for you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of men.” Stronger words than these never fell from our Lord’s lips. The error that drew from so loving a Savior such a stern rebuke to such a true disciple, must have been a mighty error indeed.
The truth is, that our Lord would have us regard the crucifixion as the central truth of Christianity. Nothing is more important for us than that, and we should savor it always. Right views of His vicarious death, and the benefits resulting from it, lie at the very foundation of Bible-religion. Never let us forget this. On matters of church government, the second coming, Revelation truths, and the form of worship, men may differ from us, and yet reach heaven in safety. On the matter of Christ’s atoning death, as the way of peace, truth is only one. If we are wrong here, we are ruined forever.
Error on many other points is only a skin disease. Error about Christ’s death is a disease at the heart. Here let us take our stand. Let nothing move us from this ground. The sum of all our hopes must be, that “Christ has died for us” (1 Thessalonians 5:10). Give up that doctrine, and we have no solid hope at all.
As a church, are we focused on the interests of God or the interests of men? You have to learn our thoughts are not God’s thoughts. Sometimes what we think as very good and loving can be Satan’s thoughts, and we may be becoming enemies for Christ, because we are set our mind on the interests of men and not on the interests of God. Do you see how wrong we can go, thinking we help men and women and then put the gospel in the backseat, and do so many other activities? God’s great interest is the suffering, death, and resurrection of Christ. This is the gospel that can save perishing mankind. If we as a church think we are doing something more good than the preaching of the gospel, then we have listened to the voice of Satan, setting our mind on the interests of men than the interests of God.
Fourthly, we need to learn for our own lives, there is no glory without pain.
All the temporary eye of Peter could see was the process: suffering, death, but not the end. All he could want to do was eliminate the present pain, he couldn’t give any thought to the ultimate value of that pain. He didn’t understand the product of the future, so he muffed the present.
And we’re like that. In the next verse Jesus says not only for me, but everyone who follows should take up the cross. We forget that only by denying ourselves, you’re perfected. And we forget that God is moving us to the image of Jesus Christ through pain and suffering, and all we can see is the present pain, and we cry to God to get us out of it when it is that which perfects us. We don’t think like God thinks. We don’t see our lives as God sees. All we can see is present darkness, present pain, present suffering. God sees future glory. See Peter and the disciples: They wanted God to do things their way. They wanted the pomp and the majesty and the Kingdom and the whole shot, right now. But learn the lesson, there’s no glory to be had without pain, there’s no crown to be won without a thorn in the process.
Just like God’s plan for Christ, God has a plan to conform us to the image of Christ. We have a must… we must go through it. This is God’s plan, and men don’t have the option to say, “God, I’d like to let you in on my plan. I want you to know my plan so you can adjust accordingly.” That sounds to us ridiculous and yet we do it all the time, when we say to God, “Say, God, I don’t understand what you’re doing, I’ve got a better plan. I don’t like the suffering I’m going through, I don’t like the circumstances that exist,”
“Lord, I just want to tell you that the way things are going aren’t according to my plan. I don’t understand, God, why I have to go through these trials and this suffering and this problem and that problem and why did so-and-so die and why did I lose my job? And, Lord, I don’t know what plan you’re operating on but it isn’t mine and it doesn’t seem to square with what I perceive to be the best way to do things.” And we begin to talk God into what we think is a better approach. That’s the same thing.
And we want to offer to God the plan as we perceive it, “Lord, now this is the way the plan should work. Point one, no pain, Lord. Two, no suffering, Lord. No trials, no difficulty, just unmitigated joy and glory.” That’s our plan, always our plan, because as soon as the pain comes, we are confused, and dictate our plan to God.
And every time a trial comes, or a painful thing comes, we don’t scream to God and say, “Hey, God, get your plans in line with mine,” we say to God, “Help me get mine in line with yours.” Our way is the glory way. Our way is the joy way. Our way is the blessing way. Our way is the painless way. His way is suffering first, then glory, then joy, then blessing. Peter learned that, too. 1 Peter 1:6-7: “In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise…”
When God’s dispensations are either intricate or cross to us, it becomes us silently to acquiesce in, and not to prescribe to, the divine will. God knows what he has to do, without our teaching.
We are apt to look upon sufferings as they relate to this present life, to which they are uneasy, but there are other rules to measure them by, which, if duly observed, will enable us cheerfully to bear them (Romans 8:18).
Fifthly, our most intimate friends/relatives can be used as Satan’s instrument to hinder us in God’s will.
What was the will of God for Jesus? Suffering, death, resurrection. Who was Peter? One of his most close friends… He had just made Christ rejoice… “blessed are you Simon…” He spoke of Peter’s unique, peculiar place in the coming kingdom and church… this close friend… one who would be mightily used in the building of the church… he would open the doors of the kingdom to Jews, Samaritans, and Gentiles.
This Peter becomes Satan’s instrument… a stumbling block… an enemy now… “Get behind me Satan.”
Did Jesus love Peter when he called him Satan? Of course he did. He was going to the cross for Peter’s sins. Just as he loved him when he pronounced him blessed… but he would not allow his most intimate friend to stand between him and his doing of the will of God.
It is the subtlety of Satan, to send temptations to us by the unsuspected hands of our best and dearest friends. Thus he assaulted Adam by Eve, Job by his wife, and here Christ by his beloved Peter. Even the kindnesses of our friends are often abused by Satan, and made use of as temptations to us.
When we see that the great adversary should attempt to use a close friend of Jesus to divert him from the determination to do the will of God… should we be surprised if he attempts to use close and intimate friends/family members to divert us from God’s will, or hinder us from doing God’s will? For us, God’s will is the revealed will of God in the Bible. If anyone, maybe friends, husband, wife, children, diverts us from the doing of that will of God, we should see them as instruments being used by Satan. Many a time, don’t give them as an excuse for not doing God’s will.
Do not start off, keep saying, “Get thee behind Satan,” or hate them in any way… but see that Satan is using their worldliness, their mind set on the things of men, their human love, to divert us from doing the will of God.
Those who have their spiritual senses exercised, will be aware of the voice of Satan, even in a friend, a disciple, or a relative, that dissuades them from their duty. We must not regard who speaks, so much as what is spoken. We should learn to know the devil’s voice. Whoever takes us off from that which is good, and would have us afraid of doing too much for God, speaks Satan’s language.
How to act towards those who offer us their friendly advice? This is where we get spoiled… “oh my parents, or friends, brothers, he is very godly, so we blindly follow some.” But how are we to act towards those who profess themselves his friends/relatives? I answer, “Try their counsel, and examine carefully whether it savors of the things of God or of man.” Bring it to the test of Scripture, even though they should be apostles, or even angels, that offer it. That persons in their general habits are pious, is no reason that we should implicitly follow their advice in every thing; for the best of men are fallible, and liable to be biased by their interests or passions: and if Satan can gain over them to his interests, he will make especial use of them for assaulting the holiest of men.
By Eve he assaulted Adam; and Job also by his wife; and our Lord himself by his favorite Apostle, Peter. I say then, Whatever advice be given you, try it by the touchstone of God’s word: if it savors of carnal ease and worldly prudence, beware how you follow it: if, on the contrary, it evidently has the glory of God in view, beware how you reject it.
The direction of God himself is, “Try the spirits, whether they are of God;” “To the word and to the testimony; if they speak not according to this word, there is no light in them;” “Prove all things and hold fast that which is good.” We grant that, in many cases, it may not be easy to discern between good and evil: and the affection of the adviser may blind our eyes to the sinfulness of the advice. But if we ourselves are habitually savoring the things of God, we shall have a spiritual discernment, which, like the senses of taste and smell, will enable us to perceive the noxious qualities of things, which in their outward appearance are good and wholesome. But it is the privilege of all to have God himself for their guide: look therefore to him, and “he will direct your paths;” “He will guide you by his counsel, till at last he bring you to glory.”
Also, as believers, it is always important before giving advice to anyone, make sure our advice is biblical and God’s interests are kept in mind and not the interests of men, so we don’t become instruments of Satan.
You are determined to run your house according to the Bible… put rules in the house… Maybe children or wife say, “far be it to live like this… oh we shouldn’t be so strict… have mercy on yourself… you don’t have to pray everyday… read for so long… that is very strict… too self-denying…” Will we be ready to say, “Get thee behind Satan… you are a stumbling block… you are not thinking God’s thoughts, but man’s thoughts…”
Jesus says he that loves father, mother, brother, sister, husband, wife more than me is not worthy of me… he calls us to a discipleship in which we will allow no one… no matter how close we are… to stand between us and the clearly revealed will of God.
We need to pray this determination of the Lord should be our determination… when anyone, no matter who he/she might be, would stand between us and the path of obedience, to say… “Get behind me Satan… don’t stand between me and God’s will…” They may accuse you of being harsh… heartless…
Yes… Jesus seems harsh with Peter… but that was the best thing he should say at that time… otherwise, the whole redemption is at risk… “I must suffer and die… otherwise you and the whole mankind will have no savior…” Praise God for a resolute Savior who was prepared to be harsh to his own disciple.
The best thing we can do for the eternal souls of other men… is not speak nicely to them as their foolish… human reasons dictate… the best thing we can do… is show them the cross. Those that obstruct our progress in any duty must be looked upon as an offense to us. Those that hinder us from doing or suffering for God, when we are called to it, whatever they are in other things, in that they are Satans, adversaries to us.
Sixthly, in the kingdom of heaven, human wisdom is always devilish and is adversarial to the purposes of God.
“Get behind me Satan… for… because your thought patterns are dictated by human wisdom… you are thinking thoughts of men… not thoughts of God…” Notice the antithesis is not between God and the devil… but between God and men. You are thinking as a human being, at a human rationalistic level… your mind is influenced by mere human perspectives… on how I should accomplish the Messianic goal…
God has made foolish the wisdom of the world… his thoughts are not our thoughts… nor his ways our ways…
Oh, with respect to the church and its ministry… who can measure the harm that has come when men have applied mere human wisdom to the work of God in forwarding redemptive purposes… Churches have been destroyed. God’s work hindered and became Satan’s work because of listening to man’s wisdom. God delights to confound human wisdom… he takes the weak things to confound the mighty.
By saying “no cross, no suffering, pain, death,” Peter is attacking the very foundation of that kingdom. When he says, “pity on you, Lord… this shall never happen to you…” he speaks that way… in all sincerity he is thinking like a human being.
People of God… beware, beware… beware of mere human pragmatism in the works of the kingdom… beware of importing principles of worldly business into the church… marketing ideas… humanity principles… social gospel… somehow helping them at a worldly level will bring them to Christ… world’s concepts of success… numbers, crowd… They were offensive to the Lord then and now.
Self-sparing and self-promotion are the devil’s creed… “Spare yourself… enjoy yourself, that way be the Messiah.” The whole aim of Satanic policy is to get self recognized as the chief end of man. Satan’s temptation aims nothing less than this… he is called the prince of the world because self-interest rules the world.
There is nothing as sacrifice… all men are selfish at heart… they all have a price… some hold out more than others… “all that a man will give is for his life…”
The devil’s creed is “spare yourself.” It is always people who challenge us, people who prod me to greater zeal, sacrifice, prayerfulness, service… Not people who say, “spare yourself…” so many…
“Slow down… you will kill yourself… you will become old… die… spare yourself…” that is the language of the devil… We will see one who saves his life will lose it…
Seventhly, in assessing any Christian teaching, make teaching about the cross, the touchstone of your assessment.
The cross is a standard or criterion by which something is judged or recognized.
This plain teaching of the necessity of his suffering, death, and resurrection… has become a catalyst to show how far his own disciples were perceiving the central issues of how he will accomplish his messianic task.
Anything that opposes or neutralizes the necessity of the cross for human salvation is Satan and not of God. If you watch today, many, many preachings have great admiration for Christ’s person and teachings, miracles, blessings… but very subtly staff the divine reason for the cross. The death and resurrection of Christ might be acknowledged but are typically thought of only in sentimental terms.
Peter is positive proof that it is possible to know much about Jesus Christ and even be able to state significant theological truth about Him, and still fail to understand the work that He came to do and thus miss the gospel.
Evidently, Peter had forgotten what he felt when he saw something of Christ’s majesty, and cried out, “Go away from me Lord, for I am a sinful man, O Lord!” (Luke 5:8). When we forget our sinfulness, and the judgment of God against us as sinners, it is very easy for us to think little of the cross and resurrection. We can satisfy our religious need with lots of sentimental thoughts about Jesus. Christianity becomes a nice, warm, fuzzy religion that makes us feel good because we’ve identified with something wholesome and good.
It is necessary for Jesus to suffer… it is rooted in divine purpose, the divine character of God, and the sinful nature of man… Beware of anything that undercuts the necessity of the suffering, rejection, and blood letting of the Son of God… Assess preaching by the place given to the suffering, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ… is it central…?
Are all the truths flowing to and out of the cross? An inability to accept the suffering savior involves the refusal of the will of God… The Way of the cross is the will of God.
Today when we preach in the 21st century… God is infinitely holy, and God’s law is inflexibly just and if man the sinner is ever to be forgiven… that law must be satisfied.
The cross is still an offense… a stumbling block to men today… man cannot come to God without the blood letting of his son… we know it is not popular but it is the only truth…
This is the everlasting gospel… What place does the cross have… in any teaching… this is the assessment of any teaching… The cross is the great test of man’s religion…
Among all things you are doing in Christian religion… can you say with Paul, “God forbid that I should glory save in the cross…” It is the only ground of my hope that I should be accepted in the presence of the holy God…
God changed Peter from an enemy and made him understand… he could say in Acts… “him being delivered by determinate foreknowledge of God… you slain…” no longer an enemy… now as a true disciple… and lifting the cross… pointing men to the cross… in him and alone…
That is the message today we have to preach… thank God he didn’t allow human friendship to dictate the path he has to take… then there would be no savior or redemption… Praise God for a resolute Savior who was prepared to be harsh to his own disciple…
Oh, may God make us like our Savior… the best service we can do the eternal souls of other men… is not speak nicely to them as their foolish… human reasons dictate… the best thing we can do… is show them the cross.
Grace Reformed Baptist Church, Bangalore 