Dying to self
The French king Louis XI was deeply impressed when an astrologer correctly foretold that a lady of the court would die in eight days' time. But even though he was impressed he was worried about a man who seemed to have so much authority over what would happen in the future, and he decided that he would have to have him killed.
Louis summoned the man to his apartments, having first told his servants to throw the visitor out of the window when he gave the signal. "You claim to understand astrology and to know the fate of others," the king said to the man, "so tell me at once what your fate will be and how long you have to live."
"I shall die just three days before Your Majesty," answered the astrologer. The shaken king cancelled his plans!
Predictions of death are often treated either with complete fear or with scepticism – and things were no different as Jesus predicted his journey to Jerusalem, his suffering and ultimately his death. (Matthew 16:21-26)
The Contemporary English Version includes part of this passage as ‘Jesus turned to Peter and said, "Satan, get away from me! You're in my way because you think like everybody else and not like God."’
And, for Christians today, that ‘thinking like everybody else’ is a very real problem… And it was for Peter as Jesus spoke to him – and you have to feel rather sorry for Peter I think – he only wanted to tell Jesus that God would not let him suffer; he only wanted Jesus to stop talking in such a morbid way; he only wanted to say that bad things do not happen to good people especially when they are as good as Jesus; he only wanted to protect Jesus, to make him feel better - to assure him - and he gets shot down.
He gets shot down because he misses the facts about Jesus - even though Peter believes Jesus is the son of God, even though he believes that Jesus is the Messiah, even though he is willing to obey Jesus and follow him anywhere…
Peter misses the fact that God's way is different than the human way, that God thinks and works differently than us, so differently in fact that Jesus had to die for us…
And in dying Jesus showed us the truth and reality of what he was teaching here – that commitment and faith, and above all love, demands everything…
What made Jesus so angry with Peter was surely his frustration that Peter didn’t understand that. He didn’t understand, in spite of all that he’d seen and been through, that Jesus was demanding everything from his followers…
And today we very often do the same thing, usually without realising it at all, but Jesus says that our thinking just like everyone else in the world means that it is possible that this will get in the way of our service of God and also our sharing of the gospel message.
If we were included in a survey, perhaps about life and politics, and work and religion, and social policies - would we answer them any differently than those people who are not Christians… The survey says, because it has been done, that most of us think like everybody else.
I am sure Peter meant well when he took Jesus aside and told him to stop talking about his death but he didn't understand the ways of God – he was thinking just like anyone else…
And all too often many of us don't understand God's ways either - and that is why the fire has often gone out of churches which have become too polite and concerned about our image in society. And that is why the fire has gone out of so many of us who are worried about looking silly or causing trouble or speaking against society’s norm…
But Jesus said to his disciples - "If any of you want to be my followers, you must forget about yourself. You must take up your cross and follow me. If you want to save your life, you will destroy it. But if you give up your life for me, you will find it." (Verse 24-25)
Jesus wants us to die - not in the sense of going out on the road and driving at 100 mph, not in the sense of living irresponsibly, but by forgetting about our needs and wants and desires and becoming more concerned about the needs and wants of others, and most of all about the desires of God – the commandments of God - the love of God…
It is said that St. Augustine (5th century), was accosted one day on the street by a former mistress some time after he had become a Christian. When he saw her he turned and walked the other way. Surprised, the woman called out, "Augustine, it is I". Augustine as he kept going the other way, answered her, "Yes, but it is not I."
Augustine had died, not literally, but to his old life, his old self…
God knows that is possible for us to gain the whole world - and
yet lose our souls; and that is why he came to us in Jesus - to show the way to eternal life, to open the doors of heaven to those who want them opened, to break down the barriers created by sin - and lead us from death to life.
Are we in the way of Jesus - or on the way that he has prepared for us? Do we think like everybody else - or do we think like God?
The way of God is to become like God – to become the kind of person who actually does strange things like blessing those who mistreat them and loving those who hate them.
Our way is the way the cross - the way of emptying ourselves so that we might be filled by God, the way of humbling ourselves so that we might be exalted, the way of opening our arms to the power of death so that we might be raised to newness of life.
It is by doing these things that we can work together to become what God wants us to be - a vibrant and loving and caring community - a people who shine with his light and declare - with our words and our lives - all the wonderful things that God has done. AMEN
Louis summoned the man to his apartments, having first told his servants to throw the visitor out of the window when he gave the signal. "You claim to understand astrology and to know the fate of others," the king said to the man, "so tell me at once what your fate will be and how long you have to live."
"I shall die just three days before Your Majesty," answered the astrologer. The shaken king cancelled his plans!
Predictions of death are often treated either with complete fear or with scepticism – and things were no different as Jesus predicted his journey to Jerusalem, his suffering and ultimately his death. (Matthew 16:21-26)
The Contemporary English Version includes part of this passage as ‘Jesus turned to Peter and said, "Satan, get away from me! You're in my way because you think like everybody else and not like God."’
And, for Christians today, that ‘thinking like everybody else’ is a very real problem… And it was for Peter as Jesus spoke to him – and you have to feel rather sorry for Peter I think – he only wanted to tell Jesus that God would not let him suffer; he only wanted Jesus to stop talking in such a morbid way; he only wanted to say that bad things do not happen to good people especially when they are as good as Jesus; he only wanted to protect Jesus, to make him feel better - to assure him - and he gets shot down.
He gets shot down because he misses the facts about Jesus - even though Peter believes Jesus is the son of God, even though he believes that Jesus is the Messiah, even though he is willing to obey Jesus and follow him anywhere…
Peter misses the fact that God's way is different than the human way, that God thinks and works differently than us, so differently in fact that Jesus had to die for us…
And in dying Jesus showed us the truth and reality of what he was teaching here – that commitment and faith, and above all love, demands everything…
What made Jesus so angry with Peter was surely his frustration that Peter didn’t understand that. He didn’t understand, in spite of all that he’d seen and been through, that Jesus was demanding everything from his followers…
And today we very often do the same thing, usually without realising it at all, but Jesus says that our thinking just like everyone else in the world means that it is possible that this will get in the way of our service of God and also our sharing of the gospel message.
If we were included in a survey, perhaps about life and politics, and work and religion, and social policies - would we answer them any differently than those people who are not Christians… The survey says, because it has been done, that most of us think like everybody else.
I am sure Peter meant well when he took Jesus aside and told him to stop talking about his death but he didn't understand the ways of God – he was thinking just like anyone else…
And all too often many of us don't understand God's ways either - and that is why the fire has often gone out of churches which have become too polite and concerned about our image in society. And that is why the fire has gone out of so many of us who are worried about looking silly or causing trouble or speaking against society’s norm…
But Jesus said to his disciples - "If any of you want to be my followers, you must forget about yourself. You must take up your cross and follow me. If you want to save your life, you will destroy it. But if you give up your life for me, you will find it." (Verse 24-25)
Jesus wants us to die - not in the sense of going out on the road and driving at 100 mph, not in the sense of living irresponsibly, but by forgetting about our needs and wants and desires and becoming more concerned about the needs and wants of others, and most of all about the desires of God – the commandments of God - the love of God…
It is said that St. Augustine (5th century), was accosted one day on the street by a former mistress some time after he had become a Christian. When he saw her he turned and walked the other way. Surprised, the woman called out, "Augustine, it is I". Augustine as he kept going the other way, answered her, "Yes, but it is not I."
Augustine had died, not literally, but to his old life, his old self…
God knows that is possible for us to gain the whole world - and
yet lose our souls; and that is why he came to us in Jesus - to show the way to eternal life, to open the doors of heaven to those who want them opened, to break down the barriers created by sin - and lead us from death to life.
Are we in the way of Jesus - or on the way that he has prepared for us? Do we think like everybody else - or do we think like God?
The way of God is to become like God – to become the kind of person who actually does strange things like blessing those who mistreat them and loving those who hate them.
Our way is the way the cross - the way of emptying ourselves so that we might be filled by God, the way of humbling ourselves so that we might be exalted, the way of opening our arms to the power of death so that we might be raised to newness of life.
It is by doing these things that we can work together to become what God wants us to be - a vibrant and loving and caring community - a people who shine with his light and declare - with our words and our lives - all the wonderful things that God has done. AMEN
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