Take Up Your Cross | Who Do You Say Jesus Is? | GCC Willow Street

Open your Bibles or the device on which you have your Bible to mark chapter eight today and just want to comment before I get to preaching here about the sermon series and where we are and where we're going. So today we conclude the series that is entitled who do you say Jesus is? And we conclude that series because we come to the end of chapter eight, in which Jesus has been for eight chapters unpacking for the disciples who he is. And there's going to be a great declaration in this sermon today. And then we're going to turn to pages or to chapters 9 and 10 for the next month and a half into a series entitled the Unexpected Jesus. And we're going to discover more about who he is and what he does as we continue in the Gospel of Mark. We're going to break then from the Gospel of Mark at the end of Thanksgiving, and we're going to open up an Advent series on the kingship of Jesus Christ, inspired by the Carols of Christmas, the powerful theology of the carols. We're going to study what it means that Jesus is king, what it means that he is sovereign, what it means that we should be submissive to him. We're going to culminate that on Christmas Eve by calling people to confess Jesus as Lord and King of their lives. And then on the first weekend of January, we're going to open back up to the Gospel of Mark, chapters 11 through forward to chapter 16. And we're going to unpack the truth about Jesus's death and resurrection and all that that means for us as we follow Jesus to the cross. So we'll come to the end of March, and we will have been immersed for a year in the Gospel Mark, verse by verse, chapter by chapter, understanding the truth about Jesus Christ. But this morning, we are in Mark, chapter 8, verses 27 through 20 through 38. And I'll tell you that as I was studying and preparing for this sermon, there was an encounter, an experience that I had that came immediately to my mind. And it was an encounter that I had a number of years ago when I was preaching at a Bible conference, a camp meeting, Bible conference in a county north of Lancaster County. And it was a wonderful night. And I decided that it was a Friday night, coming toward the end of that camp meeting, and. And I decided to preach on the cross of Jesus Christ. And I preached the cross of Jesus Christ along the veins of what old devotional writer Oswald Chambers said, preach the cross and the energy of God is let loose. Preach the cross and declare the truth that it's only by Jesus death on the cross, that we can have the forgiveness of sin and a new and eternal life in Jesus Christ. Jesus defeated the devil and, and sin at the cross. And he rose again on the third day. And so I preached that, preached it that night. And afterwards, there were a number of people lined up to talk. There were some people who wanted prayer. And then there was this group of people that I saw out of the corner of my eye. They were waiting for me, just small group of people. And I wonder, you know, what they were waiting for. But after everybody else cleared away, they came up and they shared a word of appreciation. And I realized a little later that that was one of those words that is sort of, but not quite appreciative, because what they said was, you know, Pastor Mike, we're so glad that you preached tonight and said that Jesus is Lord, but we absolutely disagree with you that the cross was necessary. We believe that the cross was a bad plan, a plan going awry, that it was not necessary that we can be forgiven of our sins apart from the cross. In fact, even before Jesus died on the cross and Jesus forgave our sins. Now, I realized then, I realized actually later that they were proponents of a theology called nonviolent atonement that simply says that the cross is an unnecessary event in the life of Jesus for our salvation. It's a human event. God never intended it. It was a plan gone awry. And as we stood there talking about that, you know, I tried to explain from the Scriptures why the cross is the bedrock of our Christian faith. First John, chapter 4, verse 7 says, this is love. Not that we love God, but that he loved us and sent his son as an atoning sacrifice. As an atoning sacrifice. He sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. But they would hear nothing of that. And as I concluded that conversation, I said to them again, I restated to them, listen, the cross is the bedrock of the Christian faith. And Jesus death on the cross is God's gracious provision for the forgiveness of our sins. And that's what the Word of God says, and that is what is true according to the Word of God. Now, that story, that encounter came back to me this week as I was reading Mark, chapter 8, verses 27 through 38. And you're going to understand why as we unpack this story. The story begins in. In Mark, chapter 8, verse 27. The word of God simply tells us that Jesus and his disciples went on to the villages around Caesarea Philippi. He had healed the man who was blind. And that was the two step healing. We learned about spiritual blindness last week. And from that miracle they go to a city called Caesarea Philippi. It is in the far northern reaches of the nation of Israel. And uniquely, it is a pagan outpost. It is proliferate, is filled with the worship of the emperor. People are worshiping the king there. They're worshiping a God named Pan, who is the God of nature. It is a pagan outpost. It is destitute spiritually. And so it's against this backdrop that we find Jesus and his disciples in a critical conversation. And that conversation is critical because it involves two questions. And the very first question that Jesus asked of his disciples, he turns to them, look if you would, at Mark chapter 8, at verses 27 and 28. And he asked them this, who do people say that I am? And they replied, well, some say John the Baptist, others say Elijah, and still others one of the prophets. And I want to say to you that according to this answer, Jesus, public polling isn't too bad. The public is looking at him with a positive viewpoint. They have come to the conclusion that like John the Baptist, like Elijah, like the prophets, he's a servant of God. And so they view him in a positive light. And we know that, we know that from the crowds that have come, because he can heal them. And they hang on his words. They love to hear him preach. So they view him in a positive light as a servant of God, but they do not view him as the Son of God. And this is very much akin to what you would have today when you ask people in the general public, you know, who do you think Jesus is? Well, he's a good teacher, He's a great leader. He's a moral example, friends, he is all those things, will not argue with that. He is all those things. But he is so much more. Because he is not just a good teacher, not just a great leader, not just a moral example. He. He is the one and only savior of the world. And so who do you say? Who do people say that I am? Well, they say the things that even the general public say today. Then he goes deeper and the second question is directed to his disciples. And he asks them simply, what about you? Who do you say I am? And you'll notice who answers. It is Peter who answers. And Peter says, you are the Christ. Now, Peter, whether he was voted as the chairperson and spokesperson for the disciples or not, he's going to be the first out of the gate. He's going to be the one who's going to tell everyone else exactly what they're all thinking. And we have to believe that he is the spokesperson here. So in answer to Jesus question, he says, well, you're the Christ. And friends, I'll tell you this, this is a great advance for these men. It's a great advance because we've just studied in these chapters prior to this story how they were struggling to understand who Jesus was. They didn't get him. They didn't get the fact that even though he fed 5,000 plus women and children, he'll be able to feed 4,000, even though he still the winds and waves here, that he can do it again. And they were struggling to understand that. And suddenly, who do you say I am? And they come out through Peter with incredible declaration, you're the Christ. Now, what is Christ? What does that mean? Well, Christ is a Greek word that has its Hebrew equivalent as Messiah. And Christ and Messiah mean the same thing, and that is that he is the anointed One of God. He is the one. Jesus is above all others who is commissioned and empowered by God for the greatest task of all time. For God so loved the world that he gave his one only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. You are the Christ. You are the Messiah. What they understood at this point was you are the Son of God. You are sent by God. You are the one who is anointed by God. Now, how did they come to that conclusion? Where did that come from? Well, we learned last week that spiritual blindness is not healed by us. We can't do a thing to open our own eyes. Spiritual blindness is not healed by anyone around us. The only solution to spiritual blindness is to have our eyes opened by God and God alone. And it's interesting that in the companion passage to mark, chapter 8 in the gospel of Matthew, Matthew, chapter 16, verse 17, that Jesus remarks to Peter, the only reason you know this is my Father has revealed it to you. Look at the word of God in Matthew, chapter 16. Blessed are you, Simon, son of Jonah, that is Peter. For this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven. You're getting it. You're starting to open your eyes. You're starting to receive from my Father in heaven truth about who I am. You are the Christ. You are the Christ. Peter says. Now we could say, man, they're there. They're ready to go. But they're not. They know his title. They got that right. But there's so much more that they need to understand about who Jesus is and it is why. In Mark, chapter 8, verse 30, Jesus, look at the word of God warned them not to tell anyone about him. Now, for us, that's counterintuitive. You think, well, okay, Peter's got it, you're the Christ. Go and send them out, Jesus. Tell the 12 to go out and tell everybody who you are. Don't tell anyone. Jesus says. And the reason is because though they got his title right, they do not yet understand who fully he is and what he came to do. And if they go out right now, they're going to say the wrong thing. They need to know who he is and what he has done. Look, if you would, at the next two verses, verses 31 and 32, Jesus then began to teach them that the Son of Man, this is Jesus reference to, to Messiah or Christ. He uses Son of Man as his title. Same title. That the Son of man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law. And that he must be killed. And after three days rise again. Look at what Mark says. He spoke plainly about this. This is the first of three occasions in the Gospel of Mark where Jesus will unpack for the 12 disciples plainly what lies ahead of him. He will unpack for them that there will come a moment when he will be betrayed. And in his betrayal he will be arrested. And in his arrest there will be a mock trial. And in that mock trial he will be found guilty when he is not guilty at all. And he will be sentenced to death and he will die. Look at the word of God. He. He will die. He must be killed. He will die on the cross. A death by crucifixion. But here's the good news. On the third day, what? He will rise again. This is the first of three occasions. And they come in pretty quick succession. In the Gospel of Mark, when Jesus speaks plainly and says, men, you need to understand where we're going and what's going to happen. And as we get there, I am going to suffer, I am going to be killed and I am going to rise again. And it is so fascinating, the response that he gets comes from Peter. Look if you would again at verse 32. The word of God says that Jesus spoke plainly about this and Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. Now, wait a minute, Jesus, could we just come over here for a moment? I want to talk to you about something. Are you sure you know what you're talking about? And the Word of God says that he Rebuked Jesus. It is not a light rebuke. It is a strong rebuke. It is the sense of, you're kidding Jesus. Don't you know what the Messiah is? The Messiah doesn't suffer. I love how Bible scholar New Testament professor Walter Wessel says in his mind, Peter looks at Jesus and says, a suffering Messiah. Unthinkable. The Messiah was a symbol of strength and not weakness. Now understand this. Peter is not trying to be mean. He really has the best interest of Jesus at heart. He's simply operating off of what he has been taught about who Messiah is. He and the eleven disciples and all the Jews believed that the Messiah was coming and that the Messiah was going to be a national hero, a military conqueror, that he was going to come and overthrow something, and it wasn't sin, but it was Rome. He was going to come and overthrow Rome and release the Jews from the oppressive dictatorship of the Emperor and of Rome. And so when Peter rebukes Jesus, he's just trying to correct him and say, now wait a minute, we got this wrong. As far as Messiah, we're not looking for a suffering Messiah. We're looking for a victorious, conquering Messiah. That is most likely what the rebuke is. It is so interesting that there is no grass that grows under Jesus feet at this moment. As soon as Peter rebukes Jesus, Jesus turns, Look at verse 33, he turns, looks at the disciples and he rebukes Peter. And this is what he says. Out of my sight, Satan. You do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of man. Whoa, talk about a strong rebuke. Out of my sight, Satan. Clearly Jesus sees something that is not visible to the human eye. I love how Dr. David Garland writes, the archenemy has surfaced in Jesus most prominent disciple, Peter has set himself over against the plan of God and therefore, without knowing it, has lined himself up behind Satan. He has become the voice of Satan. Now that makes perfect sense when you remember what happened in the wilderness temptations of Jesus when he first began his ministry. It's a summary of it is given in Mark chapter one, verse 13. But you can read the full wilderness temptations in Matthew chapter four and Luke chapter four. And the summary of it is simply this, that Satan tempted Jesus to bypass suffering, to bypass the cross, so that he could be enthroned as the king. You can inherit all of this now. You don't need to suffer. Take it. Take it now. And that is what the word of God indicates in those temptations. And remember that in Those temptations, the response of Jesus was simply this, away from me, Satan. And with the word of God, from the book of Deuteronomy, he conquered every temptation. Away from me, Satan. And it's interesting that here in Mark, chapter eight, when Peter again unthinkingly suggests that you can bypass the cross, you can be a victor without the cross. Out of my sight, Satan. Get away. Hear me when I say this. The devil will always tell you that the cross of Jesus Christ is foolish and unnecessary. But that is not true. The cross of Jesus Christ is not only necessary, but it is absolutely essential for our salvation, for the forgiveness of our sin, and for a new and eternal life in Jesus Christ. It is the bedrock of the Christian faith. It is why it is the most prominent symbol of Christianity. It is the singular symbol in this sanctuary. Every week when you walk in, on this table before you, as you drive up the driveway of the front of the church, there is on the front of this church a single symbol. It is the cross. Because the cross is the bedrock of our Christian faith. Without the cross, there is no life, there is no hope, and there is no future. That was true for Jesus, and he understood that, but it's also true for us. Jesus goes on and he speaks of this truth in Mark 8:34. 38. Jesus makes it clear in these verses that if the Messiah must bear a cross, so must his followers. In the words of scholar Alan Cole, like master, like servant. And so look, if you would, at mark 8:34. If anyone would come after me, Jesus says he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. I want you to read that with me. If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. One more time. If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. Friends, right? There is a description of what it means to become a Christian, what it means to follow Jesus Christ image that is powerful because it speaks to what we need as sinners in search of a Savior. We need to deny ourselves, we need to take up our cross, and we need to follow Jesus. Now, over the years, over the centuries, over the millennia, the Church has taken this apart. And we redefine portions of this verse in ways that Jesus never first intended it. So the whole idea of denying ourselves. Okay, Drain. Lent. I'm going to give up chocolate. I'm going to deny myself chocolate or. Or desserts during Lent. I'm going to deny myself social media for 40 days to cleanse my mind. And we Say those things as if somehow that is what Jesus calls us to. And I'm not going to say that it's not a good idea to do those things, but that's not what this is talking about. And then we go to the second half of this verse and we see take up his cross. And that has been reconstituted into the idea of the cross I have to bear. And there are people, maybe you've heard people talk about this, about the cross they have to bear. I've heard it throughout my ministry. You know, people will say. And they'll name somebody in their family and they'll say, she's my cross to bear. What a terrible thing. But, okay, she's your cross to bear, or I've had an ingrown toenail for three months and that is my cross to bear. That's silliness. And that is not what Jesus is talking about. So let's unpack it. If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. What does it mean to deny yourself? Simply this. To put Jesus over you. To put Jesus over you. The apostle Paul says In Romans, chapter 10, if you will confess with your mouth, Jesus as Lord. If you will confess with your mouth, Jesus as Lord. That is a confession whereby you are saying, I have been acting as the Lord in my own life for a long time. I've been calling the shots. I've been doing what I want to do in life. I've been living the way I want to live. I'm done living that way. I am going to put Jesus over self. There's a beautiful picture. I think it's the navigators who offer this as a means of sharing Christ. That you have the picture of your heart and in your heart there's a throne. Who sits on the throne of your heart? Is it you or is it Jesus? And when you deny yourself, you are saying, I'm going to dethrone myself from my heart and I'm going to put Jesus on the throne and. And make him lord of my life. Now how am I going to do that? I'm going to do it by taking up my cross. Taking up the cross is a beautiful image for us. Though it was a painful image in the first century. Is the image of Jesus on the Via dela Rosa. If that song comes to mind. Bearing his cross to the place of his crucifixion at Golgotha. It is the picture of death. And here is what happens when we are saved. We call upon God in Christ to put to death the old me, and by the power of God to raise up a new me and make me a new person, a new creation. I deny myself. I take up my cross. I follow Jesus, when I humbly recognize that I'm a sinner and I need a Savior. And Jesus is the one and only Savior. And so, Jesus, I am confessing you as Lord of my life, and I am asking you to crucify the sin that is within me, to put it to death. And I'm asking you by the power that you alone have through the Holy Spirit of God, to raise up a new Mike Sigmund and change me from the inside out so that I might be a new creation in Jesus Christ. I love how the apostle Paul takes all of this and puts it into what we call one verse. Galatians, chapter 2, verse 20. It is a powerful verse. I want you to read it with me. I don't want you to read it like I mean it. I mean, read it like you mean it. Here we go. I have been crucified with Christ, and I no longer live. But Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. I have been crucified with Christ. When I by faith believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and I am saved. I have been crucified by Christ, and it's no longer Mike Sigmund, the old Mike Sigmund. It's now the new Mike Sigmund. And guess what? He's not living by faith in himself. He's living by faith in the Son of God. Why? Because the Son of God, who is Jesus Christ, loves me and gave himself for me. Just as Jesus gave his life for us, we must give our lives to him. Why? Why should we do this? Why should we give up control of our lives to Jesus Christ? Jesus goes on in verses 35 through 38 to give us two answers to that question. And I will tell you right now that they are sobering answers, but they are necessary answers. If you have raised children or cared for children, you know that there are times when you tell your children, do not do this. Do not make this decision. Do not go in this way. And you are not being mean. You're actually being loving and caring because you don't want them to experience the end result of that disobedience. And so in these next two verses, three verses, Jesus is being abundantly gracious and overwhelmingly loving when he says, this is why you should deny yourself Take up your cross and follow me. First of all, because if you refuse to give me control of your life, it will not end well for you. Look, if you would, at verses 35 through 37. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it. And whoever loses his life for me and for the Gospel will save it. If you're going to hold on to your life, if you're going to refuse to make Jesus, lord of your life, understand that someday it won't be your decision anymore and you will lose your life. He goes on and he says, 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? New Testament scholar Grant Osborne commented to to live only for earthly benefits is to waste your life. One can be a billionaire, have all the world's goods at one's fingertips, and in the end have nothing. Now notice what he says. Death is the great equalizer. But those who have eternal rewards will enjoy them forever. It will not end well if you refuse Jesus Christ. If you refuse his gift of salvation, it will not end well. The choice is truly eternal life or eternal punishment. Eternal life with God in Christ in heaven, or eternal punishment in a real place called hell. And the decision is ours. Will we deny ourselves, take up our cross and follow him? And if we do, he will give us the best version of life that we'll ever know on this earth. Do you believe that? Amen. Best version of life. But even beyond that, he will give us the absolute assurance of eternal life. It doesn't matter what you accumulate, what you collect, what you own, you can't take it with you. You can't. It's an old and corny kind of phrase, but you've never seen a hearse with a U Haul attached to you. Can't take it with you. But if you trust in him, he will give you more than you ever imagined possible. There's a second reason that Jesus gives us for why we should deny ourselves, take up our cross, and follow him. Because if you are ashamed of Jesus and refuse to follow him in this life at the final day of judgment, he will be ashamed of you and will not acknowledge you. Mark 8:38. If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his Father's glory with the holy angels. You must side with Jesus now if you want to be by his side in the age to come. Friends, this is the word of God, It's a gracious and loving word because it is a word that says there is no reason for anyone to live and wallow in their sin throughout this life. There is no reason for anyone to live without the assurance, the confidence that someday when you die, you will go to be with Jesus in heaven. There is no reason for anyone to miss eternity with Christ. Our loving God has provided the way of salvation. It isn't a matter of getting the title right. It is a matter of believing that Jesus is Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Lord of all, and that he died for our sins, rose again on the third day, and lives today to offer to us the free gift of salvation, the forgiveness of our sin, and a new eternal life. It's. It isn't just the title. It is the truth about who he is and how powerful his saving name is in our lives. Who do you say Jesus is? And as you sit here this morning, can you say, and do you say with confidence, jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, but he is my Lord, because I have denied myself, taken up my cross and followed him. Let's pray together. With heads bowed and eyes closed. I would invite you today to ponder that question. Who do you say Jesus is? And to ask you. Have you confessed Jesus as Lord of your life? And do you believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead? And do you know as you sit here that you are saved, that he has forgiven your sin and given you a new and eternal life in him? This morning, as the word of God was being read and preached, did God stir in your soul? No. It's time to make Jesus Lord. It's time to ask Jesus to put to death the sinful you and to give you a new life in Christ, if that's your desire. This morning, as you're seated here in this sanctuary, if you're with us online and that's your desire, as you're seated in your living room or in vacation home, wherever you may be, then I invite you to pray this prayer in your heart. It's a prayer of surrender, a prayer of salvation. It is a prayer by which you will deny yourself, take up your cross, and you will declare that you are following Jesus as your Savior and Lord. Here is the prayer that I invite you to pray if that's your desire. Father, I believe that you sent your son, Jesus Christ, to be the Savior of the world. I believe that Jesus, I come to you this morning and confess you as Lord of my life. And I believe that God raised you from the dead. I confess that I am a sinner and I ask you to put to death the old sinful me and to give me a new life in you. Jesus, forgive me of my sins. Today I begin to follow you as Lord of my life. In your name I pray. Jesus. Lord, I thank you for those in this sanctuary online who have prayed that prayer. And I pray with confidence that your Holy Spirit even now is giving them the assurance of their salvation. Thank you Lord. I pray that they would declare their new relationship with you to another believer and that they would continue to grow deeply in their relationship with you, to love you and to serve you. Lord. I also pray that every one of us here who are believers will leave this portion of God's Word with great gratitude that by your grace we are saved, not any work of our own. That you have given us the ability to see clearly who you are, Jesus, and that you have given us the faith to see, believe and trust in you. We thank you and we praise you in Jesus name. Amen. This morning it's appropriate that as we conclude a portion of God's word that speaks so powerfully and clearly about what it means to be a Christian, as we conclude a portion of God's Word about the cross, that we should then conclude our service together by communing, by taking bread and cup and giving thanks for what Jesus Christ has done for us. The Word of God says in the Gospel of Luke chapter 22 that on the night that Jesus was betrayed, he took bread, gave thanks, broke it and gave it to them, saying, this is my body given for you. Do this in remembrance of me. And in the same way after the supper he took the cup, saying, this cup is the new covenant in my blood and which is poured out for you. In just a short time, we're going to invite you to take the bread and the cup. For those of you who are seated here on the floor, the ushers will come down the aisle and they will invite you to come forward by rows. And there will be four teams of pastors here who will serve bread and cup. For those of you who are seated in the balcony, there are pastors and church leaders who are in the balcony who will serve you where you're seated. So pastors and church leaders here waiting for you to come down the aisle. Pastors and church leaders serving you in the balcony. If you are unable to come down the aisle here on the first floor, after we have served everybody, we will come to you and bring the bread and cup to you. This is a gospel feast it is an opportunity to approach the table with gratitude to the Lord for what he has done for us. I invite you. Let's go to prayer and commit this supper to the Lord and the pastors. Would you please come as well and be prepared to prepare the table.