It was a moment of euphoria for the disciples. Jesus was the Christ. Peter had confessed it and Jesus had confirmed it. The long-awaited arrival of Israel’s Messiah had come! And the Twelve were at the centre of it!
Then oddly, Jesus immediately started talking about being murdered by his enemies. And he said some strange things about a resurrection. This was very confusing. But one thing seemed clear to Peter: defeat could not be the path to the Christ’s glory. The Christ was to be victorious.
So Peter brought correction to Jesus. Jesus called his correction satanic.
Peter was stunned. What could be satanic about wanting the Christ to be victorious? Jesus’ answer was, "you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man" (Mark 8:33).
Jesus knew that this was the case for all the disciples and the crowd following him. So he gathered them all together and dropped a bomb on them: "If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me". (Mark 8:34)
Are you intentional about denying yourself? Is it important to you to set your mind on the things of God?
Author: Jon Bloom
Changi Chapel 
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