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 kille, and on the third day be raised. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, “Far be it from you, Lord! This shall never happen to you.” But he turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of men.”
Matthew 16:21-23 ESV
Get behind me, Satan!
I imagine Peter must have been stunned by the words. Here he was, one of Jesus’ closest disciples being rebuked for trying to keep His master safe. Peter probably didn’t understand what was going on at the time.
Let’s be honest, we often don’t understand what’s going on at the time things occur. But as time passes, and more pieces in the puzzle of life are made known, things from the past become clear.
I’ve often struggled with this interaction between Jesus and Peter.
Jesus is trying to slowly make his disciples aware of what will soon happen. As a mother I understand Jesus’ process.
When big things are coming in the near future, I slowly leak information to my tiny humans. Too much information too quickly and they can’t process information. Or they start to lose their minds with all their racing thoughts and bombard me with a million questions.
Even good things happening in our future like a trip to Disney can unknowingly cause them stress. Their excitement overwhelms them, and they can’t sleep, become cranky, and so on. You get where I’m going here. So as a mother, I slowly prepare their minds for events. As they process one thing successfully, I add another layer of information.
It feels like that’s what Jesus was trying to do. Slowly leak information to his guys so they wouldn’t panic and fall apart when He would need them most. He needed to provide them with enough breadcrumbs to pick up when He was walking through the crucifixion process so they would be able to piece information together and keep their wits about them.
I also get where Peter is coming from. The things Jesus was saying must have sounded preposterous to Peter. Peter had spent years watching Jesus teach thousands, heal countless and transform lives. How could Jesus really die in front of them and still be okay?
You see, Peter had good intentions. Of course Peter didn’t want Jesus to suffer at the hands of his enemies.
Peter’s heart was in the right place, but his mind wasn’t. And those are exactly the words Jesus uses. “For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of men.”
Jesus was in a spiritual battle. Satan knew Jesus was on a mission. While he didn’t know the details, he knew whatever it was, he had to detract and detour Jesus.
Except Jesus knew Satan’s schemes were nothing new, and He fought back.
Oh, that we would fight like Jesus fought!
As I meditated on these short verses of Scripture I learned a few important principles I wanted to share:
1- We never have the place or position to rebuke Jesus.
Like really, Peter was face to face with the Messiah and Scriptures says, “Peter took him {Jesus} aside and began to rebuke him.”
Ummm. Hello?
You’re Peter. He’s Jesus.
This should have been the first indicator that things were going to go south.
We are the created and He is the Creator. We may not understand, but we must never rebuke what God speaks.
His Word is final. End of story.
2- Even good hearts can lead our minds astray.
I seriously don’t believe Peter meant ill to Jesus. I believe he sincerely could not process the concept of the King of Kings dying before his very eyes. Peter isn’t scolding Jesus for being out too late with the guys at the local temple, his words were, “This shall never happen to you.”
Peter said he never wanted Jesus to suffer and die, but the implication of his words also fed into the will of the Enemy. For Satan’s goal was for Jesus to never pay the price for our sins. Do you see it?
Because Peter’s mind was on the things of this earth, instead of the things of heaven, his words inadvertently affirmed the will of the enemy instead of the will of God.
Scripture is clear on how important it is to not only guard our hearts, but also “set our minds on heavenly things.” (Col. 3:2)
3- We must intentionally and actively guard our calling.
Jesus was purposeful to shut down anything that hindered His focus. He would have no place for it in His mind or heart. And He rebuked Satan (who was working through Peter) when Satan sought to weave any bit of hesitancy in the plan God had set before Him.
We too are given a purpose and a calling in our lives to serve and glorify His name. Many times this will mean saying no to good things so we can partake in God’s things.
4- His Word is where we find our worth.
Community is crucial to the growth of the church and the well being of believers. But we must be cautious in knowing the difference between “advice” from friends and a Word from God.
Our worth must come from His Word and not the words of those in our circle. Peter’s words could have tickled Jesus’s ears. Of course Peter wouldn’t want Jesus to suffer. Even Jesus didn’t want himself to suffer. But it wasn’t about want, it was about will. Jesus came to do the will of the Father. The short term suffering was for a LONG term gain….like eternally long term gain.
Jesus grounded His heart and mind in the Word God spoke about Him, not the words Peter spoke to Him.
People will speak many words to us. What we must listen to is what God speaks about us.
[bctt tweet=”People will speak many words to us. What we must listen to is what God speaks about us.” username=”nataliadrumm”]
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Just some musing for you this Friday. Happy Weekend friends!
