Let us turn in our Bibles today
to Mark chapter 8. Mark chapter 8 and reading verses
27 through 33. And Jesus went out and his disciples
into the towns of Caesarea Philippi. And by the way, he asked his
disciples, saying unto them, whom do men say that I am? And they answered, John the Baptist,
but some say Elias and others, one of the prophets. And he saith
unto them, but whom say ye that I am? And Peter answered and
saith unto him, thou art the Christ. And he charged them that
they should tell no man of him. And he began to teach them that
the son of man must suffer many things and be rejected of the
elders and of the chief priests and scribes and be killed and
after three days rise again. And he spake that saying openly. And Peter took him and began
to rebuke him. But when he had turned about
and looked on his disciples, he rebuked Peter. saying, get
thee behind me, Satan, for thou savest not the things that be
of God, but the things that be of men. As all of us know, around
the world today, men are speaking about the resurrection of the
Lord Jesus Christ. And God's providence, as we have
been studying through the Gospel of Mark on Sunday mornings, We've
come now to the first time, the first time that the Lord Jesus
Christ in his public ministry openly, clearly testified to
his death and to his resurrection. Verse 31, and he began to teach
them. This is the first time. in his
ministry as it is recorded in the four gospel narratives, that
the son of man must suffer many things and be rejected of the
elders and of the chief priest and scribes and be killed and
after three days rise again. Now I said that this is the first
time that the Lord Jesus Christ clearly, openly, plainly spoke
about his death and resurrection. But we know from the word of
God, this certainly wasn't the first time that his death and
resurrection had been foretold either in type or in prophecy. And I want us to go back. I want
you to keep your places here, of course, but I want you to
turn back with me to Isaiah chapter 53. Isaiah chapter 53. And this is a chapter that prophesied
some 600 years before our Lord came into this world of His death
and of His resurrection. It clearly speaks of His suffering
and His death. And it clearly tells us that
His suffering, the Lord Jesus Christ suffered. Physically,
He suffered. Spiritually, in soul, He suffered. He said, My soul is exceedingly
sorrowful, even unto death. The Lord Jesus Christ suffered
physically and spiritually. But we see in this chapter, and
we know this is so, his sufferings were vicarious. In other words,
he suffered in the stead of. He suffered in your place, if
you are one of his children. He suffered in your stead. And
the sufferings and the judgment and the hail that your sins deserve,
he suffered. We see that very clearly in verses
four and five. Surely he hath borne our griefs
and carried our sorrows, yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten
of God, and afflicted. But notice he was wounded for
our transgressions. He was punished for sin, but
he had no sin of his own. He is a holy, harmless, separate
from sinners, Son of God. He had no sin of His own, but
He was wounded for our transgressions. We had transgressed
the law of God. What is sin? Sin is the transgression
of the law. God's law requires perfect, absolute,
Love to God and love to our neighbor. We transgressed that law. All
of us did. Both in our representative that
is in Adam and practically when we come into this world. He suffered. Wounded for our transgressions.
He was bruised for our iniquities. The chastisement of our peace
was upon Him. And with His stripes, His suffering,
His death, we are healed. We're forgiven. We're made new. We become children of God by
His stripes. But then notice, if you will,
down in verse 8 of this chapter, It says, he was taken from prison
and from judgment and who shall declare his generation for he
was cut off out of the land of the living. That's his death. He was in the land of the living,
but then he was cut off out of the land of the living and his
body was placed in the land of the dead in the tomb. But notice in verse 10, Yet it
pleased the Lord to bruise him. He hath put him to grief. When
thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his sin. Now, notice, he shall prolong
his days. Oh, but you said he was cut off
out of the land of the living. Yes, he was. But God would prolong
his days even forevermore. God raised him from the dead.
When you look at that verse and it tells us that it pleased the
Lord to bruise him, it doesn't mean that God somehow found pleasure
in seeing his son suffer, but his sufferings pleased the Lord. It pleased the Lord to magnify
his justice by the sufferings of his son. Here's His darling Son whom He
sent into this world, and yet it pleased God to magnify His
justice, that God is so holy, so righteous, that when His Son
was made to be sin, His wrath fell upon Him. It pleased the
Lord to magnify His love, that God so loved His people, that
he gave his only begotten son, that he would be cut off out
of the land of the living. It pleased the Lord that he would
magnify in his death the grace of God. How that God is gracious in giving
his son to save men and women, boys and girls, who have sinned
against him. who have done everything we could
in spite of his love and mercy. It pleased the Lord to bruise
him. He shall prolong his days because
he shall see his seed. Notice that. And not only that,
he shall see of the travail of his soul. When a woman brings a child into
this world, there's travail. And when that baby is given to
her, she's pleased, right, to see all that she's travailed
to see that living child. For the Lord Jesus Christ travailed
in death, and he shall see of the travail of his soul. That
is that each and every one for whom he died, his elect, are
surely to be saved. he shall see of the travail of
his soul. Now, so I said long before the
Lord Jesus Christ plainly, clearly spoke about his death and resurrection,
it was prophesied by Isaiah and other prophets, but it was also
even long before Isaiah pictured in type through Abraham. And I want you to turn to this
passage in Hebrews chapter 11. Someone recently said, you know,
a preacher, he has us turn to different scriptures. Well, that's
preaching to me. I'm not a storyteller. I'm not
a storyteller. Some men, that may be their calling,
I don't know. But I know this, the Bible doesn't
say that it pleased God by telling stories to save his people. Please
God by the preaching of the gospel to save his people. And this
is preaching to me when we compare spiritual things, scripture with
scripture. And what I'm showing us is that
when the death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ, it
was from the beginning all through the word of God. Because this
is the heart of the gospel. Here in Hebrews chapter 11, and
speaking of Abraham in verse 17, it says, by faith Abraham,
when he was tried, tested, offered up Isaac, and he that had received
the promises offered up his only begotten son, of whom it was
said that in Isaac shall thy seed be called, accounting that
God was able to raise him up, even from the dead. Now notice,
from whence also he received him in a figure. In other words, Abraham received
Isaac back to him. And that is a figure, a picture
of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. Both happened on
the third day. We won't take the time to go
back there in Genesis to see that. But both was returned to
Isaac to Abraham. He was delivered as from death. Because just as Abraham raised
a knife to slay his son, God stayed his hand. But when God's
son, and think about this, when they came to that place, the
scripture says they put the wood upon Isaac. The Lord Jesus Christ,
the wood, the cross, the wooden cross was laid upon him. And
he bared that to the place of crucifixion. But on the third
day, he walked out of that grave. Now the angel, we read the passage
in Matthew, the angel came and there was an earthquake and he
rolled the stone away. But he did not roll the stone
away to allow the Lord Jesus Christ to walk out of that tomb.
We know that. He was already out of the tomb. It already, of his own power,
came out. Bodily raised. People tell us,
well, there's no difference between Islam and Christianity. There's no difference between
Buddha and Christ. How foolish, my friends. How
foolish. You and I, we worship a living
Savior. A living Savior. A Savior who
has conquered, defeated death by His death. That's the hope that you and
I have. That is the gospel of Jesus Christ, how he was crucified
according to the scriptures, buried and raised again on the
third day according to the scriptures. Now, if you will turn back to
our text in Mark chapter eight. And I want us to look at three
things in this passage. I want us to consider the Lord's
question. the Lord's charge and the Lord's
rebuke. First of all, the Lord's question. Whom do men say that I am? Now, why would he ask this question?
Well, we know this, he did not ask out of ignorance. He never
asked a question for information. His first question to man, that
is to Adam, after his disobedience was, where art thou? Where art
thou? Now he was not ignorant of where
Adam was. He was not ignorant of what Adam
had done. But Adam, where art thou? Where are you now that you have
disobeyed? broken that covenant, where art
thou? Your mind now is blinded, thinking
that you can hide from he who fills heaven and earth, thinking
that you can cover yourself, your nakedness before God, your
sinfulness with the works of your hands or anything that comes
from this earth. covering yourself with fig leaves.
Where art thou? Where has sin brought you, in
other words? That's a good question, isn't
it? That's a good question for all of us. Where has sin brought
man? Has it merely wounded him? Has it merely broken a finger
or a toe? Just leave it alone and heal
itself maybe? Where has sin brought man? Scripture says death, spiritually
dead in trespasses and sins. That alone should tell us if
man is going to be helped, if he's going to be saved, God must
save him. He can't save himself. We are his workmanship, created
in Christ Jesus unto good works. Salvation is of the Lord. But
why did the Lord Jesus Christ ask this question? Well, we've
already seen in Mark that he knew the thoughts, the hearts
of the scribes, When he healed that paralytic, told him, take
up thy bed and rise, or thy sins be forgiven thee first, he knew
what they were thinking in their minds. Why was it that the Lord
asked his disciples at this time, whom do men say that I am? Well, I'll give you my thought. It appears to me that this is
a general question that our Lord put to his disciples only to
pave the way to a very personal question. The general question
is, whom do men say that I, the Son of Man, am? And the general
answer is, well, some say you're John the Baptist. We know Herod
said that. He thought it was John the Baptist
raised from the dead. Some say you're Elias because
of the prophecy that said before the great and notable day of
the coming of the Lord, Elijah would appear. And some say you're
one of the prophets because of the miracles that he had wrought. But then the Lord Jesus Christ
asked them a very personal question. But whom say ye that I am? You know, salvation is personal,
isn't it? It's personal. Grace doesn't run through the
bloodline. Godly parents do not always see
their children come to know Christ. Salvation is a personal matter. No one can repent for you. No
one can believe for you. You must believe and repent and
confess Christ because our Lord calls for a confession of their
faith. Whom do you say that I am? Scripture says in Romans, for
with the heart man believeth unto righteousness, but with
the mouth confession is made unto salvation. Now, Peter answered
for all of the apostles. He said, Thou art the Christ.
Whom do you say that I am? Thou art the Christ. Thou art
the long-promised Messiah, the long-promised anointed one. Thou art the Christ. In Matthew's
account of this same incident, his answer was fuller. Thou art
the Christ, the son of the living God. And he's called the living
God to distinguish him from all of the many gods. The many gods
that men have manufactured. The many gods that men have worshiped. They're all dead. They all have
eyes, but they can't see, and ears, but they can't hear, hands,
but they cannot move. Thou art the Christ, the Son
of the living God. Not only the living God, but
He who gives life to all, and He in whose hands is the life
of all. In other words, we live, we move,
we have our being in Him. Every breath that you take, every
breath that I take, He gives us. He gives us. He sustains us in life. Thou art the Christ, the Son
of the living God. Not by adoption. You're not a
son by adoption. You're not a son by creation.
No, you are the eternal Son of God. of the same essence, one with
the Father and God the Holy Spirit. Thou art the Christ, the Son
of the living God. And Matthew also tells us this. He tells us that this faith that
they had expressed, that they had confessed, Thou art the Christ,
the Son of the living God, that's faith, that this faith is a gift
of God. Because in Matthew he said, Blessed
art thou, Simon Barjona, for flesh and blood, your flesh,
your blood, has not revealed this unto you, or any other flesh
and blood has revealed this unto you, but my Father which is in
heaven. Faith is the gift of God. For by grace are you saved through
faith, and that not of yourselves. It is the gift of God. Faith cometh by hearing, and
hearing by the word of God. This is so important to hear
the gospel. Bring your children, have them
in the services to hear the preaching of the gospel. Testify to others
of the gospel, because faith cometh by hearing, and hearing
by the word of God. There's an article in the bulletin
I put in this morning by Charles Spurgeon. Read that at your leisure. But someone asked him, they said,
well, you're saying we're all dead, spiritually dead, and yet
you're telling people to believe. How's that consistent? No, he
said, I'm doing it because I'm on my master's errand. And my
master said, to tell dead sinners. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ
and thou shalt be saved. You say, well, they can't believe.
If they do, they can. If they do, they can. So first of all, the Lord's question,
and I put that to each and every one of us here today, whom do
you say that he is? Can you with Peter say thou art
the Christ, the son of the living God? Here's the second. the Lord's charge in verse 30.
In verse 30 he said, and he charged them that they should tell no
man of him. Now why would he give this charge?
He gave the same charge to many upon whom he had wrought a miracle. If you look above this in the
passage we looked at last week, he said the same thing to that
man that he cured of his blindness. He sent him away to his house
saying, neither go into town nor tell it to any in the town. See, our Lord told his disciples,
he charged them that they should tell no man of him. Well, I understand
that this charge was given for this reason. After he had fed
5,000 men, the Bible tells us, John tells us in his gospel,
that the Lord perceived that they would come and take him
by force to make him a king. So what did he do? Well, John
says he departed alone to a mountain to pray. His fame, because of
his miracles, plus identifying him now publicly as the Christ,
would hinder him in finishing the work which the Father gave
him to do. It would have produced more hatred
on the part of the religious leaders. Remember this, that
he came, the Bible says, to give his life a ransom for many. He
said the Son of Man came not to be served, but to serve. and to give his life a ransom
for many. The time and the manner in which
he would give his life a ransom for many was ordained of his
father, according to the predetermined counsel and foreknowledge of
God. And his fame in making this known,
his miracles, and that he was the Christ would have only caused
confusion. The Lord Jesus Christ would die. He came to die, but at his time. Several times, especially in
the Gospel of John, but not only in John, but also in Luke, we're
told that they would have pushed him over the cliff. That would
have caused his death early on in his ministry. And in John's
gospel, we read, but his hour was not yet gone. There was an
hour, there was a time. One thing about this charge,
we know for sure that it has been lifted after his resurrection,
hasn't it? It has been lifted after his
resurrection because now his word is going to all the world
and preach the gospel to every creature. Whosoever believeth
and is baptized shall be saved. Whosoever believeth not shall
be damned. The third, the Lord's rebuke
in verses 32 and 33. And he spake that saying openly,
and Peter took him and began to rebuke him. He spake openly
of his death, and Peter took him and began to rebuke him.
But when he had turned about and looked on his disciples,
he rebuked Peter, saying, Get thee behind me, Satan, for thou
savest not the things that be of God. Peter, think about this. He began to rebuke him who he
had just confessed to be the Christ, the son of the living
God. And this shows us, I believe,
how that even his disciples were still thinking that the Messiah
was going to set Israel up as a kingdom again in this world. They did not see at this point
that he had come to redeem Israel, spiritual Israel. Their thought
was that he would be a king and their nation would be a great
leading nation among the nations again. He did not savor. Our Lord said, you do not savor.
You don't understand the things of God at this point, Peter.
Peter loved the Lord Jesus Christ. There's no doubt about that.
And when our Lord spoke about his death, his love for him,
he said, no, save yourself. Save yourself. It's been pointed
out. If you look at the verse again
here, it's been pointed out by many preachers over the years,
but verse 33 says, but when he, that is when Christ, after Peter
as much as said, Lord, by-step the cross, save yourself from
the cross. But when he, that is Jesus, when
he had turned about and looked on his disciples, now get the
picture, save yourself, spare yourself, don't go to the cross. Don't suffer. Don't bleed. Don't die. And our Lord looks
at his disciples. What about these? What about
those who were given unto me of my father? In the garden he
prayed, Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me. But
it wasn't possible. without the sin debt being paid,
without the Savior, the representative, Christ, dying in the place of
His people, of His disciples. Peter, you savor not the things
that be of God, but those that be of man. There will be no salvation. There will be no eternal life.
There will be no resurrection to fullness of joy. There'll
be no heaven for my disciples, if I follow your advice, if I
save myself from the cross. No, get thee behind me, Satan. Now, the word Satan means adversary,
and he's the adversary of God's people, and here we see him using
the suggestion of Peter as an adversary to the Lord Jesus Christ. None of these things will be
true. There'll be no forgiveness of sins. There'll be no eternal
life. There'll be no salvation. There'll be none of these blessings
called the sure mercies of David. None of these things will be
true without the cross, without the tomb, and without my bodily
resurrection and ascension to the Father. None of these things
will be so. This is the heart of the gospel. This brings salvation unto all
men who trust in him. All men. all men to whom he reveals
and gives faith to acknowledge and believe in the heart and
confess him with the mouth. Thou art the Christ. Thou art
the son of the living God. May the Lord bless his word.