If I walked around Brownwood this week and asked one question, “Who is Jesus?” I have no doubt I would get dozens of different answers.
Some would call Him a good man. Others would say He was a great teacher, a prophet, or the Son of God. Some might even say, “He’s my Savior.”
Everyone seems to have an opinion about Jesus. But there is one answer that matters more than all the others: Who do you say that Jesus is?
That is the question Jesus puts directly to His disciples in Mark 8. And Peter gives the right answer. But what happens next reveals that getting the right answer about Jesus is not the same thing as understanding Jesus.
Who Do You Say That Jesus Is?
Jesus and His disciples are traveling near Caesarea Philippi, a place filled with reminders of competing gods and human power. It is there that Jesus asks them, “Who do people say that I am?”
The disciples give Him the popular answers: John the Baptist, Elijah, or one of the prophets.
Then Jesus makes the question personal.
“But who do you say that I am?”
Peter answers, “You are the Christ.”
Finally! After eight chapters of Mark showing us Jesus’ authority, compassion, miracles, and power, Peter gets it right. Jesus is the Messiah, God’s promised King.
But Peter’s understanding is still incomplete.
He knows who Jesus is, but he doesn’t yet understand what kind of King Jesus has come to be.
Peter expected a Messiah who would conquer. Jesus explains that the Messiah must suffer, be rejected, be killed, and rise again.
Peter couldn’t reconcile those two ideas. A crucified Messiah didn’t fit his expectations.
And that’s where we can find ourselves, too.
We may have the right words about Jesus while still trying to reshape Him into the kind of Savior we want. We want a King who blesses us, protects us, fixes our problems, and makes our lives better. But Jesus refuses to be reduced to our preferences.
He reveals Himself on His own terms.
The Way of the Cross
Peter’s response is shocking. He takes Jesus aside and rebukes Him.
Jesus responds even more sharply:
“Get behind Me, Satan; for you are not setting your mind on God’s interests, but man’s.”
Jesus isn’t calling Peter the devil. The word Satan means adversary. In that moment, Peter has become an adversary to God’s purposes because he wants Jesus to take the crown without going through the cross.
Peter wanted the kingdom. He just didn’t understand that the way of the kingdom is the way of the cross.
The temptation Peter faced is one we face as well. We can love God’s blessings while resisting God’s plans. We can want the promises of following Jesus without wanting the sacrifice that comes with following Him.
But Jesus doesn’t simply tell us that He will walk the road of suffering. He tells us to follow Him down that road.
What Does It Mean to Follow Jesus?
Jesus gathers the crowd and makes the cost of discipleship clear:
“If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me.”
There are three movements here.
Deny yourself. Your desires, plans, comfort, and ambitions no longer occupy the highest place. Following Jesus means submitting our will to His.
Take up your cross. Jesus isn’t talking about every difficult circumstance we experience. He is talking about being willing to suffer because we belong to Him. Following Jesus will eventually put us at odds with a world that doesn’t share His values.
Follow Me. Christianity isn’t simply believing certain facts about Jesus. It is surrendering our lives to Him and walking where He leads.
Jesus even gives us the great paradox of discipleship: “Whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel’s will save it.”
The world says, “Finders keepers, losers weepers.” Jesus offers something different: losers keepers.
When we give our lives to Christ, we aren’t ultimately losing. We are gaining something infinitely better.
William Borden, a young man who could have lived a life of extraordinary comfort, gave his life to missionary service. Before leaving, he wrote two words in his Bible: “No Reserves.”
Later he added, “No Retreats.”
Before he died at only 25, he wrote one final phrase: “No Regrets.”
The world might look at that life and see waste. Jesus looks at it and sees faithfulness.
The Cross Is the Road to Glory
Jesus’ disciples still had a question. If He really is the King, where is the power of His kingdom?
Jesus answers in Mark 9:1 by promising that some standing there would see the kingdom come with power.
The cross would not be the end.
The suffering Messiah would rise again. His kingdom would be revealed in power through His resurrection, His ascension, and the coming of the Holy Spirit.
Peter would eventually understand this. The man who once rebuked Jesus for talking about suffering would later write:
“Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in His steps.”
1 Peter 2:21
Peter finally understood.
The cross was never a detour from God’s plan. It was the road to resurrection and glory.
And that road is still the road Jesus calls us to walk.
Who Is Jesus to You?
The most important question you will ever answer isn’t what your culture says about Jesus. It’s not even what your family or church believes about Him.
It is the question Jesus asks you:
“Who do you say that I am?”
Jesus is not merely a good teacher or a moral example. He is the Christ, the crucified and risen King.
And if He is truly King, then He doesn’t simply ask for our admiration. He calls for our surrender.
The way of the kingdom is still the Way of the Cross.
So don’t settle for a Jesus who exists only to make your life easier. See Him as He truly is: the King who wore a crown of thorns before He wore a crown of glory.
And then follow Him.
