New Life, New Truth, New Way

[HKHaugan]

New Life, New Truth, New Way (Mt.16:21-29)

 Following up on the theme, “How Personal Does God Want to Be?” Jesus pulls no punches with Peter.  He has stated lovingly how much He cares for Peter by giving Him the keys to the Kingdom of Heaven.  But there is something Jesus wants to make clear for Peter. A new and totally different attitude about life and death has to be embraced.  It’s a radical departure from the world’s idea of survival and self-elevation.  It begins with death to self-centeredness as the means to real life, spiritual life, eternal life.  In order to get that across Jesus must go through persecution and physical death before that new life can be experienced.  He has to be the example, the visible reality of this new life, the life of faith, faith as the means to facing every next moment regardless of circumstance or consequence. 

 Peter, true to the world’s conditioning, reacts by saying, “Never Lord, that shall never happen to you.”  Jesus’ reaction to Peter here stands in dramatic contrast to the caring affection shown in Peter’s just having been given the gift of Heaven’s entrance.  Peter needs this jarring moment of self-awareness to see himself as still very worldly and self-consumed. 

 Three attitudes are challenged here.  First, Peter’s need to control circumstance.  Second, Peter’s thinking he needs to defend God, not seeing God’s will as more important than his.  Therefore, third, Peter’s need to surrender to God’s will.  Add this fourth, Peter’s need to rely on the insight given by the Father as to who Jesus really was.  What Jesus says goes, like it or not.  It is that important and that extreme a difference from how Peter was conditioned by the world to think about God and the world around him.  To really get Peter to face himself Jesus says to him, “Get behind me Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men.”  Is He speaking to Satan or Peter or both?

 Peter’s self-righteousness needs this jolt, this lightning bolt, to let his mind, heart and spirit be open to the Holy Spirit’s leading to follow Jesus exactly as Jesus had directed. Again, regardless of the cost.  And too, could this not be Jesus speaking to Satan who has influenced Peter, saying basically, “Get your hands off my people.  You think differently than God.  You want to control them.  You have no place in their lives!”  Peter and all of us need that reprimand.  Jesus has deliberately exposed the perpetrator of sin and evil right there at the most critical point in both Peter’s and our life, the choice to follow God or self.  Isn’t that really all of us at our weakest and most alone moments?  God’s righteousness, living by faith, as opposed to our self-contrived righteousness, living by fear.

God’s intent here is noticeably clear.  Faith is the personal evidence of His love.  To rely on self-centered thinking and action is sin and sin brings evil.  To believe in Jesus in our mind, trust Jesus in our heart and follow Jesus in the spirit is loving God with all your mind, heart, soul and strength.  Now others can be loved not used, shared with not influenced by, not fitting in for acceptance by others but letting God outfit us, giving not taking, spiritually loving not faking being good to look good and feel good.  Peter and all of us needed a new way to live.  And Peter finds all that out after the Resurrection and when the gift of the Holy Spirit is given at Pentecost.

 How personal does God want to be?  That personal; mind, heart and spirit personal.