Matthew
16 recounts two contrasting interactions between Jesus and Peter. In the first,
Jesus calls Peter blessed because he recognizes and confesses that Jesus is
Messiah. In the second, Jesus calls Peter "Satan" the tempter. What
happened? How did Simon Peter go from being the rock to the stumbling block?
It all has to do with what Peter's mind was focused on, as Jesus states in verse 23: Jesus turned and said to Peter, "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."
When Peter's mind was on the things on God, he recognized Jesus as the Son of the Living God, but when his mind turned to the things of man (perhaps how it affected him for Jesus to talk about going to Jerusalem to die, or perhaps what it would mean to Peter who had given up everything to follow Jesus if Jesus were to then be killed) Peter became a hindrance to the Kingdom.
The same is true for us. When we have our eyes fixed on Jesus and our mind on the things of His Kingdom, we move within that realm, and we hear and know the truth from God, just as Peter had it revealed from God that Jesus was Messiah. Contrast that with when we have our eyes fixed on ourselves and our minds focused on our circumstances, the things of this worldly realm. We cannot, in that position and from that perspective, be fully and truly alive. For when we focus on the things of man, we are bound again by the things of man: earthly concerns, daily distractions - even fear of death (like Peter).
Jesus goes on to teach His disciples what it means to live in His Kingdom instead of focused on the things of man:
24Then Jesus said to his disciples, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. 25For whoever wants to save his life[h] will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it. 26What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul? 27For the Son of Man is going to come in his Father's glory with his angels, and then he will reward each person according to what he has done. 28I tell you the truth, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom."
Here, Jesus presents the paradox of living for Christ. From the viewpoint of the things of man, we believe we are gaining when we focus on ourselves. Our safety and self-protection, our best interests, and our own position as author of our own lives are paramount - driving our decisions (based on fear of loss and fear of death) toward what we think we want. But Jesus is pointing out that in so doing, we lose our lives (our true selves), for whoever would gain his life will lose it. Jesus is not just referring here to trying to be our own savior, although this is certainly part of how this plays out in our lives. He is referring to all choices based on the things of man. And He is not talking about debasing ourselves or seeing ourselves as useless, worthless, or unimportant. That would be the perspective of the things of man also, that to be valuable we have to be about self, and to not be about self means we do not matter. No, in fact, Jesus is referring to the paradox that when we lose our lives for His sake (when we focus on Him) is when we actually FIND ourselves. It is through living for Him and with Him in all things, focusing our mind on the things of the Kingdom of God, that we are fully alive, and can be our true selves as intended to be at our creation. What we see (in the eyes of man) as a loss is actually the gain of everything that matters. Paradoxically, it is in our own best self interest to let go of the things of man, and to focus our minds on Jesus.
It all has to do with what Peter's mind was focused on, as Jesus states in verse 23: Jesus turned and said to Peter, "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."
When Peter's mind was on the things on God, he recognized Jesus as the Son of the Living God, but when his mind turned to the things of man (perhaps how it affected him for Jesus to talk about going to Jerusalem to die, or perhaps what it would mean to Peter who had given up everything to follow Jesus if Jesus were to then be killed) Peter became a hindrance to the Kingdom.
The same is true for us. When we have our eyes fixed on Jesus and our mind on the things of His Kingdom, we move within that realm, and we hear and know the truth from God, just as Peter had it revealed from God that Jesus was Messiah. Contrast that with when we have our eyes fixed on ourselves and our minds focused on our circumstances, the things of this worldly realm. We cannot, in that position and from that perspective, be fully and truly alive. For when we focus on the things of man, we are bound again by the things of man: earthly concerns, daily distractions - even fear of death (like Peter).
Jesus goes on to teach His disciples what it means to live in His Kingdom instead of focused on the things of man:
24Then Jesus said to his disciples, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. 25For whoever wants to save his life[h] will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it. 26What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul? 27For the Son of Man is going to come in his Father's glory with his angels, and then he will reward each person according to what he has done. 28I tell you the truth, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom."
Here, Jesus presents the paradox of living for Christ. From the viewpoint of the things of man, we believe we are gaining when we focus on ourselves. Our safety and self-protection, our best interests, and our own position as author of our own lives are paramount - driving our decisions (based on fear of loss and fear of death) toward what we think we want. But Jesus is pointing out that in so doing, we lose our lives (our true selves), for whoever would gain his life will lose it. Jesus is not just referring here to trying to be our own savior, although this is certainly part of how this plays out in our lives. He is referring to all choices based on the things of man. And He is not talking about debasing ourselves or seeing ourselves as useless, worthless, or unimportant. That would be the perspective of the things of man also, that to be valuable we have to be about self, and to not be about self means we do not matter. No, in fact, Jesus is referring to the paradox that when we lose our lives for His sake (when we focus on Him) is when we actually FIND ourselves. It is through living for Him and with Him in all things, focusing our mind on the things of the Kingdom of God, that we are fully alive, and can be our true selves as intended to be at our creation. What we see (in the eyes of man) as a loss is actually the gain of everything that matters. Paradoxically, it is in our own best self interest to let go of the things of man, and to focus our minds on Jesus.
C.
S. Lewis says it beautifully: “Your real, new self (which is Christ's and also yours, and
yours just because it is His) will not come as long as you are looking for it.
It will come when you are looking for Him. Does that sound strange? The same
principle holds, you know, for more everyday matters. Even in social life, you
will never make a good impression on other people until you stop thinking about
what sort of impression you are making. Even in literature and art, no man who
bothers about originality will ever be original whereas if you simply try to
tell the truth (without caring twopence how often it has been told before) you
will, nine times out of ten, become original without ever having noticed it.
The principle runs through all life from top to bottom, Give up yourself, and
you will find your real self. Lose your life and you will save it. Submit to
death, death of your ambitions and favourite wishes every day and death of your
whole body in the end submit with every fibre of your being, and you will find
eternal life. Keep back nothing. Nothing that you have not given away will be
really yours. Nothing in you that has not died will ever be raised from the
dead. Look for yourself, and you will find in the long run only hatred,
loneliness, despair, rage, ruin, and decay. But look for Christ and you will find
Him, and with Him everything else thrown in.”
― C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity
The Kingdom of God is already come. We are not called to wait for life after death to experience life. Jesus offers us life (more abundantly) now. In order to gain that life, we must let go of the things of man as our focus, and fix our eyes on Jesus. What appears from worldly eyes to be losing is actually to our great gain. "Taking up our cross" from an earthly perspective is a terrible form of punishment; from Jesus' perspective it is love. It is Jesus' profound love for us, the love demonstrated on the cross that He was describing was coming when Peter focused on the things of man and became a stumbling block, that fills our hearts with the Kingdom NOW. The Kingdom of God within us is the living presence of Jesus in our hearts, and if we fix our eyes on Him, we are already in His Kingdom. That means that He is everything to us, and the only thing that matters. The perspectives of this world fade away as we focus on Him and Him alone. Love becomes the central force in our lives, both from the position of recipient and giver. This IS the Kingdom of God.
― C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity
The Kingdom of God is already come. We are not called to wait for life after death to experience life. Jesus offers us life (more abundantly) now. In order to gain that life, we must let go of the things of man as our focus, and fix our eyes on Jesus. What appears from worldly eyes to be losing is actually to our great gain. "Taking up our cross" from an earthly perspective is a terrible form of punishment; from Jesus' perspective it is love. It is Jesus' profound love for us, the love demonstrated on the cross that He was describing was coming when Peter focused on the things of man and became a stumbling block, that fills our hearts with the Kingdom NOW. The Kingdom of God within us is the living presence of Jesus in our hearts, and if we fix our eyes on Him, we are already in His Kingdom. That means that He is everything to us, and the only thing that matters. The perspectives of this world fade away as we focus on Him and Him alone. Love becomes the central force in our lives, both from the position of recipient and giver. This IS the Kingdom of God.
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