Christ Church

Gospel Obedience (The Well-Pleased Father #3) (King’s Cross)

Lindsey Gardner on

Introduction

Too often Christians oppose grace and obedience, gospel and good works. While we certainly are not saved by our good works or obedience, we are saved for obedience (Eph. 2:8-10). The gospel, rightly understood, truly renews people, making them zealous for good works, working in them the love of obedience.

The Text: “… For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in this present world…” (Tit. 2:1-4).

 

Summary of the Text

Paul exhorts Pastor Titus to teach those things which are “fitting” for sound doctrine (Tit. 2:1). What does he mean? He means instructing old and young, men and women, and even servants to be full of virtue and obedience in the details, “that the word of God be not blasphemed,” that they “may adorn the doctrine of God our Savior in all things” (Tit. 2:2-10). Why? Because the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared (Tit. 2:11). But not only has it appeared, but that same gospel teaches sinners to repent of their sins and live soberly, righteously, and godly in this world (Tit. 2:12). How does the gospel teach and instruct? By pointing to our blessed hope: the glorious appearing of Christ, who gave Himself for us that He might deliver us from sin and purify us and make us zealous for good works (Tit. 2:13-14). In other words, disobedience is an ugly, blasphemous lie about the gospel.

 

Living Sacrifices

The Bible teaches that outside of Christ, true obedience to God from the heart is impossible. Outside of Christ, man is a slave to sin, and therefore for him, gospel obedience is a grievous burden and the aroma of death (Rom. 6:16, 2 Cor. 2:16). But in Christ, the good news is not only redemption and forgiveness but also a new heart that wants to obey the doctrine of Christ (Rom. 6:17), zealous for good works (Tit. 2:14), presenting our bodies as living sacrifices of praise for His great grace (Rom. 12:1). This is nothing less than loving God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength, and our neighbors as ourselves (Mt. 12:33). This obedience is offering all that we are, all the time, right away, all the way, and cheerfully to the Lord, and all of that would still only be our bare duty, as unprofitable servants, for our great salvation (cf. Lk. 17:10).

 

Loving the Standard

Gospel obedience loves the law of God and loves His standard because Christ is the standard in flesh. He is the Law-Word made flesh. We love God’s way because Christ Jesus is God’s way. Gospel obedience is zealous for good works because its eyes are fixed on Jesus “Who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto Himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works” (Tit. 2:14). Gospel obedience is like Peter walking on water: so long as our eyes are fixed on Jesus, it is an overflow of gratitude and faith and love. But if you start looking down at the wind and the waves, at your own abilities, at all the trouble in this world, you will begin to sink.

We are called to perfection (as our Father in Heaven is perfect), and the gospel is God’s solemn promise that He will accomplish that goal in you. Like a kid playing his favorite sport in the backyard, picturing his hero’s excellence, we are to love obedience because it is the obedience of our Hero, our Savior. So our goal in our families is a culture of loving the standard, not a cranky perfectionism but a joyful, persistent faith that constantly aims at His holiness, while quickly repenting of sin. We get to walk on the water with Him. And Your Father is well-pleased with every faltering attempt, and therefore you must be too.

 

Applications

Practicing Walking on Water

The central command given to children is to obey their parents in the Lord, which is based on the first command with a promise, that it may go well with you in the land (Eph. 6:1-3).

This command is given to children, and parents (fathers in particular) are assigned the task of teaching this obedience: “And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord” (Eph. 6:4). So the obedience of parents is teaching and training children, and the obedience of children is heeding that instruction. But everyone must obey, and obedience is right away, all the way, and cheerful.

Slow obedience is disobedience. Incomplete obedience is disobedience. Grumpy, complaining, eye-rolling obedience is disobedience. This applies to both parents and children. And remember: “Brethren, if a man is overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such a one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted” (Gal. 6:1).

The Gospel Grace of Discipline

In Hebrews 12, it says that God disciplines His sons because He loves them and wants them to run the race of obedience even more faithfully, keeping their eyes fixed on Jesus. In other words, God the Father’s discipline of us is part of His gospel grace.

So this is the model for discipline for Christian families. Parents are to discipline and require obedience of their children in gospel grace. Think of Jesus knocking Saul to the ground on the road to Damascus and blinding him: that was a gospel chastening (painful for the present but afterward yielded the peaceable fruit of righteousness).

Chastening includes lots of teaching and admonition, but also the rod of correction. “Whoever spares the rod hates his son, but he who loves him is diligent to discipline him” (Prov. 13:24, ESV). “Foolishness is bound in the heart of a child; but the rod of correction shall drive it far from him” (Prov. 22:15). “Thou shalt beat him with the rod, and shalt deliver his soul from hell” (Prov. 23:14). By faith, discipline is a great gospel grace.

The gospel is the good news that God has crucified us with Christ, so that by dying in Him, we might rise to newness of life, zealous for obedience (Rom. 6:3-11ff).

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The Third Beatitude (CC Troy)

Lindsey Gardner on

INTRODUCTION – JESUS, MEEK AND MILD

The words of Jesus provide a special blessing to the Christian. The black words on the page are no less the Word of God than the red ones, but there is a comfort and a special satisfaction to be had when listening to Jesus talk. He is like our anchor gripping the seabed, preventing us from being swept away. Of his many teachings, the beatitudes are the most beautiful in their simplicity, in their brevity, and their poignancy, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the meek for they shall inherit the earth.”

 

I. MEEKNESS IN THE INCARNATION

In most religions, the worshippers are earthbound and the deity exists on a different plane altogether. But Paul says, “Do not say in your heart, ‘Who will ascend into heaven?’ (that is, to bring Christ down) or ‘Who will descend into the abyss?’ (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). But what does it say? “The word is near you.’” The apostle Peter roasted fish over a fire with Jesus. The centurion who understood authority, was able to demonstrate his confidence in the Lord face-to-face. And the demoniac looked Jesus in the eye during his exorcism.

The creator of the universe, the son of God who shared glory with the Father before the world existed, scandalously took on human flesh. In that moment his humiliation began. The incarnation is the greatest example of humility on record.

 

II. MEEKNESS IN HIS GENTLENESS

Jesus shows his meekness by being gentle with us, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

First off, notice our relationship to Jesus. He is the teamster; we are the oxen. The yoke of control is on us and he is the one with the reins. Second, we are not trading a heavy burden for no burden. We are trading heavy for light. We know what the heavy burden is when he says, “…you will find rest for your souls.” A soul cannot be burdened with sacks of grain or produce from the market. A soul is burdened by sin and it weighs heavy on us.

 

III. MEEKNESS IN THE TRIUMPHAL ENTRY

The Lord shows his meekness through the triumphal entry. In nearly every James Bond novel by Ian Fleming, 007 is introduced by performing some daring feat or displaying his competence in a very suave manner. Sherlock Holmes’s first appearance in Arthur Conan Doyle’s “A Study in Scarlet” showcases his brilliant deductive abilities demonstrating his exceptional intellect. But the Lord, even from birth, being born in a manger, does not display himself like a peacock fanning his tail. It is not Jesus’s style. And since it is not his, we should not want it to be ours.

 

IV. MEEKNESS IN PERSECUTION

Jesus teaches us meekness by how he handles persecution. It is extremely difficult, to be confronted about sin, and in the first moment, confess it openly and seek forgiveness. We’re much more prone to dance around first before admitting we were wrong. But imagine how upsetting it must’ve been for Jesus, to know in his heart-of-hearts that he is righteous in the sight of God and yet people accused him of sin. Jesus faced this on a daily basis. They said, “Look at this wine-bibber, this glutton. Sorcerer! He has a demon. Possessed and a sabbath breaker. You have heard the blasphemy yourself. He said he could destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days.”

 

V. MEEKNESS IN WASHING THE DISCIPLES FEET

The Lord demonstrated his meekness by washing the disciples feet. In this act, the master becomes the slave in order to reveal the true nature of the kingdom of God, which is humility, love, and service. The image of Jesus removing his outer clothing, wrapping a towel around his waist, and proceeding to wash the disciples’ feet is stunning indeed. His lowliness becomes a physical reality as he stoops to cleanse the disciples. It is like a king bowing to his subjects; an inversion of the natural order. And Peter knows this, “Lord, do you wash my feet? You shall never wash my feet.” The Lord has to correct him.

 

VI. MEEKNESS THROUGH HIS INTERACTIONS WITH CHILDREN

Jesus displays his meekness through his interactions with children. Matthew 19 says this, “Then children were brought to him that he might lay his hands on them and pray. The disciples rebuked the people, but Jesus said, ‘Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven.’” And he laid his hands on them and went away. What traits and qualities did Jesus see in the children? He saw faith, innocence, humility, and trust. And what things do they lack? They lacked any notion of stress, mourning, depression, anxiety, guilt, and knowledge that we live in a fallen world.

 

VII. MEEKNESS THROUGH HEALING

Jesus Christ was constantly surrounded by the infirm. Matthew 15 says, “Jesus went on from there and walked beside the Sea of Galilee. And he went up on the mountain and sat down there. And great crowds came to him, bringing with them the lame, the blind, the crippled, the mute, and many others, and they put them at his feet, and he healed them, so that the crowd wondered, when they saw the mute speaking, the crippled healthy, the lame walking, and the blind seeing. And they glorified the God of Israel.”

 

CONCLUSION – THE REWARD FOR MEEKNESS

We’ve spoken much about what meekness is and the Lord has graciously given us examples of the behavior. But we have not yet discussed the reward for meekness. Jesus says, “Blessed are the meek for they will inherit the earth.” The earth? The whole earth? One commentator said, “At this present moment, who is the mightier? Caesar with his legions or Christ with His Cross?” Revelation 11:15 says, “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he shall reign forever and ever.”

In Daniel chapter 2, Daniel is called upon to interpret Nebuchadnezzar’s dream. He sees an image with a golden head, a chest of silver, thighs of bronze, iron legs, and iron feet mixed with clay. A stone that was cut by no human hand struck the feet and the whole edifice crumbled. But the stone that struck the image became a great mountain and filled the whole earth. Each section of the glimmering image represented a kingdom of man. The stone who shatters it all is Jesus. But what about the mountain? Has it covered the whole earth yet? Not yet. But it has grown. Perhaps now, there is more earth than there is mountain. But soon there will be more mountain than there is earth. And then, just a sliver of earth will remain. Eventually, she will stand, covering the whole earth, our inheritance in full, the mountain of God, the reward for meekness. Amen.

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No Other Name (Acts of the Apostles #9)

Lindsey Gardner on

INTRODUCTION

The foundation of the Christian church was the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, and because His execution had been perpetrated by the authorities, this meant that Christianity was established in defiance of the established authorities. And once the Holy Spirit was poured out on the Lord’s disciples, this also meant that the Body of Christ took shape under exactly the same conditions.

 

THE TEXT

“And as they spake unto the people, the priests, and the captain of the temple, and the Sadducees, came upon them, being grieved that they taught the people, and preached through Jesus the resurrection from the dead. And they laid hands on them, and put them in hold unto the next day: for it was now eventide. Howbeit many of them which heard the word believed; and the number of the men was about five thousand . . .” (Acts 4:1–22).

 

SUMMARY OF THE TEXT

Peter was preaching, but apparently other apostles were there speaking as well (v. 1). As they were doing so, the Temple authorities arrived (v. 1). They were greatly displeased over the fact that the Christians were teaching the people, and over the fact that they were proclaiming the resurrection through Jesus (v. 2). They arrested them (Peter and John), and put them in custody because it was evening by this point (v. 3). Remember that the whole thing had started in the afternoon. In the meantime, the number of men who were believers was now around 5,000, meaning that the number of Christians has approximately tripled since Pentecost (v 4). The next morning the Temple elites assembled, meaning the rulers, elders, scribes, and the extended family of the high priest (vv. 5-6). Peter and John were set down in the middle of them and asked by what power or name this miracle had been done (v. 7). Peter was filled with the Spirit and addressed the rulers and elders, saying that if they were asking about the healing of this crippled man, the miracle had been done by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom they had crucified, and whom God had resurrected (vv. 8-10). Notice the charge of murder again.

Peter then changes the subject from the crippled man to Jesus. The stone that was rejected by the builders—meaning the men Peter was speaking to—has been made the cornerstone, in fulfillment of Psalm 118:22 (v. 11). Salvation is to be found nowhere else, meaning there is no other name under heaven by which men can be saved (v. 12). The elites could see that Peter and John were unpolished and uneducated, marking that they had been companions of Jesus (v. 13), and they marveled. The crippled man had been clinging to them the day before, and had also made a point of coming the next day to their trial. He was right there, and so the rulers could say nothing (v. 14). So they put Peter and John out of the room (v. 15), and conferred among themselves. They couldn’t deny the miracle, although the implication is that they would if they could (v. 16). The best plan they could come up with was to command Peter and John to shut up, which is what they then did (vv. 17-18). Peter and John replied that they did not accept these conditions, and invited their rulers to judge whether or not they should obey them, or obey God (vv. 19-20). At this the leaders blustered, but they really couldn’t do anything because everybody was glorifying God over the healing (v. 21). The healed man was over forty, and presumably had been begging at the Temple for a very long time (v. 22).

 

IF SOMEONE SHOULD COME BACK FROM THE DEAD

In vv. 5-6, we see that this corrupt operation was overseen by a very powerful crime family. Annas was the patriarch, and Caiaphas was his son-in-law, the one who had presided over the trial of Jesus. The Lord had been brought before Annas first (John 18), and then sent on to Caiaphas. It is worth noting that as part of this family Caiaphas had five brothers, who interestingly figure into this.

Right after the raising of Lazarus in John 11, the rulers convened a council in order to figure out what they should do with Jesus (John 11:47), and Caiaphas was there (John 11:49). Remember that Jesus had once told a parable about one Lazarus, the only parable that had a proper name in it (Luke 16:19ff). The antagonist in that parable is a rich man, one clothed in purple and fine linen—clothing that befits a high priest (Ex. 28:5). Moreover, this rich man down in Hades, when he is denied water, asks Abraham to send Lazarus to his father’s house, because he had five brothers. Abraham says that they all had Moses and the prophets. Let them hear them. The rich man says “no, but that they would repent if someone were to rise from the dead.” And Abraham replies that if they wouldn’t respond to the Scriptures, then they wouldn’t be persuaded if someone rose from the dead either. All of this was pointed and prophetic. Jesus raised a man named Lazarus from the dead, and they responded by wanting to kill the miracle worker (John 11:51), not to mention killing the miracle (John 12:9-11). Kill Jesus and kill Lazarus. And then Jesus rose from the dead, and that wasn’t good enough for them either.

 

THE REJECTED STONE

Not only did Scripture prophesy that Jesus would be the cornerstone, but also that He would be the cornerstone that the official builders rejected. That was an essential part of the story of our salvation. That verse (Psalm 118:22) is quoted in the New Testament is quoted five times (Matt. 21:42; Mark 12:10-11; Luke 20:17; Acts 4:11; 1 Pet. 2:7). It is a very big deal. This brings us back to Peter’s charge—whom you crucified.

 

NO OTHER NAME

A German historian named Ethelbert Stauffer recorded the fact that in the days of the Roman Empire, salvation was to be understood as the prerogative of Caesar. “Salvation is to be found in none other save Augustus, and there is no other name given to men in which they can be saved.” And this puts Peter’s proclamation in a bold new light. Not only did his message collide with the local rulers there in Judea, but Peter was also throwing down a challenge to the entire Roman world. “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.” We may also take it as something of a thesis statement for the entire book of Acts. Take for example the anecdote from Acts 9:33-35, where Peter heals a man with palsy—a man named Aeneas. That would be (for us) as though Peter had healed a man named George Washington.

It is not possible to preach the kingdom of God without preaching the name of His anointed Prince, who is the Lord Jesus Christ. This is the fundamental Christian confession, which is that Jesus is Lord. It follows that Caesar never is, however much he wants it.

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Postmill Parenting (The Well-Pleased Father #2) (King’s Cross)

Lindsey Gardner on

INTRODUCTION

Postmillennialism is the doctrine that teaches that over the course of history, the Great Commission will be accomplished: the nations will be discipled, the earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea, that God will save the world before Christ returns in glory. This will be accomplished not by force of arms or political maneuvering, but by the preaching of the gospel and the work of the Spirit.

In many ways this is simply an application of the doctrine of sanctification applied to history. Sanctification is the doctrine of growth in Christ: “Being confident of this very thing, that He which began a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ” (Phil. 1:6, cf. Eph. 1:13-14, 2 Cor. 3:18, 2 Pet. 1:3-4). This growth in grace is driven by faith not by works (Gal. 3:1-5). And therefore, Christian parenting is no different.

Parenting in faith is very different from parenting in fear. Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen (Heb. 11:1). But it is not merely optimism or high hopes; it is faith in the promises of your Father.

The Text: “…As for me, this is my covenant with them, saith the LORD; My spirit that is upon thee, and my words which I have put in thy mouth, shall not depart out of thy mouth, nor out of the mouth of thy seed, nor out of the mouth of thy seed’s seed, saith the LORD, from henceforth and forever” (Is. 59:16-21).

 

SUMMARY OF THE TEXT

The prophet is in the midst of describing the predicament of Israel. Their iniquities have separated them from God (Is. 59:2), their hands are defiled with blood (Is. 59:3), they run to do evil (Is. 59:7), they grope like blindmen (Is. 59:11), and no one knows truth or judgment (Is. 59:11-15). And in that condition God saw that there was no man, no intercessor for His people, and so He determined to save them Himself, with His own arm and His own righteousness (Is. 59:16). So He armed Himself for this great mission, and the mission was to bring justice to the world, until the whole world fears the name of the Lord, from the east to the west, the Spirit of the Lord leading the way, like the standard of a great army (Is. 59:17-19). And God the Redeemer will save all who turn to Him, and this New Covenant promise not only includes Him putting His Spirit and His Word in the mouths of those who first turn to Him, but He will also do the same for their children and grandchildren forever (Is. 59:20-21).

 

MORE NEW COVENANT PROMISES

“And they shall be my people, and I will be their God: and I will give them one heart, and one way, that they may fear me forever, for the good of them, and of their children after them: and I will make an everlasting covenant with them, that I will not turn away from them, to do them good; but I will put my fear in their hearts, that they shall not depart from me” (Jer. 32:38-40).

“And David my servant shall be king over them; and they all shall have one shepherd: they shall also walk in my judgments, and observe my statutes, and do them. And they shall dwell in the land that I have given unto Jacob my servant, wherein your fathers have dwelt; and they shall dwell therein, even they, and their children, and their children’s children for ever: and my servant David shall be their prince forever. Moreover, I will make a covenant of peace with them; it shall be an everlasting covenant with them: and I will place them, and multiply them, and will set my sanctuary in the midst of them for evermore” (Ezek. 37:24-26).

 

THE TRAJECTORY

Jesus said that the Kingdom would come like leaven in a loaf, like a mustard seed in the ground growing up into a great tree, and therefore, the growth of Christians is also like that. It is organic, relatively slow, and hard to see in the moment, but it is obvious over time. The same thing is true of the growth of our children in faith and obedience and wisdom.

Not only that, but we need to be thinking about our grandchildren. The loving and teaching and discipline that we are administering is aimed generationally: for our “grandchildren forever” – to a thousand generations (cf. Dt. 7:9). We are the thin stems poking out of the ground or maybe slender stalks with three wispy branches that will one day be great trees providing shade.

 

APPLICATIONS

Believe the promises of God: Do you believe that Jesus Christ is your Redeemer, your Intercessor? Very good. Now you must also believe that He is the Redeemer and Intercessor of your children and grandchildren. “That in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies…” (Gen. 22:17). Do you believe?

This faith is first of all relieved, joyful, and full of peace. There is a massive difference between parenting in fear and parenting in faith. Your children can sense the difference: the aroma of faith is like bread baking in the oven.

You are raising your children to leave and form families: “Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it” (Prov. 22:6). Your goal is not merely to not be embarrassed today, or to keep your kids out of prison. Your goal is that they would marry Christians and raise their children to be stronger, wiser Christians than you, and repeat to a thousand generations.

But this means that you must be thinking this way when they are born, when they are toddlers, when they are still in elementary school. Broadly speaking, think of teaching and discipline like teaching your child how to ride a bike. When they are young, you hover and do everything for them (lots of correction/frequent spankings); during elementary school, you begin letting them peddle and balance (while holding them up, spanking tapering off); and sometime in high school you begin letting go (transitioning to conversations/teaching).

And all of it by faith in the sure promises of your Well-Pleased Father.

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Awaking from the Dream (The Inescapable Story of Jesus #14b) (CC Downtown)

Lindsey Gardner on

INTRODUCTION

Dreams are strange things. But they are not, as the materialists would insist, just the chemical and electrical boings and bongs of the grey matter. You’ve certainly had pleasant dreams that you don’t want to awake from. On the other hand, you’ve probably had the unpleasant experience of a night terrors that you greatly desire to wake up from, but can’t seem to. Then there are dreams that in retrospect gave you a glimpse into the future. Long lay the world in slumber. Jesus came to wake man up.

 

THE TEXT

And immediately, while he yet spake, cometh Judas, one of the twelve, and with him a great multitude with swords and staves, from the chief priests and the scribes and the elders. And he that betrayed him had given them a token, saying, Whomsoever I shall kiss, that same is he; take him, and lead him away safely. And as soon as he was come, he goeth straightway to him, and saith, Master, master; and kissed him. And they laid their hands on him, and took him. And one of them that stood by drew a sword, and smote a servant of the high priest, and cut off his ear. […] Mark 14:43-72

SUMMARY OF THE TEXT

All the pieces were set by God’s redemptive providence. Immediately after Jesus’ declaration that the betrayer was at hand, Judas indeed appears with an armed mob. In order to mark Jesus, Judas had told them that he would kiss the one they were to seize, and straightway Judas greets Jesus with, “Rabbi, Rabbi” and then the betraying kiss (vv43-45). Then a flurry of action. The mob seizes Jesus (v46). A disciple draws a sword and cuts off a servant’s ear (v47). Jesus rebukes the mob for their cowardly midnight arrest (vv48-49). The flock scatters (v50). A young man tries to follow the mob, but when they try to apprehend him he slips out of his linen garment and flees naked out of the garden (vv51-52).

Now the most shameful trial of all history is held. The assembly of chief priests gather at the High Priest’s home. Peter follows from afar, and joins the servants at the fire (vv53-54). At the trial, the chief priests face a pesky issue: insufficient and contradictory witness (vv55-59). So the High Priest tries to get Jesus to answer direct questions, and at first gets no reply. Then he asks Jesus, “Art thou the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?” This is the question. To which the Word made flesh responds with the answer: “I am.” And then Jesus adds more fuel to the fire by applying Daniel’s divine title “Son of Man” to Himself, informing that judicial body that He would soon come to judge them (vv60-62). The High Priest, in folly, rends his garments (Cf. Lev. 21:10), ignores the need for 2-3 witnesses, and calls for the verdict of whether Jesus blasphemed; the assembly’s verdict condemned Jesus as guilty (vv63-64). Then, as was foretold, Christ’s cruel sufferings began (v65).

Mark then takes us back over to the scene of Peter by the fire. Jesus has just been denied by the chief priests, will Peter hold steadfast in temptation? Will anyone stand with Jesus? Mark’s retelling is highly dramatic. A young maiden confronts Peter, and he falters; then, just as Jesus had foretold, a warning crow of a rooster sounds (vv66-68). The maid persists, and this time accuses Peter in front of a small crowd of being one of Jesus’ disciples. He again denies it. For the third time, the whole crowd joins in, pressuring Peter to admit that he was with Jesus, his Galilean accent gave it away (vv69-70). With curses, Peter denied even knowing of Jesus (v71). And then a second rooster crow echoes through the courtyard, and it comes to Peter that he’d done as Jesus said he would do, and which he claimed he would never do; then grief and shame engulfs Peter (v72).

 

THE SON OF JONAH

We need to go back to an earlier scene. In Mark 8 when Jesus had asked who the disciples thought he was, it was Peter who discerned and testified on behalf of the twelve that Jesus was the Christ. Jesus told them to keep His identity secret, and explained that sufferings, rejection by Israel’s elders, death and resurrection awaited Him. Peter rebuked Jesus for thinking that as the Christ this was His destiny. Yet Jesus insisted it was so. He summoned them to follow Him, and that to follow Him meant following Him to the cross.

Now, Peter, the son of Jonah, stands at a courtyard fire timid before a maiden who asks him whether he was a follower of Jesus. Mark puts Peter close to Jesus in order to paint a vibrant contrast. Peter was a good and godly Israelite. He discerned that in Jesus was the messianic fulfillment of God’s ancient promises of restoration for Israel. Yet, even the best of Israel falters and falls away at the last. Peter falls not only to fear, but to outright denial; and outright denial after a warning. Mark brings us to see a splendid scene: Jesus stands alone.

 

THE SON OF MAN

Framing Jesus’ trial with the denial of Peter brings glorious relief to the scene which Mark has arranged. Jesus of Nazareth stands alone before Israel’s elders; he’s accused by confused witnesses who can’t seem to get their testimony to line up. They know Jesus has somehow threatened the temple. He’d compared Himself to David, and asserting authority to preside over the holy things (Mk. 2:25-26). He had made a ruckus in the temple just a few days earlier, and stated that the temple was being misused (Mk. 11:15-17). In His battle of wits with the elders He had claimed to be the chief cornerstone that they were rejecting (Mk. 12:10-11). Perhaps Judas had related Jesus’ prediction about not one temple stone being left on another (Mk. 13:1-2).

The elders knew they were dealing with potent and cosmic claims. But because of their envy and unbelief, they couldn’t put Jesus’ actions and claims together. It was a nightmare to them, because they were asleep. Jesus alone was awake. Joseph had been hauled before Pharaoh and his courtiers to explain the dreams which afflicted him. Daniel had been summoned before Nebuchadnezzar to not only interpret the dream, but to dream it first and then interpret it. The uncertain and shadowy dreams of all the prophets and oracles were now about to be spelled out with divine certainty.

Caiaphas asks Jesus directly: Are you the Christ, the Son of the Blessed? The question is the dream, Jesus’ answer is the interpretation. Who would the Messiah be? Jewish tradition envisioned the Messiah as a kingly figure; a davidic heir. Israel was God’s Son (Ex. 4:22-23, Hos. 11:1); Israel’s King could also be reckoned as the son of God since he was the head of the nation (2 Sam. 7:14).

How does Jesus interpret this dream? He insists that He is indeed the Christ. Then He takes it further. He is also the Son of Man. Jesus has thought on the OT Scriptures; praying through them faithfully. He had communed with the Father. He’d heard the Father’s voice. He knew that the Messiah was indeed the Son of God, but He also understood that reality should be coupled with another glory. Daniel’s visions revealed that the davidic heir would also bear the title Son of Man (Dan 7:13). This title takes us all the way back to Eden. A son of Adam. Adam was made king of the world, but by his sin ruination and the devil’s dominion began.

But if David’s son, the Messiah, God’s beloved Son had indeed come, this would be a new creation. A new Adam had come. The whole world was to be remade and recreated. The kingdom of Satan was ended. The Kingdom of Heaven was indeed come. Therefore the old world of dreams, shadows, and the nightmare of demonic rule over the nations was over and done. Man was summoned to awake.

 

JESUS ALONE

As Mark has retold the story of Jesus one of the more shocking features is that Israel was brimful with demons. This nation that was to be a kingdom of priests, a holy nation, was instead overrun with unclean spirits. All of history came down to this one Man. Mark has brought us to the point where we see that Jesus alone can overthrow Satan because Jesus alone is God’s Son, Adam’s son, David’s son. Scripture brings us to see all the most righteous saints falter and fail. Israel has been reduced to a singular Man of Righteousness. Here is the meaning of all the dreams: Jesus alone, Jesus ever, Jesus always.

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