Being Beyond Existence: Follow Jesus by Loving All

Exodus gives Moses the name of God: “I am who I am.” God names God’s self as being, not merely as one existing thing among other things. Existence is the whole cosmos, all that can be seen and known, yet God is more than existence because God is being itself. Human beings share in being, but live for a time within existence.

Christ models the movement from being into existence. Jesus is born, lives through the beauty and suffering of this world, is killed by empire and religious power, and enters resurrection and life beyond death. Death, then, is not the end of being. Human life comes from being, moves through time and all that comes with it, and returns to being with God.

Love drives being. God’s love is not merely one attribute added onto God, but belongs to the very reality of who God is. Existence lives within God, and the more of God beyond all existence is love. Human beings are therefore far bigger than the struggles, losses, joys, and limits of the present moment.

Jesus tells Peter, “Get behind me,” using the same language found in the call to “take up your cross and follow me.” Peter is not simply being scolded. Jesus calls Peter away from trying to prevent suffering and into the place of a disciple, behind the master, following the model. Satan, in this sense, is the voice that argues against the path Jesus must walk, like a prosecuting attorney trying to make the case against it.

Jesus’ “must” go to Jerusalem does not mean that God demands suffering for its own sake. The movement toward Jerusalem names the bound reality of existence itself: life moves through time, suffering comes, and death eventually comes for every human being. Jesus enters that reality fully, not to make suffering redemptive, but to show that suffering and death cannot contain the deeper reality of being.

Discipleship does not require a code book of endless religious requirements. Christ gives a simple, costly, wide-open commission: love. Love welcomes, accepts, includes, makes room for those not yet present, and truly cares for every person sharing existence. “Love. I will love” becomes the fitting response to every opportunity, ability, and resource given along the way.

##

---

Key Takeaways

• 1. God is being, not merely existence God’s name, “I am,” points beyond the limits of the created universe. Existence has a beginning, movement, suffering, and an end, but God is not trapped inside those boundaries. Human life becomes less small when it is held within the reality of God’s being. [25:31]
• 2. Christ models life beyond death Jesus enters existence fully, including its suffering and death, and resurrection reveals that death does not have the final word. Christ does not stand at a safe distance from human pain. Christ shows that being is deeper than the grave. [27:12]
• 3. Following means getting behind Christ Jesus calls Peter to stop arguing against the way of the cross and to become a disciple again. A disciple follows the model of the master rather than trying to control where the master goes. Faithfulness begins when self-protection stops setting the terms. [29:19]
• 4. Love is the whole commission Jesus does not reduce discipleship to religious rule-keeping. Love takes the shape of welcome, acceptance, inclusion, and real care for those sharing life in this world. Love becomes most concrete when it makes room for people before they even arrive. [30:53]
• 5. Being is greater than present struggle Human suffering is real, and some lives carry more than others can see. Yet existence is only a small piece of eternity, not the full measure of a person’s worth or future. God holds each human being in a love deeper than both the best and worst moments of life.
  
  ## [38:06]

Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [22:35] - A Different Kind of Reflection
• [23:39] - God Names God’s Self as Being
• [25:31] - Being and Existence
• [26:45] - Christ’s Journey Through Death
• [27:46] - Love Drives Being
• [28:55] - Get Behind Me, Satan
• [30:16] - Suffering, Death, and Life Beyond
• [32:41] - Bigger Than This Existence
• [34:05] - Going as a Metaphor for Living
• [36:37] - The Commission to Love
• [38:41] - Love, I Will Love
• [60:42] - Living the Commission

Bible Reading

Exodus 3:14
God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I AM has sent me to you.’” [23:44]

Mark 8:31-33
He then began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and after three days rise again. He spoke plainly about this, and Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. But when Jesus turned and looked at his disciples, he rebuked Peter. “Get behind me, Satan!” he said. “You do not have in mind the concerns of God, but merely human concerns.” [28:55]

Mark 8:34
Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.” [29:07]

1 John 4:16
And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. [27:58]

Observation questions

1. In Exodus 3:14, what name does God give Moses, and how does that name differ from simply saying that God is one being among many? [25:33]
2. What does Jesus plainly say will happen to the Son of Man in Mark 8:31, and how does Peter respond?
3. Jesus uses the words “get behind me” with Peter and “follow me” with the crowd. What connection is made between these two phrases? [29:04]
4. What actions are named as expressions of love: welcome, acceptance, inclusion, and making room for people who are not yet present? [30:53]

Interpretation questions

1. What might it mean for a person’s present struggles and joys to be real and important, while not being the whole measure of who that person is? [33:10]
2. Jesus says that he “must” suffer, be rejected, die, and rise again. How does this differ from the idea that God desires suffering for its own sake? [34:15]
3. Peter wants to prevent Jesus from suffering. Why might Jesus call Peter back into the place of a disciple rather than simply agreeing with Peter’s desire to protect him? [31:57]
4. If “God is love,” what does it mean to understand love as more than a rule or feeling, but as part of life in God? [28:25]

Application questions

1. When present hardship, grief, illness, failure, or fear feels overwhelming, what helps you remember that you are more than this one moment in existence? [38:06]
2. Is there a place in your life where self-protection is setting the terms—where you are resisting a difficult but faithful path because you want to avoid pain or uncertainty? What might it look like to get behind Christ and follow? [32:24]
3. Love takes the shape of welcome, acceptance, inclusion, and genuine care. Who in your workplace, family, neighbourhood, or church might need a clearer sign that there is room for them? [38:45]
4. Jesus included people even before they arrived, so that they would already have a place when they came. What could that look like in a practical way in your small group or church community? [31:05]
5. “Love, I will love” can be a response to whatever opportunity appears, using whatever ability and resources are available. What is one specific opportunity to love that is already in front of you this week? [39:15]
6. Some people carry suffering that others cannot easily see. How could you grow in noticing hidden burdens and offering care without trying to fix, explain away, or minimize someone’s pain? [31:31]
7. Who has shown you Christlike love through welcome, acceptance, or care? How might you thank them or pass that same kind of love on to another person? [37:36]