Possibly the Most Important Question of Your Life

Mark 8 brings Jesus to Caesarea Philippi with his disciples, and Jesus puts a question on the table: “Who do people say that I am?” The crowd has answers. Some say prophet, some say Elijah, some would say today that Jesus was just a good teacher, but that answer does not hold up if Jesus really claimed to be the Messiah, the Son of God, and the Savior of the world. Jesus is either liar, lunatic, or Lord, because if he is wrong about himself, he is not a good teacher, and if he is right, he is far more than a good teacher.

Jesus then makes the question personal: “Who do you say that I am?” Peter answers, “You are the Christ.” Christ is not Jesus’ last name. Christ means the anointed one, the Messiah, the Savior. Peter gets that part right, but then Jesus starts talking about suffering, rejection, death, and resurrection, and Peter pulls him aside to rebuke him. Peter basically says, “Jesus, your plan is terrible.”

Jesus rebukes Peter because Peter’s mind is set on man’s purposes, not God’s purposes. Disobedience does the same thing. When Jesus says not to covet, not to be greedy, to go make disciples, and a person says no, that person is pulling Jesus aside and saying, “I think my plan is better than yours.” Colossians says to set the mind on things above because that is where Jesus is. Like riding a bike, a person does not look where he is or where he does not want to go. He looks where he wants to go.

Jesus gathers the crowd and the disciples and says what following him actually means: deny yourself, take up your cross, and follow him. Denying self means Jesus sits on the throne, not the self. Taking up the cross means following Jesus no matter what it costs. Following him means obeying when his way is uncomfortable, inconvenient, or opposed to natural desires.

Jesus asks what it benefits a person to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul. Silicon Valley can offer success, money, influence, and world-changing work, but none of that can be exchanged for a soul. Jesus leaves no room for watered down, lukewarm Christianity. Romans 12 calls the believer a living sacrifice, and the living sacrifice can walk off the altar. Real offering happens only when the hands come off the life being given.

Jesus is worth everything if he is who he says he is: the bread of life, the light of the world, the good shepherd, the way, the truth, and the life. The kingdom is treasure hidden in a field, worth selling everything to gain. Jesus gave everything first, dying for people who, like Peter and like Adam and Eve, think their plan is better than God’s. Those who receive him and believe in his name become children of God.

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Key Takeaways

• 1. Jesus’ question becomes personal. Jesus first asks what people are saying, but then he moves past the crowd and asks for a personal answer. Secondhand faith cannot answer the question that Jesus puts before every soul. The answer given to Jesus shapes everything that follows, because Lord cannot remain a title while self stays on the throne. [25:03]
• 2. Disobedience rebukes Jesus’ plan. Peter’s rebuke sounds shocking because he has just confessed Jesus as the Christ. Yet every act of disobedience carries the same logic: Jesus has spoken, but another plan seems better. Sin is not only breaking a rule, it is treating the wisdom of Christ as if it needs correction. [29:24]
• 3. Eyes follow where they look. Colossians calls the mind upward because Christ is there, and the bike picture makes that plain. A person looking at the ditch often drifts toward the ditch, even while trying to avoid it. The life of discipleship is not mostly staring at what must be avoided, but fixing attention on Jesus and moving toward him. [32:13]
• 4. Living sacrifices can walk off. Romans 12 calls for a life placed on the altar, but a living sacrifice has a way of climbing back down. Saying the right words is not the same as letting go, just like holding out a Bible is not the same as giving it away. Surrender becomes real when the hands come off the finances, career, family, time, and hidden places still being protected. [44:19]
• 5. Jesus is worth everything. The cost of following Jesus only makes sense when Jesus is seen for who he is. If he is the bread of life, the light of the world, the good shepherd, and the way to the Father, then nothing given up for him is wasted. The treasure in the field is not a loss story, because joy sells everything to gain what is better.
  
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Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [19:21] - Life’s Most Important Question
• [21:19] - Jesus Asks What People Say
• [23:03] - Liar, Lunatic, or Lord
• [25:03] - Who Do You Say Jesus Is?
• [26:19] - Peter Confesses the Christ
• [27:00] - Peter Rebukes Jesus’ Plan
• [29:24] - Disobedience Says It Knows Better
• [31:29] - Setting the Mind on God’s Purposes
• [34:34] - Deny Yourself and Follow
• [37:16] - Take Up the Cross
• [39:23] - Gain the World, Lose the Soul
• [41:00] - No Watered Down Christianity
• [43:42] - Living Sacrifices Let Go
• [48:56] - Jesus Is Worth Everything

Bible Reading

Mark 8:27-38
“And Jesus went on with his disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi. And on the way he asked his disciples, ‘Who do people say that I am?’ And they told him, ‘John the Baptist; and others say, Elijah; and others, one of the prophets.’ And he asked them, ‘But who do you say that I am?’ Peter answered him, ‘You are the Christ.’ And he strictly charged them to tell no one about him. And he began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes and be killed, and after three days rise again. And he said this plainly. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. But turning and seeing his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, ‘Get behind me, Satan! For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.’ And calling the crowd to him with his disciples, he said to them, ‘If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel's will save it. For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul? For what can a man give in return for his soul? For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him will the Son of Man also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.’” [21:26] [25:03] [26:19] [27:00] [29:24] [31:29] [34:34] [37:16] [39:23] [41:00]

Romans 12:1
“I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.” [43:42] [44:19] [48:11]

Colossians 3:1-3
“If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.” [32:13]

John 1:12
“But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God,”

Observation questions

1. In Mark 8:27-30, what answers were people giving about Jesus, and how did Peter answer differently? [25:03]
2. After Peter called Jesus the Christ, what did Jesus begin to teach about what must happen to him? [27:00]
3. In Mark 8:34, what three things did Jesus say are involved in coming after him? [34:34]
4. According to Romans 12:1, what kind of sacrifice are believers called to be, and what makes a living sacrifice different? [44:19]

Interpretation questions

1. Why is Jesus’ question, “Who do you say that I am?” more serious than simply asking for a religious opinion? How does that question shape everything that follows in Mark 8? [25:03]
2. Peter confessed the right title for Jesus but resisted Jesus’ path of suffering. How can a person say true things about Jesus while still pushing against his plan? [29:24]
3. Jesus says Peter was setting his mind on the things of man, not the things of God. What does that difference look like in everyday life, especially when a person is deciding what matters most? [32:13]
4. Jesus asks what it profits a person to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul. What does that reveal about the value of the soul and the limits of success, money, or influence? [39:23]

Application questions

1. Jesus does not leave the question in the hands of the crowd. How would each person in the group answer Jesus personally right now: who is Jesus, really? [49:03]
2. Disobedience is not just breaking a rule; it is acting as if a better plan exists than Jesus’ plan. Where is that temptation showing up most right now—greed, comfort, control, purity, forgiveness, making disciples, or something else? [29:24]
3. Jesus says to set the mind on the things above, where Christ is. What has been getting most of a person’s attention lately, and how is that shaping the direction of that person’s life? [32:13]
4. Denying self means self is not on the throne anymore. In what area of life does a person most often insist on getting his or her own way? [37:16]
5. Taking up the cross means following Jesus no matter the cost. What cost feels most real right now—reputation, comfort, time, relationships, career opportunities, or something else? [37:16]
6. A living sacrifice can walk off the altar. What is one part of life that has been offered to Jesus before but has quietly been taken back? [44:19]
7. Jesus is worth everything if he is who he says he is. What would it look like this week to take hands off one specific area—finances, future plans, family, schedule, or a hidden struggle—and place it before him again? [45:58]