Victory Through the Cross: Deny Yourself and Follow

Matthew’s account puts Peter’s confession beside a hard correction. Jesus is the Christ who will not be conquered, but his victory does not look like an easy ride into earthly glory. Jesus tells his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem, suffer at the hands of the religious leaders, be killed, and on the third day rise again. The cross is not a detour from Christ’s mission. The cross is the way he rescues his people.

Peter hears the promise of victory but cannot stomach the suffering. Peter rebukes Jesus because a suffering Messiah means suffering for those who follow him too. Jesus answers with sharp words: “Get behind me Satan.” Peter’s desire to keep Jesus from the cross has in mind merely human concerns, not the concerns of God. Satan would be perfectly happy with a comfortable and glorious Jesus who leaves sinners separated from God.

Jesus refuses that road because he must go to the cross for sinners. Christ bears the sins of the world and suffers the death and hell that sinners deserve. Christ rises victorious only after he has borne the cross. Jesus therefore shows that God’s victory is real, but it is not the same thing as earthly comfort, power, fame, or getting everything to go a person’s way.

The same tension shows up whenever comfort and control start to look like the good life. The desire to provide for family, care for neighbors, participate in politics, and seek the church’s outward success can be good. The lie comes when money, influence, the right election, the right side of an issue, or enough social power becomes the thing expected to make everything alright. Earthly glory can make a person feel as though nothing is needed, even God.

Jesus calls disciples to deny themselves, take up their cross, and follow him. The cross-bearing life is not always glorious, and suffering is not evidence that Christ has lost. Jesus warns that the one who tries to save life will lose it, while the one who loses life for him will find it. “What good will it be for someone to gain the whole world yet forfeit their soul?”

God has something far better in mind than a comfortable life that slowly drifts from him. God has paradise in mind, where everything truly will be the way it is supposed to be. Christ calls his followers to stay close to him through self-denial and cross-bearing until they see him face to face in the glories of heaven.

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Key Takeaways

• 1. The cross is Christ’s victory Jesus does not stumble into suffering because his plans fail. Christ goes to the cross because sinners cannot be saved by a comfortable Messiah. His suffering is the very place where God defeats sin, death, and hell. [32:58]
• 2. Human concerns resist costly faithfulness Peter wants glory without the cross, and that desire sounds natural until it stands in the way of salvation. Earthly comfort can become a stumbling block when it matters more than obedience to God’s will. Jesus calls that mindset away from him, not because suffering is good in itself, but because redemption requires him to endure it. [34:56]
• 3. The world cannot purchase the soul Money, influence, political wins, and public success can all promise that life will finally be alright. Jesus exposes that promise as too small, because gaining the whole world cannot repay the loss of a soul. Eternal life with Christ outweighs every temporary victory. [41:17]
• 4. Cross-bearing keeps disciples close to Christ Jesus does not promise that his followers will avoid suffering. Self-denial teaches the heart not to confuse ease with salvation or prosperity with God’s favor. The road of following Christ leads through crosses now and into the glories of paradise later.
  
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Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [27:56] - The Christ Will Not Be Conquered
• [29:37] - When Victory Meets Suffering
• [31:24] - Having in Mind the Things of God
• [32:42] - Christ’s Victory Through the Cross
• [33:52] - Peter Rebukes Jesus
• [34:56] - Human Concerns and God’s Concerns
• [36:35] - Take Up Your Cross and Follow
• [37:17] - The Lie of Comfort and Power
• [40:50] - Gaining the World, Losing the Soul
• [41:46] - Staying Close to Jesus
• [43:27] - Paradise in God’s Mind

Bible Reading

Matthew 16:21–26
“From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, ‘Far be it from you, Lord! This shall never happen to you.’ But he turned and said to Peter, ‘Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.’ Then Jesus told his disciples, ‘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 will find it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?’” [32:15] [33:52] [34:52] [36:38] [41:14]

Matthew 16:23
“But he turned and said to Peter, ‘Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.’” [34:52] [34:56]

Matthew 16:24–25
“Then Jesus told his disciples, ‘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 will find it.’” [36:38] [41:14]

Matthew 16:26
“For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?” [23:07] [41:21] [41:24] [41:27]

Observation questions

1. What events does Jesus say must happen to him in Jerusalem, and what event does he say will follow on the third day? [32:15]
2. What does Peter say to Jesus after hearing that Jesus will suffer and die? What does that response show Peter wanted Jesus to avoid? [33:52]
3. In Jesus’ response to Peter, what contrast does he make between “the things of God” and “the things of man”? [34:52]
4. What three actions does Jesus connect with being his disciple in verses 24–25? [36:38]

Interpretation questions

1. Why was Jesus’ suffering and death not a failure of his mission, but the very way he rescued sinners from sin, death, and hell? [32:58]
2. Why does Peter’s attempt to protect Jesus from suffering become a “stumbling block” rather than an act of faithful love?
3. How can good desires—providing for family, caring for neighbors, participating in public life, or wanting the church to thrive—become merely human concerns?
4. What does Jesus mean when he says that a person who tries to save life will lose it, while the one who loses life for his sake will find it? [41:14]

Application questions

1. Where is the temptation strongest to measure God’s care by whether life feels comfortable, successful, or under control? How does Jesus’ cross challenge that measure of God’s love? [37:13]
2. Is there a hardship, disappointment, or costly act of obedience that has made following Jesus feel less glorious than expected? What might it look like to bring that burden to Christ rather than treating it as proof that he has abandoned you? [43:04]
3. Money, friends, family security, influence, and political victories can all become promises that life will finally be alright. Which of these promises most easily captures your heart, and what does it look like to keep it from taking Christ’s place? [37:36]
4. Caring for society and taking part in political life can be good, but neither side gaining power can save a soul. How can Christians speak and act faithfully in public life without placing their ultimate hope in elections or influence? [40:50]
5. What might self-denial look like in one ordinary area of life this week—time, spending, speech, relationships, entertainment, or serving another person? How could that choice help keep you close to Jesus? [42:04]
6. Jesus asks his followers to take up their cross and follow him, while holding out the promise of paradise with him forever. How does the hope of seeing Christ face to face help a believer endure a difficult season now? [43:55]