Where You Stand Matters: Jesus, Idols, and Allegiance
Matthew 16:13-20; Mark 8:27-33; Luke 9:18-27
Some of us can be a little dramatic at times when we're trying to make a point to a friend. But have y'all ever used geography to get your point across? Jesus did it all the time, and to great effect.
Let's back up. This past week at XA Live, we talked about death to self and taking up our crosses. Jesus shows us that the way we really find life in His kingdom is by giving it up. Death to self means putting God in the driver's seat, putting His ways to practice even when we don't feel like it. It can be as intense as being persecuted for our faith, but also as 'everyday' as choosing to forgive our roommate again and again and again for leaving their dishes in the sink.
To Jesus, all of this reflects our allegiance to either the flesh (when we choose our own preferences) or God (when we choose the way of self-death). And He expertly links these concepts of loyalty and taking up the cross by where He chooses to issue this challenge.
While Luke 9 doesn’t record a location, Matthew and Mark tell a similar story about Jesus and place it near Caesarea-Philippi, a historic site of pagan worship. It's a hilly region. And it was given its current name by Phillip the Tetrarch, who along with his father Herod the Great (one of the 'big bads of the New Testament and an incredibly corrupt Jewish king), had dedicated a temple to Augustus. They literally made a shrine to worship the ruler of Rome.
Think about this: this passage is where Jesus is named "messiah" by his disciples. They thought of Him as God's anointed king. Jesus doesn’t deny it, and by calling himself "Son of Man," He is identifying himself as a divine-human ruler. Do you think it at all significant that in a place known for idolatry led by corrupt Jewish kings, Jesus is asking his disciples what they think of his rulership?
And He takes it a step further! Rather than declaring himself a political ruler alone, Jesus speaks to them about His cross and resurrection, letting them glimpse how He'll overthrow every power on earth and open the way to eternal life (though they don't get all the details quite yet).
It would be like Jesus standing outside an Apple store and asking us who has the better vision of the 'good life': Him, or your iPhone. Jesus is challenging them to see past the idols of their day and declare their allegiance to Him alone, not just in word, but in self-denying deed.
What are the idols you are aware of in your own life? And how do you declare your allegiance to Jesus day-by-day? For some of us, it could mean we ask a friend to set up a screen time password. For others, we need to reevaluate the way we speak to and think about our roommate. And for others still, it will mean giving up our comfort and inviting a non-Christian friend to life group (or first going with them to something they care about!).
The behaviors will change throughout your life but the attitude remains the same. If I really believe that Jesus is the true king of the world, are my actions and attitudes reflecting his kingship, or are they just the same as everyone else, only slightly sanitized?
When I choose to die to my preferences and instead put the ways of Jesus to practice, I will lose out on the things I rely on to give me comfort, success, and security. But I gain a relationship with the one who can satisfy all of those needs and show me the way to real, eternal life.
