Rebuking & Rebuked (part 2 of 2)

When we hear Peter call Jesus “the Christ,” we are forced to recognize that he was answering Jesus’ question with an acknowledgment of the possibility that Jesus was indeed Israel’s Messiah.  With that report, we must understand that the narrative represents Peter as saying that he believed Jesus to be the long-awaited King of Israel, in the line of David, on which rested the hope of so many.  It is a statement with both political and religious underpinnings and overtones. 

Having said these words, Jesus’ response was probably thoroughly surprising for Peter, as Jesus “warned them not to tell anyone about Him” (Mark 8:30).  In the highly charged atmosphere of the time, in which a messiah would seek to gain as many followers as possible for the purpose of “storming the castle,” keeping such things secret would seem antithetical, at cross-purposes with messianic expectation, regardless of the type of messiah one envisioned.  Along with that, there is the social component of the accrual of honor, which would also be crucial for any would-be messiah.  Failing to spread the word, though there was a risk of alerting Roman ears to talk of another king and so running the risk of sending Jesus to the cross prematurely, would work against the hopes of the covenant people. 

So in that day and time and in Peter’s mind (along with the rest of the disciples), what Jesus just said would have made very little sense.  Apart from the risk of alerting authorities that would have wanted to keep a movement in check, why keep this quiet?  As if it was not bad enough that Jesus issued them a warning not to tell anyone about Him, contrary to every urge that they would have had to quietly spread the word and gain supporters, “Jesus began to teach them that the Son of Man (a messianic title) must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, chief priests, and experts in the law, and be killed, and after three days rise again” (8:31). 

What’s that, Jesus?  What is this talk of suffering, rejection, and death?  Quite rightly, the disciples would have been stunned by this.  By saying what He said, Jesus was speaking the language of failure.  Israel’s messiah was not supposed to suffer.  A suffering messiah, with that suffering taking place on a Roman cross, was a failed messiah.  On the contrary, Israel’s messiah was supposed to make Israel’s enemies suffer, and bring Israel to the place of exaltation.  It was at least partially for this reason that “Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him” (8:32b). 

Undoubtedly, this rebuke consisted of Peter informing Jesus that they needed to make Him known, to tell people that He was the Messiah, to remind the masses of the miracles that He had already performed, so that they could gather allies, start an uprising, keep all of these things that He had just mentioned from happening, and usher in the kingdom of God in which Israel was indeed exalted above all nations so as to rule the world.  Indeed, the mindset of the disciples would not have been altogether different from most people of the day.  Though there were different ideas as to what the messiah would do, and the actions he would take, it seems to be an almost universally held notion that the messiah would free Israel from its subjugators.  Yes, messianic expectations were certainly Israel-centric.  Naturally, the course of history, and Israel’s own defining narrative, suggested that the route to be taken from under oppression would involve some type of dramatic calamity befalling an oppressor. 

Even after Jesus’ crucifixion and Resurrection, we get a glimpse of what they believed His Messianic purposes to have been, when they ask, “Lord, is this the time when You are restoring the kingdom to Israel?” (Acts 1:6b).  It is with all of this in mind that we can understand what follows, when “after turning and looking at His disciples, He rebuked Peter and said, ‘Get behind Me, Satan.  You are not setting your mind on God’s interests, but on man’s’.” (8:33)  Jesus’ disciples were focused on what God was going to do for Israel.  Jesus was focused on what was going to be done by God, through Him, for all peoples.