Luke 9:18-20 (ESV)
[18] Now it happened that as he
was praying alone, the disciples were with him. And he asked them, “Who do the
crowds say that I am?” [19] And they answered, “John the Baptist. But others
say, Elijah, and others, that one of the prophets of old has risen.” [20] Then
he said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” And Peter answered, “The
Christ of God.”
It is interesting that some
people are suggesting that Jesus is one of the prophets of old that have risen
from the dead. Once Peter declares Jesus the Messiah (Christ) of God, he goes on
to explain to them that he will in fact raise from the dead. He further
instructs his disciples to tell no one who he is.
Luke 9:21-22 (ESV)
[21] And he strictly charged and
commanded them to tell this to no one, [22] saying, “The Son of Man must suffer
many things and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be
killed, and on the third day be raised.”
“Tell this to no one.” That’s not
a verse you will read in Evangelism class, but then Jesus had not yet died and
risen. Nor was it his time yet to do so. He knew that the resurrection would be
divisive. He knew that his identity would be divisive. The crowds are
celebrating him, but in the background the opposition is already growing. He knew
he would “be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes.” He knew their
opposition would lead to his death. He was fully prepared to go there, but not
yet.
With God everything is done in its
time, so Jesus confides in his disciples, but keeps the crowds in the dark as
to his identity and his coming death. He does, however, begin to prepare them.
In the next paragraph he will challenge them, “If anyone would come after me,
let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.” There will be
a cost to following Jesus just as there was a cost to him taking on the form of
man and coming to earth.
Everything in its time. Ecclesiastes
3:1 says, “there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven.” It is
the season that we struggle with. We want answers now. We want solutions now.
If Jesus is the Christ, then shouldn’t the disciples reveal that immediately? Yet
Jesus was never in a hurry. God is never in a hurry. We see through the lens of
time. He sees through the lens of eternity. And so we trust him to work his will
and purpose in his time even when we can’t comprehend how or why?
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