27.   And Jesus went forth, and his disciples, into the villages of Cæsarea Philippi: and on the way he asked his disciples, saying unto them, Who do men say that I am? 28   And they told him, saying, John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; but others, One of the prophets. 29   And he asked them, But who say ye that I am? Peter answereth and saith unto him, Thou art the Christ. 30   And he charged them that they should tell no man of him. 31   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. 32   And he spake the saying openly. And Peter took him, and began to rebuke him. 33   But he turning about, and seeing his disciples, rebuked Peter, and saith, Get thee behind me, Satan; for thou mindest not the things of God, but the things of men. 34   And he called unto him the multitude with his disciples, and said unto them, If any man would come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. 35   For whosoever would save his life shall lose it; and whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel's shall save it. 36   For what doth it profit a man, to gain the whole world, and forfeit his life? 37   For what should a man give in exchange for his life? 38   For whosoever shall be ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of man also shall be ashamed of him, when he cometh in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.

(For first 26 verses of this chapter, see the Notes.)

Verse 27. Did Jesus ask this question for his own information? Does much depend on what a man takes Jesus to be? (John 8:24; 1 John 5:1). Was Jesus more concerned for His own honor or the fate of human beings in this question?

Verse 28. Did the answer show that Jesus was held in very high respect among the people generally? Is it sufficient to hold Jesus in high esteem? As what must He be accepted?

Verse 29. What does Jesus now ask? Who replies? Did Peter often speak first? What did he answer this time? See Matt. 16:16-19 for the full confession, and what Jesus said to it.

Verse 30. Why were they not allowed to tell this openly? When did the time come for the open proclamation? Luke 24:49; Acts 2.

Verse 31. What new line of teaching did Jesus now take up? Had he ever told them that before? Matt. 16:21.

Verse 32. What did Peter actually dare to do? Had Jesus just previously said something to Peter that might have exalted and emboldened him? Matt. 16:17-19.

Verse 33. Was Jesus' rebuke severe? Whose interests was Peter considering--the

Verse 34. On what condition only can we "come after" Jesus? Read John 12:24-26. What did the cross come to mean to Christians after Jesus' death? Gal. 2:20; 5:24; 6:14.

Verse 35. How does a man "save his life" in this sense? If he does how will it end? How does a man "lose his life" for Jesus' sake and for the gospel's sake? What will the end of that be?

Verses 36, 37. Can any of us gain the whole world? If we could, would it pay us if thereby we lost our life? What other word for "life" is used in Luke 9:25? If a man loses his own self, does he not lose all else too?

Verse 38. What is it to be ashamed of Christ? What to be ashamed of His words? WIll there be special danger and temptation to one who [158] lives in the midst of an adulterous and sinful generation to be ashamed of Jesus? When He comes again will He have more glory than the world ever dreamed of (much less could offer)? But what attitude will He then take toward those who are now (in this day of His reproach and rejection among men) ashamed of Him? Can we not better afford for father and mother and all our loved ones and dear ones to be ashamed of us now, than for Jesus to be ashamed of us in that day?

THE FEEDING OF FOUR THOUSAND. (Mark 8:1-19).

      In the first ten verses of our present chapter (Mark 8) is the record of a miracle very similar to that recently studied "feeding of five thousand." It was not far from the same locality, on the eastern side of the lake of Galilee. Verses 2, 3, show Jesus' tender concern for the people's bodily needs. (Note the prominent place in "the Lord's Prayer" of the petition for daily bread). Verse 4, the disciples' perplexity. How slow of heart to understand and believe, even after the earlier demonstration when Jesus fed 5,000! Again He asked for what they had on hand--seven loaves, this time, and a few small fishes--and follows the same procedure, seven baskets of remnants of the food being taken up. Again, note the haste with which He sends the people away, and departs to the other side. In only these two instances Jesus is known to have provided food for the populace. The context shows in both cases how delicate and risky a matter it was. (See John 6, esp. vs. 14, 15, 26, 27). One advantage of the church's average poverty (1 Cor. 26, etc.,) is that this danger of loaf-and-fish followers is to a great extent averted. The dispensing of material gifts on part of God's people require much wisdom and discriminative care. Yet there are religious teachers many in these days who opine that this is the church's business--to provide earthly advantages and supplies for the world in general!

THE PHARISEES ASK FOR A SIGN, (Mark 8:11-13).

      Matthew (16:1-4) who gives us a fuller account of this episode, tells us that both the Pharisees and the Sadducees joined in this request for "a sign from heaven." What they needed was not another sign, but eyes to see, ears to hear, and a right heart. (John 7:17). Jesus answered them that it was strange that they could discern from the face of the sky what the weather would be, and yet with the prophets in their hands, were too blind to discern the times in which they were living (namely that those were days of Messianic fulfillment). (Comp. Acts 13:27). But Mark preserves for us the fact that Jesus "sighed deeply" over the matter. Who knows how much He suffered in enduring the gainsaying of sinners? (Heb. 12:3).

THE DISCIPLES FORGET TO TAKE BREAD. (Mark 8:14-26).

      It was incidental that Jesus warned them against the leaven of the Pharisees, of the Sadducees (Matt. 16:6) and of Herod, at a time when they had neglected to provide bread; or else He was making that the occasion of a lesson. Was it in His mind now that they should have to bake bread for themselves and was He thinking about where suitable leaven could be obtained? Or was he objecting to all sorts of leaven? So the disciples seemed to think. How, after having witnessed the feeding of the 5,000 and after that the feeding of the 4,000 could they think that He was concerned for their bread-supply? "How is it that ye do not perceive that I spake not to you concerning bread? But beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees. Then understood they that he bade them not beware of the leaven of bread, but of the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees." (Matt. 16:11, 12).

      Leaven is a principle of impurity--fermentation, corruption, decay. Where any express significance is attached to it in scripture it is always used in a bad sense. The leaven of the Pharisees is Hypocrisy. (Luke 12:1). The leaven of Sadducees is materialism. (Acts 23:8). The leaven of Herod is worldliness. The Herodians were politicians, the court-party of that day, and the compromisers between state and religion. [159]

Source: Second Lord's Day Lesson of April. Lesson 2. April 14, 1918. Jesus Requires Confession and Loyalty