Get Behind Me Satan!

We just left Caesarea Phillipi where Peter proclaimed Jesus as the Messiah. Shortly after this, Jesus has a discussion to let His disciples know what MUST now happen. It is news the disciples are not quite ready for... though I can't imagine there ever being a good time to bring this up! We walk through this short passage in Matthew 16:21-23, Mark 8:31-33 and Luke 9:22 and then try to empathize with how the disciples would have received the news. We piece together what they had been taught from the law and the prophets. We backtrack some of the experiences with Jesus they were a witness to. We even imagined Jesus telling them flat-out what they should already know. The evidence was there... the heart wasn't ready.

This is so crucial for a Christian to grasp. We can judge in hindsight Peter's bold albeit misguided response, but we should really consider our similarities more than our differences. Honestly, in the moment, I'm right there WITH Peter. I can only apologize later to God for what I thought also. I can't imagine what it must have felt like when Jesus turned to Peter and said sharply: "Get behind me Satan!". Still, I can't count the number of times that that should have happened to me! It's not luck on my part that it has not happened, it's sheer mercy. I'm not sure how I could handle it.

Notes for Get Behind Me Satan

Episode link:
https://www.rabbitholesandmeditations.com/get-behind-me-satan/