Lectionary #131Isaiah 50: 4c-9a
James 2: 14-18
Mark 8: 27-35
When a charismatic leader is trying to entice people to join his or her movement, there are promises of rewards, glory, and the gratifications of desires. In Mark’s Gospel, Jesus has been acclaimed as the Messiah by Peter, but then he begins to describe the suffering he must undergo. Peter is shocked by this, and tries to let Jesus know that this is not the way to recruit and keep followers. Jesus then lets his followers know what it means to be his disciple. It means self-sacrifice for the sake of the Kingdom, even to the point of losing one’s life.
This is the challenge that Jesus lays before us, this is the question he asks, do we wish to be his disciple and follow him? To follow him means giving up our self-centeredness and loving God with our whole heart and mind, and loving others unreservedly. It means sharing all that we are, our talents, our gifts, and our wealth, with those who are in need. And it means bearing with our own weaknesses, pains, personal crises and troubles, and living the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
Many people in our society today would not find this an attractive calling. They would be happy to accept the title “Christian,” and declare that they are a follower of Jesus, but continue to maintain their comfortable lives. We have seen though that many people can see through this rouse, and are turned off by the hypocrisy. Faith that is not lived is worthless, lifeless. We need to trust that God’s grace will give us the courage to really begin the gospel journey, give us the strength to pick up our individual cross’s and follow Jesus. The journey may be hard, with sacrifice called for along the way. But if we remain faithful to Jesus and his call, the journey will lead us to new life.
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