“Jesus strictly warned them not to tell this to anyone. And he said, ‘The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life.’” (Luke 9:21–22, NIV84)
So, have you ever thought you finally figured God out? I mean, has He done something so clearly in your life that you were certain what the next step should be? Well if that’s the case, these two short verses are for you (me)! Jesus had just asked the most profound question that can be asked in this life: “Who do you say that I am?” Peter, yes Peter, got the answer right and declared that Jesus was the long-awaited Messiah whom God promised He would send. After that amazing proclamation you might have expected Jesus to send the disciples out again two by two to spread the news. But He did just the opposite. He “strictly warned them not to tell this to anyone.” Peter had to be saying to himself, “Lord, You have to be kidding! I finally get one right and you want me to be quiet about it?” (LOL!) But more seriously, why not spread the news? Why not shout it from the mountaintops?
Because Jesus first needed to suffer, die and rise again before the message could be proclaimed. Wait one minute. Did you catch that? Jesus told them ahead of time that He would suffer, die and rise again. So why were they caught by surprise on Good Friday? Probably the same reason we seem to be caught by surprise when God acts in our lives just like He says He will (in the Bible). We never have enough “sight” to see it all. We live with the eyes of faith trusting that we have a God who sees it all. But back to this text. Jesus clearly told His disciples that the Messiah came as a sacrificial Messiah (read Isaiah 53). He came to redeem humanity, and until that was accomplished, the entire truth about Him could not be revealed. The work of redemption needed to take place first.
Well, that work of redemption has taken place and there is no reason for us to be silent. We can and are called to share the good news. We can shout it from the mountaintops if we would like. Jesus has suffered, died and risen from the dead. Our Savior is not a dead prophet but a living Lord!
Peace!
Pastor Tom
www.firmlyrooted.church