Three Big Questions
Read Mark 8:27-33
“But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?” Peter answered, “You are the Messiah.” –Mark 8:29
In their book Three Big Questions, authors Kara Powell and Brad Griffin suggest that there are three “eternal questions” that we return to again and again in each stage of our lives. There are:
Who am I? (Identity)
Where do I fit? (Belonging)
What difference do I make? (Purpose)
With each new season or transition of life, one or more of these questions will rise to the surface. Interestingly enough, we can see at least two of these questions (Identity & Purpose) in today’s story from Mark.
After a particularly intense season of ministry, Jesus withdrew with his disciples to the villages around Caesarea Philippi (a region about thirty miles north of the Sea of Galilee). Because this was an area predominantly populated by Gentiles, Jesus hoped to find some respite from the crowds. Along the way, Jesus asked his disciples a question of identity: Who do people say that I am?
The disciples responded with the same report that Herod had received a few chapters before when he asked about Jesus (Mark 6:14-15): Some people say you’re Elijah, some say John the Baptist, others say you are a prophet. But then Jesus asked them a more pointed question: Who do you say that I am? It’s one thing to rely on the answers that others give; it’s another to draw your own conclusions. In a moment of perfect clarity, Peter declared: “You are the Messiah.”
Jesus affirmed Peter’s answer, but then he warned the disciples not to tell anyone. He went on to explain that when he arrived in Jerusalem, he would be rejected by the leaders. In fact, they would have him killed, and he would rise again on the third day. Peter stopped listening when he heard the words “rejected” and “killed.” Pulling Jesus aside, he began to rebuke him—this wasn’t at all what he meant when he said Jesus was the Messiah! The Messiah was supposed to be a conquering king who would restore the kingdom of Israel, not be crucified as a criminal! Surely Jesus had the wrong plan in mind!
Peter rightly understood Jesus’ identity. But he still had no clue about Jesus’ divine purpose. He did not understand that God’s plan was for Jesus to lay down his life. Even when Jesus tried to explain it to his disciples, Peter couldn’t see how such a sacrifice would bring about God’s kingdom.
The thing about those three big questions is that they all hang together. If you’re missing the answer to one of them, the others don’t make sense, either. We must each answer these questions for ourselves. Jesus wouldn’t allow the disciples to rely on the answers that the crowds gave—the disciples had to answer for themselves. And in the same way, Jesus could not let his purpose be defined by others’ expectations, not even those of his closest friends. The question of purpose was his alone to answer.
So take a few moments today to sit with the questions of identity, belonging, and purpose. How would you answer those questions for Jesus? Who do you think he is? To whom did he belong? And what was the purpose of his life, death, and resurrection? And perhaps most importantly, how does the way you answer these questions impact your own sense of identity, belonging, and purpose? How does following Jesus change the way you find your own answers in life?
O God, I know that I am Your child. You have called me to be a disciple, and I belong to You. Help me to follow in the footsteps of Your Son, to learn from his example how to lay my life down for others. Bring clarity and meaning to my life, I pray. Amen.