While what Jesus says in Matthew 16:23-28 is crucial and valuable, what has my attention right now is when Jesus says it. Let me explain …
At the time of Matthew 16, the disciples have been with Jesus for about two years. When Jesus first met them, He did not call them with what He says in verse 24, ““If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me.”
Instead, His first invitation was ‘Come and see (John 1:39).” And so Peter and Andrew, James and John spent about a year with Jesus. Later on, Jesus called these four to be fishers of men (Matthew 4:18-22), and then He chosen them as His disciple or apostles (Luke 6:12-16). The key point is this: the growth of being a disciple of Jesus doesn’t happen all at once. So when Jesus calls for the commitment that He does in Matthew 16:24, it’s because He has intentionally prepared these men for this.
I was recently asked about Matthew 16:24, “So if we’re witnessing to someone, and they may not be a believer, should we tell them about this? That they need to die to themselves daily, take up their cross to follow Jesus?” Which is a great question. What a person needs at the start is a clear introduction to Jesus. As they believe in Jesus and grow in Jesus, then comes this message of daily commitment.
There’s another aspect to the timing of Jesus’ words. In verse 13, Jesus privately inquired of the disciples what other people were saying about the Son of Man. Then Jesus asks of their personal belief in verse 15. It’s here that Peter makes his crucial statement of faith, “You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God!”
It was only after this clear statement of faith that Jesus for the first time reveals that He must be crucified and resurrected (v. 21). Peter begins to rebuke Jesus, saying that such will never happen to Jesus (v. 22). Jesus instantly rejects this, not just from Peter, but from Satan. And this leads to what Jesus teaches the disciples in v. 23-28: to follow Jesus is a daily commitment to His interests and not your own. Or in the words of what Jesus will pray before the cross, “yet not my will, but Yours [God] be done (Luke 22:42).”
I’ll take a look at what Jesus says in Matthew 16:23-28 in another post – both the risks and rewards of following Him. But for this, I want us to focus on the timing of what Jesus is doing with His disciples. He is growing them, step by step. He intentionally prepares them to increase their love and commitment to Him, even as that means laying aside their personal dreams. He doesn’t do this all at once, but He most certainly does this.
And what of you? Can you see how Jesus has been working in your life? How He has invited you to come and see Him, get to know Him? How He has called and chosen you for salvation and service? How He invites you to increase your love and commitment to Him? Take comfort that Jesus asks exactly of you for what He has prepared you. He will not overwhelm you, but He will grow you to be more like Him.
Discussion Questions:
- What is one thing you learned about Jesus?
- How helpful is it to understand that Jesus grows His disciples in stages and not all at once?
- What is an example from your own life of how Jesus has grown you in your relationship with Him?
- What do you think is the ultimate goal Jesus has for your growth as you follow Him?