Peter's Declaration About Jesus

Mark 8:27-38

September 8, 2021

I Ihave been re-viewing the theme presentations that Dr Tom Boomershine made for us at our Network of Biblical Storytellers festival of biblical telling this spring, and they are so good.

In #2, Tom tells us (among many things) about the life and times of the Jewish people, what they had grown up learning and expecting from the coming Messiah: a mighty, military king.

In #3, he talks about the tragedy and disaster of the Roman-Jewish War during the time the Gospel was composed and how that played out in Jesus' life and mission.

And in our closing worship, both he and Steve Bell, our visiting musical theologian, reflected on the way in which Jesus came into a setting of people trying to get him on side or reject and demonize him. Jesus is the one pointing to and living a totally different way - the way of self-giving peace.

This text is a moment of truth for Jesus, Peter, the disciples and the "crowd". Can you trust and follow a Way you have only had a glimpse of? What does denying yourself mean? What is your cross?

(Heads up: I left out the line "in this adulterous and sinful generation"; sorry! It's a good one)

Telling/Reading page included here

Linnea