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Excite

Passage: Mark 8:22-38

Title: Who is Jesus?

Theme: What our response to this question really means.

In life we face many decisions from simple ones like what to wear to important ones like what job will we do, where will we live?

The most important question we all must respond to is:

Who is Jesus?

On Sunday we will see that hour response to this question is life changing and demands so much that simple verbal assent that Jesus is our Messiah.

As you prepare of Sunday read through the passage and ask yourself these questions:

• What do the people and society around me say and think about who Jesus is? Does this influence me?
• Who do I say Jesus is?
• As I read verses 35-38 what challenges do I see for my life?

Engage

The parallels between Mark 8:22-26 and Mark 8:27-30.

8:22 – Circumstances – 8:27

• They come to a village and something happens.

8:26 – Injunction to Silence – 8:30

• The Same basic warning

8:23-24 – Partial Sight and Understanding – 8:28

• In both the picture isn’t clear it doesn’t make sense

8:25 – Full Sight and Understanding – 8:29

• Through the work of Jesus came sight & understanding

 

Who is Jesus?

Jesus asked:
“Who do people say I am?”
“Who do you say I am?”

This is the most important question ever asked

Our response to it, is the most important we will ever make

Who is Jesus?
Our response – Our all

• Minds fixed on the things of God

 

• Deny self

 

• Take up our cross

 

• Follow Jesus

 

• Give our lives

 

• Realise what’s at stake

 

• Not be ashamed of Jesus

 

Extend

As we seek to apply this passage to our lives we find many questions for us to consider. Please read and consider whats above (Excite and Engage) first.

In this study you will seek to unpack what it look likes for you as someone who believes that Jesus is the ‘Messiah’ to give your all to him.

Think about the challenge of what CS Lewis says in his sermon “A Slip on the tongue” and what it is saying to you about how much of yourself you have given over to Jesus.
“This is my endlessly recurrent temptation: to go down to that Sea (I think St. John of the Cross called God a sea) and there neither dive nor swim nor float, but only dabble and splash, careful not to get out of my depth and holding on to the lifeline which connects me with my things temporal.”

vs31-33

1. How do I fix my mind on the things of God and how do the people around me help?

2. Jesus’ rebuke to Peter of “Get behind me Satan.” was because Peter’s mind was on the things of men. As you think about your mind and your focus, how seriously do to take that rebuke of Jesus?

3. Jesus tells us that we are to deny ourselves, thinking about our pride and ego, how does this challenge you?

4. In telling us to take up our cross Jesus is talking about death. As we follow Jesus this is a reminder of the sacrifice required, it also points us to the radical change following Jesus brings to our lives. This reminds us on the passages in which Paul spoke of is dying to our old self, what has this meant to your life?

vs35-38

5. This section really hits home about what’s at stake when it come to giving our all to Jesus, how does this challenge you?

6.The sad reality of the world we live in is that it is actively encouraging Christians to be ashamed of Jesus, calling the teachings of Jesus and the Bible wrong and even evil. This makes it hard for us to stand up for our faith and share the good news of Jesus. With the influence and pressure to compromise upon us we need to examine our lives carefully for attitudes, behaviours and sins that are actually saying I’m ashamed of Jesus.

How can we help other in our Christian community to not be ashamed of Jesus?

Vision

As you finish think through how the passage can help you to become more like Jesus and introduce others to him.