The Life of Christian Discipleship – Mark 8:34-38 SAN-E8 John Piper – Desiring God Ministries – "Look at the Book" Series on Mark 8:34-38.

COMMAND: Whoever desires to come after Me, LET him

deny – himself, and

take up – his cross, and

follow – Me.

Four REASONS (arguments, incentives, foundations) for the command:

FOR whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel's will save it.

FOR what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?

FOR what will a man give in exchange for his soul?

FOR whoever is ashamed of Me and My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him the Son of Man also will be ashamed when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels.

Don't miss from the structure itself how massively significant the four "FOR" statements are. Don't EVER think that Jesus said, "Just do it – I told you to come after Me; I told you to follow me; I told you to deny yourself—don't ask for reasons, don't ask for motives—just do it!" Jesus NEVER talks that way. Look at all these: "do it for this reason... do it for this reason... etc." This is amazing. Jesus does not want to obey just because He has authority. He wants us to see His REASONS that He asks you to do things and commands that you do things.

PART ONE: THE COMMAND

"Whoever desires to come after (follow) me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me."

"Come after" is the same word in Greek as the "follow" me at the end of the verse. Possibly it is translated this way so that it does not sound as redundant, which it is. So the statement actually is:

If anyone would follow me, let him do three things: 1. Deny himself 2. Take up his cross 3. Follow Me

"If anyone would follow me, let him follow me!" But what that shows you is that the two in the middle are really where the emphasis falls. If anyone will follow Me, then follow Me this way... follow Me with self denial; follow Me with taking up your cross—cross-bearing.

Take up his cross

What do we know about the cross in the New Testament? It was a horrible instrument of execution. It was done by the Romans; the Jews could not do it. They nailed you to a cross and they let you hang there until you suffocated or if you didn't they came and broke your legs. It was a horrible way to die. And Jesus says, "you want to be My disciple? Then pick up your cross, because that is what I'm going to do. I am going to bear a cross and die, so you take up your cross." So what does this mean? Here are some implications of carrying a cross on my shoulder: it would mean:

Official opposition – it was not a mob violence. It was something done in an official capacity. This was execution of a criminal. So be ready to be treated like a criminal, and dealt official opposition.

Utterly shameful – stripped naked, beaten, hung up for everybody to see.

Unspeakable suffering – no happy ending on earth—

Death – you die.

Jesus is asking, "Are you willing to endure official opposition? Are you willing to be shamed? Are you willing to suffer? And are you willing to die for Me?" Notice in verse 35 it is "for My sake and the gospel's"—this is not random suffering. "Are you willing to endure that for Me?" That is what He is saying. "If you are, then you can be My disciple. If you are just playing games with me, if you are not willing to die, and suffer, and be shamed, and be opposed, WITH ME, then you can go follow somebody else."

Deny himself

What is that? Well, the "self" does not like these four things. The Self says "NO WAY – I don't want to be opposed, I don't like being shamed, I do not like suffering, and I don't want to die! So, I'm out of here!

Therefore, self-denial means saying no to your self – "I know you don't like these things, but I am saying no to you. Did you hear that? I am saying 'no' to you, self." Who is the "I"? That is a "self".

Therefore clearly implied in my denying myself, is that there is two "selves". One of them is to be denied—the OLD self that says, "I want to live opposition free, shame free, suffering free, death free, thank you very much, I'm out of here"—THAT old self DIES. When the cross goes on the back of that old self it is OVER.

And so, the NEW self—the redeemed self, says, "I want Jesus, more than I want to be freed from oppostion; and I want Jesus more than I want a shame-free life, and more than I want to be free from suffering, and more than I want to be free from death.

There is an "I" here which leads us to this paradox, written by St. Augustine: "If you love your soul, there is danger of its being destroyed. Therefore you may not love it, since you do not want it to be destroyed. But in not wanting it to be destroyed you love it."

This is the paradox of self-denial. And what it means is, there are two "selves". The old self is put to death and is denied; but there is a new self, and that new self does choose life – it chooses Christ, it chooses gospel, it chooses eternity, it chooses salvation. The statement of verse 35 shows us that Jesus is clearly appealing to our desire to save our lives. So this new "I" wants life just as much as the old "I". But this "I" sees life through suffering with Jesus, and the old sees it through escaping from Jesus.

Therefore there is no ultimate self-denial because we are opting in Jesus' way to save our lives.

PART TWO: THE FIRST MOTIVATION (POWER) FOR OBEDIENCE TO THE COMMAND

"For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel's will save it."

1. Save → (leads to) lose 2. Lose → (leads to) save

What does this first "save" mean?

"whoever would save his life will lose it"... "lose it": that's what we want to avoid, right? We don't want to lose our lives? That is the way Jesus is arguing—you don't want to lose your life, so don't "save" it. Don't save it so you won't lose it!. So what does "save" mean here? It means:

I'm going to avoid opposition

I'm going to avoid shame

I'm going to avoid suffering

I'm going to avoid dying

To state it in its opposites,

I'm going to pursue acceptance, not opposition

I'm going to pursue glory, not shame "SAVE"

I'm going to pursue comfort, not suffering

I'm going to pursue safety, not death. "Saving" our life means being accepted, gaining earthly glory, avoiding all suffering and having as much comfort as you can, and being as safe as you can, and not putting yourself in any risk – that is "saving your life". RESULT? LOSE it – meaning, forever. Compare this parallel statement of Jesus found in John 12:25:

"Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life – it looks like you hate it because you are enduring so much – in this world will keep it (be saved) for eternal life".

So when Jesus said (in Mark), "whoever would save his life = whoever loves his life in this world, will lose it", it means FOREVER. So don't lose it, therefore don't "save" it.

The second phrase: lose to save. What does "losing" here mean?

Surely, this "losing" is this self-denial (v.34) and this cross (v.34). To lose life means:

Accept opposition

Accept shame

Accept suffering

Accept death

When the old self says "No, I don't want to be opposed, suffer, be shamed and die", then the new self says, "I DENY YOU. You do not get your way. I want to be SAVED! And therefore I am not going to let you say no to losses. I will embrace losses." Whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel's will save it.

So this "losing" here is this self denial and this cross-bearing. And notice: it is not whimsical or "willy-nilly". You do not go out looking for suffering. You don't embrace opposition, shame and suffering for nothing. It is FOR CHRIST'S SAKE, for the gospel's sake. "Whoever is ashamed OF ME and of MY WORDS..." in verse 38 is the same as "My sake and the gospel's" in verse 35.

SO, the losing here is the embrace of the opposition, shame, suffering and death, and the saving here is FOREVER – this is ETERNAL LIFE. So if you decide you are going to devote your life to being accepted by people, getting all the earthly glory as you can, having as much comfort as you can, being as safe as you can, you will not have eternal life. BUT if for Christ's sake – not your own whimsical ideas of what it involves – for Christ's sake you embrace the cross, then you will save yourself forever. You LOVE Christ and His gospel so much that you are willing to do it.

Clearly then you can see that there is no such thing as ultimate self-denial. There IS an old self – the self that will not embrace the opposition, shame, suffering and death – the self that must embrace acceptance, glory, comfort and safety. THAT old self MUST be DENIED. But there is a self, there is a "you" that is saying "NO" to this old self. And that self will be saved and Jesus wants it to be saved. It is an incentive that preachers have used for ever since the beginning.

"And with many other words he bore witness and continued to exhort them, saying, "Save yourselves from this crooked generation." – Acts 2:40.

It would be folly to say that self-denial here means you don't want to be saved. You want to deny the self that thinks that it can only seek salvation through acceptance, glory, comfort and safety. But you know better. Through opposition, shame, suffering and death, for Jesus' sake and for the gospel's, you will have eternal life. THAT self will not be denied. It will have its ETERNAL JOY in God's presence FOREVER.

PART THREE: THE 2ND MOTIVATION (POWER) FOR OBEDIENCE TO THE COMMAND

"For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul? (verses 36).

LOVING Jesus and the gospel was the first motivation for embracing the cross and denying the old self. Now we have a 2nd "FOR" in verse 36. It supports something in verse 35.

This verse is a rhetorical question that does not have an answer. The author expect you to supply the answer. And in supplying the answer, you turn the question into a statement of fact. So what would be the statement of fact here? There is no profit in gaining all the money in the world, to the end of the world. But we can ADD to this statement because of the context, that there is no profit in gaining the capacity for:

all the honor (opposite of shame)

all the approval (opposite of opposition)

all the comfort (opposite of suffering)

all the safety (opposite of death) that the world can offer, unto the end of the world.

There is NO profit. WHY? Because it doesn't work! You can't buy a soul out of hell! You forfeit your soul when you gain the world! So you may be trying to preserve your life and preserve your soul, and Jesus says, "No, you forfeit your soul even though you gain the whole world, because you can't buy a soul out of hell."

So what is this an argument for in verse 35? I think it is an argument for "whoever would save his life will lose it". Because trying to gain all this profit – money, honor, approval, comfort, safety – trying to gain all that is like "saving your life" (1st phrase v. 35). You will lose your life trying to save it. NOW in verse 36 we see the reason. No matter how much honor, no matter how much approval, comfort, safety and money you gain by trying to save your life, it doesn't work. You forfeit your soul. You lose it. So verse 36 is a ground for the statement in verse 35 that trying to save your life will lose it.

So let's sum it up now and see what we have seen (so far): [start at the bottom and work toward the top]

There is ZERO profit in gaining the world in the end because you can't save your soul, you can't buy it, you can't ransom it no matter how much money you have.

THEREFORE he who tries to save his life that way is going to lose it, lose his soul; and positively, by implication, If you are willing to lose all that profit by taking up your cross, you are going to SAVE your soul OUT OF LOVE for the gospel and love for Jesus.

THEREFORE take up your cross.

THEREFORE FOLLOW ME.

PART FOUR: THE 3rd and 4th MOTIVATIONS (POWER) FOR OBEDIENCE TO THE COMMAND

For what can a man give in return for his soul? For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him will the Son of Man also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels. (verses 37-38).

Prayer: "Father, this is a weighty, convicting, provocative, frightening, glorious, description of what it means to follow Jesus. And I pray that we would not only understand it with our minds, as we follow the sequence of the argument, but that it would make us radically devoted to Jesus more than comfort, and safety, and the approval and honour of men. In Jesus' name."

Review:

the OLD self loves approval, honor, comfort and safety more than Jesus, more than the gospel.

The NEW self that denies the old self loves Jesus and the gospel EVEN IF it costs him his life.

So don't ever think there is such a thing as ultimate self-denial. Meaning that the new self must leave Jesus and go to hell. He is arguing on the basis of the new self desire to be saved.

You don't want to lose your life. So lose it this way—embracing opposition, shame, suffering and death, and not that way—seeking approval, honor, comfort and safety.

You DO want to save it. So save it this way— embracing opposition, shame, suffering and death, and not that way—approval and honor of men, comfort and safety.

That is the argument out of verse 35, out of superior LOVE for Jesus and the gospel.

Because what does it profit... (v.36). No amount of money, no amount of approval, no amount of honor, no amount of comfort and safety – no amount of money that buys all that can every be given in return for the soul – it cannot be bought out of hell. So you devote all your energy to gaining the world, you LOSE.

For what can a man give in return for his soul?

This is another rhetorical question, that when turned around into a statement is even more radical than the previous one. WHY? Because this one says NOTHING – what can a man give in exchange for his soul? The answer is NOTHING. So you might have the whole world and then say "Well, I'll get the universe." No, nothing can be given in return for the soul.

And now the last argument

For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him will the Son of Man also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels.

What does it mean to be ashamed of somebody? It means that you don't want to be identified with them or their words because it will make you look foolish or stupid or weak or "uncool" – whatever negative opinion the world has of Jesus and His words. You do not want people to view you that way, so you prefer THIS – approval, glory, comfort, safety—to Jesus and His words. Which is the OPPOSITE of "for My sake and the gospel's" losing your life. So you see that

"me" (v.38) = "My sake" (v.35) and

"My words" (v.38) = "the gospel" (v. 35).

You have already declared yourself, if you are the NEW self, "I love JESUS and His gospel MORE than I love approval, and honor and comfort and safety. But HERE (in verse 38) if you say, "I am ashamed of Jesus and His words" you mean that you love approval, honor, comfort and safety more than I love Jesus. You are saying, "I am going to avoid being identified with Him."

Here is what makes that so unbelievably horrible: you are doing it in order to get the approval of NOT of wise and godly people, but of adulterous and sinful people. You are doing it in order to get the approval of adulterous and sinful people.

Do you see how horrific Jesus is painting this? If you are ashamed of Jesus in order to get the approval of the world—"this generation"—you should realize this generation is adulterous. Meaning that they love the world more

than they love the true husband Jesus, and they are adulterous in their spirits and they are sinful. And THAT is the people you want the approval of? And you are going to reject the glory of God at the end?

If you are ashamed of Him when He comes, then when He comes with the glory of His Father and the holy angels, He is going to be ashamed of you and you're going to miss out on His glory. And you may have ALL the world, and you may have ALL the approval that you got by being ashamed of Him HERE.

SUMMARY OF THE ARGUMENT OF MARK 8:34-38

Verse 38: Preferring the approval and reward of adulterers and sinners (this whole unbelieving generation) more than you prefer the friendship and approval and affirmation of Jesus results in Jesus' final rejection and your soul perishing in the end. This is Jesus' "bottom line". You want to go to hell, you want to be rejected by Jesus, you want to have not any participation in the glory of God, then be ashamed of Jesus here by loving the approval of an adulterous generation more than you want Jesus' approval.

Verse 37: THEREFORE absolutely nothing – no amount of approval or reward in this world – can or will be accepted as a payment to buy the soul out of hell.

Verse 36: THEREFORE, there is no profit WHAT SO EVER, at all, in gaining the whole world (with all its approval, and honor and comfort and safety), since not even owning the whole world can prevent the loss of the soul.

Verse 35: THEREFORE, all your effort to save your soul by pursuing human approval and honor and comfort and safety will only result in losing your soul, while accepting the cross of opposition and shame and suffering and death, because you love Jesus and His gospel, will save your soul forever. Loving Jesus, being attached to Jesus, following Jesus, preferring Jesus and His gospel over all the world—THAT is what saves the soul.

Verse 34: THEREFORE, take up the cross of opposition and shame and suffering and death, and deny the old self that lives off the approval of others, and human honor, and comfort and safety, and in your new self—the self that loves Jesus more than life—FOLLOW HIM.

OH LORD GOD, WORK THAT IN US, I PRAY. ©Desiring God Foundation Website: www.desiringgod.org Titles and Links to the four video lessons of "Look in the Book" on Mark 8:34-38: Lesson One: "What does it mean to take up your cross?" Lesson Two: "Save your life by losing it" Lesson Three: "You can't buy a soul out of hell" Lesson Four: "Being ashamed of Jesus is deadly" This lesson has been transcribed for the purpose of translating the teaching into the Chichewa language for the Chichewa speaking Christians in Malawi, Africa. By:

Mulungu ndi Mphunzitsi Wanga Website: Chichewa-bible-teachings.com

Email: africateacher2mw@gmail.com English – Pastor Frank – 0884-55-93-55

Chichewa – Pastor Steve Billiat - 0995-24-69-98 or 0880-95-04-40 Chichewa – Patrick Chimiza – 0999-10-98-69 or 0885-10-87-96