18 And it came to pass, as he was praying apart, the disciples
were with him: and he asked them, saying, Who do the multitudes
say that I am? 19 And they answering said, John the Baptist; but
others _say_, Elijah; and others, that one of the old prophets is
risen again. 20 And he said unto them, But who say ye that I am?
And Peter answering said, The Christ of God. 21 But he charged
them, and commanded _them_ to tell this to no man; 22 saying, The
Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected of the elders
and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and the third day be
raised up. 23 And he said unto all, If any man would come after me
let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.
24 for whosoever would save his life shall lose it; but whosoever
shall lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it. 25 For
what is a man profited, if he gain the whole world, and lose or
forfeit his own self? 26 For whosoever shall be ashamed of me and
of my words, of him shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he
cometh in his own glory, and _the glory_ of the Father, and of the
holy angels. 27 But I tell you of a truth, There are some of them
that stand here, who shall in no wise taste of death, till they
see the kingdom of God.
The first clear prediction of his death was made by Jesus directly after
he had heard the famous confession of Peter. The latter was occasioned by
a question Jesus himself had asked, “Who do the multitudes say that I am?”
The answer is exactly that given by multitudes in modern days, “And they
answering said, John the Baptist; but others say, Elijah; and others, that
one of the old prophets is risen again;” that is to say, a reformer, a
great preacher, a messenger of God. Such an estimate of himself never
satisfied our Lord and so he asked pointedly: “But who say ye that I am?
And Peter answering said, The Christ of God.” This is the great
affirmation concerning Christ which the world to-day needs to hear; but at
that time Jesus earnestly commanded his disciples to “tell this to no
man.” The message would then have been misunderstood and the disciples
themselves needed first to learn the truth concerning the death and
resurrection of Jesus. No man to-day is qualified to testify for Christ
who does not know the meaning of his atoning death and “the power of his
resurrection.”
Then Jesus told his disciples of the absolute necessity of his approaching
sufferings and assured them that on the third day he would be raised up.
This prediction of death must have astonished the disciples; quite as
surprising was the further statement that every follower of Christ must
likewise take up his cross daily, and the cross was not merely a symbol of
suffering and shame; it was the instrument of death. Every Christian,
therefore, must die daily to self and yield himself wholly to the service
of Christ. Such self-denial and sacrifice and obedience will result in the
only experience worthy of the name “life;” to refuse is to forfeit “life;”
and the loss will be eternal for those who are ashamed to follow the
Master now will be rejected by him when he returns “in his own glory, and
the glory of the Father, and of the holy angels.” Of this future glory of
the coming Christ, three of the disciples were to catch a foregleam only
eight days later on the Mount of Transfiguration, and Jesus therefore
adds, “There are some of them that stand here, who shall in no wise taste
of death, till they see the kingdom of God.”