And he began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes and be killed, and after three days rise again… And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. But turning and seeing his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, “Get behind me, Satan! For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.” Mark 8:31-33
When Jesus spoke about “the things of God,” He was referring to what He had just said: that He must die and rise again. Satan did all that he could to prevent Jesus from going to the cross. He must have known that this would spell his ultimate defeat.
But what the world most needs from Jesus is that He should suffer, be rejected, be killed, and on the third day rise again—and this is what He has done! Why was this so important? Because, at the cross, Jesus made atonement for our sins. He bore the punishment that would have been ours. He made peace with God. He reconciled us to the Father.
This is the reason why Satan did everything in his power to prevent Jesus from going to the cross. He laid hold of the mind and heart of Peter and cried out through his voice, “This shall never happen to you!”
But despite all the opposition of Satan, and even of His own disciples, Jesus set His face to go to Jerusalem, and there He laid down His life for us. What the world needs most from Jesus is the atonement He made for our sins. And this He accomplished through His death and resurrection. He is the Christ. And He offers grace, mercy, forgiveness, and peace to all who will trust in Him.
What do you think you most need from Jesus?
