Day 8. The Shadow of the Cross
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"He then began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and after three days rise again." Mark 8:31
Peter had made a noble confession of his faith in Christ as the promised Messiah, and now Jesus tells him what that Messiah-ship meant, and how He was to fulfil His mission. It was not as the disciples expected. They were looking for His manifestation as an earthly king. But He tells them that the way to His throne — was through suffering, and by the cross!
It is to be noticed, that while the way He marked out lay through darkness and sorrow — at the end there would be glory, "and after three days rise again." Thus there was to be no failure in His mission.
Paul taught the believers in Christ: "We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God!" The tribulation was hard — but they would go through it; and beyond was the kingdom of Heaven!
In the Twenty-third Psalm there is a verse often quoted: "Yes, though I walk through the valley of the shadow." In these words there is a suggestion of gloom — but the writer is going through it; then comes "and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever!" So here the dying of the Saviour seemed to be failure; but the rising again meant glory, victory, and eternal blessedness. He was simply going through death — as the appointed way to His throne.
This quiet announcement by our Lord of what was in store for Him, reminds us of an element of sorrow in Christ's life from which we are mercifully spared. He knew before handevery inch of His path of woe. The shadow of His cross lay upon His soul through all His earthly years. We sometimes rashly say that we wish we could see our future; but really it is a most gracious provision of our own life — that we cannot see an hour before us. To know the future would only darken the present, and unfit us for duty. It is far better that it is hidden.
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