Authority Comes from Identity
Mark 8:22-30
Good morning.
When I was in my early twenties, I often ate lunch at a Hamburger restaurant in San Francisco, near my work.
One day, the owner of the restaurant was arguing with me about something and the owner said, he would give me his restaurant if he was wrong; and the next day, he discovered I was right.
My boss at the time, found out about the wager as we went to the restaurant that day for lunch. As we walked into the place, my boss went behind the bar and fixed himself a drink.
When the owner of the restaurant saw my boss behind the bar, he asked him what he thought he was doing. My boss replied, “Well, you lost the bet to Rich and now he owns this restaurant”
My boss should have had every right to make himself at home at that restaurant, because of his relationship to me; and my new found authority as the new owner of the restaurant.
A person’s authority comes from their identity; however, to make a long story short, the man did not honor his bet with me and I never did own that restaurant.
Please open your Bibles to Mark 8 as we continue in that study
Last week, in the Gospel of Mark, we learned about the Pharisees demanding a sign from Jesus, to prove Himself.
Then Jesus, the King of heaven, the Messiah, who came from the Father, sailed away and left the Pharisees on the shore!
Then Jesus warned the Disciples with a metaphor of leaven to beware of the sin of unbelief of the Pharisees.
As Christ followers, we must also beware of the leaven of unbelief; it can rot away our faith and it can even prevent us from having saving faith that leads to everlasting life.
Today we will learn two things that reveal Jesus’ true identity.
I. A gradual healing.
Read Mark 8:22-26
The miracle of healing this blind man, like the healing of the deaf man in Mark 7, is not mentioned in the other Gospels.
It is ironic that Jesus healed a deaf man in Mark 7 and a blind man here, considering what Jesus had just said to the Disciples.
Mark 8:17 "Why do you reason because you have no bread? Do you not yet perceive nor understand? Is your heart still hardened?
Mark 8:18 Having eyes, do you not see? And having ears, do you not hear? NKJV
These two miracles were also fulfillments of Messianic prophecies from the Old Testament prophet Isaiah that were written over 700 years before Jesus showed up in Bethlehem.
Isaiah 35:4 Say to those who are fearful-hearted, "Be strong, do not fear! Behold, your God will come with vengeance, with the recompense of God; He will come and save you."
Isaiah 35:5 Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped. NKJV
There are some similarities between the deaf man in Mark 7 and the blind man in Mark 8; but, there are also some differences with these healings, as well.
With both healings, acquaintances brought these men to Jesus.
This demonstrates our call to bring people to Jesus for healing.
With both healings, Jesus took the men away from the crowds.
Sometimes the Lord isolates us away from the crowd so that He can open our eyes and ears to Him.
But in the miracle of healing this blind man, Jesus actually took the man outside of the city, why?
Remember, Jesus encountered the man at the pool of Bethsaida; Bethsaida was the birthplace of Philip, Peter and Andrew and the town’s name in Hebrew means “house of the fisherman”.
Many miracles were done in Bethsaida; Jesus walked on the water near Bethsaida, Jesus healed this blind man in our passage this morning, and there was the feeding the 5,000.
But, Bethsaida was wiped off of the map shortly after Jesus ascended into Heaven, even though it existed 1,000 years before.
According to Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus began His public ministry near Bethsaida, and therefore the town had “seen a great light” as Isaiah predicted.
However, by the time Jesus left the area to make His final journey to Jerusalem, they did not believe in Him.
Luke 10:13, "Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes.
We are told in Matthew 13:58, “Now He did not do many mighty works there because of their unbelief.” NKJV
The Lord is all powerful and nothing we, or anyone else, or anything else, in all creation can do, can hinder the Lord.
The Lord is working all around us, all the time; but, there are those who do not have eyes to see His miracles because of their unbelief, and fail to recognize all that God does.
Warren Wiersbe said, “The unique thing about this miracle of healing is that it occurred gradually and not instantly.
The Gospels record the healing of at least seven blind men, and they show that our Lord used a variety of approaches.”
“Perhaps it was the atmosphere of unbelief in Bethsaida that hindered Him, or it may have been the spiritual condition of the man himself.” (Warren Wiersbe)
It is ironic that Jesus spit in this man’s eye to heal him.
The free dictionary says to spit in (one's) eye means to spitefully and deliberately insult or show contempt for someone; or to deliberately do something that upsets or annoys someone.
But, Jesus spits in the man’s eye, and his sight is slightly restored as the man sees outlines of shapes. It says in Mark 8:24, “he looked up and said, "I see men like trees, walking."
Then Jesus put “His hands on his eyes again”
David Guzik said, “This is the only “gradual” or “progressive” healing described in the ministry of Jesus. It is another example of the variety of healing methods Jesus used.”
Then his sight was fully restored and saw everyone clearly.
Again, it is ironic Jesus healed a blind man here in our passage, giving the Disciples an example of their own spiritual blindness.
We learned before that Jesus never healed the same way twice.
Sometimes Jesus’ healing was public, sometimes it was private, sometimes Jesus spoke a word from a distance; other times He would simply touch a person; and here He used His spit.
Jesus didn’t use just one method; which shows His power was not dependent on a method; but, on the sovereign power of God.
Re-Read Mark 8:26
There were different times that Jesus said to see to it that no one knows about healings and miracles; which seems so counter-productive for someone trying to grow a kingdom.
As we learned last week, Jesus knew what was in the heart of man and He also knew what would happen if the crowds heard about all the miracles.
Jesus knew that publicity over such miracles might hinder His mission and His message.
Jesus had told the man healed of leprosy not to tell anyone…
Mark 1:45 However, he went out and began to proclaim it freely, and to spread the matter, so that Jesus could no longer openly enter the city, but was outside in deserted places; and they came to Him from every direction. NKJV
Jesus’ mission was to seek and save the lost. (Luke 19:10)
The miracles Jesus performed came from concern and care for people; but, what people really need is salvation and forgiveness of sin.
Jesus did not want people focusing on the miracles; rather, Jesus wanted the people to focus on His real mission; He came to die on the cross and provide forgiveness of sin for the people.
Today, rather than chasing miracles, our focus should be to fulfill Jesus’ mission to offer salvation because of His sacrifice.
II. Who is Jesus?
Read Mark 8:27-28
Jesus arrived at Caesarea Philippi, a town about twenty five miles north of Bethsaida, near Mount Hermon.
Bibleplaces.com says, “Caesarea Philippi is the location of one of the largest springs feeding the Jordan River.
This abundant water supply has made the area very fertile and attractive for religious worship. Numerous temples were built in this city in the Hellenistic and Roman periods.”
There was also a temple for the worship of Caesar there.
Jesus asks the most important question in all history; and your answer to the question determines where you will spend eternity.
Many believe this was a purposeful move by Jesus to stop in an area that worshiped false gods and ask the Disciples a question that determines someone’s eternal destination.
Jesus was not seeking affirmation from the Disciples; He was instead, trying to make these Disciples reflect on all they had seen and been taught, to determine who Jesus really is.
Even the harshest skeptics cannot honestly claim Jesus never existed, because there are a tremendous amount of historical documents, proving a man from Nazareth named Jesus, existed.
Throughout history the Jewish religious leaders had the most to gain by denying Jesus’ existence; however, several early Jewish writings refer to Jesus as a real person whom they opposed.
The non-Christian, Jewish historian Flavius Josephus often wrote about Jesus the so-called Christ.
“At this time there was a man who was called Jesus. His conduct was good, and he was known to be virtuous. Many people from the Jews and other nations became his disciples.
Pilate condemned him to be crucified, and he died. And those who had become his disciples did not abandon his discipleship.
“They reported that he had appeared to them three days after his crucifixion and that he was alive. Accordingly, he was thought to be the Messiah.” (Flavius Josephus)
Jesus’ existence is widely accepted by scholars, even world historian Will Durant notes that no Jew or Gentile from the first-century, ever denied the existence of Jesus.
Roman Historians and officials, as well as other worldly sources, confirm Jesus truly existed.
There is way too much evidence to believe, Jesus never existed.
Here in this narrative, Jesus was no longer concerned with what the religious leaders and the political leaders thought; He wanted to ask what the common man believed about Him.
Again, Jesus’ mission statement in Luke 19:10, “The Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost." NKJV
Notice the Disciples respond by telling what people are saying they believed about Jesus; because the people had differing beliefs about who Jesus might have been.
The stories of Jesus’ sign and wonders, His healings and everything else He has done, were known everywhere, even though Jesus tried to keep the miracles a secret.
Because of His miracles, signs, and wonders, many people back then thought Jesus was one of the Old Testament prophets.
Some believed Jesus was John the Baptist, who was beheaded by Herod; who they also believed was back from the dead performing all of these signs and wonders.
Some believed Jesus was the prophet Elijah, fulfilling prophecy:
Malachi 4:5 Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet Before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD.
Malachi 4:6 And he will turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, And the hearts of the children to their fathers, Lest I come and strike the earth with a curse." NKJV
Elijah was a powerful prophet, and Jesus spoke powerfully, and performed miracles; so, He appeared to be a powerful prophet.
Some believe Jesus was the weeping prophet Jeremiah, because they had witnessed Jesus weep over His people because of their Spiritual condition.
The crowds believed Jesus was at very minimum, a prophet from God because He seemed to be a good man, with good teachings, who showed people love.
When Nicodemus came to Jesus secretly at night, he said,
John 3:2 "Rabbi, we know that You are a teacher come from God; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him." NKJV
Today, the popular opinion about Jesus is that He is a good teacher, a prophet, or a good man. More on that in a moment.
Again, remember what I said, “There is way too much evidence to simply say Jesus never existed”.
III. What say you?
Read Mark 8:29-30
Whether the people recognized it or not, Jesus is so much bigger than John the Baptist, or Elijah, or a prophet. He is more than miracle worker, healer, or some kind of circus act.
Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah and the question your eternity hinges on is what Jesus asked, “Who do you say that I am?”
Then in vs. 29, He looked right at them and asked, "But who do you say that I am?"
Today, Jesus looks right at you and asks you the same question, “But who do you say that I am?"
Some religions today teach that Jesus was not God incarnate; but, just a man or a prophet sent by God. Jews rejected the idea of Jesus being God. Judaism still says Jesus is not the Messiah.
Some religions teach that Jesus was a wise and enlightened man.
Some religions today teach that Jesus was Son of God, Word of God, but was God's first creation, like the Archangel Michael.
Some teach Jesus is the Son of God and Savior; but, He was originally a spirit being, like all humans used to be.
Some teach that Jesus was a Great teacher, faith-healer, the "incarnation of God's love.", but without deity.
Most of us have heard of the Liar, Lunatic, or Lord, argument.
In Mere Christianity, C.S. Lewis wrote about the foolishness of claiming Christ as nothing more than a good teacher.
A good moral teacher would never make the claims Jesus made, because if the claims He made about being Messiah, God come in the flesh were not true; then that was neither good nor moral.
C.S. Lewis said, “He would either be a lunatic—on the level with the man who says he is a poached egg—or else he would be the Devil of Hell.
“You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God, or else a madman or something worse.”
There are some points that we should note from this…
1. It is not enough to believe what others believe about Jesus.
2. Even history records time by the birth of Jesus Christ.
The term before Christ abbreviated BC which is how we label years before the birth of Christ.
The term anno Domini abbreviated AD is a Latin term which means "in the year of the Lord" which is how we label years since the birth of Christ. We don’t AM, for after Mohamed.
3. If a person rejects the person of Jesus Christ, they will spend an eternity apart from Him.
For those who claim to be followers of Christ…
4. If Jesus is Lord of your life (boss, master, owner), then it stands to reason that we would submit to Him.
1 Corinthians 6:19 Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own?
1 Corinthians 6:20 For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's.
Re-read Mark 8:29b
Peter does not hesitate at all, and calls Jesus, the Christ.
Christ in Greek is the word “Christos” which means "anointed" the Holy Messiah, the promised deliverer, God the Son.
Peter had witnessed Jesus fulfill the duties of Messiah and says, “You are the One Jesus who all of the prophets spoke of about; healing the broken hearted and setting the captives free.”
Just as the predictions of Messiah in the prophets; Jesus still offers to heal the broken hearted, He still proclaims liberty to the captives, and He still offers to free those who are bound to sin.
John 8:36 if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed.
Jesus ended with the charge to the Disciples, once again, to not reveal this to the public; for His time to die had not yet come.
IV. Practical Application.
I started with the true story of when the owner of the restaurant I used to go to, bet me his restaurant and he was wrong
My boss at the time, found out about the wager as we went to the restaurant the next day for lunch. As we walked into the place, my boss went behind the bar and fixed himself a drink.
My boss told the owner of that restaurant, “Well, you lost the bet to Rich and now he owns this restaurant”
In our passage today, Jesus asked the Disciples who people thought He was; and who they thought He was.
Mark 1:22 And they were astonished at His teaching, for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.
Jesus knows who He is and He spoke as One with all authority.
Colossians 1:16 For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him. NKJV
Jesus said in Matthew 28:18 "All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.” NKJV
Even though the authority described in Matthew 28 was given to Jesus; He in turn, told us to go into the world, with His authority, to make disciples.
Biblically, the Lord has given parents authority over their children, kings and governors’ authority over their subjects, and leaders, authority over the church, as His under shepherds.
Because of who we are in Christ, we also have certain authority; because a person’s authority comes from their identity.
Since we have been bought by the precious blood of Christ, we have a new identity as a child of the Most High God!
So as a Christian, under the authority of Jesus Christ we have other privileges because of His authority.
1. We have the right to be adopted and become His Children.
John 1:12 as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name.
2. We can approach the Holy throne of God for our needs.
Hebrews 4:16 Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need. NKJV
3. We have authority to go to heaven to be with Jesus.
John 14:3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also. NKJV
4. We have the right to be clothed with armor, in order to be victorious during spiritual warfare.
Ephesians 6:10 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.
Ephesians 6:11 Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. NKJV
5. We have authority to rightly interpret God’s Word.
2 Timothy 3:16 All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness,
2 Timothy 3:17 that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work. NKJV
6. We have authority to be ambassadors for Christ.
2 Corinthians 5:20 Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you on Christ's behalf, be reconciled to God. NKJV
Don’t ignore the call of Christ to bring others to Christ; there is no higher calling in this life.
We have been given all of this authority because of our new identity in Christ!
Jesus is the Messiah and the only way to heaven. Everyone someday, will give an account to Jesus for the question their eternity hinges on, “Who do you say that I am?"
