NO CROSS –
JUST A KINGDOM
"Get thee behind me, Satan," Matt. 16:23
In turning from this consideration
of the men, to give attention to Peter's words uttered in the glory of the mount,
it is important to notice their condition at the time. Of Peter, Mark says, "He knew not what to answer; for they
became sore afraid," (Mark 9:6)
and Luke affirms "not knowing what
he said." (Luke 9:33) These
statements confirm the opinion that the whole speech was a blunder.
Luke's account alone makes
reference to the fact that the disciples had slept. It is probable that here,
as in the garden, they fell asleep while the Master was at prayer. Awakening,
and while yet in a half-dazed condition, they looked upon the marvelous scene
before them; remembering, as people waking suddenly so often first remember
matters but recently impressed upon the mind, the six days of estrangement
which had followed upon their shunning of the Cross. How changed the scene and
the Master. Jesus, Whose face had kept the marks of an infinite sorrow during
those days of silence, now stood in the midst of splendor such as they had
never beheld. His face shone with the brightness of the sun, and the seamless
robe, which, perhaps, love had woven for Him, was white and glistering, beyond
the glories of the snows of Hermon. How everything would rush back upon the
minds of the men. Peter would remember the rebuke that had fallen from his
Master's lips, "Get thee behind me,
Satan," (Matt. 16:23) and
then the cause of that rebuke, the fact that he had desired for his Master not a Cross, but a
kingdom. And now behold that loved One, just as Peter would happily
see Him, and desired to keep Him. In the mind of the waking man there would be
the contrast between this and that; between the splendor of the glory, and the
fact of converse with heaven's own inhabitants; and that strange announcement
of a week ago, concerning Jerusalem, and the chief priests' hatred, and the
culminating death. The outcome of this contrast was the speech of the man: "Lord, it is good for us to be
here"—not there, but here. Talk no more of the Cross, but stay here
upon the mount in glory. "If Thou
wilt, I will make here three tabernacles, one for Thee, and one for Moses, and
one for Elijah." (Matt. 17:4)
How strangely confused the mind of
the man was, is evident by this suggestion. Imagine making tabernacles for
Moses and Elijah, to say nothing of the Master. Had he said, Let us stay here
and make three tabernacles, one for Thee, and one for me, and one for James and
John, it would have had more of reason in it. What did Moses and Elijah want with
tabernacles? The word tabernacle simply means a booth, or limbs made
into a shelter for immediate use. Peter's suggestion was that he should go to
the trees and bear back branches with which to construct three temporary
resting-places. Think of Moses staying in a tabernacle, or Elijah settling
down to rest in a booth. The whole suggestion is grotesque. "He knew not what to answer,"
and for him, as for all men in like circumstances, it were infinitely better to
say nothing. He
had lost the sense of the spiritual, and his mind, moving wholly within the
realm of material things, imagined that the spirits of the just made perfect
could find shelter in tabernacles constructed of branches.
There was, however, a darker side
to the mistake of Peter. When he suggested building three tabernacles, one for
the Master, one for Moses and one for Elijah, he seems to have been forgetful
of his own confession made but eight days before. Jesus had asked, "Who do men say that the Son of Man
is?" and had received the reply, "Some
say John the Baptist; some, Elijah; and others, Jeremiah, or one of the
prophets." Then, in answer to His second question, "Who say ye that I am?" Peter
had placed his Lord in a position far higher than that of Elijah, "Thou art the Christ, the Son of the
living God." (Matt. 16:12-16)
Yet now he suggests making a tabernacle for Jesus, and one for Moses, and one
for Elijah, thus putting his Master upon the same level with these men of the
past.
The mistake is by no means an
obsolete one. Men are still attempting to make tabernacles, one for Christ, one
for Confucius, one for Buddha. Beware of such blasphemy.
They do the same today. It is forever dangerous to allow
that it is possible for a moment to put the best of religious teachers in
comparison with the Christ. One for Jesus, one for Moses, and one for Elijah is
utterly and hopelessly wrong. The man who suggests it has lost the sense of the
absolute and sovereign supremacy of Jesus Christ over all teachers.
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