This transcript was generated by whisper.ai.

I want to welcome you to day three of our look together through Mark chapter 8.
Let me begin today by reading verses 22 to 26, Mark chapter 8. They came to
Bethsaida and some people brought a blind man and begged Jesus to touch him.

They took the blind man by the hand and led him outside the village. When he had
spit on the man's eyes, he put his hands on him. Jesus asked, "Do you see
anything?

" He looked up and said, "I see people. They look like trees walking around. "
Once more, Jesus put his hands on the man's eyes.

Then his eyes were opened. His sight was restored and he saw everything clearly.
Jesus sent him home saying, "Don't go into the village.

" Once again here in verse 26, we see Jesus telling someone not to tell and as
we've talked about before, he did that because he understood God's timing in
ministry and he knew that for people to tell too much too often would too
quickly get the powers that be against him and there was a right time for him to
go to the cross. He also understood the best need of this person's life and for
some reason not telling met the need of this person's life in some way we don't
totally understand. I also want you to notice though what happened in the
healing here.

Last week we talked together about four things you and I can learn from the fact
that Jesus healed in different ways and here he's healing in another way.
Someone beginning to see and then seeing better and better as he worked with
him. The four things we talked about last week that we can learn from the fact
that Jesus healed in different ways were number one, he meets our needs in
different ways.

Number two, he meets my need in a way that builds my faith. Number three, he
rarely does something in the same way twice and number four, he deeply cares
about my need. There is a fifth reason we didn't talk about last week that Jesus
heals in different ways.

The fifth reason is this, in every healing there is a parable of how Jesus works
in our lives. When Jesus heals it shows us how he wants to work in this area of
faith and growth in our lives. So when he heals a woman's son and the son isn't
even there he's in another place and yet Jesus says he is healed.

He's showing us that I live my life not by sight but by faith. I don't have to
see it to believe it when as we talked about last week he heals someone who is
deaf and mute and he does it in a way that helps that man to see that he's
healing him by touching him, by looking up to heaven. It's a sign to us, it
shows us that God invites us to faith in a way that we understand and hear.

As Jesus heals this man he touches his eyes and first he sees people like trees
walking around then he touches his eyes again and then he can see clearly. It's
a clear parable of the fact that coming to faith and growing in faith is a
process in life. There are some times when I see things immediately in faith,
there are many times in my life when I see it slowly but surely and at first
it's a little bit fuzzy.

It's like people look like trees walking around. I can't quite see what God
wants me to do but then through time God certainly helps me to see. He often
works that way in our lives.

Now as we continue through Mark chapter 8 we're going to look at verses 27 to 29
and these are powerful verses, a powerful experience in the life of the
disciples. We've been talking about the wrong perspective this week. This is the
right perspective, verses 27 to 29.

Jesus and his disciples went on to the villages around Caesarea Philippi. On the
way he asked them, "Who do people say that I am? " They replied, "Some say John
the Baptist, others say Elijah, still others one of the prophets.

" "But what about you? " he asked. "Who do you say that I am?

" Peter answered, "You are the Christ. " That is the right perspective. Of all
the perspectives we could talk about, that's it, right there, the right
perspective.

You are the Christ. These words of Jesus to the disciples asking, "Who do you
say I am? " bring out of Peter this great confession of faith.

"Who do you think that I am? " "You are the Christ. " Matthew tells us that
Peter adds, "You are the Son of the living God.

" Now other gospels tell us that in response to that faith, Jesus said to Peter,
"That's the rock of faith upon which I'm going to build my church. " Again,
Peter shows his humility here. Remember Peter told his story to Mark and Mark
wrote it down and we don't hear that here.

I think out of the humility of Peter. This is the place where Peter confesses a
deep faith in Christ as the Messiah. Christ means Messiah.

It's the Greek word for Messiah. It is the meaning of the promised one from God,
the one we've been waiting for. This confession of faith, the place where this
happens, is all important.

The Bible tells us it happens in Caesarea Philippi. This is to the far north of
Israel. This area above the Sea of Galilee, it's far different than the desert
picture you often get of Israel.

It's a beautiful mountainous area with streams flowing through this lush green
foliage. Here is something that's fascinating about this spot. It was a place
where many so-called gods had been worshiped for years.

In Jesus's day, the city was called Caesarea Philippi. It was named after the
Roman Caesar, Caesarea, and there were statues in the city that were put up to
worship Caesar as a god. Previous to that, this same city had been called
Panaeus after the Greek god Pan, because this area was said to be the birthplace
of the Greek god Pan and was filled, because of that, with ancient pagan
temples.

Previous to that, this town had been called Bellina after the false god Baal in
the Old Testament. This place where they were, it was a place where the god of
the moment was worshiped, the false god of the moment. And here, in this place,
Peter boldly stated his trust in Jesus Christ as the true way to God.

Here in this place, Jesus affirmed this faith, this incredible power of faith in
the disciples. Here in this place, Jesus is affirmed as the Messiah and as the
god of eternity. And to me, it's a picture of the church today.

We stand in the midst of a world where there are many ideas, as many ideas about
God as there are people in the world, it seems like sometimes. Some people say
this is God, other people say no, that's God. Still other people say we should
accept everybody's idea of God, even though they're totally opposite to one
another.

And we as believers today are still standing as believers in New Testament times
saying Jesus is the Christ, he is the way to God. And Jesus is still saying
today, that is what I will build my church on, that faith in me and that
decision to follow me. That's the right perspective.

You see, there are a couple of questions that Jesus asks here. He asks, who do
others say that I am? That's a question that leads to confusion.

What is everybody's opinion? That'll always get you to confusion when it comes
to faith, when it comes to belief. There are some areas of life where it's good
to get everybody's opinion and try to mash them all together, but you can't do a
mashup of faith.

That's your decision. And Jesus challenges that decision in Peter, but he also
challenges it in my life and in your life when he asked the second question, who
do you say that I am? That is the question that leads to life.

Thou art the Christ. That is the answer that has the promise to change
everything. And so right now, for just a moment, put yourself in the place of
those disciples, because really each of us are.

Jesus is looking you in the eye and he's asking you the question, who do you say
that I am? Let's take a minute to talk to him together. And as we talk to him,
say to him, Jesus, this is who I say you are.

If you believe in him already, say, Jesus, you are the Christ, you're the
promised one from God. And I trust your promise of salvation. I trust your
promise of new life.

I trust your promise of forgiveness. If you've never made that confession of
faith, if Jesus is just an historical figure to you, today is the day you can
make that confession of faith. Say to him right now, Jesus, I believe it today.

Instead of just thinking about what other people believe about you, I'm making
my decision today. You are the Christ. You're the promised one of God.

And I trust your promise of forgiveness. I trust your promise of new life. I
trust this promise in Jesus name.

Amen. Join us tomorrow for drive time devotions. We're going to see that just
when things are looking good, the disciples fall back into the wrong
perspective.

[inaudible].