It is a very worthy question to ask. Jesus is implying that to be saved or to be a follower of Him is to be in relationship with God, the rest of the redeemed, and with those who are not redeemed. Jesus gives both our motivation for asking the question in His picture of heaven and hell as well as the benchmarks to come to a satisfactory answer.

Additional Scripture References:

Rev. 7:9; 1 Co. 12:13, 25-26; Rom. 12:15, 1:8-15; Rom. 8:13; Col. 3:5; Ps. 42:1-2; Ps. 139:23-24; Gal. 6:14-17; Col. 4:6; Eph. 4:29

Once again we find Jesus sharing with His disciples about His impending death and resurrection. The disciples fail to engage Jesus in this discussion because of their lack of understanding, their fear based on past rebuke, and because there is simply just something else on their mind. Jesus, the great teacher, uses this as an opportunity to teach them the significance of what is going to happen to Him. Jesus is hitting the same nail from a different perspective. What happens to Jesus will have immediate and lasting effects on the lives of each one of the disciples. The "good news" of Jesus isn't to be spoken only, but lived out as well.

Additional Scripture References:

2 Samuel 24:14; 1 Chronicles 21:13; Romans 12:10; Matthew 25:40-45; Romans 8:15; Galatians 4:5; James 1:27; Matthew 10:22

Praise God for seasons. Praise God for new days. We have two constants. The first is that God never changes and the second is that the world is constantly changing. If you are a follower of Christ you should come to expect change. A work has begun in you. God will be faithful to complete it. The reality of this is that difficult times will pass, but the flip side of the coin is that good things pass as well. To embrace this is to embrace the life with Christ! Change in our lives is God’s grace that allows us to be reminded that we are a part of something greater than ourselves.

Additional Scripture References:

Exodus 24:16; Hebrews 1:3; 1 Peter 2:9; John 1:45; Deuteronomy 18:15; Malachi 4:5-6; Exodus 33:20; 1 Corinthians 15:35-36; 2 Kings; Isaiah 53; Mark 6:14-29; 2 Cor. 4:9-12; Philippians 3:10-11

The concept of the sovereignty of God is in no way God forcing unwilling people kicking and screaming to do something they don't want to do. Likewise, God shuts the door on no man who is desiring Him. So, therefore, Jesus isn't dragging anyone into this deal. In fact, Jesus is doing the opposite of a sales pitch. This is just an invitation by One who is sold out to being a part of God's sovereign plan and purpose. The only way a man ever chooses, however, to sell out to following Christ is by God's sovereign power and glory and mercy and grace that draws him irresistibly into glad submission. THAT is the Kingdom coming in power!

Additional Scripture References:

Ephesians 5:24-25; Ephesians 6:1-4; Ephesians 4; Matthew 28:19; 1 Corinthians 6:12-13; 19-20

To have our hearts and minds set on the things of God means that we are going to experience the pain and pricking of truth upon our lives. It also means we will possibly experience the consequences of living life previously set on the things of this world. To walk through such humiliating a path is also to end in the open, loving, gracious arms of Christ. It is to be reminded of His everlasting love and acceptance of us. In the end, this is an experience often needed to bring us back to being what we were called to be…”mathetes” or disciples of Christ.

Additional Scripture References:

Revelation 3:16-19

On the heels of a great miracle of giving a man his sight back Jesus asks two revealing questions to His disciples. The first question of “who do people say that I am?” leading to the infinitely more important question of “who do you say that I am?”. This section is a very gentle way for the Messiah to introduce that gap between popular belief and reality. What you think of when you think about Jesus Christ is the absolute most important thing about you. It is the difference between life and death. This is huge for the disciples considering the thought of Jesus was going to become less and less popular in the days to come. To view Jesus as the Christ is more than just an opinion about a man. It’s an un-popular, life altering truth beginning now not to waiting for eternity.

Additional Scripture References:

Matthew 16:16-17

We often hear the phrase "seeing is believing". Unfortunately that breaks down in the fact that what you "see" is not always what you get. No matter what your system of thought is or what your worldview is, because we live in finite, fragile bodies we will not be able to "see" and "know" everything there is to know. There will always be inconceivable mysteries about life both inside of us and outside of us. The Biblical worldview, which doesn't always give answers to the mysteries, by putting Christ in the absolute center, being both the means and the end goal, brings glorious meaning to the mysteries we were never intended to know or understand this side of heaven. Therefore, the Biblical worldview would make the claim that "believing is seeing"... clearly.

Additional Scripture References:

1 Corinthians 12:13, 1 John 2:8, Hebrews 11:13, Exodus 14:10-11, Ezekiel 1:26-28

As Jesus' ministry continues to attract many, he performs another feeding miracle. Jesus is then tested by Pharisees for a sign from heaven even though he continues to give one after another. He therefore teaches his disciples to watch out for this type of staunch unbelief.

Additional Scripture References:

Matthew 15:38, Exodus 1:8-22, 4:21-23, 5:1-9, 12:37-41

It would be difficult for anyone to look around this world and fully accept the claim that God does all things well. The difficulty lies in the fact that we are stuck in the here and now unable to see how everything will play out. At the end of the day scripture doesn’t ask us to be able to see into the future in order to justify that statement. It calls us over and over again to look to what has happened in the past. The cross of Christ brings everything into perspective. The way we feel about the cross, death, and resurrection of Christ will have a great impact on the way we view our past present and future from this moment on. This passage allows us to see not only the amazing things Christ does, but the amazing way He goes about them. All of it comes into play in order to paint a much larger picture than what is going on in the moment.

Additional Scripture References:

James 2:16; Matthew 6:1-4; Isaiah 33-35; Isaiah 53:1-12; 2 Cor. 5:21; Romans 3:25; 8:1; John 3:16; Heb. 6:19; John 10:10; Psalm 147:3; Isaiah 35:5-6