Mark 8:27-35

          Whole life policy

          27 And Jesus went on with his disciples, to the villages of Caesare'a Philip'pi; and on the way he asked his disciples, "Who do men say that I am?" 28 And they told him, "John the Baptist; and others say, Eli'jah; and others one of the prophets." 29 And he asked them, "But who do you say that I am?" Peter answered him, "You are the Christ." 30 And he charged them to tell no one about him. 31 And he began to teach them that the Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. 32 And he said this plainly. And Peter took him, and began to rebuke him. 33 But turning and seeing his disciples, he rebuked Peter, and said, "Get behind me, Satan! For you are not on the side of God, but of men." 34 And he called to him the multitude with his disciples, and said to them, "If any man would come after me, let him deny himself and take up  his cross and follow me. 35 For whoever would save his life will lose it; and whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel's will save it.

           Sometimes people look at God like an insurance policy. They practice their faith to insure that they get into heaven. Not only that, their giving in time and treasure is because they feel that if they do this, God will surely bless their lives and protect them from the woes of the world.

            I think Jesus would tell you otherwise and I think that this very reading today is an indication that being a believer sometimes actually brings on trouble and heartache. I'm not speaking of the times when you could actually be martyred  for believing. First of all, being faithful is no guarantee we will live a problem free life. I could suggest a great book, When bad things happen to god people ( Rabbi Harold Kushner ), if you are yourself in the throws of such pain. In addition though, sometimes putting yourself out there, living a faithful life will actually put you in the midst of pain and anguish. I don't believe we are called to the same fate as Jesus but loving God is not an insurance policy against harm, personal trauma; it does not guarantee all will go well, you will be a millionaire and find the man of your dreams (though I have!).

          What we are called to do is find Christ in all of life, our good days and our bad days, in our celebrations and our sorrows. The Hebrew scriptures are a treasure trove of stories of a love affair between God and His people. If you start reading the Old Testament you will see some pretty frightening stuff going on and yet these people, imprisoned, tortured, doing battle with enemies and enduring famines and years in a hostile desert see fit to imortalize their love for God, their journey and willingness to follow His word. It truly is the greatest story ever told. I've spoken about about being open to all that is going on around you during your day as God speaks to us constantly. That includes the bad things that are not only going on around us but perhaps happening to us. They should most assuredly NOT be looked at as punishment but God will be there with you, he always is. God loves us, helps us, listens to us, shares our joys and sorrows.

           So I beg the question, whose team are you playing on? Are you of this world or are you on God's team?