Mathew 16:21-28  

“Satan, get behind me.”

Peter is a figure of contradictions. He is, I believe, an excellent example of our human nature.

A couple of verses back 13-20, we find him acclaiming Jesus to be ‘the Christ, the Son of the living God.” We heard Jesus call Peter the ‘rock’ on which he will build his Church; we heard Jesus promising  Peter the keys of the kingdom with the power to bind and loose on earth and in heaven. It was looking like Peter was starting to understand who Jesus was and what he was about. That is until we hear verses 21-28 when Peter shows his lack of understanding.

He does not understand that the kingdom of heaven which he will be given the keys to will only come to its fulfillment after the Christ has suffered, be killed, and be raised from the dead. In these verses, Peter shows himself quite unworthy of the promises which have been made to him. Peter’s unworthiness is shown by some ironies we find in the text. A moment ago, Peter was called the ‘rock’ on which the Church will be built, and now he is compared with a ‘stumbling block’, a rock not on which to build, not a firm foundation, but a rock that one might trip over;  or a barrier. And what can we say about Peter’s authority to bind and loose? Well, he’s not slow in trying to use that authority. The first thing he says is, ‘God forbid, Lord! This shall never happen to you.’ Here Peter is trying to bind on earth; He is trying to bind here on earth the suffering and death of Christ, so he is trying to bind it in heaven.

All this earns him the Lord’s hard rebuke, ‘Get behind me, Satan!’ Peter has gotten it wrong because he sees things merely from a human point of view, not from a spiritual view.

“Get behind Me, Satan!” that is a hard expression for someone who only shows good intentions. Until I reflected on this passage, I had always thought that Jesus was hard on Peter. Let’s put ourselves in Peter’s place: Your beloved teacher, your friend, the man who heals the sick and gives sight to the blind, the one for whom he abandoned his occupation— has announced he will be killed. Peter did what many of us would have done: he tried to shield a loved one from suffering and harm. Yes, Peter had good intentions; unfortunately, as the saying goes, “good intentions can pave the road to Hell.”

The disciples could not grasp the enormity of God’s plan; this is why Jesus said, “Your ideas are not divine, but human!”

Verse 22 is vital to understand this passage. “Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. “Never, Lord!” he said. “This shall never happen to you!” I checked different versions of the bible. NIV uses the word rebuke to describe Peter’s action; others use, revoke, scold, and correct. And all these words have the same meaning: to be wrong, to be out of place, and not know what one is doing. Therefore, we can paraphrase what Peter told Jesus like this: Jesus, you’re mistaken, you do not understand what you are doing, let me correct you and tell you how to do things, let me explain what your ministry is about.

This is how the version The Message translate verse 22, “Peter took him in hand, protesting, “Impossible, Master! That can never be!” The same idea is implicit, “Jesus, you are wrong.”

We can paraphrase Jesus’ answer to Peter like this, “you know what Peter? I am not wrong, and I am not the one out of place; you are. You are trying to lead me. Have you forgotten what my Father revealed to you a moment ago? I am the Christ; I am the Son of God. Peter, go behind me; you are my follower; I am the leader.” Listen to how The Message translates verse 23, “Peter, get out of my way. Satan, get lost. You have no idea how God works.”

Immediately after this, Jesus called all his followers and told them, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me.” In other words, if anyone wants to follow me, stop seeking your interests and seek the kingdom of heaven; If anyone wants to follow me, stop trying to pursue, to chase your plans and let God do his plans in your life and through your life.   

Peter had some ideas about the Messiah; Peter had plans for the Messiah, and when he listened to Jesus’ plan, he realized that they were not compatible, he decided who was wrong, and it was not him, it was Jesus. That is why Jesus called him Satan, which means adversary, opponent, challenger, someone who comes and stands in the middle.    

I reviewed some episodes of my life when I was “that Satan” standing before God’s plans. What these episodes have in common is that God was doing things that I did not expect, and he was doing it in a way that I did not like; and what was worst is that he did not pay attention to all the plans I already had, to all the decisions I had already taken.

    From those episodes of my life, I also learned that in the bible, we have examples to follow and examples to avoid. I admire Peter a lot; however, I would not like to be called Satan. So, I try to avoid acting like Peter did at that moment. So, whenever God does something I do not like, in a way I do not like or not understand, before taking the chance to be called Satan, I reflect in three verses from the bible. Let me share them with you.

First Psalm 46:10, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations,

         I will be exalted in the earth!”

Be still and know that I am God. If anyone knows what he is doing, that is God; he has a broader vision. He can foresight the consequences of our acts; he does not have selfish or personal interests as I do, his main concern is the whole creation, and in him, “there is no variation or shadow due to change.” His will and plans are perfect. When he does something in my life or around me, that is the best for me; and the person or persons he chooses to do it is or are the best qualified for the job, and the way they choose is also the best—knowing that I can be still and wait in my Lord. Whenever I feel tempted to “fix” what I believe Jesus is doing wrong, I remember when Abraham tried to help God; and when I do not understand what God is doing or why he is doing it, I step aside and let God be God.

Other verses I reflect on are Acts chapter 5:38-39, “So in the present case I tell you, keep away from these men and let them alone, for if this plan or this undertaking is of man, it will fail; but if it is of God, you will not be able to overthrow them. You might even be found opposing God!” These verses teach me that I do not have to defend God; all I have to do is obey God. God can defend himself. In the end, his Will will be done in heaven and earth.

When I disagree with God, anxiety comes, then I reflect on 1 Peter 5:7, “casting all your anxieties on him because he cares for you.”

If you ever find yourself in Peter’s situation and do not understand what God is trying to do, let God be God, be still, and wait in the Lord.