Matthew 16:23, “Jesus turned and said to Peter, ‘Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the concerns of God, but merely human concerns.’”

Could you imagine being Peter and being called “Satan” by Jesus in front of every one?  Some people think Jesus was actually talking to Satan personally who was using Peter to speak his words.  Others believe Peter was being called “Satan” directly because he had adopted his words.  Either way, I’m sure it was embarrassing for Peter to be rebuked so sternly by Jesus.

Just in the verses earlier Peter was the only disciple to publically affirm who Jesus was, “The Christ.”  However, just a few moments later Peter tries to persuade Jesus to not go to the cross and simply be the conquering King the Jews had all been waiting.

Jesus in the above verse was quick to correct Peter’s satanic inspired plan because if Jesus would not suffer and rise again no one could be saved and cleansed of their sins.  Though we may never have the chance to rebel against Jesus’ plans face to face like Peter did we may at times reject Jesus’ plans for our lives in our hearts and share in Peter’s rebellion.

Many times God wants us to do something with Him and we come up with excuses that have their origin in Satan.  However, Jesus loves us enough to correct us and let us know at those times that our ways are not His ways and that we should repent and follow Him.

The book of Hebrews teaches us that God disciplines those He loves like a Father.  If God wouldn’t correct us in our times of rebellion it would actually mean He doesn’t love us as His children, Hebrews 12:5-13.  As a result, we as Jesus’ disciples should always be teachable and humble.

If God loves us enough to correct us when we’re heading to destruction, we should love Him enough to repent and follow His path of salvation!

Reflection

How do you react when the Lord corrects you?

Action

  1. Repent of the times you did not receive the Lord’s correction with humility.
  2. Ask God to show you the areas in your life that need to change.
  3. Always be sensitive to follow the plans and commands of God for your life.  If you get off track, hear the Lord’s correction, be quick to repent, and continue following Jesus in humility.