The King and the Cross

Who is Jesus? What does that mean? Join us this Sunday at CrossWinds Church in Spencer as we consider these two questions from the Gospel of Mark.

Sermon Discussion Questions

1. This morning’s text centers on the question, “Who is Jesus?” What are some of the most common responses to this question in 21st century America?
2. What is one highlight from the sermon and one question that you had after hearing the sermon?
3. Read Mark 8:22–33. How do these two passages relate to one another? What does the healing of the blind man tell us about Peter, the disciples, and us?
4. Read Mark 8:27–30. What were some of the common opinions of Jesus’s identity? How did those fall short?
5. What was the common picture of the Messiah in the first century?
6. Read Mark 8:31; Daniel 7:9–13. What is the significance of Jesus’s title, “Son of Man” to describe himself?
7. Read Mark 8:31. Why must Jesus suffer? Why must he be rejected? Why must he be killed? Why must he rise again?
8. Imagine that you are Peter or one of the disciples and you hear Jesus’s words in Mark 8:31. How would you respond?
9. Read Mark 8:33. Why does Jesus call Peter “Satan”? 
10. What does Jesus mean when he tells Peter, “Get behind me”? What are some areas of your life where Jesus would say to you, “Get behind me”?
11. At the end of the sermon, Pastor Jordan listed several ways that we tend to desire a “cross-less Christ.” Consider the following and share ways that you see these tendencies in your own life:
1. Rejecting the notion of suffering and self-denial in the Christian life, even at the risk of compromising our faith or holiness.
2. When we make Christianity primarily about “me” and not about making much of Jesus.
3. When we only accept Jesus on our terms and not his.
4. When we presume upon God’s will and confuse it with our own wants and desires.
12. Read Mark 8:34. How might Jesus be calling you to follow a crucified King this week rather than a cross-less Christ?