You and Peter are an awful lot alike.

Jesus had been with His disciples for quite a while. They had seen Him perform miracles that left them awestruck. They had heard Him teach in parables and with authority. They had experienced His power over Satan. They were eyewitnesses to His winning debates with the religious leaders.

Then Jesus turned to them and asked, "Who do people say that I am?" (Mk 8:27). Several theories were brought up, but then Jesus asked, "But who do YOU say that I am?"

Peter quickly responded, "You are the Christ" (v 29).

What did that mean? "Christ" is the Greek word for "anointed" and is parallel to "Messiah" in the Old Testament.

Based on the evidence that he had seen and his knowledge of the Old Testament, Peter rightly concluded that Jesus was the promised anointed one. He was the one who would fulfill the prophecies of the Old Testament, establishing a kingdom, setting His people free, performing miracles, representing God, and much more.

Essentially, Peter admitted that Jesus was the Son of God. Jesus was God Himself. Deity. Holy. Loving. All-knowing. And all the other attributes that God has.

But in the next few verses Jesus begins to explain that He would be killed and rise again after three days.

Peter's response to this? He began to rebuke Jesus (vs 31-32).

Wait a minute! Didn't Peter just say that Jesus was God?

So now Peter is saying that God doesn't know what He's talking about?

That's what it looks like.

We would never do that, would we?

What was it like in church on Sunday? Did you sing praise songs about the greatness of God? Did you hear testimonies about the things that God is doing in the lives of others? Did someone pray thanking God and pouring out requests to Him? Did you hear a sermon or a lesson about what God wants you to do?

So everyone there seemed to be saying the same thing that Peter was saying: "You are the Christ."

But what did yesterday look like?

Did you argue with God? Did you choose to do your own thing, rather than what God wanted you to do?

"God, you can't really mean that!"

We're not much different than Peter. Praising God one day and going our own way the next.

Fortunately, that wasn't the end of the line for Peter. Jesus called Peter Satan. And corrected Peter's thinking, "For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man" (v 35).

Lord, help us today to set our minds on the things of God, not on the things of man!