In your Bibles, the book of Mark chapter 9 and verse 9, where we will begin our reading this morning. Mark chapter 9 verse 9. This morning the title of the message is, Misconceptions of the Servant, of the Suffering Servant and King. Misconceptions of the Suffering Servant and King. Now, in the verses that we've been looking at just prior to this, of course, they dealt with the transfiguration, where Jesus takes Peter, James, and John up on the mountain with him, and there the glory God shines from within him and out and he is transfigured before their presence and they see him in a way they have never seen him at to that point yet and of course we saw where Moses and Elijah were there and and everything that transpired there on the mountain as they're coming down off of the mountain which we find them doing in verse 9 it would be very easy for us to understand that these disciples are probably Extremely excited about what's just happened and likely in their minds they are thinking now is the time He will declare himself king. He will resume the throne of Israel, and we're gonna get rid of those Romans, and we're gonna reestablish the kingdom. This is the time, having seen him transfigured. And if you think about it, you can see where it would be very natural for them to think that, seeing as how their theology was a bit messed up on what this whole king thing was really about. And so they're probably, I'm sure that's going through their minds as they come off of this mountain. So with that in mind, what we're gonna look at in these next few verses is some misconceptions that they had, where they just missed the mark. They're not really bad misses, theologically speaking, in a way. They're fairly close to the point, a few of them anyway, but they do miss. And Jesus is straightening them out a little bit as they come down off this mountain. So let's read the text. Mark 9, verse 9. And as they came down from the mountain, he charged them that they should tell no man what things they had seen till the Son of Man were risen from the dead. And they kept that saying with themselves, questioning one with another what the rising from the dead should mean. And they asked him, saying, why say the scribes that Elias must first come? And he answered and told them, Elias verily cometh first and restoreth all things in how it is written of the Son of Man, that he must suffer many things and be set at nought. But I say unto you that Elias is indeed come, and they have done unto him whatsoever they listed, as it is written of him. Let us pray. Dearly father, oh Lord, we thank you for this day that you have given us to worship you here in this place. We thank you for your word that you've given to us as well. that we might be able to read it and learn from it, not just here as we gather, but individually and privately in our homes and outside of these walls as well. Lord, I just pray now that you would open our eyes to help us to see more clearly who the king is, that we might be better able to worship him and serve him, Lord, with our very lives. or just speak to our hearts here this morning. We pray all of these things in Jesus' name, amen. All right, let's start with the first misconception, looking at verse nine. Their first misconception here is, I'm sure they're thinking we should go tell everybody what we just saw. And again, that is a natural reaction on their part. I mean, think about what they've seen and how moving it must have been for them. Don't you know, they wanted to tell everybody else about what has happened. And so Jesus is going to straighten them out on this as well. Again, they had to be thinking, this is it. When everybody hears about what we just saw, they're gonna be ready to make Jesus king. It's just going to be a natural event, a natural occurrence, and this thing's going to get going now. This is what they have been wanting, this is what they've been anticipating, because this is what they've been taught all their lives, that the Messiah would come, that the King would come, and reign over them and rule over them. I think Jesus knows what they're thinking. I think he understands that they must be feeling that surely they have been made witnesses to this for a reason and for a purpose and they're wanting to let everybody know. He tells them as they came down from the mountain verse 9 he charged them. This isn't just merely Suggesting to them. He charges them. He gives them a commandment here. He's expecting their obedience He charged them that they should tell no man what things they had seen till the Son of Man were risen from the dead and So he's telling them, no, you're not going to tell anybody. Now, I'm sure that must have confused them. Again, they're thinking this must be it. But instead, Jesus is pulling the reins back here on them and saying, no, no, no, don't tell anybody. And then he goes so far as to tell them, don't tell anybody until I be risen again. In his words, the son of man were risen from the dead. And they're faithful to this. If you look at Luke's account, Luke 9, verse 36, this account of this, it says, And when the voice was passed, the voice that spoke there on the mountain, Jesus was found alone, and they kept it close and told no man in those days any of those things which they had seen. Now this may even apply to the other disciples who are waiting for them at the bottom of the mountain. But they don't tell anybody, and they're faithful to this, and they don't. They don't tell. But they're still confused, I'm sure. After all, in our Lord's reply, I want you to turn to Daniel chapter 7 for a moment. Hold your place there in Mark. Turn to Daniel chapter 7. In our Lord's reply, he refers to himself here as the son of man. Now he has used this title himself twice before, if you go back to chapter two, but now he is beginning to use it a lot more. Starting in chapter eight, now here in chapter nine, going forward as he gets closer to the crucifixion, he begins to refer to himself more and more as the son of man in connection with the suffering that he was going to experience. So this probably was confusing to the disciples because the origin of this term is in the Old Testament in Daniel chapter seven, look at verse 13. I saw in the night visions and behold one like the son of man. So here's the origin of the term itself. Came with the clouds of heaven and came to the ancient of days and they brought him near before him. And there was given him dominion and glory and a kingdom that all people, nations and languages should serve him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion which shall not pass away and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed. So this was a first, was likely very well known among these disciples and all the Jewish people, speaking of the coming king, speaking of this eternal throne, speaking of how all people would fall down in obedience before him, and this is what they were looking for, only in a physical sense. They're looking for someone in a physical sense to assume the throne and reign over Israel. But that's not what it's talking about. It's talking about a spiritual king. And there are many other scriptures that bring that out. But they were missing that. They weren't getting that. They weren't connecting to that. They're thinking physical King the Lord had told them God had told them in his word. It would be a spiritual King But nonetheless a title that he associates with this coming King is that of the Son of Man? And so when Jesus uses those words When he tells them don't tell anybody okay until the Son of Man were risen from the dead and This had to be very confusing to them because, again, in their minds they're thinking king, but now they've had this phrase associated with that, risen from the dead. Where does that fit in their theology? It doesn't, as we're going to see as we go forward. So I believe here they're wanting to go tell everybody that the king had come, But they do obey Christ, and they wait until that appointed time, and they overcome this misconception that they had. It just wasn't yet time for the people to know that the king had come, because that would have inflamed the Jewish leaders more. It wasn't time for that to happen yet. There is an appointed time for all these things to come to pass, and it wasn't that time yet. So this leads us to verse 10, and the second misconception. And that is, why must the promised king rise from the dead if he was going to live forever? If you remember back to Daniel there, it says his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away in his kingdom, that which shall not be destroyed. So when they're thinking here, this king would last forever. How could he last forever if he was gonna die? And that just simply doesn't match up with their theology. If you were to look in John chapter 12, verse 32, Jesus will tell them there, and I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me. This, he said, signifying what death he should die. He was gonna be lifted up on a tree upon the cross, and that's how he was gonna die, and Jesus is telling him that this is how he will draw men unto himself. In verse 34, the people answered him, we have heard out of the law that Christ abideth forever, and how sayest thou the son of man must be lifted up? Who is this son of man? So their theology is getting all mixed up here and all confused. On their part, it's not the Lord's fault in this in any way, they had just adopted some ideas that did not match up with what he was telling them was gonna happen. And they're struggling with this, and they're struggling through this, this time. And we know these disciples, not just the people, but the disciples are gonna struggle with this until after the crucifixion and resurrection, until after the Lord is ascended, until the Holy Spirit comes on the day of Pentecost. After that, there's no more question in the disciples' or the apostles' minds about the Lord being king. There's no question about the fact that he is a spiritual king, that his kingdom had come, that it wasn't to be a physical kingdom. All of that is settled because they don't talk about any doubts or anything about that anymore. They simply, from that point forward, teach what it really was and what it really meant. But they're not there yet. And here at this point, Peter and James and John are getting a bit mixed up in their theology. They had no place in their theology for a king that was going to suffer, much less die, even though the scriptures had said he must do so. Jesus here clearly tells them that this son of man must be risen again from the dead. Well, what can this mean? Again, the scriptures have been given to them explaining much of this. In Psalm 16, verse 10, we find this verse, for thou wilt not leave my soul in hell, neither wilt thou suffer thine holy one to see corruption. That's speaking of the death of Jesus Christ. He did not go into hell. Now, there is a false theology out there that says when Jesus died on the cross, that he went down into hell. to finish paying the price for our sins. No, he did not. He paid the price for our sins as he hung there upon that cross. That's why at the end of the crucifixion, before he dies, he uses the words, it is finished, which is an accounting term that means the books are settled, it's all added up, it's all correct, it's done, everything is in place like it should be. So before Jesus actually gave his life, he had paid the price for our sins, and then he died. So he didn't go down into hell, all right? He told the thief on the cross, today you will be with me in paradise. So he was in the presence of the Lord, of God that is, when he expired there on the cross. And then his body was resurrected. But the scriptures had told us about this. If you look at Psalm chapter 22, you should read it in its entirety. I picked a few verses out of it. But Psalm 22 is speaking of Jesus on the cross. That's what's going on in this psalm. Hundreds of years before it actually happened, we find this psalm written. It is the psalm of David. He says, verse one, my God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? Why art thou so far from helping me and from the words of my roaring? So Jesus literally used those words when he hung there upon the cross, when he said, my God, why have you forsaken me? down to verse 14 and 15 it says I am poured out like water and all my bones are out of joint my heart is like wax it is melted in the midst of my bowels my strength is dried up like a potsherd my tongue cleaveth to my jaws and thou hast brought me into the dust of death again describing The agony of the crucifixion that he would endure Uh there and did endure there upon the cross and then down in verse 18 They part my garments among them and cast lots upon my vesture. All of these things should be perceived as prophecies concerning the death of the messiah Okay And every one of these things was perfectly absolutely fulfilled in the crucifixion of christ All of the prophecies in the Old Testament that pointed to the first coming of Jesus, his life, his suffering, his death, his resurrection, all of those things were completely fulfilled. And there's dozens upon dozens of these prophecies. So the people should have known these things were coming. Turn now to Isaiah chapter 52. Isaiah chapter 52. We're gonna read the last three verses there, and then roll right on into chapter 53 and read those verses. It's a lengthy reading, but I believe personally that a person ought to read this passage on a regular basis, and we ought to know this passage well. And this certainly speaks to us of the suffering servant of God, who is the same as the Messiah, the Christ, the king of kings, okay? This tells about him and about what would transpire. Isaiah 52, verse 13. Behold, my servant shall deal prudently. He shall be exalted and extolled and be very high. As many were astonished at thee, His visage was so marred more than any man, and his form more than the sons of men. So shall he sprinkle many nations. The king shall shut their mouths at him, for that which had not been told them shall they see, and that which they had not heard shall they consider. Now chapter 53. Who hath believed our report? And to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed? For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant and as a root out of a dry ground. He hath no form nor comeliness, and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him. He is despised and rejected of men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief, and we hid, as it were, our faces from him. He was despised and we esteemed him not. Surely he hath borne our griefs and carried our sorrows, yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities. The chastisement of our peace was upon him, and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray. We have turned everyone to his own way, and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth. He is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth. He was taken from prison and from judgment, and who shall declare his generation? For he was cut off out of the land of the living, for the transgression of my people was he stricken. And he made his grave with the wicked and with the rich in his death, because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth. Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him, he hath put him to grief. When thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand. He shall see the travail of the travail of his soul and shall be satisfied. By his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many, for he shall bear their iniquities. Therefore, will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoiled with the strong, because he hath poured out his soul unto death, and he was numbered with the transgressors, and he bare the sin of many and made intercession for the transgressors. This passage is telling the Jewish people of the Messiah who is to come, and all that should befall him. He would not come in great glory at first, He would not come from among the wealthy. He would not have in the eyes of the people this royal lineage, although he was descended from royalty, was the son of David. But none of those things appear to the people as being such. When he does appear, he's just simply a carpenter from Nazareth. That's all they see. They don't see someone very handsome because the scriptures say he was not. They don't see someone who is lovely to look upon. They don't see someone who has this regal bearing about them. What they see is a suffering servant, one who would bear the sins of his people, one who would, in fact, die for his people. The Scriptures had told the people this, they should have been expecting this, and I guess in a way they were, but they did what so many do when it comes to things of the Scriptures. They had leapt to the dramatic. And they had lived to that which was physical, and that which they could grasp with their own minds, all of themselves, without the assistance of the Lord. You see, it takes the Lord and His Holy Spirit to help us to understand just who Jesus really is. Indeed, He is all of these things, but He also is the Lord of lords and the King of kings. He is the triumphant one. He is the one who suffers and dies. He is the one who is resurrected. He is the one who is ascended to the right hand of the father who even now reigns over his kingdom. As the scriptures tell us, it's easy for us to look back and see these things. It was not easy for those people of that day to see them as they happened before them. So we shouldn't be too critical of them. And we should be understanding of them. But we should also appreciate what the Lord is doing here in this passage, in that he is correcting them, he is reproving their misconceptions, and he is telling them how it really is. And that's what we have in the Lord Jesus Christ. Oh, people don't fall for the made-up Jesus that so many worship today, and they do. They fashion a Jesus that suits them. They fashion a Jesus that looks good to them. I don't want that Jesus. I want the Jesus of the scriptures, the real Jesus, the one who really is. That's who I need. That's who you need. That's who we all need if we're to have everlasting life. If we are to find forgiveness from the Father, we need the Jesus of the scriptures. These disciples coming down off that mountain didn't need a physical king like they thought they did. They needed a spiritual king. They needed the one who would fulfill these scriptures, these Old Testament prophecies. And Jesus is gently pointing their eyes in that direction, and he is building them up for that to happen. Yes, Jesus had to come and suffer and die and be resurrected, whether it fit in with anybody's theology or not. Again, I don't want somebody's theology. I want that which comes from the scriptures. I want that which is given to us of God. I want that which pleases God. That's what I need. That's what you need. And that brings us now to the third misconception that they had. And they're not far off here. They're actually quoting scripture. They're actually thinking about it. And they ask the question, what about Elias? What about Elijah? Now, I'm sure what has prompted this question is the fact that they've just seen Elijah. I mean, really, they have seen Elijah and Moses. They're on top of that mountain. And that got their attention. And so they're thinking, OK, so Elijah must come. Did he not just come? Wasn't that what we just saw? So that means you ought to be king now? I think that's what they're thinking, and that's where their misconception was going, but Jesus again corrects them on this. Verse 11. And they asked him, saying, Why say the scribes that Elias or Elijah must first come? And he answered and told them, Elias verily cometh first and restoreth all things. and how it is written of the Son of Man that he must suffer many things and be sad at nought." Again, he's taking them where their minds just hadn't gone. He's saying, yes, Elijah must come. He's going to tell them here in a moment that he has already come. By the way, before this, Elijah, you just saw, the meaning of the scriptures has been fulfilled. He's going to explain that to them. But then he's taking their minds where they just really weren't prepared to go. He says, Elijah is indeed come, or rather he must come and restore all things and how it is written. In other words, fulfill the scriptures that say that the son of man must suffer many things and be set at naught. That's a phrase that means be despised, to be made nothing. You see, they're wanting an exalted king. They're wanting one that all the people can get behind and cheer and yell for and proclaim that he's there and make much of the fact that he is on the throne. That's what they're wanting. Jesus is telling them, no, it's not going to be that way at all. I'm going to be despised. These people are going to reject me. And I'm going to suffer. And again, not what their theology told them should happen. He says, but I say unto you that Elias is indeed come and they have done unto him whatsoever they listed as it is written of him. So again, having just seen Elijah at the transfiguration, The disciples are thinking that must be the Elijah, the coming of Elijah. But Jesus is saying, no, he's already come. How did that happen and how did they miss that? Well, Malachi, turn to the book of Malachi, it's the last book in the Old Testament. In fact, we're gonna read in chapter three and then we're gonna go to chapter four and read the very last two verses of the Old Testament and see what they point to. Malachi chapter 3 verse 1 first says, Behold, I will send my messenger and he shall prepare the way before me. And the Lord whom you seek shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant whom you delight in. Behold, he shall come, saith the Lord of hosts. But note that I will send my messenger and he shall prepare the way before me. Malachi chapter four now. Turn to it and the last two verses, verses five and six. He says, there, behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord. And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse. So they're thinking these scriptures must have just been fulfilled. They just saw Elijah Jesus and said, no, you're wrong about that. You've missed it. What is he saying? What is he telling them? John the Baptist. was the Elijah that the scriptures are talking about. He came like Elijah, he looked like Elijah, he acted like Elijah, but he was the one who came and prepared the way for me. And we read more about this in Luke, in Luke's account in his gospel, about how all this was, what he did, what John the Baptist did and everything, but Jesus just simply points them to John the Baptist here. If you look at Matthew's account of all of this, of the transfiguration and what happens right after, Matthew 17, verse 11, we're going to read some verses that sound very familiar, but listen to what he says. And Jesus answered and said unto them, Elias truly shall first come and restore all things. But I say unto you that Elias has come already, and they knew him not, but have done unto him whatsoever they listed. Likewise shall also the Son of Man suffer of them. Verse 13 in Matthew's account says, then the disciples understood that he spake unto them of John the Baptist. So Jesus points it out to them and they get that. Oh, that was Elijah. That was the coming of Elijah. But notice what he also points them to. Look what they did to John the Baptist, he's telling them. John the Baptist has suffered. We've already seen he's died. He was put to death at the whim of the king. All of that was to prepare the way for me. I also, Jesus is letting them, breaking the news to them, I'm also gonna suffer. John the Baptist led the way in that, he led the way in death, so too shall I suffer and die. Again, doesn't match what they wanted to hear, but Jesus is explaining this to them. just as Israel rejected as a whole the message of John the Baptist and killed him, so it would happen with Jesus. And by the way, back in Malachi, that last verse, he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children and the heart of the children to their fathers, there would be some who would turn to him. He says, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse. He did that too, because Israel rejected him. And he destroyed Jerusalem for that. He destroyed the temple. He put an end to the sacrifices that they had been offering. He brought an end to the Old Testament carrying out of the law in AD 70. That's what he came to do. He indeed came to be king. He came to be their spiritual king. I ask you this morning, do you believe on this king? This king of kings, the one who came to suffer and to die for your sins, is that the king you believe on? I hope so. I hope you haven't fallen for some misconceived theology that's as prevalent today as it was in their day. One, again, that tells you about a Jesus that's not the Jesus of the scriptures. The Jesus this theology puts forth is not a king. He is a, and understand how I'm saying this, I don't believe this to actually be true, but this is the kind of king they put forth, the kind of Jesus they put forth. He's a wimp. He gives in. He is submissive to the will of man. That's not the Jesus of scriptures. Our Jesus is a king. He reigns. He is sovereign in his will, meaning his will supersedes our will. and he has accomplished everything necessary for the salvation of souls. Is he calling you to him this morning? Then go understand that means he's quickened you. You can hear him. He is quickened. You go to him and believe. And no. He is your Savior and your King. Know that he is the fulfillment of the Scriptures. Know that he is the pleasure of the Father. Know that he is the mighty Savior. Believe on him. I know many have just celebrated this holiday called Christmas that talks a lot about a baby in a manger. That baby is not in that manger anymore. There'll be a holiday coming up that many call Easter to celebrate the Death and resurrection of Christ. Understand he's not on that cross and he's not in that tomb anymore. He is risen. He reigns. He's on his throne now. And he wants you to be his. Do you hear him? Come to him. If he's calling you, he's giving you the faith to believe on him. If he's calling you, he's giving you the gift of repentance to turn from sin unto Christ. Follow him. Believe on him. Believe on him. Let's pray. Dear Heavenly Father, again, Lord, we just praise your holy name and thank you for your power and the fulfillment of all of these scriptures that you have brought to pass. We don't have to have any doubts as to this. We can know that Christ is Lord as well as our Savior. I pray, Lord, that you have stirred the hearts of some. You have given, quickened, regenerated, souls this morning and that you're even now calling them to you and I pray Lord for their profession of faith in you for their conversion be it in this church be it in amongst your people worldwide we pray for this And Lord, we give you all the honor and the glory. None of it goes to us in any way. It's all about what Christ has done. Oh, may we praise his name. May we worship you, oh God, here this morning. We pray this all in Jesus' name, amen. Let's all stand. What number should we stand?