God’s Metanoia Model for living the Paschal Mystery

Reference Scripture: Matthew 16:20-28, ‘Jesus declares the Paschal Mystery’.

In Mark 1:14-15, the historical Jesus began his ministry by proclaiming, “The time has come. The kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news”. He then clearly defined the role of his disciples in God’s universal saving process and kingdom living when he said to them, “Come follow me and I will make you fishers of men”(Mark 1:17).

In the Gospel of Christ, the Greek word for repentance is ‘metanoia’. Repentance is changing one’s mind. In Romans 8:1-11, the apostle Paul clearly describes God’s metanoia model for mankind’s salvation and kingdom living here on earth. As fishers of men, by faith, repentance, obedience and self-denial, believers are delivered from slavery to sin, and the mind of the flesh. By faith, humility, obedience and following the historical Jesus in living the Paschal Mystery, they enter into the freedom of God’s love, through living their lives in the mind of the spirit. By faith and obedience they become effective fishers of men.    

After Peter declared that the historical Jesus was the Christ, the Son of the living God, Jesus promised that he would give him the keys of the kingdom and kingdom living, here on earth (Matthew 16:16-19). Jesus then assured Peter as a fisher of men, that whatever he binds on earth will be bound in heaven and whatever he looses on earth, will be loosed in heaven. Throughout his ministry, Jesus always located the kingdom of heaven within every person, among us and in our midst (Luke 17:20-21).

Jesus then warned his disciples, as fishers of men, to tell no man that he was the Christ (Matthew 16:20). The disciples knew that Jesus was the Messiah. As carnal minded fishers of men however, Jesus recognized that his disciples did not comprehend who he really was as Messiah. Because they continued to live in the mind of the flesh, they did not know that as fishers of men, they should follow him as the Way, the Truth and the Life, in kingdom living here on earth (Matthew 5:9-10, John 14:5-8). 

As fishers of men, they did not recognize, nor could they teach that the historical Jesus was the fully orbed incarnation and manifestation of the Godhead in human flesh (John 14:9, Colossians 2:9). They did not discern, seek and serve the universal indwelling Christ of Faith, in the historical Jesus’ spiritual body and the spiritual body of all mankind (John 14:10-14). They did not understand and thus were not equipped to teach the believer’s true spiritual relationship with the Godhead, the historical Jesus, and one another, through faith in the universal indwelling Christ of Faith, God’s image and likeness, in the spiritual body of all persons (Genesis 1:26-31).

The apostles, as carnal minded fishers of men, lacked spiritual understanding, discernment and insight into the truth about Jesus as Messiah. The depth of their spiritual relationship with the historical Jesus was distorted and blocked by their spiritual deafness, spiritual blindness and spiritual sleep. They lived their lives and experienced the historical Jesus as Messiah, in the mind of the flesh.

At this crucial time, the end of his ministry, the historical Jesus sought to again reveal the kingdom of God and kingdom living to his disciples in the parable of his actual life experiences. He did this by outlining and explaining the Paschal Mystery about himself, and describing their role as fishers of men, in following him in kingdom living, here on earth. From that time on Jesus began to tell his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law. He must be killed. On the third day he would be raised to life (Matthew 16:21-22).

Peter then took Jesus aside and began to rebuke him. “Never Lord!” He said. “This shall never happen to you”. Jesus then turned to Peter and said. “Out of my sight Satan. You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men” (Matthew 16:23).

Jesus then outlined God’s metanoia model for salvation and it’s daily practical application in the lives of fishers of men. He said to his disciples, “If anyone one would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me” (Matthew 16:24). Many Christ-centered, spiritually awake believers, as fishers of men, believe that Jesus’ reference to cross bearing in this text, involves the daily practical application of God’s universal metanoia model for salvation and kingdom living, here on earth (Mark 1:14-15).  

By faith, humility and obedience, Christ-centered, Holy Spirit-based fishers of men are empowered and guided by the indwelling and incarnate Godhead. In faith, repentance and obedience, they are delivered from slavery to sin, and the mind of the flesh. By living their lives in the mind of the spirit, they are born from above. By faith they pass over into the new and glorified life with the indwelling and incarnate Godhead, in the mind of the spirit. They follow the historical Jesus in living the Paschal Mystery.

For the carnal minded believer, giving up the self centeredness, worldliness, materialism and spiritual blindness of the mind of the flesh is too great a sacrifice. Many spiritually deaf and spiritually asleep religious people in all the world traditions, cultures, ethnic and secular groups remain slaves to sin, because they choose to live their lives in and according to the mind of the flesh. They have rejected Jesus’ invitation to follow him in passing over from slavery to sin, into the freedom, new and glorified life, with the indwelling and incarnate Godhead, by living their lives in the mind of the Spirit.

Do you believe the historical Jesus’ declaration that you are loosing your life, by living you life in and according to the mind of the flesh? Are you willing with God’s help, to obey Jesus command to cast out the mind of the flesh? Will you become a fisher of men, by embracing God’s metanoia model for salvation and follow Jesus Christ in living the Paschal Mystery? Will you with God’s help, live you life in the mind of the spirit (Matthew 16:25-28)?