Believe in the Dark?

His question was pointed: "Who do you say I am?"

Peter spoke: "You are Messiah."

And then warnings and instruction, like a father to children: "Don't tell anyone, anyone, about me. The Son of Man, me, I must...endure...endure many things. And those in authority - elders, chief priests, scholars - they will disown me...and kill me. Three days later, I will rise again." Jesus spoke plainly.

Peter, still somewhat in the wake of "You are Messiah", tried to handle him and caution him.

But the Son of Man would have none of it. He turned around to see his disciples. He whispered to Peter: "Don't handle me, Satan. Your thoughts are not God's thoughts."

Peter was speechless.

Jesus called the crowd and his disciples to come close: "If anyone, anyone, wants to try and catch me, let him try. But he will have to shed his skin, wrap himself in a cross, and run hard after me. If you try to save your own skin, just know you'll lose. But if anyone, anyone at all, will believe in the dark - me and my good news - just know you'll be saved. Your skin or your soul? Just know that one must lose."
- Mark 8.31-37

[Notes - I love this word endure. Most translations use the word suffer, but endure has the nuance of one acting decisively, rather than as a victim. I also saw Jesus whispering to Peter as opposed to calling him out in front of everyone. You may disagree, but I see it as a difference in style between Jesus and Satan. The former didn't come to bruise the reed; the latter is all about shame. And as I read through these verses, I was struck by the phrase believe in the dark, a.k.a, faith. The phrase felt appropriate in these Lenten days...]