Jesus Predicts His Death and Resurrection

³¹ Jesus began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things; be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the experts in the law; be killed; and after three days rise again. ³² He was speaking plainly to them. Then Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. ³³ But after turning around and looking at his disciples, Jesus rebuked Peter and said, “Get behind me, Satan! You do not have your mind set on the things of God, but the things of men.”

Take Up the Cross

³⁴ He called the crowd and his disciples together and said to them, “If anyone wants to follow me, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. ³⁵ For whoever wants to save his life will lose it. But whoever loses his life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it. ³⁶ After all, what good is it for a man to gain the whole world and yet forfeit his soul? ³⁷ Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul? ³⁸ In fact, whoever is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will also be ashamed of him when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.”

Justification Brings Peace and Joy

5 Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace^[a] with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. ² Through him we also have obtained access by faith^[b] into this grace in which we stand. And we rejoice confidently on the basis of our hope for the glory^[c] of God.

³ Not only this, but we also rejoice confidently in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces patient endurance, ⁴ and patient endurance produces tested character, and tested character produces hope. ⁵ And hope will not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, who was given to us.

God’s Love Is Evident in Christ’s Death for the Ungodly

⁶ For at the appointed time, while we were still helpless, Christ died for the ungodly. ⁷ It is rare indeed that someone will die for a righteous person. Perhaps someone might actually go so far as to die for a person who has been good to him. ⁸ But God shows his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

⁹ Therefore, since we have now been justified by his blood, it is even more certain that we will be saved from God’s wrath through him. ¹⁰ For if, while we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, it is even more certain that, since we have been reconciled, we will be saved by his life. ¹¹ And not only is this so, but we also go on rejoicing confidently in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received this reconciliation.