Centered on Christ - Matthew 16 & 17

The introduction to this lesson will automatically become the conclusion of the lesson. This is true because God created each and every one of us with a purpose in his mind for our being. Babies born to unwed parents are not accidents. The adult parents may have made a mistake, but the child that resulted from their mistake is not responsible for their error. No living person is a mistake because we were all created by God…He knew us before we were conceived and he had a purpose in mind for each of us and a major part of that purpose was for us to live a Christ centered life. First and foremost, we were created to love and fellowship with our Maker and to worship him only, having no other Gods before him; therefore, it is not enough to know about him—but we must know him personally. We learn about him through our study of his word; we know him by our faith.

In the opening verses of Matthew chapter 16, and following some of the most convincing miracles that Christ performed, the Pharisees and Sadducees showed their refusal to believe by requesting that Jesus give them a sign from heaven so they too could believe. Knowing that they had no intention of accepting him, he told them that they already had the story of Jonah and no other sign would be given. Jesus then left them and went on his way. The time had come when Christ would shift his emphasis to discipleship training.

He crossed the lake where his disciples became concerned in that they had not taken bread for food. Jesus warned them against the false teaching of the Jewish leaders by telling them that he was not concerned about the bread, but his concern was about the yeast that causes bread to rise. In this case specifically he was concerned about the bad yeast [false teaching] of the Pharisees and Sadducees that spoiled the [bread] message he was bringing. His disciples finally understood the parable of the bad yeast. The thing that bothers me most as an elderly man is that it appears to me that people today are even more willing to accept, believe, follow and even financially support the false witnesses of our day. I pray that God will help me rightly divide the word and never lead one soul astray from the true teachings of Jesus Christ. Study his word—it is truth.

The central theme of our lesson for today begins with Matthew 16:13 where Jesus turns his attention away from the crowds that were following him to his need to make final preparation for his disciples to be ready to take his place at his death. To begin this task he and the disciples left Capernaum and traveled approximately twenty five miles north east into the mountainous region of Caesarea Philippi and away from the crowd that had been following him. Caesarea Philippi was a more secluded area located at the upper end of the Jordan River. It had been known for its many religious associations with the other gods of that day and even had many temples that had been erected for the worship of Baal. It was said to be the birthplace of the nature god, who was called Pan; because they believed that the Jordan originated out of a cave located in the area. Herod the Great had built a huge marble temple at Caesarea Philippi and dedicated it to Caesar as his god.

He went to the area because it was away from the crowds, and because of its religious history of ‘many gods’ it was a perfect setting for him to tell his disciples a final time who he was and why he came to the world—what he came to do—and for sure he wanted them to know how he would accomplish His mission and what his plans were for them and all other followers of Jesus. He wanted to focus specifically on His identity as the True Son of the one and only True God; this was not for him, but for the twelve disciples.

Whether or not you have already read the entire chapter—you must now read verses 13 through 28. The very first question posed to his disciples was; * “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” They named several like John the Baptist, Elijah and other prophets. His next question was “Who do you think I am?” Christ already knew what the people thought…he did not ask the question for his benefit…but he wanted to point out to the disciples that some of them had at times wondered and may have even agreed with the people in their thoughts. The cross and his death were only about six months away, and the time had come when the disciples had to be convinced that he was the Christ…The Son of God—why? They would be his spokesmen from this time forward, and would be responsible for carrying forth His Great Commission of the Church to the rest if the world. *He is referring to himself as the Son of Man.

No wonder that Jesus was worried, do you remember when John was in prison, back in the 11th chapter, he sent messengers back to ask Christ who he really was. His home town had refused to accept his deity since he was the carpenter’s son. He had been accused of being a glutton and drunkard and a servant of the devil, and the disciples had never put forth a strong defense for him—so he had reason to know that to date, they were not 100 percent convinced that he was the true Messiah. Allow me to step aside for a moment and ask each of you how many different languages you can speak. Most will answer, “Only one, English.” A few speak two, and I suppose that the most common second language is Spanish. Don’t be surprised when I tell you that all of the readers of this lesson can speak at least three different languages.

Just a few chapters back Jesus scolded Peter and actually alluded to his dullness when Peter asked Christ to explain one of the simple parables he had used. Actually it is a little surprising to me that now… when they are confronted with The Lord’s most important question to date—“Who do you say that I am?”…Peter seems to be the first of the disciples to fully understand and give the correct answer. It is interesting to me that three of the NT writers agreed that it was Peter, but gave a different version of his answer; with all versions having the same meaning. The word “Messiah” and the word “Christ” are the same word in two languages…Messiah is Hebrew…Christ is Greek and both refer to the Living Son of God. So now—if you have read this paragraph and understood it, you can speak and translate at least three languages, Hebrew, Greek and English.

It is important for each of us to realize that we must personally become acquainted with, knowledgeable about, and willing to accept Christ. The day will come [and it may be soon] when Christ will look you straight in the eyes, call you by name, and ask you—“Who do you say that I am?” and “Who did you tell people that I was?” He already knows the answer…so it is for your benefit that he will ask. If you have never accepted him as Savior, how will you answer? If you have been saved [as by fire] and never told anyone who Christ is, how will you answer the second question?

It does you NO GOOD to know about Jesus Christ; in fact it could become your downfall. The proof of your standing with him is when you can answer his question by saying “I know that you are Jesus Christ, God’s Son, and my personal Savior.” Peter was the first apostle that came to this conclusion. Personally, I wish that the comment made by Christ at this time could have been perfectly clear to everyone in his audience and above all to the disciples that wrote about this incident. This passage [verses 17-19] is one of the most controversial in the NT. Much of the controversy hinges on the word ROCK.

This rock that Jesus would build his church on has been identified by some as; 1. Jesus Christ himself—not his physical body but—the salvation that he provided through his sinless life, his willingness to die for our sins, his horrible death on the cross, his burial that conquered death and resurrection—all of which provides us salvation and a home in heaven. 2. Peter, the first to recognize Christ as deity and the first great leader in the church at Jerusalem. 3. The confession of faith that Peter gave and all the confessions of faith that would ever be given by people who accept Christ as their master.

There is a play on words used in this passage that is not unusual but makes it difficult for us to know exactly what was said and who the pronouns actually were as well as who the rock was. First, let us look at Peter. In the Greek language the word “Peter” is “Petros” spelled with a capitol P indicating a personal name. The word “rock” is “petra” and there is no capitol indicating something or a thing and not a person or city. Add to this confusion Peter’s Aramaic name which is spelled “Kephas” which is also the Aramaic for “rock.” Applying the name “Rock” to a person is not unusual. Abraham was called a rock [petra] by God. God is said to be a rock many times in the bible. One thing for sure is that when it is used it is in a complementary way.

If there is a person out there anywhere that has access to the original manuscript or a copy of it, and you are able to read and translate, I wish you would go to this scripture and see what Christ actually said. Here is what I believe he said. He said, “Wonderful, my dear fisherman, you have finally comprehended just who I am…and you are right. When you were named they called you Petros [a rock] and now, Peter, I agree that you are a rock [petra] among the disciples. The time has come, I must build my church and I will build it upon the foundation of the trinity…the Father, Son and Holy Ghost, and I Jesus Christ will be the chief corner petra [stone or rock ]. I love old Peter and appreciate him so much, but he made too many mistakes to be the foundation of my Church.

Every thing I believe about salvation, every thing that I trust to be flawless, and good for me is CENTERED IN CHRIST. Christ is the foundation of the church where my membership is. The totality of Christ from the day he was born in Bethlehem until this very moment—who he is, what he did, and what he continues to do, makes him the foundation of my church and my belief.

Each individual may not fully understand all of the ramifications of each phase of the Gospel and should not be disturbed in that they do not know and understand everything in the bible. But I believe that each and every person that is saved must first believe the general story that the bible relays to us, so if you do not believe the bible…you have a problem. The story relayed is too long to cover here, but I must give you the major guide-post along your journey to Saving Grace and Eternal Life. Through your faith……

You must believe in God the Father and Creator of everything there is; that sin entered the world and that everyone is a sinner until saved. You must believe that God sent his Son to save lost people; that he was born a virgin; lived and worked to establish his church, died on the cross and shed his blood to save the lost; that he was buried and arose from the grave where he proved himself to be deity and gave the church its commission, and promised to send the Holy Spirit to take his place and then he arose back into heaven.

So, now that you believe these truths, it is a simple matter for any sinner, lost and away from Jesus, to be saved and assured of a life with Christ forever. In fact it is so simple that I often say that is part of the reason why so many remain lost…they simply think that anything that easy can not be valued so highly. But it is! Admit you are a sinner, repent, and ask Jesus to come into your life and live his life through you…You must mean it, believe it, do it and then prove it by obeying him. You must be centered on Jesus Christ and the Cross, because he loved you so much that he died for you! He paid your sin debt!