Confession Of Peter And Jesus Series

Theme: Confession of Peter

Text: Matthew 16:13-28

Greetings:

The Lord is good; His love endures forever. We are meditating under the theme: “Perfect the good work” throughout this Lent season. From this week onwards we are journeying with Christ from Galilee to Jerusalem. Our ultimate station is Golgotha. Let us start with the “Confession of Peter” from Matthew 16:13-28.

Introduction:

The Gospel writer Matthew was a well-educated tax collector, was fluent in Hebrew and Greek. The gospel of Matthew has excellent Greek carefully organized, powerfully presented with all the pieces of evidence to prove that Jesus is the Messiah of God. He wrote to the Hebrews as a Hebrew (ref: fbcthomson.org). Matthew 16:1 starts with the Pharisees and Sadducees coming together to test Jesus sometimes like the Political alliances during Elections. William Barclay comments that “Hostility, like a necessity, makes strange bedfellows. It is an extraordinary phenomenon to find a combination of the Pharisees and Sadducees. They stood for both beliefs and policies which were opposing each other.

Let me think with you three subtitles based on the confession of Peter.

• Evaluation of Jesus through his Disciples (Matthew 16:13-15)

• Evolution of Revelation on Jesus (Matthew 16:16-20)

• Valuation of Life taught by Jesus (Matthew 16:21-28)

1. Evaluation of us through our known persons (Matthew 16:13-15)

Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am? Jesus wanted to know what the people talk about him. How they looked at him, whether they called him as man or man of God prophet or the son of the Prophet? The modern world is very familiar with the performance evaluation system. Evaluating energy, time, and talents based on a particular task and work for a specific period.

Jesus asked his disciples what they think of him. The Popularity of Jesus has brought increased opposition to his mission. Jesus asked his disciples to take an inventory of what people think about him. The spiritual lesson we can learn from this passage is, do we care about what other people think of our church or about Christianity? Am I concerned about how my colloquies think of me in my working spot, corporate and company? Am I give value for the valuation of my fellow worshipers. As a Pastor, do I take the time to know what my congregation thinks of my preaching, administration, relationship, and integrity?

People understood Jesus as Elijah, Jeremiah, or one of the Prophets. Some men thought he was another forerunner of Messiah-like Elijah (Malachi 4:5). Because Jesus called for national repentance like John the Baptist, Jesus has warned people and gave a clarion call for repentance, and he performed miracles like the prophets. So, they understood from their beneficial ground. All titles and characteristics have given him a measure of respect and honor but have fallen short of honor due to him (ref:blueletterbible.org/David Guzik).

We must be ready for self-evaluation and evaluation by others. Real and faithful evaluation builds our character and helps to look for better coordination and achievement in life. Accepting the valuations and making others understand our color destroys many rumors and problems.

2. Evolution of Revelation (Matthew 16:16-20)

Apostle Peter often presented in the four Gospels and the Acts of the Apostles as the spokesperson. “Peter is quintessentially human, full of contradictions, hot-headed, humble, pious, wilful, swearing to stand by his Lord, and in the end, denying his connection to Jesus. Fear overcomes him when accused of being a follower of Jesus; and it is not until the descent of the Holy Spirit, at Pentecost, when Peter and all the disciples are emboldened” (ref:episcopalcafe.com/Teresa Donati).

The revelation of God has come to us through natural means, and the life struggles and our closer walk with God with better understanding. Revelation affirmed with our devotion and determination in the conviction.

Peter confesses that Christ was more than a national reformer, more than a miracle worker, more than a prophet, and he was the Messiah. The progressive revelation of Christ as Messiah and the Son of God has come as a culmination to Peter. Peter confessed with an exclamatory and explosive statement. However, suddenly he has revealed his incongruent fixing of the theme (ref:episcopalcafe.com/Teresa Donati).

Confession is the declaration of Faith. Peter confessed Christ as Son of God, which brought him praise from the Lord. Jesus told Peter that he was a blessed than all other disciples. The ultimatum of our focused and convinced confession of Christ, clearly identifying Christ as the Son of God is the blessedness of life on earth (ref: torahportions.ffoz.org).

The real understanding of Christ shifts our approach to Jesus, and the words of our prayers used weighed. More fear grips and we tremble before him. Behavior and attitude everything matter a lot. Baptist Preacher Thomson: “Once we realize that Jesus is more than just a man, it forces us to change how we approach Him. He’s not someone we can choose when to follow and when to disagree and go our own way. He’s not someone we can vote for or vote against. He’s not someone we follow for a while and then graduate” (ref: fbcthomson.org).