“Location, Location, Location”
Matthew 16:13-20
This passage can be broken down into two main sections, verses 13-20 which we are looking at this morning, and verses 21-28 which we will tackle next Sunday.
So, today we are beginning a mini two-part sermon series on Who Jesus is, what that means, and what being a Jesus follower entails.
(pause)
Jesus brought His disciples to the region of Caesarea Philippi before His final journey to Jerusalem.
They had been together for almost three years and were followed by large crowds wherever they went, except for where they went in our lesson for this morning.
The reason is that this Northeastern area of Israel that was located at the intersection of economic trade was a pagan place, not a place for Jews.
And because of this, Jesus had some private time with His disciples to discuss some very important issues and prepare them for what was to come.
If we were to just gloss over exactly where Jesus has taken His disciples I think we would miss some interesting and important facts about this story.
In real estate and business in general, people often say “location is everything.”
“Location, location, location!”
And Jesus, being a masterful, intentional teacher and storyteller seems to have believed that location was important as well.
I think He wants this to be a teaching moment that His disciples will never forget.
They have traveled twenty-five miles from Galilee to the base of Mount Hermon for this lesson.
At the time, this place would have been considered the “red light district” of the world--a place of terrible moral decay, debauchery, and darkness.
As Jesus and His disciples spoke they would have been looking out at the largest rock formation in Israel and it was filled with pagan statues and at least fourteen pagan temples sat in the background.
In Old Testament times, this area was the center of Baal worship.
Eventually, the worship of Baal was replaced by the worship of Greek fertility gods.
When the Romans conquered this territory, Herod the Great built yet another temple, this one in honor of Caesar Augustus, but the people also continued to worship the Greek gods.
One of the most interesting things is that Caesarea Philippi was also home to a cave known to the locals as the gate to the underworld.
These pagan worshipers believed that their city was literally at the “Gates of Hades.”
Hades is the name for the home of the dead.
It’s the Greek equivalent of the Jewish word used in the Old Testament—Sheol which refers to the shadowy place where the dead reside.
Now, imagine Jesus standing, looking at this cliff with the pagan statues, at this place of pagan temples and shrines and economic trade with a temple praising the power of the Roman Empire and asking His disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” and then asking them, “But what about you? Who do you say that I am?”
What a dramatic moment.
This question Jesus asks is not simply about His identity, like getting an “A” on a messianic quiz.
It’s also a question about allegiance.
In what or in whom will the followers of Jesus place their trust?
Will it be in the privileges coming from access to opportunity and wealth?
Will it be in the worship of the prevailing culture’s latest idols?
Will it be in allegiance to the dominant power of earthly rulers?
Or will they trust, instead, in the One Whose life, death, and Resurrection will reveal the mercy, justice, love, and salvation found in the living God?
What would your answer be?
Or better yet, in whom or what do you place your trust?
It’s the question of the ages.
It transcends time and circumstance.
It’s Simon Peter who answered Jesus’ question, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”
Now Peter has no idea what that entails, but who can blame him?
It won’t be until Jesus’ death and Resurrection and then the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost that the Truth comes to him.
And even then, it takes a lifetime of trial and error, of learning and following Christ to get a better and clearer idea of it all.
And it’s the same for you and me.
Think about it, did you know what would lay ahead for you the moment you decided that Jesus is the Christ, the Savior and You decided to give your life over to Him?
Did you suddenly understand it all when you experienced the New Birth?
I thought I knew it all, for a little while, that is.
I think we can get a little cocky at first.
And we will see next week that this was what happened in Peter’s case.
The Christian journey is just that!
It is a journey of learning from Jesus as we follow Him, studying the Scriptures, and interpreting them through the lens of tradition, experience, and reason…
…or as we Methodists call it: The Wesleyan Quateralateral.
Remember that book that came out a decade or so ago?
Its title was “Everything I know I learned in kindergarten.”
Sadly, there are many of us who could say, “Everything I know about Christianity, the Bible and Jesus I learned when I was a kid in Sunday school.”
Because for a lot of folks, this is where it stops.
But this just creates immature Christians.
In 1st Corinthians Chapter 3 Paul tells the Christians at Corinth that he has to give them spiritual milk instead of solid food because they are still “babies in Christ.”
They haven’t moved on past the initial stage even after a considerable amount of time.
I think a lot of our problems in the Church come about because of this failure to grow in Christ.
Again, we will talk more about this next Sunday.
(pause)
So, Simon Peter gets Jesus’ question right.
This is His true identity.
He is, indeed, the Messiah, the Son of the Living God.
Then Jesus says to him, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven.
And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock, I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.”
Remember where they are.
As Jesus is saying this they are looking at this huge rock formation, the largest in Israel.
And I imagine He’s pointing at it as He says the words, “and on this rock I will build my church.”
Now, indeed, the “rock,” upon which Jesus builds His Church is the profession of faith that Peter has just made…
…but think again about location, location, location.
Metaphorically, Jesus’ Church will be built on the rock in Caesarea Philipi, a rock literally filled with idols for pagan gods, and where all kinds of wild pagan rituals take place that would make Mardi Gras look like child’s play.
And in saying this, what is Jesus telling us?
Jesus is saying that His Church will be built in the world, right in the middle of our messes.
His Church will be built in human hearts.
His Church will be built around the corner from crack houses and skid row and Wall Street.
It will be built in a world where allegiances are made to money, sports, economic trade, greed, nations, indulgences of every kind, technology, and the worship of more idols than we can possibly count.
But, Jesus’ Church isn’t going to run and hide from this.
Instead, it will be a city built on a hill.
It will be a light shining in the darkness for all the world to see.
It will be the salt of the earth, a place where people find forgiveness, salvation, mercy, and love.
It will be a place where the hungry are fed, the naked are clothed, the thirsty are given drink, the prisoners are visited, and the strangers are welcomed in.
It will be the Kingdom of God on earth.
And it will be made up of people who profess Christ as Lord and Savior, take up their cross, follow Him and spread His good news throughout the world.
And, and, pointing at that cave, in Caesarea Philippi, Jesus declares that “the gates of Hades will not overcome it.”
For through His death and Resurrection, Jesus will overcome death itself.
He will set the prisoners of Hades free!
They will be, as the Bible says, “the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep.”
For all who believe, as Paul proclaims, in 1 Corinthians 15, “the saying will come true: ‘Death has been swallowed up in victory.’
Where, O death, is your victory?
Where, O death, is your sting?
The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.
But thanks be to God!
He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
The “the gates of Hades” will not overcome or defeat Christ’s Church.
Think about it.
Are gates on offense or defense?
Do they storm things, or do things, people, whatever, storm them?
Gates are not used for offense, are they?
Gates are used for defense.
They are to keep others out and keep those inside in.
But Jesus’ resurrection goes on the offense against those gates.
It builds a Church which storms the gates of Hades and sets the prisoners free!!!
In the Apostles’ Creed we say that Jesus “descended to the dead.”
What is meant by that is that He entered and opened the gates of Hades, bringing the dead the good news of salvation.
We get this from Ephesians 4:9 and
1 Peter 3:19 which says, “After being made alive, he went and made proclamation to the imprisoned spirits.”
That is storming the gates of Hades.
And the Church, through the power of Christ and the Holy Spirit also storms the gates of Hades when we are led by the Spirit and proclaim the Good News of salvation by grace through faith in Christ to a spiritually dead world.
That’s what we get to be involved in as members of Christ’s Holy Church.
We are called to follow Jesus and be used to set the prisoners free, to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.
What could be more exciting?
What could be more important?
(pause)
And so, Jesus’ question—“Who do you say that I am?” hangs in the air at the intersection of economic trade, religion, and the power of the Empire.
And it’s a question for each of us.
In what or in whom will we place our trust?
Will it be in wealth?
In the worship of our culture’s idols?
Will it be in allegiance to political powers and earthly rulers?
Or will we trust, instead, in the One Whose life, death, and Resurrection built a church that proclaims the mercy, justice, love, and salvation found in the Living God Who created heaven and earth?
Will we trust in the only One Who has the power to save?
Jesus said, “I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven.”
And he wasn’t just saying that to Peter.
The church is not founded on Peter, just as it is not founded on John the Baptist, or Elijah, Luther or John Wesley.
The rock is not Peter but Peter’s testimony.
Jesus is saying this to us.
“Who do you say that I am?”
The choice is ours to make.
I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven.
They are a free gift.
You will have the ability to enter and open the door for others.
Let’s ask ourselves this morning: “Who do I say that Jesus is?”
Who do I say that Jesus is by my life, my allegiance, my testimony given through both my words and deeds?
In the first Christian sermon ever given on the Day of Pentecost, Peter proclaimed: “be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Messiah…
…repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins.
And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off…”
Have you done this?
Have you entered the Kingom of God through faith in Christ?
Have you been set free from the fear of death and the gates of Hades?
And if so, are you opening the kingdom to others through your words and especially through the way you love others with action?
If not, you can.
Let us pray:
Jesus,
I believe that You are the Messiah, the Son of the Living God.
You died, was Resurrected, and You are alive forever more.
I repent of my sins asking that You forgive me for trusting in earthly pleasures, wealth, idols and other things above You.
I want You to be the Lord of my life.
I want to be part of Your Church, which is built on this confession.
I want to be a person who helps others enter Your Kingdom through my words, and actions—through my life.
I give everything to You.
In the name of the One Who was and is and is alive forevermore, Jesus the Christ.
Amen.
