Confessing Christ (Matthew 16:13-20)

WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:03.720 Human standing. As we turned to our our text for this morning, Matthew 2 00:00:03.799 --> 00:00:14.429 Chapter Sixteen. Matthew Chapter Sixteen, beginning in verse thirteen. Listen, for 3 00:00:14.550 --> 00:00:20.149 this is the word of the Lord. Then, when Jesus came into the 4 00:00:20.190 --> 00:00:26.379 district of Cessoria Philippi, he asked his disciples who do people say that the 5 00:00:26.539 --> 00:00:31.780 son of man is, and they said some say John The baptist, others 6 00:00:31.899 --> 00:00:37.969 say Elijah and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets. He said to them, 7 00:00:38.329 --> 00:00:42.609 but who do you say that I am? Simon? Peter replied, 8 00:00:43.409 --> 00:00:49.289 you are the Christ, the son of the Living God, and Jesus answered 9 00:00:49.329 --> 00:00:52.960 him, blessed are you, Simon Bar Jonah, for flesh and blood has 10 00:00:53.039 --> 00:00:56.799 not revealed this to you, but my father, who is in heaven, 11 00:00:57.799 --> 00:01:00.600 and I tell you you are Peter, and on this rock I will build 12 00:01:00.640 --> 00:01:03.349 my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. I 13 00:01:03.430 --> 00:01:07.590 will give you the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven, and whatever you bind 14 00:01:07.670 --> 00:01:11.189 on Earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on Earth shall 15 00:01:11.230 --> 00:01:15.390 be loosed in heaven. Then he strictly charged the disciples to tell no one 16 00:01:15.790 --> 00:01:19.980 that he was the Christ. That's for the reading of God's word. May 17 00:01:21.019 --> 00:01:34.569 he bless it to us. You may be seated there. How many of 18 00:01:34.689 --> 00:01:44.609 you are fans, or at least very thrilled by the prospects of a pop 19 00:01:44.689 --> 00:01:53.439 quiz? Some of you, I know, they can be exhilarating, right. 20 00:01:53.359 --> 00:01:57.280 We all know that surge of adrenaline you get from an unexpected quiz. 21 00:02:00.790 --> 00:02:07.069 Or are you more like the majority who find this prospect dreadful? That's probably 22 00:02:07.069 --> 00:02:12.590 the more common reaction I see in my classrooms. And yet our reaction depends 23 00:02:12.629 --> 00:02:17.460 on the content, doesn't it? Our reaction to a pop quiz depends on 24 00:02:17.580 --> 00:02:23.539 if we're really prepared or not. It can be satisfying to take a pop 25 00:02:23.580 --> 00:02:29.300 quiz when we know the answers well. In our passage this morning, our 26 00:02:29.419 --> 00:02:35.530 Lord gives his disciples something kind of like a pop quiz. He just spontaneously 27 00:02:35.770 --> 00:02:47.240 asks them a couple of really important questions. Who is Jesus? In our 28 00:02:47.280 --> 00:02:53.199 passage this morning, our Lord asks this all important question to his own disciples. 29 00:02:54.479 --> 00:03:00.110 And yet notice what's chapter? This question is fent where this this question 30 00:03:00.229 --> 00:03:10.189 is found? It's Chapter Sixteen. This critical question shows up about halfway through 31 00:03:10.870 --> 00:03:20.020 Matthew's Gospel. Think about that we're about halfway through Jesus is public ministry, 32 00:03:20.620 --> 00:03:24.900 which means these disciples have been following, they've been questioning, they've been witnessing 33 00:03:25.099 --> 00:03:32.289 Jesus's Ministry for for quite some time now. Shouldn't this question have already been 34 00:03:32.530 --> 00:03:40.520 on the table now? Our Lord is a skilled teacher. He frequently uses 35 00:03:40.599 --> 00:03:47.840 questions as a way to reveal misunderstandings or false assumptions. But now, when 36 00:03:47.840 --> 00:03:53.800 Jesus asks his disciples, who do you say that I am, this is 37 00:03:53.919 --> 00:04:00.750 no longer simply another teaching moment. While there's much instruction and and insights in 38 00:04:00.870 --> 00:04:08.430 the verses that follow, our Lord asks this crucial question so that the disciples 39 00:04:08.469 --> 00:04:15.060 would demonstrate that they have ears to hear the truth of Christ's ministry. He 40 00:04:15.219 --> 00:04:19.939 asks them here to give a response, to demonstrate that their eyes have been 41 00:04:19.980 --> 00:04:28.689 open to see the message in Jesus's miracles. Although it is asking this question, 42 00:04:28.970 --> 00:04:31.329 who do you say that I am, so that the faith in their 43 00:04:31.449 --> 00:04:38.569 hearts would be the faith on their lips. This is why our passage is 44 00:04:38.639 --> 00:04:44.279 so important in many ways, it's the culmination, it's the it's the conclusion 45 00:04:44.480 --> 00:04:49.639 to the first half of Jesus's Public Ministry. All that he's been doing up 46 00:04:49.720 --> 00:04:56.670 to this point has been leading his disciples to give an answer to this question. 47 00:04:58.310 --> 00:05:02.029 He's been driving his ministry to the points where he can ask a foundational 48 00:05:02.149 --> 00:05:10.300 question because he has been revealing much through his miracles. He's been declaring much 49 00:05:10.420 --> 00:05:15.300 throughout his ministry, and now he asks a couple of questions to his disciples 50 00:05:15.379 --> 00:05:19.620 who have been there, who have seen and heard so much up to this 51 00:05:19.779 --> 00:05:27.209 point. We read that when Jesus came into the district of Cessaria Philippi, 52 00:05:27.930 --> 00:05:32.730 he asks his disciples who do people say the son of man is, and 53 00:05:32.889 --> 00:05:38.360 they tell him. Some say John The baptist, others say Elijah, others 54 00:05:38.399 --> 00:05:42.279 Jeremiah or one of the prophets. But he says to them who do you 55 00:05:42.560 --> 00:05:46.720 say that I am now in asking these questions? Do you see how how 56 00:05:46.759 --> 00:05:58.069 Jesus already starts to answer this question? He applies a title in these questions 57 00:05:58.509 --> 00:06:03.740 to himself. He calls himself here in this first question, the son of 58 00:06:03.819 --> 00:06:10.180 man. Now, son of man could be used in a generic sense to 59 00:06:10.259 --> 00:06:15.660 refer to any member of humanity, but Jesus is specific with this title. 60 00:06:16.060 --> 00:06:20.649 He uses it not as a general term but in reference to him self. 61 00:06:23.529 --> 00:06:27.529 And it's not just a generic name. When Jesus refers to himself as the 62 00:06:27.689 --> 00:06:32.519 son of man, it's it's an official title. He's not just a son 63 00:06:32.600 --> 00:06:38.560 of man, he's the son of man. And yet what does this term 64 00:06:39.040 --> 00:06:43.920 mean? Well, with this title we see our Lord's love for the language 65 00:06:43.920 --> 00:06:48.110 of scripture. He's not simply inventing new terms and new ideas. He's speaking 66 00:06:48.149 --> 00:06:54.589 these words in the context of the Scriptures and he's speaking these words to people 67 00:06:54.589 --> 00:07:00.189 who knew the scriptures. For it's in Daniel Chapter Seven that that Daniel Has 68 00:07:00.269 --> 00:07:02.939 a vision of a man, and not just a generic human figure, but 69 00:07:03.060 --> 00:07:09.420 a specific person. There in Daniel Chapter Seven, verse thirteen, he says 70 00:07:09.459 --> 00:07:14.779 I saw in the night visions and behold with the clouds of heaven, there 71 00:07:14.860 --> 00:07:17.730 came one like a son of man, and he came to the ancient of 72 00:07:17.769 --> 00:07:24.329 days and was presented before him, and to him was given Dominion and glory 73 00:07:24.490 --> 00:07:31.120 and a kingdom that all people's nations and languages should serve him. His Dominion 74 00:07:31.240 --> 00:07:35.600 is an Everlasting Dominion which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that 75 00:07:35.680 --> 00:07:45.110 shall not be destroyed. This person coming before the ancient of days, is 76 00:07:45.149 --> 00:07:50.069 a heavenly figure, so that when Jesus calls himself son of Man, I 77 00:07:50.110 --> 00:07:55.230 mean it's easy for us to think in sort of theological categories, right. 78 00:07:55.310 --> 00:07:59.019 We know that Jesus is fully God, we know that Jesus is fully man. 79 00:08:00.339 --> 00:08:03.500 So Jesus here must be talking about his humanity, be calling himself son 80 00:08:03.540 --> 00:08:09.899 of man. Right. And yet in Daniels Vision, this one, like 81 00:08:11.019 --> 00:08:16.290 a son of man, is coming with the very power of Heaven, writing 82 00:08:16.449 --> 00:08:20.209 on the clouds of heaven. This is the kind of language used elsewhere to 83 00:08:20.250 --> 00:08:24.170 describe God in his power and in his dominion over creation. For instance, 84 00:08:24.250 --> 00:08:28.000 in psalmn one, O four, verse three, he lays the beams of 85 00:08:28.079 --> 00:08:33.840 his chambers on the waters, he makes the clouds his chariot, he rides 86 00:08:33.919 --> 00:08:39.799 on the wings of the wind. This is why Christ is frequently calling himself 87 00:08:41.399 --> 00:08:46.350 son of man throughout the Gospels. And this title, which sounds so earthly 88 00:08:48.470 --> 00:08:54.509 in light of Daniel's vision, and is a heavenly title. And yet when 89 00:08:54.549 --> 00:08:58.019 we see Jesus's interactions with the crowds, even his interactions with his own disciples, 90 00:09:00.220 --> 00:09:03.779 there's a certain vagueness to this term. I mean we see this from 91 00:09:03.779 --> 00:09:09.049 Jesus own questions. Here. The title son of Man Does Not fully answer 92 00:09:09.250 --> 00:09:13.450 the question that he asks, does it? Otherwise he'd be giving the answer 93 00:09:13.490 --> 00:09:18.210 away in the in the question itself. Rather, with this title we get 94 00:09:18.250 --> 00:09:24.039 the first of three titles given to Jesus. In this brief exchange. Jesus 95 00:09:24.120 --> 00:09:31.600 calls himself the son of man and then Peter Calls Jesus the Christ and the 96 00:09:31.720 --> 00:09:35.679 son of the Living God. But before we get to Peter's answer, notice 97 00:09:37.159 --> 00:09:41.950 the answer concerning the crowds. Jesus first asks about the people. Who Do 98 00:09:43.029 --> 00:09:48.070 the people say the son of Man is? The disciples give a variety of 99 00:09:48.149 --> 00:09:50.990 options. That the an opinions that the people have. John the Baptist, 100 00:09:52.070 --> 00:09:58.299 Elijah, Jeremiah or what? Just one of the prophets. Now I want 101 00:09:58.340 --> 00:10:03.980 to highlight two things with this general reception to Jesus Ministry. On the one 102 00:10:03.019 --> 00:10:11.289 hand, look at how close they are. They realize that with Jesus they 103 00:10:11.289 --> 00:10:18.889 are dealing with somebody very important. They are hearing from somebody who is speaking 104 00:10:18.370 --> 00:10:24.639 God's word for him to be numbered among the prophets. They assume Jesus is 105 00:10:24.720 --> 00:10:28.919 a prophet, but that's no small thing. If he's John The baptist, 106 00:10:28.960 --> 00:10:33.840 for instance, if he's Jeremiah, if he's Elijah, that also means that 107 00:10:33.919 --> 00:10:37.990 he's been raised from the dead. It means he's been sent by God for 108 00:10:37.190 --> 00:10:46.070 an incredibly important mission. And yet, on the other hand, look at 109 00:10:46.070 --> 00:10:56.139 where this response falls short. They are identifying Jesus alongside other forerunners to the 110 00:10:56.220 --> 00:11:03.889 Messiah. These prophets are those who prepared the way for the Christ, and 111 00:11:05.009 --> 00:11:09.649 so, even though they're identifying Jesus with these larger than life figures, there's 112 00:11:09.690 --> 00:11:16.129 still failing to see the truth of who he actually is by putting him in 113 00:11:16.210 --> 00:11:20.000 the class of a prophet. Do you see how they're denying them that he 114 00:11:20.240 --> 00:11:26.159 is the Christ, the son of the Living God, and that, in 115 00:11:26.279 --> 00:11:33.909 this all important question, being close isn't good enough, for they see in 116 00:11:33.950 --> 00:11:39.230 Jesus just another in a long line of prophets awaiting the promised son of David, 117 00:11:39.269 --> 00:11:43.870 and as miraculous and as significant as Christ's ministry is, he must just 118 00:11:43.990 --> 00:11:50.980 not be meeting their expect patients, which is why Jesus makes this important distinction 119 00:11:50.100 --> 00:12:00.299 between the people, the crowds, and you, the disciples. These two 120 00:12:00.299 --> 00:12:03.250 questions highlight the the difference between the answers as well. Who Do the people 121 00:12:03.409 --> 00:12:09.610 say the son of Man is? And who do you say that I am? 122 00:12:11.210 --> 00:12:13.370 Do you see how much more personal his second question is to the disciples? 123 00:12:15.250 --> 00:12:18.960 I mean at first he's asking about the crowds and the son of man. 124 00:12:20.240 --> 00:12:22.159 Now, in speaking to his disciples, he asks the same question, 125 00:12:24.600 --> 00:12:28.000 but in the context of this relationship, it's not them in him, it's 126 00:12:28.039 --> 00:12:33.870 you and I. Who Do you say that I am? And so we've 127 00:12:33.870 --> 00:12:37.990 already seen one title being used of Jesus, that of son of man. 128 00:12:37.389 --> 00:12:41.909 Now Peter gives us two more answering on behalf of the disciples. Peter says 129 00:12:43.389 --> 00:12:48.980 you are the Christ, the son of the Living God. This word Christ 130 00:12:50.059 --> 00:12:54.179 is very familiar to us right. We refer to this title nearly every time 131 00:12:54.259 --> 00:12:58.929 we say Jesus name. We refer to ourselves as Christians because of this title 132 00:12:58.250 --> 00:13:05.970 of Christ. And he don't forget that it is a title. Do you 133 00:13:07.049 --> 00:13:11.929 know what this title means? We use the title Christ, but it's not 134 00:13:11.090 --> 00:13:16.519 really a translation. That's just the Greek word applied to English. Likewise, 135 00:13:16.559 --> 00:13:22.120 the Hebrew word for the same title is Messiah, but that's not a translation 136 00:13:22.200 --> 00:13:26.509 either, that's just the Hebrew word. If you were to translate these words 137 00:13:26.629 --> 00:13:31.190 into English, we see that Jesus is be called, is being called here 138 00:13:33.190 --> 00:13:41.500 anointed or the anointed one, and this anointing then refers to a practice in 139 00:13:41.539 --> 00:13:48.299 the scriptures where we are kings and priests are being called and set aside by 140 00:13:48.379 --> 00:13:52.340 taking up their office. In the Old Testament, these officers would their heads 141 00:13:52.379 --> 00:13:58.889 would be anointed with oil and in this act there being set apart. This 142 00:13:58.009 --> 00:14:05.330 anointing was God's declaration upon the person that this is my chosen one. The 143 00:14:05.490 --> 00:14:09.480 oil that was used was was but a demonstration of the Holy Spirit being placed 144 00:14:09.559 --> 00:14:16.000 upon this person so that they were set apart, specifically designated by God to 145 00:14:16.120 --> 00:14:20.159 do the work of the Lord. We see this in for Samuel sixteen with 146 00:14:20.240 --> 00:14:24.149 the anointing of David, when Samuel took the Horn of oil and anointed him 147 00:14:24.149 --> 00:14:28.429 in the midst of his brothers, and the spirit of the Lord rushed upon 148 00:14:28.470 --> 00:14:33.590 David from that day forward. Likewise, in Isaiah Sixty one, average Jesus 149 00:14:33.629 --> 00:14:39.379 ascribes to himself earlier in Matthew's Gospel, the spirit of the Lord God is 150 00:14:39.460 --> 00:14:43.980 upon me because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor, 151 00:14:46.019 --> 00:14:48.980 to bind up the broken hearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, 152 00:14:48.299 --> 00:14:56.090 the opening of prison to those who were bound. And so Peter is confessing 153 00:14:56.570 --> 00:15:03.090 that Jesus is not just another king, he's not just another priest. This 154 00:15:03.210 --> 00:15:11.159 is the Christ, this is the Messiah, this is the anointed one about 155 00:15:11.159 --> 00:15:16.399 whom even David looked forward in submission and in anticipation. The Messiah is the 156 00:15:16.480 --> 00:15:22.470 promised King, he is the promised priest who rules the nations and who also 157 00:15:22.710 --> 00:15:31.350 makes a sacrifice for sin. And Peter's awareness further clarifies the identity of Jesus 158 00:15:31.389 --> 00:15:39.059 with this third title, son of the Living God. The title son of 159 00:15:39.100 --> 00:15:43.259 God is the title we also find, first of all, in the pages 160 00:15:43.299 --> 00:15:48.700 of scripture itself. During the exodus, God refers to the nation of Israel 161 00:15:48.779 --> 00:15:52.289 as his son. He tells Moses and Exodus. For then you shall say 162 00:15:52.330 --> 00:15:58.330 to Pharaoh, thus says the Lord, Israel is my firstborn son, and 163 00:15:58.450 --> 00:16:00.049 I say to you, let my son go that he may serve me. 164 00:16:03.169 --> 00:16:07.120 Likewise, the Prophet Hoseiah recounts this event by saying, when Israel was a 165 00:16:07.200 --> 00:16:11.440 child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called my son. 166 00:16:12.759 --> 00:16:19.429 And yet this idea of sonship in the Old Testament is already consolidated in one 167 00:16:19.590 --> 00:16:26.549 person, as the king stands as a representative for the people. Second Samuel 168 00:16:26.590 --> 00:16:33.220 Seven makes this promise to David of a son who will sit on David's throne 169 00:16:33.299 --> 00:16:37.740 forever. That's how the Lord Promises David, when your days are fulfilled, 170 00:16:37.820 --> 00:16:41.340 when you lie down with your father's I will raise up from your offspring after 171 00:16:41.460 --> 00:16:45.259 you, who shall come from your body. I will establish his kingdom. 172 00:16:45.980 --> 00:16:48.049 He shall build a house for my name and I will establish the throne of 173 00:16:48.169 --> 00:16:53.649 his kingdom forever. I will be to him a father and he shall be 174 00:16:53.809 --> 00:17:03.319 to me a son. I love the beauty of God's words here. Recall 175 00:17:03.400 --> 00:17:15.079 how earlier the title son of man evoked and communicated this very heavenly seen of 176 00:17:15.279 --> 00:17:18.230 one standing before the ancient of days, riding on the clouds of heaven. 177 00:17:19.990 --> 00:17:27.269 And now look refine the title son of God in these very earthly places in 178 00:17:27.549 --> 00:17:33.980 Israel, in the Line of David, in God's promises of a human child. 179 00:17:36.019 --> 00:17:40.779 God's Word is so rich. And now he blends these categories in Christ 180 00:17:41.700 --> 00:17:49.769 to show us one who is fully human and fully divine. Will God calls 181 00:17:49.890 --> 00:17:55.690 Israel my son. As the scriptures unfold, we see that that Israel is 182 00:17:55.730 --> 00:18:00.079 not the final son of God. Likewise, the priests and the King's, 183 00:18:00.400 --> 00:18:04.000 even David's own sons on the throne, frequently lead the people astray and into 184 00:18:04.079 --> 00:18:10.039 sin rather than leading the people in righteousness and in worship, which is why 185 00:18:10.079 --> 00:18:14.549 we don't require just another prophet, like the People Thought, nor do we 186 00:18:14.789 --> 00:18:21.309 require just another nation of Israel. What we truly need is for God to 187 00:18:21.869 --> 00:18:25.869 save us, which is why, Paul says in Galatians, for when the 188 00:18:25.950 --> 00:18:30.180 fullness of time had come, God sent forth his son, born of woman, 189 00:18:30.579 --> 00:18:34.180 born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, 190 00:18:34.299 --> 00:18:41.849 so that we might receive adoption as sons. The Lord sending his son, 191 00:18:41.329 --> 00:18:47.609 the Lord sending his anointed, was not simply an answer to a failed Israel 192 00:18:47.809 --> 00:18:52.009 and to have failed kingship. Rather, this has been the portrait all along, 193 00:18:52.170 --> 00:18:56.039 this has been the plan all along, which is why Christ comes to 194 00:18:56.160 --> 00:19:02.119 fulfill these expectations, not to wipe them away. He's connecting these images, 195 00:19:02.160 --> 00:19:07.599 he's he's revealing the truth of himself and he's using images that we would understand 196 00:19:07.880 --> 00:19:14.430 from the pages of scripture itself, so that when Peter makes this astonishing confession, 197 00:19:15.789 --> 00:19:18.509 we reach the conclusion of what so much of Jesus's ministry has been driving 198 00:19:18.950 --> 00:19:25.740 towards. But Matthew's Gospel already kind of spoiled the surprise back in Chapter One. 199 00:19:26.140 --> 00:19:30.420 The book itself begins, the word, the words, the book of 200 00:19:30.420 --> 00:19:36.940 the Genealogy of Jesus Christ. Matthews already told us where we're going to end 201 00:19:36.980 --> 00:19:41.650 up. We see this at his baptism as well. When Jesus Baptized in 202 00:19:41.650 --> 00:19:45.170 Matthew three, immediately he went up from the water. Behold, the heavens 203 00:19:45.210 --> 00:19:48.369 were open to him. He saw the spirit of God descending like a dove 204 00:19:48.609 --> 00:19:52.769 and coming to rest on him. And behold, a voice from heaven said, 205 00:19:52.440 --> 00:20:00.880 this is my beloved son, with whom I am well pleased. Throughout 206 00:20:00.880 --> 00:20:06.640 Christ's life, throughout his ministry, he is demonstrating himself to be the true 207 00:20:06.799 --> 00:20:12.589 and obedient son of God. And after so many chapters. What makes Peter's 208 00:20:12.589 --> 00:20:18.910 confession here such a turning point is that now the disciples get it. The 209 00:20:19.029 --> 00:20:26.420 disciples now see, they understand what Jesus has been saying. They can articulated 210 00:20:26.579 --> 00:20:33.700 with words. In his brief confession, Jesus its disciples now know the identity 211 00:20:33.180 --> 00:20:38.049 of Jesus, they know the importance of his ministry. They finally know the 212 00:20:38.250 --> 00:20:44.529 divinity of this man. It's no wonder, then, that Jesus places such 213 00:20:44.529 --> 00:20:51.400 high praise on such a simple confession. Jesus answered, blessed are you, 214 00:20:51.759 --> 00:20:59.440 Simon Bar Jonah? He utters just a few words and he's blessed by Jesus. 215 00:21:00.039 --> 00:21:06.470 The words themselves are brief, the words themselves are not complex, they're 216 00:21:06.470 --> 00:21:11.390 not difficult to pronounce. On its face, it's a confession that doesn't sound 217 00:21:11.430 --> 00:21:18.259 all that eloquent, and Jesus isn't marveling at Peter's skill in making a good 218 00:21:18.339 --> 00:21:25.500 confession. It's not his abilities or his talents which are being praised, as 219 00:21:25.539 --> 00:21:30.140 if Peter had just given some eloquent speech. Notice it's not even Peter's insight 220 00:21:30.180 --> 00:21:37.170 or or intelligence that's being praised. Peter is blessed, but then Peter doesn't 221 00:21:37.170 --> 00:21:42.289 even get the credit. Blessed are you, Simon Bar Jonaher for flesh and 222 00:21:42.329 --> 00:21:47.599 blood has not revealed this to you, but my father, who is in 223 00:21:47.759 --> 00:21:53.920 heaven. It's not Peter who's ultimately praised. Rather, he's blessed because of 224 00:21:55.000 --> 00:22:00.279 what God has blessed him with. This confession comes not from himself, but 225 00:22:00.470 --> 00:22:06.990 is itself a gift from God, and it re choires this supernatural work of 226 00:22:07.069 --> 00:22:15.509 God. Because of our own sinful inability for anyone to give this answer humanly 227 00:22:15.589 --> 00:22:22.500 speaking, Peter gives an impossible answer to this question. Peter makes the connections 228 00:22:22.579 --> 00:22:27.019 he makes the this confession, which nobody else had made. I mean, 229 00:22:27.059 --> 00:22:33.890 the crowds were impressed, but they weren't calling Jesus the Christ. I think 230 00:22:33.930 --> 00:22:40.970 about this kids. When are your parents most impressed by your answers? Is 231 00:22:41.089 --> 00:22:45.039 it when the answers are easy, when the questions are easy? Where's it 232 00:22:45.039 --> 00:22:48.359 when the questions are hard? If you were to tell your parents the sky 233 00:22:48.480 --> 00:22:52.119 is blue, the grass is green, there's a wall, there's a door 234 00:22:52.799 --> 00:22:59.069 that, after the age of three, that's no longer very impressive. No, 235 00:22:59.190 --> 00:23:02.509 it's when the answers are difficult that are that our parents are most impressed 236 00:23:03.230 --> 00:23:07.829 with our abilities. How much more so for a question that is impossible. 237 00:23:11.630 --> 00:23:15.420 Here it's not just difficult to figure out the true identity of Jesus. Jesus 238 00:23:15.420 --> 00:23:22.099 says it's impossible, and not because of a lack of evidence. It's because 239 00:23:22.140 --> 00:23:30.410 these things cannot be confessed apart from a new heart. Through the miracles Jesus 240 00:23:30.490 --> 00:23:34.009 has been performing through the words that he has been speaking, he has been 241 00:23:34.049 --> 00:23:38.450 directing his disciples to see and to know and to declare this truth, that 242 00:23:38.569 --> 00:23:44.119 he is the Christ, the son of the Living God, and it now 243 00:23:44.200 --> 00:23:45.680 that they see, now that they can confess this truth. Were told that 244 00:23:45.720 --> 00:23:51.759 it's not their own insight at connecting dots that's at work, it is but 245 00:23:51.880 --> 00:23:56.789 a gift from God, who reveals this truth. Because Peter didn't simply give 246 00:23:56.829 --> 00:24:03.349 the correct answer to a theology exam. He's addressing a person with a personal 247 00:24:03.430 --> 00:24:08.109 question. Who Do you say that I am? I mean, of course 248 00:24:08.150 --> 00:24:12.380 the theology is is vital. We have to know what these titles mean. 249 00:24:12.539 --> 00:24:15.660 We have to know what we are meaning when we could affess that Jesus is 250 00:24:15.740 --> 00:24:22.299 the Christ and the son of the Living God. But this faith is more 251 00:24:22.339 --> 00:24:27.930 than just having the right answers. True faith is that confession which extends from 252 00:24:27.970 --> 00:24:36.849 a heart that believes and trusts in these truths. Jesus satisfied with Peter's answer 253 00:24:37.130 --> 00:24:44.000 not simply because it's the correct titles without spelling or grammar mistakes. Rather, 254 00:24:44.039 --> 00:24:51.680 it's what such a confession says about the sinner WHO declares it. When we 255 00:24:51.839 --> 00:24:56.589 declare Jesus to be the Christ, it means we're confessing him to be the 256 00:24:56.750 --> 00:25:03.029 true King. What does that say about you? It means that you're not 257 00:25:03.789 --> 00:25:10.259 the true king. He means that Caesar is not the true King. That 258 00:25:10.420 --> 00:25:17.299 Jesus is the Christ means that he is the perfect priest, which means that 259 00:25:17.539 --> 00:25:22.769 we need a priest whose sacrifice outweighs our sin, which means that we need 260 00:25:23.089 --> 00:25:27.170 a mediator too, to go before us to reconcile us to the father. 261 00:25:30.009 --> 00:25:34.130 That Jesus is the son of the Living God means that in him the fullness 262 00:25:34.170 --> 00:25:40.559 of Deity dwells bodily. It means that God himself is at work reconciling the 263 00:25:40.599 --> 00:25:45.400 world to himself. We confess that Jesus Christ is fully God and fully man, 264 00:25:47.839 --> 00:25:52.269 and that theologically correct statement is necessary, not just because it's true. 265 00:25:53.710 --> 00:25:57.789 We confess the full deity and humanity of Christ because by doing so we are 266 00:25:57.829 --> 00:26:06.980 confessing the truths of our deepest need. We need a son of Adam to 267 00:26:07.180 --> 00:26:11.660 obey and to fulfill the law in our place, and we need a perfect 268 00:26:12.220 --> 00:26:19.809 sacrifice of sin, one who can fully pay the eternal penalty our sin deserves, 269 00:26:22.369 --> 00:26:26.369 for our sin is so thick, it is so pervasive that even when 270 00:26:26.410 --> 00:26:33.240 the answer is spelled out before us in big bold letters, left to ourselves, 271 00:26:33.319 --> 00:26:38.799 we would rather abandon God and rely on our own strengths. Therefore, 272 00:26:38.839 --> 00:26:45.279 we confess Christ, because the grace of God has been at work, turning 273 00:26:45.359 --> 00:26:51.990 our hearts of stone into hearts of flesh. And so Jesus continues to ask 274 00:26:52.109 --> 00:26:56.910 this question. Who Do you say that I am? Because it is only 275 00:26:56.150 --> 00:27:02.420 in confessing Christ that we truly have life. He is the son of the 276 00:27:02.539 --> 00:27:07.339 living God because he holds in his hands the power of life itself, even 277 00:27:07.420 --> 00:27:11.779 life from the grave. He is the son of the living God because he 278 00:27:11.900 --> 00:27:15.809 blesses his people with life, not simply life in this world, but life 279 00:27:15.809 --> 00:27:22.529 in the world that is to come. Christ's words confront us with this all 280 00:27:22.609 --> 00:27:29.289 important question. Who is Jesus? This question divides life from death. This 281 00:27:29.369 --> 00:27:37.839 question divide saving fraith from blasphemous rejection. But Christ's words not only confront us, 282 00:27:40.079 --> 00:27:45.309 they also comfort us, for he tells us that flesh and blood does 283 00:27:45.430 --> 00:27:51.950 not grant these answers. It's not through our intellect or our understanding that we 284 00:27:52.029 --> 00:27:56.829 are saved. It is but a gift of God. So then, there 285 00:27:56.869 --> 00:28:02.819 is no room for boasting. Rather, we worship, we marvel, because 286 00:28:02.859 --> 00:28:07.339 he first loved us. Jesus asks who do you say that I am? 287 00:28:07.660 --> 00:28:12.730 And as the body of Christ, you get to gather week by week to 288 00:28:12.849 --> 00:28:18.210 give your answer to this question. You're gathering to to listen to God's word, 289 00:28:19.490 --> 00:28:25.130 but you're also gathering to give a response that, as a body, 290 00:28:25.329 --> 00:28:29.119 you respond to to God's law by confessing your need, as a body, 291 00:28:29.319 --> 00:28:34.319 respond to God's Gospel by confessing your faith. And these are simple, simple 292 00:28:34.400 --> 00:28:41.750 expressions of faith, and yet they reveal the miraculous work of God in your 293 00:28:41.990 --> 00:28:47.990 lives, for these simple words, these these simple confessions of faith, would 294 00:28:47.990 --> 00:28:52.630 not come apart from the work of the Holy Spirit in your hearts. Therefore, 295 00:28:52.630 --> 00:28:56.900 let us find our life. Let us find our life by confessing the 296 00:28:56.019 --> 00:29:02.819 life, death, burial and resurrection of our Savior. May Our life be 297 00:29:02.900 --> 00:29:07.980 found in who he is and what he has accomplished for us, because Christ's 298 00:29:07.980 --> 00:29:14.369 identity matters, because it's only in him that you are given a new identity, 299 00:29:15.930 --> 00:29:18.009 only in him are you given a new birth, a new inheritance, 300 00:29:18.450 --> 00:29:25.279 a new family and a new kingdom. Amen. Let's pray