Matthew 16:13-20 September 3rd, 2017 A+D
+ Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. +
Jesus asked His disciples: “Who do people say the Son of man is?”1 This was quite an interesting question for Jesus to ask. The last prophet stopped speaking nearly four-hundred and fifty years previously. In that time, the Romans occupied Palestine and Asia Minor. Until John the Baptist, God’s voice has been silent for over seven generations! Therefore, it isn’t too shocking to us that people would become confused and have differing notions about how God’s Old Testament promises were going to come to pass.
Elijah returned from heaven wasn’t out of the question, as the last prophet Malachi said Elijah would return “before the great and terrible day of the Lord”2 We know he was speaking of John the Baptist, who would prepare the way for Jesus’ ministry.
Jeremiah or one of the other prophets? Jeremiah spoke out against the religious leaders in Jerusalem, much like Jesus does, and spoke of the oppression of God’s people from outside powers, much like the Romans are doing in Jesus’ time. Again, not out of the question. Some even thought John the Baptist himself had come back from the dead, as he was such a unique and powerful spokesman for God.
Who do people say that Jesus is today? The Qur’an mentions Jesus twenty-five times, recognizes Jesus’ virgin birth, and His ability to work great miracles!3 Jews today acknowledge Jesus as a great and wise teacher, a miracle worker, prophet, and the charismatic leader of a strange Jewish sect.4
It is not hard to find out who people thought Jesus was in His own day, or even in the modern day. Even honest non-believers will readily admit Jesus was an actual figure from history, and even go so far as to say that He was a great teacher of morality who lived His teachings by example. Some Islamic scholars even describe Jesus as “the perfect man!”5
If we listen to what Jesus teaches us, we know that what the world thinks of Him is not what is important. The more astute question is what Jesus next asks Peter. It is the question He asks each and every one of us. It is intimate, and personal: “Who do YOU say that I am?” Well, Peter? You’ve walked with me these past years, eaten with me, listened to my teachings – even had them privately explained to you! You witnessed miracles. Who do you say that I am?
Have we listened with Peter? This year it has been half a millennium since Martin Luther began to reform the church. He shed the baggage that had been heaped upon God’s Word to get down to the truth: Christ alone. Is it really still all about Jesus for us today, nearly two thousand years since His birth? Who Jesus Christ is for you makes all the difference in the world. If He means nothing to you, the world looks very different. If He is everything to you, well – imagine what it was like for those Jesus healed or cast out demons from – your life is certainly never the same!
God spoke to Moses when asked by whose authority he was to go before Pharaoh in Egypt: “I AM has sent me to you.”6 Jesus was not being subtle when seven times in St. John’s Gospel He said of Himself the same Name God gave to Moses.
I AM the bread of life.7 The bread that Jesus gives you is the bread that came down from heaven. This bread is His flesh, given for the life of the world. Anyone who eats this bread from heaven will live forever. Whoever believes in Jesus will never hunger or thirst. Real, physical bread you touch and taste so you can trust His promise of your spiritual hunger and thirst being eternally quenched. What else do you need to be satisfied?
I AM the Good Shepherd.8 The Good Shepherd knows his sheep, and His sheep know Him. The Good Shepherd gives His life so the sheep may live. Jesus is your shelter and your home. Whether you live in a dream home or in much more humble circumstances, it does not matter: Jesus has given His life to prepare for you a heavenly mansion. When you have that assurance, we should be satisfied with our current circumstances. Do you follow your Good Shepherd daily, or do you sometimes find greener pastures elsewhere? Think about all those people that have lost their homes and belongings in Texas. For many, all that they have is their Good Shepherd. And He is enough!
I AM the door.9 Those who know Jesus as only a great moral example are still lost, searching for a way into some version of heaven they have pictured in their mind. Christ tells us He is the Door, and those who enter though Him, will have eternal life. How will those who are searching know how to find the door, if they are not shown? Are you making use of the Door?
I AM the light of the world.10 Whoever follows Jesus, walks in light. The light shines in the darkness, and the world does not overcome it.11 Jesus promises that as long as He is in the world, He is the light of the world. He is here for you in the means of grace, which you can touch and taste, see or hear. You walk in His light. Even when the darkness of our sin tries to cover the light, the beacon of His Holy Spirit breaks through, calling you to repentance and forgiveness. Do you believe it?
I AM the resurrection and the life.12 Walk through Jesus, your Door, guided by His light, and you will live forever, even though your current body will end. You will be free of all the aches, diseases and conflict of spirit. You will be freed from the chains of sin. Jesus is your forgiveness. Jesus tells you I AM the way, the truth, and the life.13 Follow Him, and He will grant you eternal peace and rest. Do you trust Him to be the way in all times and circumstances? Do you think you can somehow approach our Father in some other way, than through His cross?
I AM the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser.14 We are branches grafted onto the true vine, as long as we put our faith in Christ. Those whose faith is placed in their own words or actions “Lord, did we not do mighty works in Your name?” will hear “I never knew you, depart from me, you workers of lawlessness”15 as their branch is pruned and burned in eternal fire.
Well? What is your answer? What is your personal confession of faith? Just as Jesus asked Peter, He asks each of us: “Who do you say that I am?” With Peter, we confess: “You are the Christ – the Son of the living God.” In You I put my trust, in You I find my nourishment and shelter. You are my Light and my home. You are my peace. You are my salvation. You are THE LORD, my GOD. Your confession is personal, because faith is personal. That is why we confess in the creeds “I believe” and not “We believe”.
Yet, we as individuals confess these creeds together as a community, because faith is shared by the assembly – the communion of saints. Together, we make an individual confession of the truth revealed in God’s word by the Holy Spirit which is the rock upon which Jesus builds His church.
If we are truly faithful to our Good Shepherd, walking in His light through His door and grafted on the true vine, we won’t care who men say that we are. We will simply be God’s sheep, following His way and trusting in His promises. All the good in us comes from Him, just as water and nutrients come up the vine to the branches that have been grafted on. When we reach heaven, we will simply hear “Well done, good and faithful servant… Enter into the joy of your master.” Jesus is Lord and God of all – He is the Christ. And He makes you who you are. Fed and sheltered. Rescued and forgiven. Sent to love your neighbor.
Now, who do you say that you are? You are forever changed by this confession. Are you a spreader of light, or a bringer of shadows? Knowing Christ as your Cornerstone, are you building barriers between yourself and those outside of our community? Or, is the Holy Spirit working through you to tear them down? Are you feasting on His word, and looking forward to the feast that never ends? Or are you fasting from week to week, starving yourself of His gifts?
Who will men say that you are?
+ In the Name of Jesus, Amen. +
And now may the peace which surpasses all human understanding keep your hearts and your minds focused on Christ Jesus.
+ Amen +
κήρυξον τὸν λόγον
1Matthew 16:13.
2Malachi 4:5.
3https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jesus_in_Islam
4cf. Josephus Jewish Antiquities, Bk. 18, Ch. 3, 3(63).
5 Little, John T. (3 April 2007). "Al-Insan Al-Kamil: The Perfect Man According to Ibn Al-Arabi". The Muslim World.
Hartford Seminary. 77 (1): 43–54. doi:10.1111/j.1478-1913.1987.tb02785.x
6 Exodus 3:14.
7John 6:35; 6:48; 6:51.
8John 10:11, 14.
9John 10:7, 9.
10John 8:12; 9:5.
11Paraphrase of John 1:5.
12John 11:25.
13John 14:6.
14John 15:1.
15Matthew 7:21-23.