Our reading from the Gospels today tells the account of Peter’s proclamation of Jesus as the Son of God, and God’s chosen Messiah. Jesus had asked his disciples a very important question. He asked them who did they think He was. This is also a question that everyone on earth has to answer as well. As we read and study this passage we will see what the disciples answered. What would your answer be?
As we start reading, Jesus and His disciples have come to the area of the city of Caesarea Philippi (vs. 13). This city was about 25 miles north of Galilee, where most of Jesus’s ministry took place. For many years the city had been a center of pagan Greek worship. King Herod also had several temples built here, in honor of Caesar, for whom he also renamed the city after. The city was greatly influenced by both the Greek and Roman cultures. As a result, the city was filled with pagan idols, particularly to the god Pan, and was the home to many temples, including the recently built temples to facilitate the worship of Caesar as a god.
It was here, amidst all of this worship of false gods, that Jesus asked the disciples who people thought He was (vs. 13 - 14). They had been traveling with Him for a while now, had heard Him preach, and had seen the miracles He performed. During these travels they must have heard people talk about Him. Who did the general population think that Jesus was? The disciples answered Him by saying some thought He was John the Baptist, Elijah, Jeremiah, or some other great prophet come back to earth. They acknowledged Jesus was a great preacher of God’s Word, just like those men of the past were.
Okay, that’s what other people said. Now Jesus wanted to know who they thought He was (vs. 15 - 16). It was then that Peter immediately jumped in with his answer. He wasted no time telling Jesus that he believed that He was the promised Messiah, the Son of the living God. Peter said “living God” in contrast to all of the dead idols that they saw all around them in Caesarea Philippi.
This truth that Peter confessed at this time was something that God had revealed to Peter (vs. 17). This was not something that he learned by going to the synagogue, or was taught him by the religious leaders of the day. They had all opposed Jesus. This was something that God had revealed to Peter as He opened his heart to the truth, and which Peter accepted.
In verses 18 and 19 we read Jesus’s response to Peter’s confession. Many believe that the “rock” that Jesus spoke of here refers to Jesus, Himself, and to the salvation He purchased by His death on the cross. Others believe that the “rock” is that confession of faith that Peter had just made, which all true believers believe. Both are foundational truths and doctrines that the true Church accepts. True believers are the Church, whose foundation is this statement that the Apostles believed, Jesus being the Cornerstone.
Peter’s name at first was Simon. Here Jesus gives him a new name - Peter or “Petros” in Greek. That meant a small rock. The word “rock” that Jesus said He would build His church on is “petra” in Greek, meaning a large rock or boulder. It contrasts with “petros”, the smaller rock. This “boulder-like” truth came from one who was called a smaller rock.
Keys unlock and open up doors. We have been given keys - the opportunity to bring people into the Kingdom of Heaven by giving the message of salvation from the Bible. We must not decide for whom we open or close the door. The door must be kept open for all.
Why would Jesus, in verse 20, after this great event, then tell His disciples not to tell anyone? At this point in time the disciples still did not understand the mission of Jesus yet, particularly that He wasn’t a military conqueror type of Messiah. They needed to understand the complete truth before they should go out. This would happen after the Resurrection and the Holy Spirit descending on Pentecost.
Now that we have studied this passage, we must ask ourselves the same question. Who do we say that Jesus is? Many people today answer the same that the general population of the disciples’ day answered - that Jesus was a good man, a religious leader, but that’s all. What do we say? Do we, like Peter, answer that we believe Jesus is the promised Messiah, the Son of the Living God? That is a question that everyone, without exception, will answer when they stand before God at the end of their life. What will your answer be? If you have not accepted the Lord Jesus as your personal Savior, I urge you to not wait another moment, before it is too late, and ask Him into your heart. Accept personally for yourself the atonement, the payment, He made for your sins upon the cross, and accept Him as your Savior.
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