Jesus and
his disciples headed west to the region of Caesarea Philippi. This is west of the Sea of Galilee and south
of Mount Carmel. It was here that Jesus
asked his disciples an interesting question.
Who do
people say that I am?
There was a
variety of answers. John
the Baptist, Elijah, Jeremiah or other prophets were being mentioned by the
people when they talked about Jesus.
Jesus
reframed the question. Who do you say I
am?
Peter
spoke. If there is one thing that we can
say about Peter,
he will get out of the boat. Peter
answers his Master.
“You are the
Messiah, the Son of the living God.”
Jesus noted
that Peter—Simon son of Jonah—didn’t figure this out on his own. He marked this moment in these words.
“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.”
Peter—you
are indeed what your name means—and on this rock I will build my church. On this God-given profession, Jesus
pronounced that he will have a church and it will not be overcome by the forces
of evil.
Jesus
confirmed Peter’s revelation and further revealed that he would have many more
disciples than these 12. In his church,
heaven and earth come together.
Thy will
be done on earth as it is in heaven would be manifest in the church. The church would still stumble and require
continual confession,
but abundant
life and eternal
life would begin with the church.
After these
revelations, Jesus instructed his disciples not to tell anyone. That’s got to be a tough pill to swallow for
these disciples that have followed Jesus all over the Promised Land. Now that what they had suspected was
confirmed by Jesus himself, they were instructed to keep that tidbit to
themselves.
Put this in
the his time had not yet come file.
Jesus
promised the keys to the kingdom. That’s
a metaphor for all eternity. The kingdom
of heaven was opened to Peter and to us.
God with us had made a way for us to be with God for
eternity.
Do you
remember how Jesus used the disciples in the miracles of feeding
the 5000 and the
4000? He used Peter and uses us to open
the
kingdom of heaven to all creation.
Our
commission is not just to save people from eternal darkness but to bring
them into eternal light. I’m stealing
from John
and preaching Matthew. The kingdom of heaven was opened to
us. We might fully live. We might live in accord with God’s purpose
for us.
Not only
could we seek his kingdom and his righteousness, we could live there. We can live there. We have begun living there.
And the gates of hell will not overcome it!
When it
looks like the
love of many has grown cold, remember the gates of hell will not overcome
the church.
When people call
evil good and good evil, remember the gates of hell will not overcome his
church.
When the
followers of Christ Jesus spend more time picking at other believers than they
do sharing
the love of God, remember, the gates of hell will not overcome this church.
So continue
the work of the church. We have unfinished
business. Don’t look at the darkness
all around you. Don’t covet what others
have. Don’t spend your best efforts criticizing
how other believers live.
Keep your eyes
fixed on Jesus and trust in his promise that the gates of hell will not
overcome his church.
And the
gates of hell will not overcome it!
Amen.
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