Messiah

Matthew 16:13-17:13
 

As we pick back up in Matthew 16, Jesus ministry is beginning to wind down.  Most Bible historians and those who study the time line of the Bible believe that the point we are at in Matthew’s gospel would have been only about 6 months prior to Jesus’s death.  He has been teaching and training the disciples, but He is about to give them one more exam.  This exam would show them that they still do not really have it all figured out yet.  They do not yet have the whole story down. 

Jesus leaves the area he was in last week – Mark tells us He was in Bethsaida (Mark 8:22) – with the crowds and the Pharisees and the Sadducees.  He has spent a significant portion of time in this area doing all kinds of signs and wonders testifying to whom He is, but He takes His disciples up north to get away from the crowds one last time.  They go to a place called Caesarea Philippi which is about 25 miles straight north of Bethsaida.  Caesarea Philippi had a diverse history, and was an area that many religions held sacred.  The Jews even held it in high regard because the head waters of the Jordan River are in the hills around the city. 
 
As they walked there, according to Mark, Jesus asked the first question of the exam.  This one did not really count for any kind of credit.  It was a pretty simple question. 
 
Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, He was asking His disciples, "Who do people say that the Son of Man is?" And they said, "Some say John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; but still others, Jeremiah, or one of the prophets." – Matthew 16:13-14
 
The disciples start naming off people they’ve heard others say Jesus was.  They started with John the Baptist, the forerunner of the Messiah.  But John was killed back in Matthew 14, so why would the Jews think Jesus was John the Baptist?  Herod, who had ordered John killed, had started a rumor that this miracle working from Nazareth was really a resurrected John.  I have no idea why Herod had started this rumor, but if you study the Herod family at all you will see that this kind of foolishness was rampant amongst them. 
 
Others said He was Elijah.  Why Elijah?  Malachi 3 refers to a messenger who will clear the way before the Lord.  Just a few paragraphs later in Malachi 4 we read:
 
"Remember the law of Moses My servant, even the statutes and ordinances which I commanded him in Horeb for all Israel. "Behold, I am going to send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and terrible day of the LORD. "He will restore the hearts of the fathers to their children and the hearts of the children to their fathers, so that I will not come and smite the land with a curse." – Malachi 4:4-6
 
So the Jews think that Elijah must return before Messiah comes.  Jews today still leave an open seat and an open door at Passover in case Elijah was to return and randomly come to their house for Passover.  Out of all of the options listed, I think this one has the best chance.  According to 2 Kings 2, Elijah did not die.  He was taken to heaven in a chariot of fire, so it would seem that God has a special plan for him. 
 
But there were other people who thought Jesus was Jeremiah.  This one is weird.  There was a semi-popular belief that once God revealed to Jeremiah what would happen during the Babylonian invasion that Jeremiah went into the temple and stole the altar of incense and the Ark of the Covenant and hid them from the Babylonians.  I am not quite sure how Jeremiah would have taken the Ark of the Covenant by himself and hidden it.  Since he was not the High Priest and it was not the Day of Atonement, no one was allowed into the Holy of Holies. Touching the Ark outright was certain death, just read 2 Samuel 6.  But regardless, some held to this idea and said that Jeremiah would come back to return the altar of incense and the Ark to the temple before Messiah would return.
 
Others yet said He was just a prophet.  They all acknowledged that He was no ordinary man, but they all fell short of realizing who He truly is. 
 
So then Jesus asks the second question of the exam.  This one is for all the marbles and was a pass / fail question.  In fact, this question still rings down the corridors of time and it is a question that every person will have to answer at some point in their life.  Failing this exam leads to eternal punishment.  Passing leads to eternal joy. 
 
He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?" – Matthew 16:15
 
“Who do you say that I am?” Stop cheating.  Do not let your parents answer this question for you.  Do not let your church answer this question for you.  Do not let your pastor answer this question for you.  Answer it yourself.  Peter, ever the spokesman, answered for the disciples.
 
Simon Peter answered, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." – Matthew 16:16
 
Christ, the Messiah, the Anointed One, the Chosen One.  The Son, or the essence, of the living God.  Peter’s statement has rung down through the centuries as one containing so much truth in such a short statement.  We read this and think Peter has nailed it on the head.  He has just declared Jesus to be Messiah.  Peter has finally figured it out and can go shout it from the roof tops.  But how did Peter figure this out?  Was it all the miracles?  Was it his authoritative teaching?   Was it the parables?  No.  Jesus explains how Peter figured this out.
 
And Jesus said to him, "Blessed are you, Simon Barjona, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. – Matthew 16:17
 
Peter did not figure this stuff out on his own.  It was revealed to him by God the Father.  It is not recorded for us that Jesus ever explicitly stated His identity.  His messianic claims had alluded to Old Testament prophecy and His signs and wonders had backed up these claims, but He had never explicitly stated that He was Messiah.  To grasp this the way that Peter had, and to put it so succinctly, is evidence of a heart divinely regenerated by faith. 
 
But Jesus did not just stop with a blessing for Peter.  He went on to expound more on Peter’s statement and draw out the implications of Him being Messiah.
 
"I also say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it. – Matthew 16:18
 
We’ve all heard the arguments that stem from this passage.  Some argue that this means Peter was the first Pope.  Others argue from the Greek wording that Peter was merely a pebble in the mortar that was used to build the church upon the foundation of Christ, the chief cornerstone. 
 
Normally, I’d pick apart the false claim, but I see no need to do it here.  I think we all know both arguments well enough already.  However, while the line of argumentation from the Greek is a strong and, I believe, accurate argument, I came across another argument that I had never heard before.  If Peter was truly the first Pope, then the rest of the apostles totally missed that memo.  The leader of the church in Jerusalem was James, the half-brother of Jesus, not Peter.  Peter was a pillar within the first church, as were all the other apostles.  Paul rebuked Peter at one point – not something you do to the Pope.  Peter himself in the second chapter of his first epistle references this same statement from Christ.  He says the church is made up of living stones (1 Peter 2:5) while Jesus Christ is the chief corner stone (1 Peter 2:6-7).  At the Jerusalem Council in Acts 15, while Peter is only one of two people to speak, it would appear that James was the final authority as he closed the arguments and called for a letter to be written to the Gentiles.  As you read the book of Acts, I’d say that it is pretty obvious that if Peter was the first Pope, he sure did not act like it. 
 
Back to our passage, Jesus will build His church on the bedrock truth that He is the Messiah, the Son of the living God.  God’s purpose has always been to gather a people that are His own.  This is the first time in the New Testament that this word is used, but it doesn’t seem to confuse His listeners.  The Greek work translated “church” is the same word the Septuagint uses when it refers to the “assembly of Israel.”  A church is a gathering, a congregation, an assembly of people.  The understood that Jesus intention was to call a people to Himself who acknowledged and proclaimed that He was the Messiah. 
 
Then Jesus gives another statement that has confused people for years.  It sounds like He gave Peter some great authority. 
 
"I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; and whatever you bind on earth shall have been bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall have been loosed in heaven." – Matthew 16:19
 
But if we look at it within the context, I think we’ll find that it is pretty simple for now.  We will come to this again in Matthew 18, and we get some more clarification on the topic.  However, since Matthew 18 isn’t very far away, I do not want to steal someone’s thunder.  But for now, at the risk of over simplifying this, at its most basic level the keys Jesus is referring to are the Gospel.  Without the Gospel, a man is bound in His sin and therefore cannot be free to enjoy heaven.  Whereas a person who has been freed from the bondage of sin is free to enjoy heaven.
 
So after praising Peter for his theologically sound, bedrock statement, Jesus gives a command that we have seen before.
 
Then He warned the disciples that they should tell no one that He was the Christ. – Matthew 16:20
 
Did Jesus say this because He was afraid the crowds would try to force Him into a governmental position?  Was He afraid of the religious rulers who would want to kill him?  No.  He already knew that the Sadducees and the Pharisees wanted to kill him.  Back in Chapter 12 they were seeking a way to destroy Him.  Let’s look at the next section and then come back to verse 20.  I think this will shed light on every occasion that Jesus gave this command. 
 
From that time Jesus began to show His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised up on the third day. Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, "God forbid it, Lord! This shall never happen to You." But He turned and said to Peter, "Get behind Me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to Me; for you are not setting your mind on God's interests, but man's." – Matthew 16:21-23

The Greek word translated “began” gives the idea that this dominated His teaching.  The common theory within Judaism is still that Messiah will come and restore the kingdom to Israel.  He will rule like King David and over throw all the enemies of Israel.  The disciples thought this too.  Even though they accepted the person of Jesus Christ and knew his true identity, they had not yet come to grips with His plan.  He had been hinting at it all along.  Looking back, we see it clearly.  The gospel writers even drop us hints along the way to help us understand, such as when Jesus referred to rebuilding the temple in 3 days.  Matthew told us then that He was referring to His resurrection.  But this was the first time for all of the disciples.  Did you get every school subject the first time the teacher covered the material?  No, you learned through experience with that subject.  The same happened for Peter, James, John, Matthew, and the others. 
 
As Jesus tells of His coming suffering at the hands of the chief priests and scribes, all the disciples hear is Messiah is going to die.  But wait!! Messiah is supposed to set up His kingdom.  The great and terrible day of the Lord from Malachi 4 is supposed to be when Messiah takes over Israel and pronounces judgement on all her enemies.  They get hung up on His death, and I am not even sure they heard the part about His resurrection.  In fact, it was not until after He had risen from the dead that it all made sense to them (see John 2:21-22).
 
Peter, after this mountain top experience and the great news that Jesus is the Messiah gets some devastating news.  It just rocks his whole understanding of Messiah.  And if you ever need an example of Jesus’ humanity, here’s one.  Peter treated Him like another man, not like God.  So he takes Jesus aside – he pulls Messiah aside – and begins to tell Jesus that He is wrong.  The Greek word for “rebuke” is the word we get epitome from.  We hardly ever use these definitions, but Miriam-Webster’s second and third definitions are respectively “2a: a summary of a written work; b: a brief presentation or statement of something. 3: brief or miniature form.”  The Greek literally has the idea “to cut something up and make it smaller.”  It was a very sharp, stern rebuke or warning.  Peter cut Jesus off and tried to correct Him. 
 
At this, Jesus drops the hammer on poor Peter.  “Get behind me, Satan!”  Mark tells us that Jesus turned around and saw the other disciples and then rebuked Peter.  The same Greek word was used here as for when Peter rebuked Jesus.
 
Was not Jesus being overly harsh with Peter by calling Him Satan?  I am going to go out on a limb and say no.  For one, He’s God and cannot sin like that.  For two, He had heard this voice before back in chapter 4.  I will give you all the kingdoms of the world if you will bow down to me.  We know now that God’s plan all along was for Jesus to die in order to redeem the world.  To go straight to ruling would have been an act of pride and self-exaltation. 
 
But Jesus also rebuked Peter, and I dare say the other disciples too, for not thinking about things God’s way.  Remember, Mark said Jesus did not rebuke Peter until He saw the other disciples.  I think they all felt the same way Peter did; Peter was just the outspoken one of the bunch.  They were more concerned about their ideas than God’s.  Oh, how often we do the same?!?  How many times does something happen and instead of asking God His take on it, we try to force our own viewpoint on it. 
 
Why did Jesus warn the disciples not to tell people that He was the Messiah?  Because they did not yet understand the full story.  Once He died and rose again, they would understand the purpose of His coming.  He came the first time as Redeemer, and will come later as King.  Once they grasped that, He told them to go tell the entire world about Him.  But then Jesus says something that on the surface seems disconnected from what He just told them.  Matthew 16:24-27:
 
Then Jesus said to His disciples, "If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me. "For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. "For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? "For the Son of Man is going to come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and will then repay every man according to his deeds. – Matthew 16:24-27
 
So what is the cross we are to take up if we are going to follow Jesus?  It isn’t your job, your kids, your wife, you in-laws, or your finances.  The disciples knew exactly what a cross was.  It is estimated that over 8,000 Jews were crucified during the Roman occupation for true and perceived crimes against Rome.  For Jesus to tell His followers that they needed to take up their cross and follow Him, they understood that the word “cross” was a death sentence to something.  Jesus explains in verse 25 that “whoever wishes to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.”  To follow Jesus, we must die to self.  Die to our own ambitions and to our own selfish desires. 
 
It is this very passage that causes me to question the notions of self-esteem and self-worth that many Christians are pushing today.  My worth is only found in Christ.  Everything I have that amounts to anything is only because of Him.  Instead, Jesus calls me to deny myself and take up my cross.  I am to deny myself of my selfish desires, to die to my own will, and to submit to Him.  Then, and only then, will I find true meaning in life.  If I gain the entire world; if I become the wealthiest man alive; but lose my soul, what good has that done?  Instead, I should be seeking first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and storing up crowns of glory there.  Oh, and by the way, I do not get to keep those crowns.  I will lay them right back at my Savior’s feet as an act of worship. 
 
Verse 28 has caused much confusion amongst Bible scholars over the years.  After telling the disciples that in order to follow Him, they must die to themselves, He makes an odd statement.
 
"Truly I say to you, there are some of those who are standing here who will not taste death until they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom." – Matthew 16:28
 
At first glance, this does not seem right.  All 12 of these men are long dead, and yet Christ has not returned in His kingdom.  We know Scripture is not wrong, so what can it possible mean?  Is He referring to His invisible kingdom of those who believe He is the Messiah?  Or maybe He means something else.  Most scholars say something else.  Many believe that the answer to this prophecy was about a week away from being revealed, and we will see what they mean in Matthew 17.  There are parallel passages of this in Mark 9 and Luke 9, so feel free to read those on your own this week. 
 
Six days later Jesus took with Him Peter and James and John his brother, and led them up on a high mountain by themselves. And He was transfigured before them; and His face shone like the sun, and His garments became as white as light. And behold, Moses and Elijah appeared to them, talking with Him. Peter said to Jesus, "Lord, it is good for us to be here; if You wish, I will make three tabernacles here, one for You, and one for Moses, and one for Elijah." While he was still speaking, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and behold, a voice out of the cloud said, "This is My beloved Son, with whom I am well-pleased; listen to Him!" When the disciples heard this, they fell face down to the ground and were terrified. And Jesus came to them and touched them and said, "Get up, and do not be afraid." And lifting up their eyes, they saw no one except Jesus Himself alone. – Matthew 17:1-8
 
If you read Luke’s account, he says it was about 8 days.  Is this an error in the Bible?  No, just two different ways of accounting for time.  Matthew and Luke could have been counting the days in between these two events where Luke could have counted the two extra days on the end.  Or, since Luke uses about, He may not have been confident in the number of days he was given.  We do the same thing all the time. 
 
Luke said that Jesus took them up on this high mountain to pray, but while Jesus was praying, the other 3 fell asleep.   While He was praying, He was transformed.  This is the Greek word that we get “metamorphosis” from.  He literally changed form.  If you read Hebrews 1 & 2, the writer there is making the point that God the Son took on Human flesh and became a man that He might die to “destroy the one holding the power of death.”  For just a minute, Jesus took off the veil of human flesh and allowed these three mortal beings to partake of a small piece of His glory.  Remember in Exodus 33, God told Moses that He would hide Moses in a rock and only allow Moses to see His back for if Moses saw God’s face he would die (Exodus 33:20). 
 
Personally, I believe Jesus did this to bolster the disciple’s faith.  He had just crushed it with a revelation that their preconceived notion of Messiah was wrong.  The One they thought was coming to restore Israel’s glory was to be tortured and murdered.  But in this short moment, we are allowed to see His deity.  How do we know this was deity? 
 
Let’s look at a few passages that describe God’s appearance.  Start with Exodus 34.  Right after Moses had been with God, it says his face was shining.  Moses did not know it, but after speaking with God his face was shining as a reflection of the glory of God.  Psalm 104 says that God is clothed in splendor and majesty, covering himself with light.  In Revelation 1, John says that He has a long robe, white hair, flaming eyes, and his face shown like the sun in its full strength. Compare that with the 3 accounts of the transfiguration. 
 
Matthew said His faced shone like the sun, and His garments were as white as light.  Mark said His garments were radiant and “exceedingly white, as no launderer on earth can white them.”  He apparently had a bad history with the cleaners.  Luke said he garments were white and gleaming, literally flashing like lightning. 
 
Remember, Peter, James, and John were all asleep.  They were awakened by this bright light, and the first thing they saw was Jesus talking with two others.  We aren’t told how they knew who they were, perhaps Jesus told them.  But regardless, there stand Moses and Elijah talking with Jesus about his departure to come.  Poor Peter not knowing what else to do blurts out, “Rabbi, it is good for us to be here. Let’s make tabernacles, one for you, and one each for Moses and Elijah.  Luke spares Peter some humiliation by adding that he did not know what he was saying.  But you know Peter; when you can’t think of what else to do, say something!
 
As Peter was speaking, a great cloud descends upon them, and a voice said to them, “This is My Son. Listen to Him!”  The disciples became so afraid that they fell face down on the earth and were absolutely terrified.  But Jesus tenderly touches them and says “Get up, do not be afraid.”  Man’s response to the glory of God is always terror – “a terror that comes as a result of the manifestation of His utter other-worldliness, of His perfect holiness, of His transcendent deity.  But in His mercy, ‘Jesus says Get up.  Do not be afraid.’” (Alistair Begg)
 
As they were coming down from the mountain, Jesus commanded them, saying, "Tell the vision to no one until the Son of Man has risen from the dead." And His disciples asked Him, "Why then do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?" And He answered and said, "Elijah is coming and will restore all things; but I say to you that Elijah already came, and they did not recognize him, but did to him whatever they wished. So also the Son of Man is going to suffer at their hands." Then the disciples understood that He had spoken to them about John the Baptist. – Matthew 17:9-13
 
Again, we see the command to tell no one what they saw.  Jesus wanted them to hold onto all of these things until they finally got the full story together.  Once they had the full story, nothing would stop them – not even all the fury that hell could throw against them.   The disciples still could not figure out that risen from the dead part.  Mark says they discussed it amongst themselves, but they never brought it up to Jesus.  They did ask him about Elijah though. 
 
Jesus told them that Elijah had come, but no one recognized him, so they did to him whatever they wanted, and they would do the same to Jesus.  At that point, the disciples understood that John the Baptist was Elijah.  John was the last of the Old Testament prophets pointing to Jesus while Elijah was, in the mind of the Jews, the greatest prophet. 
 
But what does all of this mean for us today?  First, we must all answer the question “Who do you say that I am?”  Nothing else is as important as your answer to this question.  You may disagree with everything else I have said today, but your answer to this question has eternal consequences.
 
Secondly, are we concerned with the things of God, or are we like Peter and concerned with the things of men?  Has the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, or the pride of life overtaken our thinking?  The only 2 places outside of the transfiguration of Jesus that the Greek word translated “transfigure” is used in the Bible are in Romans 12 and 2 Corinthians 3:18.
 
And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect. – Romans 12:2
 
But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit. – 2 Corinthians 3:18
 
We cannot overcome this world unless our minds are transformed into the mind of Christ.  How?  By looking in the mirror of the Bible daily and seeing His glory.  As we do that, we will be transformed into the same image. 
 
Third, are we dying to self?   This passage is not easy.  There is some deep stuff in here that takes careful consideration.  Am I setting aside what I want and following Jesus?  This goes hand-in-hand with question 2.  We cannot be dead to self and concerned with the things of men.