Matthew 16
1 Then the Pharisees and Sadducees came, and testing Him asked that He would show them a sign from heaven.
Once again the Pharisees show up, not to be fed by His teaching but to put Him to the test by asking a sign from heaven to prove that He is the Messiah.
Jesus, of course, will not be put to the test, but rather points out to them how they refuse to see what has already been placed before them.
2 He answered and said to them, "When it is evening you say, 'It will be fair weather, for the sky is red';
3 and in the morning, 'It will be foul weather today, for the sky is red and threatening.' Hypocrites! You know how to discern the face of the sky, but you cannot discern the signs of the times.
They had the opportunity that no other generation ever had, yet they refused to believe.
They were more adept at reading the sky than reading the signs of the time
Jesus then told them that they would see a sign…
4 A wicked and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign shall be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah." And He left them and departed.
Jesus had explained what he meant by that back in the “sign of Jonah the prophet” in chapter 12.
Matthew 12:39-40 But He answered and said to them, “An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.”
Even this sign would not move them to believe.
Matthew 28
2 And behold, there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat on it.
3 His countenance was like lightning, and his clothing as white as snow.
4 And the guards shook for fear of him, and became like dead men.
Who can explain this away?
11 Now while they were going, behold, some of the guard came into the city and reported to the chief priests all the things that had happened.
12 When they had assembled with the elders and consulted together, they gave a large sum of money to the soldiers,
13 saying, "Tell them, 'His disciples came at night and stole Him away while we slept.'
14 And if this comes to the governor's ears, we will appease him and make you secure."
15 So they took the money and did as they were instructed; and this saying is commonly reported among the Jews until this day.
Isn’t it amazing that they each time they asked for a sign, they acted like they would believe, yet they had no intention of believing. When Jesus told he story of the rich man a Lazarus, when the rich man wanted Abraham to send Lazarus to go and warn his brothers about this place of torment, Abraham made this statement:
Luke 16:31 “But he said to him, 'If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rise from the dead.'”
Whatever sign they would have seen, they never would have believed.
Matthew 16
5 Now when His disciples had come to the other side, they had forgotten to take bread.
6 Then Jesus said to them, "Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the Sadducees."
7 And they reasoned among themselves, saying, "It is because we have taken no bread."
8 But Jesus, being aware of it, said to them, "O you of little faith, why do you reason among yourselves because you have brought no bread?
9 Do you not yet understand, or remember the five loaves of the five thousand and how many baskets you took up?
10 Nor the seven loaves of the four thousand and how many large baskets you took up?
11 How is it you do not understand that I did not speak to you concerning bread? — but to beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees."
12 Then they understood that He did not tell them to beware of the leaven of bread, but of the doctrine of the Pharisees and Sadducees.
Jesus told the disciples to keep their guard up against the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees because it was like leaven that has permeated and corrupted the entire nation.
· The Pharisees were legalists who reduced religion down to form and ceremony
· The Sadducees were rationalists who denied God’s power and any supernatural events
13 When Jesus came into the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, saying, "Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?"
14 So they said, "Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets."
Caesarea Philippi was about twenty-five miles north of the Sea of Galilee and five miles east of the Jordan.
This stop in Caesarea Philippi marked a great change in the ministry of Jesus; at this point He changes course and begins to set His face for the cross.
Jesus began by asking His disciples what men were saying as to His identity. The replies ran the gamut from John the Baptist, to Elijah, to Jeremiah, to one of the other prophets.
What is important to remember here is that to the average person:
· He was one among many.
· Good but not the Best. Great but not the Greatest.
· A prophet but not the Prophet.
That view is still prevalent today and is seen every time you hear someone say, “Jesus was a great teacher.” Several months ago we said that there was no room in Jesus’ teaching for that conclusion…He is either a liar, a lunatic, or He is the Lord…
Jesus wanted to make sure that the disciples understanding of Him wasn’t being formed by the opinions of others. So, He asked the next question.
15 He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?"
16 Simon Peter answered and said, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."
This is like being in class and the teacher asks a question on a subject you have a great understanding of; you just blurt out the answer. That was Peter…the question was “What is two plus two?” It seemed natural to Peter that He understood this, but Jesus wanted to make sure that all the disciples understood that this knowledge was not natural but supernatural!
17 Jesus answered and said to him, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.
The understanding that Jesus is the Messiah, Savior, Christ, Lord, and Son of God is revealed by the Father.
You don’t come to this conclusion by reasoning or intellect, but by revelation.
Listen to what Jesus said in Luke 10.
Luke 10:21-22 In that hour Jesus rejoiced in the Spirit and said, "I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and revealed them to babes. Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight. All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows who the Son is except the Father, and who the Father is except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him."
God is so willing to supernaturally reveal His Son to you. He wants you to have that same understanding that Peter had.
18 And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.
I find it incredible that this is the first time in the entire Bible that the word “church” is mentioned. It is helpful to remember that:
· The church was created by Jesus
· It is built by Jesus
· Nothing will be able to defeat it
There is a lot of controversy that swirls around the statement about the rock on which Jesus would build the church.
Let me first clarify that Peter never believed that He was the foundation of the church.
1 Peter 2
4 Coming to Him as to a living stone, rejected indeed by men, but chosen by God and precious,
5 you also, as living stones , are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.
6 Therefore it is also contained in the Scripture, "Behold, I lay in Zion a chief cornerstone, elect, precious, and he who believes on Him will by no means be put to shame."
7 Therefore, to you who believe, He is precious; but to those who are disobedient, "The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone"
Peter never claimed to be the head of the church, nor it’s foundation.
The question is, “Who or what is the rock?” Part of the problem arises from the fact that the Greek words for Peter and for rock are similar, but the meanings are different. The first, petros, means a stone or loose rock; the second, petra, means rock, such as a rocky ledge. So what Jesus really said was “you are Peter (stone), and on this rock I will build My church.” He did not say He would build His church on a stone but on a rock.
If Peter is not the rock, then what is? If we stick to the context, it is Peter’s confession that Christ is the Son of the living God. On that truth the church has been founded, and Jesus is the chief cornerstone of the church.
Ephesians 2
19 Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God,
20 having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone,
21 in whom the whole building, being fitted together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord,
22 in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.
Remember also that in scripture, we find that the term “rock” is not used symbolically of man, but always of God.
Deuteronomy 32:4 He is the Rock , His work is perfect; for all His ways are justice, a God of truth and without injustice; righteous and upright is He.
Psalms 28:1 To You I will cry, O LORD my Rock: do not be silent to me,
Psalms 144:1 Blessed be the LORD my Rock, Who trains my hands for war, and my fingers for battle
Isaiah 44:8 “Do not fear, nor be afraid;
Have I not told you from that time, and declared it? You are My witnesses. Is there a God besides Me? Indeed there is no other Rock; I know not one.”
1 Corinthians 10
1 Moreover, brethren, I do not want you to be unaware that all our fathers were under the cloud, all passed through the sea,
2 all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea,
3 all ate the same spiritual food,
4 and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them, and that Rock was Christ.
The rock upon which the church will be built will not be a man.
Now another very controversial scripture:
19 “And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”
One of the major management mistakes of the past several years has been the delegation of responsibility without the imparting of authority. In other words, workers were given the task of getting things done and they were held accountable for the results, but they had never been given the authority to accomplish the task. That is why “empowerment” has become the catchword over the past few years.
Jesus empowered the church and it’s leadership here on earth to carry out His purposes.
The keys of the kingdom represent authority that Jesus gave to the church. This echoed what Jesus said in John 20 and Matthew 18.
John 20:23 “If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.”
Matthew 18
15 "Moreover if your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone. If he hears you, you have gained your brother.
16 But if he will not hear, take with you one or two more, that 'by the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established.'
17 And if he refuses to hear them, tell it to the church. But if he refuses even to hear the church, let him be to you like a heathen and a tax collector.
18 "Assuredly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven."
Jesus laid out specific instructions for dealing with sin in the church and the sum of it all means that any duly constituted body of believers, acting in accord with God’s Word, has the authority to declare if someone is forgiven or unforgiven. The church’s authority is not to determine these things, but to declare the judgment of heaven based on the principles of the Word. When they make such judgments on the basis of God’s Word, they can be sure heaven is in accord. In other words, whatever they “bind” or “loose” on earth is already “bound” or “loosed” in heaven. When the church says the unrepentant person is bound in sin, the church is saying what God says about that person. When the church acknowledges that a repentant person has been loosed from that sin, God agrees.
We see this in action when Paul had to deal with that man involved in sin in the church at Corinth.
1 Corinthians 5
1 It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality among you, and such sexual immorality as is not even named among the Gentiles — that a man has his father's wife!
2 And you are puffed up, and have not rather mourned, that he who has done this deed might be taken away from among you.
3 For I indeed, as absent in body but present in spirit, have already judged (as though I were present) him who has so done this deed.
4 In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, when you are gathered together, along with my spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ,
5 deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.
Jesus backs up the decisions that the church makes, because He has authorized it in the area of binding and loosing.
2 Corinthians 2
6 This punishment which was inflicted by the majority is sufficient for such a man,
7 so that, on the contrary, you ought rather to forgive and comfort him, lest perhaps such a one be swallowed up with too much sorrow.
8 Therefore I urge you to reaffirm your love to him.
9 For to this end I also wrote, that I might put you to the test, whether you are obedient in all things.
10 Now whom you forgive anything, I also forgive. For if indeed I have forgiven anything, I have forgiven that one for your sakes in the presence of Christ,
11 lest Satan should take advantage of us; for we are not ignorant of his devices.
Let me just make one more observation here. When it comes to the use of this authority the church must be careful, impartial, and prayerful. It is so sad to see when the authority that Jesus imparted is misused and mismanaged.
More than anything I want you to leave with Jesus’ words ringing in your ears. “I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.”
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