Explore the Bible By Robert Olsen, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Christian Ministries, University of Mobile
Who is Jesus?
Matthew 16:13–28
Misunderstood Identity (13–14)
When Jesus came on the scene in Israel many did not see Him as the long-awaited Messiah. The Jews knew their coming Messiah would be a conquering hero; however, Jesus didn’t seem to fit this model. As such, many people saw Jesus as some sort of prophet in the line of Elijah or John the Baptist.
True Identity (15–16)
When Jesus asked the disciples who they thought He was, Peter answered correctly and recognized Him as the Messiah. This question Jesus asks is the most important question we will ever face. When we are confronted by this question of who Jesus is, our answer determines our eternal destiny. If we reject Jesus then there is no salvation for us.
Since we need to be reconciled to God, the lack of someone or something to do this leaves us separated from God eternally. If, however, Jesus is the means by which God has reconciled us to Himself — which is what the entire Bible presents — then we must bow down and worship this God-man as our Lord and Savior. This requires our full obedience to His commands.
New Identity (17–20)
Jesus affirms Simon’s declaration and calls him by his nickname, “Peter,” which means “rock.” Jesus declares He will build His Church upon this rock but to what is this rock referring? This saying is what the Roman Catholic Church uses to support its belief that the pope, who stands in the line of Peter, is God’s representative on earth. However, this view does not harmonize with the rest of Scripture. A better understanding is that the declaration made by Peter is the rock upon which the Church is built, or the rock is the disciples themselves as they testify to Jesus who is the foundation of the Church. Peter certainly was foundational in the early Church but even Peter was rebuked by Paul, suggesting he did not have some sort of supreme role.
Cross Identity (21–28)
The disciples recognized Jesus was the Messiah but they did not believe this would lead to Jesus’ death. Jesus rebuked Peter because Peter’s statement was a temptation for Jesus to not go through with His death. Instead He had to press on in service to the will of the Father. It had to be this way for God’s salvation to come to men. The gospel is not complete without Christ’s sacrificial atonement upon the cross and Christ knew this was the road He had to face.
He also knew that for those who followed Him, persecution awaited. In fact everyone who follows Jesus must die to him/herself and put God’s will above his/her own.
Many in our world today ignore Jesus’ words of warning, choosing temporal things to seek to fulfill their lives only to find that the promises of the world are empty. Instead of trying to look to the world for satisfaction and meaning, the only place to find real meaning and real satisfaction is in Christ. Those who come to Christ must put aside their own desires and choose His. This often leads to ridicule and, in many countries, a loss of property and possibly life. But choosing God’s path leads to eternal life, whereas the way of the world leads to destruction.
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