Matthew 16

Matthew 16:1

As we have seen, the Gospel of Matthew is a presentation of Jesus Christ as King. Written from this perspective, chapters 1 through 10 reveal the King: His Person, His prophet, His precepts, His power. Chapters 11 through 13 portray the rebellion against the King: against His Person, His prophet, His precepts, and His power. Chapters 14 through 20 present the retreat of the King as Jesus pulls His disciples away for times of instruction and fellowship. He will still have encounters with His enemies, and from time to time, the crowds will still surround Him, but this section of Matthew is primarily a record of Jesus retreating with His disciples. The Pharisees and Sadducees tracked Jesus down as He withdrew into Galilee. Attempting to test Him, they asked Him for a sign. Now, this absolutely blows my mind because only two chapters earlier, Jesus fed five thousand men with a few loaves and fishes. And then in the sequel, Loaves and Fishes II, He fed four thousand. The Pharisees and Sadducees simply refused to see what was happening all around them. In 2Co_3:14, Paul writes that Satan has blinded the minds of those who have willingly rejected the gospel. If a person desires to see the light and to know the Truth, however, it will be revealed to him regardless of his surroundings or his situation. I read about a French woman who lived fifty years ago and had been blind from birth. One day, someone gave her the Gospel of Mark in Braille. She was so blessed by the story of Jesus that she read it over and over until her fingertips became callused and lost their sensitivity. To regain feeling in her fingers, she cut off the calluses, and with bloody fingertips, read Mark’s Gospel yet again. As she continued to cut away the skin and the calluses, however, she damaged her nerve endings so badly that soon she permanently lost all feeling in her fingertips. Devastated, she held her copy of the Gospel of Mark in her hands one last time and literally kissed it goodbye.

It was then she discovered that her lips were more sensitive than her fingertips had ever been. She continued to study the Scriptureswith her lipsand went on to become a gifted teacher of the Word. Those who are blind but want to see will see, regardless of the obstacles. Those who don’t wish to seePharisees, scribes, and Sadducees, even though miracles are happening round about themwill not see because they don’t want to see.

Matthew 16:2

In Jesus’ day, the rabbis taught that a demon could perform earthly miracles, but only God could work miracles that related to the sky. Therefore, when these Pharisees said, “Show us a sign from heaven,” they were actually saying, “Okay, so You fed five thousand, walked on water, and healed a leper. You might be a demon. Show us a sign from heaven to prove You’re not.” Continuing with their line of reasoning, Jesus said, “Speaking of the heavens, you can predict the heavenly signs, why not the signs of the times?” Daniel prophesied precisely when Messiah would be on the scene (chapter 9). Thus, Jesus is saying, “Can’t you discern the signs of the times? Don’t you know Bible prophecy?” knowing that if the religious community of the day had been studying the Word like they should have been, they would have known that this was the exact time for Messiah to appear.

Matthew 16:4

Miracles never convert a person. They can satisfy a person’s curiosity, but they will never bring him into a born-again salvation experience. The world says, “If I can see it, then I’ll believe it.” The Bible says, “If you believe it, then you’ll see it.” Signs and wonders can confirm the Scripture, but only faith can convert the sinner. Voltaire, the famous French infidel, was so bitter towards Christianity, it was claimed that he said, “Even if a miracle should be wrought in the open marketplace before one thousand sober witnesses, I would rather mistrust my senses than admit a miracle took place.” Such is the mentality of the skeptic, of the sinner, of the non-believer. Interestingly, Voltaire also said, “In one hundred years from now, Christianity will be a thing of the past and the only Bibles will be in museums!” Twenty years after his death, the Geneva Bible Society purchased his house to be used to print the Bible. Later it became the Paris headquarters for the British and Foreign Bible society. Jonahthe one who was thrown overboard in the sea and for three days was seemingly in hell itself in the belly of the great fish before being thrown out on the beachwas himself a symbol of resurrection. “Destroy this temple,” Jesus declared referring to Himself, “and in three days I will raise it up” (Joh_2:19). That’s the one sign Jesus promised.

Matthew 16:5

When Jesus talked about the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees, His disciples assumed He was speaking on a material level about something physical rather than something spiritual. This happened throughout the Gospels. Whenever Jesus spoke of a spiritual realm, people always confused it with the material world. In John 3, Jesus said, “You must be born again.” “How does a man enter into his mother’s womb the second time?” asked Nicodemus. Jesus was speaking spiritually, but Nicodemus was trying to figure it out materially. In John 4, Jesus said, “I have water to give you which if you drink you shall never thirst again.” “Give me this water,” said the woman at the well, “so I won’t have to keep drawing out of the well!” She was thinking materially, but Jesus was speaking of the water of the Spirit internally. In John 6, Jesus said, “Unless you eat of My body and drink of My blood, you can have no part of Me.” The crowds, thinking He was talking about cannibalism, began to turn away from Him. Yet again, He was speaking of a spiritual realm, but the people couldn’t see past the material world. Jesus’ desire is to free us from this material, physical world in which we’re so caught up. He longs for us to gain an eternal, spiritual perspective. But, like the disciples, we so often get hung up in the material realm. Even in our spiritual walk, we often count our blessings only in corporeal terms, and recognize only those miracles we see physically. Only the spiritual realm is eternal. That’s why church is so important to me. As I come here to meet with you, to sing songs of praise to the Lord, to study the Word, my focus shifts from the material to the spiritual, from the temporal to the eternal.

Matthew 16:8

The leaven of the Pharisees is legalism. The Pharisees kept scores of rules and regulations, but their hearts were not right with the Lord. The leaven of the Sadducees is not legalism, but liberalism. The Sadducees said, “There are no miracles. There are no angels. There is no resurrection. This whole thing is really just to help you become a better person.” Beware of the leaven of legalism and liberalism. Galatians deals with the subject of legalism and Colossians with the subject of liberalism.

Matthew 16:13

Over eighty times throughout Scripture, Jesus refers to Himself as the Son of Man. I believe there is a two-fold reason He uses this term more than any other. First, it speaks of His humility and His ability to relate. He desires to be numbered among us. Second, it speaks of His position prophetically. Dan_7:13 foretold that Messiah would be known as the Son of Man. This is the most important question ever asked any man. The door to eternity swings upon it: Who do you say Jesus is personally? Jesus uses two Greek words for “stone” in this passage. Petros, or “Peter,” means small stone. Petra means massive stone. In other words, Jesus is saying, “Blessed are you, little stone. Upon the massive stone of your confession, I will build My church.” Hadn’t Peter and others already confessed that Jesus was the Christ? In John 1, when Jesus told Nathanael He had seen him under the fig tree, Nathanael responded, “Truly Thou art the Son of God, the King of Israel.” Yet Jesus didn’t say, “Blessed are you, Nathanael. Upon that rock I’ll build My Church.” In Luke 5, after a miraculous haul of fish, Peter acknowledged Jesus’ lordship when he said, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.” Yet at that point, Jesus didn’t say, “Blessed are you, Peter. Upon that rock I will build My church.” In John 6, after five thousand were fed, Peter declared, “Truly thou art the Son of God. You alone have the words of eternal life.” Yet Jesus didn’t say, “Upon that rock I’ll build My church.” Why? Because Jesus’ disciples had acknowledged His deity previously; in every case their acknowledgements were an emotional response to a physical miracle… “You saw me under the fig tree? You must be the Son of God!” “Look at these fish! You must be the Son of God!” “Wow! Five thousand are fed! You must be the Son of God!” Peter’s statement here in Matthew 16, on the other hand, is not an emotional response. His is a carefully thought through conclusion based upon supernatural revelation. Why is this important? Because a lot of times people will make a vow, saying, “My mom was healed of cancer. I’ll start going to church.” And they dofor about five months. Or, “My husband didn’t get fired when everyone else did, so we’ll go to church.” And they gofor a few weeks. But that isn’t the foundation upon which Jesus builds. He’s looking for a man or woman who will come to a rational, intellectual conclusion based upon deep, spiritual revelation. He’s listening for those who say, “I have concluded that You’re the Christ, not because I won the lottery, not because I feel better physically, but because You have revealed Yourself to my heart spiritually and to my mind rationally.” It is then Jesus says, “Blessed are you. You’re not talking about an emotional response, or a five-month foray into Christianity. You have made a declaration, a decision, and I will build My church upon the reality, the rock of your confession.” True conversion is not based upon some emotion or some event. True conversion takes place when a man or woman says, “I have concluded that Jesus really is who He declared Himself to be. He is the Son of God. And I’m giving my life to follow Him totally.” This binding and loosing is not a picture of heaven doing our bidding; rather, it portrays us in harmony with heaven. Jesus is not saying, “Here are some keys. Whatever you want to do, I’ll make it happen.” No, it’s just the opposite. We are to be binding and loosing even as it is done in heaven. We are to be in harmony with Jesus. Just Jesus A Topical Study of Mat_16:13-19 As we did every year for his birthday, my son Peter John and I traveled to the Bay Area one August to see the Oakland A’s battle the Cleveland Indians. Quite honestly, however, although taking in a ballgame had become a tradition for Peter and me, I wasn’t sure I’d ever go again. You see, I had some big problems with big-league baseball. Every time I went to the coliseum, I was asked for money. And none of the people sitting next to me introduced themselves. The manager never paid a call on me, never welcomed me to the coliseum, and didn’t even know my name. And then there were all those hypocrites in the stands, like the ladies polishing their nails and talking about what everyone was wearing. Behind me were some fanatics who were worse than the hypocrites. Every time Jose Canseco got on base, they stood up, cheered, and looked silly. And the umpires? Some of their calls were ridiculous. I’m sure I know more about baseball than they do. As for Peter, I didn’t want to force him to go to major-league baseball games any more. I thought I’d let him decide for himself when he got older. Now, if someone said that, we would think he was crazy. Those reasons are all bogus. And yet, why is it that no one protests when those same objections are raised concerning church? Those are the exact reasons people give for not going to church: “People are too fanatical and too hypocritical; the pastor talks too much about money, and he didn’t call on me; the people weren’t friendly. I’ll let my own kids decide eventually.” Our generation, it seems, has rejected church. In fact, I remember seeing a bumper sticker in the ’60s that sort of summed up our generational mentality: “Jesus, Yes. Church, No.” And a lot of people are in that place. “Yeah, I’m into Jesus, but I’m not into the church. No way.” I’m here to say that I am really into the Church. You might think, Well of course you are. You’re a pastor. But let me tell you, I am not into the church because I’m a pastor. I am a pastor because I am into the church. The passage before us in Matthew 16 is very important, for it is the first time Jesus Christ uses the word “church.” There is a principle of hermeneutics called the Principle of First Mention, which says: You will usually find key foundational understandings about a subject in the first place it is mentioned. Thus, when Jesus first mentions the church in Matthew 16, we find three reasons why it is essential. Jesus Takes Pride in His Church …Upon this rock I will build my church…Mat_16:18 The language is important. It speaks of a possessiveness, of an intimacy with us. Jesus didn’t say, “I will build a church,” or “I’ll put up with the Church.” He said, “I will build My church.” Jesus is proud of His people. For both he that sanctifieth [Jesus] and they who are sanctified [us] are all of one: for which cause he is not ashamed to call them brethren, Saying, I will declare thy name unto my brethren, in the midst of the church will I sing praise unto thee.Heb_2:11-12 The writer of Hebrews declares Jesus is proud of us. Not ashamed of us, He sings praise to the Father right along with us in the midst of the congregation. Why isn’t He ashamed of us? Because He sees our potential. When Jesus first called Peter, He said, “I call you Petros, “Small Rock,” because I’m going to change you from one who is unsteady to someone who’s solid, stable, and useful.” Jesus doesn’t see us with our present flaws, but in our potential usefulness. Secondly, He sees us prophetically. Because we are already seated with Christ in the heavenly places (Eph_2:6), He sees us as already perfected. Thirdly, He sees us positionally. Jesus sees us robed in His righteousness and washed with His blood. Our sins, failures, and shortcomings are completely out of His sight and gone from His memory. So He looks at us potentially, prophetically, and positionally, and He sees us as perfect. Incredible! This past week the Lord has dealt very deeply in my own heart along these lines, telling me to look not on the outward appearance, but on the heartthe way He looks at me. I have discovered I have a tendency to judge people according to their actions, but to judge myself according to my intentions. And the Lord spoke to my heart, saying, “Jon, your world would be a whole lot sweeter if you reversed that. Judge yourself by what you do, but judge others by what they meant.” Wouldn’t it be radical if we looked at people that way? At their intentions rather than their actions? That’s the way Jesus looks at His church. He says, “I see your hearts, and I’m proud of you.” Jesus Prevails Through His Church …And the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.Mat_16:18 For many years, a lot of us thought that the church was a refuge, a fortress where we could hole up until the Lord came back. The gates of hell would not prevail against us if we huddled together within the church singing, “Hold the Fort till the Lord Comes.” But that’s not what Jesus meant. Gates don’t prevail in and of themselves. How many of you have ever been attacked by a gate? No. Jesus is saying, “The gates of hell will not hold back My church. I am going to prevail through My church. I will storm the gates of hell, where people have been held in bondage, where there has been darkness, discouragement, disease, and death. I will prevail through My church.” When Jesus wants to touch someone in love or talk to someone about salvation, He storms the gates of hell through us, His church. Jesus Protects by His Church And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt lose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.Mat_16:19 Dr. Kenneth Wuest gives this proper translation: “Whatever shalt be loosed on earth shalt be loosed even as it is in heaven.” Jesus protects by His church, giving her the keys of His kingdom. If you look at my wife’s key chain, you will see keys identical to those on my key chain. I’m her bridegroom. She’s my bride. And she has the same keys I do. Why? Because we share authority. We rule together over our Volkswagen fleet and our house. We are one. So, too, Jesus Christ, the Head, has given His bride, the church, the keys to His kingdom. What does this mean? In Matthew 18 and John 20, this same concept is reiterated. Matthew 18 deals with relationships, while John 20 deals with the forgiveness and the retaining of sin. What Jesus is saying is, “I’m giving authority to the church, to bring together or to loosen, even as it is happening in heaven.” If people within the church are having problems with one another, they are to work them out individually. But if they can’t, it’s a matter for the church to deal with corporately. It’s not that we make those decrees ourselves, but through the Word by the Spirit, the church can speak with authority, unlocking God’s truth and revealing God’s heart. You see, those who say, “I don’t need church. I’ll just do my own thing. I’ve got my own ideas about the gospel and about worship,” are vulnerable to anyone who comes along saying, “Let’s go to Guyana, or to Waco, and we’ll start a whole new movement. Who cares about church history? Who cares about theology? Who cares about collegiality? We’ll do our own thing.” That’s what happened with Jim Jones and David Koresh. Hundreds were killed because they strayed from the protection that comes from the church, the authority of binding and loosing. And thus, there was death. Any Christian who ignores the church will become vulnerable to needless bruises and wounds. The question then arises, “Why have so many people in our generation rejected the church?” I suggest one reason: Jesus Is Not the Priority of His Church Whom do men say that I the Son of man am?Mat_16:13 Jesus had come to Caesarea Philippi, which is located twenty-five miles north of the Sea of Galilee. At Caesarea Philippi, where the waters of the Jordan begin, there is a massive rock facesort of like a miniature El Capitan. It’s one of the prettiest spots I’ve seen anywhere in the world. There, Jesus gathered His boys and asked this question: “Whom do men say I am?” His disciples then repeated the theories concerning Him that were floating around Israel. “Some say You’re John the Baptist.” John the Baptist came on the scene, saying, “Repent! The kingdom of God is at hand. You soldiers, quit oppressing the people. You tax collectors, quit extorting from the people. You fathers, be good to your children. Get it together. Repent.” When Jesus appeared, He began His ministry with the same words: Repent, for the kingdom of Heaven is at hand. So, reasoned some, because of His moral teaching and call to repentance, Jesus must be John the Baptist, returned from the dead. Others said, “No. He’s Elijah, returned from heaven.” Haven’t you seen the miracles He’s done? The lepers are cleansed. The blind see. The lame walk. Miracles happen. He must be Elijah. Others said, “No. He’s Jeremiah.” Haven’t you seen the care He shows to the lost, how they move His heart, how He weeps over them? He must be Jeremiah, the weeping prophet who cared so tenderly for the lost sheep of Israel. “No,” others said. “He must be that Prophet,” referring to the prophet promised in Deu_18:15, who would come and fully explain the Law of Moses. Scripture records that the people marveled at the gracious words of Jesus, saying, “No man speaks like this man.” Truly, the common people heard Him gladly. Surely He must be “that Prophet.” As I look around the Rogue Valley in Oregon, the country, and the world, I see churches built upon one of those four misconceptions. There are those who say, “We’re going to build our church on John the Baptist. That’s who Jesus is. We’ll call it First Moral Majority Church. We’ll tell our community to repent. We’ll picket 7-11. We’ll write our congressman. We’ll organize and let our voice be heard in the community. We’ll tell people to get it together morally. And we’ll meet together to activate believers, to mobilize Christians, to get them going.” Others say, “No, no, no. Our church is going to be built upon Elijah. That’s who Jesus is. We’ll call our church Miracle Center. It will be filled with miracles, signs, and wonders. People will see the glory and power of God fall at every single meeting. It’s going to be heavy!” Others say, “No, no, no. Our church is going to be built upon Jeremiah. That’s who Jesus is. We’ll call our church The Evangelical Expression. We’ll have a million-dollar mission budget. We’ll offer classes in door-to-door evangelism. We’ll spread throughout the community, expand throughout the world globally, and we’ll reach the world evangelistically. Like Jeremiah, we’ll weep over the lost.” “No, no, no,” others say. “Our church is going to be built upon That Prophet. We’ll have three-hour marathon Bible studies Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday nights. We’ll have seminars and syllabi. We’ll become hermeneutically flawless, exegetically excellent. We’ll offer Hebrew, Greek, Chaldean, and Aramaic. We’ll parse each verb. We’ll know each doctrine thoroughly. We’ll become a great teaching center.” Look at our text. Jesus responded to none of these suggestions. It was only when Peter said, “Thou art the Christthe Christos, the Anointed One, the Messiah, the Son of the living God,“that Jesus said, “Upon this rock I’ll build My church.” The churchnot a platform for ministry, political activity, or intellectual curiositywhich simply says, “We want to know Jesus personally,” is the church Jesus will build. When people say, “Jesus, You’re not simply a motivator for us politically, a teacher to us intellectually, a power for us miraculously, or a program for us in mission ministry. You’re everything. You’re all there is. We just want to know You. We want to love You. We want to walk with You, learn about You, and become more like You,” Jesus will build His church upon their confession. And when a group of people come together and say, “Jesus, we love You. We’re impressed with You. We want to learn of You and walk with You,” guess what happens? The community around such a group begins to change. A sheriff in Jackson County, Oregon, who was not a believer wrote me saying that as far as he is concerned, Applegate Christian Fellowship was the best thing that ever happened to curb the drug problem there in the Applegate Valley because so many of the top drug producers in the valley have become converts. Were we marching against marijuana? Were we politically active? No. It’s just that wherever Jesus is, the surroundings will be influenced very definitely. Where Jesus builds His Church, there will be signs and wonders. Power will be experiencednot with fanfare or for itselfbut in a supernaturally, natural way. Where Jesus is the Christos, loved and honored, there will be evangelism, not because of a need to be a part of some program for ego gratification, but rather because people will want to share what they have discovered in Christ. They will be in love with Him and will find themselves talking about Him, taking every opportunity to share the One who means so much to them. The person who is rock-solid in this life and on into eternity will be the one who says, “Jesus, it’s You personally. Not ministry. Not study. Not anything but You. I appreciate You, I love You, and I’m committing myself to You. Jesus, You’re everything to me.” That’s my prayer for us. That’s my prayer for you. In Jesus’ Name.

Matthew 16:20

In verse Mat_16:16, when Peter spoke of Jesus as the Christ, he was into it. But now in verse Mat_16:20, when Peter sees Jesus on the Cross, he wants no part of it.

Matthew 16:23

This verse tells me two things. First, it disqualifies Peter as a candidate for pope. You see, one of the qualifications for the papacy is infallibility on spiritual matters. So fallible was Peter on this point that Jesus called him Satan. “Well,” some might say, “that was before Peter was filled with the Holy Spirit.” But in Gal_2:11, Paul writes, “When I saw Peter I rebuked him to his face.” Why? Because Peter was burdening Gentile believers with Jewish rules and regulations. Therefore, even after Peter was filled with the Spirit, he still blundered. I love Peter. But I acknowledge his fallibility. Second, this verse answers the question, “How can a person speak a word of prophecy Sunday night when Sunday morning he kicked his cat and yelled at his wife? How can he speak with spiritual authority one minute and be so carnal the next?” We see Peter doing the same thing. One minute he had revelation from the Fathergenuine, true revelation, acknowledged by Jesus. The next, he spoke in the flesh. This teaches me to say, “I’m going to listen to what you’re saying, even though two weeks ago you said something dumb.” Gang, the frailty of humanity is such that we all can move into times of revelation and deep understandingthen moments later be off the wall and out to lunch.

Matthew 16:24

Taking up one’s cross doesn’t mean suffering from hay fever, foot problems, a heart murmur, or even cancer. Taking up your cross means that you identify with Jesus to the point of suffering and shame, rejection, and perhaps even death. Taking up your cross is something you choose to do, not something you put up with. It’s a choice to deny yourself, a determination that, no matter what, you’ll stand for Jesus.

Matthew 16:25

Here’s the irony: The more you live for yourself, the more miserable you’ll be. But the more you say, “Lord, I’m going to live for You completely, wholeheartedly, and totally,” the more abundant your life will be both now and eternally. If you think back on the happiest times of your life, you will most likely find they were when you were really going for it in Jesuswhen He was the priority in your life and the passion of your heart.

Matthew 16:27

If you take up your cross and follow Jesus, you’ll be rewarded in the ages to come as well as presently.

Matthew 16:28

“Wait,” you say, “the disciples are all dead and Jesus’ kingdom hasn’t come yet. Did Jesus make a mistake?” Stay tuned. The answer lies in chapter 17.