Confession of St. Peter
Matthew 16:13-19
Blessed in This Confession
01/18/04
King of Prussia, Frederick the Great, was once touring a Berlin prison when a group of prisoners fell to their knees in unison before him to plead their case. I’m innocent, I tell you. I’ve been falsely accused. I’m a victim of circumstances. I didn’t commit a crime. They all proclaimed their innocence in one way or another; all but one of them, a man who remained silent until Frederick called to him.
“And you sir, why are you here?” Frederick asked. “Armed robbery, Your Majesty,” was the man’s only reply.
“And are you guilty?” Frederick asked.
“Yes sir, indeed I am, Your Majesty. I deserve the punishment I’m getting.”
“Yes,” said Frederick, “you certainly are.”
Then Frederick turned and summoned the guard.
“Release this guilty wretch at once. I will not have him kept in this prison where he will corrupt all the fine innocent people who occupy it.”
The man’s answer to Frederick won him his freedom. But he had to wonder as he was giving it. It might have sealed his fate. It could’ve just as easily confirmed his sentence and kept him in prison for the rest of his term.
And it occurs to me this morning that the disciples were facing a similar dilemma with Jesus’ line of questioning. Just consider their answers. Jesus asks about the various opinions that are circulating concerning the identity of the Son of Man and they give the safe answers. They offer the speculations of everyone else. So Jesus gets a bit more pointed in his line of questioning. “And what about you; who do you say I am?” You can almost imagine the squirming that was going on as they realized he wanted their thoughts on who He was; which is what makes Peter’s confession such a bold one. What if he’s missed the whole point of Jesus’ teaching? What if he’s wrong in what he believes? He’s just made Jesus out to be God in the flesh, his savior, the object of his worship and praise. If he’s wrong he might very well expect a displeasing reaction, divine retribution, God’s wrath.
But then comes the comforting reaction, “Blessed are you Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven. 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.” You are blessed in having this truth revealed to you, blessed because you are grounded in The Rock, Jesus Christ, as Savior where the True Church is found.
The September 14th, 1992 issue of Christianity Today had an article written by Tim Stafford where he recounts a conversation he had with of a friend of his, a Pastor Bilynskyj. Pastor Bilynskyj told Tim that at the start of each of his confirmation classes he asks his students to guess the number of beans that are in a jar, and on a big pad of paper he writes down their estimates. Then, next to those estimates, he helps them make another list: Their favorite songs. When the lists are complete, he reveals the actual number of beans in the jar. The whole class looks over their guesses, to see which estimate was closest to being right. Then Bilynskyj turns to the list of favorite songs and asks. "And which one of these is closest to being right?". Quite naturally the students protest that there is no "right answer"; a person’s favorite song is purely a matter of taste. They’re right, of course, and Pastor Bilynskyj points out the difference between truth and opinion. It’s essential for his students to know the difference, for it’s at this point that he presses on to his main concern, "And when you decide what to believe in terms of your faith, is that more like guessing the number of beans, or choosing your favorite song?" According to Bilynskyj he gets the same answer from old and young alike. Choosing one’s faith is more like choosing a favorite song. When Bilynskyj told Tim this, he couldn’t believe it, so that continued. "And after they say that, do you confirm them?" "Well," smiled Bilynskyj, "I first try to argue them out of it."
It’s the lie that’s being told today – that any way will do. But Pastor Bilynskyj knows the truth Peter confessed, and now, thankfully, so do his students. All religious expressions and philosophies are not equally true. And even within the Christian Church the pursuit of doctrinal truth and purity is an important issue. It’s a conviction on our part that sometimes brings other Christians to conclude that the LCMS is too exclusive or that we think we’re better than them. Let me just say that I’ll be the first to admit that at times we come off with a certain snooty pride that’s less than becoming. But at the same time let me affirm that it’s irresponsible and potentially dangerous to consider the beliefs and practices among fellow Christians that stray from the clear word of God as “no big deal.” It isn’t insignificant when these easily give the false impression that our salvation is partly our work together with Christ “There’s but one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Jesus Christ” (2 Timothy 2:5). And in the first lesson today we hear Peter say it again: “It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed. ‘He is the stone you builders rejected which has become the capstone.’ Salvation is found in none else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.”
There is no other name. It’s an offensive thought to some, offensive because we tend to have, what I call, a “Burger King” mentality. That is, “have it your way.” And when we can’t have it our way we go ballistic. The unfortunate thing about that is that our insistence on having things “our” way makes us blind to the joy that there still is “a” way – a rock solid defense against which sin, death and hell can’t prevail. It’s the second reason this confession of Jesus as “the Christ, the Son of the Living God,” makes one blessed.
We’ve already said that Peter’s answer was a bold one because if he was wrong he might well expect displeasure at what he said. But have you ever stopped to consider the implications if he was indeed right? In all honesty if Jesus were God as Peter confessed; and he, Peter, a sinner; his confession could mean his own end. Indeed, the prophet Isaiah, in Isaiah 6, has the very same dilemma. He suddenly finds himself in the very presence of the Almighty God where he cries, “Woe is me. "I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the LORD Almighty." It gives an even greater appreciation for the boldness of Peter’s answer, doesn’t it? A sinner in the very presence of the Almighty God could well expect his sins to be glaringly apparent. He could well expect the accusing finger of Satan pointing out the damning assessment even more. He could well expect a certain justified death.
But in this confession, grounded in the Christ who cleanses from sin, who saves from sin’s death, there’s now no condemnation. Sin, which has stood in the way of humanity’s fellowship with God, is removed. Satan’s accusing finger is put away. The eternal death of sin that he wrought upon the world is defeated. In Christ there is the promised hope of beginning a new life that is lived by the strength and power of God’s Spirit now; a new life perfected in eternity to come.
And if Satan is defeated here; if, in Christ, he has no real power that can’t be overcome; why should there be any hesitation to press on with the work and tasks He has given us to do. Indeed, we’re blessed in this confession with the knowledge that “If God is for us, nothing can stand against us” as we carry out the mission of the church.
I believe it’s the reason Jesus brought his disciples to this specific place, Caesarea Philippi, for this particular lesson.
Caesarea Philippi was not just any ol’ town in Judea. It was the capital of the Roman province in Judea, the seat of governors and procurators that ruled their land, the headquarters of the Roman troops that occupied their country; and thus also the heart of the kind of pagan worship God had always condemned. There is Caesarea Jesus and his disciples were surrounded by numerous idols, 14 temples to Baal, one to Caesar and a nearby cave that was rumored to be the birth place of the Greek God, Pan and the entry place to the underworld. Embodied in all these idols and temples was the power of paganism, the wickedness of ungodliness, the dominion of Satan himself. It’s not an understatement to say that it was a scary place to be.
Jesus wanted his disciples to understand the seriousness of what they were getting into. He wanted them to realize that this wasn’t a game. It’s a deadly struggle for the hearts and minds of mankind that’s to be waged, as Paul says in Ephesians 6, “against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” But he also wanted them to know that this was no cause for fear. There’s no reason to worry in the face of challenging circumstances. There’s no cause for despair when the way grows difficult, when circumstances seem to be blocking the way to accomplishing God’s work, when we come face to face with the opposition and threats of the world for what we believe, confess and live. In me, against my church, they cannot prevail.
It’s the attitude on display in the lives of the disciples in the 1st lesson today. Just weeks after Jesus’ death on the cross brought them to hide in terror; we see Peter and John courageously speaking in defense of the Gospel of Jesus Christ before the very men they once feared. And we ask, “How could this be?” Yet we know what had taken place. They’d been through the darkness of Good Friday; but they were now seeing it in the light of Easter Sunday, a light which shows that what Jesus said true. Sin, death and hell itself can raise their ugly heads, but in the end they cannot prevail against Christ. They cannot prevail against us, His church. Despite challenges and persecutions they haven’t to this very day. They haven’t because we’re prepared with this awesome revelation, with this blessed confession of our Savior on our lips. And when you’re facing a tough opponent nothing could be more important.
It the lesson that was learned by a young black man who received a brand new bicycle one day for his birthday. A few days later someone stole it. Enraged, the boy went looking for the thief and in the process of his search he encountered a policeman. The policeman asked him what he was going to do if he caught the boy who stole it and the boy said that he didn’t know.
It then dawned on this policeman that if the boy ever did find the person who stole his bike, he might not only lose the bike but be beaten terribly too, so he asked the boy if he would like to go the gym where he began teaching the young man how to box.
That boy’s name was Cassius Clay, otherwise known as Mohammed Ali, one of the greatest fighters to ever enter the ring. Some might have asked, “What made this young man so unique.” He worked out like every other boxer of his day. He boxed. He sparred. He ran for miles in preparation for every fight. But now you know the secret that gave him the edge whenever he put on his gloves.
Ali once admitted, "To this day I never found my bike, but every time I got in the ring, I’d look across at my opponent and say to myself, that’s the guy who stole my bike!" What Ali was saying in his own creative way was that he was prepared long before he stepped into the ring, not just physically, but also with a frame of mind that helped him go the distance and win.
One could say that this is exactly what our Lord’s done for his disciples, what he’s done for us today. It’s his intention to send His church into a hostile ring of it own – the world. He gives the keys of His kingdom to loose and to bind. It’s Jesus’ own creative way of describing that great commission He’s given to His church. We’re to share His word, confront sin, comfort with His forgiveness, encourage with His love – a daunting task, one not always appreciated, not often well received, sometimes resisted. But in truth we’ve got an edge. With the blessed revelation and confession of Jesus Christ as our living God and Savior we’re more than prepared – prepared to go the distance, prepared to stick it out through thick and thin, prepared to go, to fight, and to win because in truth we’re then standing with The Rock who has already won!
