In Jesus Holy Name August 30, 2020
Text: Matthew 16:21-28 Pentecost XIII – Redeemer
“To Jerusalem…A Mission to Complete”
Jesus and His disciples were at Caesarea Philippi. Their ministry to this point had been a stunning success. Crowds pressed in on them everywhere they went. People eagerly reached out to touch this young teacher from Nazareth. The disciples themselves were caught up in the excitement of it all. Jesus asked them, "Who do you say I am?" and Simon Peter answered enthusiastically, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God!" It was one of the most dramatic moments in the disciples' pilgrimage with Jesus.
Jesus in effect said: “Peter you’ve got it, that’s right! This was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven. And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock, on this confession of faith, I will build my church...”
Then Jesus changed the subject. He began to tell them that the crowds would soon turn against Him; He would be crucified, on the third day he would be raised. The disciples didn't know what to make of all this. Simon Peter took Jesus aside: "Forbid it Lord that these things should happen to you." Jesus rebuked Peter in strong language. The words are as harsh as any words in the New Testament: "Get behind me Satan! You are not on the side of God but of man."
Simon Peter probably regretted trying to correct Jesus. He had no idea that he was being deceived by Satan….who was trying to stop Jesus from going to Jerusalem. Peter was reacting because…..Peter did not understand God’s plan. The disciples did not understand that the “mission” of Jesus was the “conquest of evil.” His journey to Jerusalem was an act of obedience. The Apostle Paul wrote in Romans that “just as the disobedience of one man (Adam) brought death to the human race so by the obedience of one man (Jesus) many will be made righteous before God. (Romans 5:19)
Rev. John Stott in his book “The Cross of Christ” has a chapter entitled “The Conquest of Evil”. In the Garden of Eden the conquest of Evil was predicted. During the ministry of Jesus Satan made many attempts to get rid of Jesus. Satan used Herod to murder of the children of Bethlehem. In the wilderness temptations Satan was tempting Jesus to avoid the cross. Later, Satan used the crowds to force Jesus into a politico-military kingship. And now Peter tries to stop Jesus from the journey to Jerusalem. (p. 234,235)
The combined forces of Rome and Jerusalem were arrayed against Jesus, He could have called 10,000 angels to rescue Him from the approaching trial and cross. He did not He was obedient, so that His sacrifice would bring about our salvation.
We are not to regard the cross as defeat and the resurrection as victory. Rather, the cross was the victory won, and the resurrection the victory endorsed, proclaimed and demonstrated… It was impossible for death to keep its hold on Him.
Now I will guarantee you that Peter and the disciples had no idea what a “church” was or would be. They had no idea of the true “mission” for which Jesus was born in Bethlehem. They had no idea that Jesus was going to sacrifice His life so that they might have their sins forgiven. They had no idea the “cost” God demanded for the removal of His Wrath” against broken commandments.
I’m sure Simon Peter regretted trying to correct Jesus. But we all say dumb things from time to time.
In her memoirs, Barbara Bush described one of her most embarrassing moments. Along with her husband, then the Vice President, Mrs. Bush was having lunch with Emperor Hirohito at Tokyo’s Imperial Palace.
Sitting next to the Emperor, Mrs. Bush found conversation an uphill task. To all her efforts at verbal engagement, the Emperor would smile and simply answer “Yes” or “No,” with an occasional “Thank you” tossed in.
Looking around at her elegant surroundings, Mrs. Bush complimented The Emperor on his official residence. “Thank you,” he said.
“Is it new?” pressed Mrs. Bush.
“Yes.” Hirohito replied.
“Was the old palace just so old that it was falling down?” asked Mrs. Bush.
In his most charming, yet regal, manner, Hirohito replied, “No, I’m afraid that you bombed it.”
Oops! Mrs. Bush did not regard that as one of her finest moments. But we’ve all done it, said things at the least appropriate moment, we’ve blurted out something dumb.
Simon Peter needed a second chance. Peter did not understand the “mission” and the “cost” of God’s plan. God’s eternal plan, since the days of Adam and Eve, was to restore peace and harmony with all human beings. Jesus became the sacrificial “lamb of God”. He was replacing the O.T. sacrifices for the forgiveness of broken commandments. (read Hebrews 7:24-27)
Dietrich Bonhoeffer, The Cost of Discipleship writes:
Cheap grace is the preaching of forgiveness without requiring repentance, baptism without church discipline, Communion without confession, absolution without personal confession. Cheap grace is grace without discipleship, grace without the cross, grace without Jesus Christ living and incarnate.
Costly grace is the treasure hidden in the field; for the sake of it, a man will gladly go and sell all that he has. It is the pearl of great price to buy which the merchant will sell all he his goods. (Parables we read just a few weeks ago.) It is the call of Jesus Christ at which the disciple leaves his fishing nets and follows Jesus. Costly grace is the gospel………..
Such grace is costly because it calls us to follow Jesus Christ. It is costly because it costs a man his life, and it is grace because it gives a man the only true life. It is costly because it condemns sin, and grace because it justifies the sinner. Above all, it is costly because it cost God the life of his Son: "you were bought at a price," and what has cost God much cannot be cheap for us. Above all, it is grace because God did not reckon his Son too dear a price to pay for our life, but delivered him up for us. Costly grace is the Incarnation of God.”
God was willing to sacrifice His Son in order to reestablish peace between Himself and you and me. Sacrifice is not a word we use much these days, is it? When was the last time you used it or thought about it in terms of your own life? Come to think about it, there’s only one sport as far as I know where the term is actually used. You can almost hear Harry Cary announcing it over the radio, “And there it goes, a long fly ball to left; easy out, but the man on third tags up and trots home. Sacrifice fly.”
What a great idea -- you’re out, but you helped someone else score a run.
That’s a sacrifice. Baseball is one of the few sports where you lose but the team still gains. Baseball may be the only sport where you actually can hear this word, sacrifice.
Many people want to divorce the person of Jesus from His mission to destroy Satan and save us. They want a happy Jesus, not a bleeding Jesus. They want a soft Jesus, not a powerful-enough-to-die Jesus. These people neglect passages like 1 John 3:8 which says: "The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil." Evil does exist, even though many in our society would like to deny the existence of evil, and the master of evil, Satan. Matthew 20:28 which says, "The Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many."
Jesus cannot be turned into some moral teacher. Jesus, first and foremost, is the Savior! His mission was to be born, live, die, and rise again in our place to take away our sins. This mission was a must. Jerusalem was His destination.
Listen again to Matthew 16:21: "From that time on Jesus began to explain to His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law and that He must be killed and on the third day be raised to life." Did you hear it? Jesus used the word "must." It means: obliged, necessary.
God has integrity. His Word says, "The wages of sin is death." He could not simply overlook our sin nor forget the promise of His Word. But He also knew that if a substitute would take the place of a sinner then it would have to be God Himself, for He alone could be a perfect substitute and He alone could rise from the grave.
In order for God to take our place He would have to be clothed in the stuff of humanity. God would have to become flesh and blood. (Colossians 1:15) His sacrifice was the greatest act of love, Jesus the Son of God, clothed in flesh, suffered and died as our substitute, and rose as our champion. All of this was a "must" because of God's love for us. God wants us to be with Him forever.
The “church” now goes out on the same mission, to preach Christ crucified. To follow Jesus. To trust Jesus for your eternal life means that you turn away from idols to serve the living God. You turn away from the act of breaking commandments to obeying the words of Jesus. In that moment at Caesarea Philippi Peter heard Jesus say that He would be crucified. His ears and mind did not hear “and on the third day I will be raised to life.”
On the Day of Pentecost it was Peter who said: “Jesus was handed over …by God’s purpose and foreknowledge, (a mission plan in motion) put to death (on a cross) but God raised Jesus from the dead.” And so today the “church”, you and I still proclaim that Jesus died for our sins, was buried and was raised from the dead so that those who trust in Him will live forever…..” Amen…let it be so!
