"On this Rock I will Build My Church"
Simon Peter answered and said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” 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. 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. (Mt. 16:16-19)
Introduction. Peter had been closely watching Jesus since the very beginning of His ministry. All that he had seen led him to the strong conviction: “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” When Peter gave this “good confession,” Jesus said him: “blessed are you.” Peter had seen what the Father had revealed, and as “eyewitnesses of His majesty” (2Pet. 1:16), Peter confidently confessed it.
Peter was not the only one. John began his Gospel: “the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father.” Those who lived with Jesus day after day knew they were not following “cunningly devised fables.” Thomas, filled the role of the analytical thinker when he said, “"Unless I see in His hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe” (Jn. 20:25).
Yet the faith that brought the confession was secondary to the confession itself. The blessedness Jesus pronounced upon Peter was the substance of the confession, not Peter’s faith in it. When Jesus said that the Father had revealed “this” to Peter, He was speaking of His own authority and power. The Word had come to earth and become flesh. Peter’s confession acknowledged this.
The Bedrock of the Church. The bedrock the church is built upon is Jesus deity, eternity and power, as God had said to Him: “Your throne, O God, is forever and ever” (Ps. 45:6; Heb. 1:8). Because Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God, His kingdom and church are immovable and firm. “Wherefore, receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us have grace, whereby we may offer service well-pleasing to God with reverence and awe” (Heb. 12:28).
The Jewish leaders had killed Jesus thinking it would put an end to His kingdom and reign. But the truth of Peter’s confession made that impossible. God overruled their judgment and established Jesus on an eternal throne. This was all foretold: “The kings of the earth set themselves, And the rulers take counsel together, Against the Lord and against His Anointed (Christ), ... 6 "Yet I have set My King On My holy hill of Zion.” (Ps. 2:2, 6).
As Jesus said, “I was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of death and of Hades.” (Rev. 1:18). With those keys not even the “gates of Hades can prevail” over His will. His power is greater than death itself! There is no power that can triumph over Jesus (Rom 8:35-39). He is “Lord of lords and King of kings” (Rev. 17:14). We can rest assured that our “labor is not in vain in the Lord” (1Cor. 15:58) for our hope is “a living hope” (1Pet. 1:3) all because the church is built on the foundation that “Jesus is the Christ the Son of living God.”
Everything is founded on the truth of Peter’s confession. Since Jesus is “the Christ, the Son of the living God,” the church that is built upon it is the greatest and most stable thing in this creation. It is worthy of all our efforts and toil, worthy of our devotion and praise. We can all sing and make melody to: “For her my tears shall fall, For her my prayers ascend; to her my cries and toils be given, Till toils and cares shall end, Beyond my highest joys, I prize her heavenly ways, Her sweet communion, solemn vows, Her hymns of love and praise.”
It all comes down to the foundation. Because Jesus is the Christ, in baptism we are “delivered out of the power of darkness and translated into the kingdom of the Son of his love” (Col. 1:13; 2:11-13). Because Jesus is the Christ, we will have eternal life on the last day. Only if Jesus were not the Christ, would the foundation crumble into dust. “If Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain. . . . If in this life only we have hoped in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied.” (1Cor. 15:14,19)
Conclusion. Peter was blessed because He knew who Jesus was and would live a life of faithful service to Him that would bring him eternal life. We are also blessed today for as Jesus told Thomas, “Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” (Jn. 20:29). Hence the same blessing Jesus pronounced upon Peter is also upon all of us who now believe, confess and hold fast to that confession even though we have never seen Him.
Introduction. Peter had been closely watching Jesus since the very beginning of His ministry. All that he had seen led him to the strong conviction: “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” When Peter gave this “good confession,” Jesus said him: “blessed are you.” Peter had seen what the Father had revealed, and as “eyewitnesses of His majesty” (2Pet. 1:16), Peter confidently confessed it.
Peter was not the only one. John began his Gospel: “the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father.” Those who lived with Jesus day after day knew they were not following “cunningly devised fables.” Thomas, filled the role of the analytical thinker when he said, “"Unless I see in His hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe” (Jn. 20:25).
Yet the faith that brought the confession was secondary to the confession itself. The blessedness Jesus pronounced upon Peter was the substance of the confession, not Peter’s faith in it. When Jesus said that the Father had revealed “this” to Peter, He was speaking of His own authority and power. The Word had come to earth and become flesh. Peter’s confession acknowledged this.
The Bedrock of the Church. The bedrock the church is built upon is Jesus deity, eternity and power, as God had said to Him: “Your throne, O God, is forever and ever” (Ps. 45:6; Heb. 1:8). Because Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God, His kingdom and church are immovable and firm. “Wherefore, receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us have grace, whereby we may offer service well-pleasing to God with reverence and awe” (Heb. 12:28).
The Jewish leaders had killed Jesus thinking it would put an end to His kingdom and reign. But the truth of Peter’s confession made that impossible. God overruled their judgment and established Jesus on an eternal throne. This was all foretold: “The kings of the earth set themselves, And the rulers take counsel together, Against the Lord and against His Anointed (Christ), ... 6 "Yet I have set My King On My holy hill of Zion.” (Ps. 2:2, 6).
As Jesus said, “I was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of death and of Hades.” (Rev. 1:18). With those keys not even the “gates of Hades can prevail” over His will. His power is greater than death itself! There is no power that can triumph over Jesus (Rom 8:35-39). He is “Lord of lords and King of kings” (Rev. 17:14). We can rest assured that our “labor is not in vain in the Lord” (1Cor. 15:58) for our hope is “a living hope” (1Pet. 1:3) all because the church is built on the foundation that “Jesus is the Christ the Son of living God.”
Everything is founded on the truth of Peter’s confession. Since Jesus is “the Christ, the Son of the living God,” the church that is built upon it is the greatest and most stable thing in this creation. It is worthy of all our efforts and toil, worthy of our devotion and praise. We can all sing and make melody to: “For her my tears shall fall, For her my prayers ascend; to her my cries and toils be given, Till toils and cares shall end, Beyond my highest joys, I prize her heavenly ways, Her sweet communion, solemn vows, Her hymns of love and praise.”
It all comes down to the foundation. Because Jesus is the Christ, in baptism we are “delivered out of the power of darkness and translated into the kingdom of the Son of his love” (Col. 1:13; 2:11-13). Because Jesus is the Christ, we will have eternal life on the last day. Only if Jesus were not the Christ, would the foundation crumble into dust. “If Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain. . . . If in this life only we have hoped in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied.” (1Cor. 15:14,19)
Conclusion. Peter was blessed because He knew who Jesus was and would live a life of faithful service to Him that would bring him eternal life. We are also blessed today for as Jesus told Thomas, “Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” (Jn. 20:29). Hence the same blessing Jesus pronounced upon Peter is also upon all of us who now believe, confess and hold fast to that confession even though we have never seen Him.