Matt 16:13-20 Preaching Outline

Text: Matthew 16:13–20 Theme: Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God, and He builds His Church with divine authority.

Introduction

I received my first speeding ticket when I was 19 years old. It was Christmas evening, and I was driving from one grandparent’s house to the other. As I left a small town, I assumed the speed limit had increased to 55 mph. However, the flashing red and blue lights behind me quickly told me I was mistaken.

When the officer pulled me over, I asked why, and he told me I was speeding. Confused, I asked what my speed was. He said, “55.” That only confused me more—I thought that was the speed limit. But then he clarified: the limit was actually 35. My assumption had cost me a multi-hundred-dollar ticket.

I paid the fine and moved on, but what I didn’t realize was that my dad would soon receive an email from his insurance company. It stated that “David Guess” needed to complete a defensive driving course to avoid an increase in premiums. Now, I’m David Guess III, named after my father and grandfather,

And my dad, assuming the notice was about his increasing age, dutifully completed the course. Neither of us thought anything more of it—until years later, when one of my loud-mouthed siblings ratted me out at a family gathering.

As I was being teased for hiding my ticket and playfully scolded by my mother for not telling them, my dad sat there, piecing things together.

When I told him the date of the ticket—Christmas night 2015—he realized the truth:

HE had completed MY defensive driving course.

There was some mild frustration on his part, plenty of laughter from the rest of the family, and, for me, a happy case of mistaken identity.

That night, we both learned something important—it matters that we get identity right.

But while a mix-up about a defensive driving course might be funny, getting Jesus' identity wrong is eternally serious. In Matthew 16, Jesus asks His disciples a question that determines not just their faith, but their eternity: ‘Who do you say that I am?’ This question isn’t just for them—it’s for all of us. And how we answer it will shape our lives and our eternity.

Sermon

Who is Jesus? That’s the question that this passage is concerned with and we get a definitive answer. Jesus is not merely some prophet, he is the Son of God!

I. The Question (vv. 13-14) – Who Do People Say Jesus Is?

A. Context: Jesus’ Setting and Purpose

Jesus is in Caesarea Philippi (Matthew 16:13), a region known for pagan worship, with temples dedicated to the Greek god Pan and the Roman emperor. This background highlights the significance of Jesus’ question.

Jesus asks His disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” (Matthew 16:13) – Here Jesus uses his favorite title from the Messianic prophecy in Daniel 7:13-14.

He asks them about his own identity in a place where competing views of divinity abound.

The disciples’ response reflects the popular opinions of the day:

Some say John the Baptist (Matthew 14:1-2; possibly because of his bold message of repentance).

If you remember, Herod thought that Jesus was the reincarnation of John the Baptist, who he had killed, and it appeared to be a popular misconception because the people were apparently saying that Jesus was John.

Others say Elijah (Malachi 4:5-6), a prophet expected to return to prepare the way for the Messiah.

These are the prophecies to send a “messenger” who will “prepare the way” for the Lord to “suddenly come to his temple” (reference to Holy Week) and this will be a precursor “great and awesome day of the LORD” where God brings freedom and judgement.

So they’re calling Him this promised messenger, Elijah.

Ironically, John the Baptist was that promised Elijah, preparing the way for the Lord

Others claim Jeremiah or another prophet (Matthew 16:14; Mark 6:15; Luke 9:8).

So, who is it that people say Jesus is? A prophet, but not God. He is a pointer, not the point.

The people, then, are still missing the point.

Now, we’ve seen that the disciples are often in the same boat as the people; they often miss the whole point of what Jesus is doing and teaching, and who he is.

So Jesus turns the question on them in verse 15 to test and see if they are missing the point.

He asks

5 “But who do you say that I am?

Jesus has been preparing his disciples for his death, resurrection, and ascension to heaven.

They have GOT TO get the identity of Jesus right if they are going to lead his people when he leaves them.

These disciples have regularly messed it all up, but we did get a little encouragement from them at the end of the previous passage in verse 12 where we see that they finally understood something Jesus was trying to teach them.

So Jesus is testing them to see if they are starting to get it. He is testing their understanding of his identity.

“I know that everyone else says that I’m either in league with Satan or one of the great prophets, but who do you say I am?”

“What is your belief on who I am?”

Key Idea: And really, that’s just about the most important question anyone can answer.

Who do you say Jesus is?

And really, even more importantly, who do believe and trust Jesus to be?

Application:

There are many in our world who say they love and believe in Jesus and if we just accept that statement at face value we might welcome in some weird beliefs because we wrongly think that they are brothers and sisters in Christ.

We have to ask: “Which Jesus do you believe in?”

There are many different Jesus’ being believed in, and I’ll state just a few.

The Good Moral Teacher

The people who believe in this Jesus believe that Jesus was a wise man who had some good ideas about living morally, but not God.

And they are mistaken. C.S. Lewis outlines the reason why in what he calls the “Trilemma.”

A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher.

He would either be a lunatic — on the level with the man who says he is a poached egg — or else he would be the Devil of Hell.

You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God, or else a madman or something worse.

You can shut him up for a fool, you can spit at him and kill him as a demon or you can fall at his feet and call him Lord and God, but let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about his being a great human teacher.

He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to.

- C. S. Lewis, Mere Christianity

The Political and Cultural Mascot

People who say they love Jesus and believe in him often will claim he supports whatever cause they support.

From Critical Theorists to LGBT activists to White Supremacists to immigration supporters and mass deportation supporters. There are even satanists who say Jesus is on their side.

Just about everyone from every sort of background and ideology seems to think that Jesus would support them in whatever they are trying to get people to support. It doesn’t matter to them who Jesus really is.

The Jesus they believe in is just a mirror image of themselves.

The Prophet

As we’ve already seen from the response of the disciples, there are many then and now who view Jesus as just a prophet.

Every single Muslim would say this. They would also even agree that Jesus was sinless, but since they believe all the prophets were sinless that’s not really a big deal to them.

Ironically, no major Jewish sect today would agree with the Muslims. They don’t even give Jesus the title of prophet. At best, they think of him as a good moral teacher. At worst they consider him a false messiah and heretic.

There is a small group of Jews who do believe in Jesus as the Messiah and Son of God, called Messianic Jews, but they are rejected as Jews by essentially all the rest of global modern Judaism.

There are countless other ideas and beliefs we could discuss about who Jesus is, but the question still remains: Who do you believe and trust Him to be?

What we believe about Jesus determines everything about our lives, our salvation, and our eternal destiny (John 14:6).

Application:

For non-Christians: Have you honestly confronted the question, “Who is Jesus to you?” Will you build your life on Him, the only foundation that endures (1 Corinthians 3:11)?

For Christians: Be prepared to give a clear answer about who Jesus is, rooted in Scripture, to those who ask (1 Peter 3:15).

We see Peter step forward to give an answer to that question for all the disciples with one of the most famous confessions of truth in all history.

II. The Confession (vv. 15-18) – Who Do You Say Jesus Is?

A. Peter’s Confession (v. 16)

As we so often see, Peter steps forward as a representative of all the disciples and speaks for them all. And in a very real sense he is speaking for all who are true disciples of Jesus.

Peter boldly declares, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

“Christ” (Greek Messiah) refers to the anointed one, the Savior promised in the Old Testament (Isaiah 9:6-7).

“Son of the living God” affirms Jesus’ divine identity, showing that He is not just a human figure, but God’s Son (John 1:34, 14:9).

This is the foundational answer we must give when asked about who Jesus is.

He is the Christ! The promised one throughout history!

The promised Son of Eve who would crush the head of the serpent, who would not fall to sin, and who would be the Last Adam to lead his people back to paradise (Gen 1-3, Rm 5, 1 Cor 15)!

The promised offspring of Abraham who would bring blessing and and an everlasting covenant to people from all the nations of the earth! (Gen 12:1-3, Gen 17:7, Gal 3:16)

The perfect lawkeeper who would lead his people through the wilderness and into his promised kingdom! (Ex-Deut)

The perfect sacrifice who would cover the sins of all his people through the shedding of his blood so that the wrath of God would pass-over them and their sin may be forgiven! The one whose shed blood would enact the New Covenant, an everlasting covenant with God! (Gn 22:8-9, Ex 12, Is 53, 1 Cor 5:7, Jn 1:29, 1 Pt 1:19)

The Promised Son of David who would bring the true and unbreakable, everlasting Kingdom to reality!

So Peter says it rightly, He is the Christ!

But Peter does not stop there simply acknowledging that Jesus is the Messiah, the Christ. He continues with a further declaration that takes his confession even further.

He says that Jesus is “the Son of the Living God!”

Now, this isn’t the first time that the disciples have said this, (they also recognized him as the Son of God after he walked on water in 14:33) but it is a massive realization of who the Messiah actually is!

The Old Testament doesn’t actually say that the Messiah would be the Son of God, so in contrast to all the others who think Jesus is merely a prophet, a pointer, Peter has rightly recognized that Jesus is the point itself!

After so many missteps by the disciples, they’re finally starting to get it! Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God! This is a huge step in the development of the disciples!

This confession is not just intellectual—it’s life-altering. If Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God, then He is also Lord of our lives. This means surrender. It means trusting Him not just as Savior, but as King. It means repenting of our sins, believing in His finished work on the cross, and following Him as Lord.

And Jesus shows us just how deeply this impacts our lives in his response to Peter.

B. Jesus’ Response (v. 17)

Jesus responds, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven.”

This revelation is divine—Peter’s confession is not the product of human wisdom but of God revealing truth to him (1 Corinthians 2:10-12).

Salvation is not a matter of intellect but a work of the Holy Spirit opening hearts to understand the true identity of Christ (John 6:44).

The foundation of the Church is built on divine revelation, not human reason or effort (Matthew 16:17).

C. Jesus’ Promise (v. 18) (Rm 10:9-10)

Some wordplay (Peter means rock)

3 Interpretations

Peter as the foundational rock of the Church

That Peter was the primary one given authority to lead and bind and loose

Catholic position - a foundational argument for Peter being the first pope and then the necessity of papal succession for authority

wrong and goes around Jesus being the true foundation

Peter’s confession as the rock

Jesus isn’t speaking about Peter himself, but really the confession he made that Jesus is “the Christ, the Son of the Living God”

Many protestants take this position, but it was never fully satisfying to me

Jesus is speaking directly to Peter and using his given name as a pun.

Peter as a representative of all true disciples

This takes a middle ground

It recognizes Peter is the focus here, and the first stone laid in the great house of Jesus’ church,

but not in the way that Romists would say

It also recognizes Peter’s confession is a foundational concept of how the church is built. Every stone that follows him must make and believe that same confession.

So in that way, Peter is the representative of all disciples

We see that Peter does take the biggest role in leading the church in boldness once Jesus ascends to heaven

We see that he preaches and travels and helps make decisions for the new church

though he may be the first stone laid in the building that is Jesus’s new assembly of people,

he is not the only stone and it is not through him or his supposed papal authority that the church is led

Because when we lay a foundation of a house, is it the foundation that determines what the rest of the house looks like? NO

The builder, the architect, is the one who determines the house.

And who is the builder of the church? Look at verse 18

Jesus is the builder

and he is the one who determines what the church is.

The pope doesn’t decide, the church doesn’t decide, individual Christians don’t decide, and the outside world doesn’t decide

JESUS DOES

And Jesus, the builder, is also Jesus the protector

He promises that his church will not fall to the forces of Hell

And he upholds that promise through the sacrifice of his own life

(Gospel) Defeating the hold of darkness on all who would repent and believe Jesus and his Gospel

But then before his ascension he establishes his people to go into the world with his authority and make disciples (Matt 28:18-20)

How does the Great Commission begin? “All Authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me, therefore go...”

And here, Jesus is preparing his disciples for the day where he would give them that commission.

Preparing them to recognize that when they go out on their own, they have the authority of God backing them, so they have nothing to fear.

So, Peter’s confession is so much more than just his own personal story or testimony. It is his confession of who Jesus Christ is!

So it is personal, each disciple of Jesus must make that same confession, but it is so much more as the very foundation of the mission of the church!

Gospel Connection: The Church doesn’t stand on human strength but on the unshakable truth of Jesus' identity and work.

It doesn’t stand, survive, or thrive on papal authority

It is Jesus’ authority alone that builds, protects, and empowers the church.

Application:

For all believers: Your faith must be built on the truth that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God. Your salvation is based on this reality (Matthew 16:16).

For the Church: We belong to Christ, and He will preserve us. The Church is victorious because Christ is victorious (Matthew 16:18, Colossians 1:18).

And with that foundation laid, Jesus begins talking about the authority he gives to His Church in verses 19-20.

III. The Keys (vv. 19-20) – The Authority of the Church

A. What Are the Keys of the Kingdom?

Jesus gives authority to His Church—“I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 16:19)

The keys symbolize the authority to open and close the door to the kingdom, to allow access to the kingdom or deny it based on one’s response to Christ.

Common Misinterpretations:

Some ignore these verses, not understanding their application in the Church today.

The Catholic interpretation sees this as exclusive authority given to the Pope (John 21:15-17).

Charismatic interpretations apply it to spiritual warfare, binding and loosing demons or claiming new revelations (Matthew 18:18).

None of these interpretations are correct.

When we let Scripture interpret Scripture, we see the true meaning. In Matthew 18:15-17, Jesus uses the same language of binding and loosing in the context of church discipline. This teaches us that the ‘keys’ refer to the authority to declare what is permitted or prohibited in God’s kingdom—authority tied to God's revealed Word, not human will.

The clear context of Matthew 18:15-17 (church discipline) reveals the purpose of these keys (Matthew 18:15-17).

B. The Biblical Meaning of Binding and Loosing

Matthew 18:15-17 provides clarity on binding and loosing:

Binding = Excommunication of unrepentant sinners (removing them from the fellowship of the Church) (1 Corinthians 5:1-5).

Loosing = Restoration of repentant sinners (welcoming them back into the fellowship) (2 Corinthians 2:7-8).

The Church’s authority is not based on its own will but on God’s will as revealed through Scripture (Matthew 18:18).

C. Illustration: The King’s Servant and the Ring

Imagine a king who entrusts his servant with a royal seal to govern a newly acquired land. This servant is supposed to enforce the king’s laws. But over time, he begins making his own rules—either to gain power or to avoid enforcing the king’s justice.

Is he still acting with the king’s authority? No. He is now a traitor and should expect judgement and death for his treason. (Matthew 7:21-23).

Likewise, when churches and Christians misuse the authority Christ has given—either by creating new doctrines or refusing to uphold biblical discipline—they act in false authority and invite God’s judgment. Matthew 16:19, 1 Peter 4:17).

D. What Are the Keys in Practice?

So, what are the keys to the kingdom? They are not mystical powers but tangible, God-ordained means:

Preaching the Gospel – Just as Peter does in Acts 2. (Matthew 28:19-20, Acts 2:38)

Calling sinners to repentance and faith – The invitation to enter Christ’s kingdom. (Luke 24:46-47)

Administering baptism and the Lord’s Supper – The marks of those who have truly entered. (Matthew 28:19-20, 1 Corinthians 11:23-26)

Practicing Church discipline is an essential part of using the keys—the Church must protect its purity (Matthew 18:15-17, 1 Timothy 5:19-20).

So to those who respond with repentance and faith that lead to obedience, to these keys, to them the door to the kingdom is joyfully thrown open and they are “loosed” into the people of God.

But to those who are unrepentant and disobedient, to them the door of the kingdom is locked and they are “bound” outside the gate.

Our authority as a church has been given for the flourishing of God’s people. To proclaim the gospel, call sinners to repentance and faith, and to administer baptism and the Lord’s Supper to those who have responded in such a way.

Application:

For non-Christians: The Gospel is the key to eternal life. Will you repent and enter Christ’s kingdom? (John 14:6)

For Christians:

Are you engaged in the life of the Church?

Do you understand the seriousness of church membership and the authority Christ has given to the Church?

IV. Conclusion – How Will You Respond?

The Keys are eternally tied to the Question and the Confession.

“Who do you say Jesus is?” Your true answer to that question, your confession in your heart of hearts, is more important than you can possibly imagine.

A. Reflection on the Three Main Points

The Question: Who do you say Jesus is? (Matthew 16:13-14, John 6:69)

The Confession: Is your faith built on the solid truth of Jesus as the Christ, the Son of God? (Matthew 16:16-17)

The Keys: Are you living under the authority of the Church, participating in its mission to proclaim the Gospel and maintain biblical discipline? (Matthew 16:19, Matthew 18:15-17)

B. Application for Life Stages

For Non-Christians:

Have you personally answered Jesus' question? Who do you say He is?

The Gospel is the key to the kingdom. Will you repent and enter?

For Christians:

Your confession matters beyond Sunday morning—does your life reflect it?

Are you submitting to Christ’s authority in His Church?

For Different Life Stages:

Older Couples & Widows – Model faithful perseverance in Christ.

Parents & Grandparents – Teach your children that faith in Christ is the foundation of life. Lead by example in church membership and commitment to the body of Christ.

All Believers – Submit to biblical accountability. Guard against cultural distortions of Jesus. Build your life on His unshakable truth.

For Public Life: The Church is Christ’s witness—hold the keys with humility, not pride. Proclaim the Gospel boldly but in love.

Challenge: Will you stand firm in your confession of Christ, build your life upon Him, and submit to His authority in the Church?

Key Verse: Matthew 16:16, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."

Call to Action: Examine your heart. Are you resting on the true confession of Christ? Commit to strengthening your walk, building your life on Christ, and embracing the Church's mission to proclaim His Gospel.

End with prayer: Ask God to continue to reveal the truth of Jesus’ identity and authority to us. May we live as faithful witnesses in the world and in the Church.