Matthew 16:1-28

I want to say thanks for the time off that you give myself and our team. It is a huge blessing to be able to take time off to spend with Jill and our girls each year. We had an incredible time together, and even have some exciting things to share with you about our week later in the service. Coming back from vacation on Thursday I found myself with a slightly different format for my sermon as the weekend approached.

There is a lot here for us to cover in our message, so I am going to walk through it and offer some insight, implications, and applications for each section. Then at the end I’d like to offer some further thoughts from my time with the Lord in this passage on the gospel and how it applies to our lives. This may not be the tightest flow of thought and delivery due to the amount of ground we are going to cover today. But, I am confident it’s the ground God wants us to cover, and I am trusting Him that He will use it to benefit each one of us today.

Matthew 16:1–4 (CSB)

The Pharisees and Sadducees approached, and tested him, asking him to show them a sign from heaven. 2 He replied, “When evening comes you say, ‘It will be good weather because the sky is red.’ 3 And in the morning, ‘Today will be stormy because the sky is red and threatening.’ You know how to read the appearance of the sky, but you can’t read the signs of the times. 4 An evil and adulterous generation demands a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah.” Then he left them and went away.

After all the miracles that Jesus has performed, the Pharisees and Sadducees demand a sign from Jesus to prove He has true been sent by God. But, Jesus points out that they are missing the signs that the kingdom of God is being revealed right in front of them.

Demanding a sign from God comes from a heart of sin. (Matthew 16:1-4)

Demanding for God to do a little dance to prove something to you is different from God responding to your faith by answering your prayer and your petition.

Throughout the Bible God makes it abundantly clear that no human being is in a position to demand anything from God or to pass any type of judgment on what God does or who He is.

Job 38 is one of the best examples of this:

Job 38:1–21 (CSB)

"Then the Lord answered Job from the whirlwind. He said: 2 Who is this who obscures my counsel with ignorant words? 3 Get ready to answer me like a man; when I question you, you will inform me. 4 Where were you when I established the earth? Tell me, if you have understanding. 5 Who fixed its dimensions? Certainly you know! Who stretched a measuring line across it? 6 What supports its foundations? Or who laid its cornerstone 7 while the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy? 8 Who enclosed the sea behind doors when it burst from the womb, 9 when I made the clouds its garment and total darkness its blanket,, 10 when I determined its boundaries and put its bars and doors in place, 11 when I declared, “You may come this far, but no farther; your proud waves stop here”? 12 Have you ever in your life commanded the morning or assigned the dawn its place, 13 so it may seize the edges of the earth and shake the wicked out of it? 14 The earth is changed as clay is by a seal; its hills stand out like the folds of a garment. 15 Light is withheld from the wicked, and the arm raised in violence is broken. 16 Have you traveled to the sources of the sea or walked in the depths of the oceans? 17 Have the gates of death been revealed to you? Have you seen the gates of deep darkness? 18 Have you comprehended the extent of the earth? Tell me, if you know all this. 19 Where is the road to the home of light? Do you know where darkness lives, 20 so you can lead it back to its border? Are you familiar with the paths to its home? 21 Don’t you know?”

There is no one in a position to tell God to do anything or demand anything from Him. The demands of the Pharisees reveal their heart toward God and their rejection of the truth of who Jesus is.

I hope and pray that none of us demand anything from the Lord, especially when we have already been given so much.

The sign that Jesus promises will undo the curse of sin.

Jesus doesn’t grant their request, instead he tells them their evil generation will see a sign, just not the one they are asking for. The sign that Jesus tells them they will see is the sign of Jonah. Remember that Jonah ran from God’s command to take the gospel to the people of Ninevah. They were ungodly and dangerous people that Jonah didn’t want to see saved. So, Jonah ran from God’s command and got in a boat headed the opposite direction from the city of Ninevah. While on the boat a storm comes and eventually Jonah realizes that the storm is because of him. So, he is thrown overboard to appease God and a huge fish is sent by the Lord to swallow him up. Jonah told them to throw him overboard as a sacrifice to save the rest of the men on the boat. Jonah lives in the belly of the fish for 3 days, after he surrenders to God the fish vomits him up on the shore and he goes to Ninevah to deliver the Lord’s message of repentance. The people repent and Jonah is angry, so he goes and pouts about it to the Lord.

Jesus tells them they will only see the sign of Jonah. But, unlike Jonah Jesus goes willingly to the people who don’t deserve to be saved, dies on the cross to save them, and after 3 days is resurrected to bring eternal life to all who believe in Him. This is the sign that their generation will see. The sign of Jonah is the cross, burial, and empty tomb.

The sign of Jonah is the cross and resurrection of Jesus Christ that undoes the curse of sin.

Jesus directs His followers attention to the significance of faith over the law (Matthew 16:5-12)

Matthew 16:5-12

"5 The disciples reached the other shore, and they had forgotten to take bread. 6 Then Jesus told them, “Watch out and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees.” 7 They were discussing among themselves, “We didn’t bring any bread.” 8 Aware of this, Jesus said, “You of little faith, why are you discussing among yourselves that you do not have bread? 9 Don’t you understand yet? Don’t you remember the five loaves for the five thousand and how many baskets you collected? 10 Or the seven loaves for the four thousand and how many large baskets you collected? 11 Why is it you don’t understand that when I told you, ‘Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees,’ it wasn’t about bread?” 12 Then they understood that he had not told them to beware of the leaven in bread, but of the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees.”

The exchange here is one of complete misunderstanding. The disciples have forgotten bread, and then Jesus tells them to watch out for the leaven of the Pharisees and the Sadducees. Because leaven is in bread the disciples misunderstand what Jesus is saying to them. They think Jesus is talking about real bread, but Jesus is talking about what they are teaching.

In verse 12 Matthew explains to us that after Jesus clarifies what He is saying to them they understand that they are too beware of the impact of the teaching of the Pharisees and the Sadducees.

The Pharisees and the Sadducees were hypocrites, they ignored the law of God in favor of following their man made traditions, and they rejected the truth of who Jesus is.

Ultimately, their rejection of who Jesus is means that all of their teaching will be tainted and off. Therefore, the Pharisees teaching is like a little leaven that will eventually spread throughout the whole batch of dough. Jesus is warning against letting even a little bit of their teaching infiltrate their minds and the hearts.

This is true today, we must guard against anything that moves away from faith in Christ and His gospel. We see the effects of moving away from Christ and His Word all around us, and like the disciples we too must be diligent to stay focused on Christ.

In this passage the concern of the disciples over food reveals a lack of faith. And, given that Jesus is directing their attention to focus on faith rather than the law this requires a rebuke. How can the men who have witnessed all of the signs and wonders that Jesus has performed worry about bread? Like Jesus pointed out they had just witnessed the miracles of feeding the 5000 and the 4000, and here they are wondering what they are going to do about bread.

One of the things that this encounter brings to mind for me is how to face uncertain times. When you are facing the uncertain, look back at the ways God has provided as a basis for your faith and hope in the future. We have the benefit of looking to the cross and the resurrection of Jesus as confirmation of our faith and our hope.

The disciples had the times that Jesus had provided food to the hungry to lean on, and yet they were still like the Pharisees in their doubting and wanting more. They were caught in between the truth of who Jesus was and the things that Jesus had done. Somewhere in their heart they had to move from doubt to faith. They needed to move from wondering if He truly was the Son of Man to knowing that He is the Messiah and completely following Him.

This made me think about some of the situations I have been through in my life, and even one that I am going through right now. I can easily fall into the position of the disciples and fear what is going to happen. But, God has used this passage to reassure me of His goodness and His provision for me. In fact, I want to make sure to point out that with all that God has done for me and for you in the past we have more than enough to trust Him with our present situations and the future that lies on the other side of it.

We can trust Him with our present moment and our future primarily because of who He is!

Jesus uses this moment to direct their attention to having faith and trusting in Him. The reason it’s so important that they have faith and trust in Him is because of the revelation that comes in the next passage.

In this next passage we reach the big reveal of Matthew’s Gospel. We have known all along that Matthew was revealing the truth of who Jesus is to us. But, in the actual relationships and life of Christ this is the first declaration of Jesus as the Messiah that He accepts.

Jesus is the promised Messiah sent to save the people of God. (Matthew 16:13-20)

Matthew 16:13-20

“13 When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi,, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” 14 They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others, Elijah; still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” 15 “But you,” he asked them, “who do you say that I am?” 16 Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” 17 Jesus responded, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah,, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but my Father in heaven. 18 And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overpower it. 19 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will have been bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will have been loosed in heaven.” 20 Then he gave the disciples orders to tell no one that he was the Messiah.”

This is what we have been building toward in Matthew’s Gospel! This is the moment we have been waiting for. Like a good book or a well made movie, this is the pivot point of Matthew’s gospel. All that Jesus has done and said has left the crowds and the disciples in awe and wondering if He really is the Messiah. And here, in a simple exchange Jesus asks them who the crowds think He is, and then He asks them who do they think He is.

The crowds had many ideas of how Jesus is, but none of them had found unity in their agreement yet.

Here, Peter speaks for the rest of the disciples by proclaiming the truth about who Jesus is.

One thing that really stood out to me this time through the passage was the credit that Jesus gives to Peter’s confession.

Faith in Jesus Christ is the result of God’s revelation

This really stood out to me this week in my study. Jesus doesn’t praise Peter for figuring it out and putting all the pieces together. Instead, Jesus gives credit for Peter’s confession to the work of the Father.

The confirmation that Jesus is the Messiah is the result of the work of God in the mind and heart of Peter. With all the miracles, teachings, and experiences He had with Jesus- it was still the work of God in the mind and heart of Peter that revealed the truth about Jesus to Him.

Jesus doesn’t praise Peter for taking everything that he had seen and heard and doing his best with it. Nope, Jesus praises the Father for the revelation that Peter has received. This is the basis for our preaching the Word of God as the means to reach the lost today.

This is true for us today. You can make all the arguments about the truth of Jesus to someone, but at the end of the day it is the work of God in the hearts and minds of men that opens their eyes to the truth of the gospel and leads them to believe.

This is why we preach the Gospel. Like Jesus said, Peter’s understanding of the truth was according to a revelation from the Father. Today we have Scripture as the full and final revelation of God. This Bible is the Gospel that saves.

God has called us to bring the truth of Christ to the world. He has promised to work through the power of the Gospel in the hearts and minds of those who hear it. God has promised to work through the revelation of Jesus Christ- the Bible, the Word, the Scriptures. Apart from the preaching of the gospel of Christ through the Word there will be no salvation.

Romans 1:16 (CSB)

16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel,, because it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, first to the Jew, and also to the Greek.

Romans 10:9–15 (CSB)

9 If you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 One believes with the heart, resulting in righteousness, and one confesses with the mouth, resulting in salvation. 11 For the Scripture says, Everyone who believes on him will not be put to shame,, 12 since there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, because the same Lord of all richly blesses all who call on him. 13 For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved., 14 How, then, can they call on him they have not believed in? And how can they believe without hearing about him? And how can they hear without a preacher? 15 And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written: How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news.,

Salvation belongs to the Lord. No one is saved because our arguments are well planned and executed.

This is why Paul refers to it as the foolishness of the gospel. Paul didn’t claim to come with well ordered arguments, but with the power of the gospel.

1 Corinthians 1:18–25 (CSB)

18 For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but it is the power of God to us who are being saved. 19 For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and I will set aside the intelligence of the intelligent., 20 Where is the one who is wise? Where is the teacher of the law? Where is the debater of this age? Hasn’t God made the world’s wisdom foolish? 21 For since, in God’s wisdom, the world did not know God through wisdom, God was pleased to save those who believe through the foolishness of what is preached. 22 For the Jews ask for signs and the Greeks seek wisdom, 23 but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to the Jews and foolishness to the Gentiles. 24 Yet to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God, 25 because God’s foolishness is wiser than human wisdom, and God’s weakness is stronger than human strength.

Faith in Christ, not keeping the law, is the means by which people are saved and Jesus is building His church

“Upon this rock I will build my church”

The rock is the confession of Peter, His faith in the revelation the Father has given Him and the other disciples.

It’s true that Peter is a significant figure in the church as it develops, but it would be taking this too far to say that Jesus was building His church on Peter. But, Peter is the vocal leader of the apostles as the Holy Spirit begins moving in the book of Acts. But, Peter is not the foundation of the church, Jesus is the cornerstone. And faith in Jesus is the means by which He is building His church.

The church and the Kingdom are one and the same. There is no one in the kingdom of God that is not a part of the church, and the church is the visible representation of God’s kingdom on earth.

Nothing, not even death, can overcome the church of Jesus Christ.

“And the gates of hades will not overpower it.”

This is amazing! The kingdom and church that Jesus is building will persevere even through death. There will always be a remnant of the church of Jesus in the world until He returns. And, more than a remnant those who have faith in Jesus will not be overcome by death.

The gates of hades will have no power over those who have been given eternal life in Jesus Christ!

The kingdom of Christ is built according to faith in Jesus.

The Kingdom of Christ is an eternal kingdom and you are granted access by faith and denied access according to a lack of faith. (Binding and loosing) This doesn’t mean that you can exert some kind of power or lay claim to things in the name of Jesus. It means that the only means to bring someone into the kingdom or for someone to be outside the kingdom is according to the faith that is demonstrated in Peter. Jesus builds His kingdom by faith through grace, and the kingdom of Christ is eternal and pre-eminent. There is no higher rule or citizenship than the kingdom of Christ.

I think there are some implications too many issues in our country and our world. One of them is that the demise of the influence of the church in our country is largely the result of Christians and churches moving from the centrality of Christ to something else. Anywhere that Jesus is orbiting something else is no longer the kingdom of Christ.

It’s not the kingdom of Christ if He’s not at the center.

Another implication is that Jesus doesn’t promise that all of our efforts and organizations will be successful if we do them for Jesus. Jesus makes it clear that the church, His bride, His body, will not be overcome. This means that the bride of Christ, the saved, the church will endure and prevail in the end. However, it doesn’t mean that all of our worldly endeavors will last or be successful.

One of the issues we face in our country is the mixing of the world with the church. We are not the first country to have this struggle. Most of Western Europe struggled with this as well. They struggled with it in a different manner, but the mixing of the political kingdom with the kingdom of Christ has always had the same result.

“When you mix politics and religion, you get politics.” George Carlson. This statement is a modern day proof of the doctrine of separation of church and state.

As Baptists, this is one of our founding doctrines is the doctrine of the separation of church and state. We have believed for hundreds of years what Isaac Backus said in 1773, “Religious matters are to be separated from the jurisdiction of the state, not because they are beneath the interests of the state but, quite to the contrary, because they are too high and holy and thus are beyond the competence of the state.”

Did you hear that? The interests of the church, the kingdom of God, the gospel is too high and holy to be a matter of the state, much less to depend on the state.

Roger Williams, the founder of the First Baptist Church in America said, “An enforced uniformity of religion throughout a nation or civil state, confounds the civil and religious, denise the principles of Christianity and civility, and that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh.”

Jesus makes it clear to Peter that His kingdom will not be overcome, and His kingdom is founded on the truth that Christ has come in the flesh.

The keys to the kingdom are simply the gospel. Those who are brought in are brought in through the gospel. The binding and loosing of the kingdom of God is done solely on the basis of Jesus Christ.

The authority that Jesus gives to His disciples is completely connected to the Gospel

There is no authority in the persons of the disciples, they exercise the authority of Christ through the preaching of the gospel. They instruct with authority and they correct with authority as it relates to the truth of Scripture.

Life in the Kingdom is not according to the law, it is according to Christ. In fact, the kingdom is centered on Christ in every way.

Life in the kingdom is according to faith in Christ, following the example of Christ, in obedience to the Word of Christ.

1. Life in the kingdom is according to faith in Christ.

2. Life in the kingdom is patterned after the example of Christ

3. Life in the kingdom is in obedience to the Word of Christ

Life and everything in it is interpreted through Jesus and His Gospel rather than the opposite.The opposite would be to interpret Jesus and everything in the Word through the lens of the world.

Following Christ means trusting Him with how He accomplishes His will

(Matthew 16:21-23)

Matthew 16:21-23

21 From then on Jesus began to point out to his disciples that it was necessary for him to go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders, chief priests, and scribes, be killed, and be raised the third day. 22 Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, “Oh no, Lord! This will never happen to you!” 23 Jesus turned and told Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me because you’re not thinking about God’s concerns but human concerns.”

Focusing on human concerns and not God’s concerns is a hinderance to the work of Christ, and a strategy of the devil.

Jesus referred to those who hindered the work He came to do as agents of Satan. He does it here to Peter and other times in His ministry to the Pharisees and the Sadducees. I think we are prone to think that those who deny Jesus are the ones who can get in the way of what God is doing. But, that’s not true.

Right after making the most profound declaration of His life, Peter is being rebuked by Jesus for focusing on human and worldly matters. This means that you too can do the same, and we must guard against being a hinderance by making sure our focus is on Christ and His kingdom.

Jesus taught His disciples that He would suffer many things, be killed, and be raised from the grave on the third day. When the events of the last week of Jesus unfold, they are not unfolding without warning. If you have read through the week before His crucifixion and thought that the disciples were unaware of what was coming, you missed this part. I think it makes it even more clear how powerful fear and doubt can be in the hearts of Christians. Even here as Jesus is teaching them about what must happen Peter rejects it and is rebuked. Then, later when Jesus is actually arrested Peter denise his relationship with Christ and is again rebuked by Christ through the crowing of a rooster.

The priority of God’s kingdom and the gospel of Jesus Christ means that we must be willing to suffer whatever comes our way.

Jesus told His disciples what would come His way, and then told them that they too must go ahead and surrender to the same.

Following Christ requires personal surrender and sacrifice

(Matthew 16:24-28)

Matthew 16:24-28

24 Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If anyone wants to follow after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. 25 For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life because of me will find it. 26 For what will it benefit someone if he gains the whole world yet loses his life? Or what will anyone give in exchange for his life? 27 For the Son of Man is going to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will reward each according to what he has done. 28 Truly I tell you, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.”

The keys of the kingdom of Christ are bound up in the Gospel of Jesus Christ and the surrender of your life to Him. This is a surrender to the fullest extent.

To follow Jesus means to exchange this life for a life of surrender to Him.

Acknowledging the truth of Jesus is different from following Him.

Following Jesus requires a surrender to the will and plans of God.

The will and plans of God include surrender and sacrifice.

This is what Peter was objecting too. Peter was fine with Jesus coming to save the world as the Messiah. But, Peter was not ok with the way that fact that saving the world meant the crucifixion, burial, and resurrection of Jesus.

Peter’s human concerns were for the well-being of His friend and Messiah. But, Jesus tells him that placing personal well being over the plans and will of God is an act of Satan and not the Spirit of God.

This is why Jesus follows up the rebuke of Peter with the call to follow Him in a sacrificial surrender of your life.

When you see Jesus clearly, you can’t help but surrender to live according to His ways.

This takes us back to the parables about the treasure and the pearl.

And, in the moments of uncertainty and difficulty your hope is who Jesus is and what He has done. Even if death is the result of your obedience, it will not and cannot overcome the work and gospel of Jesus Christ.

This is what Jesus means when He says even the gates of hell will not overcome the church. Your death will not separate you from the love of God.

(Neither height, nor depth, nor death…. Can separate us)

It’s true that the church of Christ will last forever. It’s true that the kingdom fo God will last forever. But, it’s not true that everything a Christian does or everything a Christian participates in will last forever.

I think we need to avoid ascribing victory for things or groups where the Bible doesn’t give it. We need to be careful to ascribe the value of God’s kingdom to the affairs and issues of the world. The affairs of God’s kingdom are higher and more holy than the affairs of the state. The affairs of God’s kingdom are more high and more holy than the platform of any political party or social club in our country.

When it comes to political issues, we don’t need to be aligned with any one party, though I do think it’s acceptable to make sure we don’t align with a political party. For instance, when I say we shouldn’t align with a party, I don’t mean I am secretly working for the democratic party in a world of republicans. It simply means that I am a Christian first and last. This means that in our country my vote will go to the candidates and platforms that provide the best opportunity for our country to honor God and His Word with the laws and decisions that come from it. But, my vote isn’t a commitment to anyone or anything other than the Lord. My vote is the exercise of my heavenly citizenship through the means that my earthly one provides.

If I lived-in a different country I would make the best use of my earthly citizenship for the sake of my heavenly citizenship. I believe that’s what Christians do.

However, I am concerned about the current direction of our country. I am concerned that the fundamentals of our republic and the foundations of our society are being attacked and subverted more and more. To that end I think that it is worthwhile to endeavor to protect our freedoms, foundations, and fundamentals… but as an exercise of our heavenly citizenship here on earth.

I believe wholeheartedly with Isaac Backus and many other early American Baptist Pastors, that the Christian life and the affairs of the kingdom are more important. I believe like Roger Williams and others of his day that the church should have significant influence on our country through the lives and votes of its members. The government has no jurisdiction over the church, but the church is the kingdom of God, and therefore is beyond the competence of the state. The church should speak and influence the country and culture, but the culture and country should not have the reverse influence,

We must be willing to die for Jesus. God doesn’t ask less of one Christian than another. Everyone who comes to Christ is called to make the same decision to follow Him.

A few closing applications

1. Believe the truth of God’s revelation and surrender your life to following Jesus by faith and be saved

Who do you say Jesus is?

2. You can be a help or a hinderance to the Lord

Which will it be?

Do you push back against what God is doing? (Just because you don’t like it or want to go through it?)

3. Live according to the Word and not the World

Prioritize the kingdom of Christ over everything else.