The Confession that will Cost you
Notes
Transcript
Illustration/Story - Share story that Richard Wurmbrand shared when preaching about a mother in Romania who was captured. All the communist soldiers wanted to know was the location of the other Christians and where they were printing bibles. She refused. One day they brought her son and told her that if she did not tell them then they would pour boiling water on the boys face.
She looked at her son and said, "My son you will not understand what is happening or why. Understand that I cannot betray my Lord and Savior." The soldiers proceeded to pour boiling water on her sons face.
She held unto to her confession. She did not waiver. She knew that this confession had a price tied to it.
We are going to see that the confession that Peter made is not one to be taken likely but one that will cost you.
The title of the message is The Confession that will cost you.
Read Matthew 16:13-28
Point #1 The Confession that brings hope
13 Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” 14 And they said, “Some say John the Baptist, others say Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” 15 He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” 16 Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” 17 And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. 18 And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock[b] I will build my church, and the gates of hell[c] shall not prevail against it. 19 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed[d] in heaven.” 20 Then he strictly charged the disciples to tell no one that he was the Christ.
In Matthew 16, Jesus asks a very important question. A death or life question. It is not surprising that he is asking this question because throughout his whole ministry he is getting to the heart of things.
He asks his disciples, "Who do people say that the Son of Man is?" He is getting to the heart of it. With all of the things that have occurred.
The miracles, the events that are pointing to him this is Him asking Do you know who I am? Do you know why I came? My purpose?
What is interesting is their responses. Some said John the Baptist, some said Elijah, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.
Jeremiah because Jesus was critical of Israel. If you remember Elijah in the OT did not die but was taken up to Heaven so they believe that Eljah would come back. In Deuteronomy when Moses is instructing Israel on how to determine if a prophet is actually a prophet he speaks of a prophet like Him who would come.
None of them said the Christ. None of them said the Messiah. Even though if they were listening to the teachings and the Pharisees it was all pointing to them.
Peter makes an outstanding statement. It is not from study or mental ascent. It is from the Father revealing Himself.
You are the Christ. The Son of the Living God.
You are the Messiah. You are the Savior of the world. The question is what did he believe the type of Savior He was. Jews back in the day believed that the Messiah would come and overthrow the Kingdom who is oppressing them in this case Rome and save Israel and restore it.
Jesus says Blessed are you Peter because Flesh and blood did not reveal this to you but my Father who is in Heaven. We see this in John 6 that no one can come to me unless the Father draws them. The Father is the one who sent the son. Why? To reveal the Father.
God spoke through Jeremiah and Ezekiel that there would come a day where He would remove the heart of stone, and give a heart of flesh with His law inscribed on it. They (Israel, Gentiles) would know Him.
This time is NOW!
I will send my Son and they will know me.
He has something to do. It is in that designation that Peter confesses that Jesus is the Christ. Jesus came to save you from your sin.
You might ask yourself. Adam sinned. Why do I have to pay for Adams sin? That is how grave Adams sin was that it effected everyone throughout human history.
It is a plague. It is a cancer. It is something that you cannot remove. It is something that the Christ has to atone for.
Jesus follows with a play on words. Peter which translates to Petros which means Rock and the same with Cephas.
Upon this Rock. Upon this confession that Jesus is the Savior of the world. I will build MY CHURCH!
I grew up Roman Catholic and we had the belief that from this passage it gave birth to the papacy to the Pope. Here is the issue with that.
Jesus says, ' Upon this confession I will build my church." Not Upon Peter. Yes he was in the inner circle. Yes he was one of the apostles. Yes he was one of the pillars of the church. Yes he was the spokesperson. No where was he ever given special privelage.
We see where this word petras is used again in the Matthew 7 where Jesus says, "He who hears my words and does them is like one who builds his house on rock (Petras)
○ 24 "Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them, may be compared to a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 "And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded on the rock. - Matthew 7:24-25
○ and all drank the same spiritual drink, for they were drinking from a spiritual rock which followed them; and the rock was Christ. - 1 Corinthians 10:4
The Rock is Christ. It is his teachings.
It is not built on a man. It is built on the God-man. It is built on what he has done because that is the gospel. It is by grace we have saved through faith. It is the cross. It is not by works less anyone should boast.
I am not trying to dog Roman Catholicism but trying to bring clarity. It is MY CHURCH. Is it MINE!
Listen to how personal this is. I have died for it. I have bled for it. I have built it with my blood, sweat and tears. It is Mine. Think about what he is saying here. You are mine. The whole church. You are mine. We are His.
That is the whole intention. God would reconcile everyone to God both Jew and Gentile.
4 As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, 5 you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ - 1 Peter 2:4-8
Thomas Constable said, "
Jesus claimed the church as His own in a unique sense by calling it "My church." Jesus revealed the existence of this new organism here for the first time in history. There is no Old Testament revelation of its existence. Jesus brought it into being because Israel had rejected her Messiah, and consequently God would postpone (delay) the kingdom of God on earth. In the meantime, Jesus would construct an entirely new entity. He Himself would be both its foundation and its builder."
Point #1 The Confession that brings hope
Point #2 The Confession that justifies
Point 2 - The Confession that justifies
21 From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised. 22 And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, “Far be it from you, Lord![e] This shall never happen to you.” 23 But he turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance[f] to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.”
The first part of we see the identity of Jesus revealed to his disciples in verses 21-23 he is explaining the purpose of the Christ.
It was necessary for Christ to die. If not, there would be no forgiveness of sins, there would be no reconciliation with the Father. We would be dead in our sins. We would be separated from the Father in this life and in the one to come for eternity. Point blank, Christ had to die.
In John 17 right before he was going to be betrayed Jesus prayed, ““Father, the hour has come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may glorify you.”
Listen to his words. Glorify your Son that your Son may glorify you. How was he going to do that? The cross. His death and resurrection.
John Piper said, “You need to understand that Gods glory has been trampled by us because everytime we choose something other than the glory of God we demean the glory of God.
For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.
Through the cross God the Father was going to show the world His Infinite worth, love, mercy and justice through Christ. Only Christ could do it. God had to punish man but also there had to be a sacrifice a perfect sacrifice a payment for our sin. Jesus came in the form of man and being fully God and perfect He was that Once and for all perfect sacrifice to pay the price of sin once and for all.
We see his perfect justice because as the perfect judge that He is. He is judging sin accordingly
We his mercy and grace because Christ took our place and paid the price for our sin
We see righteousness because through the cross we are made right before God. We are justified
We see His love for us. While we were yet sinners Christ died for us. For God so loved the world He gave His only begotten Son.
In all of this God is magnified, He is glorified
• Yet it was the LORD’s will to crush him and cause him to suffer, and though the LORD makes his life an offering for sin, he will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the will of the LORD will prosper in his hand. - Isaiah 53:10
Peters understanding of the Christ or the Messiah did not include a Suffering Servant the one described by Isaiah in chapter 53.
How can he be so close yet so far? He confessed that Jesus was the Christ but as Jesus said, “ His mind was not set on the things of God.”
Illustration: Pastor Chip Ingram who is a Pastor shared a story of when He preached a sermon specifically addressing Homosexuality and what does the bible say about it. After his sermon a girl approached him and told him that she had friends who she cared about that were homosexual. She believed Jesus existed, believed that he died and rose from the grave. If what was he saying that if she had to choose between her friends or Christ. She would give up eternity.
She said all the right things. She said she believed. She was so close but so far. She did not have the mind of God.
We see here that Peter began with a great confession and followed with a great contradiction.
Evidently Jesus turned to confront Peter face to face. "Get behind Me Satan.”
Thomas Constable says"It does not matter how one interprets the rebuke to Peter. Jesus' main point is one that demands a response from his audience. Whether he said, 'Get out of my sight!' [NIV], 'Get behind me!' [AV], or 'Follow after me!'[1271], he intended to focus his attention on the necessity of unconditional obedience in discipleship."A Christian who is not dead to the world is but a stumbling-stone to every one who seeks to follow Christ."
Jesus had recently called Peter a rock. Now He called him a different type of rock, a rock that causes someone to stumble
Are you a stumbling block to your brothers and sisters? Is your life pointing them to Christ and to live holy?
Point #1 The Confession that brings hope
Point #2 The Confession that justifies
Point #3 The Confession that will cost you
Point 3 - The confession of Christ will cost you
24 Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. 25 For whoever would save his life[g] will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. 26 For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul? 27 For the Son of Man is going to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay each person according to what he has done. 28 Truly, I say to you, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.”
We see here that Christ is drawing a line in the sand. God or the world. Life or death. Choose One. The words "Deny" "Take Up" indicates a decisive decision. "Follow Me" Is a continual action. You can only do this by Gods grace. It is God's grace the work of the cross that can save you. It is Gods grace and His Holy Spirit that will empower you to continue.
The confession of Christ is not passive but it translates into action. We see that the Revelation effects the heart, the mind, your whole life. We see in 1 John where it says that if you hate your brother then you don't even know God.
We cant say we know Him yet we treat our neighbor like garbage
In the book of James we are called not to be hearers but doers of the word.
The gravity of this decision is clearly seen in verses 26 and 27 where Jesus says, "26 For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul? 27 For the Son of Man is going to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay each person according to what he has done. "
What will it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul. We see the contrast. You choose to take up your cross, deny yourself and follow Christ you will not have the world but your prize if Christ and your soul will not be forfeited but will live forever with Him in His Kingdom. He will return and He will bring judgement and repay everyone for what they have done.
Illustration of Brother Yun:
Brother Yun became a believer at the age of 16. Soon after he became a Christian, God called him to be His witness in the west and south. As he was obedient to the calling, he eventually became a witness of Christ not just in the western and southern parts of China, but throughout China and in the nations beyond China as well.
When Brother Yun was arrested the first time, he was only 17 years old. At that time, he was ministering at a meeting far away from home. After he was caught, he was thrown into a freezing cold prison cell. There was no heat in the cell and his winter coat had been thrown into the snow by the security police who had caught him. He began to sing Psalm 150 aloud. The more he sang, the more he was filled with joy. Gradually, his frozen hands and feet regained feeling and he no longer felt cold.
During his first imprisonment in Nanyang, Brother Yun felt that God wanted him to fast without food and water until he could see his family again. This fast lasted 74 days, which was humanly impossible but yet was made possible because he chose to obey God.
During those times when Brother Yun was in the hands of government officials, he was repeatedly beaten and tortured with electric batons. He was also kicked and trampled upon. Furthermore, he had needles being jabbed underneath his fingernails.
Brother Yun knew that his confession had a price. He counted the cost and saw that it was worth it because He is worthy.
Self-denial, as Jesus taught it, does not involve denying oneself things (for example, dessert or ice cream or even legitimate forms of entertainment like hunting) I can hear a sigh of relief from Dane. as much as it involves denying one's own authority over his or her life
The Romans customarily compelled someone condemned to crucifixion to carry at least part of his own cross. This act gave public testimony to his being under and submissive to the rule he had opposed. This was both a punishment and a humiliation. Likewise, Jesus' disciples must publicly declare their submission to the One whom they formerly rebelled against.
You were made to love Him. He loves you. It pays to serve Jesus, but payday will come later.
Matthew Walvoord said, ""For the world, there is immediate gain but ultimate loss: for the disciple, there is immediate loss but ultimate gain."
Your hope should not be in your attendance or how much scripture you memorized or that you are always there to help and serve. Our hope is in Jesus Christ.
Both Jesus and Paul urged us to lay up treasure in heaven, to make investments that will yield eternal rewards
• “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust[a] destroy and where thieves break in and steal, 20 but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. - Matthew 6:19-21
• Instead, seek his[a] kingdom, and these things will be added to you. “Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom. 33 Sell your possessions, and give to the needy. Provide yourselves with moneybags that do not grow old, with a treasure in the heavens that does not fail, where no thief approaches and no moth destroys. 34 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. - Luke 12:31-34
• They are to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share, 19 thus storing up treasure for themselves as a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is truly life. - 1 Timothy 6:18-19
Here on earth it is wise to save money, to invest in a 401K, and have stock options. How much different is it in the Spiritual? What are you investing in?