We Are Disciples: Why the Keys of the Kingdom are Crucial for our Discipleship

Grace Alone

Welcome & Announcements (Mike Klaassen)

Scripture Reading (Matt. 16:13-19; 18:15-20)

Prayer of Praise (God is self-existent), Bethany Harris

All Praise to Him

Come Behold the Wondrous Mystery

Prayer of Confession (lying), Bobby Watkins

Yes I Will

PBC Catechism #33

What is the local church?

The local church is an autonomous congregation that covenants together for worship, discipleship, service, fellowship, missions, discipline, and the celebration of the ordinances

Pastoral Prayer (Bubba Jones)

SERMON

Keys on key chain...

Some represent ownership

Some represent stewardship

Some represent something long forgotten

If you’re a Christian and a church member, you’ve been given a shared set of keys to steward. And yet, for many Christians the purpose of these keys is long forgotten.

Turn to Matthew 16:13

We’re going to look at two texts in Matthew’s gospel that teach us about what Jesus calls the Keys of the Kingdom

This concept can sometimes be confusing and feel abstract, however...

The Keys of the Kingdom are crucial for our success in making disciples.

Three Questions:

What are the Keys of the Kingdom?

Why Do the Keys Matter?

How Do We Use the Keys?

WHAT are the Keys of the Kingdom?

Most of our time on this question (understanding) and then we’ll apply

Matthew 16:13-15—Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” And they said, “Some say John the Baptist, others say Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?”

Most important question

16-18—Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” 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. And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.”

Jesus doesn’t stop after Peter’s answer. He doesn’t say, “Great job! Now you’ll be just fine!” Jesus wants more people to know the truth that Peter has confessed, and He wants those people gathered in something called a church. [1]

And in order to do that, Jesus talks about something called “the Keys of the Kingdom”

19a—“I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven...”

What are these keys?

Think about what keys do. They open and close.

But what are these keys opening and closing?

Jesus shows us...

Imagine after Jesus asks, “who do you say that I am?” Peter responds, “I think you’re Elijah.” How would Jesus respond? He would say, “I’m sorry Peter, but you don’t understand yet. You’re not yet in the Kingdom.” He would reject Peter’s confession.

But when Peter confesses rightly, Jesus affirms His confession. He says, “That’s right, Peter. That’s a true confession. You are a citizen of the Kingdom.”

That’s what it looks like to exercise the keys of the kingdom. It’s the power to say, “that is a true confession and this is a true confessor.”

That idea is clarified in...

v. 19b—“...whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”

To bind something is to close it, to loose something is to open it.

The power of the keys is the power to say, “the doors of heaven are open to this person” or “the doors of heaven are closed to that person”

Does it surprise you that Jesus would share those keys with sinful humans?

Who has the keys of the kingdom? Who among us has the authority to say who is and isn’t a true believer in Jesus?

v. 18— “...you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church...”

Roman Catholic church used this text to argue that a single man (the pope) has the authority of Jesus on earth. In their view Peter was the first pope.

After the Reformation most Protestants objected to this idea. The “rock” is not Peter, but Peter’s confession.

Today most evangelical scholars believe that this was an over-correction.

Edmund Clowney says, “The confession cannot be separated from Peter, neither can Peter be separated from his confession.” [2]

Jonathan Leeman—“Jesus builds the church on both Peter and his confession.” [3]

But the church isn’t built exclusively on Peter. It’s built upon people who confess rightly.

That’s clear in our next passage...

Turn to Matthew 18:15

This and the passage we just read are the only places in all the gospels where the word “church” is used

Classic passage on church discipline, but it’s bigger than that.

It’s a passage about the keys of the kingdom...

18:15-17—“If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother. But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every charge may be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses. If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector.

Jesus gives clear instructions on how to deal with sin among those who call themselves His followers

But there’s more going on here...

18-20—Truly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. Again I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.”

Jesus doesn’t explicitly mention the “keys” in Matthew 18, but the same authority is there.

He repeats what He said to Peter about binding and loosing

Except this time it’s plural...

“Whatever ya’ll bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever ya’ll loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”

So the keys of the kingdom were not given to Peter as an individual, but as the representative of the disciples. The keys belong to a group.

Put the two passages together:

In Matthew 16, Jesus talks about the gates of hell not prevailing against His church. It’s going to storm the gates of hell and grow as new believers are gathered in. And Jesus says, true confessors have the authority to affirm professions of faith and welcome new people into the church.

In Matthew 18, Jesus talks about what happens when hell creeps into the local church. Now of course, the church is filled with sinners, but what Jesus describes here is different.

This isn’t a sinner fighting against sin, but an unrepentant sinner fighting against those who are trying to help him fight his sin.

When that happens, the local church has the authority to remove its affirmation from those who confess rightly, but don’t live in light of that confession.

The keys of the kingdom are the local church’s authority to affirm or reject a person’s profession of faith.

Whenever we welcome someone into membership we’re using the keys of the kingdom. We’re saying, “we affirm this person's profession of faith. We believe they’re a Christian!”

Whenever we discipline someone out of membership we’re using the keys of the kingdom. We’re saying, “we can no longer affirm this person as a Christian.”

Does this mean the local church has the authority to make people Christians? Or take away someone’s salvation?

Absolutely not! The church is like an embassy. [4]

It doesn’t make people citizens or take away people’s citizenship. It simply affirms or rejects a person’s claim to citizenship.

The text literally reads, “whatever you loose on earth shall have been loosed in heaven and whatever you bind on earth shall have been bound.”

When we get it right, we are simply agreeing with what’s already true in heaven.

How do you become a citizen of the kingdom of heaven?

How do you become a citizen of the US? Most common way is by birth

None of us are born as citizens of the kingdom of heaven.

Eph. 2:3— “…by nature children of wrath...”

How Zeke became a citizen: by adoption!

In February 2021 we left America, traveled to Colombia, adopted Zeke, and the moment we touched American soil he was an American citizen!

Jesus left heaven, came to earth, lived a sinless life and died a sinner’s death, then rose from the dead so that whoever believes in Him can be adopted into the family of God!

Unbeliever: Repent and believe!

When we landed in Dallas on March 12, 2021, US Customs and Border Patrol had to verify Zeke’s adoption, but they didn’t make him a part of our family and they didn’t make him a citizen

In the same way, the local church doesn’t make you a kingdom citizen, but we verify that you are a kingdom citizen

The Keys of the Kingdom are crucial for our success in making disciples. But why?

WHY Do the Keys Matter?

What are the two of the greatest enemies to Christian discipleship? Pride and despair.

Pride says, “I can do this! I’m good enough, it doesn’t matter if I give into this or that sin because I’m a real follower of Jesus!”

Despair says, “I can’t do this! I’m not good enough, I can’t really be a follower of Jesus.”

A church rightly exercising the Keys of the Kingdom fights against both pride and despair.

To the proud, the church extends the threat of discipline.

That’s what Matthew 18 is all about

If you proudly persist in your sin and will not repent, a church that hasn’t forgotten her keys will pursue you

Not in vengeance, not to make you pay, but to restore you!

You need a church that loves you enough to pursue you and even discipline you if you wander away

I recently asked a young man during his membership Interview if he wanted this in a church. He responded, “absolutely.”

To the despairing, the church extends the gift of assurance.

That’s what Jesus is doing for Peter in Matthew 16, He’s assuring him

How I was taught assurance: pray hard enough, sincerely enough, etc. and you will be saved! And if you didn’t do it right, just do it one more time just in case!!!

How the NT teaches assurance: you are assured of your salvation by baptism and the Lord’s Supper!

When we baptize someone, we’re saying “we believe you’re a follower of Jesus!”

When we serve someone the Lord’s Supper, we’re saying, “we believe you’re still a follower of Jesus!”

This is one reason why we shouldn’t serve the Lord’s Supper to those who haven’t been baptized as believers.

You need a church that loves you enough to encourage you and affirm you as you imperfectly follow Jesus!

Not a member of a local church? Glad you’re here, but your holiness and your assurance will always be weak without the local church!

The Keys of the Kingdom are crucial for our success in making disciples.

HOW Do We Use the Keys?

A) Faithfully Guard the What and Who of the Gospel

I’m borrowing from Jonathan Leeman again with that phrase, [5] but it’s clearly taught in our text...

16:17—Jesus answered [Peter], “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.”

Jesus affirms the what of Peter’s confession (“My Father revealed this to you!”)

And He affirms the who (“blessed are you”)

18:17—If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector.

The church affirms the what of the gospel by saying there is a certain way that followers of Jesus must live!

The church affirms the who of the gospel by saying these people (the church) are a part of us, and those people (the Gentile and tax collector) are not a part of us

To guard the what of the Gospel we must care about things like...

Our preaching and teaching

Our statement of faith

Our pastors, since they are the main teachers in the church

Our constitution and bylaws, since they affect our ability to faithfully operate as a church

Our budget, since it reflects our priorities and the types of gospel ministry we invest in

To guard the who of the Gospel we must care about things like...

Who we receive into membership

How our fellow members are living

Confronting members when they’re caught in sin

And in rare circumstances, removing them when they’re unrepentant

You’ll notice that doing many of these things will often require our faithful attendance at Members Meetings.

Have you thought of Members Meetings as sort of extra credit activities for the uber-serious? They’re not!

Members Meetings are the 2nd most important gathering on the PBC calendar!

B) Humbly Admit We Sometimes Get it Wrong

Churches sometimes welcome people into membership who aren’t truly saved...

The fact that Jesus gives us instructions for church discipline anticipates the fact that sometimes we’ll affirm professions of faith wrongly!

Young man at Belmar Baptist who was baptized on Sunday, then confessed a crime on Monday. After helping him turn himself in, he angrily turned his back on us and was eventually disciplined by the church.

1 John 2:19—“They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us. But they went out, that it might become plain that they all are not of us.”

Churches sometimes discipline wrongly...

The NT gives us a wealth of wisdom regarding how to discipline rightly, and sadly some churches ignore that teaching.

But that’s not anything new...

3 John 9-10—I have written something to the church, but Diotrephes, who likes to put himself first, does not acknowledge our authority. So if I come, I will bring up what he is doing, talking wicked nonsense against us. And not content with that, he refuses to welcome the brothers, and also stops those who want to and puts them out of the church.

The fact that churches sometimes wrongly discipline genuine Christians and wrongly welcome false converts doesn’t mean we should give up on the keys!

Imagine one of my kids saying to their babysitter, “it’s possible you’re wrong about my bedtime, so I don’t have to listen to you.” If one of my kids do that, they’ll receive my discipline when I return. In the same way, even though churches are sometimes wrong, Christians must submit to the authority of the local church until Jesus returns. [6]

C) Joyfully Submit to the Decisions of the Whole

Matthew 18:20—“For where two or three are gathered in My name, there am I among them.”

This is not a verse given to make ourselves feel better when almost nobody shows up to our prayer meetings

Jesus is promising His authority is given to the church as a whole (even if it’s only two or three people!) in a way that it’s not given to the individual

Christian, your discipleship will be stunted if you will not submit to the decisions of the church.

“I don’t need to submit to a church, I’m submitting to Jesus!”

Imagine a football player signing a contract with the team owner. The owner hires the player, but the coach schedules the practices, picks the starters, and calls the plays. If the player wants to be on the team he must submit to the coach

In the same way, Christians submit to Christ by submitting to local churches.

Now the church must be careful not to require submission where we have no authority to do so.

For example, it would be wrong for us to require agreement on matters of conscience for membership

But if the church’s decision do not take away from or add to the Scriptures, than all of us (including the elders!) should joyfully submit to the decisions of the whole.

The Keys of the Kingdom are crucial for our success in making disciples.

In 1955, Mercedes-Benz made two road-legal racing vehicles called the 300 SLR Uhlenhaut Coupe.

In May of this year, one of those two vehicles was sold for $143 million, making it the most expensive vehicle in the world.

What if I told you that someone had given me the keys to that vehicle, and that tonight in the church parking lot I’d be using those keys to take the car for a test drive?

Would you be tempted to show up? Would you want to see the keys for the world’s most expensive car in operation? I know I would.

As incredible as it would be to see those keys being used, another set of keys being used inside this building would be eternally more significant.

It is our privilege, and our responsibility to use the keys of the kingdom together.

Tis So Sweet to Trust in Jesus

Benediction (Rev. 1:5b-6)