Based upon Simon Peter’s confession that Jesus was the promised Messiah, God’s Chosen One, of the Hebrew Scriptures, Jesus blesses Peter and claims “on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven…” (Matthew 16.18-19).
The followers of Jesus believe that he is the Christ, the anointed of God – the one chosen to be the world’s true Lord. And we understand this to be possible because through his death to atone for the sins of humanity, and thereby allaying God’s wrath, the inception of a new kingdom was possible: a kingdom where the world’s values would be radically subverted, where power would be gained through humility and self-sacrifice, where love is the majority language, and where service was to truly glorify our Maker. This kingdom (elsewhere referred to as the church) can be seen anywhere disciples are together, serving others under the Lordship of the Jesus who loved them and died for them. And because this kingdom was begun by a king who finally conquered over death through his resurrection, we’re told that not even the domain of death itself – Hades – would be able to prevail against it. Death would be obliterated by the promise of his resurrection; and spiritual death eliminated as people turned from their selfish ways at hearing the Gospel of the Crucified.
And do you know where our King audaciously builds his kingdom? Matthew records in 16.13 that the disciples followed Jesus to an area called Caesarea Philippi. And in this city, even today, one can see the “rock” (16.18), the cave dedicated to various false gods such as Pan. It’s upon this rock, this rock emblematic of all the world’s values and false gods and competing deities that Christ proclaims his supremacy.
And if we wish to serve this Godman, Jesus of Nazareth, we simply obey the words of the Master recorded later in the chapter – 16.24-28 (LEB):
“Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If anyone wants to come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life on account of me will find it. For what will a person be benefited if he gains the whole world but forfeits his life? Or what will a person give in exchange for his life? For the Son of Man is going to come in the glory of his Father with his angels, and at that time he will reward each one according to ⌊what he has done⌋.”
At the advent of this kingdom Jesus promised us, we read where Simon Peter would use the kingdom keys to first open the church doors on the day of Pentecost. And in Acts 2.38, Peter informs the crowd how to enter this kingdom: “Repent and be baptized every one of you for the remission of your sins.”
Scripture reading: 1Chr.24-25; Ps.14; Mt.16-17
Pursue Righteousness 