Let us turn again to God's Word,
turning to the chapter that we read in Matthew. Matthew chapter 16, and I'll
read at verse 15. He saith unto them, But whom
say ye that I am? And Simon Peter answered and
said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. And Jesus
answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-Jonah, for
flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which
is in heaven. I want then to direct you particularly
this morning to the words that we have here in verses 16 and
17, the confession of Simon Peter. Paul says, "...if
thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe
in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou
shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth
unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made
unto salvation." Is not this a confession unto salvation? when we consider the response
of the Lord Jesus there in the answer that He gives at verse
17. Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-Jonah,
for flesh and blood I have not revealed it unto thee, but my
Father which is in heaven. But first of all, to consider
the words of Peter. the words that we have here in
verse 16. And it is, of course, Peter's
reply to what Christ had asked previously. As we're told there
at verse 13, when Jesus came to the coast of Caesarea Philippi,
He asked His disciples, saying, Whom do men say that I, the Son
of Man, am? And they said, some say that
thou art John the Baptist, some Elias, that is Elijah in the
Old Testament, others Jeremiah, or one of the prophets. He saith unto them, But whom
say ye that I am? Now we see here that there were
these various opinions concerning the Lord Jesus Christ. those things that were being
said by the people, that John the Baptist had risen from the
dead, John had been beheaded, of course, at the command of
King Herod. John, they said, was risen. This was none but John appearing
again in the ministry of Jesus of Nazareth. Others said that
this was an appearance of Elijah from the Old Testament or It
was Jeremiah or another of those Old Testament prophets. There
were a whole variety of things then that were being said, many
opinions concerning Jesus. But what we have in verse 16
is Peter's reply, and I say that this is a considered reply on
the part of this man. Now, by nature, Peter was a very
impulsive man. He was a man who often spoke
in a rush on thinking why? And we see that, do we not, in
what follows. After this confession concerning
the person of Jesus, that he was the Christ, the Son of the
Living God, after this the Lord begins to speak of the purpose
of his coming into the world. Verse 21, from that time forth
began Jesus to show unto His disciples how He was to go to
Jerusalem, and there He was to suffer at the hands of the authorities,
and there He would be crucified, but He would rise again the third
day. It's after this confession, then
concerning His person, who He is, that the Lord begins to speak
more plainly to His disciples with regards to the work, the
mission that He had come to accomplish. But then Peter is offended and
here he speaks so rashly in verse 22, then Peter took him and began
to rebuke him saying, Be it far from thee, Lord, this shall not
be unto thee. But he turned and said unto Peter,
Get thee behind me, safe. Thou art an offense unto me.
For thou savest not the things that be of God, but those that
be of men." How different is the Lord's response. Previously,
as we've seen, he pronounces Peter to be a blessed man to
whom God had granted such a gracious revelation, and yet now He rebukes
him as the very instrument of Satan and a man who savoured
more the things of men. He would frustrate the Lord Jesus,
you see, in that great purpose of his coming into the world.
He came to give himself a sacrifice for sins. And the Lord was determined
to accomplish that work. And here is Peter as he were
standing in the way. I say that the words then that
he speaks in verse 22 are very rash words. Again, subsequently
we see Peter speaking in an impulsive manner. Remember how at the end
of the chapter the Lord had said that there were those present
who would not die till they had seen the Son of Man coming in
his kingdom. And then there follows in chapter
17 the transfiguration when Peter and James and John are with him
in the Holy Mount and they see him coming, as it were, in his
kingdom. they are able to see beyond the veil of his humiliation,
the veil of his human nature, and to discern something of the
glories of his divine nature. And we have Peter again speaking,
and they are rash words, I say. In chapter 17, verse 4, Then
answered Peter and said unto Jesus, Lord, it is good for us
to be here, if thou wilt let us make here three tabernacles,
one for thee and one for Moses and one for Elias. Now in Luke's account in Luke
chapter 9 and verse 33 we have the remark concerning Peter not
knowing what he said when he utters those words concerning
the making of three tabernacles he doesn't know what he is saying
he was a man who would often speak so impulsive, so impetuous
and speak without first considering just what he was saying. However,
with regards to this confession in Caesarea Philippi, I would
say this morning quite emphatically that this is Peter's considered
reply. This is something that he has
thought carefully about. It's not the only time we have
Peter making such a confession, we have it again at the end of
John chapter 6. That chapter where we have the
multitudes at the beginning of the chapter after Christ has
performed the miracle of the feeding of the 5,000. But then
the multitudes as they gather around him, they are offended
at his teaching. as he preaches the sovereignty
of God and they begin to depart and we come to the end and the
Lord asks even those who were his disciples would they also
go away and it was Peter who answered and said to him shall
we go thou hast the words of eternal life and we know and
are sure that thou art that Christ the son of the living God we
know it We know, we're sure, that thou art at Christ, the
Son of the Living God." Those were words that Peter had not
spoken in an impulsive fashion. That was a considered statement
by Peter. As I say, It was only shortly
before, at the beginning of chapter 6, that we have the feeding of
the 5,000. And now, here in chapter 16 of
Matthew, it is some time later. It's some period after Christ
had performed that miracle. Look at what is said by the Lord
at verse 9. ye not yet understand, neither
remember the five loaves of the five thousand, and how many baskets
ye took up, neither the seven loaves of the four thousand,
and how many baskets ye took up." Now, we have the record
of those miracles in the previous chapters. In chapter 14, of Matthew
at verse 15, following, we read of Christ feeding the 5,000.
And then in the previous chapter, chapter 15, from verse 32, following,
we have that other miracle where He feeds the 4,000. And so it
is evident, is it not, that what we're reading here in chapter
16 is some while after those miracles. Now remember, in John
chapter 6, the end of that chapter, Peter had made his great confession,
we know and are sure that thou art that Christ, the Son of the
Living God, he'd made that shortly after the miracle of the 5,000. Well here in chapter 16, it's
another occasion, there in Caesarea Philippi, and it is some time
later. Christ has not only performed
a miracle feeding 5,000, he's also fed 4,000 with 7 loaves and a few fishes. This is somewhat like these words
that Peter speaks are considerable words. He's thought about these
things, he's observed certain things with regards to this man,
Jesus of Nazareth. This is a man who is thinking,
and thinking aright. We have that exhortation, do
we not, in the 32nd Psalm, Be ye not as the horse or as the
mule that hath no understanding, whose mouth must be held in with
bit and bridle, lest he come near unto them? No teacher has
considered his thought about things. And is it not a great
thing that God is pleased to grant unto his children a sound
mind? Oh, let us not forget, friends,
that when God comes to us, to instruct us, He instructs us
through our minds. This is the way God has created
man. He breathed into his nostrils the breath of life. He became
a living soul. He's a rational being. We're
able to think. And we are to seek to think,
and we're to think right thoughts. We should ask God to help us
to think His thoughts after Him, to read His Word, to understand
His Word. Remember the words of Paul to
Timothy there in the opening chapter of the second epistle.
God hath not given us the spirit of fear, he says, but of power
and of love and of a sound mind. And Peter, I say, has a sound
mind. He has a sound mind. When I say
that, I'm not thinking that we've just got to have an intellectual
understanding. to have a truly sound mind is
more than having a mere notion or religion. As the hymn writer
says, opinions in the head through faith thus far exalts, as body
differs from shades or kernels from the shouts. We want more
than just an understanding, we want a really sound mind, which
is the gift of God that's what the Apostle says to Timothy God
hath given us God hath given us a sound mind and this is what
Peter is in possession of he thinks right thoughts all remember
how later here in chapter 22 at the end of the chapter we
see Christ as he speaks to the Pharisees what think ye of Christ
he asks What think ye of Christ, whose Son is early? Do we have right thoughts, right
understanding with regards to the person of the Lord Jesus
Christ? What think you of Christ is the
test? To try both your state and your
scheme, you cannot be right in the rest, unless you think rightly
of Him. You have to have a right understanding
then of him, of the person of the Lord Jesus, the doctrine
of the Lord Jesus. And we see here how Peter's theology,
Peter's doctrine is sound. Had not the Lord, just previous
to this confession, warned the disciples concerning the leaven
of the Pharisees. They didn't understand what he
was speaking of initially, but then they did. Verse 12, Then
understood they that he bade them not beware of the leaven
of bread, but of the doctrine of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees. These were men who were rejecters
of the Lord Jesus Christ. But how different it is. with
this man, Simon Peter. Here we see his sound doctrine. He says, Thou art the Christ,
the Son of the Living God. Or Jesus of Nazareth, you said. Peter is saying that this man,
Jesus, is the promised Messiah. And who is the promised Messiah?
He is none other than the eternal Son of God. Was not Peter aware
of the Old Testament and the teachings of the Old Testament,
the words that we have, for example, in the book of the prophet Isaiah,
Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son. and shall call
his name Immanuel." There in Isaiah chapter 7 and verse 14,
that great promise of the virgin birth fulfilled of course in
the New Testament in the birth of the Lord Jesus Christ. The
virgin conceives all the miracles that is there in that great mystery
of the Incarnation The virgin is found with child, she's with
child of the Holy Ghost. She bears a son, and what is
his name? He's Immanuel, God with us. Again, the words of the prophet
there in chapter 9 and verse 16, unto us a child is born,
unto us a son is given, and the government shall be upon his
shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor
of the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace."
He is God. He is God manifest in the flesh. The child is born. Mark the words
there at the beginning of that sixth verse. In Isaiah chapter
9, unto us a child is born. The child is born. What is conceived
there of the Holy Ghost in Mary's womb is the human nature, the
human body, the human soul, which will be joined in that great
mystery to the eternal Son of God. The child is born, the Son
is not born. He is the Eternal Son, the Everlasting
Son, eternally begotten of the Father. Though there, in the
birth of the Lord Jesus, the human nature is conceived, and
that human nature is joined to God's Eternal Son who is given. When the fullness of the time
has come, God sent forth His Son, made of a woman, made under
the law. This is that great mystery, is
it not? That Peter is confessing, concerning the person of the
Lord Jesus. Thou art the Christ, he says,
the Son of the living God. And we sang just now, of course,
in the metrical version of the psalm, the second psalm, those
words. Thou art my Son, this day have
I begotten thee." That's the language of God the Father to
His Son. Remember the words of the Protestant
Reformer, Martin Luther, as he comments on that particular psalm,
he says concerning that Son, He neither began to be born,
nor will ever cease to be born, but is ever being born. Today, this day, neither implies
a yesterday nor a tomorrow, but always a present time, says Luther. He is always being born. He is
eternally begotten, the eternal son of the eternal Father. If a man denies that, He is really
denying the very doctrine of God, is he not? Recently we considered
those words in John 2nd epistle and verse 9, "...whosoever transgresseth
and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ, hath not God, he that
abideth in the doctrine of Christ, he hath both the Father and the
Son." That is the doctrine of Christ. is eternal sonship without
controversy. Great is that mystery of godliness. God was manifest in the flesh. Here we see the soundness of
Peter's theology as he makes his confession. He is clear,
crystal clear with regards to the doctrine of the person of
Jesus. Simon Peter Answered there in
the end of chapter 6 in John's Gospel. To whom shall we go? Thou hast the words of eternal
life, and we know and are sure that thou art the Christ, the
Son of the living God. And he repeats his confession.
He repeats it here at Caesarea Philippi. Simon Peter answered
and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. That's Peter's confession, but
what lies behind it? How can a man come to make such
a confession as this? No man can say that Jesus Christ
is Lord, but by the Holy Ghost. And so the Lord goes on to explain,
does he not, in the 17th verse, Jesus answered and said unto
him, Blessed art thou, Simon, bar Jonah, Simon son of Jonah,
for flesh and blood have not revealed it unto thee, but my
Father which is in heaven. For no man knoweth the Son but
the Father. Are those the words of the Lord
Jesus Himself at the end of chapter 11? Oh, in that great mystery of the
Godhead there is Father, Son and Holy Ghost. And what a blessed
relationship between those divine persons. In Himself God is love. Oh, the Father loves the Son
and the Son loves the Father and Father and Son love the Holy
Spirit all in His very being God is love and so the Lord utters those
words no man knoweth the Son but the Father neither knoweth
any man the Father save the Son and He to Whomsoever the Son
will reveal Him And those words at the end of that verse in chapter
11 verse 27, to whomsoever the Son will. There are two verbs,
to will, in the original there, and it's the stronger of the
two Greek verbs that could have been used. Whomsoever the Son
willeth, to reveal Him. Oh, the will of the Son, you
see, is involved in the revelation of God the Father. neither knoweth
any man the Father, save the Son, and he to whomsoever the
Son willeth to reveal him. The sovereignty of the will of
the Son but also also we have here of course the sovereignty
of the will of the Father. No man knoweth the Son but the
Father. And then again, the great promise
of the Old Testament that the Lord Jesus declares in the 6th
chapter of John's Gospel, they shall be all taught of God, he
says. Every man therefore that hath
heard and learned of the Father cometh unto me. All we must be
taught, we must learn of the Father. He must show us the Son,
He must reveal the Son to us. This is the work of God, he says,
in the course of his preaching. This is the Lord Jesus preaching
again there in John 6, 29. This is the work of God, that
ye believe on him whom he hath sent. It is that faith of the
operation of God, that faith that is the work of God. And how we see it, of course,
in the experiences of these first disciples of the Lord Jesus. We see it in Peter's experience. And this is what the Lord is
saying here in verse 17. Flesh and blood hath not revealed
it unto thee. No, Peter, it's my Father which
is in heaven. He's revealed this. From whence
does Peter's confession proceed? It's from a revelation that he
has received from God and what was true of Peter was also true
of Paul. And he says as much quite clearly
there in Galatians chapter 1 verse 12 he says, he's speaking
of the gospel that he preached. I neither receive it of man neither
was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ." And so the Epistle opens, Paul,
an apostle, not of men, neither by man, but by Jesus Christ. And God the Father who raised
him from the dead, what he preaches, what he proclaims, is not something
that other men convey to him, it's what he's received from
God. And remember how he goes on there in that opening chapter
of Galatians verse 15 when he pleased God who separated me
from my mother's womb and called me by His grace to reveal His
Son in me it is all of God it is that revelation that must
come and does come only from God and it is a spiritual revelation
it is a spiritual revelation And this is so necessary when
we consider what the condition of man is by nature. Dead in
trespasses and in sins. There must be a spiritual awakening
that comes into the soul. There must be that gracious work
of God, the Holy Spirit. Again, the language of Paul at
verse 10 in 1 Corinthians chapter 2 God hath revealed them unto
us by His Spirit. For the Spirit searcheth all
things, yea, the deep things of God. For what man knoweth
the things of a man, sayeth the Spirit of man which is in him.
Even so the things of God knoweth no man but the Spirit of God. Now we have received not the
Spirit of the world, but the Spirit which is of God, that
we might know the things that are freely given to us of God."
Oh friends, it's a spiritual revelation. This is what Peter
experienced. This is what lies behind his
confession. Yes, his thinking is clear. He has received that sound mind.
But how necessary it is that he receives all of this from
God. This revelation has come from
God. Now, we read of course of his
first call at the beginning of John's Gospel. Now, when he was brought by his
brother to the Lord Jesus, what did Christ say? Thou art Simon,
the son of Jonas, thou shalt be called Cephas, which is by
interpretation stone. Now isn't the Lord reminding
him of that in what he goes on to say here at verse 18? and I say also unto thee that
thou art Peter and upon this rock I will build my church and
the gates of hell shall not prevail against it." There's a change
in his name. He's given name by his parents,
by his father Jonah or Jonas. He was Simon, Simon the son of
Jonah. but the Lord gives him another
name thou shalt be called Cephas or Peter and here how it is emphasized
that thou art Peter that thou art Peter here is a man you see
who is a new man this is what the Lord does to
a man if any man be in Christ He is a new man, he is a new
creature, a new creation. The natural man receiveth not
the things of the Spirit of God, they are foolishness unto him,
neither can he know them because they are spiritually discerned.
Here is one who is clearly a new man, and that new man is a blessed
man. What does the Lord say in verse
17? Blessed art thou Simon Bar-Jonah
for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto them, but my
Father which is in heaven." Oh, what a blessing is this! Isn't
this the blessing of Father Abraham? What does God say to Abraham
there in Genesis chapter 22 where he tries and tests the faith
of Abraham in the matter of the promised seed in the matter of
his son, Isaac. And how Abraham is faithful.
And how God teaches him the great truth of substitutionary atonement. He was commanded, was he not,
to take his son, his only son, to the Mount of Orion and to
sacrifice him. But he doesn't sacrifice his
son. God makes provision. There's a ram. And it's there,
it's caught by its horns in a thicket. And it is to be sacrificed in
the place, in the room, in the stead of Isaac, its substitutionary
atonement. But all Abraham's faith is proved
there. And what does God say to him?
Verse 17, In blessing I will bless them. All the blessing
of Abraham. And this is the blessing that
the Lord pronounces upon Simon Peter. Blessed are they. blessed
are. This is the blessed man that
the psalmist speaks of. Blessed is the man whom thou
choosest and causest to approach unto them. Or those, you see, who are the
chosen. Those who know that effectual
call of God. Those who make the confession,
the true confession of the Lord Jesus that we see in the case
of Simon Peter. These are the blessed. Flesh
and blood hath not revealed it unto them, he says, but my Father. It's all of God. It's the new
birth, is it not? They're born not of blood, nor
of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.
It is altogether sovereign grace. You see what Peter is reminding
Prince? And if we know anything of salvation,
we're debtors, are we not, to that sovereign grace of God?
It's the only way we can know salvation. There's no other way
of knowing it, except God himself is pleased to reveal it. Except
God himself is pleased to grant that gift of saving faith. Now, here in verse 18, we're
not to misunderstand the words of the Lord. He's not saying,
for a moment, that Peter, or Cephas, the stone, is the rock
on which the church is built. That's how the Romanists would
interpret it, as you're aware, and then they claim, of course,
that Peter was the first bishop of Rome, and the whole succession
of the bishops or popes of Rome come from Peter. Well, there's
no evidence in scripture that Peter was there and there's no evidence in history. There are those forged decretals
that the Romanists used to want to make much of, but they were
proved to be forgeries. But they like to claim, you see,
that they are the one true Catholic and Apostolic Church, outside
of which there can be no salvation. That's the claim. And Peter,
they say, was the first Bishop of Rome, the first Pope, and
Christ said he would build his church upon Simon Peter. But the Lord is not saying that.
Thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church,
and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it." Well, if
it's not Peter that is the rock, what is? Well, I would say, friends,
it must truly be Peter's confession. How about the Christ? The Son
of the Living God. Because that accords with every
other scripture. and remember the great principle
in interpretation is what the old writers called the analogy
of faith where we interpret one scripture by another scripture
because it's all the word of God and God does not contradict
himself anywhere in his book the words then of Paul in 1 Corinthians
3 verse 11 other foundation can no man like than that which is
laid, which is Jesus Christ." No other foundation but what
is laid, and that foundation is the Lord Jesus Christ. Now,
last Lord's Day evening we were looking at words in Isaiah 28,
but they're words that are also quoted in the New Testament.
We referred to the fact that Peter quotes that passage from
Isaiah 28, writing in 1 Peter 2, and there at verse 4, Well, the following verse is
really verse 6, but we read from verse 4, "...to whom coming as
unto a living stone, disallowed indeed of men, but chosen of
God and precious, she also as lively stones are built up a
spiritual house and holy priesthood to offer up spiritual sacrifices
acceptable to God by Jesus Christ. Wherefore also it is contained
in the Scripture, And then Isaiah 28.16, the verse we were looking
at last time, last week, it is contained in the scripture, Behold,
I lay in Zion the chief cornerstone, elect precious, and he that believeth
on him shall not be confounded. All friends, Christ himself is
clearly that foundation, the foundation upon which the Church
is built. And then Just one other scripture
in Ephesians chapter 2 and verse 19, Now therefore ye
are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the
saints, and of the household of God, and are built upon the
foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself
being the chief cornerstone, in whom all the buildings fifty
frames together groweth unto a holy temple in the Lord, in
whom ye also are built together for an habitation of God through
the Spirit." It is Peter's confession. It is what Peter says concerning
the very person of the Saviour that is the foundation of the
true Church of God. Thou art the Christ, the Son,
of the living God. And so Christ will build his
church, he says, upon this rock, and the gates of hell shall not
prevail against it. What are we to understand by
the gates of hell? Well, we know that in ancient
times the gates of the cities were often associated with law
courts and the like. where legal matters had to be
decided. I know for a fact that that was
the case even here in England, above Bar Gate in Southampton
at the top of the High Street. One of the gates into the old
walled city, there's a chamber across the top of that gate,
and in the Middle Ages it was used as a law court. It's a great
big chamber and that's what it was used for. Important and momentous
decisions had to be made then in trials that took place in
that building and in the scripture. Remember what we're told concerning
Boaz and Ruth. There at the end of the book
of Ruth in the fourth chapter there is a nearer kinsman, one
nearer of kin than Boaz who has the right to redeem his brother's
inheritance by marrying the widow Ruth. And what does Boaz do? Then went Boaz up to the gate
and sat him down there. And behold, a kinsman, of whom
Boaz spake, came by unto whom he said, O such a one, turn aside,
sit down here. And he turned aside and sat down.
And he took ten men of the elders of the city and said, Sit ye
down here. And they sat down. And there the decision is made.
And when the nearer kinsman refuses, it is Boaz, of course, who stands
forth. He takes Ruth to be his wife. But there the decision is mine,
you see, the place of deliberation. And so we can understand the
gates of hell in terms of all the stratagems of that great
adversary. All Satan's devices will never
prevail. They cannot prevail. Because
here is where the church is built. rooted and grounded in the person
and the work of the Lord Jesus Christ. This great confession
then of Simon Peter. He answered and said, Thou art
the Christ, the Son of the living God. And Jesus answered and said
unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood
hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father. which is in heaven. The Lord bless, do us His Word. It's in Hymn 1149. It's Truan 767. What thinking of Christ is the
test to try to divide both your faith and your scheme. You cannot
be right in the rest unless you think rightly of him. Number
149. To think you of Christ is the
test To try both your state and your scheme You cannot be right
in the rest Unless you think rightly of Him As Jesus appears
in your view, as He is beloved or not, so God is disposed to
you. Can mercy or wrath are your laws? Some take him a creature to be
A man or an angel at most Sure these are not feelings like me
Nor know themselves wretched and lost So guilty, so helpless
am I, I does not confide in His blood, Nor on His protection
rely, Unless I was sure He is God. Stop calling my Saviour in words. God makes men of words, and truth
is love. Still, it will come as it comes,
and it will be all in its time. They have a steady flow from grace, but it can't
be Yet we do hope for free and much,
and we do hope from His choice. How cute is the stately kiss,
and what A worthwhile profession like
this, avail in this terrible day. If asked what of Jesus I
feel, still my best thoughts are but false. I say He's my meat and my drink,
my life and my strength and my sword, my shepherd, my husband,
my friend. And from thrall my hope from
beginning to end, my portion, my food, and my hope. The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ,
and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost be
with you all. Amen.