February 18

Matthew 16:13-28 (Click to see scripture)

Bible in One Year Passages:

Journal Entry

Scripture

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, a “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." (Matthew 16:13-17)
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! This shall never happen to you.” 23 But he turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.” (Matthew 16:21-23)
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 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?" (Matthew 16: 24-26)

Observation

This passage is known to many to be the turning point of Jesus ministry from teaching and performing miracles in the name of the Father to doing the will of the Father. After spending time alone, Jesus asks: "Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” It is as if Jesus was making an assessment of His ministry here on earth up to this point. What He hears are people own pre-conceived notion of which they were expecting or hoping Him to be. Then, Jesus asks His own disciples, the same question. Peter's answer is a revelation of God of what is to come and who and what Jesus came to earth to be and do. It is in these verses that Jesus first begins to tell them about the suffering that He has to endure on the cross as well as the resurrection miracle that is to come.
Here in these verses, we also see how quickly Peter falls from being the one who is entrusted with the keys to the kingdom of heaven, to one who is rebuked by Jesus as Satan and a hindrance to Him.
Lastly, Jesus starts to teach us about the true cost of discipleship and the sacrifices that one needs to make in order to follow Jesus as His Lord and Savior. Then He simply asks of all of us: "What shall a man give in return for his soul?"

Application

All of us have our own understanding of who Jesus is for us. We give him titles and names. We have hopes and expectations of what we want Him to be and do for us. We want Him to be the filler of all our voids and the fulfiller of our dreams. But, many a times... we forget that He is all that we hope for because of what He accomplished on the cross. We forget that He suffered pain on our behalf so that we could have our relationship restored with the Father and thus, being able to receive the blessings that He grants in our lives. As our passage clearly shows us, apart from the cross, our understanding of Jesus is just a man made definition. Apart from the cross, we will go from the peak to the valley as quickly as Peter. Unless we know Jesus the Christ, the Son of the living God, Jesus, the Friend and Healer, might only bring disappointments to us, when at the crossroads of our lives, He seems to be so distant, so quiet...and nowhere to be found...
A life that is pleasing to the Lord is a life where we make a commitment daily to take up our cross, understand what He did on the cross, and be willing to lose our lives for His sake, as He did for ours.
"What shall a man give in return for his soul?” Jesus asks today... what are you going to say?

Prayer

Heavenly Father ... I have seen how easy it is for me to just confine You to what I want You to be so that I can do what it takes to gain the whole world. I call you just when I need you the most, rather than meeting you daily so you can tell me how you want me to live this life. I find excuses that my life is so busy with the busyness of life, without realizing that all I am doing is filling the voids in my heart that only you can fill. Then, when in my spare time I call upon you to come save me... all I hear is silence.... not because You are not there, but because I turn away from where you want to meet me. Lord, I ask you that you soften my heart and bring me back to You. Though the cross that I must carry seems heavy at times, I know in You, I shall find the strength to live the life that You want me to live. Lord, indeed, You are the Christ... the Son of the living God! Let me live a life of praises...of songs that declare of Your life in me... of the presence of the living God in me through You. In Your grace I live, Amen!

--CkP