[0:00] Matthew 16, we're going to read from verses 13 through 23. When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, Who do people say the Son of Man is?
[0:15] They replied, Some say John the Baptist, others say Elijah, and still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets. But what about you? he asked. Who do you say I am?
[0:26] Simon Peter answered, You are the Christ, the Son of the living God. And Jesus replied, Blessed are you, Simon, son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by a man, but by my Father in heaven.
[0:41] And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven.
[0:53] Whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. Then he warned his disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Christ.
[1:04] From that time on, Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, chief priests, and the teachers of the law.
[1:15] And he must be killed, and on the third day be raised to life. Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. Never, Lord, he said.
[1:26] This shall never happen to you. Jesus turned and said to Peter, Get behind me, Satan. You are a stumbling block to me. You do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men.
[1:38] But what about you? Who do you say that I am? Simon Peter answered, You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.
[1:54] Jesus replied, Blessed are you, Simon, son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven.
[2:05] And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell will not overcome it. Our Lord had taken his disciples way up to the northern border of Palestine for some rest and refreshment and instruction.
[2:27] And while they were there, he used the time to establish three things in their mind. First, who he was, the Son of the living God, the Christ.
[2:40] Second, how they knew it. It was revealed by his Father in heaven. And third, what was the foundation of his church?
[2:51] Himself, Jesus Christ, the solid rock. Now, it was vitally important that our Lord established these truths in the minds of his disciples in order to prepare them for the mind-boggling bombshell that he was about to drop on them and that he would continue to drop on them from time to time until the events he was predicting would actually take place.
[3:19] It was crucial that his disciples understand that the one speaking to them of these horrible events was none other than Christ, the Messiah, the Son of the living God.
[3:36] Otherwise, they might well have scattered like the wind and forsaken him long before they got to Jerusalem and Gethsemane and Calvary.
[3:48] So tonight we see, first of all, Jesus' startling revelation. Jesus' startling revelation.
[3:59] Here's the bombshell. Look at verse 21. From that time on, Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, chief priests, and teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life.
[4:23] That was the bombshell. A great startling truth that focused on the reason that he came to this earth that set forth the heart of the gospel message.
[4:37] Jesus Christ, Son of the living God, must suffer many things, must be killed, and must be raised on the third day.
[4:48] He had not come to Bethlehem to take a kingdom, but to die. He had not come to rule and be served, but to shed his blood as a substitute for sinners, to give his life a ransom for many, and to be raised from the dead on the third day.
[5:10] But, like most other Jews, the twelve disciples had no idea of a suffering Messiah. No idea that the 53rd chapter of Isaiah must be literally fulfilled in Jesus Christ.
[5:24] No idea that the sacrificing of the animals in the Old Testament was meant to point forward to the death of the true Lamb of God. No, they didn't understand it.
[5:37] They anticipated the Messiah coming with a crown like a king. But now they hear that he's coming to a cross like a common criminal. Here's the lesson for us.
[5:50] Don't ever be ashamed to declare the gospel of Christ. Most people won't understand it. Most people won't believe it, but never be ashamed to declare the truth of the gospel, for it is the power of God to salvation to everyone who believes.
[6:12] You've believed it. I've believed it. All of God's chosen people will believe it. Let's declare it and not be ashamed of the gospel of Christ.
[6:23] Well, that brings us in the second place to Peter's impulsive response. Peter's impulsive response. Verse 22.
[6:35] Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. Never, Lord, he said. This shall never happen to you. Now we immediately notice several glaring problems connected with Peter's impulsive response.
[6:50] For one, he assumes an authority that is not his. He assumes an authority that is not his. He began to rebuke Jesus.
[7:03] And although obviously there was a measure of love and loyalty in Peter's heart, still it was the height of egotism and stupidity. He had just confessed that Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah, the Son of the living God.
[7:21] Peter, that means you bow before him. That means you listen to him. That means you say amen to everything he tells you. That means you do whatever he commands.
[7:33] That means you beg for grace to accept and obey his will. But never does it mean that you rebuke him. He's no subordinate of yours, Peter.
[7:46] He's no peer of yours. He's no equal of yours. He's the Son of the living God. Peter assumed an authority that was not his.
[7:59] Here's the lesson for us. God, shut my mouth lest I speak a word against any of the truth of Scripture.
[8:11] God, open my mouth and fill it with praise for every word of Scripture, whether I understand it or not. Peter assumed an authority that was not his.
[8:24] Now, indeed, an older and a wiser Peter later wrote, God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble. Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God, that he may lift you up in due time.
[8:41] 1 Peter 5, 5 and 6. Another problem connected with Peter's impulsive response. He broke the third commandment. He broke the third commandment.
[8:55] Exodus 20 and verse 7. You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name. You say, well, how did Peter misuse the name of the Lord?
[9:10] By the very first words that he uttered. Never, Lord. To acknowledge Christ as Lord and in the same breath say, never is a gross violation of his name and his person.
[9:27] Using the Lord's name in cursing isn't the only way to break the third commandment. Dishonoring him, disrespecting him, disobeying him breaks the third commandment.
[9:41] You remember Peter was struggling with the same problem in Acts chapter 10 when God was preparing him to go to Cornelius and the Gentiles with the gospel for the very first time.
[9:54] You remember the story? In a trance, Peter saw this great sheet let down from heaven, filled with all kinds of animals and birds, many of them considered unclean.
[10:04] And Christ told him, get up, Peter, kill and eat. And Peter replied, surely not, Lord. I have never eaten anything impure or unclean.
[10:19] Well, how can you call Christ Lord and then say, no, I won't do that? Peter broke the third commandment by doing that. What about us?
[10:31] We love to call him Lord. We love to recognize him as the one who rules over us and defends us. And while we may not openly say, never, Lord, yet how about our actions?
[10:44] Did we say anything like that this week when we were angry or when we were bitter or when we were lustful or when we were gluttonous or when we were greedy or when we didn't believe or when we didn't esteem our brother or our sister above us?
[11:06] We didn't love them as we ought. God says, do this, and we say never. God says, don't do that, and we say never by our actions. And do you see why a Christian needs to repent of sin every day of his life?
[11:24] Still another problem connected with Peter's impulsive response. He presumes to know the future. He presumes to know the future.
[11:37] Excuse me. This shall never happen to you. His ignorance, his impulsiveness is never more evident than it is right here.
[11:52] This shall never happen to you. Peter's not sovereign. God is. Peter doesn't know the future. God does. Which brings us to this humbling conclusion.
[12:05] There may be much spiritual ignorance even in a true disciple of Christ. There may be much spiritual ignorance even in a true disciple of Christ.
[12:18] In the process of his sanctification, his spiritual growth, Peter's eyes were not yet opened to the necessity of the Lord's death and resurrection.
[12:29] In fact, he did what he could to prevent that death from taking place at all. And yet we know Peter was a converted man. He truly believed Jesus was the Messiah.
[12:42] Christ had accepted his confession of faith and said plainly that the Father in heaven had revealed that to him, not a man. Even though Peter's heart was right in the sight of God and he was a true disciple, yet there were areas of spiritual ignorance in his life that makes us shake our heads and shrug our shoulders and say, what's going on here, Peter?
[13:11] Peter. But Peter's poor example does have some value for us. It should cause us to be watchful in at least two areas.
[13:22] First of all, don't consider good men to be perfect just because they're right with God and just because they're a true Christian.
[13:33] Don't consider them to be perfect. A man may possess gifts and graces that are obviously from God, maybe a pillar in the church, a pastor, a deacon, an encourager in many areas.
[13:47] But remember, he's only a man and he makes mistakes. He battles every day with sin. His sanctification is not complete.
[13:57] Like the great apostle Paul said in Romans chapter 7, What I want to do, I do not do, but what I hate, I do.
[14:10] I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. What a wretched man I am. Who will rescue me from this body of death?
[14:22] Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord. Don't consider good men to be perfect and incapable of sin and stupidity just because they're right with God.
[14:37] Cover their sins and their shortcomings with love whenever you can. Cover their sins and shortcomings with love whenever you can.
[14:48] Then the second lesson we learn from Peter's poor example is this. Don't think men have no grace in their heart just because the evidence is weak and small.
[15:01] Don't think men have no grace in their heart just because the evidence is weak and small. His knowledge of the scriptures may be meager. He may be a new baby in Christ.
[15:14] He may not understand many points of doctrine. He may err in both word and deed. But does he trust the Lord Jesus as his only hope for heaven?
[15:27] Does he seek to live godly in Christ? Does he love the word of God and seek to obey it? Does he live at peace with his brothers and sisters? Does he have a heart that hates his sin and repents of it?
[15:41] If so, he's your brother. Love him. Be patient with him. What he doesn't see now or do now, he may understand later on.
[15:52] Listen to Romans chapter 15, verses 1 to 3. We who are strong ought to bear with the failings of the weak and not to please ourselves.
[16:04] Each of us should please his neighbor for his good to build him up. For even Christ did not please himself. Be patient.
[16:15] Be patient. Be patient with that ignorant, erring brother. Like Peter, he may be in the dark now and yet one day enjoy the full light of the gospel.
[16:28] The power of progressive sanctification or becoming more and more like Christ, persevering in holiness, would soon begin to grip the apostle Peter.
[16:41] So that at the end of his second letter, he says, therefore, dear friends, be on your guard. Grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever.
[16:54] Amen. Amen. So now we've seen Peter's impulsive response to Jesus' startling revelation. And in the third place, we come to Jesus' severe rebuke.
[17:11] Jesus' severe rebuke. Verse 23. Jesus turned and said to Peter, Out of my sight, Satan.
[17:25] You're a stumbling block to me. You do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men. Our Lord never spoke so harshly to any of his disciples, either before or after this incident.
[17:41] He addresses Peter by that awful, wicked, hellish name, Satan. As if he were his greatest enemy, doing the devil's work.
[17:54] Tempting Christ away from the cross. Away from his suffering. Away from his death. Away from his resurrection. Out of my sight, Satan.
[18:07] And this is only a short time after Christ called Peter blessed. Blessed are you, Simon, son of Jonah. This is not revealed to you by men, but by my Father in heaven.
[18:21] So let's learn two things right here. First of all, Satan plants his thoughts and ideas in the minds of the best of Christians.
[18:33] Satan does plant his thoughts and ideas in the minds of the best of Christians. John Bunyan wrote Pilgrim's Progress.
[18:45] And when Christian was groping his way through the valley of the shadow of death in the dark of night, a demon stole up behind him and whispered insulting blasphemies against God.
[18:58] That Christian thought originated in his own mind. This really bothered him. Because those wicked thoughts were bitter and unjust. And they were against the one that he loved the most.
[19:12] The one who did the most for him. His blessed Lord Jesus. And yet it seemed he couldn't help thinking these words. And whispering them to himself. He couldn't get them out of his mind.
[19:22] But then he heard a voice of another traveler named Hopeful. Walking up ahead of him. And calling out. Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death.
[19:33] I will fear no evil. For thou art with me. And Christian said. If God is with him. Then he's also with me. Or I would never have heard these good words.
[19:46] At such a place like this. So he learned that the word of God is mighty. And powerful. And sufficient to counteract and overcome.
[19:57] Any and all of the ideas. That the devil would plant in the minds of God's children. Praise God for that. David said it.
[20:10] I have hidden your word in my heart. That I might not sin against you. And that's one reason we memorize the verse of scripture every week. And that's one reason.
[20:22] Why we seek and work with our children. To memorize the word of God. And I would urge you to be memorizing the word of God. In your homes. Hiding it in your heart.
[20:35] And using it in your life. As the day goes on. The second thing we can learn here is this. Jesus Christ overcame every temptation Satan ever devised.
[20:49] Even when it came through his own disciple Peter. Jesus Christ overcame every temptation Satan ever devised. Even when it came through his own disciple Peter.
[21:02] And this is for our great encouragement. Hebrews 4.15 and 16. We do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses. But we have one who is tempted in every way.
[21:16] Just as we are. Yet without sin. Children. Young people. Think about this. Jesus never yielded to temptation.
[21:29] Even once. He was tempted to disobey his parents. But he never did. He was tempted to argue and fight with his brothers and sisters.
[21:40] But he never did. He was tempted to lie and cheat and steal. Just like you are. But he never did. He was tempted to follow the crowd and love the pleasures and possessions of this world.
[21:55] But he never ever did. He was tempted to obey Satan and even to worship him. But he never did. He was tempted to quit when his men betrayed him and denied him.
[22:07] And all turned and ran away from him. But he never did. He was tempted to come down from the cross while he suffered the horrible torture of men.
[22:17] And the horrible wrath of his father. But he never did. And that's precisely why he is qualified. Why he is willing.
[22:29] Why he is ready to save you from your sins tonight. There's no one like Jesus. He never sinned. Salvation is found in no one else.
[22:41] For there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved. And he'll save you tonight if you call upon him for mercy.
[22:53] And trust him as your only savior. This temptation of Satan came through Peter so that our Lord said to him, You're a stumbling block to me.
[23:05] The Greek word is skandalon. From which we get our word scandal. Literally it describes a trap to snare animals.
[23:16] Actually the part where the bait is attached to the snare. And so Jesus was saying, You're a baited trap, Peter. You're waiting to spring your deadly jaws on me, your savior.
[23:31] And the reason our Lord's rebuke was so graphic and severe was because Satan, through Peter, was aiming right at the heart of the gospel.
[23:43] Our Lord's atoning death for his elect and his triumphant resurrection from the grave. Christ is saying to Peter, Don't touch my death.
[23:57] Don't touch my resurrection. It's the only hope for sinners. It's the only hope for you. I must suffer. I must die.
[24:09] I must conquer death. Or the whole world goes to hell. And you're included. Well, men may differ in areas of church government, in forms of worship, in Christian liberty, and still reach heaven safely in the end.
[24:26] But in the heart of the gospel, the substitutionary, curse-bearing death of Jesus, the glorious, triumphant resurrection of our Christ, there can be no compromise at all.
[24:42] If you are wrong here, you are ruined forever. If you are wrong in the death and the resurrection of Christ, you are condemned forever. Many errors are only skin deep.
[24:54] But the error concerning the atoning death of Christ and his triumphant resurrection from the grave is fatal. Final. And our Lord's final word to Peter is really sad.
[25:09] Peter, you do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men. Peter, you must understand the importance of your mind.
[25:25] What are you feeding it? That is what you will become. God's will is for you to become more and more like Jesus Christ. Your sanctification has begun.
[25:38] That happened the moment you believed on Christ. Sanctification and justification are twins which were born at exactly the same time.
[25:51] Justification declares you to be right with God on the basis of Christ's righteousness imputed to you, given to you, and received by faith alone.
[26:03] It clears your record with him in heaven. And that never changes. It's a once for all transaction that can never be reversed.
[26:14] That's justification. Right with God for time and eternity because of what he accomplished on your behalf and because of the faith he gave you to believe it.
[26:28] But sanctification is the work of the Holy Spirit that changes our hearts here on earth and that goes on all through our lives until we finally are conformed to the likeness of Christ when we get to heaven.
[26:45] Sanctification is a growing, maturing process and it focuses on the mind. So Paul urges the Romans in chapter 12, Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.
[27:04] Changed by the working of the word of God in your minds. And so to the Ephesians in chapter 4, You were taught with regard to your former way of life to put off your old self which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires and to be made new in the attitude of your minds and to put on the new self created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.
[27:33] New attitudes of mind characterize the believer in Christ. The attitudes of the Spirit, love and joy and peace and patience and kindness and goodness and fruitfulness and faithfulness and gentleness and self-control.
[27:52] Growing, growing, growing by the word of God and the working of the Holy Spirit within our hearts. The Holy Spirit gave us a new heart when we were born again.
[28:05] We didn't have anything to do with that. We were born from above, from an outside force, the force of God. It came all at once by His power and then we repented of our sins and trusted Jesus Christ.
[28:22] And now the Holy Spirit is giving us a new mind and we have everything to do with that. We're partakers in our sanctification with the Holy Spirit, aren't we?
[28:35] Do not conform to the pattern of this world. Be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Put off the old self. Put on the new self. Be made new in the attitude of your mind.
[28:47] In other words, fix your eyes on Jesus and follow in His steps until you are like Him. God, deliver us from the mind of men.
[29:00] Give us the mind of God. And if you're still outside of Jesus Christ tonight, you're on the broad road that leads to destruction.
[29:13] There's no question about that. May God deliver you tonight from the rule of Satan to the rule of Christ. 2 Corinthians chapter 6 and verse 2 says, I tell you, now is the time of God's favor.
[29:31] Today is the day of salvation. salvation. And Satan says, that's a lie. That's not true. Just like he told Adam and Eve back in the Garden of Eden, that's a lie.
[29:46] You're not going to die. And they bent. And they took Him in His word. And they died. Now God says, today is the day of salvation.
[30:02] Are you going to call God a liar? Are you going to allow yourself another day? Satan would like nothing better than for you to wait till tomorrow to be saved.
[30:17] Cameron Townsend was one of the founders of Wycliffe Bible Translators. and he told this true story. Many years ago before the airplane, a German plantation farmer who had lived for years in Guatemala was returning to Germany to visit his family.
[30:39] When the ship had been several years out at sea, his toe began to hurt. And he examined it and he found that it was a tiny tropical flea called Niguah, N-I-G-U-A, Niguah, had buried under his toenail and laid its eggs there.
[31:01] And there was a terrible burning and itching under his toe. And the thing to do was right now, right now, take a needle and remove that Niguah and all of its eggs.
[31:15] He was about to do that when suddenly he remembered that his relatives back in Germany had never seen a Niguah. Niguah. And he thought, oh, I've got to get back to Hamburg to show my Uncle Otto what a Niguah is like.
[31:31] True story. And when he got to Uncle Otto's place, he said, the rest of our relatives ought to see this, even though it was swelling, his leg was beginning to swell and turn red.
[31:53] And he waited until the rest of his relatives could see a little tropical flea with his eggs under his toe, shooting red streaks up his legs, swelling up his legs.
[32:08] He had waited too long, and he died. He died. And so God says today, if he had taken care of that Niguah today, he would have lived.
[32:27] And if you take care of your business with God today, you will live. And Christ will be exalted and the angels in heaven will rejoice.
[32:40] may God be honored, may he be glorified in your life and in mine tonight. Let's pray.
[32:56] Sovereign Lord, teach us to grow in the grace and knowledge of our blessed Lord Jesus. Teach us to be humble and to recognize one another better than ourselves.
[33:08] Teach us to love you with all of our heart and mind and soul, if not perfectly, yet purposefully, surely, because we want to glorify your name on this earth.
[33:21] Thank you that you're a savior of sinners. Once and for all you died, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring men and women to God, let it be so tonight.
[33:33] Boys and girls coming to trust in the Savior and therefore to live forever with you in heaven. Oh God, forgive us for our sins.
[33:45] Fill us with your Holy Spirit that we may be about your business as long as you give us to live on this earth. And we'll give you praise in Jesus' name.
[33:56] Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.
[34:07] Amen. Amen. Amen.