Grace, mercy, and peace to you, from God our
Father, from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ,
and from the Holy Spirit. Amen. Labels. We love
labels. As people, as society, I don't mean labels
like labels on jars and stuff like that, or like
record labels. I mean labels like stereotypes,
right? Labels for people. Let's do a little experiment
here. I want you to close your eyes. Trust me
enough to close your eyes. I'm gonna say some
labels, some terms, and as I say these labels,
I want you to picture in your mind a person that
represents that label. It doesn't have to be
an actual person from your life. It could be
somebody who's theoretical, but I'll list off
a couple of them. With each one, come up with
somebody and what they look like, maybe how they
act, okay? High school athlete. Band kid. A tomboy.
By contrast, a girly girl. Blue collar. Picture
in your mind somebody who's blue collar. White
collar. Christian. Atheist. What do you picture
when you hear that? Leader. It's a little more
abstract. leader, follower, and then to get your
ire up a little bit, Aggie, and of course, Longhorn.
Literal hissing. Okay, go ahead, open your eyes.
Hissing, that's okay, sure. Now how many of you
by show of hands were able to picture somebody
a kind of a picture of somebody For each of those
descriptions raise your hand if you can picture
somebody and kind of like, okay I know that there
are some people who have a hard time like Visualizing
stuff just the way their brain works But for
me like I can picture each of those people and
kind of a stereotype in my mind Because when
you hear a label, it's shorthand, isn't it? It's
shorthand for their ideology for their behavior,
their attitudes towards the world around them,
even down to like their physical attributes,
how they carry themselves, what they wear, all
of those things may come into kind of your label.
Labels can be incredibly helpful, but also incredibly
damaging, right? Because they are stereotypes.
They are things that we kind of fill in and perhaps
it paints with too broad of a brush, right? Nobody
is defined by any one thing. Today we're going
to be looking at some labels that Jesus gets
assigned, that he got assigned back as he was
in the middle of his earthly ministry, but even
today. But before we go into that and take a
look at that concept, let's go to our God in
prayer. Lord God, Heavenly Father, we thank you
so much for today. for this chance that we get
to come together and be in worship, whether here
in this room, unified by our space, or across
the world watching online, unified by our belief.
Lord, we thank you for this chance to be in worship.
And I pray that you would focus us. Focus our
hearts and focus our minds on you. Lord, I thank
you for the chance to share your message. And
Lord, of course, let it be your message. Move
me out of the way. It is not about me. I submit
myself to you, and I pray that your Holy Spirit
will work through me, will work in this moment.
I pray that we would all be humble enough to
submit ourselves to you, that your truth may
be known. In your name we pray. Amen. Again,
special welcome to those of you watching the
sermon online. Our main text that we're gonna
be diving through today is that gospel reading,
which I just shared earlier in the service, Matthew
chapter 16, 13 through 20. If you are just watching
the sermon, go ahead and pause the video. Go
ahead and find Matthew 16, 13 through 20. Read
through it so you can catch up with where we
are. But let's do a little learning first, right?
A little didactic time, taking a look at this
gospel reading before we get into the real thematic
meat of it. It says, now when Jesus came into
the district of Caesarea Philippi, which is interesting,
because if you've been following along here with
the dictionary series, the kind of assigned readings
each week, we've been going through Matthew pretty
systematically. And the past couple of chapters
of Matthew, the past time within his ministry,
Jesus has been encountering a lot of crowds,
teaching people, healing people, going through
and giving a lot of instruction, also going toe
-to -toe with some of the Jewish religious leaders,
right? The Pharisees, Sadducees, St. Hedron,
etc. And as he's been traveling through this
region of Galilee, where he is, he finds himself
at this area called Caesarea Philippi. which
is essentially the boundary, the border, if you
will, of Gentile land, right? So there's Jews
and Gentiles. Gentiles are kind of the pagans.
In fact, this area, Caesarea Philippi, used to
be known for worshiping Baal, the god Baal from
Old Testament times, as well as the Roman god
Pan. But at the point that when Jesus is there,
there is a temple to, if you look at the name,
you may be able to figure it out, Caesar. We're
kind of that like God -King concept, right? And
so this is squarely in pagan territory. Now what
this means is those crowds that were following
Jesus, those Israelites, those Jewish people,
the religious leaders, they probably aren't going
to follow him into this area because they kind
of were strict, like, do not enter zones, whether
it be for religious reasons or just for practical
safety reasons. They didn't really get along,
right? So Jesus and his disciples find themselves
in this Gentile region, or at least on the border
of it, and it gives him the opportunity over
the next three chapters of Matthew to do some
more one -on -one private intimate teaching with
his disciples. Rather than having to worry about
the crowd, he's able to teach those disciples,
right? So he's with his disciples and pretty
much them alone, and it goes on to say he asked
them a question. This translation says, who do
people say that the son of man is? In other translations,
it becomes apparent that he's referring to himself
as the son of man. He's not talking about this
vague concept of the son of man. He says, who
do they say that I, the son of man is? Now this
is a term you hear a lot in the gospel, son of
man, right? Okay, son of man. All men are son
of men, so why is that significant? Well, it
comes from Daniel chapter 7 verses 13 and 14
specifically, where it references that God will
bestow upon the Son of Man dominion and glory.
This is a prophetic statement about somebody
who is selected to be unique, the son of man.
It's also worth noting that this is not a military
statement. It's not about conquest. It's not
about the son of man will come in on a white
horse and take out the enemies. It's God will
peacefully give over this power and dominion,
right? From Daniel chapter seven. So when Jesus
says the son of man, he's referring to himself
through this messianic prophecy. So he asked
basically, What are they saying? What are they
saying about me guys like you we've been around
these crowds I'm busy teaching you guys are in
the midst of them. What are they saying about
me is kind of what he's asking And our translation
again says that the disciples responded. It's
believed that it's Peter who probably answers
both questions here because that's kind of Peter's
thing, right? Like, Peter is the most excited
and anxious of all. Like, oh, pick me! Like,
that's Peter, okay? So he says, who do they say
that I am? And they respond with three different
people, plus a little vague. They say John the
Baptist, the prophet Elijah, and Jeremiah. And
then they say and some other prophets. Now, why
those three? That's kind of an odd grouping of
people. John the Baptist, Elijah, and Jeremiah.
Well, there's reason for this. Again, it kind
of goes back to labels. Well, John the Baptist,
we know for a fact that people are saying that
Jesus is somehow connected to John the Baptist,
because we see in Matthew chapter 14, Herod says
it's like he is John the Baptist come back to
life. Which is unique because in that chapter,
it tells the story of how Herod had John the
Baptist beheaded. So like, Herod, why are you
the one saying that he's come back? Did you not
do a good enough job? That seems like a pretty
tough thing to come back from the dead for, right?
Like, why is Herod the one saying that he is
John the Baptist resurrected? Well, it's believed
that it's kind of thematic, right? That they're
not literally John the Baptist, but more the
way John the Baptist lived. John the Baptist
was known at this point throughout the land of
gaining a big following. There were a lot of
people who were coming to see him. And for a
ruler like Herod who has a group of people who
may be a bit of a thorn in his side, anyone who
can gather a following is going to be worth noting.
Because a following can very quickly become what?
A rebellion. A revolt. And so he's taking note
of like, okay, I took care of John the Baptist
and his followers kind of disbanded, but now
there's this Jesus of Nazareth guy. It's like
he's the same guy over again, right? So this
is alluding to the fact that Jesus has a lot
of followers. What about Elijah? That's a pretty
common one. You see Elijah referenced because
Elijah was prophesied to return. that he would
return before the day of Yahweh, so to speak,
right? The day of tribulation, the day where
Yahweh returned. So this was kind of a sign of
the return of God. And so they were always kind
of looking for, okay, who's the next Elijah?
What was it about Jesus that drew them towards
that conclusion? As a prophet, Elijah was known
for miracles. He was known for doing supernatural
things. He was known for doing these great deeds.
And so these people are watching Jesus heal people,
walk on water, do all this stuff, and they're
saying, it's Elijah. It's just like Elijah. He
does this supernatural miracle stuff, must be
a connection. But what about Jeremiah? That is
such an odd choice, because Jeremiah hardly on
the Mount Rushmore of prophets, right? Well,
Jeremiah was known for calling out the shepherds
for not taking care of the sheep. Jeremiah was
known for calling out the religious leaders of
his day. And so, it's pretty obvious to see the
connection as they're watching Jesus stand up
against the Pharisees, against the Sadducees,
the Sanhedrin, etc. They're saying, this guy's
like Jeremiah from scripture that we know. The
prophet who spoke against the religious institution
and how they were falling short. Okay, he's one
of those guys. And so what they're trying to
do is they're trying to figure out what kind
of Messiah Jesus is. Well then Jesus follows
up with the real question. He only asked the
first question to really give the second question.
Who do you say that I am? And that you there,
we see Peter again, Mr. Uh -uh, pick me. Peter
responds, because he's always excited to respond,
but that you isn't singular, it's plural. If
there was a new Texan version of the Bible, it'd
be, who do y 'all say, or maybe even who do all
y 'all say that I am? Right? Now, Peter does
respond. He says, you are the Christ. Now, as
Christians, we know what Christ means. It's Jesus'
last name, right? Middle name H. Right? That's
what it is. No. Christ, of course, as you know,
is a title. It means the anointed one, the special
one, the chosen one. Now, when it comes to our
modern understanding of Christ, we recognize
we are Christ, Christians. And so we follow the
Christ. But in those times, Christ would have
been seen as potentially a political leader,
potentially somebody who would lead the people
of Israel. They have a long history of these
leaders rising to the top and leading them out
of tough situations. from Abraham to Moses to
Joseph to David. And essentially they're looking
for the next David. They're constantly looking
for a Savior. This was seen in the book of Judges.
This is seen in 1 and 2 Kings where they're constantly
looking for somebody to deliver them, for one
person to rise up. And so they're saying, Jesus,
you're special. Jesus, you gain this fall and
you teach in such eloquent ways. Clearly, you
are one of these great messiahs that we have
had in the past. But Peter doesn't stop there.
He goes on to say, you are the son of the living
God, which is a great little dig, because remember,
where they are is a very pagan area, probably
lots of stone and wooden idols around them, and
so he's saying, these guys, these gods aren't
going to move. They're not alive. You are the
son of the living God. Right? And Jesus responds,
blessed are you, Simon bar Jonah, that's his
Jewish given name, bar meaning son of, son of
Jonah, or John, depending on your translation.
You are Peter, Petros, Cephas, and upon this
rock I will build the church. Now this has become
a bit of a controversial statement in the history
of the church. See, in the Catholic Church, when
they say, Peter, upon this rock, I will build
my church, they think that is literally Peter
and Peter alone. It is this guy. And from that
we get this theoretically unbroken lineage of
the papacy, the popes. And they believe because
he gave this blessing to Peter that somehow Peter
is more than the others. And thus they give the
power and authority. to the Pope, but in the
Protestant Church we go, hold on, in other spots
Jesus gives the same power and authority to all
the disciples. So why is Peter different? Well,
we look at that and we say, well, what if he's
not actually talking about Peter, this Petros
that he's talking about, is this statement of
faith? You are the Christ, the Son of the Living
God. Jesus responds, you don't know this, you
haven't been seeing this, it's been exposed to
you because God gave you that faith and it's
upon that faith that I will build the church.
It's upon that statement of trust in God's identity,
trust in God's messianic prophecy. And so that's
where the Protestant Church lands. But I think
it's important for us in our modern time, some
2 ,000 years later, to look at that very question
that Jesus asked to His disciples, to the Church.
To say that Jesus is. Because just as we saw
in Jesus times, there were a lot of different
people who had different interpretations of how
this Messiah would act. As we're going through
the triumphal entry and all that, we saw that
some thought he would be a military warrior who
would literally, with sword and horse, lead the
way and drive out the Romans and restore land
for Israel. Others believed he would be a political
force, that he would use his eloquent speaking
and the fact that he had this big following,
that he would lead a political revolution. Others...
just thought He was this great teacher that would
help them to band together and unite. There are
all these different interpretations. What about
us now? How do you see Jesus? Who do you say
that He is? Some of you may see Jesus as the
leader of the church, the founder, the president
of this particular club, right? that he should
be honored because he's kind of the central figure.
Not dissimilar to like Teddy Roosevelt in the
national parks, right? Like, oh, he deserves
a lot of credit for all of this. He's the founding
member of the Christian church. And it's all
about coming together in this club. Some of you
view Jesus as the judge of your morality. The
arbiter of right and wrong that he is the one
who will determine if on the big scales of cosmic
justice You've done enough good to outweigh the
bad That he's just there to say whether you're
right or wrong Some of you just aren't sure about
this whole thing and maybe you've done enough
Historical research to know that that there was
in fact and there's a lot of extra biblical evidence
that there was a man named Jesus or Yeshua who
lived in Nazareth and had a great following and
seemingly performed some amazing deeds. And you
say, you know, I'm not sure about I buy the whole
Son of God thing, but he seemed like a pretty
good teacher. I like when I read the Gospels
and what he's teaching and compassion for me.
I can get behind that. He was a great teacher.
And then my hope is because we're here in church
that the majority of you would look at Jesus.
and see Him for what it records in Scripture,
that He was the physical manifestation of an
eternal God. That He was Emmanuel, God with us.
That He lived with the help of His fully God
side a perfect life. And then because of His
fully man side was able to go to the cross as
the perfect sacrifice to outweigh our own sins,
to justify our sins, to set us free. And if that's
what you believe, that last one, that should
impact your life beyond just one hour on Sunday
morning. There are 168 hours in the week. It
should impact you for the other 167. Because
that changes everything. If we have an Emmanuel,
a God who came down and was in the midst of us
and still showed compassion and mercy to even
the worst sinners that nobody else would talk
to, and then was willing to go to the cross for
you, for me, for us, that should change everything.
That should change how you treat other people.
Right? Because if you've been forgiven your sins
by nothing that you've brought, then you should
be doing the same to others. As difficult as
that is. That should change everything because
it means that you've been set free not by a great
teacher two thousand years ago not by a political
person who who said the right thing in a speech
in a debate not by a military conquest who took
out enemies temporarily but by God Himself Who
is steadfast and abiding that changes everything
that should become the core of your identity
Which leads me to a question that isn't asked
that perhaps we should also ask ourselves Jesus
says who do the people say that I am and then
he says who do you say that I am? Perhaps we
should ask who does God say I am Because we know
what the people say about us we know what we
say about ourselves We hear those labels Lazy
not fulfilling potential, overbearing, a bully,
divisive. We hear those labels put on us constantly,
but that is not the label of God. That is not
who God sees us to be. That's what the people
say about us. But what does God say about you?
For you, He says, you are blessed. You are beloved.
You are my child. You are my creation. No, no,
no. You are my masterpiece. Because in Genesis
when God created the world each day He said and
it was good. But then when He created mankind
He said that it was very good because we are
His masterpiece. And yes, He sees the sin. But
He also sees the forgiveness. Yeah, He sees the
brokenness. And yet He mends us. He repairs us.
He restores us. He restores you. What does God
say about you? Stop listening to what the people
say about you. Stop listening to what the world
says about you. Stop listening to what you and
your sinful, angry self, stop listening to what
you say about you. Instead, listen to what God
says about you. We are unique. We each have our
story and our background. We each have our gifts,
right? And yet, we are the church. The Greek
word is ekklesia, which means called out. Not
called in. Not called to come and sing a couple
songs and sit in a bench for a little while and
then feel pretty good about life and off we go.
No, the ekklesia is called out into the world.
Because we are the body of Christ. Christ, the
anointed one, Christ, the Savior, Christ, the
one who would come to save the people, to pull
them out of the suffering and struggle of this
world, to place them on a firm foundation, to
shine a light in the midst of the darkness. We
are the body of Christ. The Church is called
to be that in this world. That is our collective
identity brought together solely by the faith
that we have. It's not our own faith. Boy, we
get so haughty and proud, don't we? We say, well,
I go to church every Sunday. At least I'm better
than that person. I'm a Christian. When I said
Christian and atheist, did you picture one as
better than the other? The only thing that separates
you from an atheist is the faith that God has
inspired within you. the Holy Spirit bringing
that faith to you. And we get to be united by
nothing else than that. So here now in this place,
we skipped the Apostles Creed earlier because
that is a statement of faith. That is the disciples
working together. That is the apostles working
together. That is the church working together,
united to proclaim, this is what we believe.
And that belief is the rock upon which the church
is built. It is the rock upon which the body
of Christ exists. But let's do it a little different.
There in front of you, in your pews, except for
you guys in the front row, are some kneelers.
Go ahead and flip those down. We don't do this
often, but they're there. And I think it's important
for us to take a posture of humility. And kneeling
is a stance of humility because we need to recognize
that the faith that we have is not because of
us. The salvation we have is not because of us.
And so we take a posture of humility. If you're
able, kneel. If you're not sure about this whole
thing and you're like, whoa, this is some weird
cult behavior, that's okay. You can stay in your
seat. That's perfectly fine. We won't judge you.
I promise. But let's kneel before our God in
a posture of humility and confess together our
Apostles' creed, the creed, what we believe.
Together we profess... I believe in God, the
Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, and
in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, who
was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the
Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was
crucified, died, and was buried. He descended
into hell. The third day he rose again from the
dead. He ascended into heaven and sits at the
right hand of God, the Father Almighty. From
thence He will come to judge the living and the
dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Holy
Christian Church, the communion of saints, the
forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the
body, and the life everlasting. Amen. Go ahead
and move back to your seat. This is the faith
that we have. This is the faith that draws us
here. This is the faith... that unites us. And
we humbly approach our God knowing that that
faith is what saves us through Jesus Christ.
It is not our own, but it is His. It is a free
gift of grace. Let that be who God says you are.
A beloved, redeemed, forgiven, and saved child
of God. Amen.