So, again, if you haven't got a Bible, I encourage you to get a Bible.
You can get one as you came in.
Also, the notes, if you like to take notes, that's simply to help you focus,
focus, concentrate, and something you can take home and reflect on afterwards.
So, if you want one of these, there's some on the table.
Feel free to go and get one now, and a pen as well at the door.
Turn in your Bibles, please, to Matthew's Gospel, Chapter 16.
Matthew's Gospel, Chapter 16.
And we're going to start in verse 13.
We're going to read from verse 13 to the end of the chapter.
Matthew's Gospel, Chapter 16.
When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples,
Who do you say the Son of Man is?
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?
Simon Peter answered,
You are the Messiah, the Son of the Living God.
Jesus replied,
Blessed are you, Simon, son of Jonah,
for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood,
but by my Father in heaven.
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.
Whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven.
Whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.
Then he ordered his disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Messiah.
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,
the chief priests and teachers of the law,
that he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life.
Peter took Jesus aside and began to rebuke him.
Never, Lord, he said.
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 concerns of God,
but merely human concerns.
Then Jesus said to his disciples,
Whoever wants to be my disciples
must deny themselves, take up their cross,
and follow me.
For whoever wants to save their life will lose it,
but whoever loses their life for me will find it.
What good will it be for someone to gain the whole world,
yet forfeit their soul?
Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul?
For the Son of Man is going to come in his Father's glory with his angels,
and then he will reward each person according to what they have done.
Truly I tell you,
some who are standing here
will not taste death
before they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.
Well, let's pray.
Amen.
Jesus said to Peter,
Blessed are you,
for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood,
but by my Father in heaven.
Lord, as we come to your word,
we recognize that we have not got the ability within ourselves
to comprehend and understand fully
the words that we read
and all that they mean.
And so we pray that just as you worked in Peter's life,
you would work in our hearts today
and reveal to us
the truth of who Jesus is
so that we are convinced
and convicted
that we would follow him,
that we would give our life
for him.
Help us now, we pray.
in Jesus' name.
Amen.
Do you know Jesus?
I don't mean do you know about him,
but do you know him personally
and intimately?
Because as we get to Matthew 16,
we come to a turning point
in the gospel.
We have heard Jesus.
We have seen his actions.
We have observed his miracles.
And now Jesus confronts us with this question.
Do you know me?
Three things Jesus wants us to know
that we're going to look at together.
We're going to look at his identity,
his purpose,
and the cost.
Identity, purpose, and cost.
So here's the first one.
Identity, who Jesus is.
To get to the heart of who Jesus is,
he asks a question.
We see it there.
Do you follow with me?
At the end of verse 13.
Who do people say
the Son of Man is?
Who do you say
the Son of Man is?
Now the Son of Man
was a person of great significance
promised by God.
And we can find out
all about who the Son of Man is
in Daniel chapter 7.
So if you turn with me
to Daniel chapter 7,
verse 13 and 14.
And if you've got a page number,
you can help me out there
and I'll call it out.
Daniel chapter 7.
892.
Page 892.
Daniel chapter 7.
Daniel is a prophet of God
and in this chapter
he has a vision.
And in his vision
he sees four beasts
which represent the
powerful kingdoms and empires,
the rulers and the leaders
of this world.
But by the end of the vision
Daniel sees something else.
We pick it up in verse 13.
In my vision at night
I looked and there before me
was one like a Son of Man.
Son of Man here just simply means
a human being, a man.
Coming with the clouds of heaven.
So he was a unique man.
He approached the Ancient of Days,
that's God himself,
and was led into God's presence.
And this man was given authority,
glory and sovereign power.
All nations and peoples
of every language
worshipped him.
And his dominion is an everlasting dominion
that will not pass away.
And his kingdom is one
that will never be destroyed.
Daniel's vision is striking, isn't it?
He's saying kings and kingdoms will come,
empires and rulers will rise up,
but they will be surpassed
by the coming
of one who is called
the Son of Man.
His rule will be with absolute power
and supreme authority.
Let's go back to Matthew's Gospel.
So with that in mind,
we can see the significance
of Jesus' question to the disciples
when he asks them,
who do you say
the Son of Man is?
Where's this man
with all power
and all authority?
Well, they answer,
verse 14,
some say it's John the Baptist,
others say Elijah,
still others,
Jeremiah or one of the prophets,
each of which
were great prophets
in their own time and age.
But what about you?
He asked,
I'm not interested
in what other people say.
I'm interested
in what you say.
Who do you say
I am?
Simon Peter answered,
you are the Messiah,
the Son of the living God.
Now we might wonder,
why didn't Peter say
you're the Son of Man
since that was the very question
Jesus asked.
But Peter's answer
is affirming
the very same thing.
Together,
with the disciples,
they recognise
that Jesus
is God's Messiah.
He's the promised King
who's come to establish
an eternal kingdom.
He is the Son of the living God.
God in human form
to reign and to rule.
this Jesus
who stands before them,
who they can hear
and see
and laugh with
and eat with
is nothing less
than the God-man
with all power
and all authority.
Of course,
Jesus has been proving this
all the way
through his ministry
as he healed the sick,
controlled nature,
overpowered demons,
defeated death.
Jesus confronted
the forces of evil
and the powers of darkness
and he was champion
over them all.
So the question for us
today is,
do you,
not talking about
anybody else,
but to you personally,
do you know
this Jesus?
Have you acknowledged
his position of power
and his rule
over all things
and all people?
Have you identified
Jesus as the God-man
who owns your life
and has authority
over your life?
You see,
for Peter,
identifying Jesus
correctly
was not just
an academic exercise.
He wasn't out
to impress
his fellow disciples.
Oh,
do you see
what answer I gave?
A.
A plus.
Or somehow
kind of
moving up
the pecking order.
No,
Peter's confession
of who Jesus is
is both
a universal
declaration
and a personal
conviction.
declaration.
First,
it's a universal
declaration.
You see,
the rule of Jesus
is not confined
to some people
in some places.
It is declared
to all nations
and all people.
Look at verse 18.
Jesus says to Peter,
I tell you
that you are Peter
and on this rock
I will build
my church.
Now,
there's a clever
play on words here
because the word
Peter means
rock.
So,
we can read
verse 18.
Jesus says,
I tell you
that you are rock
and on this rock
I will build
my church.
So,
who or what
is the rock
on which the church
will be built?
Well,
it's Peter
and his confession
of who Jesus is.
In other words,
the rock
or the foundation
is the declaration
that Jesus
is king.
So,
as the identity
of Jesus
is proclaimed,
as the authority
and power
of Jesus
is declared
over all things
and all people,
on this foundation,
the church
will be built.
And the fact
that there are people
all over the world
today,
including ourselves
right here,
right now,
giving glory
and praise
and honour
to Jesus
proves
the promise
of Jesus.
Look at the end
of verse 18.
He says,
I will build
my church
and the gates
of Hades,
literally,
the forces
of darkness
and evil,
of hell itself
will not
be able
to overcome it.
So,
as the authority
and power
of Jesus
is declared,
so the church
is being built
and it is
being built.
But it's not
just a universal
declaration,
it's a personal
conviction.
temptation.
Because for Peter
this was not
just some
abstract idea,
this was a
personal,
deep-hearted
belief.
Look at how
Jesus affirms
Peter in verse 19.
He says to Peter,
I will give you
the keys of the
kingdom of heaven,
whatever you
bind on earth
will be bound
in heaven,
whatever you
loose on earth
will be loosed
in heaven.
Now,
it's an
extraordinary
statement and
there's lots
we could say
about it and
maybe there's
more you want
to discuss
with me
afterwards.
But basically,
I want us to
get this,
that Peter
and the church
that follows
the people
today,
we are the
church,
people who
confess
Jesus Christ
have been
given the
keys
to the
kingdom.
That is,
the church
discerns
who is in
the kingdom
and who is
not in the
kingdom.
Jesus has
given the
church the
authority
to open
the door
and to
close the
door.
But you
say,
how do you
discern who
is in the
kingdom?
Well,
by the
person's
confession
of who
Jesus is.
As people
hear the
declaration
about
Jesus,
and as
people make
a personal
confession
of Jesus,
so they
are welcomed
into the
kingdom of
Jesus.
You see,
knowing the
identity of
Jesus is
not just a
tick-box
exercise.
We're not
here giving
answers like
we would in
school.
It's a
personal
confession,
a deep
conviction
that Jesus
is God
with absolute
power and
supreme
authority.
It's
admitting
and submitting
to the
fact that
Jesus is
king of
the universe
and rules
over every
aspect of
my life.
Do you
know
this Jesus?
So,
we've looked
at the
identity.
second,
the purpose,
why Jesus
came.
Having made
his identity
clear,
Jesus now
tells us
his purpose,
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,
the chief
priests,
and the
teachers of
the law,
and that
he must
be killed
and on
the third
day be
raised to
life.
This is
where everything
is headed in
Matthew's
gospel.
This is
the mini
mission statement
of Jesus.
Jesus,
why did
you come?
I came to
suffer,
I came to
die,
and I
came to
rise again.
Jesus
must
suffer,
verse 21.
He began
to explain
to his
disciples
that he
must go
to Jerusalem
and suffer.
Now,
hang on a
minute,
you say.
Jesus is
God's
king with
supreme
power and
sovereign
authority.
He's the
son of
man that
everybody
was
expecting.
He rules
over
everything,
and you're
telling me
he's going
to Jerusalem
to suffer?
Doesn't
sound very
kingly to
me.
Sounds
more like
weakness
than power.
Peter's
response is
understandable.
It's perhaps
how we
might respond.
Verse 22.
Peter took
him aside
and began
to rebuke
Jesus.
Never,
Lord,
he said.
This shall
never happen
to you.
You can't
suffer.
You're the
son of
man.
You can
overthrow
anyone and
overcome
anything.
No,
Jesus
must
suffer.
You see,
through the
sufferings of
Jesus,
he identifies
with our
suffering,
and he
helps us
in our
suffering.
That's what
the writer of
Hebrews makes
clear.
You can read
it there on
screen.
Because
Jesus
himself
suffered
when he
was tempted
or tested,
it's the
same word,
he is able
to help
those being
tested
and tempted.
it literally
means that
Jesus suffers
with us.
Jesus is,
if you like,
our co-sufferer.
It's a
heart-to-heart
solidarity.
Jesus is
saying,
your struggle
is my
struggle.
Your burden
is my
burden.
Your pain
is my
pain.
Jesus
feels
for us
in our
suffering
as if it
was his
very own,
even though
it isn't.
Jesus
must
suffer
so that
we might
have one
who understands
us in
our own
struggles
and trials.
But one
who merely
suffers
is not
enough,
is it?
As the
suffering
God-man,
he not
only knows
what it
is to
suffer,
but he
helps
us
in our
suffering.
No matter
what depth
you may
descend,
no matter
what darkness
you may
enter,
Jesus is
not just
with you,
but he
is under
you,
strengthening
you,
and upholding
you.
Jesus
experienced
the full
effects and
consequences
of living
in a
fallen
world.
He
literally
clothed
himself
with
human
weakness.
His
mind
and his
body
struggled
just like
we do.
He
suffered
so that
he might
understand
us
and give
to us
what we
need.
Jesus
must
suffer.
But more
than that,
Jesus
must
die.
We can
understand
Peter's
objection,
but they're
wrong.
Jesus
must
suffer
and he
must
die.
Look at
verse 23
with me.
Jesus
turned and
said to
Peter,
get behind
me,
Satan.
You're a
stumbling
block to
me.
You do
not have
in mind
the
concerns
of God,
but
merely
human
concerns.
From
being the
foundational
rock,
Peter
now
becomes
the
stumbling
block.
Without
realizing
it,
he's
become
an
obstacle
to
what
Jesus
must
do.
But
to
stop
Jesus
from
dying
is
to
be
on
the
side
of
Satan.
Jesus
must
die.
Now
while Peter
struggles
with what
it means
at this
stage,
he would
later come
to understand
that Jesus
must die.
Peter
himself
would
write this
in
1 Peter.
Follow
with me
on the
screen.
He
himself,
that's
Jesus
himself,
bore
our
sins
in
his
body
on
the
cross
so
that
we
might
die
to
sins
and
live
for
righteousness.
By
his
wounds
you
have
been
healed.
You
see,
sin
is not
just
rejection
and
rebellion
against
God.
Sin
is
replacing
God
with
self.
It's
saying,
I'm
the
king,
I
rule
my
life,
and
I'm
going
to
live
as
I
please.
It's
taking
the
crown
of
sovereign
authority
that
belongs
to
Jesus,
taking
it
off
his
head
and
putting
it
on
my
head.
It's
declaring
war
on
Jesus.
It's
what we
all
do.
But
Jesus
says
there
will
only
be
one
outcome.
Either
Jesus
is
going
to
die
for
you
or
you
will
die
for
your
sin.
What's
it
going
to
be?
Either
Jesus
dies
or
you
die.
You
see,
the
king,
with all
power
and all
authority,
came not
just to
suffer
with
us,
but he
came to
suffer
for
us.
He
would
become
our
sin
for
us.
Every
word
of
rejection,
every
act
of
rebellion
would
be
borne
by
Jesus
as
he
hung
on
the
cross.
He
died
my
death.
He
suffered
my
condemnation.
He
endured
my
punishment
so that
I
could
be
healed,
forgiven,
welcomed,
and
treasured.
Jesus
came to
die for
you
and for
me.
To
quote
one old
preacher,
if we
trust in
Jesus,
he
says,
you
now
stand
before
God
as
if
you
were
Christ,
because
Christ
stood
before
God
as
if
he
were
you.
Jesus
must
suffer,
Jesus
must
die,
and
Jesus
must
rise.
That's
what he
says in
verse
21.
This
is my
reason
for
coming,
that
I
would
be
killed
and
on
the
third
day
be
raised
to
life.
Jesus
came in
weakness.
He
would
suffer
and
he
would
die,
but
only
so
that
he
would
display
his
greatness
and
his
power,
because
through
the
resurrection
Jesus
proves
his
authority
over
death
and
the
glory
that
is
yet
to
come.
Again,
Peter
was
struggling
to see
how
any
of
this
could
be
true,
but
as
he
became
a
witness
to
the
death
of
Jesus
and
a
witness
to
the
risen
Jesus
it
would
all
become
clear.
Come
with me
please
to
1 Peter
chapter
1.
Follow
with me
in this.
1 Peter
chapter
1.
And
again,
if you've
got a
page
number,
shout
it out
and I'll
call it
out.
1 Peter
chapter
1.
1.217
There's the
teacher for
you,
always loud
and clear.
1 Peter
chapter
1
verse
3
So here's
the promise
that we
have because
of Jesus'
resurrection.
And note
again,
it's Peter
having
witnessed
the death
and
resurrection
of Jesus.
He now
writes
these things.
Follow
with me
verse 3.
Praise
be to
the God
and Father
of our
Lord Jesus
Christ.
In his
great mercy
he has
given us
new birth
into a
living hope
through
the
resurrection
of Jesus
Christ
from the
dead
and into
an inheritance
that can
never perish,
spoil,
or fade.
Our bodies
will perish.
Our possessions
will spoil.
Our world
will fade.
but the
glory of
the
eternal
kingdom
will never
perish,
never spoil,
never fade.
Verse 4
This
inheritance
is kept
in heaven
for you
who
through faith
are shielded
by God's
power until
the coming
of the
salvation
that is
ready to be
revealed in
the last
time.
I wonder
if you can
see there
in verse
4 and
5 how
the
resurrection
is our
security
and our
safety.
On the
one hand,
verse 4,
heaven is
kept for
us,
beginning
of verse
5,
and we
are kept
for heaven.
We are
shielded
by God's
power.
Heaven
is kept
and we
are kept.
Those
who trust
in Jesus
have this
living hope
because
Jesus
suffered
for you,
Jesus
died for
you,
and Jesus
rose again
for you.
Of course,
facing death
is still a
struggle.
And you
know why
death is
always so
hard?
death is
because death
takes from
us the
things we
cherish,
the people
we deeply
love.
Yet
they're always
temporary.
The things
of this
world will
perish,
spoil,
and fade.
But yet
in God's
hands,
they are
gifts from
God to
prepare us
for the
greatest gift
of all,
God
himself
in his
eternal
kingdom.
Jesus
came
to suffer
for you,
to die
for you,
to rise
again
for you.
but there's
something else
Jesus wants
us to
know.
The cost.
You see,
what we
think about
Jesus will
determine how
we respond
to Jesus.
If we
understand his
identity,
if we
understand his
purpose,
then we
will count
the cost.
Look at
verse 24.
Go back
with me to
Matthew
chapter 16.
chapter 16,
verse 24.
Then Jesus
said to his
disciples,
look,
he says,
you've got
my identity
clear.
You've got
the purpose
clear.
So whoever
wants to
be my
disciple
must deny
themselves,
take up
their cross.
and follow
me.
The
evidence
that we
understand
who
Jesus
is
and why
Jesus
came,
that if
we've
accepted it
and embraced
it,
it will be
seen,
it will be
worked out
in our
life.
And the
evidence will
be crystal
clear to
us all.
will mean
three things
very simply.
It will
mean denying
yourself.
Jesus
says, if you
want to be
my disciple,
you must
deny
yourself.
To deny
yourself is
to die
to self.
rule.
You see, we
all want to
play the
role of
sovereign
king,
don't we?
We're all
king of
our
castles.
I want
to be
the boss
of my
life.
I don't
want anybody
telling me
what I
should do
or how
I should
live.
I want
to do
things
my way.
But to
deny
yourself
is to
give up
the fight
to self
rule.
Instead,
it means
living under
his authority
and submitting
to his
rule.
It's about
seeking first
the kingdom
of God,
not the
kingdom of
Johnny Grant
that will
come to
nothing.
What will
this look
like for
us?
Well, it
starts with
the king's
word, the
king's
authority.
It means
not just
listening to
a few words
on a Sunday,
but reading
his word,
coming under
his authority
and obeying
what he
says,
because he
is king
and he
is lord.
Deny
yourself.
Second,
take up
your cross.
Jesus
says if
you're a
disciple,
then you
must take
up your
cross.
To take
up your
cross is
to lose
your life.
Remember,
the cross
was a
form of
execution.
It was
the death
penalty.
So to
take up
your cross
is saying,
I am
willing to
die for
Jesus.
Some of
you are
perhaps wearing
a cross
today on
a chain
around your
neck.
I have
no problem
with it,
by the way,
with that
chain,
with that
cross.
But what
does it
mean to
you if
you put
it on
in the
morning?
As you
put it
on in
the
morning,
it's
saying,
I'm
willing to
die for
Jesus.
That's
what the
cross
means.
rather
than
save
my
life,
I
will
lose
my
life
for
him.
Verse
25.
For
whoever
wants
to
save
their
life
will
lose
it,
but
whoever
loses
their
life
for
me
will
find
it.
You
see,
if
Jesus
gave
his
all
for
you,
if
he
gave
his
life
for
you,
to
save
you,
and
bring
you
safely
and
securely
to
his
eternal
kingdom,
if
Jesus
did
that
for
you,
then
we
will
give
our
life
to
him.
At
the
very
least,
it
means
embracing
a
path
of
loving
sacrifice
and
humble
service.
Taking
up
your
cross
is
going
to
mean
walking
a
path
of
suffering.
life.
If
you're
after
an
easy
life,
if
you
want
a
comfortable
life,
if
you
want
a
safe
life,
if
you
want
a
life
where
you
can
just
keep
people
at
arm's
distance,
don't
be a
disciple.
Don't
be a
disciple.
But
if
you
want
to
save
your
life,
be
ready
to
suffer
and
be
ready
to
die.
You
want
to
be a
disciple
of
Jesus?
He
says,
you
must
follow
me.
Following
Jesus
is both
costly,
costly
and
glorious.
It's
costly
because
it will
mean
dying
to
yourself
and
taking
up
your
cross.
It
will
mean
walking
a
path
of
suffering.
But
that
same
path
leads
to
glory.
After
the
death
of
the
Lord
Jesus
came
the
resurrection
of
Jesus.
So
all
who
follow
him
are
guaranteed
and
assured
of a
resurrection
to
come,
suffering
now,
but
glory
later.
You
see,
to
follow
Jesus
is to
embrace
his
life.
It's
to
follow
his
example.
It's
to hear
the
call
as he
says to
you,
come and
die
with me.
Come and
live
with me.
We
follow
his
example
and look
forward to
his
eternal
kingdom.
listen
to the
words
of
Psalm
16,
the
end
of
Psalm
16.
I'll
read
them
to
you
as
we
reflect.
Therefore,
my
heart
is
glad
and
my
tongue
rejoices,
my
body
also
will
rest
secure,
because
you
will
not
abandon
me
to
the
realm
of
the
dead,
nor
will
you
let
your
faithful
one
see
decay.
You
make
known
to me
the
path
of
life,
and
you
will
fill
me
with
joy
in
your
presence
and
with
eternal
pleasures
at
your
right
hand.
Follow
me,
says
Jesus,
and I
will bring
you
home.
to
my
glory.
Let's
pray.
Father
God,
thank you
for your
word.
Thank you
for its
truth that
declares to
us so
clearly who
Jesus is,
why Jesus
came,
and what
it demands
of us.
We pray
that these
would not
just be
words or
a tick
box
exercise,
but that
we would
believe
these
words,
that we
would do
business with
you today
and know
Jesus for
ourselves
personally
and intimately.
Father,
help us
that we
might follow
you as we
should.
In
Jesus'
name,
amen.
Amen.
We're going to sing
together,
which speaks of
the Lord Jesus
who gave
his all for us,
and then
towards the
end,
there's a
verse which