Skip to main content

Tests, Trials and Questions


            When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people 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 Christ, the Son of the living God.”
               Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, 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, 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. (Matthew 16:13-20)

            There are some people who teach that today's passage shows that Jesus was discouraged or feeling insecure, so He asked His disciples these two questions. There may be others who think He asked them because He felt the need to see how well His marketing program was working. I think they've forgotten that Jesus was a rabbi, which means teacher, and the disciples were His disciples, which means students.  A teacher doesn't ask a student "What does two plus two equal?" because the teacher doesn't know the answer is four. The teacher asks in order to find out if the student knows, and in order for the student to find out that the student knows.
                        Peter got the answer right, and Jesus not only told him it was the right answer, but also that the Father had revealed it to him. He gave the right answer, which he got from the right source. That means that Peter was in the sort of relationship with the Father in which such communication was possible.
            The Bible talks about tests and trials that we face, and about God doing things to find out  whether someone would obey, was righteous, etc.  These aren't because God doesn't know. God is omniscient. In asking these questions, in giving these tests, God reveals us to us. More importantly, He reveals something about Himself to us.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

On the Calendar 
 Battles of Lexington and Concord
Birthday of
Roger Sherman (signer of Articles of Association, Declaration of Independence, Articles of Confederation and the Constitution)

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Right Road

          Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast. If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me and the light become night around me,” even the darkness will not be dark to you; the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to you. (Psalm 139:7-12)                  For years before GPSes existed, I told people I wanted something in my car that would tell me, “Turn left in half a mile…turn left in a quarter mile…turn left in 500 feet… turn left in 100 feet…turn left now …You missed the turn, Dummy!” The problem isn’t necessarily that I get lost so much as I’m afraid I’ll get lost. I don’t want to have to spend my whole trip stressing over the next turn. I have the same problem with my spiritual journey.   
Post a Comment
Read more

Died as a Ransom

                 For this reason Christ is the mediator of a new covenant, that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance—now that he has died as a ransom to set them free from the sins committed under the first covenant. (Hebrews 9:15)                  This is something I’d really rather not think about but here it is and it’s important. I was reading in Bold Love about seeking revenge.  The author wrote of seeking justice when a supposed Christian does something sinful, harmful, and/or horrific, like sexually abusing a daughter.  And the thought that came to mind was of God asking if Jesus’ death was sufficient payment to me for the sin committed against me.                I have no specific longing for revenge, vengeance, or justice. I’m sure there are some lurking somewhere in my heart, but this wasn’t a response to one. It was more a question of principle. Jesus’ death was sufficient payment for to God for our sins.  That’s the standard Sunday Schoo
1 comment
Read more

Out of the Depths

  Out of the depths I have cried to You, Lord. Lord, hear my voice! Let Your ears be attentive to the sound of my pleadings.   If You, Lord, were to keep account of guilty deeds, Lord, who could stand? But there is forgiveness with You, so that You may be revered. I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and I wait for His word. My soul waits in hope for the Lord more than the watchmen for the morning; Yes, more than the watchmen for the morning. Israel, wait for the Lord; for with the Lord there is mercy, and with Him is abundant redemption. And He will redeem Israel from all his guilty deeds . (Psalm 130)             I like Mr. Peterson’s interpretation of the first line. “The bottom has fallen out of my life!” Of course, the problem for some of us is the fact that we’re drama queens, and/or we’re weak. Any time anything happens that disturbs our sense of mastery and control, the bottom has fallen out of our lives. If the past couple of days have taught me anything, they’ve t
1 comment
Read more