Thou Art The Christ
When Jesus came into the coasts of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, saying, Whom do men say that I the Son of man am? And they said, Some say that thou art John the Baptist: some, Elias; and others, Jeremias, or one of the prophets. He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am? And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven. And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. (Matthew 16:13-19)
Thought For Today:
One of the reasons that Jesus gave Peter the keys to the kingdom of heaven was to tell a lost world who He was. When Jesus called Peter and his brother, they were fishing. When you follow Peter's actions through the book of Acts and his epistles to the church, he is casting the vision of the church. He knows that without a vision the people will perish. He knows that if they do not know Jesus Christ, they are destined for destruction and eternity in hell. From the Day of Pentecost, Peter preaches about Jesus. He wants to open the door that brings understanding first. And so he must lay the foundation for the church at the onset. Peter understands that if the church is to stand against evil, the foundation must be laid first, and it must be laid correctly. Peter is no novice, he's a wise master builder who follows the instructions given to him by his Master teacher. He, like Paul, knows that there can be no other foundation that will withstand the evil of this world, other than Jesus Christ. And so he opens that door first. When a life is built on the foundation of truth, it will stand. Who do you say that He is?
