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Gospel of Matthew Chapter 16

by Paul George  
8/28/2008 / Bible Studies

Beginning with the thirteenth verse of chapter sixteen Matthew presents the teachings of Jesus concerning first His church.

Jesus begins the teachings by asking the disciples who the people say the Son of Man is. There were many different opinions about who Jesus was. Herod Antipas believed Jesus was the resurrected John the Baptist. Others believed He was resurrected Elijah, some resurrected Jeremiah or one of the other prophets. When Jesus asked this question He knew what the people were saying about Him including what Herod had said. It is interesting the disciples did not say that some of the people said Jesus was the Messiah. That opinion was not a popular one in Israel. It is not a popular answer in this present age.

When Jesus asked the disciples who do you say I am Peter said the Christ, the Son of the living God. The Jews often described their God as the living God, the contrast being with the gods of their pagan neighbors, by referring to Jesus as the Son of the living God, left no doubt about the God who was the Father of Jesus. He was the true God. Since Jesus was the Son of God, He was the Messiah, the King over the long anticipated earthly kingdom (2 Samuel 7:14; Isaiah 9:6; Jeremiah 23:5-6).

Addressing Peter, Jesus said, "I also say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church and the gates of Hades will not overpower it" (Matthew 16:18 NASB).

There are three main views about the identity of this rock. The first is that Jesus meant Peter was the rock, the foundation on which He would build His church. While Peter's confession was the source of Jesus' comment about building His church on a rock, Jesus was not telling Peter he would be the foundation on which Jesus would build His church. Jesus never treated Peter as though he occupied a favored position in the church because he made this confession. A second view is that Jesus meant He would build His church on Peter's confession. This view has some merit because other New Testament references to the foundation of the church refer to Jesus as a stumbling stone, a rock of offense, a corner stone, the stone rejected by the builders (Romans 9:33; Ephesians 2:20; 1 Peter 2:5-8). A third view is that Jesus Himself is the Rock. The Old Testament prophets likened Messiah to a stone (Psalm 118:22; Isaiah 28:16). Jesus claimed to be that stone (Matthew 21:42). Peter himself identified Jesus as that stone (Acts 4:10-12; 1 Peter 2:5-8) as did Paul (Romans 9:33-34; 1 Corinthians 2:1-2; 3:11; Ephesians 2:20). Some of the critics of this view claim Ephesians 2:20 rule out Jesus as the foundation of the church. They use this passage to support their claim the apostles and prophets are the foundation. When they use Ephesians 2:20 to justify their claim Jesus is not the foundation and builder of the church, they ignore what Paul is telling the people. The Apostle Paul identifies Jesus as the cornerstone. The foundation Paul refers to is the Gospel message that was proclaimed by both the prophets and the apostles. In 1 Corinthians 3:10-11 Paul said no man can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Others use the preaching of Peter on the day of Pentecost to support their claim Peter is the foundation of the church. Those who hold this view ignore Peter's role in building the church was not different from the other apostles.

The next key word in this passage is "church." The only use of the Greek word ekklesia is here and in Matthew 18:17. Ekklesia refers to an assembly of people called out for a particular purpose. It comes from the verb ekkaleo, "to call out from." The Septuagint translators used it of Israel. In the New Testament it refers to an assembly of citizens with no religious significance (Acts 19:39). However, Jesus used it here to express the Christian body as distinct from Jews and to identify a new entity that was yet to come into existence. He said He would build it in the future. He would not establish His kingdom on earth, but He would build His church. The word build is also significant because it implies the gradual erection of the church under the symbolism of living stones being built upon Christ, the foundation stone, as indicated in 1 Peter 2:4-8. Furthermore, Jesus claimed the church as His own in a unique sense by calling it "My church." Jesus brought His church into being because Israel had rejected her Messiah, and consequently God would postpone the coming of the promised kingdom. In the meantime, Jesus would construct an entirely new entity. He Himself would be its foundation and its builder.

Contrary to what some people may believe and teach, Jesus' church is not the same as His kingdom. The church will end when it has completed its mission and is taken up to be with Jesus.

The next key word gates; gates, in biblical usage refer to fortifications (Genesis 22:17; Psalm 127:5). The word gates imply withstanding the assault upon the church by the servants of Satan. Part of the assault upon the church is revealed in the parable of the sowing of tares in the wheat field.

The next key word is Hades; the place of departed spirits. The good news is Satan and his hosts doing their most powerful work of opposing life would not prevail over the church. The church cannot die. This statement anticipated Jesus' resurrection and the resurrection and translation of church saints. Even Jesus' death would not prevent His building the church.

This is all that Jesus revealed about the church; He simply introduced this new revelation to the disciples as a farmer plants a seed. All of their thinking had been about the kingdom. To say more about the church now would have confused the disciples. Jesus provides more information about the church in Matthew chapter 18 and John's Gospel, chapters 14-16).

The next key word is keys. In Acts, we see Peter opening the door to the church for Jews (Acts 2), Samaritans (Acts 8), and Gentiles (Acts 10).

One of the problems encountered in this passage is the binding and loosing; whatever seems to include people and privileges in view of how the Old Testament described the steward's use of keys. The rabbis of Jesus' day often spoke of binding and loosing in the sense of forbidding and permitting. Some interpreters claim the binding and loosing means whatever Peter forbid to be done on earth would have already been forbidden in heaven. When Peter forbids something to be done on earth, he was speaking for the Lord. Whatever he permitted to be done on earth would have already been permitted in heaven. This interpretation can be applied to all the apostles. The problem with this view is that Peter did not always say and do the right thing (Galatians 2:11). Roman Catholics use this interpretation to support the claim that when Peter and his supposed successors, the popes, speak they are using the keys of the kingdom.

Another interpretation claims this was a promise that Peter will fulfill in the messianic kingdom. Peter will determine what the mind of God is and then judge accordingly. He will determine God's will in rendering judgment in the messianic kingdom. Perhaps he will consult the Scriptures or get a direct word from Jesus who will be on earth reigning then. Then he will announce his decision. With his announcement, Peter will give or withhold whatever may be involved in the judgment, but he will really be announcing what has already been decided. The problem with this interpretation, God, through the prophets and in these last days through Jesus, the Son of the living God, has revealed His will and judgments to all who take the time to read and study the Bible.

The warning in verse 20 seems to run contrary to Jesus' purpose to manifest Himself as the Messiah to Israel for her acceptance. Jesus was not trying to conceal His identity. If the disciples had proclaimed the fact that Jesus of Nazareth was the Messiah, some people would have believed them. Others would have reacted to the proclamation the same as they did when the shepherds announced the birth of Jesus. Jesus wanted people to come to the conclusion He is the Messiah because of the words He spoke and the works He performed. Jesus wanted His disciples to stay within the means and limits that He had imposed on Himself for His self-disclosure. They should not appeal for people's acceptance of Jesus because of nationalistic zeal or misguided messianic expectations but because of faith rooted in the words and works of Jesus.

Beginning with the twenty-first verse of chapter sixteen Matthew presents the teachings of Jesus concerning His death.

Jesus identified three groups that would be responsible for His sufferings and death, the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes. Together these groups constituted the Sanhedrin, Israel's supreme religious body.

Peter realizing Jesus was predicting His death rebuked Jesus privately for thinking such a thing, but Jesus silenced him (Matthew 16:23). Like many modern professing followers of Jesus, Peter did not want to accept what did not agree with his hopes and ambitions.
Peter's strong will and love linked to his ignorance produced arrogance. Peter rebuking Jesus implies that he knows more of God's will for the Messiah than the Messiah does. In His response Jesus used similar language when rebuking Satan himself (Matthew 4:10). Jesus viewed Peter's comment as coming from Satan. Satan had offered Jesus Messiahship without suffering (Matthew 4:8-9), and now Peter was suggesting the same thing. The idea of a suffering Messiah caused Peter to stumble here, and after Jesus' resurrection the same concept caused many Jews to stumble (1 Corinthians 1:23). Peter was not thinking God's thoughts but man's. When he confessed that Jesus was the Messiah, he was thinking God's thoughts. Now he was not only thinking without regard to revelation but in opposition to revelation, as Satan does. The contrast between verses 13-20 and verses 21-23 clearly shows that the disciples' understanding was a matter of growth. As they accepted what they came to understand, their faith also grew.

Jesus did not identify the method of His death until later (Matthew 20:19), but the disciples understood at least initially what Jesus meant about the price they would have to pay. Self-denial as Jesus taught it does not involve denying oneself things as much as it does denying one's own authority over his or her life (John 12:23-26). This is the great challenge. The three verbs in this challenge are significant. The first two, "deny" and "take up," indicate a decisive action. The last one, "follow," implies a continuing action.

Verse 25 restates the idea that Jesus previously expressed in Matthew 10:28. The point of Jesus' statement is that living for oneself now will result in a loss of life, whereas denying oneself now for Jesus' sake will result in a fuller life. The emphasis of this verse is, it pays to serve Jesus, but payday will come later.

Verse 26 shows the foolishness of gaining great material wealth. What is accumulated in this world is ultimate loss. However, for the disciple, what is loss in this world is ultimate gain. God's future judgment of His disciples, as well as Jesus' example, should be an inducement to deny self, identify with Christ, and follow Him. The prospect of reward should motivate Jesus' disciples to deny self and follow Him. However, those who follow Jesus simply to obtain a reward have not really denied themselves.

The Apostle Paul, Peter, and John refer to these rewards as crowns (1 Corinthians 9:25; Philippians 4:1; 1 Thessalonians 2:19; 2 Timothy 4:8; 1 Peter 5:4; Revelation 2:10; 3:11). It is perfectly proper to serve Jesus Christ to gain a reward. However, we will one day lay our crowns at the feet of our Savior.

The crown is an expression of a life of faithful service that we perform out of gratitude for God's grace to us. Both Jesus and Paul urged us to lay up treasure in heaven, to make investments that will yield eternal rewards (Matthew 6:19-21; Luke 12:31-34; 1 Timothy 6:18-19). There is nothing wrong, even though people do not like to hear it, to remind people of the consequences of their actions to motivate them to do what is right. That is what Jesus was doing with His disciples in this passage.

By including this discussion with the disciples, Matthew once more emphasized the program of the Messiah as it is based on Daniel's prophecy. The Messiah must first be cut off (Daniel 9:26), a period of intense trouble begins later (Daniel 9:27), and finally the Son of Man comes in glory to judge the world (Daniel 7:13-14). Therefore, the disciples must endure suffering, and when the Son of Man comes in His glory, they will be rewarded.

Beginning with Matthew 16:21 and ending with Matthew 28:20, Matthew describes Jesus' journey to Jerusalem and his suffering, death, and resurrection, Jesus' first act in this journey is the revealing that God has ordained that he should go to Jerusalem and there be made by the religious leaders to suffer and die. Peter's inability to comprehend that death is only part of the problems afflicting the relationship between Jesus and the disciples. Another part of the problems is the inability to understand that servanthood is the essence of discipleship.

Jesus' purpose in revealing the nature of the kingdom to His inner circle of disciples was to strengthen their faith and to prepare them for the trials that lay ahead of them. In His revealing of the nature of the kingdom, Jesus revealed some of the disciples whom He addressed would not die until they saw Him coming in His kingdom. This prediction may appear to be similar to the one in Matthew 10:23. However, that verse refers to something else, namely, Jesus' reunion with His disciples following their preaching tour in Galilee.

Verse 28 does not mean that Jesus would return to set up the messianic kingdom during the lifetime of these disciples. It does not mean that Jesus had already set up the kingdom when He spoke these words. What Jesus predicted would happen in the future rules this out. Some interpreters have taken Jesus' words as a reference to His resurrection and ascension. However, Jesus spoke of those events elsewhere as His departure, not His coming (John 16:7). Moreover, such a view interprets the kingdom in a heavenly sense rather than in the earthly sense in which the Old Testament writers consistently spoke of it. Other interpreters believe that Jesus was speaking about the day of Pentecost. The problem with this interpretation is the Son of Man did not come then. The Holy Spirit did. Furthermore, the kingdom did not begin then. The church did. Still others hold that the destruction of Jerusalem is in view. The only link with that event is judgment.

Jesus appears to have been predicting a preview of His coming to establish His kingdom that He gave Peter, James, and John in the Transfiguration (Matthew 17:1-8).

The Transfiguration follows this prediction immediately in all three of the Gospels. Peter, one of the witnesses of the Transfiguration, interpreted it as a preview of the kingdom (2 Peter 1:16-18). Jesus' "truly I say to you" (v 28) separates His prediction of the establishment of the kingdom (v. 27) from His prediction of the vision of the kingdom (v 28).

Some interpreters of verse 28 confuse the eternal heavenly rule of God with the millennial earthly rule of Messiah. Some take the kingdom as heavenly, and others take it as both heavenly and earthly. Among the latter group are those who believe the kingdom is operating in a heavenly form now but will become an earthly kingdom later. This view often involves confusing the church with the kingdom.

Jesus had just announced that He was going to build His church, so what would happen to the promised kingdom? The kingdom will come.

Retired pastor,Church of the Nazarene

Author of web site Exploring God's Word

www.thewordofgodonline.net

New American Standard Bible

King James Version

The World English Bible

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