Whom say ye that I am?

 

Whom say ye that I am?

 

(Matthew 16:13-20)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.  Then charged he his disciples that they should tell no man that he was Jesus the Christ.

We must think whether Jesus came to this place in the north, opposite Jerusalem. There is the Dead Sea in the south and Judea, and the region of Galilee centered on the Lake of Galilee in the north. Jesus did not go from Galilee to Judea in the south, but we must know what it means. There is a place called Caesarea in the Bible, and there is also Philippi. Caesarea, a city located on the central seashore, was the home of the Roman governor's residence. Historically, it is a city where many buildings have been erected and disappeared. Related to the book of Philippians, Philippi was the first European city located in Macedonia (northern Greece). This is the first major city we meet after moving from Asia to Europe, where Paul went and founded a church.

By the way, the place of Caesarea Philippi has nothing to do with them. It is located at the foot of Mount Hermon, the northernmost part of Israel. Herod the Great, who was king when Jesus was born, had several sons, one of them, Herod Philip. He created a city there and named it Caesarea after Caesar, the title of the Roman emperor, and named it Caesarea Philippi by putting in his own name. The name Philip is also the name of the father of the great Alexander the Great.

The fact that this city was given the title of emperor means that this Caesarea Philippi was outwardly a city of incredibly magnificent appearance, as well as a temple for the emperor. By the way, Jesus and his disciples came to the city of the Roman emperor. Jesus and his disciples, mostly from the countryside of Galilee, must have been very shabby and lousy, not at all suitable for such a magnificent city.

Jesus deliberately came with his disciples to the city of the emperor, a city of splendor and great Roman glory. First of all, it was for the purpose of training the disciples before pointing the cross. When Jesus asked, "Who do people call the Son of Man?", the disciples said, "Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and some say Jeremiah or one of the prophets." People think of Jesus as one of John the Baptist, Elijah, Jeremiah, or the prophet.

Here, what the people mentioned are the prophets of God. So people knew Jesus as a prophet. Looking at the things Jesus did and the contents of what he taught, I thought that he must have been sent by God, but they thought that Jesus was a prophet but not the Messiah. He did not think his people were the Messiah who had been waiting so long.

By the way, Jesus' intention is concerned with what the disciples think. At that time, Rome fought a war of conquest under the banner of Pax Roma. It is to make peace by conquering other countries by force. So, what Rome was pursuing at the time was strong power. In such a place, Jesus asked his disciples, "Who do you think I am?"Regarding Jesus' question, Simon Peter answered and said, "The Lord is the Christ and the Son of the living God."

It is a word of great faith. It is God who made this known. However, this belief is not a belief that is directly connected to salvation. Because in chapter 16 Jesus tells Peter that he is Satan. Jesus said, ``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. When a believer accurately explains salvation and hears and believes that the listener is forgiven of sins, he will receive the forgiveness of sins. Saints are those who are in Jesus Christ, and they do these things through the power of the Holy Spirit. However, these saints also have a physical body, and they have difficulties while living in this world.

In Romans 7:21-25, ``I find then a law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with me. For I delight in the law of God after the inward man: But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death? I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin. 』

Luke 22:28-32 『Ye are they which have continued with me in my temptations. And I appoint unto you a kingdom, as my Father hath appointed unto me; That ye may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom, and sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel. And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat: But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren. 』

Before saying this, there is a scene where the disciples argued, "Who is big?" Jesus says, “The one who serves is great.” The quarrel of “who is great” begins in Rebekah's womb. In the mother's womb, two peoples quarrel. God said to Rebekah, "The great will serve the little." This becomes the kingdom of God on this earth. The Lord said that he entrusted the kingdom of God to his disciples who always went through all the tests together. Well, they weren't ready. Especially to Peter, Jesus calls his former name Simon. It means that Satan will fall. But Jesus is urging Peter to turn and strengthen his brothers.

Like Jesus, Peter walked on the water. The disciples were watching the scene. Peter knew that by looking only at the Lord, he became like the Lord. But he also discovered that he could not look to the Lord until the end in this body. The moment he looks at the storm, he falls into the water. At some point, the flesh "falls in faith". Three years later, Jesus said to Peter again, "Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat:".

As Satan did with Job, he did so with Peter. Jesus answered Peter, "Who do you think I am?" Then Peter replied, "The Lord is the Christ and the Son of God." They are responding without doubt. Nevertheless, he denied Jesus on the cross. It indicates that it was Peter who was completely fleeing before the cross. The body is flesh, and the spirit is spirit. The flesh never changes. You have to be born again. Therefore, the old man who represents the fleshly heart must die before being reborn.

In Romans 6:3-4, "Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death?" Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. 』