Peter's Confession
I've had a lot of conversations about the person of Yeshua (Jesus). The text I generally begin and end with is found here:
Matthew 16:13-16[1] :: Now when Yeshua came into the parts of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, saying, "Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?" They said, "Some say John the Baptizer, some, Elijah, and others, Jeremiah, or one of the prophets." He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?" Simon Peter answered, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.[2]
What makes this text unique is that it is a direct conversation about the identity of Yeshua. Not only that, the person asking the question about Yeshua's identity is Yeshua himself. We are blessed to have such an exchange recorded for us.
He begins by asking the disciples, "Who do men say that I the Son of man am?" In the gospels, "Son of man" is the title Yeshua uses most of himself. Its primary source is a prophetic vision (Daniel 7:13-14), where one like a son of man approaches the Ancient of Days and is given dominion, glory, and a kingdom. In Matthew 16, Yeshua uses Son of man to describe himself, so this means he is looking for more of an answer than Son of man.
They give him some of the answers that were going around at that time. Some people were thinking that Yeshua was somehow John the Baptizer, Elijah, Jeremiah, or one of the prophets.[3]
So he looks at his disciples and asks the question in a little different way: "But who do YOU say that I am?" He had asked them what others were saying, but now he wanted to know if they have knowledge concerning who he is. Peter answers, "You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God," period. That's the answer Peter gave; no less, no more. "The Christ" means the Anointed One of Yahweh.[4] The man whom Yahweh anointed and sent to the people of Israel. The One whom Yahweh commissioned to be the deliverer. "The Son of the Living God" means exactly that. You have the Living God[5] - that's Yahweh the Father. Son of the Living God, means you are Yahweh's Son, a separate person or being that Yahweh caused to come into existence and has a special relationship with. That was Peter's answer, and here is Yeshua's response:
Matthew 16:17-18 :: Yeshua answered him, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. I also tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my assembly, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it.
Peter aced the question because the Father in heaven had revealed to Peter, supernaturally, who Yeshua was. Peter did not get the answer by "flesh and blood," (by human revelation).
This is why Yeshua pronounces a blessing upon Peter. He knows that the Father has been working in Peter's heart and mind, producing the true revelation of who the man from Nazareth really is. Remember that Yeshua is standing right in front of Peter. They are looking at each other. What a moment that must have been!
Yeshua has been talking to all of his disciples. He's right there in the flesh, yet he tells Peter, "Flesh and blood didn't reveal this to you, but rather my Father who is in heaven."
Yeshua was standing upon the earth, talking to Peter. Yeshua's Father was in heaven.[6] It was the Father who revealed this great truth to Peter: that Yeshua is the Christ, the Son of the Living God.
Yeshua ends by saying that he will build the assembly upon this rock. There are more detailed implications to "this rock" in verse 18, but one great implication is that "this rock" is the revelation that Peter just spoke. The assembly is built upon the solid rock revelation that Yeshua is the Christ, the Son of the Living God.
You don't build on a partial foundation or a shaky foundation. You don't construct the church on a revelation that is only about part of who Yeshua is. You build on a firm foundation. This means Peter's revelation was full, sure, total, and firm. Peter's revelation was all of these things, because the Father in heaven gave it to Peter. The Father chose to reveal who Yeshua was, to Peter.
If Yeshua stood before you and I today and asked us the same question, how could we be justified in answering differently than Peter? We couldn't. The Father isn't going to reveal one answer to Peter, and then reveal a different answer to you and I. Likewise, Yeshua isn't going to accept one answer from Peter, and then accept a different answer from us.
I would look Yeshua right in the eyes and tell him, "I believe you are the Christ, the Son of the Living God." And you know what? He would tell me I was blessed just like Peter. I hope with all my heart that you would answer the same way, because I want you to be blessed as well.
Today, men tell us we must believe all sorts of things about Yeshua. They tell us we must believe he is really the Father, or that he's actually the living God, the Almighty, or the second person of a co-equal, co-eternal Trinity.[7] The Father in heaven gave Peter the confession unto salvation. That's the confession we must have today. We must not pay lip service to this revelation, but must really believe that Yeshua is Yahweh's Son. If we confess this with brother Peter, we too are blessed.
John 11:25-27 Yeshua said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will still live, even if he dies. Whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?" She said to him, "Yes, Lord. I have come to believe that you are the Christ, God's Son, he who comes into the world."
1 John 4:15 Whoever confesses that Yeshua is the Son of God, God remains in him, and he in God.
1 John 5:5 Who is he who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Yeshua is the Son of God?
Matthew 16:13-16[1] :: Now when Yeshua came into the parts of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, saying, "Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?" They said, "Some say John the Baptizer, some, Elijah, and others, Jeremiah, or one of the prophets." He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?" Simon Peter answered, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.[2]
What makes this text unique is that it is a direct conversation about the identity of Yeshua. Not only that, the person asking the question about Yeshua's identity is Yeshua himself. We are blessed to have such an exchange recorded for us.
He begins by asking the disciples, "Who do men say that I the Son of man am?" In the gospels, "Son of man" is the title Yeshua uses most of himself. Its primary source is a prophetic vision (Daniel 7:13-14), where one like a son of man approaches the Ancient of Days and is given dominion, glory, and a kingdom. In Matthew 16, Yeshua uses Son of man to describe himself, so this means he is looking for more of an answer than Son of man.
They give him some of the answers that were going around at that time. Some people were thinking that Yeshua was somehow John the Baptizer, Elijah, Jeremiah, or one of the prophets.[3]
So he looks at his disciples and asks the question in a little different way: "But who do YOU say that I am?" He had asked them what others were saying, but now he wanted to know if they have knowledge concerning who he is. Peter answers, "You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God," period. That's the answer Peter gave; no less, no more. "The Christ" means the Anointed One of Yahweh.[4] The man whom Yahweh anointed and sent to the people of Israel. The One whom Yahweh commissioned to be the deliverer. "The Son of the Living God" means exactly that. You have the Living God[5] - that's Yahweh the Father. Son of the Living God, means you are Yahweh's Son, a separate person or being that Yahweh caused to come into existence and has a special relationship with. That was Peter's answer, and here is Yeshua's response:
Matthew 16:17-18 :: Yeshua answered him, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. I also tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my assembly, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it.
Peter aced the question because the Father in heaven had revealed to Peter, supernaturally, who Yeshua was. Peter did not get the answer by "flesh and blood," (by human revelation).
This is why Yeshua pronounces a blessing upon Peter. He knows that the Father has been working in Peter's heart and mind, producing the true revelation of who the man from Nazareth really is. Remember that Yeshua is standing right in front of Peter. They are looking at each other. What a moment that must have been!
Yeshua has been talking to all of his disciples. He's right there in the flesh, yet he tells Peter, "Flesh and blood didn't reveal this to you, but rather my Father who is in heaven."
Yeshua was standing upon the earth, talking to Peter. Yeshua's Father was in heaven.[6] It was the Father who revealed this great truth to Peter: that Yeshua is the Christ, the Son of the Living God.
Yeshua ends by saying that he will build the assembly upon this rock. There are more detailed implications to "this rock" in verse 18, but one great implication is that "this rock" is the revelation that Peter just spoke. The assembly is built upon the solid rock revelation that Yeshua is the Christ, the Son of the Living God.
You don't build on a partial foundation or a shaky foundation. You don't construct the church on a revelation that is only about part of who Yeshua is. You build on a firm foundation. This means Peter's revelation was full, sure, total, and firm. Peter's revelation was all of these things, because the Father in heaven gave it to Peter. The Father chose to reveal who Yeshua was, to Peter.
If Yeshua stood before you and I today and asked us the same question, how could we be justified in answering differently than Peter? We couldn't. The Father isn't going to reveal one answer to Peter, and then reveal a different answer to you and I. Likewise, Yeshua isn't going to accept one answer from Peter, and then accept a different answer from us.
I would look Yeshua right in the eyes and tell him, "I believe you are the Christ, the Son of the Living God." And you know what? He would tell me I was blessed just like Peter. I hope with all my heart that you would answer the same way, because I want you to be blessed as well.
Today, men tell us we must believe all sorts of things about Yeshua. They tell us we must believe he is really the Father, or that he's actually the living God, the Almighty, or the second person of a co-equal, co-eternal Trinity.[7] The Father in heaven gave Peter the confession unto salvation. That's the confession we must have today. We must not pay lip service to this revelation, but must really believe that Yeshua is Yahweh's Son. If we confess this with brother Peter, we too are blessed.
John 11:25-27 Yeshua said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will still live, even if he dies. Whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?" She said to him, "Yes, Lord. I have come to believe that you are the Christ, God's Son, he who comes into the world."
1 John 4:15 Whoever confesses that Yeshua is the Son of God, God remains in him, and he in God.
1 John 5:5 Who is he who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Yeshua is the Son of God?
End Notes
[1] In all Scripture quotations, the proper Hebrew names of the Father and the Son, Yahweh and Yeshua, have been inserted. I've used the World English Bible predominantly, because it is much easier to read for the modern day person, yet still a formal equivalence translation, based on the 1901 American Standard Version. This Bible may be freely copied without written permission from the publisher: worldenglishbible.org
[2] I do not normally use the English word "God" when teaching scripture or writing about scripture. I have chosen to do so in this booklet for the sake of clarity, and because in general, people are more familiar with that title terminology. My reasons for not usually using the title "God" are found on my website.
[3] Though these answers were incorrect, they were all legitimate. It was assumed by some that John the Baptizer had risen from the dead (Matthew 14:2), there was an ancient prophecy that the Elijah would come back in some manner (Malachi 4:5), and it was believed by many that Jeremiah was the prophet like Moses from Deuteronomy 18:15 (and that he may rise from the dead and come on the scene in their day). The answers floating around about who Yeshua was were not ridiculous answers. People were wondering who he could be, because of his great teaching and miraculous power to perform miracles.
[4] I believe the best verse explaining how Yeshua was anointed by Yahweh is Acts 10:38: "Even Yeshua of Nazareth, how God anointed him with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him."
[5] The phrase "living God" is used about 30 times in the KJV of the Bible. I believe it references Yahweh's everlasting nature, not just in the now and future, but also in the past. In other words, Yahweh gives life to all things, has always been living, and will always will be living. There is no possibility of Yahweh ever dying.
[6] In the gospel of Matthew, Yeshua speaks of his "Father in heaven" about 15 times. This would be an odd statement if Yeshua was really the Father - standing on the earth - with whomever he was talking to.
[7] It makes no sense for someone to say that you must believe in the Trinity to be saved, or that you must believe that Yeshua is Yahweh to be saved. Such doctrines were later developments within Christianity. They did begin to develop early on in the 2nd through 5th centuries A.D. but nonetheless they are post-apostolic developments. It is absurd to think that a later doctrinal development is an essential belief of the Christian faith. Even if Trinitarians or Oneness proponents say that Peter (and others) had a fledgling understanding of Yeshua, they still must accept that Peter (and others) were saved with that fledgling understanding. Yahweh forbid that we throw people in hell for not believing something that took many years of formulation by certain adherents to Christianity.
[2] I do not normally use the English word "God" when teaching scripture or writing about scripture. I have chosen to do so in this booklet for the sake of clarity, and because in general, people are more familiar with that title terminology. My reasons for not usually using the title "God" are found on my website.
[3] Though these answers were incorrect, they were all legitimate. It was assumed by some that John the Baptizer had risen from the dead (Matthew 14:2), there was an ancient prophecy that the Elijah would come back in some manner (Malachi 4:5), and it was believed by many that Jeremiah was the prophet like Moses from Deuteronomy 18:15 (and that he may rise from the dead and come on the scene in their day). The answers floating around about who Yeshua was were not ridiculous answers. People were wondering who he could be, because of his great teaching and miraculous power to perform miracles.
[4] I believe the best verse explaining how Yeshua was anointed by Yahweh is Acts 10:38: "Even Yeshua of Nazareth, how God anointed him with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him."
[5] The phrase "living God" is used about 30 times in the KJV of the Bible. I believe it references Yahweh's everlasting nature, not just in the now and future, but also in the past. In other words, Yahweh gives life to all things, has always been living, and will always will be living. There is no possibility of Yahweh ever dying.
[6] In the gospel of Matthew, Yeshua speaks of his "Father in heaven" about 15 times. This would be an odd statement if Yeshua was really the Father - standing on the earth - with whomever he was talking to.
[7] It makes no sense for someone to say that you must believe in the Trinity to be saved, or that you must believe that Yeshua is Yahweh to be saved. Such doctrines were later developments within Christianity. They did begin to develop early on in the 2nd through 5th centuries A.D. but nonetheless they are post-apostolic developments. It is absurd to think that a later doctrinal development is an essential belief of the Christian faith. Even if Trinitarians or Oneness proponents say that Peter (and others) had a fledgling understanding of Yeshua, they still must accept that Peter (and others) were saved with that fledgling understanding. Yahweh forbid that we throw people in hell for not believing something that took many years of formulation by certain adherents to Christianity.