Smoodock's Blog

Time is passing, since the feeding of the 5000 occurred in the spring, around the time of the Passover (John 6:1-4). Awhile later, a week, perhaps more, Jesus went to the Decapolis and fed a multitude of 4000 gentiles, after which he went to the district of Magdala (Matthew 15:32-39), to the village of Dalmanutha (Mark 8:10), where Jesus, perhaps, taught the people and distributed the contents of the seven baskets of bread and fish he collected earlier, when the 4000 folks were fed. While he was in the district of Magdala, he was approached by the Jewish authorities, who demanded a sign from heaven before they’d believe him. Jesus left them and past over the Sea of Galilee to the other side, presumably to Bethsaida (Mark 8:22), where he healed a blind man (Mark 8:22-26). It appears that several months had passed, bringing us to the time of the Feast of Tabernacles (cp. John 7:1-10), which occurred in the seventh calendar month. At about this time, Jesus took his disciples from Capernaum to the coasts of Caesarea Philippi, where Peter’s famous confession occurred. Yet, we have a bit of a conundrum with Peter’s confession!

Our study today, opens sometime after the Passover, and after several crossings of the Sea of Galilee, Jesus and his disciples ended up north of its shores in the coasts of Caesarea Philippi (Matthew 16:13), which, if we understand “coasts” in the same manner as we understood the word, when Jesus went to the “coasts” of Tyre and Sidon (Matthew 15:21), it may mean Jesus was still in Galilee, but near the border of Caesarea Philippi.

Keep in mind that Jesus had recently mentioned to his disciples to beware of the leaven or doctrine/teaching of the Pharisees and the Sadducees (Matthew 16:6) and Mark adds Herod (Mark 8:15). In other words, Jesus wanted his disciples to be on guard against the political and religious agendas of this world. Folks are taken in by the preachers of those agendas, be they religious or political preachers. These authorities are the movers and shakers of this world, gods, if you will in the sense of Psalm 82. Therefore, Jesus took his disciples north to the border of Caesarea Philippi, which was near the spring of the Jordan River. A temple had been built there to the religious god, Pan, and Caesarea Philippi had been built near the temple to honor Tiberius Caesar, the political god of the Roman Empire.

It was here and in this context that Jesus asked his disciples: “Whom do men say that I am?” (Matthew 16:13). The disciples responded with some folks believe the spirit of John the Baptizer was in Jesus, while others concluded he was Elijah, Jeremiah or some other prophet (Matthew 16:14; cp. Mark 8:28; Luke 9:19). Then Jesus asked: “But whom do you say I am?” (Matthew 16:15). It was Peter who replied, perhaps as a spokesman of the group or perhaps, as he was often apt to do, to speak his own mind. He said of Jesus: “You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God!” (Matthew 16:16).

Maybe I’m missing something, but wasn’t it because the disciples believed Jesus was the Messiah that they began following him in the first place (John 1:34, 41, 45, 49). Therefore, there must be a difference between the disciples’ initial belief in Jesus and Peter’s confession in Matthew 16:16. The latter event occurred during Jesus’ second year of public ministry, between the Passover and the Feast of Tabernacles (John 6:1-4 and John 7:1-10).

With the above in mind, Jesus’ response in Matthew 16:17 seems to be the game changer. Jesus said Peter was blessed. Why? it was because his confession wasn’t the result of what men told him. In other words, Peter wasn’t saying Jesus was the Christ, because Andrew told him (John 1:41). Peter claimed Jesus was the Christ, because sometime in the first two years of Jesus’ public ministry, Peter owned his belief. He was considering Jesus’ words and deeds throughout the period, and he came to the conclusion that Jesus was, indeed, the Christ. Peter was “all in,” not because Andrew said so (John 1:41), but because Peter said so, and Jesus claimed this was due to his Father working with Peter and revealing it to him (Matthew 16:17).

Interestingly, Jesus claimed he would build his assembly, vis-à-vis comprised of only the Twelve at this point, and the “gates of hell,” meaning the gate keepers of the religious and political world around them would not prevail against his “assembly” (Matthew 16:18). Moreover, Jesus said he was making the Twelve, the “gate keepers” of his Kingdom. They had the keys of the Kingdom, and what they agreed to among themselves or didn’t believe was necessary would be done also in heavenly realms. Then, he commanded the Twelve to tell no one that he is the Christ, probably inferring that the Father would do that, just as he had done with Peter (Matthew 16:20).         [EB1]