Matthew 16:13-18 English Standard Version
Peter Confesses Jesus as the Christ
13 When Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” 14 And they said, “Some say John the Baptist, others say Elijah, others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” 15 He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” 16 Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” 17 And Jesus 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. 18 And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock[a] I will build my church, and the gates of hell[b] shall not prevail against it.
Word of God for the Children of God
Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.
In Matthew 16, Jesus asked His disciples who people say that He is. Some claimed he was a teacher, a prophet and a number of other possible theories.
Then Jesus brought the question home, “But who do you say that I am”.
This one question must be answered by every man or woman who will ever walk the earth.
How we answer this question determines whether or not Jesus is our Savior or just another teacher we pass by.
This single question is the foundational issue of Christianity.
In preparation for this message, I did a brief study and found the first time the word “church” is used in the Bible is in the passage we are currently studying.
Matthew 16:18 First verse in the Bible where we find the word “church” used.
In that verse, Jesus promises to build His church and He says, “The gates of hell will not prevail against it.”
Imagine that!
Jesus said the gates of Hell could not stop His church, could not win against His church, could not win against His Bride.
The gates of hell themselves could not stop the church’s progress.
Sadly, I am afraid to contend that it isn’t the gates of hell which are prevailing against many churches.
I am afraid that many churches are failing, are having trouble today because we have forgotten our purpose, we have forgotten our mission.
We have forgotten why we exist.
We have become too afraid to ask each other; “who do we say Jesus is?”
Who will be the one’s who confess, ““Some say John the Baptist, others say Elijah, others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”“?
Who will be the one’s who confess, ““You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.””
First I would like you to see with me the commission of the church.
I. THE COMMISSION OF THE CHURCH
– Matthew 28:18-20
In these verses Jesus gives the purpose of the church and some of the steps to fulfilling that purpose.
In verse 18 Jesus says:
Go and do what? Make disciples.
The Commission of the church is to make disciples.
I believe that we as a church are leading people to the Lord.
I believe we are being salt and light in the world. I believe we are helping people to grow, but I fear that we are not producing many true disciples of Jesus Christ.
We may do many things as a church.
We may sing together.
We can reach out.
We can visit.
We can encourage one another and do all of those other things, but if we are not making disciples, we are not effectively fulfilling the commission Jesus gave us.
Now, many of you would probably consider yourselves disciples.
Let me give you 7 marks of a true disciple and as I do, let me ask you to put a check mark by the ones that accurately describe you.
True disciples:
1. Embrace salvation by grace through Jesus Christ
2. Learn and understand the principles of Christian living
3. Obey God’s laws and commands
4. Represent God to the world
5. Serve other people
6. Reproduce themselves in Christ, become more like Christ.
7. Worship God with sincerity, intensity, and consistency.
In order to make disciples, we must first, be disciples.
The commission of the church is to make disciples.
As we think of the church and our commission, we look at the functions a church and its members must be involved in order to fulfill our commission.
I believe there are 7 primary functions a church and its members must be involved in.
II. THE FUNCTIONS OF A CHURCH
1. Worship – The first function of the church and of Jesus’ disciples is worship.
> Matthew 4:10 …Worship the Lord your God, and serve only Him.
My friends, worship should be a priority in this church and in the life of every believer, in the life of every disciple of Jesus Christ.
We are to worship daily, regularly, faithfully, and with all of our heart.
> Psalm 68:19 Blessed be the Lord, who daily bears us up; God is our salvation.
> John 4:24 God is spirit, and His worshippers must worship Him in spirit and in truth.
Let me ask, when we come for “worship services” on Sunday morning, are we worshipping Him in our spirit or are we just going through the motions?
Have we prepared our hearts?
Have we gotten the rest we need so we won’t be irritated and distracted by the people encounter before the service begins?
Have we asked God to let Him be pleased with us and our worship during the service?
When we leave, do we pray God will be pleased with our sacrifice of worship?
Or of much greater concern, whether we were pleased with us and our worship.
2. Giving – The second function of the church and of Jesus’ disciples is giving.
> 1 Corinthians 16:2 On the first day of the week, each one of you should set aside a sum of money in keeping with his income.
The Bible teaches we should tithe, give a 10th of our income to God, and that’s before our offerings even kick in.
In a recent survey of “born-again believers” it was discovered that only 8% of them tithe, and twice as many 16% give nothing.
> Malachi 3:8 Will a man rob God? Yet you rob Me. But you ask, “How do we rob You?” In tithes and offerings.
3. Evangelism
> Romans 10:14 How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard?
God sent His Son, Jesus Christ, into the world so that people could be saved.
And the only way people are going to be able to hear that news is if you and I are diligently working, sharing the Good News of Jesus Christ.
Recall Matthew 28:18. Jesus says, Go into all the world and make disciples. My friend, you and I must be going in order to share.
True or False?
Less than 1 out of every 10 Born Again Believers have ever intentionally built a friendship with a non-Christian in order to share their faith.
We must be diligent in the assignment Jesus gave us.
4. Fellowship
The church and Christ’s disciples are to fellowship.
Christians need to belong to a family.
Christians need the fellowship of other believers.
> Acts 2:42 They devoted themselves … to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread.
> Hebrews 10:25 Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing.
> Galatians 6:2 Carry each other’s burdens.
We are to fellowship together.
We are to spend time together, getting to know one another, encouraging one another, and helping one another.
It breaks my heart when the church holds fellowships are scantily attended.
I understand things come up.
I understand we have other commitments, but church families must spend time together in order to remain a family.
I hear folks talk about how little they know about other people in the church, or about how few people speak to them.
Listen, if you want a friend, be a friend.
If you desire people to shake your hand, you shake their hand.
If you want people to know and care about you, then get to know those other people and care about them.
The church and Jesus’ disciples fellowship.
5. Teaching
– Matthew 28:18-20 The Great Commission
Part of making and being a disciple is teaching and learning.
> Acts 2:42 They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching.
My friends, we need to continue to learn, to continue to study.
God’s Word is shallow enough the newest Christian can wade in it without harm, but deep enough the most mature Christian can never reach its depths.
Moving quickly, 6th, God’s church and His disciples are involved in prayer.
6. Prayer
> Matthew 21:13 My house will be called a house of prayer.
Jesus, quoting the Old Testament, said God’s house would be known as a house of prayer.
When we work, we accomplish what we are able to do with our strength; but when we pray, we can accomplish what can be done through God’s strength.
The Bible records Jesus often went off by Himself to pray.
The Church God uses will unerringly recognize it’s dependence on Him and will make prayer a major part of its work and ministry.
7. Ministry
>John 13:35 By this may all men know that you are My disciples, if you have love, one for another.
We are to fulfill the commission God has given us as a church.
We must be involved in ministries and missions of sacrifice and service if we are going to consider ourselves true disciples of Jesus Christ.
*** Take a minute. Look over this list.
Which would we say are the areas our churches are strongest in, weakest in?
What are we going to do about it?
So, we think about what that means for our lives today.
Jesus is still building his church.
How is he doing it?
He’s doing it through you and me proclaiming Jesus as the son of the living God.
The church grows today through you and me making this good news known where we live and wherever God leads us in the world.
So realize the parts, roles, God has given us to play in the building of his church.
Proclaim this promise “God is Alive!” as the people of God proclaim the Gospel of Christ, declare everywhere Jesus builds his church and nothing can stop it.
In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen
Praying …
Unless the Lord Builds the House
A Song of Ascents. Of Solomon.
127 Unless the Lord builds the house,
those who build it labor in vain.
Unless the Lord watches over the city,
the watchman stays awake in vain.
2 It is in vain that you rise up early
and go late to rest,
eating the bread of anxious toil;
for he gives to his beloved sleep.
3 Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord,
the fruit of the womb a reward.
4 Like arrows in the hand of a warrior
are the children[a] of one’s youth.
5 Blessed is the man
who fills his quiver with them!
He shall not be put to shame
when he speaks with his enemies in the gate.[b]
Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.
Loving God, Living God, Loving Hope, Living Hope, Loving Living Life His Way! "Many things are possible for the person who has hope. Even more is possible for the person who has faith. And still more is possible for the person who knows how to love. But everything is possible for the person who practices all three virtues." - Brother Lawrence (1605-1691), Practicing the Presence of God (1692). 