Matthew 16:13-20

¹³ When Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who are people saying that the Son of Man is?”

¹⁴ And they said, “Some are saying John the Baptist, others Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the other prophets.”

¹⁵ He asked them, “But who do you say that I am?”

¹⁶ Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

¹⁷ And Jesus replied to him, ” You are blessed, Simon Bar-Jonah! Because flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in the sky.

¹⁸ And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.

¹⁹ I will give you the keys of the kingdom from the sky, and whatever you lock on the land will be locked in the sky, and whatever you set free on the land will be set free in the sky.”

²⁰ Then he prohibited the disciples from telling anyone else that he was the Christ. _________________________________________

keys and gates

Jesus was the awaited Messiah of Israel, the Son of the living God. Peter declared this truth after God had revealed it to him. Jesus rewarded his courage to confess that reality by giving him the honor of witnessing the birth of the Christian church. He would be there when the gospel bore fruit in Jerusalem at Pentecost, in Samaria, and among the Gentiles (with Cornelius). He would serve as a foundation rock for the New Testament church.

Peter would also (along with the other disciples[1]) have the keys to the coming kingdom from the sky. They would be able to respond to other people’s faith in Christ by assuring them that it had won their freedom to be a part of that coming kingdom. Anyone who now refused to become part of the Christ’s church, built upon the rock, would remain locked — prohibited from that coming kingdom. It is a fatal thing to reject the gospel.

The “gates of Hades” is a metaphor for death. Jesus assures these disciples that as they dedicate their lives to proclaiming his kingdom coming from the sky, death will not prevail against them. They will each face death, but death will not overcome the whole church. Also, although each will die, all will be raised to life again at Christ’s second coming.

LORD, thank you for the tremendous privilege we have as your church. Help us to proclaim your gospel to those around us, winning as many as we can to your coming kingdom. Thank you also for the promise that the spread of your gospel truth cannot be stopped, even by our deaths.

[1] Matthew 18:18.