Matthew 16:6

Matthew 16:6

In many ways Matthew chapter 16 is a chapter about the church. Jesus was the first to mention the church. He only mentions the church twice, and both times are here in the book of Matthew. The first time that the church is mentioned in the Bible is right here in Matthew chapter 16. In this chapter Jesus makes it very clear that the foundation of the church is the fact that Jesus is the Christ. Jesus also makes a serious warning about what the believers are to avoid, if the church is to keep from sinking into corruption and degeneration. The word “church” in Greek means “those that are called out.” And so the word “church” does not refer to a building, but to the people who are true believers. A church building is simply a practical necessity for believers to have a place to meet together to hear the Word of God from a teacher, to pray together, to love one another, to sing, and to have Christian fellowship. Once you believe on Jesus, you automatically become a member of His “church.”

Jesus had been talking with the Pharisees and the Sadducees. They came to Jesus in order to tempt Him, and they asked Jesus for a sign. Jesus told them that a wicked and adulterous generation seeks after a sign and no sign would be given to it. Jesus probably said this because without faith it is impossible to please God. True faith is not based upon a sign that is seen. True faith is based upon believing the promises of God. Jesus told Thomas in John 20:29, “blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed.”

Jesus wanted to warn the disciples to not become like the Pharisees and the Sadducees. The Bible says in Matthew 16:6-12, "Then said Jesus unto them, Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees. And they reasoned among themselves, saying, It is because we have taken no bread. Which when Jesus perceived, he said unto them, O ye of little faith, why reason ye among yourselves, because you have brought no bread? Do you not yet understand, neither remember the five loaves of the five thousand, and how many baskets you took up? Neither the seven loaves of the four thousand, and how many baskets you took up? How is it that you do not understand that I spoke it not to you concerning bread, that you should beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees. Then understood they how that he bade them not beware of the leaven of bread, but of the doctrine of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees."

Jesus lumped the Pharisees and the Sadducees together. In a way the Pharisees were the conservatives of their day, and the Sadducees were the liberals, the ones who did not even believe in the resurrection. But Jesus viewed these conservatives and liberals equally. The Pharisees and the Sadducees were the same in several areas:

1. They were equally hypocrites. A hypocrite is someone who claims to be one thing, but in reality is something else. A hypocrite is a phony. Jesus warned the disciples to beware of the leaven of the Pharisees. Be careful of pretending to be something that you are not. Make sure that your efforts are in changing your inner man and that you are not motivated by the desire to please people. One of the main characteristics of false religion is that it is all pretence. It is done to be seen of men. Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount that you should never give offerings in order to be seen of men, and that you should never pray in order to be seen of men. Jesus said that any giving that you do should be so discreet that even your right hand should not know what your left hand does. Jesus also said that you can make sure that you do not pray in order to be seen of men by going into your closet and praying in secret.

2. In addition to being hypocrites, another thing that was common between the Pharisees and the Sadducees was that they lacked faith. That is why they asked for a sign. Faith believes when there is nothing to see, because faith is in tune with the Holy Spirit. God’s Spirit is everywhere, and he that is spiritual is able to be in touch with God without the assistance of things that are outward and material. Jesus said that God is a Spirit and those that worship God must do so in spirit and in truth. Any true service to God must be based upon faith. False religion always has an absence of true faith, and is instead based upon human effort. That is why false religion has a lot of ceremony and ritual. Because there is no faith or true spirituality, false religion relies upon the material and the external, the ritual and the ceremony. When Jesus warned the disciples to beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the Sadducees, Jesus also chastised the disciples for their own lack of faith. He said to them, "O, ye of little faith."

After the Lord Jesus saves us, one of the important things that God is trying to do in our lives is to increase our faith. If you are a believer, one of your most precious possessions is your faith, and God wants you to learn to live by faith and not by sight. Faith in Jesus results in the salvation of your soul. Faith in God’s promises results in having victory over the world and any obstacle or suffering that life may bring your way. The Pharisees and the Sadducees had no faith, and Jesus told His disciples to beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the Sadducees. If you are not careful, you will interpret your circumstances and the things that happen to you the way that the lost people do: only looking at the human side of things. Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the Sadducees.

Jesus had called the Pharisees “blind leaders of the blind” perhaps because they failed to understand the most important of all issues: the question of who was Jesus of Nazareth. They did not correctly interpret the character of Jesus, they did not recognize the quality of His majestic and wonderful words, and they did not understand the source of the great power for the miracles that He performed.

Matthew 16:13-16 says, "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 you are John the Baptist: some, Elijah; and others, Jeremiah, or one of the prophets. He says 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."

The same question that was asked Peter is also put to you by the Spirit of God: "Who is Jesus?" Your answer to that question will put you either on the side of the Pharisees and Sadducees or on the side of the Apostle Peter. Your answer in your heart to the question of who is Jesus will decide your eternal destiny.

When Peter made the statement, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God", it was a very important statement to make. Verse 17 says, "And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed are you, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood has not revealed it unto you, but my Father which is in heaven." Salvation is knowing Jesus, and anyone who truly knows Jesus will confess Him. Sometimes there are secret Christians who remain silent out of fear of persecution, but they cannot always be quiet if they are true believers. The truth comes out. Public confession is the natural outcome of private belief. You believe with the heart, and then the lips speak that which the heart knows to be true. Romans chapter 10:9-10 says, "That if you shall confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus, and shall believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believes unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation."

An unbeliever cannot say what Peter said about Jesus, and mean it. It is a spiritual impossibility. First John 4:15 says, "Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God dwells in him, and he in God." God spoke from heaven and said, "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well-pleased." If you believe in Jesus, you have come into agreement with God. You are in tune with God and His great purpose for the world. If you believe in Jesus, you are no longer in darkness: you have been delivered from darkness into the glorious light of Christ.

Jesus said to Peter, "Flesh and blood has not revealed this unto you, but my Father which in heaven." We believe because God has offered us belief in Jesus; and when He offered, we reached out and received His offer. What God offers is faith in Jesus, the Son of God and the Savior of our souls. Faith is a gift from God. Faith in Jesus is offered to everyone, but faith in Jesus is only gained by those who respond to God and receive His free gift.

In Matthew 16:18 Jesus said, "And I say unto you, That you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it." This is the first time that Jesus used the word church. He used the word church only twice, so it is good to know exactly what Jesus taught about the church. Of course, the things that Jesus taught about church are the things that are the most important to know about it.

Jesus said that His church would be built upon the confession that Peter made when Peter said, "Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God." There is only one church and it is God’s church. There is only one requirement to become a member of God’s church and that is to make the same confession that Peter made. Everyone in the world who is a true believer in Jesus is a member of this church. You don’t have to give any money, and you don’t have to go through any rituals or ceremonies. If you believe in your heart and confess with your mouth, like Peter, that Jesus is the Christ the Son of the living God; then you are a member of the one and only true church.

Another thing that we know about a church, from what Jesus said here in Matthew, is that a church is not a building. The word "church" in the Greek New Testament means “those that are called out.” It does not refer to a building at all. It refers to a group of people. God calls people by His Spirit. When someone responds to God’s calling, they become believers in Jesus, they become forgiven of their sins, and they become members of God’s church. As a matter of fact, they are the church.

In today’s society there are sometimes many requirements to become a member of one of man’s churches, but there is only one requirement to becoming a member of God’s church: the true confession that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God. With man’s churches, the building is often called the church. For example, when you drive around town, you may see signs out in front of some buildings that say “Methodist Church” or “Presbyterian Church” or “Baptist Church.” But do not be deceived. The building is not the church. The signs would be more accurate if they said: “Meeting Place of the Methodist Church” or “Meeting Place of the Presbyterian Church,” etc. The building may be a meeting place for the church, but the building itself is not and cannot be the church because “ecclesia” means “those who have been called.” An inanimate and material object such as a building, of course, would never be called by God. Only people are called by Him.

Jesus revealed to us the beginning of the church and the foundation of the church in verse 18, and He also told us about the final destiny of the church. Jesus said, "...the gates of hell shall not prevail against it." Humans have created many organizations. Almost everyone is a member of at least a few human organizations. There are political parties, private clubs, and sporting organizations. There are unions, non-profit organizations, corporations, and governmental organizations. But all these man-made groups or organizations will come to an end when this life ends. The only organization that will last beyond this life and into eternity is the church that Jesus created: the group of people that are true believers in Him. Jesus is reminding us that we are on the winning side. There will be some tough battles ahead because “the gates of hell” will come against us when we try to serve God. However, be of good cheer because Jesus said that even though they will oppose us, they will not prevail. The called-out ones will prevail, because they go with God. And if God be for us, who can be against us? This teaching by Jesus inspired the writer of the hymn, "Onward, Christian Soldiers". The third verse of that hymn says:

“Crowns and thrones may perish, kingdoms rise and wane,

But the church of Jesus constant will remain;

Gates of hell can never ‘gainst the church prevail;

We have Christ’s own promise, and that cannot fail.”

Jesus declared to us the foundation of His church and how to become a member of it. Jesus encourages us and inspires us by revealing to us the final victorious outcome of His church, and in Matthew 16:19 Jesus reminds us that there is work to be done before we reach that final and victorious outcome. Jesus said, "And I will give unto you the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven."

The work of the believer centers around the truth that we have the keys to the kingdom of heaven. We know that belief in Jesus is what it takes to get to heaven. Faith begets faith. We believe, and therefore we publicly confess our belief in Jesus so that others might also believe and have the kingdom of heaven as their eternal destiny. In the Gospel of John, Jesus called himself the door, the bread of life, the living water, and the way, the truth, and the life. We have the keys to the kingdom of heaven because we know the truth about Jesus, and whoever believes our report and comes to know the same Jesus will also enter the kingdom of heaven.

Jesus has given tremendous authority to His believers. You can declare the gospel to someone and tell them that if they turn from their sins and turn to Jesus, they will be totally and completely forgiven by Jesus and will be free from the guilt of their sins. You can tell someone that if they do not repent, they will be bound by the guilt of their sins for all eternity. It is with authority from God Himself that you can say these things because you are one of God’s servants. Jesus said, “and whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven." This verse also speaks of the power of man’s will, and the freedom of choice that the Lord gives to us. Once we make a decision, He will support us in that decision. Just make sure that your decisions have to do with spreading the Gospel mand supporting the spread of the Gospel so that the church will grow with more members.

In Matthew 16:20 the Bible says, "Then charged he his disciples that they should tell no man that he was Jesus the Christ." As Jesus got closer to the time of his sacrificial death on the cross, there was a change in His ministry, at least from the standpoint of trying to prepare His disciples for what would happen to Him. Matthew 16:21 says, "From that time forth began Jesus to show unto His disciples, how that he must go unto Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised again the third day." This would be a very sad tragedy if it were just a human story. If this were only the story of a man named Jesus of Nazareth, it would be a story of sorrow and suffering. How terrible that the man named Jesus, who was so good and kind and noble, was unjustly arrested and condemned! How terrible that He would suffer many things of the elders, chief priests, and scribes, and then be killed!

But this is more than the history of a man from Nazareth. It is also the account of the Son of God, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world. And Jesus could only take away our sins by first dying for our sins. The Bible says that He "must go to Jerusalem." He "must" go because it was the will of God, and He was totally committed to the will of God. He "must" go because of His great love for people. While we were yet sinners, He died for us. He loved us before we loved Him. Jesus was determined to go and die in our place. He was determined to fulfill the will of the Father. He died so that we could live. He suffered for our sins so that we would not be required to suffer for our own sins. Jesus suffered the sorrow and pains of death, but death was not to be the end. Death would not hold Him, and so verse 21 says that Jesus would be killed, but then immediately it says that He would be raised from the dead. Jesus Christ is alive. Bow down before Him and receive Him as your Savior.

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