Today’s Podcast
Today’s Bible reading plan:
Read it in a year – Job 29-30
see the whole year’s plan [here](http://www.bible-reading.com/bible-plan.pdf)
Today’s Devotional
Matthew 16:17-19
Jesus: Simon, son of Jonah, your knowledge is a mark of blessing. For you didn’t learn this truth from your friends or from teachers or from sages you’ve met on the way. You learned it from My Father in heaven. This is why I have called you Peter (rock): for on this rock I will build My church. The church will reign triumphant even at the gates of hell. Peter, I give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven. Whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.
What do Jesus’ words mean for us today?
Have you thought much about Jesus’ words to Peter? I have. From the very first sentence, Jesus gives Peter and us a tremendous blessing and responsibility. First, He says if we really know Him, we are blessed. And if we really know Him, it is because we learned about Him from our heavenly Father, the Creator of all things. We come to know Him because of God’s Spirit teaching us from the inside out.
We can know about Him from sages and teachers we’ve met on the way, but to really know the truth about Jesus, we must get that from God’s Spirit living in us. That comes from faith and letting Him rule our lives. We have that intimate knowledge the Bible talks about by letting His Spirit in us control our lives. We must focus on His Spirit in us rather than the desires of the flesh, Paul would say. Then we, like Peter, can declare, “You are the Son of the living God.”
Second, Simon is called Peter or rock because of what he knows. And Jesus says on this rock, some will say on Peter, most will say (and I agree with them) on the knowledge Peter holds, He will build His church. On the truth we can hold within us by the knowledge we can gain only from the Father, Jesus will build His church. His church will grow. He will build it. The solid foundation of His church will be the truth that Jesus IS the Son of the living God. If we ever falter on our belief in this single truth, the very foundation of the church begins to crumble. This statement, this fact, this knowledge of Jesus from the Creator forms the bedrock of the church.
Third, the church will march on. Satan can try to defend against it, but he cannot prevail. Satan has tried his best to turn this verse around in our thought process and put us on the defense saying that hell cannot break down the church. But read the verse carefully. The church reigns triumphant even at the gates of hell. That sounds to me like heaven marches to hell’s gates, not the opposite. Jesus burst through hell’s formidable doors, they couldn’t hold Him. His church can march triumphant on the offensive against evil in this world. We do not need to defend ourselves against evil. Evil must defend itself against righteousness, but Jesus says, evil will lose.
Finally, Jesus tells Peter and the church, he holds the keys to heaven in his hands. Whatever he binds on earth will be bound in heaven and whatever he looses on earth will be loosed in heaven. Does that mean we have the power to damn people to eternal punishment? In some sense, and I’ll explain. Does that mean we have the power to forgive sins? In some sense, and I’ll explain.
I must make clear we are not God and do not have the capacity or the perfect judgment ability to forgive sins for eternal judgment for the day of reckoning all of us will face. But consider this from Ezekiel 3:18, God says to Ezekiel “If I send this message to a wicked person – ”You will die“ – but then you fail to warn him or help him to reconsider his wickedness so that he may not die, then he will die as a result of his evil deeds. It will be your fault for not warning him. His blood will be on your hands. But if you do forewarn a wicked person and give him My message, and yet he does not change his wicked thoughts and actions, then he will die as a result of his evil deeds. But you will have saved your own life by doing what I directed.”
God’s message to Ezekiel fits Jesus’ message to Peter and to those disciples who come after him in the church. We hold the keys to heaven in our hands. We know how to get there. We know Jesus and know that He is the way to heaven. We know because His Spirit testifies with our spirit that this message is truth. Like God’s message to Ezekiel, if we fail to share that message and shut the door on people by failing to share the message with them, we potentially close an opportunity to find the path we have found to heaven. We ‘bind’ the keys and so ‘bind’ them in our efforts. When we let loose the keys, the message, the good news that Jesus is Lord, the truth, the way, the Light, and Life and others find Him through that message. We loose on the earth and into heaven the opportunity for others to find and believe in Him. We become keys, instruments, tools, to open the door of opportunity to find salvation. We can’t save, but we can be instruments to introduce people to the One who can.
So what is Jesus’ message to Peter and to us, His disciples following after Him? You are blessed if you know Him. Knowledge of the truth of His Sonship to the Father comes from the Father Himself and this knowledge is the bedrock, the foundation of the church. Because of that solid foundation, we, the church can march against evil knowing it cannot defeat us. God has already won the war. It’s just a matter of time until Satan figures it out. In fact, it is our responsibility to share the message of this great truth because we will be held accountable for the use of those keys to heaven we hold in our hands.
The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved. In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.