Day #293

Sermon - Audio
Matt 16, Mark 8, Luke 9:18-27 - Reading
Matt 16, Mark 8, Luke 9:18-27 - Audio

Daily Insights - Please Comment

Matt 16

Stories of Jesus with his disciples [ chapter 16 ]. The block of brief narratives continues in this unit. After a conflict story involving the religious leaders (vv. 1–4), the stories that Matthew chose to include involve Jesus’ interactions with his disciples, as follows: Jesus’ warning to avoid the false teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees (vv. 5–12); Peter’s great confession of Jesus as the Christ (vv. 13–20); Jesus’ preparing of his disciples for his suffering, death, and resurrection (vv. 21–23); Jesus’ discourse about the need to deny oneself as a prerequisite for following him, combined with further statements about his coming death (vv. 24–28). Peter’s confession and Jesus’ follow-up words are a climactic point in Matthew’s Gospel. Peter’s confession concludes the case Matthew has made that Jesus is the Christ. With his identity thus clarified, Jesus turns at once to his work, and the story now moves inexorably to the cross. -ESVLit-

Notes on Intro:

*The Pharisees and Sadducees were pretty much enemies (Opposting political views, Theology, etc), but they join together in their confusion and for many their dislike of Jesus.

*The weather can be predicted when you see things happening around it, but the Pharisees and Sadducees can't see the signs of Jesus, the Messiah.

*Many people saw signs and didn't believe. It is the kingdom of Man that seeks after these signs.

*Similarities between Jonah/Jesus:
1. sacrificed himself for others to be saved (in Jonah's case unwillingly)
2. Gone for 3 days and was sustained only to come out again.
3. preaching of repentance and reconciliation

Notes on False Teaching:

*Leaven - As noted previously in the parable of the leaven (Matthew 13:33), leaven is consistently used as a picture of sin and corruption (especially in the Passover narrative of Exodus 12:8, 12:15-20).

*"To the Jewish mind leaven was always symbolic of evil. . . . leaven stood for an evil influence liable to spread through life and to corrupt it.” - Barclay-

*The disciples are way off here and confused, so Jesus clears things up. It is the doctrine/teachings/interpretation of the other leaders that the disciples need to look out for.

*Jesus tells his disciples:

1. Don't be ignorant to the teachings of the Pharisees/Sadducees
2. Trust that I will supply for your needs. I have in the past and will in the future.
3. Stop, and remember what I, and your Father, have done for you.

Notes on "Who am I?" :

*Like any good Rabbi Jesus is asking an intriguing question that he wants a response to, so he can use it as an opportunity to teach. It's interesting that he teaches this lesson in Caesarea Philippi where there was a great temple built to Caesar, the god.

*Some thought Jesus was a herald of national repentance, like John the Baptist and some thought Jesus was a famous worker of miracles, like Elijah. Some thought Jesus was someone who spoke the words of God, like Jeremiah and the prophets. These are all kind views of Jesus, but they were all way off.

*Peter acts once again as spokesman for the Twelve. Christ means “Messiah” or “Anointed One." Son of the living God. Jesus is the Son of the God who is alive, unlike the pagan gods of Caesarea Philippi.

*We can surmise that this was an understanding that Peter and the other disciples came to over time. In the beginning, they were attracted to Jesus as a remarkable and unusual rabbi. They committed themselves to Him as His disciples or students, as was practiced in that day. Yet over time Peter – and presumably other of the disciples by this point – understood that Jesus was in fact not only the Messiah (the Christ), but also the Son of the living God.

*Thoughts on "Ont this rock I will build my church." This verse comes with lots of controversy. There isn't time to get into all that surrounds this, but here are some thoughts:

1. Peter, by His own testimony, did not see himself as the rock on which the church was founded. He wrote that we are living stones, but Jesus is the cornerstone. We could say that Peter was the “first believer”; that he was the “first rock” among “many rocks.” See 1 Peter 2:4-5 as well.

2. First use of the word "Church" - the word is ekklesia, meaning "a called out group"

3. MY church...clearly it is Jesus'.

4. Gates were a place of prominence/influence within a city. The influence of this "called out group" will prevail against that of Hades.

*Thoughts on "I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven."

1. This is where the idea of Peter standing at the pearly gates comes from...highly doubtful that this is going to be the case.

2. Catholics view this as Peter becoming the first pope.

3. More Likely = Peter is given the authority to admit entrance into the kingdom through preaching the gospel, an authority that is subsequently granted to all who are called to proclaim the gospel.

*Thoughts on "bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven."

1. This verse has been misinterpreted plenty of times: The power for binding and loosing is something that the Jewish rabbis of that day used. They bound or loosed an individual in the application of a particular point of the law. Jesus promises that Peter - and the other apostles - would be able to set the boundaries authoritatively for the New Covenant community. This was the authority given to the apostles and prophets to build a foundation (Ephesians 2:20).

“Binding” and “loosing” were administrative terms in daily Jewish life; whenever a Jew came up against the Law of Moses, that Jewish person was either “bound” or “loosed” in regard to that law. To loose was to permit; to bind was to prohibit. To loose was to free from the law, to bind was to put under the law. “Their regular sense, which any Jew would recognize was to allow and to forbid. To bind something was to declare it forbidden; to loose was to declare it allowed. These were the regular phrases for taking decisions in regard to the law.” -Barclay-

Peter/Jesus Interaction:

*Disciples are confirmed in the fact that Jesus is the Messiah, and now He tells them that I need to suffer and die...confusing huh? However, we see that it was important that His disciples understand who He was, before Jesus begins this journey.

*Peter, Peter, Peter - You did so well a minute ago, but we need to realize that what we think is best, is not what God always/usually has in mind. Peter believed that he was speaking for God, but obviously he forgot who he was speaking to.

*Luke places this next part right after this interaction with Peter. Peter is basically trying to keep Jesus from harm, and Jesus begins telling His disciples the cost of the path they have chosen.

Notes on the Cost of Discipleship:

*Deny Himself - This is a daily choice that is made. Are we living today for the kingdom of man, or the Kingdom of God. There is no middle ground.

*Take up his cross - We are all headed to a certain death. This life will be hard, but our hope is in the resurrection. We must be willing to carry these hardships.

*We don't take hold of true life, until we first recognize the grace offered to us through Jesus Christ. If we are concerned with ourselves, we will surely lose our life.

*One of Jesus' most famous words: "For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and forfeits his own soul?"

*"Reward each according to his works" - What, Works?! Yup, remember that Faith without Works is dead. Jesus assumes that His followers will do good works all across the world. God will be praised and people will enter this Kingdom living when they see these good works happen.

* Ending = This predicted event has been variously interpreted as referring to: (1) Jesus’ transfiguration (17:1–8); (2) his resurrection; (3) the coming of the Spirit at Pentecost; (4) the spread of the kingdom through the preaching of the early church; (5) the destruction of the temple and Jerusalem in A.D. 70; or (6) the second coming and final establishment of the kingdom. The immediate context seems to indicate the first view, the transfiguration, which immediately follows (see also Mark 9:2–10; Luke 9:28–36). There, “some” of Jesus’ disciples “saw” what Jesus will be like when he comes in the power of his kingdom. This interpretation is also supported by 2 Pet. 1:16–18, where Peter equates Jesus’ “glory” with his transfiguration, of which Peter was an eyewitness. At the same time, interpretations (2), (3), and (4) are also quite possible, for they are all instances where Jesus “came” in the powerful advance of his kingdom, which was partially but not yet fully realized. Some interpreters think that Jesus is more generally speaking of many or all of the events in views (2) through (4). View (5) is less persuasive because the judgment on Jerusalem does not reflect the positive growth of the kingdom. View (6) is unacceptable, for it would imply that Jesus was mistaken about the timing of his return. -ESVSB-

Mark 8

Notes on feeding of the 4,000:

*Jesus has compassion on the crowds. It is not just spiritual that Jesus is concerned with. We see time and time again that Jesus is concerned with people's physical well-being as well.

*The number 7 again, just can't get away from it! God provided in abundance.

Notes on leaven/Pharisees - see Matt 16 notes above.

Notes on blind man in Bethsaida:

*This is a sort of progressive healing from Jesus. He does his miracles by various forms and uses, in part that we don't put his miracles into a system. It is Jesus' power doing this.

Notes on Peter/Jesus - See Matt 16 notes above:

Notes on Cost of Discipleship - See Matt 16 notes above:

Luke 9:18-27

*See notes from Matt 16