Sunday, March 9, 2025 AM
WHO AM I: Foundation of the Church
Mike Teel, Pastor
FOCAL PASSAGE:
13 When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” 14 They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” 15 “But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?” 16 Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” 17 Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven. 18 And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it. 19 I will give you the keys of 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.” 20 Then he ordered his disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Messiah. —Matthew 16:13-20
13 When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” —Matthew 13:13
—Recall Jesus and disciples had retreated to the region of Caesarea Philippi.
—Jesus’ public ministry is winding down and He wanted to spend some personal time with the disciples to make sure they had a good handle on who He was and why He came.
—The people of this region were mainly non-Jewish.
—Locals worshiped in temples dedicated to the demonic gods of the Syrians and Greeks.
—Here among the false gods, Jesus tested His disciples to see if they realize that He is the true Son of God.
—Perhaps Jesus also picked this scene, knowing full well that His church would include people from all over the world.
—In our focal passages, as Jesus was discovering who the disciples knew Him to be, He also states what He is going to do in establishing the church.
: JESUS IS THE MESSIAH
13 When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” 14 They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” 15 “But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?” 16 Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” —Matthew 16:13-16
—It was an amazing claim, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
—All these years of looking for the coming of the Messiah.
—Even today, many do not believe He was the Messiah. They accept Him as a great moral teacher but cannot accept the claim He is God in the flesh.
—Just as Peter answered Jesus, each of us at some point will give an account of who we believe Jesus to be, and it will have eternal consequences.
—Do you believe the truth about Jesus Christ?
—Do you believe that He died on the cross?
—Do you believe that He rose again from the dead?
—Do you believe enough to receive Jesus as your personal Lord and Savior?
—Whether you spend eternity in heaven or in hell hinges on this one thing.
TRUTH
FROM THE FATHER
17 Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven. —Matthew 16:17
1. GOD
—God the Father has given us the revelation about His Son, Jesus Christ.
—Just as He did with Peter! Did He speak to him out loud? It is certainly possible.
—True, there were occasions when God spoke out loud about who Jesus was.
—Maybe the Father spoke to Peter, privately, but most of the time God reveals the truth to us through His Holy Spirit.
—James Merritt explained that “this was not a matter of human reasoning; it was a matter of heavenly revelation.
—You don’t come to Jesus by figuring it out. You come to Jesus by faith.
—But only God can reveal truth.
—The truth about Jesus Christ comes from God Himself.
44 “No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day.” —John 6:44
—You are saved through your heart.
8 But what does it say? “The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart,” that is, the message concerning faith that we proclaim: 9 If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved. 11 As Scripture says, “Anyone who believes in him will never be put to shame.” 12 For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile—the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, 13 for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” —Romans 10:8-13
2. GOD
—All true Christians are part of God’s church because of our God-given FAITH.
—This is the first occurrence of this word in the New Testament.
—The Greek word for church is the word ekklesia from which we get our English word ecclesiastical and literally means “a called-out assembly of baptized believers”.
—I feel it is very important to be attached to a local assembly you can attend on a regular basis and it can provide you the spiritual protection you need.
—Spiritual protection is important in this day, we see the Spiritual Warfare all around us.
—Some of you today are unprotected.
—Are we perfect? No! Our church is made up of humans who continue to sin and experience the grace and mercy of our heavenly Father upon whose Son the church is founded.
LIVE IT OUT
Have you placed your faith in Jesus Christ as the Son of the living God?
Have you shared this with a church so they could affirm your profession?
Have you united with this local New Testament Church by either Baptism or transfer of membership from another Baptist fellowship?
What prevents you from doing this today?