"You Are the Christ"

Anyone who reads the New Testament will notice: Peter repeatedly didn’t get it. He briefly walked on water, but then lost faith and sank like a brick. (Matthew 14:28-33) At the transfiguration of Jesus, he offered to build three tents, one each for Moses, Elijah, and Jesus. He thought Jesus was merely another lawgiver or prophet, and so God had to make things clear: “This is my Son, the Beloved; with him I am well-pleased; listen to Him.” (Matthew 17:5) And perhaps the peak of Peter’s embarrassing acts was his triple denial of Jesus before the cock crowed once. (Matthew 26:69-75)

There was a moment, however, at which Peter seemed to get it right. When Jesus asked the disciples, “Who do you say that I am?”, Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” (Matthew 16:15-16) Upon this confession, Jesus blessed Peter and called him the rock on which He would build His church. Given Peter’s track record of errors, his answer to Jesus’ question is surprising. Alas, Peter understood.

Or so it seemed. Two things need to be pointed out regarding Peter’s confession that Jesus is “the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

1.  Peter’s confession was not a self-willed achievement. It was not something he saw in Jesus, like some “spark” of divinity, that led him to his answer. Nor did Peter reach his conclusion by reading a bunch of books about Jesus or by carefully evaluating Jesus’ teaching and ministry. Nope. What Peter saw was a rather plain-looking Palestinian Jew who used to work as a carpenter. This makes his confession even more remarkable. How did he come to his answer?

Jesus explained it thusly: “Flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father in heaven.” (Matthew 16:17) This explanation still stands today. When Christians rightly ascribe titles to Jesus such as Lord, Savior, King, Messiah, etc., we “see” that this is true only because the Father reveals it to us. We “see” Jesus’ identity only through faith in the Father’s revelation, only through trusting Jesus Himself who is revealed in the breaking of bread. (See Luke 24:28-35.)

2.  Peter’s confession was followed by a clear demonstration that he didn’t quite know what he was saying. When Jesus began to tell the disciples of His impending sufferings and death, Peter rebuked Him. He had called Jesus the Christ, and now it was time for Jesus to start acting the part.

Peter’s rebuke of Jesus demonstrates the peril of titles for Jesus. It is fully possible to rightly confess who Jesus is, but then to “fit” Him into our preconceived notions of what such a title entails. For liberals, this often means that the “Christ” favors inclusiveness, progressive policies, and Barack Obama. For conservatives, the “Christ” supports family values, the American way of life, and George W. Bush. Either way, we simply ignore the biblical Jesus who disrupts our preconceived notions.

What is Jesus’ response to all of this? “Get behind me, Satan! For you are a stumbling block to me; for you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things.” To set our minds on divine things is to deny ourselves and to deny our preconceived notions of who Jesus should be. It is to take up our cross, to follow Jesus in faith, and to bear one another’s burdens in love. (See Matthew 16:24 and Galatians 6:2.) This has little appeal to “flesh and blood.” Peter didn’t want a Christ who suffered shamefully, and neither do we. There is, however, a promise to those who follow the real Christ: “Those who lose their life for My sake will find it.” (Matthew 16:25)

Ultimately, knowing Jesus and rightly confessing His identity depends entirely on God’s revelation grasped through faith. (It is not an achievement of our wills or intellect.) And such faith entails discipleship to the real Jesus, not to some Jesus we've imagined and who looks awfully similar to our own likings. In other words, such faith entails discipleship to the Jesus who commands that we love one another and who promises that we will thereby find true life.

Jesus is indeed the Christ, the Son of the living God. However, such a confession is fruitless apart from faith in God's revelation and apart from following Jesus. Peter learned that the hard way. ("Get behind me, Satan!" Ouch.) Nevertheless, to those who trust and follow Jesus, such a confession is the fruitful and joyful consequence of a life lived in Him.