What Is The Christ?

Trinity XIII --- August 21, 2005

Matthew 16:13-20

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.

Some of you probably noticed the sermon title in the bulletin, and hopefully you’re curious about it. The title is, “What is the Christ?” What is the Christ? Seems a strange things to be asking. How can we ask, “what”, when we know Jesus is a “who”? In fact, considering Jesus’ questions in our text, asking who rather than what seem more appropriate.

If we look at our text, that’s what Jesus asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” They answered this query and then Jesus continued. “But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?”

We already know the answer to the question, “Who is the Son of Man?” We know it is Jesus Christ. But not everybody understood who Jesus was. In fact, many in that day failed to understand what God’s Messiah, or His ‘Christ’, was to be.

In the beginning of Matthew’s 16th Chapter, the Pharisees and Sadducees came to test Jesus, asking for a sign from heaven. Jesus’ response, in part, is “A wicked and adulterous generation looks for a miraculous sign, but none will be given it except the sign of Jonah.” (Mt. 16:4) Jesus would give the sign of Jonah in His death, burial, and resurrection - coming forth from the belly of the grave - on the third day.

That, dear friends, is the sign that Jesus is the Christ. What is the Christ? Peter, for one, while answering correctly that Jesus is the Christ, knew who Jesus, the Son of Man was. But, did he understand what it meant that Jesus is the Christ?

After leaving the Pharisees and Sadducees, the disciples, including Peter, were discussing what Jesus meant by his words, “Watch and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees.” They were discussing bread. And Jesus had to point out the fact that he had fed 5,000 and then 4,000, and asks, “Do you not yet perceive? How is it that you fail to understand that I did not speak about bread?” (16:9-11) Then they understood that he was not telling them to beware of the leaven of bread, but of the teachings of the Pharisees and the Sadducees.(16:12)

It is after recording these events, that Matthew records the events of our text. After they had come into the district of Caesarea Philippi, and knowing what had taken place before, He asks them who the Son of Man is. Here Peter makes his confession, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

It is to these words that Jesus responds, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven.”

What is the Christ, that this proclamation by Peter of who Jesus is, evokes such a response from Jesus? If indeed Peter has it correct, then why does Jesus respond as He does so that at the end of our text “He warned His disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Christ.”?

Could it be that it is because they do not understand. Could it be that they couldn’t answer this question, “what is the Christ?”

God’s Christ came for a specific purpose, and when Jesus explained that purpose - that He would suffer many things, be killed, and on the third day rise. And the purpose for His Passion is given to us in our text. He came to purchase and to build His church. Christ Himself is the very foundation upon which the church is built. Jesus proclaimed that day, after telling Peter how blessed he was by the Father, “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. 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.”

Jesus informs them that Peter’s answer is correct and concludes that upon this confession, that Jesus is the Christ, “I will build my church.” I will build it on what it needs to be built upon. It is about the promise given first in the garden and passed on for generations, that the Christ will crush the head of Satan - He will defeat sin, death, and Satan - opening the gates of heaven to those who believe. He was going to build His church by using men like Peter to proclaim the forgiveness of sins which only the Christ could purchase with His life, suffering and death. Christ’s church is nothing more than the place where Christ is dispensed, where the gates of heaven are loosed or bound. Christ’s church exists to dispense the very benefits of forgiveness which The Christ purchased.

The Pharisees and Sadducees had their ideas of what they wanted God’s Christ to be. They had their own ideas of church. As we know from other places, they wanted Jesus to tell us how good they were. They also wanted someone to tell them how to be even better. It was their idea that they had to do their part to inherit eternal life. What is more, is they were looking for a good show; they wanted miraculous signs. In other words, they had their own ideas of what God’s Christ should be. Jesus didn’t fit their ideas.

The people had their ideas too. They wanted to return to the glory days of Israel, a Christ to remove them under the boot of the Romans. They wanted someone to feed them, make them happy, make life good. In other words, they wanted a Christ according to their image.

Just as the Pharisees, Sadducees, and the people didn’t get it, neither did the disciples. They didn’t want Jesus to suffer, die, and be raised three days later. By the Spirit’s guidance, Peter got the question right, but they didn’t fully understand the implications. That’s why Jesus didn’t want them to talk about it.

You are like the Pharisees, Sadducees, the people of Jesus’ day; yes, even like the disciples. You have your ideas of what you want Christ to be. You want to do what you can for God, and you want God’s ministers to pat you on the back for doing it so well. You want more information about what you can do so that you inherit eternal life.

If you are honest, you want something more than what is here. Something more than what Christ delivers in His means of Grace. You’d like a great show. You’d like to be told what to do instead of how bad you are and how Jesus needed to do it for you. You’d like to be told how to do it, and then expect you to succeed. Many churches do just that, give pep talks, but they never deliver Christ.

You know, I sat in on many pep talks to teams in high school. As there were only 17 in my graduating class, we didn't always field the most talented teams. We were psyched up when we went out - but we didn’t win very often. You see, the greatest pep talks in the world still cannot transform losers into winners. No matter how good a motivational speaker I am, you cannot transform yourselves from sinners into perfectly righteous and holy people.

That is exactly what the Christ is - the one who came to take upon himself our sin. To die upon the cross in our stead. To purchase for us the forgiveness of sins. Let’s face it, none of you here likes the scandal of the cross. I don’t like to hear that I am unable to do what needs to be done, and that I am in desperate need forgiveness. Even good Christians can think, “Who does the pastor think He is, talking about forgiveness all the time? Who gives him the right to tell us we’re forgiven?”

But it is right there in the text. Christ gave that authority to the church that bears His name. Jesus says, “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.” The authority to forgive sins is called the office of the keys, for Christ gives authority to open or close heaven. That is why the Christ came and that is the sole purpose for His establishing of His church - that sinners might be forgiven and heaven granted to them.

That is why Christ proclaimed that He came not to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many. The ransom took place upon the cross. Now, Christ’s church is where that forgiveness is dispensed and the gates of heaven are opened.

As God declared in our Old Testament lesson, “I will take you as my own people, and I will be your God.” So did He fulfill it in the Christ, for in the Christ you are made God’s people.

What is the Christ? The Christ is your means of gaining heaven. Christ paid your entrance price with His own precious blood. Christ gave you your garment of salvation, clothed you with His righteousness, when you were baptized into His death and resurrection. Christ is the Word of forgiveness spoken into your ear which cleanses you of sins and continues to make you holy. Christ is the meal which placed before you today, which feeds and nourishes you with heavenly food and strengthens your faith that you might boldly proclaim that Jesus is the Christ.

Proclaim what is the Christ loudly. Christ is the forgiveness of my sins and my salvation. Christ is my confidence of eternity in heaven. Let us so confess, now and forever more - Jesus is the Christ. Amen.

The peace of God which passes all understanding keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.

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