Jump Start # 63

Mt. 16:16 “Simon Peter answered, ‘You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

  This grand confession of Peter is the foundation of the New Testament. Two verses later, when Jesus said, “Upon this rock, I will build my church…” the rock is that Jesus is the Christ the son of the living God. Paul would tell the Ephesians that Christ is the chief corner stone upon which they were built (2:20). In Revelation, Jesus is the alpha and omega, the first and the last.

  Before Peter acknowledged who Jesus was, our Lord had asked the apostles, “Who do people say that the Son of man is?” Jesus wasn’t asking this for the sake of information, He already knew what they were saying. This was something He wanted the apostles to see and grasp.  Peter’s reply is varied and kind. He names three specific people (John the Baptist, Elijah, Jeremiah) and one large group (the prophets). Peter could have said some other things. Some claimed Jesus had a demon. His family thought He was crazy. He was called a glutton and the racial expression, “a Samaritan.” But Peter didn’t say those things. Maybe he thought he was protecting Jesus. Maybe he didn’t want Jesus to know what some really thought.

  There are some common links to the names Peter did tell Jesus. They were all men of God. They were all prophets. They all did incredible work. John, Elijah and Jeremiah were somewhat loners. But most striking of all, they were all gone. Elijah was taken to God in a fiery chariot, but John, Jeremiah and the rest of the prophets were all dead. No one accepted Jesus as He was. They all thought He was someone else.

  Then we have Peter’s wonderful confession that identifies the truth. YOU ARE…which is present tense. It is now. You are the Christ, which means the anointed one, the Messiah. You are the Son of the Living God, which speaks of position, and deity. How did Peter know? Who told him? When everyone else is guessing he was a dead prophet, how did Peter hit it right on? Jesus tells us. The next verse reads, “flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in Heaven.” Jesus didn’t have a halo above His head. He did not look “divine.” In a crowd you could not pick out which one was the Messiah. Flesh and blood did not reveal who He was. That is in contrast to the numerous paintings of Jesus. He always stands out. He always looks different. Flesh and blood reveals in the paintings, but not in the gospels. Peter knew because God had revealed it. He showed who Jesus was through the works that He did. It was Peter who later said, “Jesus the Nazarene, a man attested to you by God with miracles and wonders and signs which God performed through Him in your midst” (Acts 2:22). The miracles pointed to his deity. His actions demonstrated who He was.

  Which brings us to an interesting thought: How do people know we are Christians? Do we “dress the part?” Is “flesh and blood” revealing it, or rather, is it demonstrated by our actions? Faith works on a person. It causes a person to move and do and show and become. James said, “faith without works is dead.” We know who Jesus is because He proved it.

  Does the world know who you are? Does Jesus know who you are? Peter said about Jesus, “You are…” Now it’s our turn. What are we? There is a song we sing, “Live for Jesus…” That fits. That’s it. Live for Jesus.

 Roger

Jump Start # 61

Matthew 27:54 “Now the centurion, and those who were with him keeping guard over Jesus, when they saw the earthquake and the things that were happening, became very frightened and said, ‘Truly this was the son of God!’”

  Matthew’s account of the death of Jesus adds this statement and perspective from one of the Roman soldiers. This is just one of the tiny tidbits of information that adds further evidence and proof of the claims of Jesus Christ.

  A little bit of background observation will add even more to this passage. A “Centurion” is an officer in the Roman army. They are generally in charge of one hundred men. Many remember, that Cornelius in Acts 10, was also a centurion.

  The centurion in this passage was on the “execution squad,” not a job for the faint of heart. Rome had many forms of putting people to death, the cross was slow and painful. It was a form of torture. But more than that it was a statement to the world that you don’t mess with Rome. Those who tried to overthrow Rome were executed on the cross and often on the main roads so everyone could see. Putting Jews to death was a difficult job. There were so many Jews and they wanted independence from Rome. Soldiers flooded the area when Jews were put to death to keep riots from starting. The men dying the slow death on the cross often screamed for mercy and cursed Rome at the same time.  

  On this particular day, three Jews were being executed. Two of them criminals against Rome, and the third one, most unusual, Jesus Christ. The Roman officials trying Him could not find anything worthy of death, yet a riot was taking place and the crowds were demanding his execution. So Pilate appeased the crowds. It was one less Jew in his mind and it calmed people down.

  So, to the cross Jesus went. The execution squad nailed Him and watched over Him. This centurion had witnessed many deaths and many executions. This one was different. The sky became dark. An earthquake took place. Rocks were split. Graves opened up, and the dead were resurrected. You couldn’t imagine a better setting for a horror movie. These things just didn’t normally happen. Generally the sun shined, the birds sang and the executed simply died. Not this time.

  And the “criminal” being executed didn’t beg for mercy. He didn’t curse Rome. He prayed for their forgiveness. He died calm and in peace, even though His death was painful. His nature, His character was so different from every execution witnessed before. So shocking were these events that the centurion proclaimed, “Truly this was the son of God.” Interesting observation. The sign above Jesus’ head stated that He was the king of the Jews. The crowd had taunted Him to come off the cross, but no one had openly said He was the son of God. I believe that these were the whispers racing through the crowds. The Jews rejected Jesus on the basis of blasphemy. These soldiers would have heard this. They too must have thought at the beginning of the execution, He sure doesn’t look like the son of a god. He doesn’t have powers like the son of a god. If he is, where is his father, a god, to save him? But as Jesus dies, everything changes. These seasoned soldiers who kill every day became frightened. It seems as if a god was angry. This led to the great statement, ‘Truly, this was the son of God!’

  I wonder what happened to this centurion after this. I expect he never forgot that day. I wonder if he ever became a disciple? How has the death of Jesus affected you?

 Roger