“Peter’s Our Guy”

(Matthew 16:13-2)

Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesaria Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?”  And they said, “Some say John the Baptist, but others Elijah, and still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”  He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?”  Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah!  For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father in heaven.  And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it.  I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”  Then he sternly ordered the disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Messiah.

From that time on, Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and undergo great suffering at the hands of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised.  And Peter took him aside, and began to rebuke him, saying, “God forbid it, Lord!  This must never happen to you.”  But Jesus turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan!  You are a stumbling block to me; for you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things.”

Then Jesus told his disciples, “If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.  For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it.  For what will it profit them if they gain the whole world but forfeit their life?  Or what will they give in return for their life?  For the Son of Man is to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay everyone for what has been done.  Truly I tell you, there are some standing here who will not taste death before they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.”

            Whoa.  This whole lesson is a lot to unpack, but we are going to do it today.

I realized that I could not preach this text without beginning with what is traditionally called “Peter’s Confession.”  These few verses at the start of what you heard from Betty were actually left out of the Lectionary this year, but they must be included!  We have to see Peter go from being called the Rock on which Jesus’ Church would be founded, to then, being named by Jesus a hindrance or a stumbling block.  The contrast of those two ways that Peter is depicted here is critical to us as hearers and as part of the Jesus House. 

            So, when I hear people talk about Peter as the rock on which Jesus founded the church, I am reminded of how very important strong foundations are.  We describe people who are strong and dependable as “rocks.”  We describe folks who have a very close walk with Jesus as having a firm faith foundation.  Anyone who has experienced an earthquake knows that when it happens you feel like your foundation is being literally shaken.

            So when we hear how Jesus honored Peter by declaring him to be the rock on which he would build his church, we do have an idea of the strong place to which Jesus was calling Peter.  We are given a hint of the firm, rock-solid potential that Jesus saw in him.  We understand a bit of the commitment that Jesus was requiring of his followers, especially Peter.

            In hearing Peter’s confession of faith, we, too, are given an opportunity to reconsider our own commitment to Christ and to Christ’s church.  We ought to be thinking about how we can be strong and rock-solid in the faith.  Jesus has declared Peter to be just that, and we, too, are being called to be rocks and to carry the keys of the kingdom.

            Over the centuries since the church first heard this story about Peter, he has been admired and probably spoken of in the following manner, if not in these exact words, “Oh that Peter, he was the best.  He’s so much better than we can ever be.  He knew who Jesus was, and so Jesus made him the rock of the church and gave him the keys to the kingdom.”

            Then the church quit reading right there.  They named Peter a saint and went merrily on their way—we have gone merrily on OUR way, certain that this is just a story about a hero of the church who knew and said the right thing about Jesus and was rewarded.  We think we want to be like Peter, so we work really hard to say the right stuff and, then, we expect that we will, in fact, be rewarded and gain privilege.

            Many of us have understood our baptism and our church membership this way.  We think that all we have to do is to figure out who Jesus was and be able to say the right words about what it means to be a Christian.  Peter has been our role model in doing that.  We would all like the reading to end after Peter is given the keys to the kingdom.

            Now, it really WAS important for Peter to recognize that Jesus was Messiah and Son of the Living God.  It is important for us to know that and to witness to it, as well.  It’s a central part of our faith journey to know who Jesus is and what that means in our lives.  Those are matters of our inner spirituality, indications of God’s presence in our lives and marks of what it means to be faithful people.

            …But there is more to this story (you knew there was a but coming!).  The transformed Christian does not stop with a right confession—important as that is.  The text goes on: “from that time on, Jesus began to SHOW his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and undergo great suffering at the hands of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised.”  Notice the word “show.”  Jesus began to “show” his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem to the cross.  Not tell, not teach, but show. 

Now, if we’re told something we can often forget whatever it is.  “Jerusalem?  Who said anything about Jerusalem?  I don’t remember that.”  If Jesus teaches us, we can misunderstand.  “Suffer and die?  Oh, you mean that metaphorically.  This is a parable right.  OK, now I’m with you, Jesus.”  But if he shows us, well, that’s different.  We have got to pay attention.

            Even though Peter had made the right confession, he showed that he could not accept the suffering part.  So, he took Jesus aside, and he scolded him for talking like that.  So Jesus scolded him right back for being obsessed with his own self and how he saw the Jesus story unfolding, which was not to Peter’s liking.

            But then Jesus went on to teach and to tell in what is such beautiful language, though really, it is kind of mysterious: “If anyone wants to become my follower, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.  For those who want to save their lives will lose them, and those who lose their life for my sake, will find it.”  This upending of our logic makes us stop and really think about what Jesus was saying.  Saving our lives will lose them?  Losing them will help us find our lives?  It doesn’t make any sense….    

            But, then, we experience the limits of the telling and begin to know that Jesus will show us how he must go to Jerusalem toward the cross.  The truth is, we just don’t understand these words.  Why would anyone go toward the cross?  It’s not logical.  We don’t understand that our little old lives are less important than God’s overall plan.  We don’t get this: that only when we give up on fussing about ourselves and what happens in our short time here on earth, will we begin to really live.  This business of suffering is so hard for us to understand. 

            You may recall from your own reading of Matthew’s Gospel that Jesus called a child to stand among them and said, “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.  Whoever becomes humble like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.  Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me.” 

So Jesus tried to show us by calling that child to stand among them to illustrate his teaching.

He tried to show us in every way a teacher could think of.  But how can you show        something of this magnitude… without the cross?  …You can’t. 

            Maybe this is what’s missing in our churches.  We try to show a lot of resurrection triumph–all the time–but not a lot of suffering.  We don’t have a lot of encouragement for showing one another our own paths to Jerusalem, and how we have to take up our own crosses and follow Jesus.  It’s like we don’t want to hear the stories of people bearing their own crosses in this life.

            …Well, of course, it’s hard for any of us to look at the misery and the suffering of the cross.  But how do we look if we’re afraid to show it or have it shown to us?  Remember the line from today’s text?  “From that time on, Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem.” 

            Well, it takes a long time to show us because it takes us a long time to get the courage to look.  Or to name that what-is –going-on-in-our-lives is not always the victory dance that the world expects.  We prefer the resurrection that comes after the death and dying. 

            Are we showing each other the cross?  Are we showing the world?  Or are we just talking about it or listening to sermons about how great everything is?  Jesus didn’t let Peter get away with just talking a good game.  He showed us about suffering.  …Many people are going through hard times.  Life is not all lollypops and roses that we have been schooled to expect. 

As benefits are being taken away from people; as we are being threatened to lose Social Security; as immigrant folks live in fear every single day; as people in poverty-stricken neighborhoods dread the dark of night because then the shooting begins; as parents have lost their SNAP benefits which makes it hard to feed their families; as we all go to the grocery store or the gas pumps and see how prices have sky-rocketed, as so many people are living with disease, both their own and that of their loved ones, many folks are living in fear, maybe suffering already. 

How can we show each other that we care, that we understand?  How can we show the love of Jesus today in our lives and everyday?

Okay.  Well, I think it’s that we try to be honest and truthful with one another.  That doesn’t mean that we can complain all the time, nor does it mean that we only focus on the good stuff.  It means that we show each other how to live without worrying about having all the right answers and showing off, without trying to grab the power and the glory.  It means that we show each other how to live and how to die. 

The death of the beloved Dolly Parton has all of us looking back at her life and realizing what an amazingly talented, brilliant and loving person she was, how she used her success, her money and her influence to make things better for young people, for less fortunate musicians, for the world, really.  She didn’t make a big deal about her declining health, but made no secret when she had to cancel some engagements.  She lived her life authentically and with love and compassion, not hiding her humble beginnings, but rather honoring her background in her genius songwriting and charitable programs.  Dolly Parton showed us how to live and how to die, just as Jesus did.  I read somewhere that she agreed to go on Saturday Night Live with two rules.  There would be no cussing and no making fun of Jesus.  Amazing! 

I also bring up some precious friends from Wellington as examples, both of whom have died.  I met Ray and Pat soon after I moved to Wellington in 2004.  They were in their 60’s, lived in a humble mobile home north of town.  Ray had had a very serious heart attack when he was 35 and had been unable to work since then.  He was on oxygen, and he only got out for his trips to the doctor.  They got by on the money she earned from watching children in their home, and I’m sure that Ray received disability of some sort.  Pat was diabetic but always seemed to have energy to look after Ray and the children she helped raise. 

We loved each other.  I visited almost every week.  In spite of living with hardship and the disappointments that life had dealt them, they were upbeat and faithful.  They showed me how to live with suffering and tragedy.  Their joy came from watching their grandaughters grow up and the little children around them and their neighbors.  Their faith was deep and strong.  Everytime I visited, Ray wanted to hear me recite the 23^rd Psalm and to say a prayer.  They showed me how to live and, ultimately, how to die. 

If we’re lucky we get to know folks like Pat and Ray, and if we have trials, we will be blessed if we remember what Jesus showed us.  Our lives will be transformed.  Amen.