On the Road and In Your Face

Over the course of my life I have heard people talk about the God of the Old Testament and the God of the New Testament. Jehovah is the angry, condemning one and Jesus is the loving, forgiving one. They will say, "I can't believe in that mean old man pointing his finger and sending people to Hell, but I think Jesus was a good guy and he said we shouldn't judge anyone."

I'm afraid I have good news and bad news for these people. There is only one God and his nature doesn't change. Anyone who hasn't seen the loving, forgiving God of the Old Testament hasn't thought about what they've read. Those who haven't sometimes seen an angry and condemning Jesus haven't either. This is bad news because they are wrong about God; it's good news because He will forgive them if they realize it.

Jesus was not a flower child. He was not handing out happy pills and saying, "Can't we all just get along?" He did not say to the adulterous woman, who the Pharisees wished to stone, "Go and do what you please. Be happy." He didn't even say, "I forgive you." He said, "Neither do I condemn you. Go and sin no more."

When Jesus had lifted up himself, and saw none but the woman, he said unto her, Woman, where are those thine accusers? hath no man condemned thee?

She said, No man, Lord. And Jesus said unto her, Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more. John 8:10-11 (KJV)

There is a difference between not condemning and forgiving. What Jesus says here is very interesting and maybe someday we'll take a closer look, but that isn't what this post is about. This post is about why these men brought this woman to Jesus. It was part of a long running confrontation between him and them. Jesus was a confrontationist from the beginning of his ministry and he continues to confront us today.

Let's look at Jesus beginning his earthly ministry and we will see what a confronter he is.

(If you want to see that what follows is Scriptural, you can read the New Testament account at Nitewrit's Own Harmony.  If you would like to read these events with more commentary about each, go to Nitewrit's Own Harmonized Commentary. Or just open your Bible on the table next to you.)

Let's also remember the definition of "confront": 1. to face; stand or meet face to face, 2. to face or oppose boldly, defiantly or antagonistically, 3. to bring face to face with, to confront someone with the facts or to set side by side to compare.

We discussed in the last two posts how Jesus confronted his parents. Now it is about 18 years later and he is about to start his mission in the world. He is approximately 30 years old and to the South there is a cousin baptizing people in the Jordan. This cousin named John has developed a following by this time and a certain amount of fame. Many people even wonder if this guy John is the predicted Messiah.

Jesus comes to John to be baptized and we have a confrontation between the two, granted a mild one. John argues that the roles should be reversed and Jesus should baptize him. But Jesus insists and so is baptized by John.

Immediately after his baptism, Jesus goes into the wilderness for forty days, where he has a pretty well-known confrontation with Satan. Notice this is not an argument between the two. Jesus doesn't get lured into some kind of "Who shot John?" thing. This is a confrontation of temptation with Satan offering all sorts of goodies and Jesus calmly refuting the offers by quoting Scripture, until the end, and then we see Jesus confronting Satan very boldly: "Get you hence behind me, Satan, for it is written, 'You shall worship the Lord your God, and him only shall you serve'." Luke 4:13 (KJV)

Okay, we would expect confrontations between Jesus and the Devil, I suppose and Lucifer seems to had instigated the face-to-face here. But confrontations aren't defined by who starts it and Jesus certainly didn't back away and he showed his sense of authority.

While Jesus is away in the desert, John the Baptist has his own confrontation with the priests and Levites. This wasn't the first time John has had such things. Before Jesus was Baptized he had a bit of a dust up with the Pharisees,  But when he [John] saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees come to his baptism then said he to the multitude that came forth to be baptized of him, he said unto them. “O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come?"

This time around these people begin questioning John about who he is, The Messiah, The Prophet or Elijah.

Why? Why were the Sadducees, Scribes, Pharisees, priests and Levites so interested in John?

I believe for a couple of reasons. They were looking for the promised Messiah and they were afraid of losing their positions and powers to Rome. The Jews were expecting the Messiah in those days. There had already been instances of individuals claiming to be the Christ. Some of these folk even had bands of followers and sometimes caused problems. The Jewish powers-who-be had to be concerned. The Sadducees, Herod, The Pharisees all maintained their positions at the grace of Caesar. As long as there was nothing to upset the status quo, Rome would leave them be to follow their own course. However if someone came along and led any kind of uprising, Rome would sweep down and crush it and perhaps crush all of Israel as well. Then what would they have? There were groups enough to worry about. There were Zealots, sort of terrorists if you will, and other gangs of Rebel-rousers. Certainly seeing someone like John the Baptist attracting large number of people would concern them. Still they had to be careful. What if this was the Messiah? They had to proceed with some caution. After all, their concept of Messiah was of a great warrior-king like David who would rise up an army and overthrow their oppressors, meaning Rome. They were somewhat between a rock and a hard place.

Then there comes Jesus back from the wilderness. John has told these fellows someone else greater than me is coming and now he points out Jesus to anybody nearby, saying, “Behold the Lamb of God!”

There were some unusual events on the day Jesus was Baptized. Thunder like voices in the sky, a dove descending on him and I'm sure gossip about these things had reached the ears of those powers-who-be. Jesus was not yet celebrity, but I imagine the authorities were noting him down in their book as a character of interest. He hadn't done anything to rile them yet, but I am sure somebody was saying to keep an eye on him.

Two followers of John the Baptist certainly were eyeing him. They heard John say this and they followed him. These two fellows were named John and Andrew.

Jesus confronted these two men. "What seek you?" It probably startled them and they asked where he lived. He told them to "Come and see."

Andrew brought his brother, Simon, to Jesus and Jesus immediately confronts Simon with a new name, Cephas or Peter, a stone. Note that Simon became Simon Peter even before Jesus began any ministry and well before his famous declaration of Jesus as the Son of God. 

The next day Jesus finds Philip to whom he says, "Follow me", and Philip in turn goes to Nathanael. When Jesus approaches Nathanael, he speaks first, confronting Nathanael with his knowledge of him.

Jesus and these few men now return to Galilee and their first stop is a wedding in Cana, where Jesus confronts his mother with this question, “Woman, what have I to do with thee? My hour is not yet come.”

Some time passes and now Jesus begins his ministry. He goes to the Passover in Jerusalem. What is the very first event of Jesus' earthy ministry? 

And the Jews' Passover was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem and found in the temple those that sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the changers of money sitting. And when he had made a scourge of small cords, he drove them all out of the temple, and the sheep, and the oxen; and poured out the changers' money, and overthrew the tables. And said unto them that sold doves, “Take these things hence; make not my Father's house an house of merchandise.”

Was this the Flower-Child so many paint Jesus as being? Or was this not the same sometimes angry God of the Old Testament? Jesus began his mission with a loud confrontation, a violent one, with a whip and tables crashing over; with people shouting and running and with the ones in authority watching.

Then he had a confrontation with those people in which he referred to what would occur three years or so hence. “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” Jesus began the confrontation with the ingrained holders of the Law and religion of the time and place. He would have many such confrontations with the Sadducees and Pharisees from then on. They would dog his footsteps and the thoughts of killing him began early on.

But while here, Jesus did some preaching to the people and performed some miracles and he attracted the attention of one of these Jewish Rulers, one Nichodemus.

And he had a face-to-face confrontation with Nichodemus challenging the man's true understanding of the Scriptures that the man had spent a lifetime studying.

After the Passover, Jesus sets up camp in Judea and begins Baptizing too. This causes, if not directly,  another confrontation between the Jews and the followers of John the Baptist about Jesus' activity.

Not long after, John the Baptist is arrested. Jesus now pulls up stakes and heads into Samaria, where Jews generally would not go. Jesus has caused a ruckus in Jerusalem. He certainly made enemies by what he did. They have kept their distance. But now John has been arrested and if it has come to a point in which authorities, whether Herod or otherwise, feel comfortable doing that to John, they quite well could feel it was safe to come after this guy Jesus.  He's gained some followers, but certainly hasn't yet become as popular as John was. Samaria is not where they would think to look for a Jew.

And in Samaria he has a confrontation with a woman at a well. I mean, she being a Samaritan and he being a Jew, it is even a confrontation to even speak to her and then he challenges her religious beliefs. Read the conversation he has with her. It is full of confrontation.

After Jesus has been through Samaria, he cures a Nobleman's child in Cana. The Nobleman is from Capernaum, I suggest you keep that in mind for future reference.

Now, Jesus goes to his home town of Nazareth, walks into the Synagog and confronts those there by reading Isaiah's prophesy of the Messiah and indicates he is the fulfillment. They don't like this. They try to kill him.

People don't like being confronted with the truth and Jesus was and is a great confrontationist.

Next: Band on the Run

Illustrations:  Jesus Curses the Pharisees by James Tissot, 1886-96

                      The Purification of the Temple by Jacopo Bassano, 1570

Jesus in Hollywood

Hollywood likes to make films based on true stories. The optimal words here are "based on". Sometimes the part based on seems little more than a few names and a date. But whether the film is fairly accurate or more fantasy than fact, the unfortunate thing is many, many people's belief about history is what they saw on the silver screen. How many folks accepted that King Solomon had a torrid love affair with the Queen of Sheba, and that she was a woman come to destroy him to gain a port and in the employ of the Pharaoh of Egypt. King Vidor and his writers certainly had a different interpretation of 1 Kings 10:1-13 than I do. Go read it yourself and see if you can find anything I just described in the movie plot beyond the names of Solomon and the Queen of Sheba.  It did give Vidor an excuse to put Gina Lollobrigida in skimpy costumes and Yul Brynner in hair (one of his rare appearance not as a baldy).

Here, of course, is another problem since Hollywood has often turned to The Bible for their "based on" true stories. Although one would think The Good Book contains all the intrigue, crime, lust and murder a scriptwriter could handle, they always seem to add a little more on their own; sometimes a lot more. As with the aforementioned Lollobrigida's belly dancer interpretation of the Queen of Sheba, Hollywood always finds some sleaze or sex to throw in the mix, the orgy scene in "The Ten Commandments" or Salome's salacious dance in "King of Kings." Even with John Huston's epic, "The Bible," a classic misnomer of a movie, since it only touched on some of the stories found in Genesis, this was so. Much of the hype and publicity surrounding that film centered around the actors playing Adam and Eve performing in the buff or the altogether or naked.

Speaking of "King of Kings", here we have a case where our perceptions of Christ have too often been impressed upon us by popular media, even going back to the paintings of the Renaissance. Jeffrey Hunter has the image of the Renaissance's blond-haired, blue-eyed Jesus entwined with the aura of a Hippie guru. At least, that was the impression I got watching the "Sermon on the Mount" scene. (Perhaps I should say he was a kind of "On the Road" guru, given the movie was made in 1961, landing in the transition from the Beats to the Hipps.) At any rate, it seems I've seen Jesus presented too often in soft-focus lighting where you expect him to sing, If you're coming to Jerusalem be sure to wear flowers in your hair.

All of this imagery becomes easily ingrained in us and we have a hard time letting go. Even when someone makes a movie and tries to be accurate in detail, in showing the times as they were and uses actors who look like they belong in the setting, they can't resist popular notions that distort the reality. Take for instance the film, "The Nativity Story". This is a very beautiful movie and it places you right into the emotions Joseph and Mary must have felt, but even these producers couldn't resist popular Hallmark Card tableaus over scripture. They did the old familiar manger scene with sheep and shepherds, camels and Three Wise Men all gathered together, just like the creche sitting on the mantle at Christmas, but hardly found in scripture.

Even we Christians who spend much time in The Bible often fall into this trap. After all, not only do cliches ingrain themselves in our psyches, but familiarity often blinds us from the details.  In other words, we sometimes can't see the forest for the trees and other times we can't see the trees for the forest. Sometimes we need to just stop, step back and see what else is going on in both the forest and the trees.

Over at Tamela's Place she did a post recently titled, "Who Do You Say I Am?"  She is talking about seeing things through spiritual eyes and there is an interesting quote:  "I might add that there is a lot out there that needs a spiritual filter as to sift through the garbage though".


I think I am going to do a little sifting over a couple or so posts. Perhaps not totally with "spiritual eyes", but at least without the visions drummed into me by the Magic of Hollywood and the splendor of

.

Let the following verses be a tease and next time, "A Christ of Confrontation".


Every year Jesus’ parents went to Jerusalem for the Festival of the Passover. When he was twelve years old, they went up to the festival, according to the custom. After the festival was over, while his parents were returning home, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem, but they were unaware of it. Thinking he was in their company, they traveled on for a day. Then they began looking for him among their relatives and friends. When they did not find him, they went back to Jerusalem to look for him. After three days they found him in the temple courts, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. Everyone who heard him was amazed at his understanding and his answers. When his parents saw him, they were astonished. His mother said to him, “Son, why have you treated us like this? Your father and I have been anxiously searching for you.”
   “Why were you searching for me?” he asked. “Didn’t you know I had to be in my Father’s house?” But they did not understand what he was saying to them. Then he went down to Nazareth with them and was obedient to them. Luke 2:41-51

John the Baptist's Fashion and Diet Tips

I added some additional informtion to my Harmony and am also posting it here.  This answers some questions I was asked in the comments, as well. LEM 

Perhaps we should talk about John’s appearance and diet here.  I have seen several artists’ renderings of John the Baptist and some present a character out of the Flintstones, a Neanderthal of a man in a brief costume of fur. All he needs is a thick club resting on his shoulder and he could be Ally Oop.  It others and some films, he is presented in an unruly long beard and a great bush of untamed hair as if performing a Wild man of Borneo act in the circus sideshow. Why would throngs of people come out to be baptized by such a creature? They’d more likely flee the other way thinking him possessed.

Scripture simply says he wore clothing made of camel hair and a leather belt around his waist. His clothing has been wove from camel hair didn’t necessarily have to look much different from what others wore.  Some Bible historians believe he wore a simple robe similar to and recognized as that worn by many Old Testament Prophets, for indeed, he was the last of these.

I rather imagine John was pretty clean; after all, he spent most of his day in water. His hair and beard may have been kept smoothed down by that element. Besides, nowhere in scripture does it say he was anymore hairy than anyone else. Some suppose he was a Nazirite because Gabriel had told Zechariah, “He is never to take wine or other fermented drink”.  But it is never said a razor will never touch his head. John MacArthur is one who claims he was a Nazirite, but nowhere in Scripture does it say John took such a vow. He may have had a well-trimmed beard and been bald for all we really know.

PORTION OF THE NAZIRITE VOW

1 The LORD said to Moses, 2 "Speak to the Israelites and say to them: 'If a man or woman wants to make a special vow, a vow of separation to the LORD as a Nazirite, 3 he must abstain from wine and other fermented drink and must not drink vinegar made from wine or from other fermented drink. He must not drink grape juice or eat grapes or raisins. 4 As long as he is a Nazirite, he must not eat anything that comes from the grapevine, not even the seeds or skins.

 5 " 'During the entire period of his vow of separation no razor may be used on his head. He must be holy until the period of his separation to the LORD is over; he must let the hair of his head grow long. 6 Throughout the period of his separation to the LORD he must not go near a dead body. 7 Even if his own father or mother or brother or sister dies, he must not make himself ceremonially unclean on account of them, because the symbol of his separation to God is on his head. Numbers 6:1-7

 

The other question about John concerns that Breakfast of Champions, locusts and wild honey.

We probably have no difficulty with the honey part. Honey is one of our oldest known foods, being mentioned as such as far back as 2100 BC; that’s BC, folks. Honey is “an organic, natural sugar alternative with no additives that is easy on the stomach, adapts to all cooking processes, and has an indefinite shelf-life.”

John the Baptist is living in the wilderness and is going to eat what is available and plentiful there. Grasshoppers or Locust (there is a difference, but most people wouldn’t make the distinction*** on seeing one, nor do the Gospel writers necessarily make one and translations sometimes say grasshoppers) are a common food in certain regions of the world. John probably found them delicious when sweetened by honey. The word translated as locust is “akris”.

 

Akris: a locust, particularly that species which especially infests oriental

 countries, stripping fields and trees. Numberless swarms of them almost every spring are carried by the wind from Arabia into Palestine, and having devastated that country, migrate to regions farther north, until they perish by falling into the sea. The Orientals accustomed to feed upon locusts, either raw or roasted and seasoned with salt (or prepared in other ways), and the Israelites also were permitted to eat them.

 

There are, however, some winged creatures that walk on all fours that you may eat:

 those that have jointed legs for hopping on the ground. Of these you may eat any kind of locust, katydid, cricket or grasshopper. But all other winged creatures that have four legs you are to detest. Leviticus 11:21-23

This all seems pretty clear, so why any question?

 There are some who argue the word “Akris” was really “enkris”.  This mistake seems unlikely given the number of preserved Septuagint text and all the many scholars who have translated and studied it. Surely, they would have picked up this error. Enkris means, “cake”. There was a Greek delicacy called Enkris, but John was in the desert, not it an Athens’ Starbucks having his latte and enkris.

Others argue what John was eating the fruit of the Locust Tree. This is an evergreen tree that grows as high as fifty feet and in the spring produces a huge quantity of pods called Carob. These pods are sweet inside (lot of sweet piling up here with the honey). In some parts of the East, these pods are called “St. John’s Bread” and people there believe this is what John the Baptist ate. And Carobs are dried and used as food for both cattle and people.

 But I don’t think John was out there harvesting and drying Carobs, I think he was catching and nibbling the insect, perhaps roasted with a little salt or eaten raw with a dab of honey.  There is nowhere in the Septuagint where Akris means pod or anything other than the insect. When you read the Bible, stick to the simplest exclamation. Why make this a cause for vegetarianism?

There is nothing in the statement that “his food was locust and wild honey” that precludes John eating other things. At the time of his ministry he was pretty busy and these things were handy and easy to prepare. Growing up he probably ate the traditional kosher meals of his parents and even as an adult might have had occasion to supplement his regular limited diet. And since John would have been very exact in trying to obey God in all things, he surely took part in the required Ceremonies and Feasts. And eaten the Passover lamb. So, lets focus more on his purpose and his ministry than his mealtimes.

***It is very common for people in my area to call the cicada, locust and to call actual locust, grasshoppers, since locust and grasshoppers look very similar. A cicada does not resemble either much, though.

Home at the Holidays: Christmas Decor

So Woman on a Mission posted some lovely pictures of her home decorated up for Christmas on her "Coffee, God and Me" Blog.  (Clicking on the title of this post will take you to her Blog.) She asked readers to do the same. I am posting some photos of my place in return. 

 

The photo to the left isn't one of them. It is of my kids taken on Christmas 14 years ago. (Hard to believe.) Their ages then were 16, 14 and 12. 

Stepped out side in the rain this evening at twilight and turned on the lights on our hedges.

The stocking of animal faces are hung on the rail.

Looking up to the living room level from the entryway.

The tree. It was in the other corner of the room until it fell over. Now it is here.
I put on the lights. My wife does the trimming.  That is "Holiday Inn" with Bing Crosby and Fred Astaire playing on the TV.
The fireplace from the entry way.

The mantle. My wife collects nutcrackers. The picture is an Andrew Wyeth. We have a yellow lab like in the painting.  
More nutcrackers and my wife's ceramic village in the secretary desk cabinet.
Still some more nutcrackers in the hallway.
Top of the entertainment center, another Andrew Wyeth painting.
Hutch across from the dining room table.
The dining room.
The full dining room. The tower sticking up in the lower left corner is a cat scratching post.
The Santa in a hot air balloon hanging from the rafter. My kids high school graduation portraits are on the wall behind. 

Somebody else's turn.

Hallelujah!

The Battle Hymn of the Republic is a song that always puts tears in my eyes. It was written in 1861 by Julia Ward Howe. purportedly after hearing Union Troops stationed along the Potomac singing "John Brown's Body".

This was early on in the Civil War and was a warning to the nation about what could be its fate if slavery continued as much as anything.  It is a song which warning still is in place to the nation for its practices.

This Blog came about because my friend Ron (Retired in Delaware Blog) sent me an email with a version of the song sung by combined choirs from some public schools.  You can hear the version he sent me and see the beautiful graphics added by clicking on the title of this post.

But as I listened and watched, I was struck by a couple things.

First, it was introducted as a "patriotic song".  I know it has become associated with the Civil War and is often played by military bands at patriotic affairs, but it really isn't a patriotic song at all.  It isn't a song in praise of the United States. Its a religious song in praise of God.  The chorus is "Glory, Glory, Hallelujah".  Hallelujah means "Praise ye the Lord".  It is what the Heavenly Living Creatures sing continulously in Heaven in Revelation 19.

Second, it is amazing that public school choruses were allowed to perform this song given all the separation of church and state that has taken place in these times. I'm sure those fools (yes, I used the word fools as in Proverbs 1:7) who sued to remove "In God We Trust" from our money, would wish to remove this song from public music director's songbooks.

Third, I though of a kind of game. Go through the lyrics of the song and find all the Bible verses being referenced.  For instance, is the whole song inspired by Jeremiah 25:30?

"Now prophesy all these words against them and say to them:

'The LORD will roar from on high;

he will thunder from his holy dwelling

and roar mightily against his land. 


He will shout like those who tread the grapes,

shout against all who live on the earth.'" 

Anyway, here are the lyrics to The Battle Hymn of the Republic if you'd like to try and find all the Biblican References:

Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord;
 He is trampling out the vintage where the grapes of wrath are stored;
 He hath loosed the fateful lightning of His terrible swift sword;
 His truth is marching on.
Glory! Glory! Hallelujah! Glory! Glory! Hallelujah!
 Glory! Glory! Hallelujah! His truth is marching on.

I have seen Him in the watch fires of a hundred circling camps
 They have builded Him an altar in the evening dews and damps; 
I can read His righteous sentence by the dim and flaring lamps;
 His day is marching on.
Glory! Glory! Hallelujah! Glory! Glory! Hallelujah! 
Glory! Glory! Hallelujah! His day is marching on.

I have read a fiery Gospel writ in burnished rows of steel; 
“As ye deal with My contemners, so with you My grace shall deal”; 
Let the Hero, born of woman, crush the serpent with His heel,
 Since God is marching on.
 Glory! Glory! Hallelujah! Glory! Glory! Hallelujah! 
Glory! Glory! Hallelujah! Since God is marching on.

He has sounded forth the trumpet that shall never call retreat; 
He is sifting out the hearts of men before His judgment seat;
 Oh, be swift, my soul, to answer Him! be jubilant, my feet; 
Our God is marching on.
 Glory! Glory! Hallelujah! Glory! Glory! Hallelujah!
 Glory! Glory! Hallelujah! Our God is marching on.

In the beauty of the lilies Christ was born across the sea, 
With a glory in His bosom that transfigures you and me:
 As He died to make men holy, let us live to make men free; 
[originally …let us die to make men free]
 While God is marching on.
 Glory! Glory! Hallelujah! Glory! Glory! Hallelujah!
 Glory! Glory! Hallelujah! While God is marching on.

He is coming like the glory of the morning on the wave,
 He is wisdom to the mighty, He is honor to the brave;
 So the world shall be His footstool, and the soul of wrong His slave,
 Our God is marching on. 
Glory! Glory! Hallelujah! Glory! Glory! Hallelujah! 
Glory! Glory! Hallelujah! Our God is marching on.

Hallelujah! Praise God, he is marching on!

Rock Solid: Jesus Christ - The Only Rock Upon which I Stand

 "But what about you?" he asked. "Who do you say I am?"

 Simon Peter answered, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."

 Jesus replied, "Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven. 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."  Matthew 16:15-18

This is an important passage of Scripture because it is one, depending on interpretation, which defines a major difference between Protestant and Roman Catholic doctrine.   Catholics use this passage in support of Peter being the first Pope and the church being established on this, and all subsequent Popes being Peter's successors.  Protestants believe Jesus was recognizing Simon Peter's profession that He was the Son of God and it is upon Christ the Church would be built. I  am Protestant and it is the latter interpretation I believe.  If I believed the former, I would be a Catholic.

There is one Body of Christ, made up of those who have recognized they are sinners in need of a savior, who have confessed this and asked forgiveness of God seeing a need of a savior, and who believe Jesus Christ, born of a Virgin, crucified, dead and risen, is the only Savior and have accepted that in their heart. I do not question anyone claiming to be a Christian under that truth.  Although I do not recognize Benedictus XVI as my spiritual leader, I do not question Joseph Ratzinger's sincerity, piety or devotion as a fellow seeking after God.  Whether someone is truly Born Again to salvation is known only to God, it is not my place to judge any person's claim. 

I only present what I believe and I leave it to you to search the scriptures in support of your own beliefs. And I hope no one misunderstands and takes offence in that we may have some differences of viewpoints.

This is how I see the passages in Mark 8:27-33, Matthew 16:13 and Luke 9:18-23 (combined here from the NIV)

Jesus had been through a period of preaching. He had been getting growing opposition from the religious leaders, but was drawing more crowds to his teachings. They had just finished up feeding thousands through the miracle of dividing a few fish and pieces of bread. At this point he went off with his disciples where they could have relative peace. These periods have been referred to as "retirements" and he did these three or four times during his ministry.

Apparently he used these periods to pray and instruct his Disciples. It is estimated He remained near Caesarea Philippi for about six months on this occasion, so obviously we don't have everything taught during the period.  We can assume what was recorded was consider very important, and of course, was something God wanted us to know. 

When Jesus and his disciples came to the region of {and} went on to the villages around Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, "Who do people say the Son of Man is?". Once when Jesus was praying in private and his disciples were with him on the way he asked them, "Who do people say I am? Who do the crowds say I am?"

The way each writer began his description is slightly different, but not really contradictory. It tells us he probably raised the question as they were arriving in the area. Luke tells us the Lord had been praying. His question comes on the heels of his prayer and probably harks back to the large crowds they had recently been addressing.

The question is addressed to his disciples. It is not clear if this was exclusively the 12 Apostles or included the other Disciples that often journeyed along. At the end it says He called the crowd along with his Disciples, so it may be He had been meeting with just the Apostles when Peter makes his profession.

They replied, "Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or that one of the prophets of long ago has come back to life."

"But what about you?" he asked. "Who do you say I am?" 
 

I don't think these were idle questions or that Jesus was curious about the popular gossip about himself. He surely knew exactly what the people were saying. Jesus had a way of asking questions to make others think and teach them important lessons. The question about what the crowds thought was a setup to the more important question, who did the Disciples think he was.

Why did he ask this particular question at this particular time? For part of that answer we need to go back to a couple of passages in the events just before this. 

In Matthew 15, the Pharisees object to the Disciples not doing the ceremonial washing dictated by tradition before eating. Jesus rebukes them sharply.

 Afterward the Disciples kind of scold Jesus about what he said:

Then the disciples came to him and asked, "Do you know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this?"

 He replied, "Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be pulled up by the roots. Leave them; they are blind guides. If a blind man leads a blind man, both will fall into a pit."

 Peter said, "Explain the parable to us."

 "Are you still so dull?" Jesus asked them. Matthew 15: 12-16 NIV

A bit later we have the feeding of the four thousand and then the Pharisees testing Jesus by demanding a sign. Following this confrontation, Jesus and the Disciples go across a lake and He tells them to be on

 "guard against the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees."

When they went across the lake, the disciples forgot to take bread. "Be careful," Jesus said to them. "Be on your guard against the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees."

 They discussed this among themselves and said, "It is because we didn't bring any bread."

Aware of their discussion, Jesus asked, "You of little faith,why are you talking among yourselves about having no bread? Do you still not understand?" Matthew 16:5-7 NIV

 After all this time of traveling with Jesus, you wouldn't think it, but it would appear the Disciples were struggling with their faith. They had started off in the beginning with enthusiasm, but despite what they had witnessed, the hardships and attacks against Jesus may have dulled this some and make them wonder if they had been right about this person. This is not much different for new Christians even today. A person comes to Christ and then throws themself into church work with vigor, but after time passes often slide into a kind of malaise about it all. We need to keep our eye on the prize and not let this world tire us.

I think Jesus was putting them where they had to confront their faith with this question.

I think there was a second reason why now. At the end of this passage, He informs them that he is going to be killed. There were some of those following Him when he declared this that left Him. I think this question was to force their declaration of faith so they were prepared for the unexpected news he was about to spring on them.

Simon Peter answered, "You are the Christ of God, the Son of the living God."

 Ever impulsive, ever a man of action, Simon Peter was quick to give an answer to the question.

Jesus replied, "Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven. 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.

This verse is one of those at the heart of the Protestant break from the Roman Catholic Church on the Papacy. It is the interpretation of the Catholic Church that  the rock the church was to be built upon was Peter. The Protestant Church contends the rock is Christ, the Son of God and indeed, God, and it is also where I place my faith. The Greek words translated "Peter" and "rock" are two different words and the second word implies a larger rock than the first. Jim in his "Journeling for Growth" Blog  and a comment to his post by thekingpin68 give a very detailed explanation on this. For simpler clarification, here is Matthew 16:18 from The Amplified Bible:

And I tell you, you are Peter [Greek, Petros--a large piece of rock], and on this rock [Greek, petra--a huge rock like Gibraltar] I will build My church, and the gates of Hades (the powers of the infernal region) shall not overpower it [or be strong to its detriment or hold out against 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."

The next verse is also often sited as Jesus giving the keys to Peter. I admit, this verse is a bit ambivant, but I believe we must take it in context to the whole passage. Who was Jesus addressing in this passage from beginning to end? The Disciples. What is His purpose? To establish their faith in their own minds before he tells them what is to come, something that they are not expecting, that being that Jesus is going to be killed. 

I believe you can also look at the future acts of the Apostles to see they all were given these keys.

Notice there is no doubt he is addressing the group in the next sentence.

Then Jesus, he strictly warned them, his disciples not to tell this to anyone about him that he was the Christ.

 And from this point he begins his instruction to them of how he will suffer and will rise from the dead. Again, Peter, the impulsive, take action on his own and is immediately put in his place.

From that time on Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem He then began to teach them and he said, that the Son of Man must suffer many things at the hands of and be rejected by the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and after three days, on the third day rise again, be raised to life. He spoke plainly about this, and Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. "Never, Lord!" he said. "This shall never happen to you!"

But when Jesus turned and looked at his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said to Peter, "Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me;” he said. "You do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men."

Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and then he Jesus said to his disciples, said to them all:: "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. 

The use of the two different words for Peter and Rock are not the only reason I believe Jesus Christ is the Rock referenced.  Jesus has told us the Scriptures (Old Testament) were about him and throughout the Scriptures, Rock is used to refer to God and is also associated with salvation.

Here are several passages that show the Rock is God (All taken from the new American Standard Bible. Bold is my emphasis, capitalization is from the Bible text):

Give ear, O heavens, and let me speak; and let the earth hear the words of my mouth. Let my teaching drop as the rain, my speech distill as the dew, as the droplets on the fresh grass and as the showers on the herb. For I proclaim the name of the LORD; ascribe greatness to our God! The Rock! His work is perfect, for all His ways are just; A God of faithfulness and without injustice, Righteous and upright is He. Deuteronomy 32:1-4 (From Song of Moses)

But Jeshurun grew fat and kicked--You are grown fat, thick, and sleek--Then he forsook God who made him, and scorned the Rock of his salvation. They made Him jealous with strange gods; with abominations they provoked Him to anger. They sacrificed to demons who were not God, to gods whom they have not known, new gods who came lately, whom your fathers did not dread. You neglected the Rock who begot you, and forgot the God who gave you birth. Deuteronomy 32:15-18 (From Song of Moses)

Would that they were wise, that they understood this, that they would discern their future! How could one chase a thousand, And two put ten thousand to flight, unless their Rock had sold them, and the LORD had given them up? Indeed their rock is not like our Rock, even our enemies themselves judge this. Deuteronomy 32:29-31 (From Song of Moses)

Then Hannah prayed and said, "My heart exults in the LORD; my horn is exalted in the LORD, my mouth speaks boldly against my enemies, because I rejoice in your salvation. There is no one holy like the LORD, Indeed, there is no one besides you, nor is there any Rock like our God. Boast no more so very proudly, do not let arrogance come out of your mouth; For the LORD is a God of knowledge, And with Him actions are weighed. 1 Samuel 2:1-3 (From Hannah's Song of Thanksgiving) [Granted, there is a possiblility in this passage Hannah is inferring an idol is but rock, not like the Living God --Nitewrit]

And David spoke the words of this song to the LORD in the day that the LORD delivered him from the hand of all his enemies and from the hand of Saul. He said, “the LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer; 
my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge, My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold and my refuge; My savior, You save me from violence. I call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised,
 and I am saved from my enemies. 2 Samuel 22:1-4 (From David's Psalm of Deliverance)

As for God, His way is blameless; the word of the LORD is tested; He is a shield to all who take refuge in Him. 
For who is God, besides the LORD? 
And who is a rock, besides our God? 
God is my strong fortress; and He sets the blameless in His way.       2 Samuel 22:31-33 

"The LORD lives, and blessed be my rock; and exalted be God, the rock of my salvation, the God who executes vengeance for me, and brings down peoples under me, who also brings me out from my enemies; you even lift me above those who rise up against me; You rescue me from the violent man. 
Therefore I will give thanks to You, O LORD, among the nations, and I will sing praises to your name. 
He is a tower of deliverance to His king, and shows loving kindness to His anointed, to David and his descendants forever." 2 Samuel 22:47-51 

Now these are the last words of David.

David the son of Jesse declares, the man who was raised on high declares, the anointed of the God of Jacob, and the sweet psalmist of Israel, The Spirit of the LORD spoke by me, And His word was on my tongue. The God of Israel said, he Rock of Israel spoke to me, “he who rules over men righteously, who rules in the fear of God, is as the light of the morning when the sun rises, a morning without clouds, when the tender grass springs out of the earth, through sunshine after rain”. Truly is not my house so with God? For He has made an everlasting covenant with me, Ordered in all things, and secured; for all my salvation and all my desire, Will He not indeed make it grow?  2 Samuel 23:1-5 (David's Last Song)

For the choir director. A Psalm of David the servant of the LORD, who spoke to the LORD the words of this song in the day that the LORD delivered him from the hand of all his enemies and from the hand of Saul. And he said,

"I love You, O LORD, my strength. The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, My God, my rock, in whom I take refuge; my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.” Psalm 18:1-2 (The LORD Praised for Giving Deliverance.)

As for God, His way is blameless; The Word of the LORD is tried; He is a shield to all who take refuge in Him. For who is God, but the LORD? And who is a rock, except our God, The God who girds me with strength and makes my way blameless? Psalm 18:30-32 (The LORD Praised for Giving Deliverance.)

Foreigners fade away, and come trembling out of their fortresses. 
The LORD lives, and blessed be my rock; and exalted be the God of my salvation, 
the God who executes vengeance for me, and subdues peoples under me. Psalm 18:30-32 (The LORD Praised for Giving Deliverance.)

To You, O LORD, I call; my rock, do not be deaf to me, for if You are silent to me, I will become like those who go down to the pit. Hear the voice of my supplications when I cry to you for help, when I lift up my hands toward your holy sanctuary.  Psalm 28:1-2 (A Prayer for Help, and Praise for Its Answer)

In You, O LORD, I have taken refuge; Let me never be ashamed; In Your righteousness deliver me. Incline your ear to me, rescue me quickly; be to me a rock of strength, a stronghold to save me. For You are my rock and my fortress; For Your name's sake You will lead me and guide me.  Psalm 31:1-3 (A Psalm of Complaint and of Praise)

The LORD will command His loving kindness in the daytime; and His song will be with me in the night, a prayer to the God of my life. 
I will say to God my rock, "Why have You forgotten me?  Psalm 42:8-10

My soul waits in silence for God only; from Him is my salvation. He only is my rock and my salvation, my stronghold; I shall not be greatly shaken.

How long will you assail a man, that you may murder him, all of you, like a leaning wall, like a tottering fence?

They have counseled only to thrust him down from his high position; they delight in falsehood; they bless with their mouth, but inwardly they curse. Selah.

My soul, wait in silence for God only, for my hope is from Him. He only is my rock and my salvation, my stronghold; I shall not be shaken.

On God my salvation and my glory rest; the rock of my strength, my refuge is in God. Trust in Him at all times, O people; pour out your heart before Him; God is a refuge for us. Selah.

Men of low degree are only vanity and men of rank are a lie; in the balances they go up; they are together lighter than breath.

Do not trust in oppression and do not vainly hope in robbery; if riches increase, do not set your heart upon them.

Once God has spoken; twice I have heard this: that power belongs to God; and lovingkindness is Yours, O Lord, for You recompense a man according to his work.  Psalm 62:1-12 (God Alone a Refuge from Treachery and Oppression)

In You, O LORD, I have taken refuge; let me never be ashamed. In Your righteousness deliver me and rescue me; incline Your ear to me and save me.  Be to me a rock of habitation to which I may continually come; you have given commandment to save me, for You are my rock and my fortress.  Rescue me, O my God, out of the hand of the wicked, out of the grasp of the wrongdoer and ruthless man, for You are my hope; O Lord GOD, You are my confidence from my youth.  Psalm 71:1-5 (Prayer of an Old Man for Deliverance)

Once You spoke in vision to Your godly ones, and said, "I have given help to one who is mighty; I have exalted one chosen from the people. I have found David My servant; with My holy oil I have anointed him, with whom My hand will be established; My arm also will strengthen him. The enemy will not deceive him, nor the son of wickedness afflict him. But I shall crush his adversaries before him, and strike those who hate him.  My faithfulness and My lovingkindness will be with him, and in My name his horn will be exalted. I shall also set his hand on the sea and his right hand on the rivers.  He will cry to Me, 'You are my Father, My God, and the rock of my salvation.' I also shall make him My firstborn, the highest of the kings of the earth. My lovingkindness I will keep for him forever, and My covenant shall be confirmed to him.  So I will establish his descendants forever and his throne as the days of heaven.  Psalm 71:19-29 (Prayer of an Old Man for Deliverance)

They will still yield fruit in old age;
they shall be full of sap and very green, to declare that the LORD is upright;
He is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in Him. Psalm 92:14-15 

O come, let us sing for joy to the LORD, let us shout joyfully to the rock of our salvation. Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving, let us shout joyfully to Him with psalms. For the LORD is a great God and a great King  above all gods in whose hand are the depths of the earth, the peaks of the mountains are His also. The sea is His, for it was He who made it, and His hands formed the dry land. Come, let us worship and bow down, let us kneel before the LORD our Maker. For He is our God, and we are the people of His pasture and the sheep of His hand. Psalm 95:1-7 (Praise to the LORD, and Warning against Unbelief)

In that day this song will be sung in the land of Judah: "We have a strong city; He sets up walls and ramparts for security. Open the gates, that the righteous nation may enter, the one that remains faithful. The steadfast of mind You will keep in perfect peace, because he trusts in You. Trust in the LORD forever, for in GOD the LORD, we have an everlasting Rock.  Isaiah 26:1-4 (Song of Trust in God's Protection)


'Who is like Me? Let him proclaim and declare it;
yes, let him recount it to Me in order,
from the time that I established the ancient nation.
And let them declare to them the things that are coming
and the events that are going to take place. 
'Do not tremble and do not be afraid;
have I not long since announced it to you and declared it?
And you are My witnesses. 
Is there any God besides Me?
Or is there any other Rock?
 I know of none.'"  Isaiah 44:7-9 


"Then they will sweep through like the wind and pass on 
but they will be held guilty,
they whose strength is their god." 
Are You not from  everlasting,
O LORD, my God, my Holy One?
We will not die. 
You, O LORD, have appointed them to judge;
and You, O Rock, have established them to correct.  Habakkuk 1:11-13 

 FROM THE NEW TESTAMENT

 When Jesus tells the parable of the two men who built their homes, He makes clear what foundation is important. It is that built upon the Rock of Jesus Christ, Savior and God.

 "And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; DEPART FROM ME, YOU WHO PRACTICE LAWLESSNESS.'

 "Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them, may be compared to a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded on the rock. Matthew 7:23-25  (The Two Foundations)

"Everyone who comes to Me and hears My words and acts on them, I will show you whom he is like: he is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid a foundation on the rock; and when a flood occurred, the torrent burst against that house and could not shake it, because it had been well built.

 "But the one who has heard and has not acted accordingly, is like a man who built a house on the ground without any foundation; and the torrent burst against it and immediately it collapsed, and the ruin of that house was great." Luke 6:47-49 

Why? Because they did not pursue it by faith, but as though it were by works. They stumbled over the stumbling stone, just as it is written,
"BEHOLD, I LAY IN ZION A STONE OF STUMBLING AND A ROCK OF OFFENSE,
AND HE WHO BELIEVES IN HIM WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED."  Romans 9:32-33 

For I do not want you to be unaware, brethren, that our fathers were all under the cloud and all passed through the sea; and all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea; and all ate the same spiritual food; and all drank the same spiritual drink, for they were drinking from a spiritual rock which followed them; and the rock was Christ.       1 Corinthians 10:1-4

Finally, lets look at Peter's own words:

Therefore, putting aside all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander, like newborn babies, long for the pure milk of the word, so that by it you may grow in respect to salvation, if you have tasted the kindness of the Lord.

And coming to Him as to a living stone which has been rejected by men, but is choice and precious in the sight of God, you also, as living stones, are being built up as a spiritual house for a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.

For this is contained in Scripture:
"BEHOLD, I LAY IN ZION A CHOICE STONE, A PRECIOUS CORNER STONE,
AND HE WHO BELIEVES IN HIM WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED."

This precious value, then, is for you who believe; but for those who disbelieve,
"THE STONE WHICH THE BUILDERS REJECTED,
THIS BECAME THE VERY CORNER STONE," and,
"A STONE OF STUMBLING AND A ROCK OF OFFENSE";
for they stumble because they are disobedient to the word, and to this doom they were also appointed.

But you are A CHOSEN RACE, A royal PRIESTHOOD, A HOLY NATION, A PEOPLE FOR GOD’S OWN POSSESSION, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; for you once were NOT A PEOPLE, but now you are THE PEOPLE OF GOD; you had NOT RECEIVED MERCY, but now you have RECEIVED MERCY. 1 Peter 2:1-10

Here again, Peter declares Christ the corner stone and the Rock of offense.  We, those who put our faith in Christ are "living stones" who are being built up into that Church of Believers, the Bride of Christ and Peter tells us we are ALL a priesthood for proclaiming God's mercy and salvation. When Christ died upon the cross, God rent the vale in the temple, the barrier between us and Him. He gave us all the privileges once reserved for the Priests, direct access through Jesus to the Father by imbuing us with the Holy Spirit. There is no man between us and God if we have accepted his Gift of forgiveness.

It is on this Rock I stand, and no other.