“When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he
asked his disciples,
‘Who do people say the Son of Man is?’” (Matthew
16:13, NIV).
Back in Jesus’ time, Caesarea
Philippi and its surrounding area were known as a centre of pagan worship. Both
Philip, the brother of Herod Antipas (ruled Caesarea Philippi on behalf of the
Romans), and his father Herod the Great, sponsored the construction of pagan
temples and public works. The population of the area was mostly Gentile, so the
trip took Jesus and twelve disciples out of their usual circumstances. Shrines
and other reminders of pagan practices would have been all around them [There
was an altar dedicated to Greek god Pan who claimed to be god (100% god) living
among men; and a statue of Roman Emperor (100% man) who claimed himself to be
god. But Jesus claimed to be both born of a virgin (100% man) and the Son of
God (100% God). Which one is true?]. This was the setting for Jesus’ crucial
question for the disciples.
The trip to a new region
took place at the height of Jesus’ ministry. Jesus at this time had become the
focal point of a religious/political power struggle in Israel. The structure of
power presented by the Sadducees and Pharisees had rejected Jesus as Messiah.
They all want to remove Jesus from the scene. But throughout these days, Jesus seemed to remain deliberate but never
desperate. He was not campaigning for popularity but desires to practice compassion.
Previously he fed four thousand (see Matthew 15:32-38), not to increase his
following or ‘likes’, but because, Jesus “had compassion
for these people; they have already been with me three days and have nothing to
eat. I do not want to send them away hungry, or they may collapse on the way”
(v. 32). He never asked for approval but to reveal his authority!
Jesus asked his question
when he was alone with his disciples. The answer to this question were
instances in which Jesus communicated with his intimate followers certain truth
they wouldn’t understand until later. Jesus
was preparing them for his eventual departure long before they were ready to
consider the fact that Jesus had to die and rise again in order to accomplish
God’s plan. He was about to give them the treasure – Jesus is the Messiah, the
Son of the living God – that included all the facets of his life and ministry.
He would ask them to hold this treasure in confidence until the time was right
to share it with the world.
Think about this: Not
every principle we read or story we study in Scripture has an immediate
personal application. Some lessons are
preparatory like the reality of Jesus as the Messiah, the Son of God to his
disciples in this text. We may understand, for example, a concept like God’s
ownership of the church but not recognize the personal important of God’s
sovereign work through his church until we have been Christ followers for
years. I urge you now to thank God for his constant presence with you that make
it possible for you to have times apart from distractions to be alone with him.
Praise God for the teaching of his Word, which can bear fruit in your life
immediately and also in years to come. Amen.
Today’s lessons maybe a preparation for tomorrow’s
journey
THINK BIG.
START SMALL. GO DEEP.
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