285. Tuesday after Fifth Sunday after Trinity.
Lord, reveal to us thy glory. Amen.
Matthew 16, 13-19. When Jesus came into the coasts of Cæsarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, saying, Whom do men say that I, the Son of Man, am? And they said, Some say that thou art John the Baptist; some, Elias; and others, Jeremias, or one of the prophets. He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am? And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-jona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven. And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter; and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth, shall be bound in heaven; and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth, shall be loosed in heaven.
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Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God, true and everlasting God; and the Son of Man, true man of the race of Adam. This is the faith and confession of the church. Such a faith cannot be born in the heart save by the Spirit of God; and it is an unmistakable seal of membership in the church. “None can say that Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Ghost.” We may regard him as the greatest teacher, the wisest sage, and the foremost founder of a religion; but to believe in him as “the true God and eternal life” is something which none can do, but by the Holy Ghost. He who knows himself as a lost sinner, and believes that Jesus Christ, God and man, died for us, and lives for us; he is enlightened of God, and is a blessed man. The Holy Ghost does not create loose opinions or dry views, but a positive conviction in regard to the Inconceivable One, and a hearty trust in the Invisible One; moving the soul to give itself to him, rely on him, and confess him in life and death.
The church is not built on the person of Peter, who in himself was weak; but on the truth that Jesus, the Son of Man, is the Christ, the Son of the living God; and as the truth is immovable, the church stands immovable against all the power of hell. Remain on this rock, dear soul, and have no fear, even though there be violent storms on every hand. The sword of temporal power and the pen of the great intellects are alike powerless in their attack on the camp of God. “God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved; God shall help her, and that right early.” (Psalm 46, 5). By the grace of the Spirit we also shall remain in the camp. If the accuser could gain control of our conscience, we were undone; but we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous; and we have the office of forgiveness of sins among us, and we walk in light before God. You have access to him at all times with the petition: “Forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.” And when your sin becomes especially heavy to bear, when you again feel the venomous fang of the serpent, you must make use of the power which the Lord gave to Peter and the whole church, to absolve from sin; and you must go to the communion table, from which point you have the clearest view of the Savior on the cross (John 3, 14. 15); so shall you be healed, and remain one of his quickened people. Through these seemingly little and insignificant things, absolution and the holy Supper, the Lord strengthens our souls to such a degree that Satan with all his anger and all his mighty power is put to shame. The rock of our salvation, Christ, is sure.
Lord Jesus, give us the light of the Spirit, that we may believe in thee unto righteousness, and confess thee unto salvation. Amen.*
Yea, as I live, Jehovah saith,
I do not wish the sinner’s death,
But that he turn from error’s ways,
Repent, and live through endless days.
What ye shall bind, that bound shall be;
What ye shall loose, that shall be free;
For unto you the keys are given
To ope or close the gates of heaven.
They who believe, when ye proclaim
The joyful tidings, in my name,
That I for them my blood have shed,
Are free from guilt and judgment dread.
[Evangelical Lutheran Hymnal 245; listen here]
* Here the head of the family says a short morning or evening prayer in his own words, and closes with the Lord’s Prayer and the Benediction. This is to be done every day. If the stanzas are not sung, they may be read in their proper place before the impromptu petition and the Lord’s Prayer.