A KEY CONFESSION Scripture: :1-4,13-21 SUNDAY DECEMBER 2, 2007

TWO PARTS TO THE INQUIRY 1. Who do people (men) say I am? 2. Who do you say I am?

OBSERVATIONS 1. If we don’t get this one RIGHT, NOTHING ELSE matters. 2. Who is TRUMPS everything else about Him. 3. Salvation itself and redemption’s plan HANG onWHO Jesus is, and by extension the eternal destiny of every living person. 4. The conviction and truth of who Jesus really is only comes through DIRECT revelation from God; it does not come through man’s reasoning, logic, study, reflection or examination of the available evidence. It is SPIRITUAL TRUTH communicated direct to our spirits by the of God.

SUMMARY THE MOST IMPORTANT QUESTION IS NOT: Who do your parents think He is? Who do your friends think He is? Who do your grandparents think He is? Who does your aunt, uncle or cousin think He is? Who does your spouse think He is? Who does the preacher think He is? Who does your teacher think He is? Who do the theologians think He is? Who do the philosophers think He is? What is the most popular theory as to who Jesus is? THE MOST IMPORTANT QUESTION ANY ONE OF US WILL EVER ANSWER IS THE ONE PUT TO US BY CHRIST HIMSELF IN MATTHEW 16:15

Who do YOU say Jesus is? What is YOUR confession? Who is Jesus to YOU personally? RESPONSIVE READING Matthew 16:13-21; Acts 4:8-12 When Jesus came to the region of , he asked his disciples, "Who do people say the Son of Man is?"

They replied, "Some say ; others say Elijah; and still others, or one of the prophets."

"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 , and the gates of Hades will not overcome 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."

Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them: "Rulers and elders of the people!

If we are being called to account today for an act of kindness shown to a cripple and are asked how he was healed, then know this, you and all the people of Israel:

It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed.

He is " `the stone you builders rejected, which has become the capstone. '

Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved."

RELATED SCRIPTURES

MT 16:17 Jesus replied, "Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven. 18 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. 19 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." 20 Then he warned his disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Christ.

MT 18:18 "I tell you the truth, whatever you BIND on earth will be BOUND in heaven, and whatever you LOOSE on earth will be LOOSED in heaven.

MT 18:19 "Again, I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything you ask for, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven. 20 For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them."

AC 2:36 "Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ."

12 When Peter saw this, he said to them: "Men of Israel, why does this surprise you? Why do you stare at us as if by our own power or godliness we had made this man walk? 13 The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God of our fathers, has glorified his servant Jesus. You handed him over to be killed, and you disowned him before Pilate, though he had decided to let him go. 14 You disowned the Holy and Righteous One and asked that a murderer be released to you. 15 You killed the author of life, but God raised him from the dead. We are witnesses of this. 16 By faith in the name of Jesus, this man whom you see and know was made strong. It is Jesus' name and the faith that comes through him that has given this complete healing to him, as you can all see.

AC 4:5 The next day the rulers, elders and teachers of the law met in . 6 Annas the high priest was there, and so were , John, Alexander and the other men of the high priest's family. 7 They had Peter and John brought before them and began to question them: "By what power or what name did you do this?"

AC 4:8 Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them: "Rulers and elders of the people! 9 If we are being called to account today for an act of kindness shown to a cripple and are asked how he was healed, 10 then know this, you and all the people of Israel: It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed. 11 He is " `the stone you builders rejected, which has become the capstone. '

AC 4:12 Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved."

JN 2:19 Jesus answered them, "Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days."

JN 2:20 The Jews replied, "It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and you are going to raise it in three days?" 21 But the temple he had spoken of was his body. 22 After he was raised from the dead, his disciples recalled what he had said. Then they believed the Scripture and the words that Jesus had spoken.

1CO 3:10 By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as an expert builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one should be careful how he builds. 11 For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Note: Today’s message is the first in a series of three. Matthew 16:13-27 contains what I like to refer to as “The Discipleship Tripod.” Today’s message deals with the first leg of the tripod; over the next two Sundays we will be looking at the other two.