Crucial Questions

Megan Bryant • May 26, 2021

Summary of sermon on Matthew 16:13-20 from Pastor Lance Shumake.

You can read your Bible and have no other resources. But when we see it mention where Jesus is, it's a good idea to stop and see if there is any significance to that place. 


Caesarea Philippi was way north and a very different kind of place from where Jesus typically did ministry. It was known for all kinds of beliefs; and named after Philip and Caesar who worshipped Baal and Pan. In this area, people believed whatever they wanted to believe. 


It was in this area where Jesus asked his disciples some crucial questions. 


The first question is one that the world consistently gets wrong... "Who do the people say that I am?"


People outside of Christianity get this question wrong. The disciples say that some say Jesus is John the Baptist come back, or Elijah. They are pointing to the greatest prophets. 


The world continues to say that Jesus seems like a good teacher - maybe He is one of the ways that we can find God. The world tries to put Him in the category of example because they don’t want to look at Him as God. 


Jesus can’t just be a good teacher or a prophet and say the things that he said. That is why they killed Him because He was claiming to be God. He claimed to be God because He was God. 


“Let us not say, ‘I'm ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don't accept his claim to be God.’ That is one thing we must not say. "A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic--on the level with the man who says he is a poached egg-- or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God: or else a madman or something worse. You can shut Him up for a fool, you can spit at Him and kill Him as a demon; or you can fall at His feet and call Him Lord and God. But let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about His being a great moral teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to.”  


— C.S. Lewis


The most important question Jesus asks is... "Who do you say that I am?"


Every single one of us has to get this question right. Peter gets this question right. “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Jesus is God in the flesh. 


“In him, the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily.” Colossians 2:9


The sum of what Peter is saying is that Jesus is Lord. It is the fundamental Christian confession. We have to get this right. 


Does your life reflect that Jesus is Lord? If we really believe this, it should show up in every area of your life - not just on Sundays. 


What Jesus does in response to Peter, is he commends him. Jesus then connects this fundamental Christian confession to the church. It becomes the foundation of the church. 


Jesus changes Simon’s name to Peter (which means, "The Rock") and makes him the foundation of the church. Jesus is the head of the church, and he built his foundation on the leadership of His disciples. 


We don’t have to all think the same because we are united under one truth that Jesus is Lord. 


Jesus says some things about the church that are really important: 


The church is unstoppable. 


Death will not prevail against the church. This is a foreshadowing that he will conquer death and the grave. 


The church is the steward of God’s blessing. 


There is a false understanding that the leaders of the church get the keys to the kingdom to determine who gets in. 


The church is the stewards of God’s blessing on this earth. Be a blessing to your community, neighborhood, city, all of the earth. 


The church obeys and carries out God’s will on earth. 


When the church makes a proclamation, it is because God has already made that proclamation. We have a role of representing and carrying out God’s will on earth. 


In verse 18, Jesus says, “I will build my church.” It is important that Jesus uses the word “I” because He is the one that builds the church. 


We sow seeds, but God makes the church grow. 


He also says He “will build.” It’s not a hope that this will work out. Jesus is going to build His church, and we are just going to trust him with it. 


The church word does not mean a building. He is going to build his assembly of people. We are His. 


Jesus told His disciples not to tell anyone because they didn’t really understand what a messiah was yet. He wants us to take this message to the world.

Arm Yourselves

June 11, 2025
Notes from Ky Martin's sermon on Sunday, June 8, 2025. Sermon text: 1 Peter 4:1-6 Prepare to suffer Is. 50:6-8a I gave my back to those who strike, and my cheeks to those who pull out the beard; I hid not my face from disgrace and spitting. 7 But the Lord God helps me; therefore I have not been disgraced; therefore I have set my face like a flint, and I know that I shall not be put to shame. 8 He who vindicates me is near. The martial language indicates that discipline and grit are needed to live the Christian life, particularly in view of the suffering believers encounter. -Thomas R. Schreiner Some people won’t like you if you follow Jesus When a culture abandons biblical standards, when extramarital sex, cohabitation, and birth outside of marriage become normal, people attack the church for its moral snobbery and judgmentalism. Peter warns us that if we do take a stand, we need to expect slander, not applause. -Daniel M. Dorian This is one of the hardest things a new Christian has to face. Your friends liked you because you shared in “the same flood of debauchery.” It seemed great fun at times, but then you came to embrace Christ… But your friends have not… They will be surprised when you say “No.” -Juan Sanchez. Keep an eternal perspective Our outcome is glorious Suffering is good for us Let’s remember that suffering accomplishes God’s purposes. It exposes what or whom we are trusting (1 Peter 1:6–7). - Juan Sanchez Ecc. 7:2 It is better to go to the house of mourning than to go to the house of feasting, for this is the end of all mankind, and the living will lay it to heart. Discipleship Questions: Verse 1 tell us to arm ourselves by thinking as Christ did about suffering. How did Christ arm himself for and against sufferings? What does it look like for us to do that? Have you ever lost friendships (or had them change) because you were following Jesus? Do you fear that we (or our kids) will experience greater persecution in the future? If yes, how should we handle that fear?

I Believe That We Will Win

June 3, 2025
Notes from Lance Shumake's sermon on Sunday, June 1, 2025. Sermon text: 1 Peter 3:18-22 Jesus suffered and died in order to bring us to God Jesus conquered death by his resurrection “A wonderful text is this, and a more obscure passage perhaps than any other in the New Testament, so that I do not know for a certainty just what Peter means.” —Martin Luther Problem #1 - he went and proclaimed to the spirits in prison —Jesus preached through Noah to those who lived at that time (1 Peter 1:10–12) —Jesus proclaimed His victory to evil angels (see Genesis 6:1-4) Problem #2 - baptism now saves you —Scripture is clear - we are saved by grace not works —baptism pictures our salvation from God’s judgment through the resurrection of Christ “The waters of baptism, like the waters of the flood, demonstrate that destruction is at hand, but believers are rescued from these waters in that they are baptized with Christ, who has also emerged from the waters of death through his resurrection. Just as Noah was delivered through the stormy waters of the flood, believers have been saved through the stormy waters of baptism by virtue of Christ’s triumph over death.” —Thomas R. Schreiner, 1, 2 Peter, Jude —in baptism we are appealing to God for a good conscience "This appeal is an act of the heart looking away from itself and from all human instruments and calling on God, appealing to God, for grace to save.” —John Piper —in baptism we are pledging to God to live in a manner worthy of the gospel Jesus ascended to heaven and now reigns over everything “We can face suffering as Christians with confidence rather than panic, and hope rather than despair, because the road marked with Christian suffering is, no matter what its twists and turns are, the road to vindication and glory. The God who vindicated Jesus will vindicate you, and he will sustain your faith until that day.” –Juan R. Sanchez, 1 Peter For You Discipleship Questions: How does Jesus’ death and resurrection encourage us when we suffer? Why did we need Jesus to suffer and die to bring us to God? How does Jesus’ victory over death give us eternal hope? What are your thoughts regarding some of the problems in this passage? How does what Peter says about baptism elevate the importance of baptism? When were you baptized and how does this passage inform your understanding of baptism? How does knowing our victory is secured help us with all the things this life throws at us?

Who Can Be Against Us?

May 27, 2025
Notes from Ky Martin's sermon on Sunday, May 25, 2025. Sermon text: 1 Peter 3:13-17 Nobody can (truly) hurt Christians Psalm 118:6 The Lord is on my side; I will not fear. What can man do to me? Rom. 8:31 What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? The train of thought is as follows: “No one will be able to harm believers on the future day if they are zealous for good” (v. 13). Indeed, even present suffering is not a sign of punishment but of blessing both now and especially in the future, on the day when God rewards his people with eternal life. -Thomas R. Schreiner Honoring Christ Erases Fear Share your faith with strength and gentleness Embrace balance Be prepared to share The truth of the gospel is a public truth that can be defended in the public arena. This does not mean, of course, that every Christian is to be a highly skilled apologist for the faith. It does mean that every believer should grasp the essentials of the faith and should have the ability to explain to others why they think the Christian faith is true. -Thomas R. Schreiner Be prepared to suffer “I’ve spent a number of years in India and Africa where I found much righteous endeavor undertaken by Christians of all denominations; but I never, as it happens, came across a hospital or orphanage run by the Fabian Society [a British socialist organization], or a humanist leper colony.” -Malcolm Muggeridge Be bold! We will likely suffer as Christians in this world, but that suffering is slight and temporary compared to the eternal inheritance that awaits us. The worst thing that can happen to us is that we die and receive our promised inheritance. Can you imagine how emboldened Christians would be if we only believed what Peter is saying? -Juan R. Sanchez Discipleship Questions: Does the fact that nobody can (truly) harm us comfort you? What would change if we lived like we really believe that? Are you a more confident person as someone who knows Christ? Does your security in Christ embolden you to take some risks in life, knowing that the worst that could happen is death? How equipped / prepared are you to give a reason for the hope that you have? What would grow your confidence and competence in that? Have you considered joining Michael Clark one day for evangelism at the harbor? Well….you should….
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