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.

Freed to Serve

April 28, 2025
Notes from Scott Sutton's sermon on Sunday, April 27, 2025. Sermon text: 1 Peter 2:11-17 This is the beginning of a section addressing how God's people now function in this world. It begins with aliens and exiles and continues with servants, wives, husbands, and finally, all of you. 1.) Our identity defines our actions. We are sojourners and exiles (temporary, passing through, not at home) We have a heavenly citizenship Actions We abstain from the passions of the flesh Keep conduct among the Gentiles honorable (our conduct is for the benefit of other people) Honorable conduct wins souls… sojourners, exiles, and soul winners “Peter’s point is that believers’ behavior creates a context in which people will listen to God’s word. He is not teaching that ‘good deeds’ in themselves convert unbelievers, but they establish an environment for the Gospel-word to do so.” -Barnett 2.) Our identity defines our expectations (Unbelievers will respond to honorable conduct in 1 of 2 ways) Some will speak evil against us as though we are evildoers Some will see our good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation 3.) Our identity defines our view of authority (Does anyone here ever just want to do whatever you want to do, whenever you want to do it? That’s why laws exist) Be subject to every human institution (for the Lord's sake) This includes governors and emperors (no distinction between good/bad) The will of God... by doing good, we silence the ignorance of foolish people 4.) Our identity defines our view of freedom Don't use freedom as a cover-up for evil We are freed to serve God Honor, Love, and Fear Discipleship Questions: 1.)Why is it so important to understand our identity before talking about our behavior? 2.) How might this reality impact your parenting? For real, what are 3 ways that you can apply that this week? 3.) How is good conduct a form of evangelism? 4.) What do these verses say that we can expect from others? 5.) How can we honor a government that isn't always honorable? Seriously, what are 5 things we should immediately stop doing and 5 things we should immediately start doing? 6.) What are some tangible ways to honor others? Love the brotherhood? Fear God? Honor the Emperor? 7.) Should we fear the Emperor?

Cornerstone

April 22, 2025
Notes from Ky Martin's sermon on Sunday, April 20, 2025. Sermon text: 1 Peter 2:4-10 Everyone must accept or reject Jesus. He is the cornerstone. We choose to accept Him as the foundation of our lives or toss the truth aside. When we come to Jesus… We become part of His People 1 Pe 2:4-5 As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, 5 you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. The cornerstone is The New Temple. From this we learn that following Christ entails joining his community, the church…The freelance Christian, who follows Jesus but is too good, too busy, or too self-sufficient for the church, is a walking contradiction. -Daniel M. Doriani We join a royal, holy, priesthood 1 Pet. 2:9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Because of who Jesus makes us. We receive God’s mercy Fallen man is not simply an imperfect creature who needs improvement: he is a rebel who must lay down his arms….Now repentance is no fun at all. It is something much harder than merely eating humble pie. It means unlearning all the self-conceit and self-will that we have been training ourselves into for thousands of years. It means undergoing a kind of death. Acts 17:30-31 The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent, 31 because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed; and of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead.” Discipleship Questions: Why is it impossible to be neutral about Jesus? Why do you believe that Jesus truly is the Son of God? Do you ever have doubts about this? If yes, what are they? According to 1 Peter 2:9, who are we after we come to Christ? Why does Paul say (in 1 Corinthians) that if Christ is not risen, our faith is in vain?

Born Again

April 16, 2025
Notes from Scott Sutton's sermon on Sunday, April 13, 2025. Sermon text: 1 Peter 2:2-3 Why do our souls ache for certainty? We are so eager for certainty that we will look for it in all the wrong places. - Certainty in our Finances [show slide from news] - Certainty in our Jobs [Acts 17:24-27] - Certainty in our Health [Covid] - Certainty in our Abilities [Ecclesiastes 3:11 “God has put eternity into man’s heart, yet so that he cannot find out what God has done from the beginning to the end.”] “Things that have never happened before are happening every day.” -Morgan Housel In these verses, God gives us what our souls ache for! 1.) You must be born again of imperishable seed - We have all been born of perishable seed o Impure souls o Disobedient to truth o Unloving insincerity toward others o Lack of loving effort o Impure hearts - We are withering grass and falling flowers - The imperishable seed is the living and abiding Word of God o Does not wither o Does not fall o Does not let us down o It remains forever o It MUST BE PREACHED! But still, how can we be certain that we have been born again? 2.) If you are born again, hope will be seen in your relationships When your relationship with God changes, God changes your relationships! - Sincere brotherly love - Love earnestly - Put away… o Malice o Deceit o Hypocrisy o Envy o All Slander 3.) If you are born again, hope will be seen in your appetite for God’s Word - Like newborn infants - Long for the pure spiritual milk Discipleship Questions: 1.) Where are some unhealthy places where you look for certainty? 2.) Why do you do that? 3.) What were some evidences of your perishable seed before you came to Christ? Any of that still lingering that needs to be repented from? 4.) Why does Peter call the Word of God the imperishable seed? 5.) In light of the text, how would you describe being "born again" to a 5-year-old? 6.) How has imperishable hope proven itself in your relationships? OR How might it if you lean into loving others earnestly? 7.) Why does Peter tell us that hope will be seen in our appetite for God's Word?
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