“The Just Shall Live By Faith”

New King James Version                          Written by: David Hicks

 

Romans 1:17 “ For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, "The just shall live by faith."

Galatians 3:11 “But that no one is justified by the law in the sight of God is evident, for "the just shall live by faith."

Hebrews 10:38 “Now the just shall live by faith; But if anyone draws back, My soul has no pleasure in him."

“Articles of Faith"

An Orderly Account Of The Greatest Story Ever Told

(A Study in Luke)

Chapter 9:18-22:

In our last lesson, we looked into one of the greatest miracles the Lord would perform; verified by its mention in all four Gospels. In this lesson, we are going to take a close look at some of the greatest testimony pronouncing Jesus to be the Christ, the Son of God.

Text #1:

Luke 9:18-20 “And it happened, as He was alone praying, that His disciples joined Him, and He asked them, saying, “Who do the crowds say that I am?”
19 So they answered and said, “John the Baptist, but some say Elijah; and others say that one of the old prophets has risen again.”
20 He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?”
Peter answered and said, “The Christ of God.”

See also: Matthew 16:13-20; Mark 8:27-30.

Jesus has come back to Capernaum and has sent the multitudes away. He would then go to Caesarea Philippi along with His disciples (Mark 8:7). It would be during this intimate time that He would ask the questions at the heart of this portion of the lesson.

Who do the Crowds say that I am?: Here Jesus asks them to state the public opinion. It is noteworthy to realize that public opinion did not see Him as the Messiah; however, they would see Him as a prophet. Even though they did not see Him as the Messiah, seeing Him as a prophet of God would also leave them without excuse for not hearing His words! It is also noteworthy that public opinion is in stark contrast to the rulers, Pharisees, and the scribe's opinion (as they denied Him completely).

But Who do You say that I am?: In there travels with the Lord, they had plenty of time to formulate the answer to this question many times over. It is possible that Jesus is attempting to gauge the effectiveness of His personal teaching to them; however, the reason for the question is not given other than the interest expressed in the text.

Peter, often being the most forward of the disciples would pronounce the answer and make the great confession. It is also a point of interest to note that Peter asserts his answer as a point of fact and not a mere opinion or conjecture.

The confession promotes two proposals:

•  The office of Jesus as the Christ of God.

•  The Divinity of Jesus as the Son of God (Matthew 16:16).

In Matthew's account, Jesus would bless Peter using his full name for emphatic assurance that the confession was absolutely correct. He would additionally state that flesh and blood had not revealed this to Peter, but it was revealed by His Father in heaven (He who testified of Jesus as His Son by signs and wonders – Acts 2:22). Peter also made this confession during a calm period from the miracles they were privy to witness and so it was a rational expression based on the teachings of the Lord and the signs to confirm them.

Note: More discussion has taken place concerning Peter's role in this confession and the correct answer bestowing a blessing apart from the other disciples than virtually any other subject of the Bible. Rather than go into intricate detail concerning this subject, let's look at some common sense evidence that exists in these passages.

1.  Jesus said, “I will build My church”. There can be no doubt that Jesus is the only Head of the church – Matthew 28:18-20; Ephesians 1:22-23; Colossians 1:18. The church belongs solely to Him.

2.  There would be no other foundation for the church or anything else during the Messianic reign of Christ, other than Christ Jesus! This takes away all arguments as to what Jesus was referring to when He said, “On this rock I will build My church”! It could only be the confession that Peter made and not Peter himself, note:

1 Corinthians 3:11 “For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.”

Ephesians 2:19-22  “Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, 20 having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief corner stone, 21 in whom the whole building, being fitted together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord, 22 in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.”

3.  As noted in this last passage of scripture, all the Apostles are mentioned as the foundation layers with which they build upon Christ as the Corner Stone. There is no mention anywhere of a hierarchy among the chosen disciples of Christ, which would establish any of them above the others. In fact, while the Lord was alive, some of His disciples would seek prominence in the kingdom of heaven (see: Matthew 20:20-28; Luke 9:46-48), and Jesus would rebuke them sharply. So, if the Lord would not even assign prominence among His chosen, we should be very careful not to think of Peter above any of the others!

4.  The binding and loosing that would transpire when the kingdom of heaven was opened by the Apostles, was that which by the power of the Gospel would convict men to obedience or disobedience and then establish the believers in the doctrine of Christ (see: Matthew 28:18-20; Mark 16:15-16; Luke 24:46-47; John 20:23; Acts 1:8; 2:22-42). As we can easily see, this charge was given to all the Apostles universally.

Text #2:

Luke 9:21-22 “And He strictly warned and commanded them to tell this to no one, 22 saying, “The Son of Man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised the third day.”

See also: Matthew 16:21-23; Mark 8:30-33.

Strictly Warned: Here Luke states the same thing that was mentioned in Matthew 16:20; Mark 8:30. This would be very similar to the instruction He would give them after His transfiguration; where He would instruct them not to say anything about the event until after His resurrection from the dead (Matthew 17:9; Mark 9:10; Luke 9:36). In this we learn several things:

1.  The people were not ready to receive the truth, nor would they be until after His resurrection from the dead!

2.  The disciples of Christ had not yet received all the things that the Spirit would remind them of that Jesus would say to them (John 14:26). It is also quite obvious that they had not yet attained an understanding of all that Jesus had instructed them. This would be evident in the debate that would take place concerning what the Lord meant by the resurrection (Mark 9:10).

3.  Jesus had yet to complete all that the Father had given Him to do, (Vs. 21-22).

The Son of Man Must Suffer: The great confession has been made, they have all been warned not to speak of this yet, which shows they all shared the same understanding concerning who He was. Now Jesus will add to their understanding concerning the Christhood and how it must be obtained. Jesus would teach them to their dismay that He must suffer many things, be rejected, finally killed, and then to rise on the third day.

Peter took Him Aside: Matthew and Mark would record that Peter again being the brashest of the group would pull the Lord aside and rebuke Him for these words. This enforces the notion that none of them understood exactly what the Lord was teaching them (this would persist even up to the completion of these events, see – Matthew 28:17; Mark 16:11, 13; Luke 24:11; John 20:9). This is also the first time that He has spoken plainly concerning these events; prior to this the references have been rather obscure, see: John 2:19-22; 3:14; Matthew 12:38-40. This might also explain why there was such a reaction to His teaching.

Get Behind Me Satan: To those who attempt to elevate Peter above the others because he was first to confess Jesus as the Christ; here we see that being first does not always equal good things. Peter was unwittingly trying to dissuade Jesus from the death on which salvation of the world depended, and this was working into Satan's hand. Here Jesus establishes to Peter and to us who read this text, that Jesus' suffering, rejection, death, and resurrection was the will of God, and no one in heaven or earth was going to be able to fight against it!

Next: “Follow Him and the Transfiguration”