Matthew 16 is the first time Jesus presses his disciples to say out loud who they think Jesus really is. Peter gets Jesus right: “You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God.” Jesus grabs that testimony and makes it the foundation for his people – the Church. If as the Church we don’t get Jesus right, we lose our foundation and our identity. May we see Jesus this week as we open his Word. Next week we’ll look at the second part of this scene where Peter gets Jesus all wrong.
This week we are looking at Jesus’ encounter with a Canaanite woman. This woman approaches Jesus with great faith that he will heal her daughter, but Jesus defies our expectations by ignoring her, ostracizing her, and even insulting her. The woman, however, persists in her request. Her actions prove an understanding of Jesus that goes beyond the surface level of his words, and Jesus praises her faith. May we listen beyond the words so that we truly hear the God who speaks.
We don’t need much convincing that we are not perfect people; sin is a huge problem for us. Yet God has adopted all who believe as his children and has declared that we have full rights as his heirs. What kind of God can do that? Today churches around the world focus on the triune God: the Father who created us and adopts us; the Son who by his life, death and resurrection opened the door to the family, and the Spirit who seals our adoption and shapes us to live into the family name. May we live into our family identity as we walk in step with the Spirit.
Through this season of Easter we have been looking at the blessings that God gives to us only through Christ’s death and resurrection. We finish this series by focusing on the gift that encompasses them all: Peace through the Blood. Through Christ, God has done more than simply declare a cease-fire or provide a way for us to get along with him. Through Christ, God has completely reconciled us to himself and has completely restored the relationship that sin had severed. What a glorious gift we have received through Nothing but the Blood of Jesus!