Last week Jesus claimed God’s name I AM, WHO I AM when he calmed the storm, walked on water and said “It is I.” There is tremendous power in a name. Today we will hear tell of disciples trying to name Jesus and Jesus renaming Simon Peter, the rock, upon which the church is built.
On my trip to Geyserville to go wine tasting this summer, we stopped in the old general store. All there is in this one light town is the inn where we stayed, two restaurants and this general store. You know the kind where two men are sitting in the back telling stories, with an old dog lying at their feet and more tack and tackle and souvenirs than you know what to do with. In one of the display cases I found a black cast iron key with three hooks to hang your keys. Parker and I put it up in the entry so that we can find our keys and instantly know who is home (that’s helpful). Of course our need for this key is a function of the fact that my older son got his license in July and my younger son will be taking his test his week. Say a prayer. So keys, driving and patience have been a big part of my life. Anyone who has done student driving with their child knows this is a challenge. I have already heard the phrase, “Mom we need to talk… the car is OK.” I have white knuckled it sometimes, encourage when I can, and say lots of prayers. Every time I get out of the car I say a prayer of thanksgiving much like our psalmist said this morning. I certainly feel like “on the day I called, God answered me and increased the strength of my soul”… with this learning curve for driving. My sons really are good drivers!
In all honesty, with these keys comes a great deal of responsibility. In addition to the freedom and new experiences, comes the need to care for the car, be a safe driver, and earn money for insurance and gas. We all know what it takes to have a car and the independence it can afford. The car key is simply a symbol for all of that. But I am getting ahead of myself.
On NPR I heard a discussion on journalism and one person said with all the expanded ways of finding news people are tending to use the news as confirmation rather than information. I find that both interesting as well as troubling. Good journalism addresses who, what, where, when and why. Our gospel does pretty well. Where is Caesarea of Philippi. When is in the middle of Jesus’ ministry. But the focus is certainly on the “Who?” Jesus first asks the broad question, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” He is asking about public perception of the Son of Man. Jesus is almost saying what have you heard about the Son of Man, about me, what are your wonderings? Remember Jesus is asking his followers and they come up with four different answers: John the Baptist, Elijah, Jeremiah or a prophet. It feels like when you hear one group of Christians say this is who Jesus is, but then another groups says he is something completely different. Then another group knocks on your door to say something else. This can be very confusing and turn you off completely. Jesus quickly moves from “Who do THEY say HE is?” to “making it personal saying, “Who do YOU say that I am?” Simon jumps right in and says, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”
Jesus has touched Simon’s heart and Simon has an experience of the divine. He senses who Jesus really is without being told. He comes to his own conclusion having spent time with Jesus: following him, listening to him. Jesus even says (God) has revealed this to you. Simon claims, in essence names, who Jesus is and then Jesus renames Simon Peter. I’m not sure if this analogy works, but it is like when you truly see your partner for the first time and in that moment you give them a name: nickname or a pet name. You can only say those names upon truly discovering the other. One commentator implied Jesus calls Peter, “Rocky.” I say that tongue-in-cheek. You see Peter (Petros) was not a name in use in that time, but Jesus continues saying, on this rock (petra) I will build my church. Petros (Peter) and petra (rock) are very close. Peter does become a rock of the church and Peter’s name does get changed in the moment he declares who Jesus is. Peter changes when he names Jesus Messiah, Son of Living God. Jesus is saying the foundation, the rock of the church, is personally naming Jesus in your life.
In that same moment Jesus gives Peter the keys to the kingdom of heaven. What are those keys and what is Jesus talking about with “bind” and “loose” on earth as it is in heaven? It sounds like the Lord’s Prayer “God’s kingdom come, God’s will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” Bind and loose come from rabbinical teaching and interpretation of the law. It also speaks to Jesus reinterpreting what is allowed and what is required in Jewish teaching moving forward as Christians. If we really think about it, loose is like freedom and bind is like responsibility. Let me say that again, loose is like freedom and bind is like responsibility. Jesus gives Peter the keys to the kingdom, freedom and responsibility, and says this is a new relationship and this is how it works. The same way the keys I have just given to my boys mean they can do lots of new and amazing things exploring the world, it also means there are responsibilities they need to assume. Jesus certainly gives us many amazing joys in our relationship with him, but he also expects things from us in return. The church can be likened to a community of people who help new Christians learn to drive on the roads of faith. You might want to turn right on red, but don’t see the no turn on red sign. More importantly the community is a place of encouragement, care and patience as you explore who Jesus is and face the ups and downs of life. We will certainly pray for you in your travels. I want to be clear on this point. We are not ALL going to drive on this Christian highway the same way. If truth be told, I tend to drive a little too fast while others of you will be more cautious. All of us try to follow rules for our safety and for the safety of others.
All of this happened when Peter named Jesus the Messiah, Son of the living God. There is power in a name, and power in naming. So I want to take a page out of Jesus’ playbook and ask, “Who do you say that Jesus is?” For some this will be a rhetorical question much like it was for the other eleven disciples. I will soon join you to hear your answers. Now I realize some might have no idea who Jesus is and would like to find out. That desire is more than enough of a key on this journey of faith. I am hoping there will be a few Peters in the bunch who in five words or less will name your experience of the living God. In five words or less, who Jesus is in their life.
