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Sermon for the Thirteenth Sunday after Pentecost – August 23, 2026
Matthew 16:13-20
Dear friends, grace to you and peace from God our Father and our Lord Jesus Christ.
Who is Jesus, really? Some say he was a teacher of great moral truths. Some say he was a social activist who spoke truth to power and challenged empire. Adherents of Islam say Jesus was one prophet among many, and nothing more. Many atheists say Jesus never existed at all but was merely the main character in an ancient fairy tale.
Who is Jesus, really? For those of us who look to scripture to answer that question, we get a crisp, clear answer today from the lips of Peter and the pen of Matthew.
Jesus asked his disciples what people were saying about him, who people thought he was. Some thought Jesus was John the Baptist. Some thought he was Elijah. Still others thought he might be Jeremiah or another of the prophets. “But who do you say that I am,” Jesus asked. Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” And Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon Son of Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father in heaven.”
In other words, this great confession of faith did not come to Peter because he was wise or committed or spiritually accomplished. Peter did not conjure up this answer himself. It was given to him as a gift. God the Father revealed it to him, Jesus said. God put the correct answer on Peter’s lips, and Matthew, in recording what Peter said, put it to paper for all of us to see, so that we would know who Jesus really is too!
Jesus is the Messiah. “Messiah” or mashiac in Hebrew, simply means “anointed.” At its most basic level it literally means “someone who has been dabbed on the forehead with oil.” However, anointing was used to mark someone for a special office or calling. People were anointed to serve as prophets. People were anointed to serve as priests. People were anointed to serve as kings. Over time the word Messiah became a title associated with the one God promised to send to be the ultimate prophet, bringing the fullness of God’s word to people. It became associated with the one God promised to send to be the ultimate priest, the ultimate intermediary, giving people access to God. It became associated with the one God promised to send to be the ultimate king, the one who would usher in the kingdom of God. And so when Jesus asked the disciples, “Who do you say that I am?” and Peter replied, “You are the Messiah,” he was saying a lot! God had revealed to him that Jesus was the fulfillment of all God’s promises to speak his word to us, to give us access to himself, to bring us into his kingdom. Jesus was the Messiah who would do all these things!
Peter also said that Jesus was “the Son of the living God.” Peter was saying a lot here too! As the Son of the living God Jesus is uniquely qualified to show us God. He is uniquely qualified to speak for God. He is the embodiment of a living God – an active, involved, personal God who is present in and through the life and ministry of his Son. And so God revealed to Peter that when we look at and listen to Jesus, we see and hear the true and living God.
Jesus called Peter blessed. He was blessed! He had been blessed by God the Father, who revealed to Peter the truth about his Son. And then Jesus said to him: “You are Peter, and on this rock, I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it.”
There’s a little bit of wordplay going on here. Peter, petros in Greek, literally means “rock.” So, Jesus is having fun with Peter’s name. But Jesus is also making a huge promise here. Jesus promises to build his church on this rock. So what is this rock?
Well, I’ll tell you what it isn’t. It isn’t Peter the person. Peter the person could be a little rocky. Our gospel reading ends at verse 20, but if you keep reading just three verses beyond that, Jesus is calling Peter Satan and telling him to get behind him! A few chapters later, Peter will deny and abandon Jesus. It is true that after the resurrection Peter becomes a bold and powerful preacher. It is fair to call Peter the first pope, as our Roman Catholic brothers and sisters like to do. He was the first leader of the Christian church; there’s no doubt about it. But even after the resurrection we find Peter compromising the gospel and needing correction from Paul – a story we hear about in Paul’s letter to the Galatians.
Jesus does build a church, and he does build it on a rock – but that rock is not the person of Peter. The rock is the word Peter proclaimed, the word which was revealed to him by God the Father. The rock is the good news that Jesus is the Messiah and the Son of the living God. The rock is the public proclamation of the truth of who Jesus really is. The foundation of the church is the word that the Father himself has given us to share with the world. The moment the church or any of its preachers stray from that word and try to do their own thing, Jesus says to them, “Get behind me, Satan!”
The church as an institution has often been a source of great disappointment for many people. We live in a time of widespread distrust of institutions, including the church – often for good reason. We sometimes find ourselves deeply embarrassed by the dumb things said or the wicked things done by people wearing a cross or a collar.
This can be deeply troubling at times. It bothers me too. But it is nothing new. St. Paul writes in 2 Corinthians that “we have this treasure in clay jars,” or “we have this treasure in earthen vessels,” or, in my favorite translation, “we have this treasure in cracked pots.” This verse refers to how the very human church as an institution is deeply flawed and frequently disappointing. And yet, it contains a treasure. It has the word of God. It has the truth about Jesus. It has the good news that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of the living God. The church is holy, but it is only holy insofar as it bears this truth, this treasure. The office of the holy ministry is established by God, but this office is inseparable from the word. Those called to this office are only authorized to proclaim what God the Father has revealed in his word. The rock upon which Jesus builds his church is the word revealed by the Father and confessed by Peter, and ultimately nothing will ever budge or break this rock – even the gates of Hades will not prevail against it!
This rock is the foundation and the guide for our lives as Christians, and we desperately need it. In a confusing world with many different claims to what is true, we need this rock. In a world with so many different voices pulling us in different directions, we need this rock.
When my wife and I were in Hawaii this summer we hiked the Kilauea Iki trail, a four-mile loop which begins and ends in tropical forest but takes you through the middle of a volcanic caldera. The caldera part was such a contrast to the tropical forest. It was fascinating, but I certainly wouldn’t call it pretty. It was stark and barren. There were parts that looked like a moonscape. There were parts that looked like a freeway after an earthquake. There were parts that were just a huge open expanse of empty space. There was no regular trail in the caldera, like there was in the tropical forest, and so in several places we were confused about which way to go. But then we started noticing these carefully stacked piles of rocks which were placed strategically along the way. These rock piles are sometimes called cairns, and hikers use them to help mark the way. Those rocks were our guide. Those rocks showed us the way. Those rocks kept us on the correct path. Those rocks kept us from wandering away and getting lost.
As we make our way through life, we need guidance – especially through the stark and barren and confusing parts. We need those markers along the way. God’s word is that guide. The word revealed to us by the Father is the cairn that keeps us going the right direction, leading us into the truth. Sunday after Sunday, we come to another pile of rocks which show us the way. Every time we turn to God’s word, we are nudged back onto the right path. God’s word not only guides our behavior, though it should. It not only teaches us God’s will for us, though it does that too. God’s word guides us into the truth about Jesus, who is the way, and the truth, and the life.
Who is Jesus, really? He is the Messiah, the Son of the living God.
When Peter made this good confession Jesus said to him: “Blessed are you, Simon Son of Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father in heaven.”
Blessed are you, too. Because today God the Father has revealed to you the truth about his Son.
Keep close to this rock, and you will never be lost.
Thanks be to God. Amen.
Rev. Jeffrey R. Spencer
Oak Harbor Lutheran Church