Matthew 16: 13-20
27 August, 2017
Trinity, Monroe
“Take my lips, oh Lord, and speak through them; take our minds and think with them. Take our hearts and set them on fire, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen
What stood out for you as we read today’s powerful gospel lesson? Jesus’ question to his disciples always jumps out for me. “But who do you say I am?” It’s an important question I think. After all, our answer stands to make a big difference in how we live day to day. Then there’s Peter’s answer to the question. It sounds so spontaneous, spoken from the heart of this outspoken man who often seems to put his foot in his mouth. How often have we heard him say just the wrong thing at the wrong time? In today’s Gospel he gets it just right though. “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” Well, yes, we answer. Of course, Jesus is the Messiah, the Christ. It seems self-evident. It confirms what we already know from countless Sunday School lessons, hymns, Bible studies and sermons. It’s just that, in my experience, each time I read such a familiar passage something different stands out. This time it’s the pun we don’t really hear. Jesus said; “you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church…” In both Aramaic, the language Jesus undoubtedly used, and in Greek, the name Peter and the word rock are the same, hence the pun. In Greek it’s the name “Petros” and the common noun “petra”. In Aramaic the two are the same “kepha”. Does that pun matter do you suppose or is it just an accident of language? I suspect it does matter. Our ability to put a name to one another is a powerful thing indeed. Psychologists tell us that the names and labels we give to others really do shape both self-image and behavior. I once read about a study comparing two classes of elementary aged children. One group was told regularly to pick up after themselves and to take care of their surroundings. The other group was simply told that they were an exceptionally tidy group who did a great job of taking care of things. At the end of the study the two groups were compared on measures of tidiness and the way they cared for the classroom. The second group outscored the first hands down both on their awareness of the need to take care of things and on the actions they took in caring for their surroundings. And so we have it. Jesus says that Simon Peter, Petros or Kepha”, that entirely human man is the rock “petra or kepha” on which Jesus will build the church. Peter, who is so often portrayed as misunderstanding Jesus and who on the eve of the crucifixion denies him, doesn’t seem like much of a rock to me. At the same time, Peter gives me courage. He is so clearly fallible, just as I am. And yet, once in a while he is given the faith to get things just exactly right. But there is more of course. As I read the passage, and thought about Peter a question came to mind. I began to wonder about the church. What is it exactly that Jesus is building on that rock, on Peter? Certainly, it seems Jesus was talking about more than a building here. The question led me to the catechism in our Book of Common Prayer. There is an entire section of 10 questions and answers concerning the church. Read them sometime, they are on pages 854 and 855. They begin: “What is the Church? The answer is this; “The Church is the community of the New Covenant.” Huh. Sounds like the church is, in fact, you and me, all of us collectively and all people everywhere who answer Jesus’ question, “Who do you say that I am”, as Peter did. “You are the Messiah. The Son of the living God.” So, the church is a community, one founded on Jesus himself, through the ministry of Peter. Of course, if the Biblical record is to be believed, and I trust that it is, then look at the way Ephesians and The Revelation to John expand that notion. We learn that the foundation of the church is formed by all the apostles. The Catechism takes it a step further to say that the church “continues in the teaching and fellowship of the apostles and is sent to carry out Christ’s mission to all people.” To paraphrase, the catechism teaches that the mission of the church is to restore all people to unity with God and each other as we pray, worship, proclaim the Gospel, and promote justice, peace and love. Please notice the “we” in there. The catechism is clear that the mission of the church is carried out through the ministries of all its members. Is this beginning to sound like a big job, one too hard for the likes of us? This is why I’m so grateful that Jesus called Peter, of all people, to be the rock on which the church is built. If Peter, with God’s help, could reach out in that way so, by the power of God, can we. The Rev, Kirk Kubiecek reminded me of something important this week. To quote from his sermon on this lesson; “It is not that God’s Church has a Mission, but that God’s Mission has a Church.” It’s a helpful reframing I think. It’s God’s mission and we are God’s church. It is God who has called us together in this community and God who gives us the power to be and to do more than we think we can. Remember Simon Peter. He was not especially insightful, perceptive, or intelligent compared to his companions. He understood Jesus imperfectly. Peter’s clearest understanding of Jesus’ identity was a matter of divine revelation, just as it is for us. And yet, Jesus named him, ‘Kepha’, Peter/rock. Look at how that naming stretched Peter, how it called him beyond who he was at the moment, until by faith, that entirely human rock/Peter did provide the foundation on which Christ built the church. Here’s the thing. God can, and does, work through each one of us to continue the work of God’s church. Let me suggest a helpful exercise from Anthony de Mello in his spiritual guide Sadhana. Start by listing as many names as you can for Jesus and then apply each of those names to yourself. It wouldn’t hurt to use that name Jesus gave Peter too. Can you imagine it? God’s voice whispering in your ear: “you are my very own, my beloved, my chosen one, my rock.” Now, here’s my challenge for the week. Take one of those names as de Mello suggests, then apply it to yourself for a minute or two each day. Let that experience sink in until you can hear God calling you by that name. Let that name stretch you and shape you in whatever way God wills. And then dream big, use your holy imagination and your so evident kindness. Between us we have so many gifts. God will make good use of us to fulfill Jesus’ mission of justice, unity, and peace as we pray and work to proclaim the Gospel, the Good News of God’s love come among us, right here in Monroe. Amen