Hi, welcome to the Books of
the Book series here on 3ABN.
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We're exploring
the gospel of Mathew.
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It's been a
delightful experience
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so far getting into
scripture seeking God's
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word, understanding Him.
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I want to thank our teacher
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Ranko Stefanovic,
for being with us.
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Ranko, it's being
great to have you with us.
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You're
professor of New Testament
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at Andrew's University
for Theological Seminary.
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It's wonderful to study
scripture together, isn't it?
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Yes, Glenn and it's a great joy
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to be with you here to
participate in this program.
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You teach at Andrews University
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there in the
department of Religion
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and I know that you've a
great passion for ministry.
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It's just a joy. Let's
get right into God's word.
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First we wanna seek the Lord.
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We need His guidance.
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So let's pray together.
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Father, before
we open Your word,
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before we open our
mouths and talk about it.
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We wanna be sure
that we're in harmony
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with You, so we come to You now.
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Take anything that
might pull us away from You
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and God we just
wanna surrender our lives.
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We commit
ourselves to You as we study
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Your word once
again, in Jesus name, amen.
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Well, Ranko, we've
been looking at the movement
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of the story of Jesus in
the gospel according to Mathew.
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And we've brought our guests
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and our visitors
and our listeners,
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our viewers all
up to Chapter 16.
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What's the story been so far?
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Tell us about the Jesus
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that we've met in
Mathew up to Chapter 16.
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Yes, the very
beginning we saw the Jesus
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began His ministry by preaching
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and teaching
people in synagogues.
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But evidently His teaching
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did not side well
with the Pharisees.
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And in some later
period of Jesus' ministry,
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we have a strong opposition
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of the Pharisees
with His teaching.
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So we saw that Jesus moves
to the hill area in the open,
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open field
there teaching people.
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But the Pharisees are
there watching Him constantly.
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Then we know that John
the Baptists was beheaded.
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Evidently, it was
very, very hard on Jesus,
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and Jesus saw the
death of John the Baptist,
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His own death that
He anticipated to come.
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And then we saw
that feeding 5,000 people
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and the attempt of
Satan, okay to track side Jesus
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from His determination
to go, to die on the cross,
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to die on
behalf of human beings.
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So, from that time on we see
the opposition is increasing.
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Threat is everywhere.
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Spies are
everywhere and we see Jesus
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coming into open confrontation
with the Pharisees.
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Actually that opposition
was initiated by the Pharisees.
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Okay and it is with that thought
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we are now coming to Chapter 16.
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As we begin Chapter 16, Ranko.
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The first verse tells us the
Pharisees and Sadducees came.
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It'd probably be
good for us to pause
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and make sure we kind of
recognize these two groups.
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tell us, Pharisees, Sadducees,
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are they are quite different.
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Tell us about them.
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Actually at the time
of Jesus in 1st Century.
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They're two religious
parties if we can call them.
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Some people call them
sects there in Palestine
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of which Pharisees and
Sadducees were probably
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the most prominent ones.
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Pharisees was the group
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that had the
strong determination
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to study the will of
God, the Torah, okay.
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And in the same way to instruct
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the people into the will of God.
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So they started they
dedicated themselves to study
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the Torah and
they went all around
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and most of them were laymen.
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They went all around to instruct
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the people and they did not want
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the Babylonian
exile to be repeated.
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Now, there was
another threat its Rome
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there and they thought
that they're faithful God
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and entire Israel comeback
to God and to the Torah.
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That God will somehow visit
His people and deliver them.
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They really were
faithful to this scripture
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most of them where good people.
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However there is
special group of Pharisees
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that were there in Jerusalem,
they were wealthy ones
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and they were not the ones
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who are positive
characters in the four gospels.
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Sadducees was a priestly class.
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Not all priests
were Sadducees, okay.
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Okay. But all
Sadducees were priests.
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They were wealthy ones.
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By the way when we
read the gospel says,
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they really are
stealing money from people.
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They use advantage of the temple
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they develop entire business
there around the temple.
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They were very
liberal in the teachings.
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All their goal was
to protect their wealth
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and to take as much
money from people as possible.
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The two parties they
did not like each other.
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But there is
something very interesting is.
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In their effort
to destroy Jesus,
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see these two groups
are mentioned here together.
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Now the Sadducees, they
compromise more with Romans
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in order to keep
their system going,
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their scheme that
they had of the temple.
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But they were
centered more in Jerusalem.
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That's why they don't
have as much of a conflict
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with Jesus
early in His ministry.
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But Jesus was now
became a threat to them,
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because they're
afraid if something
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happens because of
Jesus teachings and the Romans
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come to punish the--
people etc., who'll suffer?
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They'll suffer because
all their wealth will be gone.
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So He's threatening.
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He's threatening to them.
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Jesus' teaching
present a threat.
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The same was with the Pharisees.
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They were rich Pharisees,
they're from Jerusalem.
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So these two opposing groups
unite to come after Jesus.
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Unite together. They
didn't like but the common
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course actually
united them together.
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All right where
should we go in Chapter 16?
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Yeah, we go Chapter 16
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and you'll see
that we don't want now
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to go detail by detail,
but they are there Jesus
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and asking
question after the question,
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group after group
trying to confuse Jesus.
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You know, somehow that
they have a material later
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to accuse him, how
He was deceiving people.
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How He was against
the Mosaic Law etc.
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But praise God Jesus was
always able to respond to them.
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So they were not able
really to hard upon Jesus there.
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It's interesting that
He tells His disciples.
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Verse 6 of Chapter 16,
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"Take heed and
beware of the leaven
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of the Pharisees and Sadducees."
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So He's giving a
warning to His disciples.
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These religious
leaders especially Pharisees,
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they were well looked up to.
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So, Glenn, do you
remember that when Jesus
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gave that
warning about blasphemy
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against the Holy
Spirit and part to bless in.
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It was in the context
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of the confrontation
with the Pharisees.
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So from that time on really
the Pharisees are sinking,
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sinking there in their unbelief.
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And now with the text
that you just read Jesus
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makes the public
statement of other Pharisees.
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Jesus reveals the intentions.
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He is not
sparing them any longer.
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So you see the
confrontation is everywhere.
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Threat to Jesus is everywhere.
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John the Baptist is there.
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By the way if we go back
Ezekiel Chapter 14, Glenn.
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What do you read there in
verses 1 and 2, Chapter 14?
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"At that time Herod the
tetrarch heard the reports
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about Jesus and he
said to his servants,
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"This is John the Baptist;
he has risen from the dead!
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Therefore these
powers are at work"
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Okay, so, what
we have even Herod
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is becoming interest in Jesus.
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This is Herod who
killed John the Baptist.
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Evidently now
he is seeking Jesus
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because keeping in
mind his territory thousand,
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thousand people
are following Jesus.
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So Jesus is threat to him.
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And evidently Jesus became
concerned about His ministry.
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He knew that
Satan is messing up.
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So Jesus now
decides to do something.
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And this is
actually the beginning
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of our new section that we have.
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I will really
like to ask you Glenn,
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if you can read verses
13 to 20 of Chapter 16.
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And here we find one
of the greatest questions
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that can ever be asked.
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Great questions, it's a
very significant important text.
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The Christians have
debated about this text.
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Many views were
developed on base of this text.
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We would like to take some time.
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"When Jesus came into the
region of Caesarea Philippi,
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He asked His disciples, saying,
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Who do men say that
I, the Son of Man, am?
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So they said." Well,
"Some say John the Baptist,
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some say, Elijah,
and others Jeremiah
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or one of the prophets.
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He said to them, But
who do you say that I am?
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Simon Peter answered and
said, You are the Christ,
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the Son of the living God.
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Jesus answered and said to him,
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Blessed are
you, Simon Bar-Jonah,
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for flesh and blood has
not revealed this to you,
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but My Father who is in heaven.
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I also say to you
that you are Peter,
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and on this rock I
will build My church,
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and the gates of Hades
shall not prevail against it.
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And I will give you the
keys of the kingdom of heaven,
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whatever you bind on
earth will be bound in heaven,
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whatever you loose on
earth will be loosed in heaven.
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Then He commanded His disciples
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that they should tell no one
that He was Jesus the Messiah."
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Okay, in the
light of the background
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that we just described.
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Jesus decides to go,
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He says to the
district of Caesarea Philippi.
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Philippi. Okay, let
us explain a little bit
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about this territory,
this is very important.
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You know, Herod the
great the one who tried
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to kill Jesus when He was born.
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After his death
because of his bad reputation
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that Herod had the Romans
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did not want to
appoint one of his sons
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to be the ruler of
entire Palestine as Herod was.
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They actually divide
Palestine into three major
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parts in among his three sons.
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So we have Archelaus
who was there in Judea.
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He very soon was
replaced by procreators.
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Then there Galilee
was actually--he's oldest,
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second oldest son
which was Herod Antipas.
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This is the one that
we just read in verse 14.
00:11:07.60\00:11:10.63
But there is the third you know,
00:11:10.67\00:11:12.00
who killed John the
Baptist but the third son
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which was Herod Phillip.
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He was completely there on
the territory of modern Syria.
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He was in that territory.
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He was
completely different person
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from the rest of Herod's.
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He was very peaceful ruler.
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So many times I
mean several times
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when Jesus experienced threat,
00:11:31.35\00:11:34.99
when Jesus needed some
rest, to rest in peace.
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Jesus would go here to this
territory to little bit relax.
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Jesus needed some
times you know for Himself.
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And that's evidently reason
00:11:48.40\00:11:51.14
in view of the
threat all around Jesus.
00:11:51.17\00:11:53.78
Jesus decided to go
there to Caesarea Philippi
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to be alone with His disciples
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there to spend
some restful time there.
00:12:01.75\00:12:04.02
And this question that
He asked the disciples.
00:12:04.05\00:12:06.32
Who do you say that I am?
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I know, I know for me personally
00:12:07.72\00:12:09.06
that was probably the
greatest life question,
00:12:09.09\00:12:11.83
I've to think through.
00:12:11.86\00:12:13.43
As a young man I
remember pondering who is Jesus?
00:12:13.46\00:12:18.20
Is He God? Is He
who he says He is?
00:12:18.23\00:12:21.90
Do I believe His word?
00:12:21.94\00:12:23.54
This is the essential question.
00:12:23.57\00:12:25.17
Is there enough evidence
to accept Him as my Savior?
00:12:25.21\00:12:27.84
And the disciples
had to go on record.
00:12:27.88\00:12:29.74
And of course, Peter speaks up.
00:12:29.78\00:12:31.88
Yeah, you say, who the
people would say that I am.
00:12:31.91\00:12:36.02
We saw Herod said,
he's the John the Baptist.
00:12:36.05\00:12:38.72
Other people you know,
they said some of the prophets.
00:12:38.75\00:12:42.29
But then Jesus
says to His disciples
00:12:42.32\00:12:43.86
this is what the
people say about me.
00:12:43.89\00:12:46.80
But what do you really?
00:12:46.83\00:12:48.36
Keep in mind, we
are now approaching
00:12:48.40\00:12:50.83
to those final
days of Jesus' ministry.
00:12:50.87\00:12:54.34
We will see that verse 21.
00:12:54.37\00:12:57.37
It's actually the
point from which Jesus
00:12:57.41\00:13:00.41
is now going to
Jerusalem to die.
00:13:00.44\00:13:01.78
Just we are talking
about the last few weeks
00:13:01.81\00:13:03.91
of Jesus'
ministry. Keep in mind.
00:13:03.95\00:13:06.28
Jesus is about to die.
00:13:06.31\00:13:09.12
After His death there
is ascension to heaven.
00:13:09.15\00:13:12.79
Jesus will leave His disciples.
00:13:12.82\00:13:14.66
The disciples are supposed
to continue His ministry,
00:13:14.69\00:13:18.29
so that Jesus want to be clear
00:13:18.33\00:13:21.60
with them that
they know who He is.
00:13:21.63\00:13:24.47
So He's asking them.
00:13:24.50\00:13:26.27
So what do you say, that I am?
00:13:26.30\00:13:28.50
No, it's not enough just to say,
00:13:28.54\00:13:31.11
Jesus was a good man.
00:13:31.14\00:13:32.77
He was a great teacher as Jesus
00:13:32.81\00:13:35.68
was something
more than a good man,
00:13:35.71\00:13:38.01
something more
than what a teacher is.
00:13:38.05\00:13:40.95
And the question that
Jesus asked His disciples,
00:13:40.98\00:13:43.79
He's asking to
each one of us today.
00:13:43.82\00:13:45.82
Exactly and the answer
you were the Christ, Messiah.
00:13:45.85\00:13:49.09
What do you say that I am?
00:13:49.12\00:13:50.69
Doesn't matter
what other people say.
00:13:50.73\00:13:52.13
Is it your conviction?
What do you say that I am?
00:13:52.16\00:13:54.86
And this word,
Christ meaning messiah,
00:13:54.93\00:13:56.73
the son of a living God.
00:13:56.77\00:13:58.10
So Peter gives a good answer.
00:13:58.13\00:13:59.80
Yes. It's a great answer.
00:13:59.83\00:14:01.90
I want to hear what Jesus
has to say about Peter's answer.
00:14:01.94\00:14:04.31
We're gonna be right
back after a break to explore
00:14:04.34\00:14:06.57
one of the most
important passages
00:14:06.61\00:14:08.64
in this section of Mathew.
00:14:08.68\00:14:10.01
We'll be right
back after the break.
00:14:10.05\00:14:11.45