Sermon Summary for 2nd Sunday in Trinity (St. Peter the Apostle), 29 June 2025 Anno domini, the Anglican Orthodox Communion worldwide
The Collect
O Almighty God, who by thy Son Jesus Christ didst give to thy Apostle Saint Peter many excellent gifts, and commandedst him earnestly to feed thy flock: Make, we beseech thee, all Bishops and Pastors diligently to preach thy Holy Word, and the people obediently to follow the same, that they may receive the crown of everlasting glory; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
13 When Jesus came into the coasts of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, saying, Whom do men say that I the Son of man am? 14 And they said, Some say that thou art John the Baptist: some, Elias; and others, Jeremias, or one of the prophets.15 He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am? 16 And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. 17 And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven. 18 And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. 19 And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.. Matthew 16:13-19
“Let the words of my mouth, and the meditations of my heart be wholly acceptable unto thee, O Lord, my strength and my Redeemer.”
The Prayer of Collect, in recognizing the apostleship of Peter, emphasizes – not only the excellent gifts of miraculous signs – but, more importantly, the duty to preach the Word of God diligently. It is in our following - not simply Peter, but in the Gospel of Christ that we are admitted to the everlasting glory to which the Collect makes reference.
In our Gospel text from Matthew, Jesus opens His lesson with a question: “Whom do men say that I the Son of man am?” This is not a question of casual, or mundane, significance, but one whose answer has bearing on our salvation in Christ. The question is directed not only to the apostles, but to each of us individually. Yes, Jesus is the Son of Man, but He is also the Son of God. This distinction puts Him apart from you and me – and the apostles as well. The subject of the text is “Christ, the Son of the living God.” The men to whom He spoke, and to whom He speaks today, did not choose to follow Christ as a mere vocation, but are called by Christ to the office of apostle, disciple and to declare the Word in truth and power.
How do you and I answer that question? Who is Christ to you? Is our Lord Jesus Christ someone we respect, adore, and study about on one day out of seven; or, is Christ the center of our lives in whom we move and have our being, and for whom we have the greatest love and devotion above all others – so much so that we not only study, or hear, His Word preached on the Lord’s Day, but study prayerfully and diligently seven days in a week? The latter would be the right answer to that question.
There is a great variety of Christian denominations in the world today, some consisting of great multitudes, and some of smaller number; but size and worldly esteem have no part in distinguishing them in faith and doctrine. It is only the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ and His Word (He is the WORD personified) that determines the state of Christian fellowship for all church faith and worship. Whom do we say that Jesus, the Son of Man is? If we truly own Him as Savior and Redeemer, He is with us always, and in our hearts and affections, moment by moment - not just at the appointed hour of worship.
Whatever others think of Christ, the most important question addressed to us is not what others say of Him, but what do WE say of Him! “But whom say ye that I am?” How we answer that question will determine our eternity future.
Peter was not a perfect, or infallible, apostle. Even after Christ had designated him as Peter (petros – a stone) he would deny His Lord three times before the enemies of Christ. Neither are we perfect Christians, but our hearts must be fixed on Christ and ever-willing to repent of our sins in following Him.
Peter, and the other Apostles, recognized who Christ was for the question was addressed to all – not those who thought of Him as less than the Son of the Living God. When we know Christ in intimate ways as the Son of Man and the Son of the Living God, we will extol His divine Sonship and work of redemption to all into whose company we come.
Our faith comes from God and not any man – even Peter or the other Apostles. They teach us the truth of God, but it is that truth that saves – not the work of man.
“And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.” What is Christ telling Peter here? Is the Lord telling him that Peter will be the rock upon which He builds His Church? Perish the thought! Peter, in no sense, is the Foundation rock of the Church – that title belongs to Christ alone. The name of Peter by which Christ names the Apostle is the Greek petros – meaning stone. But when Christ refers the Rock upon which He will build His Church, He uses the term petra – meaning great Rock. As gifted as Peter and the other Apostles were in witnessing of Christ, it is Christ, and no man, upon which the Church is built. Peter was compared to a 'chip' of that greater Rock having like character and consistency as the Rock from which he was hewn.
It is wrong to presume Peter to be that Rock. No man is mediator between the elect of God and the Father but Christ alone. Throughout the biblical record, it is Christ that is identified as that great Rock from the passing over the Red Sea to the sealing of the New Testament Gospel by our Lord.
“1 Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea; 2 And were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea; 3 And did all eat the same spiritual meat; 4 And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ.” 1 Corinthians 10:1-4
“And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” The keys to the Kingdom is the Word of GOD, and the binding and loosing is the law of love which Christ added to the Commandments of God. Without that Key of Love, none shall go into His Kingdom. Love is the Key to that Door of the Sheepfold which the Good Shepherd is as Christ the Lord.
In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. AMEN
