Scripture Reading

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? And they said, Some say that thou art John the Baptist: some, Elias; and others, Jeremias, or one of the prophets. He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am? And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. 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. 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. 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. Then charged he his disciples that they should tell no man that he was Jesus the Christ. (Matthew 16:13-20 KJV)

Big Idea: Jesus holds the keys. The key is the truth about Him. He has handed the keys to us to open the gospel door.

Introduction — v.13–18

Jesus took His men on a hike — to the gates of hell.

• Caesarea Philippi: far north, out of the way. His only recorded visit, and this conversation is the only thing He did there.
• Pagan shrines carved in the cliff, with idols at every turn.
• In the middle of every false religion, He asks, “Who am I?”

The progression

• v.13 — QUESTION: “Whom do men say?”
• v.16–17 — REVELATION: the Father showed Peter.
• v.18 — TRANSFORMATION: Simon becomes Peter.
• v.18 — FOUNDATION: “upon this rock”

For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ. (1 Corinthians 3:11)

• v.18 — CONSTRUCTION: “I will build my church”
• v.18 — CONTINUATION: the gates of hell shall not prevail.

We love to quote verse 18. But verse 18 leads to verse 19.

He builds the house — then He hands over the keys.

→ So whose keys are they?

Whose Keys Are They? — v.19

Keys mean authority, access, and ability.

• Ancient kings hung a great key on the chief steward’s shoulder.
• Cities still hand an honored guest “the keys to the city.”

The keys belong to Jesus

And the key of the house of David will I lay upon his shoulder; so he shall open, and none shall shut; and he shall shut, and none shall open. (Isaiah 22:22)

I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death. (Revelation 1:18)

• Not “will have.” HAVE. He walked out of the grave holding them.

And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write; These things saith he that is holy, he that is true, he that hath the key of David, he that openeth, and no man shutteth; and shutteth, and no man openeth; (Revelation 3:7)

• Peter is not checking names at the pearly gate.
• It’s the Lamb’s book of life, not Peter’s.

He hands them to us

• Matthew 18:18 gives the same words, plural, to the whole church.
• The newest believer holds the same keys as the oldest saint.

What do keys do? They OPEN things.

Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you. And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost: Whose soever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them; and whose soever sins ye retain, they are retained. (John 20:21-23)

• We don’t forgive sins, and we don’t condemn sinners.
• We open the gospel door, or we leave it shut by our silence.

The Spirit opens the heart. We open the door.

IT’S TIME TO USE THE KEYS.

→ Circle three words in the text: HELL … HEAVEN … EARTH.

1. The Keys Mean an Attack on Hell — v.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. (Matthew 16:18)

Not the attack OF hell. An attack ON hell.

• Gates don’t come after you. You charge the gates.
• The church is not on defense. We are on offense.

And others save with fear, pulling them out of the fire; hating even the garment spotted by the flesh. (Jude 23)

Be honest

• When did God last use you to pull someone from the fire?
• When did we last even try?
• It’s easy to say amen to soul winning. It’s harder to do it.

Apply

• Our “Caesarea Philippi” has every faith on the shelf, right here in Forysth County.
• The Muslim family next door. The Mormon coworker. The friend who says all roads lead up the same mountain.

Whose name and face comes to mind right now? That’s your gate.

→ But how do we storm gates like that? Not in our own power.

2. The Keys Mean Authority from Heaven — v.19a

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 16:19)

Earth doesn’t control heaven

• Literally, “shall have been bound … shall have been loosed.”
• Heaven decides. Earth obeys and announces.
• What we do here has eternal consequences there.

The key is the Word

• Barnes calls a key “an instrument for opening a door.”
• The Geneva notes say the keys are the ministry of the Word.

It is not the power of our words. It is the power of God’s Word.

For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. (Hebrews 4:12)

• Read Peter’s Pentecost sermon. It’s wall-to-wall Scripture.

Apply

• You don’t need to win the argument. You need to open the Book.
• That’s why we’re offering the electives: to know the Word well enough to open it with them.

→ Heaven gives the authority. But the keys get used down here.

3. The Keys Mean Ability on Earth — v.19b–20

• Hell below, heaven above, earth in between.
• We live in the parenthesis, and it is short.

Notice the future tense

• v.18 says “I WILL build.” v.19 says “I WILL give.”
• v.20 says “tell no man.” They didn’t have all the keys yet.
• After Pentecost, it’s “go tell everybody.” What changed?

But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth. (Acts 1:8)

All of God in the text

• v.17 — the Father REVEALING
• v.18 — the Son BUILDING
• v.19 — the Spirit EMPOWERING

But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his. (Romans 8:9)

You didn’t get the Holy Ghost on the installment plan.

Watch Peter use the keys

• Acts 2 — he opens the door to the Jews, and 3,000 walk through.
• Acts 10 — at Cornelius’s house, the door opens to the Gentiles.
• The Spirit was there before Peter showed up.
• Same keys both times: the truth of Jesus and the Spirit of God.
• Jamieson, Fausset & Brown: Peter “opened the door of faith” — Jews at Pentecost, Gentiles at Cornelius’s house.

And when they were come, and had gathered the church together, they rehearsed all that God had done with them, and how he had opened the door of faith unto the Gentiles. (Acts 14:27)

→ So what will you do with the keys?

Conclusion

An attack on HELL. Authority from HEAVEN. Ability on EARTH.

You already have the keys.

• Do you have Jesus? Do you have the Bible? Do you have the Spirit?

The electives

• What our neighbors believe — and how to open the Word with them.

But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear: (1 Peter 3:15)

Response

• Not saved? You don’t need keys. You need the Door. Come to Christ.
• Believer gone cold? Ask God to light the fire again.
• Name one person and pray for them right now.

“May they not be rusty and dusty when we kneel at the judgment seat.”

He will build His church. Will you use the keys?