Layman's Lounge

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. MATT. 16:17

In Matthew we find Jesus asking for the first time who men thought he might be. Peter revealed that men thought he might be a great teacher like Elijah, or John the Baptist back from the dead. But when Jesus asked him who he himself thought Jesus was, Peter gave an entirely different answer. He said...Thou art the Christ, the Son of the Living God. Matt. 16:16

You must understand what that meant to Jesus in order to fully understand the Messiah's response. Jesus was the savior, the sole prophesied come-from-God savior of the Jewish people that they had longed for for nearly 400 plus years. He was the Son of (or the product of, or the seed of, or the birthright of) GOD HIMSELF. That is, Peter was identifying this man Jesus as GODMAN. The being in whom GOD himself rested!

WOW. Jesus then said, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona, for flesh and blood has not revealed this onto you...(that meant that no man, not even JESUS had told Peter to say that, that no man knew it EXCEPT Jesus who was sharing of his own spirit into Peter's mind, and it was the FATHER of the FLESH that was speaking now into him! WOW. Peter had this knowledge. But do you want to know a secret? THAT DIDN'T MEAN ANYTHING UNTIL PETER SPOKE IT OUT!

Based on that confession, based on that word that Peter had received and believed on then spoke, Jesus was going to bless him and he was truly blessed to have a moment of preemptive strike, if you will. A moment of deep knowledge that NO-ONE else had on the planet except his savior! When Peter spoke it into existence, he revealed a secret that was known to no flesh on earth but the body of God, Jesus himself! Since Jesus was going to leave the world, since he no longer had a physical future, he needed someone to carry the SECRET REVEALED AND PRESS THE MESSAGE FORTH! THAT IS WHY PETER STOOD ON THE DAY OF PENTECOST! That is why he is the stone on which the foundation was started, and JESUS HIMSELF THE CHIEF CORNERSTONE!

Friend, when God reveals a secret to you and it is founded on His Word and in His truth and shared by His spirit, LET IT OUT! It just may change the world, but it won't do anything for anybody but YOU unless you SPEAK IT FIRST!

In Love,

Elder Mark