[Matthew 16 – The Message]
Sometimes I have the Pharisee problem – wanting a different sign, when the one I see suggests what I don’t want to hear. I have selective hearing – and it grows up within me to warp my understanding.
So, who is the Son of Man – a newer version of the prophets of old? No, he is the very realization of those prophets’ hopes. He is the Son of the Father, opening the door of relationship to God. So, why did he make them promise to keep this a secret?
Already Jesus saw the writing on the wall. Staying true to his son-ship would bring suffering and death. To turn aside from this would be an abandonment of his very self. And nothing – even avoiding crucifixion – was worth that price.
Yet, he could somehow see beyond that death to God’s triumph. Perhaps the promise of secrecy in the earlier passage was a way to hold his disciples a bit safer until the resurrection – preserving his voice on earth through the preservation of their lives? Perhaps the dawn of understanding should be held close until it is fully grasped.
[chapter 17]
Quiet Hope 