Exodus 1:8 - 2:10 (Common English Bible)
Matthew 16: 13-20 (Good News Translation)
Who is Jesus? This question is asked to the disciples in Matthew’s gospel. What do other people say about who Jesus is? What do we in the Church say about who he is?
Peter’s answer is that Jesus is the Messiah, Son of the living God. Now, those titles have been used before on the kings of Israel and Judah during previous centuries. All the kings were anointed and proclaimed Messiah, the Son of God, which means a very close relationship with God. It has nothing to do with paternal biology. In verse 18, where Jesus calls Peter a “rock.” that is an Aramaic idiom for “upon this truth.” And the same for verse 19, about the “keys” of the kingdom, which is another idiom that means “spiritual authority.”
The complexity of Jesus’s titles are many, and for too many years church creeds have split hairs defining Jesus’ relationship with God. This is why the Eastern Orthodox Church and the Roman Catholic western church split in 1054 AD. And that was a great loss to all of us who live in the West. Churches would do better spending less time insisting that others acknowledge Jesus with their particular language, and spend more time following his teachings.
What we do know is that this event with Jesus and his disciples happened at Caesarea Philippi which was about 25 miles north-east of the Sea of Galilee. The location had a lot of history. Centuries earlier, Syrian gods were worshiped there, including Pan, the god of nature. I’m sure some of you might remember Pan, a cute little character with a horny head and furry legs, who I believe played the flute? And later a great temple of white marble was built there to honor Caesar. This background is very dynamic. Jesus has set himself against the ancient pagan gods and the divinity of the Caesars.
People can interpret the dialogue between Jesus and Peter in several ways. Some believe that Peter himself is the “rock” since his Aramaic name is actually “Cephas” which means rock. And the Greek name given to him by the gospel writers, “Petra” or “Peter” can be translated the same way. Peter is considered by many as the first member of the Universal (“catholic”) Church that Jesus founded. Another view is that Jesus is the true rock meaning the ultimate truth.
Whatever your view, the symbolism is powerful concerning its setting. Jesus is the Incarnation of real divinity - the Christ against the pagan mythological gods and the real Caesars who falsely claim they are a god. When the latter occurs, bad things happen.
In his novel, “A Tale of Two Cities.” Charles Dickens wrote, “It was the best of times. It was the worst of times.” Dickens was writing about the chaos around Paris and London during the French Revolution. But chaos still exists today, all around us. Just turn on any news station, but please, not one with “alternative facts.” People are operating in what appears to be a state of being disturbed in mind or purpose. Within the reading of Exodus, we encounter two women, Shiphrah and Puah, whose minds were not disturbed and did the correct thing amid the chaos they lived under.
It is chaotic when you live in a country, where people who look like you are made to labor under harsh and oppressive conditions, just because they are not part of the dominant culture. That was the situation of Shiphrah and Puah, both Hebrew midwives, now slaves in Egypt. They were in a chaotic situation and faced with a choice that would change history.
The first chapter of Exodus is basically a small summary of what had happened in Egypt since Joseph had invited his family into the land. A lot has happened in 400 years. But not much good for the Hebrews who were originally welcomed into Egypt. A new Egyptian Dynasty took power which viewed the growing Hebrew population as a threat. For this Dynasty the Hebrews were outsiders who should be subdued. And the best way to take advantage of the Hebrews, was to enslave them.
Shiphrah and Puah were faced with a life or death situation. What could have prepared these midwives for Pharaoh's order to kill all the male infants of the Hebrews? But these two midwives had a fear of God. Now when you hear about people “fearing God” it does not mean shaking in your boots while you’re looking up into the sky. “Fear” in this context means to “respect” God. Shiphrah and Puah are in a relationship with God. That gives them the courage to save the life of the infant Moses.
At some point in our lives each of us will no doubt be called to a chaotic situation. Unless we are with God, we often find ourselves unable to cope with chaos and turmoil. Living through really bad situations is the worst, like the death of a loved one who seemed healthy. We have to seek out that Power, that full relationship with God that Shiphrah and Puah had.
The shallow physics of empire, whether Egypt, Rome, Britain, America or Russia still exist. Jesus would say, “they’re all built on sand.” But there is a deeper physics, a deeper bedrock and that is the kingdom of God, confessed by Peter and put into action by Jesus. Peter was faithful but not perfect and he tries to understand just like the rest of us. But Peter pursued love and justice with the grace and mercy God intended him to do.
The Good News of the gospel is that at the center of any faith community, there are not lifeless statues. A living person, the living child of the living God exists there, to call all of us into a deeper, more human and more excellent way to live life.
AMEN
