PETER’S PROCLAMATION

Greetings, my fellow pilgrims. What you say–I’m a pilgrim?  Yes, I believe that is both a great truth and analogy. Aren’t our lives here on earth a pilgrimage on our way to spend eternity in heaven? The time we have on this earth allows us to draw closer to God and grow in love to become more like Him.

But, technically, with this reflection we are continuing our pilgrimage in Italy which began with the last devotion entitled Paul in Rome. I’m sure you recall that we visited some of the sights related to Paul’s final days in Rome before he was martyred for his faith in Jesus.

Today we continue in the city of Rome where I had the sacred gift of spending my birthday this year–a very special present for me! I consider my life to be my offering to the Lord so it was wonderful to be in such a humbling, historic place. It started with attending the papal audience where the recently elected Pope Leo XVI passed by me twice in the Popemobile. We had reserved seats but did not arrive early enough due to the number of people present and were thankful to have made it through security in time. It was probably to our benefit because we were in the standing area instead. I was only three people deep from the front of the gate and it was close to an intersection of two perpendicular roadways. There was a tall gentleman in front who graciously offered to take some better pictures for me.  It was a sacred moment in history seeing the first American born pope, the 267^th successor from the beginning of history, who was elected only four months earlier on May 8, 2025.

 

Pope Leo XVI – Papal audience 9/17/25 – Rome, Italy

 

When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” “But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?” Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven. And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”  –Matthew 16:13-19  (NIV)

Simon Peter, one of Jesus’ original disciples was the first to proclaim Jesus as the Messiah, the Savior of the world. Jesus changed his name to Peter, which means “rock.”  Since Peter was the first one to call Jesus the Messiah, some interpret the “rock” as his profession of faith that we all need to come to proclaim as well. The church was born on that premise. The “keys of the kingdom” can be interpreted as passing on the teachings of Jesus–the greatest being to love God above all else and our neighbors as ourselves.

 

Photo courtesy of Sharon Tate Soberon under Creative Commons License (CC BY-ND 2.0) 

 

For through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit. Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of his household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord.  –Ephesians 2:18-21  (NIV)

Peter realized that Jesus was the cornerstone of our faith with his declaration. Because of Jesus we have access to God the Father and the Spirit. We have the privilege of proclaiming that truth with the way we live our lives too. We are part of the family that starts with Jesus and has continued with Peter, the apostles and all those through the years who believe.

  

Be encouraged this week to…

… take time to reflect on Jesus being the Messiah in your life.

… work on sharing the keys of the kingdom.

… express gratitude for being a member of God’s household.

… keep building your life on Jesus, the chief cornerstone.

 

REFLECTION:

Does your life give witness to Jesus being the Messiah, the Son of the Living God?
Who can you share the keys of the kingdom with today?

If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved. As Scripture says, “Anyone who believes in him will never be put to shame.” For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile—the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him.  –Romans 10:9-12  (NIV)

 

A short eight second video