Peter’s words have a far-reaching effect. For instance, they led the Lord Jesus to state, “And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church.” A statement that has been written in two-meter-high letters inside the dome of the basilica of St. Peter in Rome. And not only because this church is, reportedly, built exactly on the tomb of Peter. But also because the pope resides there who, according to Roman doctrine, is the successor of Peter as bishop of Rome and head of the world church.

Considering this, it should come as no surprise that a great deal has been written about a chapter like Matthew 16 throughout history—not only from the Roman Catholic side, but also from those who, on the basis of Scripture, have challenged the position of the pope of Rome as head of the world church. In this Scripture meditation, I would like to share something from a sermon by Philip Melanchthon, friend and companion of Martin Luther. For what he says about it still has something to say to us as well.

Voice⤒🔗

Jesus begins with the question: “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” (verse 13). And from the answer given by the disciples it appears that there are very different opinions about this among people: ”Some say John the Baptist, others say Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets” (verse 14). For Melanchthon, this led to a brief treatise on the question of what exactly the difference is between Christ on the one hand and prophets and teachers on the other.

Melanchthon begins that treatise with a statement by John the Baptist: “I am the voice of one crying…” (John 1:23). According to him, “this also applies to the other ministers who teach: they are not sacrifices, nor redeemers, nor saviours; but they are the voice that proclaims law and gospel.” He states that this even applies to the prophets and priests of the time of the Old Testament. For they had to proclaim not only the law itself but also its message.

Melanchthon also cites a prophecy of Isaiah: “When his soul makes an offering for guilt, he shall see his offspring, he shall prolong his days” (Isaiah 53:10). And “thus,” he continues his argument, “the prophets, all teachers, our shepherd, and every shepherd in the church are ‘a voice crying in the wilderness.’ That is to say: a servant who raises a voice that comes from God that is entrusted to us in the service of the New Testament, and is a word of repentance.”

Double←⤒🔗

What Melanchthon says here has a kind of double meaning. On the one hand, as a preacher, you are “merely” a voice, and, moreover, a voice that preaches repentance. John the Baptist had to experience firsthand the nasty consequences that can have. In Matthew 14, we read that Herod put him in prison “for the sake of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife, because John had been saying to him, ‘It is not lawful for you to have her.’” (verses 3-4). Ultimately, it even cost him his life.

At the same time, Melanchthon also makes it clear that preaching repentance must not and should not be final. He states, “For that must be preached to us first, but after that the forgiveness of sins must be proclaimed, and the doctrine of God’s Son.” At times it can be (or: become) so very difficult to be a preacher of repentance; but then it can be so glorious to be allowed to be a preacher of forgiveness in Christ. Nothing is more beautiful than to proclaim Sunday after Sunday that everything has already been accomplished.

But this is and remains the great difference between Christ and the other teachers: “Our shepherd (or: pastor) is not a redeemer,” Melanchthon continues, “nor a saviour, nor a sacrifice for us. Just as neither Moses nor John can give us the Holy Spirit and make hearts alive. However, God’s Son is at work in your heart, he gives the Holy Spirit and frees you from eternal death.” For our Lord Jesus Christ is just as much a “teacher” as all other teachers (Lord’s Day 12); but the point is that he is also so much more than that alone.

Difference←⤒🔗

When he speaks of the excellence of Christ, he first presents Adam’s reasoning to his listeners: God is unchangeably just; just means that whoever has been rebellious is condemned; I am one of them—Adam says—and therefore I am condemned for eternity. However, the uniqueness of Christ is that he has refuted this reasoning. God’s justice remains unchangeable, but Christ has set himself up as Mediator. The punishment is shifted onto him, the Innocent One.

“Presently we understand it insufficiently,” Melanchthon continues, “but we will consider it in all eternity. Now we are learning the first principles, the alphabet, the first letters. In the meantime, we must learn to understand this blessing, give thanks, and reverently begin to be obedient.” The great difference between Christ and the other teachers is, therefore, that he too is a teacher, but at the same time Redeemer and Saviour. In other words, he is not only the bringer of good news, but also the content of it.

According to Melanchthon, it is of vital importance that the church continues to see this distinction. All the more so because it is not self-evident. There are those in the church who believe that Christ merely came to bring a somewhat different law: “Just as Moses came and gave a peasant (or: somewhat uncivilized) law to the uncivilized Jews, so too did Christ come afterwards, who was a somewhat more urban man and gave us a somewhat sweeter and more favorable law.” But according to Melanchthon, such satanic deceptions could easily bring the church down.

Confession←⤒🔗

Peter’s confession makes clear that Christ differs from others not only in office but also in person: “The special and unique thing about him is that only in this Person are the divine and human natures united in a wondrous, secret, and ineffable (or: inexpressible) covenant.” By his essence he is the Son of God, from whom he was also born, and at the same time he has also assumed human nature. Thus he is one Person, argues Martin Luther’s closest collaborator, God and man.

He then elaborates on what a “person” is. As a person, we consist of a soul and a body. When our soul leaves our body, they are, apart from one another, no longer a “person.” “But when the body is restored, and a union of body and soul takes place, it will be a person again.’ According to Melanchthon, this is an image for the union of divine and human nature in Christ: “If the human nature is not upheld by the divine, it perishes again.”

Melanchthon concludes with the reasons that the Person became our Mediator. First of all, a man sinned, and therefore the Mediator must also be a man. Secondly, the Mediator also had to be God, because no man could have paid the price or borne the wrath. And finally, no created nature could have restored righteousness or eternal life, and could have beheld the eternal counsel of the Father. Only God’s Son could do that.