The Father is speaking: Jesus hears and understands
"... but you cannot interpret the signs of the times.”
By Steve Hall
In this gospel text there is a truth frequently overlooked because that truth tells us something about Jesus rather than about Peter. To grasp that truth we must consider a broader picture, something more than this one incident. The time for reading the signs is always the now.
Feast of the Chair of Saint Peter, Apostle
1 Peter 5:1-4
Matthew 16:13-19
This is the Feast of the Chair of St Peter. At first glance we might think it peculiar to have a feast for a chair. But a bit of reflection should change our minds. The Ark of the Covenant was called the ‘Mercy Seat’ by Israel; it was the locus of God’s presence on earth. The seat of a king is called a ‘throne.’ Such a seat represents the pinnacle of power; that’s why it’s worth celebrating.
Our two Scripture readings point to two critically related factors. The gospel tells us that that seat of authority was established by Jesus himself. The epistle, written by the seats first occupant tells us how that authority should be properly exercised. “Do not lord it over those assigned to you, but be examples to the flock.”
However, in this gospel text there is a truth frequently overlooked because that truth tells us something about Jesus rather than about Peter. To grasp that truth we must consider a broader picture, something more than this one incident.
At one time or another you’ve probably heard the aphorism: “Red Sky at morning, sailors take warning. Red Sky at night, sailor’s delight.” A saying from Ben Franklin? A deduction from the sixteenth century Age of Exploration? Well, it goes much further back than either of those two time periods. Even Jesus quotes it:
“He answered them, "When it is evening, you say, 'It will be fair weather; for the sky is red.' And in the morning, ‘It will be stormy today, for the sky is red and threatening.' You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret the signs of the times.” (Matthew 16:2-3)
The critical point is in the last sentence: “You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret the signs of the times.”
What kind of signs is Jesus talking about and how do they come to us? The “time” for the signs is always the “now.”
Recognition of signs is a recurring theme in the Gospels. John would use seven signs as a format for the structure of his Gospel. Jesus refers to signs as indicators of what God is doing in the ‘now’ or what He is telling us in the ‘now.’ And he laments the leader’s blindness to these indicators of God’s activity.
“But he answered them, "An evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign; but no sign shall be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah.” (Matthew 12:39)
What we may miss, however, is the fact that Jesus himself was reliant upon these signs.
Whoa! Wait a minute, you may say! Jesus was divine. He already knew. He didn’t need signs. The Scriptures tell us different. Let’s look at some examples. But first recall the teaching Paul gave to the Philippians and us.
“Though he [Jesus] was in the form of God, [he] did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.” (Philippians 2:6-7)
Now let’s look at three different incidents in Jesus’ life. All three are well known; and all three tell the same story though it is not readily evident. The first is from the beginning of John’s first Gospel ‘Sign.’
“On the third day there was a marriage at Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there; Jesus also was invited to the marriage, with his disciples. When the wine failed, the mother of Jesus said to him, "They have no wine." And Jesus said to her, "O woman, what have you to do with me?* My hour has not yet come." His mother said to the servants, "Do whatever he tells you." (John 2:1-5)
The second incident is less known. It is from Matthew’s Gospel. It seems that Jesus has become tired or frustrated or confused by the lack of a positive reception from the Jewish leadership. Presumably to pray and reflect on this problem he goes to a non-Jewish area.
“Jesus went away from there and withdrew to the district of Tyre and Si'don. And behold, a Canaanite woman from that region came out and cried, "Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David; my daughter is severely possessed by a demon." He answered, "I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel." But she came and knelt before him, saying, "Lord, help me." And he answered, "It is not fair to take the children's bread and throw it to the dogs." She said, "Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters' table." (Matthew 15:21-27)
The third incident is recounted in today’s Gospel.
“When Jesus came into the district of Caesare'a Philip'pi, he asked his disciples, "Who do men say that the Son of man is?" And they said, "Some say John the Baptist, others say Eli'jah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets." He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?" Simon Peter replied, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." And Jesus answered him, " Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jona! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven.” (Matthew 16:13-17)
In all three incidents there is a change in Jesus following the words of others.
In the first Mary simply says "Do whatever he tells you." and Jesus recognizes that his time has indeed come. And the water becomes wine.
In the second the gentile woman reminds Jesus that the gentiles too are fed by the master even if it’s just “the crumbs that fall from their masters' table."
In the third incident, the one we heard in today’s Gospel, Jesus recognizes the special place of Peter following Peter’s confession. But more important, herein is voiced the key to understanding what is happening with Jesus in all three incidents (and also in others not here mentioned. “Flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven.”
Yes! In all three incidents the Father is speaking and Jesus hears and understands. He had “emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.” In that humanness he needed to read the signs, he needed to hear and understand the divine guidance being given. He himself would frequently insist upon that truth.
“He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”
This instruction was not just offered for those of Jesus’ time. It is given to us. And it is not an instruction regarding only our belief or unbelief in the Gospel itself. It is for us as it was for Jesus: an admonition to hear and receive the divine guidance being provided at every moment of our lives.
The time for reading the signs is always the now.
"But to what shall I compare this generation? It is like children sitting in the market places and calling to their playmates, 'We piped to you, and you did not dance;we wailed, and you did not mourn.'” (Matthew 11:15-17)