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We meet Jesus and his disciples at the scene of one of his most important conversations with them. This is the scene of Peter’s great confession and Jesus’ assurance that his church will prevail. This is also one of the Bible’s stories where as much is going on in the subtext as is the text itself. Let’s have a look!

  • A social or cultural vocabulary refers to common understandings between author and reader that don’t show up in print but affect the meaning of the text nevertheless. Read the passage carefully and note the places where it seems more is going on than shows up in print. Where are these places? What questions might you ask to discover the meaning between the lines?

  • Who is Jesus for you? What and/or who has contributed most to your understanding of Jesus? Don’t think only in terms of teachings and teachers, but experiences and encounters that have had a say in your picture of Jesus.

  • What is important/significant in Peter’s confession that Jesus is son of the living God? How do you think people back in Jesus’ day would have understood Peter’s way of talking about Jesus? How do you and the people around you understand Peter’s way of talking about Jesus today?

Next Step: The punchline of this passage has to do with the connection between what you believe and how you live. What is that connection for you—how are you actively and openly living out what you believe about Jesus? Where might you need to grow? Where might you be able to help others in their growth?

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