Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1927-04-16

! No greater events can be found in
/ the annals of history than the two as.
! signed for our study in connection
with the regular lesson upon Peter =
great confession and the alternate
I Easter lesson upon the resurrection of
! the Lord Jesus They both are epoch,
making events In the history of the
Christian faith Peters confession
marked a transition from the earlier
/ to the later period of the Master s
ministry. Jesus staked His mission,
messiahship and message upon His
| resurrection which is the citadel Of
/ Ctristianit =. Easter emphasizes the
| fundamental fact in the Christian re-
| ligion. that we will study within n
month in our lesson upon Peter and
the Risen Lord This week both les
sons are combined, so that in our
study of 1.-THE Life and Letters of
| Peter" we will not omit his great con-
fession with it's issues of worldwide
significance.
Looking backward we can see the
Masters journey north, as far as
Cesarea Philippi, was to fit the II for
the trying days of His ministry and
the dark hours that would follow His
death until He arose from the grave.
They had witnessed the final break Of
Jesus with the priests, Pharisees and
people. In taking them away from
the scene of strife to the solitude of a
mountain section, it is evident that He
had a definite plan. One can see the
pedagogical principles that the Lord
used in preparing the students IN His
apostolic school to answer the great
question that every soul must face
concerning the character of the Christ.
Peters Great Confession
Christianity differs from all other
faiths In that it rises or falls with the
character of its founder. When the
apostles had reached the source Of. the
Jordan and were free from the pres
sure Of any excitement, they could
grasp the meaning of the Lords
teachings and face the great question
that their two years of close fellow.
ship had fitted them to answer. There
was a suggestion IN the Masters ref
erence to Himself, as the Son of Man,
to His claim of messiahship in His
first question to them about the opin-
ion of men concerning Him. The diff
ferent answers, while they all recog-
nized His divine commission, were not
satisfactory, but they prepared the
way for the Master to ask the II the
personal question that all must face
and answer individually, who say
We that / ann" Our reply determines
all of our thinking and decides our
future.
Human destiny awaited the answer,
that the impulsive and ardent Peter,
speaking for the IL, quickly replied,
Thou art the Christ, the son of the
living Cod In that compact, con-
else, confession Peter gave expression
TO the essential and fundamental fact
OF Christianity. After two years close
and intimate association with the
Master, Peter, under divine revelation
of the spirit, had come to recognize the
Fathers fuilness in the person and
OF His well beloved son. The
spiritual experience OF coming to know
the Master, as our Divine Savior,
Redeemer, Risen LORD and Coming
King, that we experience, was eX-
pressed in Peters great confession OF
the deity of the Lord Jesus.
Church, Cross, Conquest.
Peters confession was marked by |
the Masters rejoicing that He had |
found the spiritual realization of His |
in Peter, whose testimony |
marked the commencement of the |
church that Christ has been building |
upon the rock foundation throughout |
the centuries, so strong and firm that
The forces OF satan ana all It's enemies
cannot destroy or overthrow 1t. He
conferred the keys, symbol of au-
.hority, upon Peter, that he exercised
N the early days Of Christianity by
his preaching at Pentacost. his open
ng the gospel to the Gentiles in the
house Of Cornelius and in the organi-
alton Of the early church.
Christ heard in Peters confession
he call Of the cross, for from that
line began Jesus to show unto His
disciples His coming trials that would
End in His crucifixion and resurrec-
ion. The conception of a suffering
Messiah was antagonistic to the jew
sh conception and nationalistic hopes,
which had been shaping the thinking
# the apostles. This caused Peter to
AXE the Master one side and try to
ma ka Him see that He was not to