“We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God.” (Acts 14:22 NIV)Receiving the full Gospel and being delivered from unclean spirits is just the beginning. Those things are necessary for entering the Kingdom, but not sufficient.
Jesus gave Peter the "keys" to the Kingdom, and we must use them. The keys are only mentioned in Matthew, which is written to believers. The specific verse is 16:19, and the Holy Spirit tells me the keys are described in the ensuing text, which you should reference as you read this post.
"I will give you the keys of the kingdom of the heavens." (Matthew 16:19, first part, DLNT)Whoever has the keys to something has control over the access to it. That person can choose to either use the keys or not use them. They can also choose to provide or deny access to others. It is up to us; we must act.
The first thing Jesus talked about after mentioning the keys was this:
"And whatever you bind on earth will have been bound in the heavens, and whatever you loose on earth will have been loosed in the heavens”. (Matthew 16:19, second part, DLNT)"Binding" and "loosing" are not the keys, but they are part of the keys. A very similar statement shows up later in Matthew 18:18, and I will talk more about it later. Here is a comparison of both: Matthew 16:19, 18:18. In the first quotation, "heavens" is plural, and in the second it is singular ("heaven"). The Greek words translated into "you" in 16:19 are are singular, which implies Jesus was speaking to Peter, and the ones in 18:18 are plural. There is nothing in the text to explain these differences.
Jesus told his disciples he would be persecuted and killed, and then rise again. He then told them they must experience the same thing. This is the first "key." As his disciples, we must deny ourselves, take up our cross and follow Jesus. We must lose our lives in this fallen world in order to gain true life. We must give up what we want, and do what he wants. That is a tough message, but one we must heed if we want to enter the Kingdom (Matthew 16:21-28). Many people will turn away from this, but we must stick with Jesus because he is our only option for eternal life (John 6:68). Key #1: Follow Jesus and die.
To reassure the disciples, Jesus took three of them up a mountain and showed them something amazing -- the Transfiguration. This was not a key, but a manifestation of the Kingdom, one that Peter would remember for the rest of his life.
Next, Jesus showed them we must have faith if we want to see the Kingdom. The disciples could not drive a demon out of a boy because they lacked faith. Jesus rebuked them for their deficiency and then drove the demon out. He told them they must make efforts to increase their own faith when they doubt, in order to be successful (Matthew 17:21). There seems to be some ambiguity and uncertainty about the text here, but this is the straightforward conclusion. I have personally found I must pray to increase my faith and renounce my doubt, since my flesh is weak and the Darkness does not want me to be effective. Key #2: Pray for faith; renounce unbelief and doubt.
Next, Jesus reiterated he would be persecuted and killed, and then raised to life. By repeating it, Jesus indicated this was going to be particularly important.
Jesus showed the next key only to Peter, but obviously Peter must have shared it with the others because Matthew wrote about it. Jesus showed Peter we should submit to earthly authorities so we do not offend them, and he showed him God will provide for all of our needs, sometimes miraculously. Key #3: Submit to authorities and trust God to provide for our needs.
Next, Jesus told them we must be humble like little children. In other words, we should be dependent and helpless before God, as a little child is before adults. Key #4: Be humble.
Jesus told them they should be terrified of causing a humble person to sin. Key #5: Do not cause others to stumble.
Jesus told them they should be terrified of sinning, and should do whatever is necessary to avoid sinning. Key #6: Run from all sin.
Jesus told them to not despise or disregard a humble person, or treat them with contempt. Key #7: Do not run over people.
Jesus told them to go find sheep that have wandered off and are lost. He was talking about believers, not unbelievers. If a brother or sister in Christ wanders off, go get them! Find out what is wrong and help them. Jesus died for them, so we must care for them. Key #8: Go get the wandering sheep.
Jesus gave them a protocol to follow for dealing with a brother or sister who sins. First, we are to go to them privately. If that does not work, we are to go to them with one or two others to try to persuade them. If that does not work, then we are to make the issue public to all the brothers and sisters in the group. Finally, if that does not work, we are to treat them as an unbeliever, which means we should tell them to repent and then walk away from them. We need to give people a fair hearing and give them ample opportunity to come to their senses. We also need to keep it private and get other opinions because we might be wrong. We do not want to falsely accuse anyone. If we follow this protocol, and if the sinning person does not repent, then we must not allow them to remain in our midst, for their sake and for the sake of the Body.
This is where the second "binding" and "loosing" statement appears. The Holy Spirit tells me this is about asserting the authority of the name of Jesus. It has divine power to advance the Kingdom both on earth and in heaven. Peter confronted Ananias and Sapphira about their sin, and they died (Acts 5:1-11). Peter confronted Simon the sorcerer's sin, and he repented (Acts 8:9-25). Paul confronted Elymas the sorcerer, and dark mist fell on him (Acts 13:4-12). And Paul drove a spirit of divination out of a girl (Acts 16:16-34).
"Truly I say to you, whatever you bind on earth will have been bound in heaven. And whatever you loose on earth will have been loosed in heaven." (Matthew 18:18 DLNT)As I stated earlier, the Greek words translated into "you" in this statement are plural, which implies Jesus was speaking to all of the disciples here. The text does not explain why this statement is different from what Jesus said to Peter, but the Holy Spirit is telling me the intent was to show Peter he should share the keys with the others. I will look at what Peter actually did with the keys later in this post.
This is also where Jesus introduced the "prayer of agreement," which says we must work together.
"Again, truly I say to you that if two of you on earth agree concerning any matter which they may ask, it will be done for them by My Father in the heavens." (Matthew 18:19 DLNT)This is also where the statement came from that we often use to explain to people how meeting together anywhere is "doing church." It says Jesus will be with us when we work together, and we do not need a big group to be effective.
"For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them.” (Matthew 18:20 NKJV; link=DLNT)I think these three things are important tactics for fighting a major enemy of the ekklesia (church)1, which is sin, so I have not viewed them as separate "keys" and have included them with the protocol. I think the context supports that. Sin will destroy us and the ekklesia, if we let it, and this protocol is probably the core "key" we must use as a corporate body. All the other keys are things we mostly do individually. We must realize that "doing church" is about fighting sin and supporting each other, not partying. It is okay to do some celebrating, but we must take care of business, or we will perish. It is that serious.
As I am writing this, the Holy Spirit tells me there are some sins we will not recognize by ourselves and we will need help from the Body of Christ to deal with them. That is how he tests us as a Body. Will we love one another and work together to gain victory, or will we just do our own thing? Will we humble ourselves and let our brothers and sisters help us, or will we be proud and try to handle it ourselves? This is why God established the ekklesia -- so he can make us work together. When we are able to demonstrate we can handle small things, he will give us bigger things to deal with. It is all intended to make us rely on him, and on each other. It is how he builds us up and into One. Key #9: Follow the protocol for dealing with sin.
Finally, Jesus told them they must always forgive brothers and sisters and have mercy on them, provided they repent. The bar is high when it comes to the brethren. Jesus tells us elsewhere (Matthew 6:14-15) we should always forgive everyone so our Heavenly Father will forgive us, but when it comes to brothers and sisters, they must repent in order to remain in our company. If we follow the Key #9 protocol, we will ultimately be able to forgive everyone and our conscience will always be clear. Key #10: Forgive.
After that, the Pharisees showed up, so the introduction of the keys was done. Jesus would not have discussed the keys with them. Subsequent teachings in Matthew reinforced what the disciples had learned about the keys: blessing of children (humility), the rich young man (leave everything), the parable of the workers in the vineyard (follow Jesus; humility; don't sin), and rebuking of the two disciples who wanted to sit by him in his kingdom (humility; do not run over people), but no new "keys" were introduced. Soon after that, Jesus entered Jerusalem, where he made final preparations to go to the Cross.
How I parsed the teachings into ten keys is not important. I numbered them because I am going to refer to them again, below. What is important is those teachings are necessary for entering the Kingdom, and they are about dealing with brothers and sisters in Christ. We are all striving to enter the Kingdom at the end of the age, and we are all Jesus. How we treat each other is how we treat Jesus. If we love them, we love him. If we mistreat them, we mistreat him. These things will expose our hearts, and will be part of the basis for our "final exam."
If you doubt my assertions that the Holy Spirit is telling me all of these things are the "keys," please do not let it distract you. What is important is these teachings of Jesus are all critical for the ekklesia, and we must heed them. Don't just take my word for it. Discuss these things with him and see if what I am saying resonates with your spirit.
So, was Peter still using these keys at the end of his life? Did he pass them along to others? Let's look at the two letters he wrote and see...
Key #1: Follow Jesus and die.
In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ... (1 Peter 1:6-7 NKJV)
But even if you should suffer for righteousness’ sake, you are blessed. “And do not be afraid of their threats, nor be troubled.” (1 Peter 3:14 NKJV)
For it is better, if it is the will of God, to suffer for doing good than for doing evil. (1 Peter 3:17 NKJV)
Therefore, since Christ suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves also with the same mind, for he who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin, that he no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh for the lusts of men, but for the will of God. For we have spent enough of our past lifetime in doing the will of the Gentiles—when we walked in lewdness, lusts, drunkenness, revelries, drinking parties, and abominable idolatries. In regard to these, they think it strange that you do not run with them in the same flood of dissipation, speaking evil of you. (1 Peter 4:1-4 NKJV)
Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you; but rejoice to the extent that you partake of Christ’s sufferings, that when His glory is revealed, you may also be glad with exceeding joy. If you are reproached for the name of Christ, blessed are you, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you. (1 Peter 4:12-14 NKJV)
Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in this matter. (1 Peter 4:16 NKJV)
Therefore let those who suffer according to the will of God commit their souls to Him in doing good, as to a faithful Creator. (1 Peter 4:19 NKJV)
Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. Resist him, steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world. But may the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you. (1 Peter 5:8-10 NKJV)
Yes, I think it is right, as long as I am in this tent, to stir you up by reminding you, knowing that shortly I must put off my tent, just as our Lord Jesus Christ showed me. Moreover I will be careful to ensure that you always have a reminder of these things after my decease. (2 Peter 1:13-15 NKJV)
Key #2: Pray for faith; renounce unbelief and doubt.
The Bible records in Acts 9:40 that Peter restored Dorcas to life, and before he did so, he knelt down and prayed. That prayer was for his own faith, and it was early in his walk.
These two letters were written near the end of Peter's life, and by that time his faith was surely very strong. He exhorted his readers to go beyond simple faith to more advanced manifestations of the Holy Spirit...
...that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ, whom having not seen you love. Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, receiving the end of your faith—the salvation of your souls. (1 Peter 1:7-9 NKJV)
...add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love. For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. (2 Peter 1:5-8 NKJV)
Key #3: Submit to authorities and trust God to provide for our needs.
Therefore submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord’s sake, whether to the king as supreme, or to governors, as to those who are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and for the praise of those who do good. For this is the will of God, that by doing good you may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men— as free, yet not using liberty as a cloak for vice, but as bondservants of God. Honor all people. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the king. (1 Peter 2:13-17 NKJV)
Servants [Employees], be submissive to your masters [employers] with all fear, not only to the good and gentle, but also to the harsh. (1 Peter 2:18 NKJV)
Wives, likewise, be submissive to your own husbands... (1 Peter 3:1 NKJV)
Key #4: Be humble.
...you younger people, submit yourselves to your elders. Yes, all of you be submissive to one another, and be clothed with humility, for “God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you. (1 Peter 5:5-7 NKJV)
Key #5: Do not cause others to stumble.
...no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation, for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit. But there were also false prophets among the people, even as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Lord who bought them, and bring on themselves swift destruction. And many will follow their destructive ways, because of whom the way of truth will be blasphemed. By covetousness they will exploit you with deceptive words; for a long time their judgment has not been idle, and their destruction does not slumber. For if God did not spare the angels who sinned, but cast them down to hell and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved for judgment; and did not spare the ancient world, but saved Noah, one of eight people, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood on the world of the ungodly; and turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes, condemned them to destruction, making them an example to those who afterward would live ungodly; and delivered righteous Lot, who was oppressed by the filthy conduct of the wicked (for that righteous man, dwelling among them, tormented his righteous soul from day to day by seeing and hearing their lawless deeds)— then the Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptations and to reserve the unjust under punishment for the day of judgment, and especially those who walk according to the flesh in the lust of uncleanness and despise authority. They are presumptuous, self-willed. (2 Peter 1:20 - 2:10 NKJV)
Key #6: Run from all sin.
Therefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and rest your hope fully upon the grace that is to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ; as obedient children, not conforming yourselves to the former lusts, as in your ignorance; but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, “Be holy, for I am holy.” And if you call on the Father, who without partiality judges according to each one’s work, conduct yourselves throughout the time of your stay here in fear... (1 Peter 1:13-17 NKJV)
But let none of you suffer as a murderer, a thief, an evildoer, or as a busybody in other people’s matters. (1 Peter 4:15 NKJV)
But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love. For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. For he who lacks these things is shortsighted, even to blindness, and has forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins. Therefore, brethren, be even more diligent to make your call and election sure, for if you do these things you will never stumble; for so an entrance will be supplied to you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. (2 Peter 1:5-11 NKJV)
Therefore, beloved, looking forward to these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, without spot and blameless; and consider that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation—as also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given to him, has written to you, as also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which untaught and unstable people twist to their own destruction, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures. You therefore, beloved, since you know this beforehand, beware lest you also fall from your own steadfastness, being led away with the error of the wicked; but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. (2 Peter 3:14-18 NKJV)
Key #7: Do not run over people.
Husbands, likewise, dwell with them [your own wives] with understanding, giving honor to the wife, as to the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life, that your prayers may not be hindered. (1 Peter 3:7 NKJV)
Finally, all of you be of one mind, having compassion for one another; love as brothers, be tenderhearted, be courteous; not returning evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary blessing, knowing that you were called to this, that you may inherit a blessing. (1 Peter 3:8-9 NKJV)
The elders who are among you I exhort, I who am a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of the glory that will be revealed: Shepherd the flock of God which is among you, serving as overseers, not by compulsion but willingly, not for dishonest gain but eagerly; nor as being lords over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock; and when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that does not fade away. (1 Peter 5:1-4 NKJV)
Key #8: Go get the wandering sheep.
The elders [more experienced believers; not a position or office] who are among you ... shepherd the flock of God... (1 Peter 5:1-2 NKJV)
Key #9: Follow the protocol for dealing with sin.
In much of his second letter, Peter publicly told the believers about false teachers. The subject was so important it warranted much of his attention. He would not have dealt with the private conversations of the protocol in an open letter like this one.
Key #10: Forgive.
Finally, all of you be of one mind, having compassion for one another; love as brothers, be tenderhearted, be courteous; not returning evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary blessing, knowing that you were called to this, that you may inherit a blessing. (1 Peter 3:8-9 NKJV)
So, it looks like Peter took the "keys" from Jesus and applied them to his life, and he shared them with those he discipled. The two letters are good evidence for this, even though they are a small sampling of his life. Since Peter wrote them to disciples in general, I think we can conclude the keys are for everyone, not just Peter "the Rock."
People who claim Peter, the apostles, and persons of "special positions" are the only ones with the keys (i.e. authority) have missed the big picture and are making up human doctrines by taking things out of context. We should not listen to them. We must listen to what Jesus said, and what the Holy Spirit is telling us, if we do indeed have the Holy Spirit2. Jesus came to empower us all, not just a few.
Lord Jesus, help us use the keys in our daily lives so we might enter the Kingdom, and help us share them with others so they might do the same.
Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear.
All glory to God!!!
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1 I use the Greek word ekklesia rather than the English word "church" because the English word can mean different things to different people. Ekklesia means congregation or assembly, but it never refers to a building or institution in the New Testament.
2 Knowing what the original writers put in the Hebrew and Greek texts is
not enough, because there will always be gaps and uncertainties in what
they wrote. The Holy Spirit fills in those gaps and clarifies the
original intent, things that cannot be discerned through the text
alone. This exercise I have done, along with others, has helped me learn to follow
the Holy Spirit's leading as I seek to answer questions he is putting on
my heart. It has also helped me understand how easy it is to make
wrong conclusions and be deceived when we are not being led by the Holy
Spirit. I encourage everyone to do the same as I am doing. I am nobody
special, just a disciple of Jesus.
UPDATE, January 23, 2023...
According to the Roman Catholic Church, the apostle Peter was the first pope because Jesus gave him the keys to the Kingdom of Heaven. See the list of popes in this Wikipedia article and what it says about "Pontiff number 1."
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| plaque commemorating the popes |
Their teachings presume all successive popes hold those keys, and therefore exercise the authority of Jesus Christ and the Christian God on earth. The world is currently organized based on that presumed authority, and I discussed those things in my Authority post, as well as elsewhere.
I do not agree that any pope has any legitimate authority over the people of the world, other than those who submit to that authority by identifying with that church. I believe those notions are all based on Gentile Teachings. But, the world currently operates the way it does, and I believe reclaiming my birthright political status as a Michiganian is the appropriate thing for me to do at this time, and puts me into the best position to follow Yehoshua in the work He has me doing.
We shall see where the Holy Spirit leads...