Jesus' game show

Jesus asked His Apostles, "Who do people say I am?" "John the Baptist; or Elijah, Jeremiah or another prophet," they said. Jesus asked, "But who do you say I am?" "You're the Messiah, the Son of God," Peter said. Excited that Peter knew the answer, Jesus said, "Peter, your name means `rock,' and on that rock I'll build my church. I'll give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven."

Contests can make you sweat. Whether you're guessing the number of jellybeans in a jar or watching a game show on TV, sometimes you want to jump out of your skin just waiting to hear if you got an answer right!

This week's Gospel (Matthew 16:13-19) feels like a game show. Jesus is quizzing the Apostles on the most important thing He's taught them: that He's the Son of God, who came to save the world. Jesus knows lots of people don't believe He's really God's Son, so He's waiting to hear whether the Apostles do.

The point of most contests is to win a prize. Prizes make things more exciting: You're not just answering questions right; you're getting something good for doing that!

In the Gospel story, Peter won a prize. For being the first to speak up, for knowing and believing who Jesus was, Peter got the "keys to the kingdom of heaven" -- to be the top Apostle, the one Jesus trusted most to keep teaching about God after Jesus went back to heaven. Catholics call Peter the first pope.

On a game show, the biggest winners only get a trip to the Bahamas or Europe. But believing in Jesus and remembering the right answers about Him brings a much better prize -- a trip to heaven!

(06-26-03) [[In-content Ad]]