The
Keys to the Kingdom
I
will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on
earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will
be loosed in heaven."
Matthew
16:19
Keys,
they’re used to unlock something and gain access to it. After Peter
proclaims "You
are the Christ, the Son of the living God." Jesus
tells Peter I will give you keys to the Kingdom of heaven. He says, I
will give you the ability to unlock and give access to the Kingdom of
God! He then goes on to tell Peter, whatever he binds on earth will
be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in
heaven. He is promising to put great power and authority into Peter's
hands. This humble fisherman will be given this awesome
responsibility. But what was Jesus talking about, the keys to the
kingdom of heaven?
He
was talking about access to the kingdom, he was talking about
entrance into the kingdom of heaven. I doubt Peter knew what Jesus
was talking about at that very moment, but it wasn't very long before
he came to understand Jesus statement. Peter probably began to
understand a little more when Jesus made this statement before going
to the cross,Therefore
go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of
the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Matt.
28:19 NIV Jesus
gives the great commission to His disciples. Jesus told them what
they must do to make more disciples for the King and His Kingdom.
The
first opportunity to do this presents itself shortly after Jesus
ascension into heaven, on the day of pentecost. Peter gets to present
the first gospel sermon to a massive crowd. Jews from every nation of
the world were in Jerusalem for the festival and thousands heard
Peter proclaim Jesus as the Christ. When they heard what Peter said
they wanted to know what to do about it. Peter told them, "Repent
and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for
the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the
Holy Spirit. The promise is for you and your children and for all who
are far off--for all whom the Lord our God will call." Acts
2:38,39 Peter
implemented the Keys to the Kingdom and they were bound on earth and
in heaven. Obedient sinners were loosed from sin and granted access
to the Kingdom of Heaven when they obeyed Peters response to their
question. They repented of their sins and were baptized in the name
of Jesus for the forgiveness of their sins and received the gift of
the Holy Spirit. Three thousand were added to the kingdom that day.
The
great commission still stands and the keys to the Kingdom of Heaven
are still available. It is the duty of Christians to present the
gospel to those that will hear. When they believe that Jesus is the
Son of God, are convicted of their sin and repent, they must be
baptized in order to gain access to the Kingdom. What was bound that
day in Jerusalem was bound in heaven. That process for entry into the
Kingdom heaven was used in every conversion story in the book of
Acts. Today the process for entry into the kingdom remains the same.
There is not a second set of keys, the originals must be used.
©
2012 Leo J. Woodman
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