As a kid, I always wanted to get involved however I could with any chores, tasks, or projects my grandpa happened to be doing. If I came back to the house from time outside with Pa (as we called him), Ma might ask what I’d been doing. If I said that I’d been helping Pa in the barn, she’d be likely to follow up by asking if I was really helping – or just gettin’ in the way. That simple question came unexpectedly back to mind recently during a discussion about discipleship and what it means to be a “follower of Jesus”. 

Context Matters ~
That discussion began by reviewing an exchange that took place between Jesus and Peter in the northern region of Israel in a city called Caesarea Philippi. This famous incident highlights the importance of knowing more than the general area where something significant was done or said. Sometimes, envisioning the specific surroundings of an event unveils significance that would otherwise be lost. That’s certainly the case in this particular incident, and we’ll have more to say about that later. For now, we’ll consider how the incident unfolded. Matthew recorded it like this: 

When Jesus came into the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, saying, “Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?”  So they said, “Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” (Matthew 16:13–14 NKJV)

What began here would turn out be more than an average Q&A session with Jesus. In those days, when a Rabbi decided to select which one of his disciples would become the next Rabbi, there was a process to follow. A Rabbi would ask a question whose answer would demand a depth of spiritual awareness indicative of divine appointment. That’s what Jesus was doing when He got to His next question: 

He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” (Matthew 16:15 NKJV)

Peter’s answer and Jesus’ well known response went like this:

Simon Peter answered and said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Jesus answered and said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.” (Matthew 16:16–17 NKJV)

Narrowing the Focus ~
Much has been said, and volumes written, elaborating and speculating on what Jesus meant in His declaration to Peter. The doctrinal implications woven into these few words are extensive, and even if addressing them in a publication like this were possible, that isn’t our purpose. Instead, while we obviously must consider the words, we also want to look at them in the context of the stage upon which they were spoken. When we envision the scene surrounding this doctrinally rich event, some profound deductions emerge. 

But before proceeding, we must first acknowledge that this brief dialog lays to rest any lingering questions about Jesus’ understanding of who He was and what He had come to do. Jesus was aware that though Peter’s mouth may have spoken the answer to His question, the words came directly from God the Father and the message was undeniable. Jesus was both the Christ, i.e., Israel’s promised Messiah, and the Son of the Living God. 

Adding a New Revelation ~
This divine moment was not only theologically profound, it was also prophetic. Jesus went on to divulge a profoundly important key to His ongoing redemptive plan. As He often did, He used the visible surroundings in training His disciples. Visuals enhanced His words and helped ensure that His message would be understood. In this case Jesus was characteristically brief, but the surroundings spoke volumes. To His earlier statement, He added simply this:

And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it. (Matthew 16:18 NKJV)

So let’s consider for a moment where those words were spoken. There’s a mountain in Caesarea Philippi that remains just as it was when Jesus was there. As you can see in the picture, a large hole lies at its base with water streaming from it, and in Jesus’ day, that large cavernous hole was referred to as “the Gates of Hades.” Adjacent to it, but not shown in the picture below was a temple where “Pan,” the Greek god of fertility was worshipped. It was a place where all the decadence and debauchery that paganism represented was actively practiced and displayed. In modern terms, it would be like Jesus and His disciples were standing in full view of downtown Las Vegas. 

Visual Reinforcement ~
My wife and I had the privilege of standing on the large, flat rocky surface that spreads outward from that massive hole in the mountain and the place where Pan’s temple stood. Because of Jesus’ known proclivity to teach wherever possible with visuals, it’s very likely that He and His disciples were standing somewhere near that very place when this incident took place. On one side, they were in full view of a place where an endless quest for pleasure went on – day and night. Next to it stood the threshold of death, the ultimate end haunting everyone. What a dismal scene they beheld. 

Now picture where Jesus and His disciples were and picture the rock they were standing on at the time, and suppose we ask this question . . . What if the rock that Jesus referred to had nothing to do with Peter at all, but instead, He was indicating the significance of ‘where’ they were standing? Furthermore …

• • What if He was declaring that He was going to build His Church right there, right in the very midst of all that this rock they stood upon represented? 
  • Could Jesus have actually been saying that His Church would be built where the realm of death ruled and temples of evil flourished? 
  • What if He was giving advance notice that His Church would not be a scattered collection of small passive assemblies sent to quietly cohabitate with the enemy’s evil world system? 
  • What if Jesus was saying, instead, that His Church would ‘invade’ the very strongholds of evil and depravity and the Gates of Death would be powerless against it?!

Perhaps His brief statement to Peter was a divine glimpse of His strategy to bring His Kingdom to this world and give life and hope to billions. What a promise that is! 

Unwelcome News ~
But when Jesus began to describe what was ahead of Him in the pathway to fulfilling that promise, Peter did not like it. That future sounded glorious until it became obvious that the way to achieving it had a cross in it. Whereupon Peter did something that seems unthinkable. He laid hands on Jesus and began to rebuke Him . . . And here’s where my grandma’s question gets involved . . . 

That Church that Jesus prophesied about and began to build acquired an unusual name in the early years of its growth. Luke mentions it in the Book of Acts as he described the persecution conducted by Saul of Tarsus:

Then Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest  and asked letters from him to the synagogues of Damascus, so that if he found any who were of “the Way”, whether men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem. (Acts 9:1–2 NKJV)

Among the things we discover in our exploration of what took place in Caesarea Philippi, there’s this . . . There’s more than one way to be in the way of Jesus. Like my grandma’s question suggested, on the one hand, we can be in His way, as in working with Jesus toward the same goals and being a beneficial asset to His work. But on the other hand, if we refuse to submit to the ultimate surrender that the cross represents, we simply get in His way like Peter did and become an instrument of Satan to oppose Him and obstruct His work. 

In “His” Way, or Just “in” the Way? ~
So, there are two ways to be in the way of Jesus. Those who respond to His call and surrender to Him are positioned behind Him. They’re walking in His way, following where He leads, doing what He does, and living like He lives. But those who see the submission He requires as too great a cost and reject Him, find themselves positioned in front of Him and positioned in His way as opposing obstacles and destined for removal.

As Jesus told His followers plainly, He is the way to the Father’s household and eternal life with Him (John 14:6). As we follow Him together now toward Easter 2026, we will transition next week and begin to focus our attention on that cross that was in His way – and beyond that to the resurrection and the endless life He suffered to secure for us. We invite you to join us next week as we begin our Easter series, “But if Christ Be not Risen…”

“TWEETABLES” ~ Click to tweet and share from the quotes below.  Each one links directly back to this article through Twitter . . .

• • • That divine moment was not only theologically profound, it was also prophetic. Jesus then went on to divulge a profoundly important key to His ongoing redemptive plan . . . @GallaghersPen (Click here to Tweet) 
    • As He often did, Jesus used the visible surroundings in training His disciples. Visuals enhanced His words and helped ensure that His message would be understood. In this case Jesus was characteristically brief, but the surroundings spoke volumes. @GallaghersPen (Click here to Tweet)
    • Picture where Jesus and His disciples were and the rock they stood on at the time. Ask this question: What if the rock He referred to had nothing to do with Peter at all? What if He was indicating the significance of ‘where’ they were standing? @GallaghersPen (Click here to Tweet) 
    • If we refuse to submit to the ultimate surrender that the cross represents, we simply get “in Jesus’ way” like Peter did and become an instrument of Satan to oppose Him and obstruct His work. @GallaghersPen (Click here to Tweet)  
    • There are two ways to be in the way of Jesus. Those who respond to Jesus’ call and surrender to Him are positioned behind Him. They’re walking “in” His way, following where He leads, doing what He does, and living like He lives. But those who … @GallaghersPen (Click here to Tweet) 
    • Another way to be in Jesus’ way . . . Those who see the submission He requires as too great a cost and reject Him, find themselves positioned in ‘front’ of Him, positioned in His way as opposing obstacles destined for removal. @GallaghersPen (Click here to Tweet)

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