But, further, we have internal administration committed to Peter, both binding and loosing, authority vested in him by Christ to act publicly here below, with the promise of ratification above. “Whatsoever thou shalt bind in earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” That is first said to Peter; and I presume from what we have in Matt. 18:1818Verily I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. (Matthew 18:18) (“Verily I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven”), that the binding and the loosing belong to the other disciples: not, unless I am mistaken, to the apostles only, but to the disciples as such. Compare also the charge in John 20:19-2319Then the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled for fear of the Jews, came Jesus and stood in the midst, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you. 20And when he had so said, he showed unto them his hands and his side. Then were the disciples glad, when they saw the Lord. 21Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you. 22And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost: 23Whose soever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them; and whose soever sins ye retain, they are retained. (John 20:19‑23). On that principle people are received into the Christian Church, and on that principle wicked people are put away till restored on the acceptance of their repentance. The Church does not forgive sins as a matter of eternal judgment, of course, which God alone has the power to do. But it is called of God to judge a person's state for reception or exclusion from the circle which confesses the name of Christ here below. In Acts 5 Peter bound their sin upon Ananias and Sapphira. That does not necessarily prove that they were lost; but the sin was bound upon them and brought present judgment. Peter was not, nor Paul, at Corinth; and there the Lord acts Himself, laying His hand upon the guilty: some were weak and sickly, and some falling asleep. Their sins were indeed retained; but this does not decide against their final salvation—rather, indeed, the contrary. When they were judged of the Lord, they were chastened, that they should not he condemned with the world: that is, that they should not be lost. They might be taken away by death, and yet be saved in the day of the Lord. The church puts away a wicked person. The man at Corinth, whom they were told to excommunicate, was guilty of appalling sin; but he was not lost. He was delivered unto Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit might “be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.” In the next epistle we find this person so overwhelmed with sorrow on account of his fall, that they were charged to confirm their love to him. Nothing is more simple than the binding and loosing which people often make so mysterious. The only sins that the Church ought to judge are those that come out so palpably as to demand public repudiation according to the word of God. The Church is not to be a petty tribunal of judgment for everything. We ought never to claim the assembly's intervention except about the evil that is so plain as to be entitled to carry the consciences of all along with it. This I take to be the meaning of binding and loosing. The former is applied when a soul comes under public discipline before the Church, and the latter when he humbles himself and is formally restored. Eternal forgiveness of sins is another thing altogether. Therein popery has shown its wickedness—confounding remission in this world with the absolute and eternal forgiveness which God reserves in His own power. Protestantism has thrown away the other truth—the Church's bounden duty to judge sins in this present life.
“Then charged he his disciples that they should tell no man that he was the Christ.” What a remarkable change is here! Peter had confessed Him to be the Christ, the Son of the living God: now the Lord charges them that they were not to tell any man that He was the Christ—not that He was “the Son of the living God.” What is the meaning of this? It was as good as saying, It is too late; I am rejected as the Christ, or the Messiah, the anointed of Israel. He is refused by Israel, and He accepts the fact. But mark another thing. “From that time forth began Jesus to show unto his disciples, how that he must go unto Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised again the third day.” If you compare it with Luke, it comes out more distinctly. There we are told (chap. ix. 20), “He said unto them, But whom say ye that I am? Peter answering said, The Christ of God.” A remarkable thing! “The Christ of God.” “The Son of the living God” is not mentioned in Luke: consequently, nothing is said about the building of the Church. How perfect is Scripture! The two things go together. But in Luke it is said, “He straitly charged them, and commanded them to tell no man that thing (i.e., to tell no man that He was the Christ of God), saying, The Son of man must suffer many things,” &c. He does not forbid them to tell this. There is a great distinction between “the Christ” and “the Son of man.” The latter is the title of Christ, first as rejected, and then as exalted in heaven. This is the turning point in Christ's ministry—where He forbids the disciples to tell that He was the Christ. The meaning is that Christ drops His Jewish title. He speaks of His Church. Before it comes He says, “Upon this rock I will build my Church.” From that time He begins to show unto them how that He must “go unto Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised again the third day.” Luke adds that “He must first suffer,” &e. All this is connected with the building of the Church, which began to be built after Christ rose from the dead, and took His place in heaven. In Ephesians the Church is not even named till after Christ's resurrection and His taking a new place in heaven have been brought out. We had God choosing the saints in Christ Jesus, but not the Church. Election is an individual thing. He chose us—you and me, and all the other saints of God, wherever they are. He chose us that “we should be holy and without blame before him in love.” But when Paul has introduced Christ's death and resurrection, he says that God “gave him to be the head over all things to the church, which is his body, the fullness of him that filleth all in all.” Christ was not so given till He was at the right hand of God. There His headship commences. His Sonship was from everlasting; He was a man in this world; and He was made Head of the Church, after having accomplished redemption. The word of God is wiser than men: what men call foolishness, is really the wisdom of God. It is our duty to give up our own theories, as much as the notions of other men. We must always bring ourselves up to the standard of God's word—not be always correcting other people, but ourselves. The word of God is what He has written for this purpose: it is no doubt very useful for others, but we must honestly use it for our hearts first. When the children of Israel were going to make war with the Canaanites the Lord appears, and lets them know that they must take the knife to themselves before the sword against others.
But mark the solemn fact that is here recorded. Immediately after Simon had made this glorious confession of the Lord Jesus, he is called, not Peter, but Satan! How could this be? Because he savored not the things that were of God, but those that were of men. He had not said one improper word according to human judgment. He had not even indulged in haste, as was often his wont. The Lord never called mere excitement “Satan;” but He so called Peter because he sought to turn Himself away from suffering and death. The secret was this: that he neither fully felt what sin was nor what the grace of God was. He stood in the way of the Lord's going to the cross. Was it not for Peter that he was going there I Had Peter thought of this, would he have said, “Be it far from thee, Lord?” It was man; and when it is man thwarting Christ, He pronounces it Satan. “He turned and said unto Peter, Get thee behind me, Satan: thou art an offense unto me: for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but those that be of men.” Peter thus feeling and acting is the true foundation of the mystery of iniquity; not Peter confessing what flesh and blood taught not but God.
Our Lord turns to the disciples and puts before them that not merely is He going to the cross, but they must be prepared to follow Him there. If I am to be in the true path of Jesus, I must deny myself and take up the cross and follow—not the disciples—not this church or that church, but—Jesus Himself. I must go in the very teeth of what is pleasing to my heart naturally. I must be found compassed by shame and rejection in this present evil world. If not, depend upon it, I am not following Jesus; and remember, it is a dangerous thing to believe in Jesus without following Him. The Lord shows that it must be a man losing his life as it were. At the present time the confession of Christ is comparatively an easy matter. There is no opposition or persecution. How it shows what the heart is! People imagine that the world is changed, and they talk of progress and enlightenment. The truth is, Christians are changed; the world is but restrained in the exercise of its power. “He that letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way.” When that day comes, it will not be merely the usual spirit of hatred that animates the world, but God sending men a strong delusion that they should believe a lie, and should thus be ready to receive the antichrist, the man after their own hearts. I am not speaking woes and troubles of my own imagining, but what we find in the word of God. There is a great calm before an earthquake. The cry is of peace and safety, but there approaches fast this time of dissolution of all that men count so settled and secure. That we, Christians, shall be taken up to be with our Savior before that day comes, I have no doubt. We must look at the bright side, the coming of Jesus, to take us to be in the Father's house. But for the little while that we are here, the important thing to remember is, that, as Jesus must needs go to the cross for our deliverance, each Christian has got his cross too. Do we desire this to be true of ourselves? If so, we shall be sure to find it out. Let us ask ourselves whether we desire to be found taking up our cross and following Jesus? “If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross and follow me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it; and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it.”
What lessons for our souls! The flesh easily arrogates superiority over the Spirit; and indulgence to the path of ease comes in (though of Satan) under the specious plea of love and kindness. Is the cross of Christ our glory? Are we willing to suffer in doing His will? What a delusion is present enjoyment.