"You are the Messiah, the Son of the Living God"

We discuss this week's lectionary readings, Mathew 16:13-20 and Romans 12:1-8. In Mathew, Yeshua/Jesus asks the disciples "Who do people say that the Son of Man is?" Simon Peter answers,"You are the Messiah, the Son of the Living God." Yeshua says, "Blessed are you, Simon, son of Jonah. For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you but my Father in heaven." We discuss the "keys to the kingdom of heaven" given to Simon, renamed Peter (rock), which is confessing Yeshua/Jesus as the Messiah, the Son of the living God. We tie this with Paul's appeal in Romans 12 "to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your reasonable act of worship. Do not be conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of the mind, so that you may discern what is the will of God...".