THE KEY OF THE KINGDOM

“I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven.”

Matthew 16:16-18

Jesus asked his disciples a question.  “Who do you say that I am?”  Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”  Jesus commended him for his answer and then told him, “I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven.”  I noticed that Jesus said the keys OF the kingdom, not TO the kingdom.  It seems to me Jesus was speaking about what the kingdom is about not necessarily how to get in.

Keys are of paramount or crucial importance in understanding things.  The key of an issue is the central, essential, indispensable, dominant, principle, and leading concept of anything and everything.  That says to me that the key of the kingdom of heaven is knowing and believing who Jesus Christ is, “the Christ, the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”  It was out of who he was that Jesus taught the things he had been teaching them and that they were commissioned to teach others.

In my studies about the “end times” I am convinced that the line drawn in the sand will be the belief and the knowledge of who Jesus Christ is and that what is said about him is the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.  It has become my focal point to all I think about, read about, and speak about.  It is the key to my faith and practice. 

Over the years I have wandered down other paths out of a desire to gain knowledge and understanding.  There are a lot of teachings to read and to listen to.  Some of them are very interesting and enticing.  While I hesitate in most instances to say whether they are right or wrong, true or false, I do know what truly feeds me and sustains me.  For me that is the pure teaching I find in the Scriptures.  The darker the days get, the more I am drawn to the pure and simple Scriptures, from which I believe God speaks his words to me.  They are what give me substance and sustain me in difficult times.  That substance and sustainability comes only from knowing and believing the key of the kingdom of heaven; Jesus Christ, the Son of the Living God.  It has worked for me for many years and through many difficulties and it continues to work for me.