The Keys to the Kingdom (KJV)

 Matthew 16:19

“And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”

 Jesus has given us “The Keys to the Kingdom of Heaven.”  Jesus has given us the gift of great spiritual authority.

"When Jesus came into the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, saying , 'Whom do men say that I the Son of man am?' And they said, Some say that thou art John the Baptist: some, Elias; and others, Jeremias, or one of the prophets. He saith unto them, 'But whom say ye that I am?'  And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God." (Matthew 16:13-19)

 

The first thing we must learn from this passage of scripture is that you absolutely must believe in Jesus, The Christ.  We can refer to this passage as “The blessed confession”.

It was an expression of Faith in Jesus that has his own immediate blessing placed on it.  It is the confession that Jesus is “The Christ”…….The Son of the Living God.  It is a confession so fundamentally sound that Jesus promised to build His Church upon it.

When Peter answered with that profound statement, Jesus immediately "answered and said unto him, 'Blessed are thou, Simon Bar-Jonah'".  Peter represents the faith faculty in man, and Jonah means a dove, which signifies peace and love.  The inner sight (faith) was acting in consciousness through peace and love.  The spiritual faculty of faith (Peter) was hearing the revelation (Simon).  Simon was signifying his receptivity, which is the ability or readiness to receive and discern Truth.

Jesus even said "for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven" (vs 17).  At that very moment, Peter’s mind had transcended to the higher realms of spirituality.  The leading characteristic, which is faith, was being established in the higher realms of spiritual elevation (Heaven) in his Mind.  This faith is a necessary foundation for the building up of our spiritual consciousness - The Church of Christ in the individual.  We know that Peter was the first disciple that Jesus called forth.  So you see it starts with the Mind.  "Let this Mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 2:5).  "And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God." (Romans 12:2). 

The second thing this passage of scripture teaches us is the security and permanency of the church that Jesus promised to build upon this blessed confession of faith.  Jesus speaks for the very first time about the church that He would build, which was a building not made with hands- - not a church building nor even a particular denomination but rather a whole body of people/church (ekklesia which is the Greek word meaning a calling out).  It would be a people He would redeem through His sacrifices on the cross and would call to Himself from out of the lostness and death state of sin.

In verse 18, he said that on that great and blessed confession that Peter uttered, “Upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.”  Jesus said, “Thou art Peter (Greek meaning Petros or rock masculine/small stone) and upon this rock (Greek meaning Petra or rock feminine/massive rock) I will build my church."  So you see it takes the male and the female within the body.

In order for the church to be established in man, a new state of consciousness must be formed. Man must first gain the understanding of God as Spirit.  "God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth." (John 4:24)  One must also understand his own relation to Spirit.  This is revealed by The Holy Ghost.  "Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth (know) Him not, neither knoweth Him: but ye know Him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you (Greek word "ecclesia" meaning redeemed; sons). 

John 14:17

Now that Faith (staunch defender-manner of standing; position, posture) allowing Simon (hearing) the ability or readiness to receive and discern Truth has been manifested, and we know who we are, The Church, which brings us to the third and final point from this passage of scripture.

The great spiritual authority, Jesus The Christ, The Son of The Living God, has granted The Church He promised to build that "the gates of hell shall NOT prevail against it.  And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” (Matthew 16:18-19)

Whenever I think of being given keys, I think of “delegated authority.”  When someone has entrusted you with the keys to something, they are yours to exercise authority over in the name of the one who entrusted the keys to you.  You have the owner’s authority given to you to open or close.  You have their authority entrusted to you to let someone in or to lock someone out. When you have the keys, you possess authority. You have an important charge entrusted to you and the authority given to you to fulfill that charge.  You have the power to open or close, to bind or to loose, and The Bible often speaks of keys in that very manner. (Isaiah 22:21-22 and Revelation 3:7)

The greatest expression of authority that came from possessing The Keys is found in (Rev.1:17-18) where the resurrected Christ was appearing to the Apostle John in a vision.  He was appearing in His resurrected glory and majesty.  He said, "Fear not; I am the first and the last: I am he that liveth, and was dead; and behold, I am alive for evermore."

“So Be It”(Amen), and I have the keys of hell and of death.

So our Risen Savior conquered death and hell through the cross and grave and now holds full authority over them…..and has now handed us the keys.  That’s what John was seeing - the Church Triumphant.  The keys were given only to those who have a hold of the revelation of The Christ (Peter class)….the ones who have been brought above sea level….the ones who are the holy city….the ones whose vision has been angled away from sin…..the ones who have heard “The Voice”…..the ones with the blood of God on their faces…..the ones who have been washed…..The ones God has raised to Life Again…….They’re the ones who have been given the keys to the kingdom of heaven.

The keys are 1) The Holy Spirit, 2) The Word of God, 3) In His Name, and 4) Faith:

1) The Holy Spirit with His Anointing and power (Acts 1:8) "Ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you."

2) The Word of God (Psalms 119:89) The word of God is unchanging. (Matthew 24:35) "Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away."  The Word of God is the promises of God.  The Word of God is the good news.

3) The Name of Jesus The Christ  (Acts 4:12) "Neither is there salvation in any other:  for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved."  Salvation is only in that name……there is no other name like that Name.  (John16:23-24) "Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you." Verse 24:  "Ask, and ye shall receive." (Colossians 3:17) "Whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by Him."

4) The 4^th key is Faith….Faith is like the key chain that holds all the other keys together.

So start speaking to those situations and oppositions that try to come and overtake you.

IN THE NAME OF JESUS command it to be still and know that You (I) and The Father are one. All authority hath been given unto me in heaven and on earth. I AM THAT I AM.  There is none besides me.  

         

 ~ Evangelist Jackie Burton