Apr 8, 20236 min read

“Thou Art the Christ”

Matthew 15 (INT), 16 (INT), 17 (INT); Mark 7 (INT), 8 (INT), 9 (INT)

Videos and Podcasts

Video/ Podcast	Lesson Extension	Additional Materials
Scripture Central	Matthew 15-17; Mark 7-9
Follow Him	Matthew 15-17; Mark 7-9 Part 1, Part 2	Transcripts
Line Upon Line	Matthew 15-17; Mark 7-9	FHE Lesson
Teaching with Power	Matthew 15-17; Mark 7-9
Don't Miss This	Matthew 15-17; Mark 7-9
CFM New Testament	Matthew 15-17; Mark 7-9
Unshaken	Matthew 15-17; Mark 7-9 Part 1, Part 2
The Interpreter Foundation	Matthew 15-17; Mark 7-9	Study helps by Jonn Claybaugh
Teaching Helps with John Hilton	Matthew 15-17; Mark 7-9
Talk of Him	Matthew 15-17; Mark 7-9
Ponderfun	Matthew 15-17; Mark 7-9
Talking Scripture	Matthew 15-17; Mark 7-9	show notes

Resources and Insights about this Week's Lesson

To better understand the context of Peter's declaration that Jesus was the Christ, it is helpful to understand the geography of where this testimony occurred. Caesarea Philippi was a city in northern Israel known for its pagan worship, particularly of the god Pan. Furthermore, the city was built around a cave known as the "Gates of Hades," believed to be the entrance to the underworld. The fact that Jesus asks his disciples about his identity at this location underscores the importance of their answer, highlighting the contrast between pagan beliefs and the truth of Christ.

The mythologies and legends associated with the Gates of Hades revolve around the idea of death and the afterlife. In Greek mythology, Hades was the god of the underworld, and the Gates of Hades were believed to be the entrance to his realm. In Jewish tradition, the gates of Sheol, a similar underworld concept, were seen as the entrance to the realm of the dead. These gates were often described as locked or barred, making it impossible for the living to enter or leave. Several prominent mythologies are associated with this site. Here are a few examples:

The Abduction of Persephone: According to Greek mythology, Persephone, the daughter of the goddess Demeter, was abducted by Hades and taken to the underworld through the Gates of Hades. This event led to the creation of the seasons, as Demeter's grief at losing her daughter caused the earth to become barren and cold.
The Death of Orpheus: Orpheus was a legendary musician and poet in Greek mythology. When his wife Eurydice died, Orpheus traveled to the underworld to try to bring her back to life. He passed through the Gates of Hades, but ultimately failed in his quest and was killed by the god Bacchus.
The descent of Aeneas: In Virgil's epic poem "The Aeneid," the Trojan hero Aeneas travels to the underworld through the Gates of Hades to seek guidance from his father. While there, he encounters various figures from Roman mythology, including the spirits of the dead.

These myths and legends highlight the significance of Jesus's questions and statements, and help to provide context for Jesus' reference to the "Gates of Hades" during his conversation with Peter. They also demonstrate a foreshadowing of Jesus' own descent into Hell to atone for and rescue his people, an event that Christ began preparing his disciples for as they started their journey to Jerusalem.

This would have been a powerful and meaningful message to Jesus' audience, particularly his disciples and members of the Northern Tribes of Israel, many of whom had assimilated into the Northern Hellenistic, Syrian, and Phoenician communities, where various cultural and religious traditions had blended.

We see this with the story of the Syrophoenician woman, who begs the Savior to help her daughter. This is one of my favorite miracles the Savior performs, especially when one considers the historical context. This woman was a Canaanite, and the Jews passionately hated the Canaanites (Phoenicians), so much so that even the apostles begged the Savior to turn her away.

The Romans and Jews had just fought three successive wars against the Phoenicians, known as the Punic Wars. The context for these wars began earlier, with the destruction of Tyre in 332 BCE when Alexander the Great's Army laid siege on the city. This pivotal moment resulted in significant animosity between the Phoenicians/Carthaginians and what would develop into the Roman Empire. Ultimately, after the most violent wars in the history of the world up to that point, Rome eventually rose to the top and issued its final verdict against its notorious enemy; mass genocide. This was known in history as the Roman Holocaust. When one reads the Savior's warning against Chorazin and Bethsaida, where he says that "it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon on the day of judgment" than it will be for them because they rejected him, he is referencing these events. This woman was one of those hated "enemies." She experienced severe persecution because of her ethnicity, even by the apostles.

When Jesus finally received the unnamed woman, he said, "It is not meet to take the children's bread, and cast it to dogs." To which the woman brilliantly responded, "Truth, Lord: yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters’ table." Oh, these words are powerful and so insightful! I get chills every time I read them. This woman knew whom she was addressing. Not only that, but she knew who she was and whom she served. It didn't matter that the world had turned against her. It didn't matter that she was hated and despised, even by those who should have known better. She knew her Savior, and because of that, nothing else mattered.

The account can be confusing unless one understands the historical context of this story. I have unfortunately heard some horrible misinterpretations of this passage; some have even suggested that the Savior referred to this woman as the derogatory equivalent of a "female dog." However, this is not at all true; the Savior would never refer to a woman in that manner, and he did not refer to this woman in that way. This is evident in Christ's response to this woman's heartfelt reply, "O woman, great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt." And her daughter was made whole from that very hour. This is the power of a righteous mother who knows her Savior!

This woman faithfully understood what the Savior was trying to teach the apostles when he took them to Caesarea Philippi, that the mythologies and legends of the foreign nations were meager crumbs that fell from the master's table. Many of these legends contained kernels of truth, but they had become corrupted, confused, and twisted over time, primarily due to idolatry, priestcraft, and superstition. This history was clearly demonstrated when the Tribes split, when Jehu, fearing that the Northern Tribes would reunite with Judah because of the Temple, built two temples in Northern Israel, at Beth El and Tel Dan. In those temples, Jehu reinstated idols, which caused the Northern Tribes to err, and they soon returned to the same Canaanite roots that inspired the Israelites to construct the golden calf in the wilderness.

In these, and other passages, Jesus teaches that he came to save not only the Jews but all the tribes of Israel and all who would follow him, the only one who had the power to save and redeem humankind from the Fall and from the "Gates of Hell," through the power of his infinite Atonement, which was quickly approaching.

This was when Jesus began to teach his disciples that he would have to suffer and die to break the bands of death in order to receive all the necessary keys of the kingdom, even those of hell itself, to bring to pass the purpose of his mission, the immortality and eternal life of man. When Peter proclaimed, "Thou art the Christ," to a small extent, he began to comprehend the weight of Jesus' mission, but even then, he didn't want to accept it, and when Peter protested, Jesus rebuked him. This interaction highlights the Savior's humanity and the inherent dread he must have felt. His strong reaction, 'Get thee behind me Satan..." reflected this because the Savior knew that great pain and suffering stood just ahead. However, Jesus was prepared.

In Chapter 17, Christ took Peter, James, and John with him to Mt Tabor, where Jesus was visited by Moses, Elijah, and Heavenly Father. Peter, James, and John witnessed the event. Jesus was transfigured before them, and he received the necessary keys to the Priesthood to prepare him for his perilous journey. Christ taught his disciples that he had already received one of the keys, from John the forerunner, through the ordinance of baptism. Elijah and Moses came to bestow additional keys upon him pertaining to the restorative and sealing powers of the Aaronic and Melchizedek priesthood (Doctrine and Covenants 27:6, Doctrine and Covenants 77:14, Doctrine and Covenants 110:13–16).

It is truly amazing to recognize that these keys are once again upon the Earth, and they have been given to faithfully endowed members of God's kingdom! As such, we have been called to be "saviors on Mount Zion," to "take up our crosses," to follow Jesus Christ in his mission of saving souls through sacred redeeming ordinances.

President Nelson has recently taught, “You were sent to earth at this precise time—this most crucial time in the history of the world—to help gather Israel. There is nothing happening on this earth right now that is more important than that. … This is the mission for which you were sent to Earth...Anytime you do anything that helps anyone—on either side of the veil—take a step toward making covenants with God and receiving their essential baptismal and temple ordinances, you are helping to gather Israel. It is as simple as that.”

Major Topics & Events

Major Events/ Doctrines	Location	Scripture Source	Cross-References	Videos
Discourses on cleanliness	Galilee	Matthew 15:1–20, Mark 7:1–23		LUMO
Heals Canaanite daughter	Tyre, Sidon	Matthew 15:21–28, Mark 7:24–30		Lesson
Heals many in Galilee	Galilee	Matthew 15:29–31, Mark 7:31–37
Feeds four thousand	Galilee	Matthew 15:32–38, Mark 8:1–9	Luke 9:10-17, John 5:1-15	Tabgha, LUMO
Pharisees and Sadducees ask for a sign	Galilee	Matthew 15:39–16:4, Mark 8:10–13	Luke 12:54–57
Leaven of Pharisees and Sadducees	Galilee	Matthew 16:5–12, Mark 8:14–21	Luke 12:1
Blind man healed by stages	Bethsaida	Mark 8:22–26		Jesus Heals Blind Man
Testimony of Peter	Caesarea Philippi	Matthew 16:13–20, Mark 8:27–30	Luke 9:18–21	Whosoever Will Lose His Life for My Sake Shall Find It, LUMO
Sealing keys of the kingdom promised	Caesarea Philippi	Matthew 16:19
Prophecy of death and Resurrection	Caesarea Philippi	Matthew 16:21, Mark 8:31	Luke 9:22	LUMO
Peter rebuked	Caesarea Philippi	Matthew 16:22–23, Mark 8:32–33
Take up a cross	Caesarea Philippi	Matthew 16:24–27, Mark 8:34–38	Luke 9:23–26
Transfiguration: Sealing keys committed	Mount Hermon or Tabor	Matthew 17:1–13, Mark 9:2–13	Luke 9:28–36	LUMO
Heals boy with unclean spirit	Galilee	Matthew 17:14–21, Mark 9:14–29	Luke 9:37–43
Again foretells death and Resurrection	Galilee	Matthew 17:22–23, Mark 9:30–32	Luke 9:44–45	LUMO
Tribute coin from a fish	Capernaum	Matthew 17:24–27