Jesus asked His disciples: “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” Matthew 16:13 (NLT). It was clear that people didn’t know who He was. And now it is still the same.
Jesus then asked His disciples: “’But who do you say that I am?’ Simon Peter answered, ‘You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.’ Jesus replied, ‘You are blessed, Simon son of Jonah, because my Father in heaven has revealed this to you. You did not learn this from any human being.’” Matthew 16:16-17 (NLT).
A man of flesh and blood
Jesus was a normal man of flesh and blood, born of the family of David. (Romans 1:3.) He wasn’t anything special, and He wasn’t very attractive. (Isaiah 53:2.) His own disciples didn’t even understand who He was. They hadn’t yet understood that Jesus had taken up His cross daily for 30 years and had overcome all sin to which He was tempted. (Acts 3:22; Hebrews 4:15.)
God could show who He was through Jesus during this time. Long before Jesus’ physical death on Calvary, another hidden death was taking place in His body so that God’s word became flesh and lived among them. (Luke 9:23; John 1:14.) God was literally living among the people through Jesus.
Read more about this in “What does it mean to share in the godly nature?”
Peter received revelation from heaven although it was still hidden for the others. He understood that this man was the Son of the living God – Christ – the promised Messiah. Jesus called Peter “blessed” after his revelation. Everyone to whom Jesus is revealed becomes very happy.
Revelation about Jesus
Peter was an uneducated man. He wasn’t one of the educated scribes. (Acts 4:13.) This was very different from Paul, who was a highly educated man. But Paul later said that he received the gospel of God because it pleased God to reveal His Son in him, and he writes further that he “did not go to anyone for advice”. Galatians 1:16 (GNT). It makes no difference if a person is educated or uneducated. Without revelation from our heavenly Father, we won’t know who Jesus really is, even if we have grown up in a Christian home and know about Jesus’ death on Calvary.
Why doesn’t everyone receive revelation about Jesus, and why are there so many different and incorrect opinions about Him? Who is it that receives revelation from God? One of Jesus’ disciples once asked, “’Lord, why are you about to reveal yourself to us and not to the world?’ Jesus answered, ‘Whoever loves me will keep my word. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them.’” John 14:22-23 (CEB).
Jesus does not reveal Himself to the world, even if people call themselves “religious” and sing about Jesus. Those who do all they can to keep Jesus’ commandments out of a love for Him, they are those who really love Him, and they don’t belong to the world. This is believing in the Bible just as it is written. Then we can run far away from the world and from the power of the prince of this world, and we begin a new development “until we are all joined together in the same faith and in the same knowledge of the Son of God.” Ephesians 4:13 (NCV).