Jesus Is The Rock

Speaker: Archbishop Loren Thomas Hines

August 23, 2026

in Spritual Growth

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August 23, 2026:

Readings: Isaiah 51:1-6
Romans 11:33-36
Matthew 16:13-20

13th Sunday of Ordinary Time 2026 Homily – Abp. Hines

Each week, Christ instructs us regarding our lives and how we are to live. He knows what He is doing because He was involved in creation. Regardless of how we feel or what’s happening in our lives, He will not change His plan. He is the one who brought perfection to our lives. But most of us are lazy and are not able to do what we are supposed to, according to His instructions. God gives us a choice. Isaiah 51:1 “Listen to Me, you who pursue righteousness, you who seek the LORD: Look to the rock from which you were cut, and to the quarry from which you were hewn.” Isaiah 51:4 “Pay attention to Me, My people, and listen to Me, My nation; for a law will go out from Me, and My justice will become a light to the nations; I will bring it about quickly.” Do we really pay attention to Him? Or do we pay more attention to other things?

Adam and Eve had everything they ever needed, living in peace in the garden, being united with nature and the animals. It was their succumbing to the enemy’s deception that brought about disunity. In the Gospel, we see Jesus with the disciples around Him when He came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, and He asked them, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” “But what about you?” He asked. “Who do you say I am? “Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” To which Jesus responded, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven. And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock, I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” Jesus’ whole purpose in coming to earth to become flesh was to show us the kind of life we are to be living. Daniel 7:13 “I saw in the night visions, and behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him.”

“Who do you say that I am?” “Thou art the Christ, the Son of the Living God.” What God was showing us here is that He wants to have a relationship with us. It was clearly a revelation from God that Peter responded in the way he did. We have unfortunately taken the identity of the world system and by doing so, we have lost the real intention of what God wants us to be. The gates of hell will not prevail against the church if we truly acknowledge Christ as the head. “I will build My Church,” says the Lord. Many churches are failing because they were built by man. Jesus asked the disciples to find out what the people are saying about Him. He did not tell them to go ask the Rabbi, or the Scribes or the leaders, He wanted to know what the people are saying. Christ wants us to be like Him. If we are truly following what He is telling us to do, perhaps we do not even need a church because everyone would be fulfilling his responsibility in spreading the Gospel.

“I’m going to give you the keys of the kingdom. Whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” Such authority God has given us, if only we would use it properly. The Church should be built upon the Rock, upon Christ Himself. The Church should be functioning this way. In Matthew 15: 8-9 Jesus quotes the prophet Isaiah to criticize religious leaders who perform outward rituals and speak pious words while lacking true inner devotion, stating: “These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. They worship me in vain; their teachings are merely human rules.” Ephesians 2:20 “built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone.” If we follow the principles of God, we will not fail. Our hearts should be committed to Him. Man has built monumental churches and cathedrals but unfortunately, they are falling apart. Many of these structures are empty. We really need to have a relationship with God in order to be what God wants us to be.