Matthew 16:13 says, When Jesus came into the coasts of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, saying, Whom do men say that I the Son of man am?  Having just warned the disciples against following the doctrine of the Pharisees and Sadducees, Jesus now asked the disciples who did the people of the world say He was.  It would have been easy for the disciples to see Jesus as the rest of the world saw Him, just as it is possible today.  Verse fourteen states, And they said, Some say that thou art John the Baptist: some, Elias; and others, Jeremias, or one of the prophets.  Many people were proclaiming Jesus to be one of the great prophets come back to life.  Recognizing Jesus as a great prophet, even if He wasn't one who had come back to life, is not enough.  There are many people today who would simply call Jesus another prophet, but that is not enough.  In verse fifteen, Jesus asks, He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am?  Just as it was for the disciples, this is the key question for anyone.  Who do we, as followers of Christ, say that Jesus is.  Either He is the only Savior of people who put their faith in Him, or He is a liar and a fraud.  It is up to each individual to decide which Jesus is.  Verse sixteen says, And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.  Just as Peter declared Jesus to be the Christ, the Son of the living God, so must we if His sacrifice for us is to be of any value. We must declare Jesus as our Savior, and the allow Him to be the Lord of our lives.  In verse seventeen Jesus says, And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.  Jesus blessed Peter, and said that his answer did not come from human understanding, but by the revelation of God.  When we encounter Jesus, we cannot accept Him as our Savior and Lord simply by human reasoning, but can only accept Him by faith in God.  Verse eighteen continues, And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.  Jesus was not speaking of Peter himself being a rock upon which the church would be built, but was speaking of Peter's faith.  The church is built on Christ alone.  Verse nineteen adds, 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.  This does not mean that Peter was able to save people.  The keys to the kingdom are faith in and obedience to the will of God through faith in Jesus.  Peter was giving the keys by his proclaiming this truth.  Those who believed the gospel when Peter preached it would be freed from the power and penalties of sin, and those who did not would still be bound by them.  Faith in Christ is the only key to salvation.  Verse twenty says, Then charged he his disciples that they should tell no man that he was Jesus the Christ.  Jesus knew it was not yet time to be proclaimed as the Messiah, because He had yet to fulfill His role.  It was not until after His death, burial and resurrection that Jesus truly became the Messiah, or Christ.  We today can not only proclaim Jesus as the Savior of the world, but we are commanded to do so.