MEDITATION IN THE WORD
"MY CHURCH"
St. Matthew 16:18 (KJV)
"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."
As we enter a brand new year and are hopeful to live out a life better than we did in 2024, we can't help but to think about perhaps a New Year's resolution to begin attending church or to attend church more regularly...
And I believe that we all can agree that last year, on the surface was not a stellar year for the visible church... as the internet and social media heighten our awareness to the moral failure of so many church leaders of seemingly all races and all church sizes...
The morale measurement by which we tend to use is not reserved just to what happens in the church environ, but also what some do when it seems no one is looking...
And there's a long list of dirty laundry from sexual immorality, embezzelment, clandestine behavior and the misuse of scripture for selfish gain and unholy theatrics in church meetings; not to mention the multitude of church pastors who are being used as pawns in our politics...
What's for sure is that in this age of the church, many would agree that the church has failed to live up to its truest creed... and just perhaps you may agree with their assessment... as people today are not enthusiastically claiming "My Church" when soliciting both churched and non-churched individuals to come and visit.
But I want to encourage you today that the church that our Lord spoke of in Matthew 16:18 is quite alive and doing really well...
Because as we consider all of the spiritual tragedies of many church leaders, we tend to believe that the church is no longer effective for saving souls...yet, more and more individuals are being saved and baptized with each passing year... to the glory of God!
And it boils down really to what the children of God choose to focus on... Because even though Satan and his angels seem to be doing a great job at exposing the corruption and moral depravity that exist in many churches; and thereby seeming to justify why people no longer are interested in attending church... I suggest that we first place our focus on Christ our Savior, and not on man.
Because the words of Jesus are as true today as they were more than 2000 years ago when he admonished Peter for his confession that He, Jesus was the Christ and Messiah... Jesus, in turn tells him that his name is Peter, the name taken from the greek word 'petra' which means rock or stone... But with a certainty, Jesus tells Peter and the disciples that the church's true nature, power and sustainablity rest in Him and Him alone, as He prophesied and declared "Upon THIS Rock, I will Build..."
In addition, we find solace and hope in knowing that the church and true body of believers belong to Christ... as he declares: .."I will build MY church."
Jesus also promises that "the gates of hell shall not prevail against it'... that is not Satan, nor his angels, demons seen and unseen... no plots, strategies will be able to destroy what Christ instituted...
The Puritan commentary, John Trapp explains the gate of hell in this fashion: "...all the power and policy of hell combined" is not able to thwart the plan of God concerning His church...
In this passage the word "gate" is used... And we typically know of gates as barriers of protection for our homes and businesses... In ancient times gates provided protection for fortified cities as a force of fortitude and strength that kept dignitaries along with the community of families safe from harm...
... and so, another way to look at this is to say that not even Satan's devises to keep the weiry, bound and broken-hearted behind his gates will be able to prevent the power of God from snatching individuals from death into a loving, life-giving relationship with Christ... as Jesus prophesied that what would come from the apostles and those believing in their message concerning that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God was true and solid...
The gospel hymn declares: "On Christ the solid rock I stand, all other ground is sinking sand."
And so, I' excited today in knowing that firstly, she church is built on Christ, it belongs to Him and nothing or noone can change that...
So, my fellow brothers and sisters in Christ, don't be dismayed by todays seemingly sad state of affairs concerning the church; but rather be encouraged as Christ promises in these evil and last days.
The Apostle Paul states in 2 Timothy 2:13, "If we are unfaithful, He remains faithful; He cannot deny Himself." (NKJV)
