Bullets From The Bible: 11-09-17
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In Matthew 16:15-18 Christ asked Peter, "He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” [16] Simon Peter answered and said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” [17] Jesus answered and said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. [18] “And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it."
A few verses before these Christ had asked Peter, "Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?". Now Peter's answer is interesting. Jesus came with power and many miracles to confirm that He was who He said He was, yet many people still didn't believe Him. Some thought he was John the Baptist, Some Elijah, and others thought He was Jeremiah or one of the prophets. Then Christ asks Peter the same question as we read above.
Peter's answer is unqualified, without doubt and absolutely sure. Peter knew who Jesus was. Jesus was the Christ, the Son of the living God! This is such a great and powerful statement. It is a statement of belief, of trust, of truth. It is the foundation of the teachings of Christ. If Christ is not the son of God then Christianity crumbles without a foundation.
Jesus goes on to tell Peter, "upon this rock (the fact that He is the son of God) I will build My church"
Christ's statement here reveals several things about the church. First of all...He only promised to build one church. There is only one church ever talked about or discussed in the entirety of the New Testament. Ask yourself the question. If Christ only built ONE church...then why are there so many denominations floating around out there? It is not due to divisions of the apostles...because they were unified in their inspired teachings. 1 Corinthians 1:10 they were told to all speak the same thing and not have any divisions among them. Yet this unity is not what we see today. Why are there so many different denominations? Why are there so many churches when Christ only established one? The division has come because man has separated from the teachings of the Bible. Division has come because man has ignored the teachings of Christ and the inspired writers of the New Testament and decided to do things their own way. The only way to be pleasing to Christ is to be in His one true church that He promised to Peter here in Matthew.
Now...there is something else that can be seen in this short statement by Christ. You will notice there is only one church. But you can also see that it is Christ's church. He said, "I will build MY church". The true church belongs to Christ. Christ is the head (Ephesians 5:23). The true church was built and started by Christ. That means that any church that is built by man, named after man, follows the teachings of man, or does not follow Christ as the head is not the church that Christ established. To be the true church it must have been started by Christ, have Christ as the head, and belong to Christ.
Now...have you ever wondered how important it is to be a part of the correct church? The one true church that Christ established? Ephesians 5:23 tells us that Christ is the head of the church, and He is the savior of the body. It is necessary for us to be a part of the one true church because salvation is only found in His one true body!
