The Church that Jesus builds (Matthew 16:13-20)

And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it (verse 18).

Following Jesus’ death, resurrection and ascension, the church would emerge as the gathering point for those who came to follow Jesus. The church would be the central reference point in disciples of Jesus sharing their faith with the world. Jesus forecast this very outcome to his disciples during his earthly ministry. It would be Jesus that built the church, and the church would belong to Jesus – I will build my church!

Yet we are immediately caused to think of the times when the church looks anything but the church that belongs to Jesus! So it is that the church needs to return to this foundation statement (Matthew 16:18) … when churches are being planted, and when churches are being refreshed and refocussed … the church should be a gathering and bonding of people around the person of Jesus. This is not just around the salvation Jesus brings, but also around all of who Jesus was and is! Thus the church built by Jesus will actively express Jesus’ attitudes of compassion, forgiveness and love.

Jesus builds the church on the basis (or on the foundation) of a confession of faith. The “rock” that Jesus builds upon is Peter’s confession of faith that we read in verse 16 – Peter says to Jesus: You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God. This confession of Peter was the ‘spark’ – the first ‘leap of faith’; and it is those who can repeat these words for themselves that are built into the church. The “Messiah” or “Christ” is the “Anointed One” … the One anointed by God to bring salvation into the world – to bring to fruition the covenant promises made to Abraham so long ago. And Jesus was not only a human being that the people of the time could see, hear and touch, but was also God incarnate – part of the Holy Trinity (the community of God). If we can believe and declare these things just like Peter did, then we can be built into the church by Jesus.

We go on to read that Jesus builds the church in a way that it cannot be destroyed … not by the “gates of Hades” anyway. Of course this applies to the church built upon the confession of Jesus as Messiah and Son of the living God, not the “church” built otherwise! So this is not a carte blanche guarantee, but depends upon the quality of the foundation that is utilised. Thus it is still possible for churches to collapse that have not been properly established and grown; but this will not happen if Jesus is central and holding the whole ‘body’ together.

The “gates of Hades” refers to the entrance to the realm of death. But this cannot be a threat to the church because Jesus has dealt with death – members of the church of Jesus will share in Christ’s victorious resurrection. Not only this, but also the “gates of death” will be open to the church so that the spiritually dead may be approached and find new life. It may mean even more than this … for the “gates” of a town were often the place where decision-making councils would meet, coming up with their local laws. So we might paraphrase this to say that: ‘deathly civic decisions (or the worst of humanity’s plans) will not prevail against the church’. Thus, even when Christians are martyred the church will move forward.

The church should be a credible, purposeful and hopeful alternative to non-believing assemblies across society. The church should shine with light and joy because of the One who continually is present within, leading through His Spirit. The church lacks nothing in being able to achieve God’s commission of making more disciples. The only thing that could ever get in the way is we ourselves, and our own propensity to get distracted and diverted from Jesus.