PETER ... ROCK ... CHURCH - THE GATES OF HADES WILL NOT OVERCOME / MATTHEW 16:18

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(KJV) Matthew 16:18

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.

PETER … ROCK … CHURCH – THE GATES OF HADES WILL NOT OVERCOME / MATTHEW 16:18

PETER…ROCK…CHURCH

Christ promises to build His church, not on any one individual (other than Himself), but on the truth of Peter’s and the other disciples’ bold confessions that Jesus is “the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Matthew 16:16; Acts 2:14-26). Here Jesus uses a play on words. He calls His disciple “Peter” (Greek Petros, meaning a small stone), but goes on to say, “on this rock [Greek Petra, meaning a massive rock or a rocky cliff] I will build my church.” That is to say, the church is built on Peter’s solid confession that Jesus is the Christ – the “Savior” of the world.

It is Jesus Christ who is the rock, the steady and sure foundation of the church (1Corinthians 3:11). Peter states in his first letter (the Bible book of 1 Peter) that Jesus is the “living Stone, …a chosen and precious cornerstone … the stone the builders rejected” (1 Peter 2:4, 6-7). At the same time, Peter and all other Christians are also living stones who become part of the structure of the spiritual house that God is building (1 Peter 2:5).
The “rock” does not refer to Peter himself, who simply acknowledges that Christ is the foundation of the church (the community of all true followers of Jesus). Nowhere in Scripture is it stated that Peter would be the supreme and infallible (completely reliable, unable to be wrong) authority above all other disciples (Acts 15; Galatians 2:11). Nor is it stated that Peter should have infallible successors (as some denominations promote today) who would represent Christ and function as the official head of the church.
Just as the church was founded on a bold confession of Jesus’ authority, the church continues to grow and advance through the bold proclamation of Christ’s message and the display of His power.

THE GATES OF HADES WILL NOT OVERCOME IT

Hades is the Greek name for the place of departed spirits, or the dead. It is the general name for the preliminary place of punishment for the unrighteous, prior to final judgment (Luke 16:19-31). In this passage, the “gates of Hades” may mean the “powers of death.” In a broader sense, it likely refers to Satan and all the forces of evil in the world opposed to Christ and His kingdom.

This passage is not meant to describe the church in a defensive posture, as if the church is simply holding up under attack. This passage is not a description of the “gates of Hades” coming against the church. Rather, this passage describes the church on the offense, actively coming against the gates (strong spiritual walls) of Satan’s kingdom. The gates of Satan’s areas of control will not be able to hold back or stand up against the church as it reclaims territory (meaning human lives) for God and rescuing people from the power of death. In the end, nothing can stop the power of Christ’s church from accomplishing God’s purposes on earth.
This passage does not mean that individual Christian, local churches or church organizations will never face spiritual destruction or that they will never give in to immoral behavior, doctrinal error or rebellion against God. Jesus Himself predicted that many will lose or give up the faith, and He warns churches that are abandoning faith and truth to turn from their sins or be removed from His kingdom (Matthew 24:10-11; Revelation 2:5, 12-29; 3:1-6, 14-16; 1 Timothy 4:1). The promise of Matthew 16:18 does not apply to those who abandon faith in Christ or to spiritually lazy churches.
Christ is saying that though there is and will be strong opposition from Satan, spiritual rebellion among believers and false teaching and deception that creep into God’s kingdom, the church will not be destroyed. God’s grace, wisdom and power will always sustain those who remain faithful to the original message of Christ as revealed in the New Testament, who grow in their relationship with Him, who submit to His authority and who live in the power of the Holy Spirit. As God’s true people, they will display God’s power against Satan, demons, sin, disease and the wicked world. It is people like this, as members of Christ’s church, that Satan and all his hosts can never destroy or resist.

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Margarita & Stace

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PETER ... ROCK ... CHURCH - THE GATES OF HADES WILL NOT OVERCOME / MATTHEW 16:18

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Margarita Crews

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