The Church on the Rock! Is the Church built and standing on the “Rock”? What is the corner stone of this spiritual building? Is it man or Christ himself? Is your life built on the Rock? Jesus talks about a foolish man, unlike the wise man, who built his house on sand, and not on the rock (Matt. 7:24-27). Here the rock is Jesus’ teachings, when we live a life according to them. In Jesus’ times there were flash floods, when it rains, and only those houses with foundation on the rock can withstand those forces of nature. Whether it is your life or church, or your family, whatever it is, if it is not based on Jesus’ teachings, it cannot withstand the evil forces. Do you ever think that it is possible to build our life or church on just a man or we need something more solid like God itself? The pitiful state of human being is clearly evident when Peter denied Jesus 3 times. Our human mind and spirit is like “a reed swayed by the wind”. Only Jesus is the real Rock on which we stand, so that we will not fall. He is the Rock on which our house of faith is built, so that it will not be swept away. This is the Rock on which Jesus said “I will build My church” (Matt. 16:18). Only the church built on this Rock from heaven can withstand the “gates of hell”. Some interpreters believe that Peter is the rock, when Jesus said “On this rock I will build My church”. They say that Jesus used a play on words between Peter and rock (petros and petra respectively in Greek). Probably it would have been clearer in Aramaic language, which Jesus probably used, when he made this statement. Although we have only the recording by Matthew in Greek, he distinguishes between Petros (stone) and petra (rock). There are strong reasons to infer that petra refers to Christ. The immediate context of Jesus’ statement centers on Christ’s identity and mission, not Peter’s. Jesus was asking questions to his disciples about His identity, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is? and “But who do you say that I am? (Matt. 16:13&15). Secondly Jesus had already used the image of building upon a rock, clearly identifying the rock as Himself and His teachings. (Matt. 7:24, 25). “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock.” When Peter and the other disciples heard Jesus speaking about building His church on the rock, they would have easily interpreted in terms of the symbolic representation of God as rock in the Old Testament. The Rock, his work is perfect, for all his ways are justice.” (Deut. 32:4) “To you, O Lord, I call; my rock, be not deaf to me...” (Ps. 28:1) “Be a rock of refuge for me, a strong fortress to save me! For you are my rock and my fortress…” (Ps. 31:2, 3) “I say to God, my rock…” (Ps. 42:9) “He only is my rock and my salvation, my fortress…” (Ps. 62:2) “For you have forgotten the God of your salvation and have not remembered the Rock of your refuge…” (Isa. 17:10). Peter himself later affirmed that Christ is “the stone which was rejected by you builders, which has become the chief cornerstone” (Acts 4:11). He applied the term rock to Jesus as the foundation of the church (1 Pet. 2:4-8), while he compared Christians to “living stones”. Peter applied the term rock (petra) to Christ alone. In the Bible no human being is called petra, except Jesus. “As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house…Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone, a cornerstone chosen and precious, and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame.… The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone, and A stone of stumbling, and a rock of offense.…” (1 Pet. 2:4-8) Similarly the apostle Paul used the term petra in reference to Christ in Rom. 9:33 and 1 Cor. 10:4 (“…they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them, and that Rock was Christ.”) Paul firmly declared that no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ (1 Cor. 3:11). Therefore we can safely conclude that the christ apostolic church unanimously understood that Jesus Christ Himself is the underlying petra upon which the church is built, and all the prophets and apostles, including Peter, are the first layer of living stones in the church’s spiritual edifice (Eph. 2:20 “having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone”). Let us build our lives and faith upon Jesus and His Word, the only immovable rock – the rock of our salvation. Blessing upon people in christ.......
Posted on: Thu, 21 Aug 2014 11:26:50 +0000
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