The Building of the “Church”

The Focus

This is the inaugural post for the Four Winds Christian Church blog page. I wanted to start with a topic that is near and dear to my heart—the “Church.” From the onset of this post, I want to explain the difference between Church and church.  The former is with a capital “C” which represents the universal Church of Christianity, and the latter is designated as a local body of Christian believers worshipping and fellowshipping together. That said…I want to focus on Matthew 16:13-20:

¹³When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” ¹⁴They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” ¹⁵“But what about you?” He asked. “Who do you say I am?” ¹⁶Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” ¹⁷Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by My Father in heaven. ¹⁸And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it. ¹⁹I will give you the keys in of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”²⁰ Then He ordered his disciples not to tell anyone that He was the Messiah.

My Back Story

I have been in church for a long time, relatively speaking. As best I can remember, my family—primarily my maternal grandparent’s side of the family—was associated with a branch of the Pentecostal denomination. Consequently, I grew up in that faith tradition for the first portion of my life.  However, at the age of 14, my mother changed her denominational affiliation to Baptist, and, of course, we moved with her. It was in that denomination that I was eventually baptized. However, it was in a small Pentecostal church in the deep woods of Arkansas that I accepted Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior.

However, as I have often said, “I grew up in the ‘church,’ but the ‘Church’ didn’t grow up in me.” This statement could not have been any truer and would become evident within the first few months of my “new life” in Christ. It was on April 18, 1983, that I said “Yes!” to allowing Jesus Christ to be my Lord and Savior. It was a day that I will never forget. After making that decision, I felt as though I was making a change from being a “church’ attender to being a true “Church” member. However, it did not take long for things to change.

The following month, I got married and around mid-June found myself separated from my then-wife. By the end of November 1983, we were divorced, and, yes, if you are tracking with your math, it was about six months of marriage—at least on paper. I found myself begging and pleading with her…and with God…to save the marriage, but it didn’t work! I found myself angry with her…and God! In fact, I said to God, “If You can’t keep this marriage together, You can’t be God. In fact, I am done! I am done with You…and I am done with ‘Church!’ You can’t be the God of my life!  I don’t believe that You exist…anymore! In fact, if You don’t come to my house, I won’t come to Yours!” How bold, uh? Not only did I feel betrayed by my ex-wife and God, I felt betrayed by the “Church” and “church” members—many of whom talked more about me than to me. So…you may be asking, “What does this have to do with Matthew 16:13-20 passage?”

Relating the Passage

As I said earlier, “I grew up in the ‘church’ but the ‘Church’ didn’t grow up in me.” For years, I thought “Church” was going to a building with a group of people (even two or three) to worship—pray, sing songs, preach (or hear preaching), and, from the Pentecostal side, even jump, shout, and speak in tongues. To me, “Church” was about rituals and religion done a “certain” way, depending on the group, church, or denomination one was affiliated with.  While I truly believed…and believe…in my salvation at the time that it happened, I came to realize that I had no idea what “Church” was. I did not understand that “Church” was more than religious practices as I was going through the motions of becoming a Christian, a member of the “Church.”

However, I have since come to understand “Church” from the perspective in Matthew (16:13-20). In this passage, as Jesus is journeying with His disciples, He decided to ask them a question— “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” Obviously, they had traveled to a lot of places at this time of their ministry.  They certainly would have encountered a lot of people and had a lot of conversations. They responded with some of the things that they had heard or talked about with people along the way.  Some said that Jesus may have been a reincarnation of John the Baptist or one of the prophets of old. After hearing those responses, Jesus then makes the question personal. In other words, “That is what they said…but, what about you? ‘Who do you say I am?’” For Peter, the question was quite simple and so he boldly spoke up, saying “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”  Obviously, Jesus is quite pleased with Peter’s answer; however, He knows that such an answer is not of Peter’s own revelation. So, He replies, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by My Father in heaven.”

Now, for the first time in Scripture (Matthew 16:18), the word “church” is mentioned. Ironically, there are dual means in this description of the “Church.” First, it is related to Peter’s (Petros’) name, which means rock or stone. From Peter’s bold statement, the foundation of the “Church” will be established—“on this rock…I will build (oikodomeō) my church (ekklēsia).” According to the Blue Letter Bible (BLB), back in the first century, the word “Church” was related to a popular meeting. For some scholars, as noted in the BLB, the term was applied to an assembly of believers, which included those of the “Jewish synagogue or Christian community of members on earth or saints in heaven or both.” It primarily focused on those who left their homes to join in public worship or assembly. Another way of looking at this is seeing those believers as the “called out.” What an awesome thought…the “Church”—the body of believers being “called out” to make a difference in the world.

Not only is the “Church” summoned to stand out, but it (we) are given a promise of victory, power, and authority. When the “Church” stands truly in the Name of Jesus, nothing can come against it to bring its destruction or downfall. Jesus says, “…and the gates of Hades (the realm of the dead—which is sometimes referred to as death or hell) will not overcome it. In addition, those in the “Church” will be given access to the power of the kingdom of Heaven. He proclaims this by saying, “I will give you the keys (kleis—the power to open and shut) of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind (deō—to tie, fasten, or chain) on earth will be bound heaven, and whatever you loose (lyō—to unbind, release, or set free) on earth will be loosed in heaven.”

Even with that promise of power and authority, Jesus commands the disciples not to tell anyone—at least for the moment—that He is the Messiah.  While this may seem like a weird instruction, it was not time for it to be revealed who Jesus really was; that time would come!

The Building of the Church

Shortly, after the death, burial, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus, and the coming of the Holy Spirit, it was time for building of the “Church” as we know it today. The beginning of the “Church” as an institution appears to take form in the Book of Acts in chapter 2. The Holy Spirit has come and Peter, who declared Jesus the Christ as the Messiah and Son of the living God, is now sharing a word of understanding with the people who witnessed the outpouring of the Holy Spirit.  The people wanted to know what they must do with what they have heard and experienced. Peter says to them, “Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost” (Acts 2:38). That day alone, nearly 3,000 people received the message and made life decisions to follow the teaching of the disciples, which are by proxy the teaching of Jesus the Christ. The building of the “Church” began to take shape as the people “continued stedfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers” (Acts 2:42). Because of what they witnessed and experienced, these believers continued to meet together, pooled their resources together, and fellowshipped together. Because of this and their shared worship and admiration of God, “…the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved” (Acts 2:47).

Conflicts in the “Church”

However, things were not always rosy in or for the “Church” and its members. In fact, because of “great persecution”—murder, abuse, ostracism, imprisonment, etc., many in the “Church” began to scatter. Even within the “Church,” there were schisms, infightings, divisions, false teachings, etc.  Nevertheless, many of the people—through faith—continued to stand on the side of Jesus and serve as faithful witnesses. Acts 11:20-21 says this, “Some of them, however, men from Cyprus and Cyrene, went to Antioch and began to speak to Greeks also, telling them the good news about the Lord Jesus. The Lord’s hand was with them, and a great number of people believed and turned to the Lord.” Acts 16:4-5 adds this account, “As they traveled from town to town, they delivered the decisions reached by the apostles and elders in Jerusalem for the people to obey. So the churches were strengthened in the faith and grew daily in numbers.”

Words of Encouragement for the “Church”

As I read though many Scriptures while preparing this Blog, I was also listening to music. I came across a song by Elevation Worship called “Build Your Church.” This song seemed so appropriate to coincide with the focus of this Blog.  The words to the song begin like this:

On Christ alone, our Chief Cornerstone

No other foundation can we build upon

Not philosophy nor the wisdom of man

All other ground is sinking sand

Upon this rock, You build Your Church

And the gates of hell will not prevail

When we bind and loose, we proclaim Your truth

And in Jesus’ name, we will not fail

Application

The “Church” and “church” do not belong to individuals or groups. We are mere vessels of God, who are chosen and allowed to be laborers in the building of the “Church” and “churches”—the Kingdom of God. Our labor is in our living, loving, obedience, commitment, and faithful sharing of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. In fact, the great commission, given to the 11 remaining disciples after Jesus’ resurrection, still stands as a command for the disciples of today—that is us. Matthew 28:16-20 gives us this image and words and promise of Jesus:

¹⁶Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. ¹⁷When they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but some doubted. ¹⁸Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me. ¹⁹Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

Closing Prayer

Lord, teach us to be faithful to Your call to us to be and make disciples. Lord, as laborers, help us to work diligently at building Your kingdom—the “Church.” Whatever our role may be help us to be committed to doing what You assign us—whether preaching, teaching, singing, ushering, leading, cleaning, sharing, giving, or anything else. Lord, we realize that the “Church” is more than a building and more than mere acts of worship and works. The “Church” is Your sanctuary, Your vineyard, and even Your hospital—all of which require laborers!  We are the works of Your hands; now help us do the works of Your hands—the building of Your “Church.” Amen