A whole new meaning to "Upon this rock..."

I'm looking forward to taking my two older children to Israel this summer. We'll stand where David fought Goliath. We'll see where Elijah confronted the prophets of Ba'al at Mount. Carmel. We'll walk the road of suffering down which Jesus carried the cross to Golgotha.

Best of all, we'll soak in how Jesus ministered to his disciples through walking with them--what Gunther Krallman calls "transparent withness"

Jesus often used object lessons and "tours" to teach his disciples lessons they would never forget. Here's one lesson that affects each one of us every day of our lives.

"Upon This Rock..."

For nearly a year and a half of his three-year ministry Jesus took his disciples with him everywhere he went. Some of his teachings can be best understood in the context of the places he visited.

Take, for instance, this passage:

When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, 'Who do people say the Son of Man is?' They replied, 'Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.' 'But what about you?' he asked. 'Who do you say I am?' Simon Peter answered, 'You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.' Matthew 16:13-16

To this Jesus replied:

'Blessed are you Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven. And 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.'

This inspirational passage takes on a whole new meaning when one considers where Jesus was teaching, something I realized when reading Galyn Weimer's book, Hope for America's Last Generation.

25 Miles for an Object Lesson

Jesus took his disciples on a 25-mile hike to Caesarea Philippi, at the base of Mount. Hermon. If you go there you'll see a large rock formation, out of which have been carved niches to hold idols.

In Old Testament times it was a place of Ba'al worship. Later, the Greeks called it "Panias" and claimed it was the birthplace of the Greek god Pan, the god of mountain peoples. Later, Herod built a temple on the spot and dedicated it to Caesar Augustus as a way to curry favor.

In short, it was a place of great confusion, the place where the idolatry of God's own people collided with the idols of culture and of politics.

During the time of Jesus a stream came forth from the rock. The Greeks saw the cave from which it issued and assumed it was the opening to the underworld. They called it the Gates of Hades.

Where Jesus is Building His Church

Now reflect on the passage once again. When Peter told Jesus, "You are the Christ, the son of the living God," he was boldly challenging the world's systems--its religious practices, its cultural beliefs and its political allegiances.

For this insight, Jesus blessed Peter and said, "And 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."

One can almost picture Jesus pointing up to niches where idols were placed, and to the temple of Caesar Augustus, and to the cave, the "Gates of Hades."

It would have been impossible for the disciples to miss the message: Jesus didn't intend to build his church in the wilderness, far from impure influences. He intended to build it right on top of all of the religious, cultural and political idols of the day.

And no fear, not even the dread of the underworld, will stop him from doing it.

The church of Jesus Christ isn't an ivory tower. Whatever the world worships, and wherever they worship it, that is where Jesus intends to build his church--triumphing over false belief and fear.