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"To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers
in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God."
-Ephesians 3:10
In Matthew sixteen, Jesus asked his disciples, "Who do men say that I the Son of man am?" (Matt 16:13). Different ones spoke up and said, "Some are saying you are John the Baptist; some Elijah; and others are saying you are Jeremiah; or one of the prophets" (v.14). Jesus then looked at them and said, "But who do you say that I am?" (v.15), and immediately, Peter answered and said, "Thou art the Christ, the Son of the Living God!" Jesus then spoke to Peter and said, "Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven. 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. And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven" (vs. 17-19).
There have been a lot of sermons preached on this passage of scripture. I am quite certain a myriad of thoughts have been conveyed in many different ways. But, let me take a moment to share possibly another view. First of all, we know that the Greek word for Peter is PETROS, which means a small stone-one that is moveable. This other word "rock" where Jesus said, "Upon this rock I will build my church," is a different Greek word, yet very similar. It is PETRA. It is also defined as a stone but different in this sense: it is considered to be a massive stone, one that is immoveable. Think of the differences as one being a rock that can be picked up and carried away as opposed to a boulder that cannot even be budged.
When Jesus said, "Upon this rock I will build my church," he spoke of this massive rock called revelation. In other words, it was a reference to what was revealed to Peter and not necessarily the person himself. I know that may alarm some folks, but it's the truth anyway. Peter himself, understood that he was only a part of something much more massive than he alone could possibly be. We have a colloquial expression that we often use, "so and so is just a chip off the old block." Well, that is what Peter came to realize-he was a living stone cut out of this massive stone, the revelation of Christ.
If you recall, Paul the apostle wrote nearly two-thirds of the New Testament. Colossians chapter one (himself speaking) says, "Whereof I am made a minister, according to the dispensation of God which is given to me for you, to fulfill the word of God" (Col 1:25). The Greek emphasizes this word "fulfill" to mean complete or to fill up to the full. Paul's assignment was to bring the full revelation of redemption to us-to reveal the mystery that had been hid from the foundation of the world. And that mystery is, "Christ in us, the hope of glory" (Col 1:27). Paul was taught by Jesus Christ himself, by revelation, what happened from the time he was made a sin offering on the cross to when he sat down at the right hand of the majesty on high. You can find this in Galatians chapter one, verses eleven and twelve. The point is, what Jesus said to Peter is the key to everything that we need to live an overcoming, victorious life in Christ.
As we build our lives upon the word of God, especially the epistles to the churches, we are building them on revelation knowledge. Notice again what Jesus said, "The gates of hell shall not prevail against it." Implying, that the authority of hell cannot overcome the revelation we receive about the finished work of Christ. Once, we come to know who we are in Christ then the battle is over! That is why Satan seeks to blind the minds of them that believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel should shine unto them (2 Cor. 4:4).
But there is another side to this that I must mention, and that is, although the New Testament is a true revelation of the truths of the gospel, what makes it come alive is when it becomes a personal revelation to our own hearts. The depth of understanding we gain in meditating upon the finished work of Christ will generate more power than we can ever imagine. That's why Paul prayed, "That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation, in the knowledge of him..." (Eph. 1:17). The more wisdom and revelation we gain of what Christ did for us, and the more perfect that knowledge becomes, then there will arise a power to live this life (Zoe, the God kind of life), at such a level that hell itself will not be able to stop us at anything we do for the kingdom. In fact, Jesus said, through revelation, we would receive the keys of the kingdom-to bind all opposing forces of hell, and to loose the angelic host to aid and assist us, as necessary, to furthering the cause of Christ. |
