38.Build my church
Matthew 16:18 Thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.
Jesus promises that He will build his church. The rock solid foundation for the church is the confession of faith, “Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Once the Holy Spirit, through the Gospel, works that faith and confession in a person he becomes a member of the body of Christ, the Church. One by one, the Church is built on each individual member brought into it by faith.
Humans, no matter how much they believe, pray, work and witness do not build the church. We cannot create faith by ourselves, forgive sins when we choose, give eternal life, or make anyone a church member. Our job, whether a pastor or member of the church, is to preach the Gospel, announce repentance and forgiveness of sins, make disciples, baptize and acknowledge what the Spirit has worked in a person who is able to say, “Jesus is Lord.”
Pastors and workers in the Church need this promise so that they do not make church growth happen by their own power and strength. They need this promise so that they will faithfully preach, teach, baptize and witness while trusting the Lord to do the inner work of conversion and faith. They also need this promise so that they believe the power of the Gospel to convert and save; thus they will preach and teach and share the Gospel instead of the Law to everyone.
Not only will He build the Church but He will also make it strong enough to crumble the gates of hell when resistance to the Gospel crops up; those who are built into the Church by faith will be able to walk into the gates of hell and stand strong and maintain the confession, “Jesus is Lord.”