The Church That Jesus Builds

Q: What does the Bible say about the church that Jesus builds?

The Bible describes the church that Jesus builds as His universal and eternal assembly, comprised of believers united in faith and grace. In Matthew 16:18, Jesus declares, 'Upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.' This signifies that the true church is not merely a physical structure or organization but is established by Christ Himself upon the foundation of His identity as the Son of God. The church encompasses all believers from every age, established in the purpose of God before the foundation of the world (Ephesians 1:4-5). It is a spiritual body, composed of the elect who are redeemed by His blood and united through faith in Him, ensuring that nothing can thwart its divine foundation.

Q: How do we know that Jesus is the true foundation of the church?

Jesus is declared as the true foundation of the church through Peter's confession and Jesus' response in Matthew 16:16-18. In Matthew 16:16, Peter confesses, 'Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.' Jesus affirms this revelation by stating that this truth was given to Peter by the Father in heaven. This highlights that the church is built on the person and work of Christ—His identity as the Messiah, the Divine Redeemer. It is not built on human wisdom or merit but on the revelation of Christ Himself. Furthermore, Ephesians 2:20 elaborates that the church is founded upon the apostles and prophets, with Jesus Christ being the chief cornerstone, affirming His unique role and authority in the church's establishment.

Q: Why is the church important for Christians?

The church is crucial for Christians as it represents the body of Christ and the means through which believers are nurtured in faith and fellowship. The church serves as the community of believers who are called to support one another in their walk with Christ, as seen in Hebrews 10:24-25, which urges believers not to neglect coming together. This assembly is vital for spiritual growth and encouragement, providing teaching, fellowship, and worship. Additionally, the church serves as a witness to the world, exemplifying the grace of God and His redemptive work in Christ. As the body of Christ, it is through the church that believers experience the fullness of their salvation and enact the mission of God, bringing forth His kingdom on earth.

Q: What does it mean for the church to prevail against the gates of hell?

It means that the church, built on the foundation of Christ, has the victory over sin, death, and spiritual opposition. In Matthew 16:18, Jesus states that 'the gates of hell shall not prevail against it,' indicating that the church is equipped and empowered by Him to stand firm against all forms of spiritual opposition and evil. This promise assures believers that despite the attacks of Satan and his forces, the church will ultimately be victorious. The gates symbolize strongholds and resistance, but through the power of Christ and the work of the Holy Spirit, the church continues to advance, proclaiming the gospel and expanding the kingdom of God. This victory is rooted in Christ's resurrection, proving that He has conquered death and sin, and grants His followers the assurance of eternal life.

I think that deserves an amen
out of you, don't you? I'm so grateful for the talent
we have here in so many, many ways. I was talking on the phone with a man yesterday. I had several
phone conversations, different parts of the country, and I don't
remember to whom I was speaking at this time, but he was commenting on how blessed
we are here to have not just one preacher, but several faithful
preachers of the Word. He said that he gets the tapes. I don't remember who I was talking
to, but he said, I hear these young men preach And he said,
they do just as well as you do. I said, I want them to. They
do. I believe they do. He said, I'd just like to hear
them or even read the scriptures. I'd like to hear them read the
scriptures and pray. I do too. I'm thankful for them. Do you realize how long these
men work to play like that? It takes years. Somebody asked Mike one time,
he said, I wish I could play like you. I'd give anything if
I could play like you. He said, would you give six hours a day?
Well, I don't want to say that bad. But how blessed we are and how
thankful I am. I just appreciate you more than
you could ever know. This is a seven-day-a-week ministry. Seven days a week. And worldwide. Just the other day, we were sending
tapes to Australia, weren't we? England, France, Spain, Mexico. They've gone to India. I asked, Ronnie asked the television
program director at Channel 13 last Monday night, a week ago. He said, when we get a letter,
when our pastor preaches, and when we get a letter requesting
a tape, and they send their money, request a tape. What are we talking
about? How many people are listening?
How many people does one letter represent? The station said,
our estimate is 1,000. Every letter you get, there are
1,000 other listeners who don't write. 1,000 others. I said,
that doesn't hold true. I believe he said, when you're
giving things away, you know, that sort of thing. But when
you're just saying, here's a message, you want it, send the money,
and we'll mail it to you. He said, you're talking about
a thousand people for every one letter. So for that tape I preached
last Sunday, there were how many letters? 150. That's 150,000
listeners. Rough estimate. So it's a worldwide ministry
and it's seven days a week and I've got such good help and I'm
thankful. Martha in the office, Ronnie
in the tape room, Bob at the bookstore, Paul on the bulletin
board, Mike in the music, Charlie and these other preachers preaching
for us and Charlie's preaching the night of Dingus, Hap's preaching
up at Cottageville. We have six ordained pastors
out now, pastoring, preaching the gospel from these pews right
here. Three others, that's nine men
we've ordained the last 15, 20 years. I'm thankful. God's blessing. I do praise Him. And I covet
your prayers. I covet your prayers. And all
of you, your health and your support and your prayers and
your encouragement, I deeply appreciate. All right, let's turn to Matthew
chapter 16. Matthew 16. You know, when you name names,
you always miss somebody. My faithful building superintendents,
Professor Thornberry and Professor Hardy. And in May, the pastor doesn't
have to worry about anything in this building. They're all
grounds, all taken care of. I know preachers that put in
light bulbs. Somebody come by and say, that light bulb burned
out. But I'm grateful for everybody. Matthew 16, here in verse 13. Matthew 16, 13, when Jesus came
into the coast of Caesarea, Philippi, He asked His disciples, saying,
whom do men, whom do men, the natural man, the people out in
the community, folks in general, that's what he's talking about,
folks in general, religious and otherwise, whom do men say that
I, the Son of Man, am? And they said unto him, here's
the gossip, here are the rumors, here are what people are saying.
when they told him what people were saying about him, these
were all complimentary terms. A lot of people are bragging
on Jesus who don't know Jesus, who he is. These are all complimentary
terms. I know the Pharisees, religious
leaders, say he's a wine-bibber and a gluttonous man and half
a devil, but the average person is bragging on him. And some
of them say you're John the Baptist. John the Baptist has been beheaded.
They say, you're John the Baptist, come back from the grave. Or
one like John the Baptist. Some say you're Elias. Now there's
a lot of people believe that the Bible teaches that Elias
is supposed to make another appearance on this earth before the Lord
Jesus come. And this is what they're saying.
This is Elijah. He's come back. God's promised
that he'd come back. I don't know about that. But
that, they said, some said you're Elias. And others, Jeremiah. Now, these men are held in high
repute. Some say that Jeremiah is one
of the prophets. And that's just about all that
they can say. And then our Lord said to His disciples, but He
said unto them, He said to the inner circle, But whom, but whom
say ye that I am? What do you say? Now I want you
to look for just a moment at the reply that Peter gave him,
and I'm coming back to it later, but I want you to look at, Thou
art the Christ. Thou, a man, art the Christ,
the Son of the living God. And our Lord answered and said
unto him, now watch this. This is not general knowledge
among the religious people, who Christ is. This is not general
knowledge today among religious people who Christ is. They may
say he's a great preacher, great healer, great reformer, great
leader, great this, that, and the other, one of the prophets.
But this answer that Peter gave, thou art the Christ, the Son
of the living God, I want you to see how Christ treats this
answer. He said, Simon, son of Jonas,
blessed are you, blessed are you, you're blessed. to have
that knowledge, to have that understanding. Oh, how blessed
you are. How blessed you are. Do you know
how blessed you are to know who Christ is? Do you know how blessed
you are to know the character of God in your own character?
That's what she was talking about Wednesday night, when you read
those scriptures about sin. Does this offend you? No, it
doesn't offend me. Oh, that's a blessing that doesn't offend
you. If when a man glorifies God, it doesn't offend you, that's
a blessing. When a man puts man in the dust,
it doesn't offend you, that's a blessing. When a man talks
about Christ, his person and work, and you understand it,
and it doesn't offend you, and you enter into it, that's a blessing.
Peter said, well, you're the Christ, the Son of the living
God. He said, oh, blessed are you. How blessed you are. How blessed you are to listen
to the gospel without offense. to hear the Word without offense.
Now watch what he says. And he says, Peter, flesh and
blood didn't reveal that to you. You didn't learn that from a
book. You didn't learn that from a
person, a human. You didn't learn that in a school
of theology. No, you didn't. Turn to 1 Corinthians
2 while you keep your hand in that place there at Matthew 16.
But turn to 1 Corinthians 2. Now watch this, 1 Corinthians
2, 7, but we speak the wisdom of God. Now who's the wisdom
of God? It's Christ. Christ is the wisdom
and power of God. The preaching of the cross to
them who are being saved is the wisdom of God. And we preach
or speak the wisdom of God in a mystery. Read on. In a mystery. Even the hidden
wisdom. which God hath ordained before
the world. This is the purpose and covenant
of grace before the world began, to our glory, to our good, to
his glory, and to our eternal glory, which none of the leaders
of this world knew, for had they known it, they would have not
done what they did. They wouldn't have nailed the
Son of God to the tree if they'd have known this mystery. They were religious. They knew
the law. They knew the traditions. They knew the customs. They knew
the Sabbath day, they knew all these things, but didn't know
who He is. Or they wouldn't have nailed
Him to a tree and read on. It is written, I have not seen
nor ear heard, neither hath it entered into the heart of men,
the hearts of men, or the heart of man, the things that God has
prepared, purpose in Christ provided for them that love Him. But God
hath revealed them unto us. How? By His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things,
yea, the deep, mysterious things of God, the wisdom of God. And
I'll tell you, if our God's a great God, His wisdom is great wisdom. It's not trifling matters. If
our God's a great God, He said, oh, how unsearchable are the
riches of the wisdom of our God. Our God is so great, He has to
be revealed by Himself. You can't, by searching, find
God. By searching, you can find a
God. By searching, you can find a deity, but you can't find the
living God by searching. No, sir. He has to be revealed. That's what it says. What man
knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man, which
is in him. Verse 11, even so, the things of God knoweth no
man. no man, but the Spirit of God knows them. Now we have received
not the Spirit of the world, but the Spirit which is of God,
that we may know the things that are freely given to us of God.
Verse 14, But the natural man, whether he is in the church or
in the world, he receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God
for their foolishness to him, neither can he know them, they
are spiritually understood. Peter, Simon son of Jonah, flesh
and blood, Whatever you're saying about me didn't reveal up to
you. Who did? Read on. But my father,
Matthew 16, verse 17, my father, which is in heaven, he revealed
this to you. He revealed it. And then he gave this text here
in verse 18, and I say also unto you, I say also unto you, this
is so rich and abundant in blessings, I hope you can stay with it.
And I also say to you, I also say, that Thirte Peter changed
his name. Thirte Rock, a little stone.
And upon this rock I'll build my church. And the gates of hell
will not prevail against it. Now immediately some questions
come to my mind. When I read this 18th verse,
on this rock I will build my church, my church, and the gates
of hell shall not prevail against it. The fortresses of hell, the
city of hell as opposed to the city of God. Immediately these
questions come to my mind. Do I belong to his church? Do I belong to his church which
he builds? Am I part of that church which
he said in Ephesians 5 he loved and purchased with his own blood?
I'm a member of the 13th Street Baptist Church, but that's not
the one he's talking about. You see, the world's full of
churches. The world's full of what men call churches. They've
risen and they've fallen. There have been big churches
and great churches and famous churches, and they're gone now.
You can go over to England and stand in front of Charles Spurgeon's
great metropolitan tabernacle. There's nothing left there, nothing
hardly left there but a shell. You can go around the world and
stand in front of different churches. They're being organized every
day. And many are functioning very
successfully, especially in this country of churches. But my friends,
there is a church. There is the church. There is
one true church whose names are written in heaven. Did you know
that? One true church whose names are written in heaven. Turn to
Hebrews chapter 12. Let me show you that. Hebrews
chapter 12. There's one church. It'll never fail. It'll never
fall. It's the church of our Lord Jesus Christ. It's the church
of God. It's the church which he loved.
It's the church which he purchased with his own blood. And it says
here in verse 22 of Hebrews 12, But ye are come to Mount Zion,
and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem,
and to an innumerable company of angels, to the general assembly. Somebody asked Brother Danny
Shanks one time, said, How can you believe in a universal church? How can you believe? How can
you believe in an invisible, for my eyes are concerned, church?
He said the word church means assembly. Assembly. He said, where do they assemble? Where are they assembled? And
then he said, they're always assembled in the presence of
the Lord Jesus. whether in heaven or on earth. Don't you know that
His eyes are upon the sparrow? Don't you reckon His eyes are
upon every one of His people? It doesn't matter whether they're
in glory or on this earth. They're assembled in His presence. The heaven of heavens won't contain
Him. The earth is His footstool. They're there. They're there.
They may be in Mexico, or Australia, or England, or France, or America. It may be in Dingus, and it may
be in Pikeville, and it may be in Ashton, but they're in His
presence. They're assembled. They're always assembled. That's right. That's what He
calls it, to the General Assembly. The Church of the Firstborn.
I've seen churches named everything. I'm glad that somebody didn't
name one Church of the Firstborn, aren't you? I even saw on Mount Sinai about
this church not long ago. The church of the firstborn,
watch it, which are written in heaven. Written in heaven. That's where their names are
written. There's one church, one true church, given to the
Son, redeemed by His blood. There's a church, one true church,
made up of His elect, His sheep, His saints in heaven above, on
earth beneath, none of which shall ever perish. I want you
to go back to the text and see four things. I'm going to give
you four things in this message tonight about this church, and
all of it will be taken from verse 18. Verse 18, And he said unto him,
I say unto thee, that thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will
build my church. And I've heard pastors, and I
think sometimes they do these things in an unguarded moment. But I've heard preachers and
pastors refer to the congregation where they serve as my church.
Have you ever heard preachers do that? My church is going to
do this, and my church is going to do that. Well, they may be
right. I don't know. But this is not my church. This
is His church I'm talking about tonight. This is His church.
And I've heard members refer to their group as our church.
Our church. And that may be true. But our
Lord Jesus Christ gives the church a name. He said, it's my church.
It's my church. And this church is not a building.
It doesn't have a building. This church is not an organization.
This church is not an assembly meeting in a certain location,
though it's always assembled in its presence. This church
has no tares. This church has no unsaved members.
This church has no hypocrites. This church has no false disciples.
This church is made up of every believer from righteous able
to this day. It's a great congregation. And they were given to him, the
Lord Jesus, this church he calls my church, they were given to
him in eternity by the Father. They were born of the Spirit
and the Word And they all, in heart, soul, and mind, love Christ,
rest in Christ, trust in Christ, and believe in Christ. Every
single one of them. And wherever you find a member
of this church, my church, you will find a sinner saved by God's
grace. Now, every once in a while, somebody
will come to me and ask this question. Don't you believe there
are saved people in every, quote, church? I don't know. I don't know. I don't know. I can't answer. I don't know
who's saved and who's not saved, but I do know this. A person
who is saved is a person who is saved by God's grace. By God's
grace. A person who is saved is a person,
a sinner, who is saved by God's grace. who is saved by the blood
of Christ alone, not any sprinklings or baptisms or washings or confirmation
or trust in anything but Christ alone. A person who is a member of this
church who is saved is a person with no righteousness of his
own, who will readily admit that my righteousnesses are filthy
rags, And Christ's perfect obedience is all my righteousness and sanctification
before God. And a person who is a member
of this church who is saved is a person who will readily proclaim,
my hope is built on nothing, nothing less than Jesus' blood
and His righteousness. His oath, His covenant, His blood
support me in the whelming flood, when all around my soul gives
way. He then is all my hope and strength."
Now, go to all these places, and you find someone with that
understanding. You say, well, they may be saved
and not know it. Well, now, that would be interesting. That would
be interesting. They may love Christ and not
know Him. You can be saved and not have assurance, but you can't
be saved and not love Christ. You can be saved and not have
confidence, but you can't be saved and not have faith in Christ
Jesus alone. You see, this church, they all
come to one throne of grace. There's not two thrones. There's
not a great God and a lesser God. But it doesn't matter to
whom you come, just so you come to God. You have the living God. They all sing one song unto him
who is worthy. They're all led by one Spirit.
If any man have not the Spirit of God, he's none of his. They
all love and revere this book. That's right. Every saved man,
every member of this church, this church of the Lord Jesus,
loves and reveres this book. Thy word is a lamp unto my feet
and a light unto my path, and I'll hide it in my heart that
I might not sin against it. Thy word, O God. It's my foundation. They all possess one hope to
be like Christ. They're all members of one family,
sons of God. They all have one robe, His righteousness. They all wear one name, His name.
There's none other name under heaven given among men whereby
we must be saved. Now then, now then, I'm not being
fanatical or radical. a sectarian. I'm simply saying
that those who are redeemed and members of this, my church, are
people who know him, love him, and believe in him. Him alone.
It's his church. All right, what's the second
thing then? He says, I will build my church. You see that? I'll build my church. I will
build my church. The Lord adds to the church,
such as should be said. Men do not build His church,
He builds it. Men do not lay one stone in His
church, He lays every living stone. You see, there's a sense
in which redemption is the work of the Trinity, Father, Son,
Holy Spirit. Turn to Ephesians 1. Ephesians
chapter 1. There's a sense in which redemption. the saving of his people, the
calling of his elect, the calling out of his elect, the finding
of his sheep. There's a sense in which it's the work of the
Father, Son, Holy Spirit, the blessed Trinity. For here in
Ephesians 1, now watch this, verse 3, blessed be the God and
Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. The Father hath blessed us with
all spiritual blessings in Christ, in heavenly places in Christ,
according as the Father chose us before the foundation of the
world. that we should be holy and without blame before Him
in love, having predestinated us to the adoption of children
by Jesus Christ, to Himself, according to the good pleasure
of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, wherein
He made us accepted in the Beloved." There's the Father. The Father
had a great hand in the formation of this church, didn't He? A
great hand. He chose us, He predestinated us, He elected us, He gave us
to Christ, He accepted us. And then it says about the Son,
verse 7, it says, In the Son we have redemption through His
blood. Redemption. He brought us back.
He restored us. Brought back what we lost and
added. He gave us the forgiveness of sin through the riches of
His grace. And He hath abounded toward us in all wisdom and prudence,
having made known unto us this mystery of God's will. You don't
know the Father except as you know the Son. The Father reveals
it. No man knoweth the Father save the Son, either whom the
Son will reveal him. So the Son redeemed us, and the
Son revealed the Father to us. And then it says in verse 11,
"...in whom also we have obtained an inheritance which joined heirs
with Christ, an inheritance being predestinated according to the
purpose in Him who worketh all things after the counsel of His
own will." The Son not only redeemed us and revealed the Father to
us, but enriched us with the inheritance reserved in heaven
that paid it not away. He bought us. That's right. All right. Then, and that says
that we should be to the praise of His glory. Now watch verse
thirteen. Now the Son in whom you trusted, in whom you believed,
what I was talking about this morning, you believed Christ.
You just didn't believe religion. You just didn't believe the Baptist
message. You just didn't believe the Bible was the word of God.
You believed in whom? In whom you believed. This man,
this God-man who redeemed us, who ransomed us, who revealed
the Father to us, who enriched us. You believed in Him. When? Up to you. Hey! What? Just the preacher? The word of
truth. Truth, truth, truth, truth, truth.
Who is the truth? Christ says, I am the truth.
The truth shall set you free. Man can't be saved without hearing
the word of truth. He may be moral, but the Mohammedans
are moral. He may be an energetic religionist,
but the Confucius people are energetically religious. Folks
that set themselves on fire in Vietnam, they're pretty zealous
for their religion. But in whom you trusted after
you heard the word of truth. That's when you heard of Christ
and trusted Him. You see that? Read on. The gospel,
the gospel. You didn't believe it till you
heard it. You didn't trust Him till you heard it. The gospel
of your salvation, in whom, after you believed, you were sealed
with the Holy Spirit upon us as the Holy Ghost. So Christ
talking about the church now. He says, it's mine. It's mine. He said, I'll build
it. Brother Andrew, do you think you ought to go back and get
people down there? He said, I'll build it. Thank you. Well, don't you think you ought
to go out and just got people signed up? I'll build it. Thank
you. Don't need any amateurs laying any stones in this church.
Everyone I've ever laid in there is falling out pretty quick.
I'll build it. I'll build it. My sheep hear
my voice, and they follow me. My voice, not mine, His voice. That's right. You see, it's Christ
who loved us and gave Himself for us. It's Christ who quickens
us, the Son quickeneth whom He will. It's Christ who calls us
with a call of Christ Jesus. It's Christ who is our righteousness.
It's Christ who gives us eternal life. He said, You've given me
power over all flesh, that I should give eternal life. Isn't it?
It's Christ who makes us God's children to as many as receive
him to them because he gave the power to become sons of God.
It's Christ who gives us peace, my peace I give unto you. It's
Christ who is our life because I live, you live. Oh, I want to be a member of
this church, don't you, Ron? You can vote me in here and vote
me out, but only Christ can put me in that holy temple. which
he's building to his honor and glory for eternity. My church. I'll build it. I'll build it.
Now watch it. Go back to the text. Matthew
18. Oh, watch this. Hang on to your seat. Now, Matthew
16. I told you I was coming back to what Peter said. And the Lord Jesus said, I say
unto you, thou art Peter, and upon this rock I'll build my
church. Surely there's no one here. I'm sure there's not Why
mention it, preacher, if you're sure there's not? There could
be. But I'm sure there's no one here who thinks that the Lord
built his church, this glorious church, on Peter. That poor,
fickle man. It fell two or three times after
this. That poor, poor, fickle man. Nothing lasting or spiritual
could be built on Peter or any other man. Well, what's this
foundation on this rock, on this foundation I'll build my church?
Christ himself is the foundation, and it's the Christ. Now, watch
it now, watch it. You say, well, it's people saving
all these churches. Let's see. Let's see. Here's the foundation on which
you said I'll build this church. Now, this comes back to this
question. Whom do men say that I am? Well, they say nothing. I am. What do they say about
me? Well, some say you're John the Baptist, some say you're
Elijah, some say you're Jeremiah, some say you're something of
the prophet. That's the common opinion. They say you're great,
they say you're somebody, they'll even make you king if you let
them. But whom do you say that I am? And Peter then said, Thou,
a man in the flesh, son of Mary, The bone of our bone, flesh of
our flesh, thou," he said, standing right here, when we touch and
feel, and our hands have handled, our eyes have seen, our ears
have heard, thou, a man who came from heaven, a child is born,
thou art the Christ. Thou art the seed of woman, thou
art the seed of Abraham, thou art the son of David, thou art
that prophet like Moses, thou art that priest after the order
of Melchizedek, thou art that king like David, thou art the
Christ. Thou art the Redeemer, Thou art
the Messiah, and God Almighty in human flesh. That's who you are. That's who
you are. Turn to Philippians chapter 2. Philippians chapter 2. There's no compromise here. There
can't be any compromise. In Philippians chapter 2 verse
5, let this mind be in you, which is also in Christ Jesus, the
Christ who is named Jesus, who being in the form of God, thought
it not robbery to be equal with God, but made himself of no reputation,
took on him the form of a servant, was made in the likeness of men,
and being found in passion and habit as a man. He humbled himself
and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.
Therefore God hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which
is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee
should bow in heaven, earth, and under the earth, and every
tongue should confess that he is Lord, to the glory of God
the Father." That's the foundation on which he built his church.
You don't believe that. I don't care if you're Presbyterian
or Baptist or Methodist or Catholic or what you are. You're not in
that church. Now, you may be whoever you are,
stand in this pulpit. If I don't know the truth of
Christ, if I don't know the person of Christ, if I don't know what
He came to do, if I don't know why He came to do it, that God
may be just and justify it. God's quarrel was not against
Christ, it was against me. God's law had a claim on me,
not Christ. God's justice had a claim on
me, not Christ. And Christ came and took my place
in the flesh, and that law laid hold of Him, and that justice
laid hold of Him, and He suffered and died and bled in my place,
and obeyed that law for me, and enabled God to be just and justify
my soul. That's what I believe. And if
you don't believe that, you're not S-A-B-E-D, and you're not
a member of this church. He said, It's my church, and
I'll build it, and I'll build it on this rock." What rock? Thou art the Christ, the Son
of the living God. That's the rock, boys. That's
the rock. Isn't that it, Richard? That's
the rock. And I was a member of a church,
and he worked there a long time before I knew even where that
rock was or who it was. If you're building your home
on sand, I don't care how fast you built it, or how fine it
is, or how attractive it is, or how satisfied you are living
in it. It's going. But this rock will never move.
This is the rock of ages. Thou art the Christ, the Son
of the living God. Huh? That's my church, he said. My church, and I'll build it.
You don't need all these altar calls and handshaking and choir
rooms and card signing and write me a letter. You just need Christ.
And if He ever reveals Himself to you, you lay hold of Him.
But I wouldn't let anybody mess with me but Christ. When these
soul winners come around, flock around, knock on your door and
open their Bibles with a Roman road, tell them to ski down.
You're not interested in their brand of religion. You're interested
in Christ. Just tell me about Christ and
then go on up and pray for me. Because I've got to know Him.
If it takes me ten years, I'm going to know Him. Oh, that I
may know Him and the power of His resurrection. I wish we'd
preach to people and leave them alone. Leave them alone. God will find them to His. Oh,
here's the last thing about this church. He said, I'll build my
church, and I'll build it on this rock. And then He says the
last thing, and the gates of hell. Now, Bradman, ooh, what
are the gates of hell? The gates of hell is the city
of hell and everything that comes out of the gates. That's what
it is, that's very simple. When he speaks of the gates of
hell, he's speaking of everything that comes out of that gate.
He's speaking of principalities and powers and rulers of the
darkness and spiritual wickedness and high places. You see, high
places, we're not wrestling against flesh and blood. Our conflict's
not against flesh and blood. That's right. Our conflict is
against an unseen enemy. An unseen enemy. And he's a powerful
enemy. Treacherous enemy. He's a crafty
enemy. He's a subtle enemy. And I'll
tell you this. He doesn't reside in honky-tonks
and beer joints and lounges. He resides in pulpits. That's
right. And Satan is an angel of light. That's what the Scripture says.
Not God's life, but his own life. And he and his messengers are
ministers of righteousness. Did you know that? They believe
in feeding the sick, feeding the hungry, healing the sick,
doing humanitarian work. They're ministers of righteousness.
Now, stay with me. Whose righteousness? Yours. You
do good, and God will bless you. You plant your seed, and God
will reward you. You do this, you do that, and God will do
something else. God will return your investment. if it's big
enough, if you give it to me. That's how I got rich. That's
how I bought my ring. Crooks. Con men. Oh, wow, wow, wow, wow. But that
Satan, minister of righteousness, your righteousness, he does not
preach Christ's righteousness. He does not shut men up to the
righteousness of Jesus Christ. That's exactly right. And that's
the gates of hell. But I tell you this, he says,
my church, mine elect, whom my soul loves, whom my soul loves. And I'll build them. I'll build
it. I'll lay every stone in this temple with my own hand. I'll
secure their redemption. I'll secure their salvation,
their forgiveness. And I'll build that church, and
I'll build it on this rock, this foundation, the person and work
of the Lord Jesus Christ. Who he is, what he did, Why he
did it? Where he is now. And I challenge
every enemy to move one rock out of this church. The gates
of hell. Bring them on. Bring on all the
devils and demons. He said, in this world you'll
have tribulation, but be of good cheer. I overcame the world.
And I'm not telling you to take Satan on. I wouldn't tell you
that at all. You're no match for him. But I'll tell you, your
safety lies in the captain of your salvation. You let him take
Satan, not you. Not you. No, Michael the archangel
wouldn't mess with him. I hear preachers say, I just
tell the devil to go back to hell where he belongs. He's never
met him yet. No, no. Job couldn't handle him. Peter couldn't handle him. Our
Lord said, Peter, Satan hath desired you to sift you as wheat.
That's exactly what he did. Why, Peter said, you'll never
touch me. Well, he said these other fellas might quit, but
he don't want to do it. Thou sheep, diligently sought
and found, go in and out and find pasture. Thy shepherd gently
leads thee, protects thee, provides for thee. Thou hast nothing to
fear, either now or forever. Wait, and look for the glorious
return of thy dear Lord, whose reward is with him. And nothing
you have here, or ever will have here, is worth comparing with
the joy and the glory that awaits you and your friends, for you
shall shine as the brightness of the stars forever and ever,
because you are his church. That's powerful prayer. Our Father, these hearts are
rejoicing, bubbling over with praise for your mercies, just
to consider, just to think, that the Son of God hath come personally
and given us an understanding that we might know thee, the
true God, and thy Son, Jesus Christ. And this is the true
God, and this is eternal life. And this is the true church,
and the true foundation, and that eternal rock on which that
church is built. O God, our Father, we thank thee,
and praise thy name. You have not passed us by, nor
left us alone. that thou hast called us unto
thyself. To thee be the glory and the praise forever and forever.
Amen.

The Church That Jesus Builds

What does the Bible say about the church that Jesus builds?

How do we know that Jesus is the true foundation of the church?

Why is the church important for Christians?

What does it mean for the church to prevail against the gates of hell?

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About Henry Mahan

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The Church That Jesus Builds

What does the Bible say about the church that Jesus builds?

How do we know that Jesus is the true foundation of the church?

Why is the church important for Christians?

What does it mean for the church to prevail against the gates of hell?

Sermon Transcript

About Henry Mahan

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