GOD’S PLAN
- Today we being a brand new series – Church God’s way.
- The church is God's one redemptive institution placed on this earth.
- It was to the church that Jesus gave the Great Commission.
- It is through the church that Jesus brings the message of salvation to the world.
- It is for the church that Jesus one day will return.
- And it is Christ's church that we are committed to.
- Jesus promised that the gates of hell will not prevail against the church.
- The church is invincible.
- What makes Christ's church invincible?
I. God’s plan involves a transformed membership
A. Every member of the church is to be a transformed individual.
1. They are to be a child of God through faith in Jesus Christ.
2. Our Lord knew that His days in the flesh were numbered, and He knew that some would not understand Him.
3. That was the crucial problem – it involved the very survival of the Christian faith.
B. In a dramatic scene Jesus asked His disciples, "Who do people say the Son of Man is?”
1. In Caesarea Philippi there was a tremendous temple of white marble built to the Roman godhead of Caesar.
a. Jesus stood at the center of Syrian, Greek, and Roman worship.
b. There, of all places Jesus asked two questions: "Who do people say the Son of Man is?" and "Who do you say I am?"
2. Peter clearly stated the deepest conviction of his soul, "You are the Messiah, the Son of the Living God."
a. What a statement!
b. Messiah means "the anointed one" and refers to the work Jesus came to do as messianic deliverer.
c. "Son of the living God" has reference to the deity of Jesus – He is God incarnate.
C. Simon Peter said two glorious things about Jesus:
1. As to His work, he said Jesus is the anointed Messiah;
2. As to His person, Peter said that Jesus is God come in the flesh.
a. Even so today, that church is invincible where members have confessed their belief in Jesus Christ as the Messiah who is God.
b. This is the essential work of the church.
3. We preach the gospel because; – Romans 1:16
a. The single most important prerequisite for being a member of the New Testament church is the new birth.
D. And when we say we are committed to Christ and His church our commitment is made to the One we know to be God in the flesh – the One who can save our souls.
1. Rembrandt could take a piece of canvas, dab his paints on it, and create a beautiful painting – we call that art.
2. Shakespeare could write a sonnet or play on a sheet of paper – we call that genius.
3. A skilled workman can take a piece of metal, shape it, twist it, mold it, and it becomes a thing of usefulness and beauty – we call that craftsmanship.]
4. But only God in heaven can take a sinner and make him a saint.
a. We call that salvation.
b. The church is invincible because it is made up of people who have been transformed by the power of Almighty God.
II. God’s plan involves a dynamic relationship to christ.
A. After Peter made his great confession regarding his faith in Jesus, our Lord said: “Upon this rock I will build my church, and all the powers of hell will not conquer it.”
1. This is a beautiful promise that Jesus gave to His church.
2. The thrust of the statement is that the church is invincible because of its dynamic relationship to Jesus Christ.
III. There are three ways we see this truth in this passage.
A. The church is built on Christ.
1. Jesus said, "you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church."
a. Here we have a play on words – Jesus said, "You are Peter [petros, a small stone], and upon this rock [petra, a gigantic boulder, or foundation stone] I will build My church."
b. The rock on which the church is built is the person of Christ Himself.
i. Peter himself told us (1 Pet. 2:4-6) that Jesus is the chief cornerstone of the church.
ii. The Bible says that no other foundation for the church can be laid except Jesus Christ (1 Cor. 3:11).
iii. 1 Pet. 2:5 this why we are placed in the church
B. Second, the church is built by Christ.
1. Our Lord said, "upon this rock I will build my church."
a. Not only is the church built on Christ, but the church is built by Christ.
b. 2,000 years ago, Jesus walked the shores of Galilee, the towns and the cities of Israel, calling forth fisherman like Peter, James, John and Andrew.
c. He saved a tax collector named Matthew.
d. He found a zealot named Simon.
e. He discovered a woman at the well and gave her the water of life.
2. Jesus was building His church.
a. Dramatically, one day He turned to His disciples and said:– John 15:16a
b. It is in the providence of God that you are living in this century and that you are a member of this church.
i. The same Christ who chose Peter, Andrew, James, and John chose you, saved you, and placed you in His church that you might serve Him.
C. Third, the church is successful only through Jesus' power.
1. After Jesus told His disciples He would build a church, He made this great promise: “All the powers of hell will not conquer it.”
a. Now there are two ways of looking at that statement, and only one of them is right.
b. First, the wrong way: Some understand this as meaning that the church should be shut up like a fortress with the forces of hell attacking the church.
2. But just the opposite is true: It is the church attacking the gates of hell that Jesus is talking about.
a. As the church carries out its evangelistic ministry by sharing the gospel, we batter down the gates of hell and death.
b. As the church preaches the gospel, we snatch the lost from a burning hell that they would receive if they rejected Christ as Savior.
c. The Lord here is commanding us to be an attacking army sent from heaven.
d. The theme song of the church is not, "Hold the Fort", but rather "Onward Christian Soldiers."
3. Where do we find ourselves today at the Community Church – are we in retreat against the enemy, or are we invading his territory?
a. The invincible church is always on the attack.
b. Jesus compared the Christian to light, salt, water, bread, and fire.
i. Now what can light, salt, water, bread, and fire all have in common?
c. Penetration is the one common denominator.
i. Light penetrates darkness and it disappears.
ii. Salt penetrates meat, and it is preserved.
iii. Water penetrates the ground and a harvest springs forth.
iv. Bread penetrates the body and gives strength.
v. And fire is dependent on penetration for its very survival.
IV. The church of Jesus Christ is God's penetrating force in our society.
A. As Christians move in society, they are to preach the gospel.
1. We are to bring the world to the foot of the cross that men and women might know Christ as Lord and Savior.
a. But there's something we have to always remember – It takes faith to make a church great.
2. Faith is the confidence, the assurance, the belief in God and His power.
a. We can do what God would have us to do.
b. When we set out to do what God would have us to do, there will be people at every crossroad on the highway of success who will say, "It cannot be done."
3. They do not have the faith; they do not have the vision.
a. We must not allow them to rob us of our faith and our vision to attack the gates of hell.
b. Jesus said:– Matthew 17:20b
c. Now I know that our faith is demonstrated by deeds but Jesus didn't tell us here to prove our faith by moving the mountain ourselves.
d. Jesus didn't tell us to pick up a shovel – He said "believe it and it will happen."
4. True faith in God has nothing to do with our abilities, our talents, or our financial condition – true faith in God is believing that God has the ability to
a. Great things are possible if we dream great dreams for God.
CONCLUSION:
- Why are we committed to Christ and His Church?
- Because Christ's Church is the only invincible institution in this world.
- Because it is through Christ and His church that we experience salvation.
- Because it is through Christ and His church that we are empowered by God.
- Why are we committed to Christ and His Church?
- Because we are the people of God.
