Upon This Rock...

In the 16th chapter of Matthew, Jesus asked His disciples, "Who do men say that I am?" As we move through the discourse of their exchange in verses 13-18, Peter bursts with epiphanic expression, "Thou art the Christ!" Jesus communicates that it is upon this rock, this foundational truth received straight from God, that He would build His Church.

A couple thousand years removed, many of us struggle with this scripture as it relates to right interpretation. It is one of the major reasons that we have so many denominations and factions in the church universal today. Believing Christ is the Alpha and the Omega - the beginning and the end, Jesus knew we would experience these challenges in the finiteness of our own thinking. It's time for us to stop limiting ourselves, and simply walk by faith. Cling to the Word of God and walk in the guidance of the Lamp unto our feet and the Light unto our path. Peter himself received it when he communicated in the second chapter of his first book that Jesus is the Chief Cornerstone.

When Jesus utters the words "Upon This Rock I Build My Church," He declares that Himself as the Cornerstone - the very foundation of the Ecclesia. And it is in this moment that Jesus clarifies our identity in Him. We are the "called out ones," snatched out of the darkness and brought into the marvelous light of God; empowered by the presence of God to bring glory to God as we continue that work in the lives of those in our generation and those to come until the return of our gracious Lord and Savior. And as this brief missive is not a theological treatise, but more a call to action, we must consider how we are continuing the work that Jesus has "called us out" to do.

Much of what we call "church" today is interchangeable with the assembly - the place where we gather, but the church is the people of God. The church is the collection of stones that make one huge rock in, through, and by Christ Jesus-the Chief Cornerstone.1 Peter 2:4-8  As Jesus declared, He is building His church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail. So what are the works of service that you are engaging as a living stone in the Rock?

As we have discussed on this site, with all the technological resources in our reach, there is no greater time than the present to engage the great commission of Jesus Christ in Matt. 28:19-20. To go in the power and authority of Jesus Christ and make disciples of all nations, baptizing in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit always mindful of His presence with us. Yet this greater time marks like never before an ever increasing lethargy toward the work we have been called and empowered to do. So this is a clarion call my brothers and sisters! It's time to wake up! It's time to shake up the people of God to live out our call out of the darkness and into His marvelous light!

In our next installation, I want to help you to activate your gifts, and be creative towards the commission and the call of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ over your life. Until then remember to Be Creative!

For His Glory and Our Good,
Emery B. Barber

---