“I Will Build My Church”
2024: a year of uncertainty. The only thing we can be certain about is uncertainty, or so it seems. But then again, there is another take, a view of history and current events through the spiritual prism of God’s Word.
God is in control and will accomplish His plans and purposes. As the LORD declared in Isaiah 46:9-10,
“Remember the former things of old, For I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like Me, Declaring the end from the beginning, And from ancient times things that are not yet done, Saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, And I will do all My pleasure.’”
Things aren’t falling apart, they’re falling into place, and when it comes to God’s redemptive plan for mankind, we take hold of God’s promise to build His Church!
As Jesus declared in Matthew 16:18,
“I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.”
Two-thousand years later, know that God’s redemptive plan is on schedule and He is continuing to build His church, according to His perfect will. One beautiful aspect of the Lord’s church building program is that He uses His people, like you and me, to accomplish the work!
Jesus, in teaching about the spiritual harvest of souls, exhorted His followers with these words, “The harvest truly is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest” (Matthew 9:37-38).
This is a prayer that has been prayed throughout the church age and you and I can even pray this prayer today.
Just prior to His ascension, Jesus said to His disciples, “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth” (Acts 1:8).
Just like those first believers following Pentecost, we all as Christians are indwelt and empowered by the Holy Spirit and are witnesses to the Lord wherever He has planted us. How we witness may be different, yet we all are witnesses and can participate in this mighty work of God as He builds His church.
So, we pray. We witness to people in word and deed. We give to missions and missionaries, among other things. We participate in the life of our local church and in the life of the broader church around the world, laboring together in the Great Commission effort.
And lest you ever think your labor is ever in vain, take heart, remember the words of the Apostle Paul, who exclaimed, “Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord” (1 Corinthians 15:58).
And God is faithful! Ever since the birthday of the church two-thousand years ago at Pentecost, Jesus continues to build His church and the gates of Hades are not (emphasis mine) prevailing against it!
Ponder these salvation realities in the now, and be encouraged!
Did you know that in the last 50+ years, more of my Jewish people have come to a saving knowledge of Jesus than at any time in history, save the first-century, when the early church was Jewish! Today Jewish people continue to be saved!
Did you know that more Muslims have been saved in the last fifteen years than in the last fifteen centuries combined! Today Muslim people continue to be saved!
You may have heard about a gospel testimony that made worldwide headlines just recently, from the Gaza Strip no less!
From one news account:
Taysir Saada, founder of Seeds of Hope Ministry, is a Muslim-turned-Christian who authored the book Once an Arafat Man, and recounted the incredible story in an interview with CBN,
“About 200 Gazans gave their heart to Jesus in one lump sum because the Lord appeared to them in visions and dreams and they were hugging each other and, you know, rejoicing and realized that all of them had the same vision that each one of them had,” Saada told CBN.
Amidst the uncertainty of the times we can have certainty and confidence in God’s faithfulness and in God’s promises, including His redemptive plan for mankind, for God is building His church. Hallelujah!
(This article was featured in our May 2024 Ministry Minute.)