(upbeat music) (orchestral music) Amen and amen. Thank you, wonderful Worship Orchestra, for opening our service today and I wanna give a shout out to each and every member of our Worship Orchestra for taking the time to pre-record your part at home and for Jeff Cranfill, our Instrumental Pastor, for assembling it so that we can be blessed by our orchestra this morning. And we are blessed that you have joined us today. Welcome to First Baptist Church livestream worship. We're gonna ask the Lord to open up the heavens and to bless us today. (upbeat music) Why don't you sing at home with us today? We've waited for this day. ♪ We've waited for this day ♪ ♪ We've gathered in Your name ♪ ♪ Calling out to You ♪ ♪ Your glory, like a fire, awakening desire ♪ ♪ Will burn our hearts with truth ♪ You're the reason. ♪ You're the reason we're here ♪ The only reason. ♪ You're the reason we're singing ♪ Come on now. ♪ Open up the heavens ♪ We wanna see. ♪ We wanna see You ♪ ♪ Open up the flood gates ♪ ♪ A mighty river flowing from your heart ♪ ♪ Filling every part of our praise ♪ Oh yes. ♪ Your presence in this place ♪ ♪ Your glory on our face ♪ ♪ We're looking to the sky ♪ ♪ Descending like a cloud ♪ ♪ You're standing with us now ♪ ♪ Lord, unveil our eyes ♪ You're the reason. ♪ You're the reason we're here ♪ ♪ You're the reason we're singing ♪ Come on, sing it with us. ♪ Open up the heavens ♪ ♪ We wanna see you ♪ ♪ Open up the flood gates ♪ ♪ A mighty river flowing from your heart ♪ ♪ Filling every part of our praise ♪ ♪ Open up the heavens ♪ ♪ We wanna see You ♪ ♪ Open up the flood gates ♪ ♪ A mighty river flowing from your heart ♪ ♪ Filling every part of our praise ♪ All this is our prayer today. ♪ Show us, show us Your glory ♪ ♪ Show us, show us Your power ♪ ♪ Show us, show us Your glory, Lord ♪ Come on, sing it again. ♪ Show us, show us Your glory ♪ Show us Your power. ♪ Show us, show us Your power ♪ ♪ Show us, show us Your glory, Lord ♪ ♪ Open up the heavens ♪ ♪ We wanna see You ♪ ♪ Open up the flood gates ♪ ♪ A mighty river flowing from your heart ♪ ♪ Filling every part of our praise ♪ ♪ Open up the heavens ♪ ♪ We wanna see You ♪ ♪ Open up the flood gates ♪ ♪ A mighty river flowing from your heart ♪ ♪ Filling every part of our praise ♪ ♪ A mighty river flowing from your heart ♪ ♪ Filling every part of our praise ♪ ♪ A mighty river flowing from your heart ♪ ♪ Filling every part of our praise ♪ (downbeat music) Sing with us. ♪ He became sin who knew no sin ♪ ♪ That we might become His righteousness ♪ ♪ He humbled himself and carried the cross ♪ ♪ Love so amazing, love so amazing ♪ You know the song. ♪ Jesus Messiah ♪ Name above all names. ♪ Name above all names ♪ ♪ Blessed Redeemer ♪ Immanuel. ♪ Immanuel ♪ ♪ The rescue for sinners ♪ ♪ The ransom from heaven ♪ Jesus Messiah. ♪ Jesus Messiah ♪ Oh, and He's the Lord of all. ♪ Lord of all ♪ ♪ His body the bread, His blood the wine ♪ Broken for us. ♪ Broken and poured out all for love ♪ ♪ The whole earth trembled ♪ ♪ And the veil was torn ♪ ♪ Love so amazing ♪ Oh yes it was. ♪ Love so amazing ♪ Come on, all you've got. ♪ Jesus Messiah ♪ Name above every name. ♪ Name above all names ♪ ♪ Blessed Redeemer ♪ Immanuel. ♪ Immanuel ♪ ♪ The rescue for sinners ♪ ♪ The ransom from heaven ♪ Jesus Messiah. ♪ Jesus Messiah ♪ And He's the Lord of all. ♪ Lord of all ♪ Sing that. ♪ All hail the power of Jesus' name ♪ ♪ Let angels prostrate fall ♪ Bring forth the royal diadem. ♪ Bring forth the royal diadem ♪ ♪ And crown Him Lord of all ♪ ♪ Bring forth the royal diadem ♪ ♪ And crown Him Lord of all ♪ Come on now. ♪ Jesus Messiah ♪ Name above all names. ♪ Name above all names ♪ ♪ Blessed Redeemer ♪ Immanuel. ♪ Immanuel ♪ ♪ The rescue for sinners ♪ ♪ The ransom from heaven ♪ Jesus Messiah. ♪ Jesus Messiah ♪ And He's the Lord of all. ♪ Lord of all ♪ Jesus. ♪ Jesus Messiah ♪ ♪ Lord of all ♪ ♪ Lord of all ♪ ♪ Lord of all ♪ (downbeat music) ♪ You were the Word at the beginning ♪ ♪ One with God the Lord Most High ♪ ♪ Your hidden glory in creation ♪ ♪ Now revealed in You, our Christ ♪ ♪ What a beautiful name it is ♪ ♪ What a beautiful name it is ♪ ♪ The name of Jesus Christ, my King ♪ ♪ What a beautiful name it is ♪ ♪ Nothing compares to this ♪ ♪ What a beautiful name it is ♪ ♪ The name of Jesus ♪ ♪ You didn't want heaven without us ♪ ♪ So Jesus, You brought heaven down ♪ ♪ My sin was great, Your love was greater ♪ ♪ What could separate us now ♪ ♪ What a wonderful name it is ♪ ♪ What a wonderful name it is ♪ ♪ The name of Jesus Christ, my King ♪ ♪ What a wonderful name it is ♪ ♪ Nothing compares to this ♪ ♪ What a wonderful name it is ♪ ♪ The name of Jesus ♪ ♪ What a wonderful name it is ♪ ♪ The name of Jesus ♪ ♪ Death could not hold You ♪ ♪ The veil tore before You ♪ ♪ You silence the boast of sin and grave ♪ ♪ The heavens are roaring ♪ ♪ The praise of Your glory ♪ ♪ For You are raised to life again ♪ ♪ You have no rival, You have no equal ♪ ♪ Now and forever, God, You reign ♪ ♪ Yours is the kingdom, Yours is the glory ♪ ♪ Yours is the name above all names ♪ ♪ What a powerful name it is ♪ ♪ What a powerful name it is ♪ ♪ The name of Jesus Christ, my King ♪ ♪ What a powerful name it is ♪ ♪ Nothing can stand against ♪ ♪ What a powerful name it is ♪ ♪ The name of Jesus ♪ ♪ You have no rival, You have no equal ♪ ♪ Now and forever, God, You reign ♪ ♪ Yours is the kingdom, Yours is the glory ♪ ♪ Yours is the name above all names ♪ ♪ What a powerful name it is ♪ ♪ What a powerful name it is ♪ ♪ The name of Jesus Christ, my King ♪ ♪ What a powerful name it is ♪ ♪ Nothing can stand against ♪ ♪ What a powerful name it is ♪ ♪ The name of Jesus ♪ ♪ What a powerful name it is ♪ ♪ The name of Jesus ♪ ♪ What a powerful name it is ♪ ♪ The name of Jesus ♪ ♪ There's no other name ♪ ♪ Jesus ♪ (downbeat music) ♪ So many times I've questioned ♪ ♪ Certain circumstances and things ♪ ♪ I could not understand ♪ ♪ And many times in trials ♪ ♪ Weakness blurs my vision ♪ ♪ That's when my frustration gets so out of hand ♪ ♪ Oh but it's then I am reminded ♪ ♪ That I've never been forsaken ♪ ♪ And I've never had to stand one test alone ♪ ♪ Then I look at all my victories ♪ ♪ And the spirit rises up in me ♪ ♪ And it's through the fire my weakness is made strong ♪ ♪ Oh yes ♪ ♪ He never promised that the cross would not get heavy ♪ ♪ And the hill would not be hard to climb ♪ ♪ He never offered our victories without fighting ♪ ♪ But He said help would always come in time ♪ ♪ Just remember when you're standing ♪ ♪ In the valley of decision ♪ ♪ And the adversary says give in ♪ ♪ Just hold on, my God will show up ♪ ♪ Yes He will and He will take you ♪ ♪ Through the fire again ♪ ♪ I know within myself ♪ ♪ That I would surely perish ♪ ♪ But if I trust the hand of God ♪ ♪ I know He'll shield the flames again, again ♪ ♪ He never promised that the cross would not get heavy ♪ ♪ And the hill would not be hard to climb ♪ ♪ He never offered our victories without fighting ♪ ♪ But He said help would always come in time, in time ♪ ♪ Just remember when you're standing ♪ ♪ In the valley of decision ♪ ♪ And the adversary says give in ♪ ♪ Just hold on, my God will show up ♪ ♪ Yes He will ♪ ♪ And He will take you through the fire again ♪ ♪ Just remember when you're standing ♪ ♪ In the valley of decision ♪ ♪ And the adversary says give in ♪ ♪ Just hold on, my God will show up ♪ ♪ And He will take you through the fire again ♪ ♪ Hold on ♪ ♪ Just hold on ♪ ♪ My Lord will show up ♪ ♪ And he will take you through the fire again ♪ ♪ Again and again ♪ ♪ Through the fire again ♪ All of us are wired to want to win. In fact, it's unnatural to want to lose. It's unnatural to want to be defeated in whatever it is in life that we face. It starts when we're children and we have that competitive desire to want to beat someone in a board game or in a contest on the playground during recess in grade school and then as the stakes get higher and we go into the debate team or into an athletic team, whether it's lacrosse or soccer or football or baseball, and then we embrace our college teams or pro teams that we pull for. All of us realize that somebody's gonna win and somebody's going to lose. We see that played out every two years in congressional races and every four years in a presidential race. There's going to be someone who wins and someone who loses and all of us want to be on that winning side and what I want to tell you today is that if you belong to the church of the Lord Jesus Christ, I don't mean that you've joined some local church or that you are of a particular denominational background, I mean if you have received Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior, according to the Bible, He made you a part of His church. It is this invisible body of believers around the world and local churches are expressions of that church but no one local church is the sum and total of God's worldwide church which is made up of all people who've trusted in Jesus. Simply put, if you're saved, you belong to God's church and if you belong to God's church, I've come to bring you some good news this morning, you are on the winning side and that's the title of the message today, The Winning Side, and I want to invite you to turn with me in your Bible to the first book of the New Testament, the book of Matthew, chapter 16, and we're going to read what for many of you is a familiar passage but which for some of you may be fairly new. Either way, I'm going to do my best to explain some simple things from this passage taken from an encounter between Jesus and His disciples in Matthew chapter 16, beginning in verse 13. Matthew writes and says when Jesus came into the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, saying who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am? So they said well, some say John the Baptist and some say you're Elijah. Others say Jeremiah or some people say you're another one of the prophets and He said to them but who do you say that I am? And Simon Peter answered and said you are the Christ, the Son of the Living God. And Jesus answered and said to him blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you but My Father Who is in heaven. I want us to stop there and I want us to think about these verses and I'm actually going to revisit verse 18 a little bit later in today's message, but I wanna just bring some points out of this passage that I think will be encouraging to us today, that I think will be a good check-up for us today to look within our own hearts and be reminded of what really matters in life and what really matters in the world today despite all of the claims to the contrary. Simple points today. The first one is this. Opinions can be dangerous. Opinions can be dangerous. Jesus was talking to His disciples in this place called Caesarea Philippi and it was about 25 miles north of Galilee and it's at the base of Mt. Hermon and I've been there before a couple of times and it's the place where the Greek god Pan was worshiped and if you've been there, you know that there is this cliff with these ornate niches that have been carved out. All of these auxiliary gods that the Romans worshiped were placed inside these beautiful ornate alcoves that had been carved into the side of the mountain and so imagine the backdrop with Jesus standing there, these tributes and monuments to gods carved into the mountainside behind Him and He looks at His disciples in the midst of all these competing deities and He says hey guys, what are people saying about Me? In other words, what have you heard people saying their opinion of me is? He said who are people saying I really am? And of course they wasted no time responding. Their primary survey audience being the Jewish culture of that day, and they said well some people think you're John the Baptist. They've mistaken your identity. Some people think you are Elijah because Elijah was one who is said from the Old Testament prophecies, who would go before the Messiah when he would come and they said some people say Jeremiah and they even said there are other prophets that you've been confused with and so what they're doing is they're quoting the results of surveys they had taken I guess. I guess you would say if they had social media, #jesuschrist and just look at the comments that are being posted as to what people think of Jesus and who people say Jesus is. When I think about the different opinions that they quoted back to Him, some say you're this one, that one, or the other one, I'm reminded today of how our thoughts are constantly bombarded with people's opinions. People's opinions about all the things going on in the government, people's opinions about racial matters, people's opinions about where you ought to shop and what group you ought to cancel or boycott. People's opinions about the kind of clothing you ought to wear. People's opinions about things pertaining to our country and patriotism and everywhere you look, people are certainly not reluctant to voice their opinions. If they have a phone in their hands, they can share it with everybody in God's universe. There are many good things about that but I'm here to tell you there are many bad things about it as well because what has happened is we've lost our filter on sharing our opinions no matter how hurtful or destructive they may be. It's one thing when those kinds of opinions are voiced outside in the culture of the world but through the years I've been in ministry, it is another thing when Christians start sharing their opinions and criticism freely and openly without regard for what kind of divisions those opinions can generate within the body of Christ. You see, Jesus was not John the Baptist. John the Baptist was John the Baptist. Jesus was not Elijah. Elijah was Elijah and he had lived and he was gone and in heaven at this time. Jesus was not Jeremiah. Jesus was Jesus. He was the Christ. He is the Christ and the Son of the Living God. But what I want us to think about today as you consider what Jesus asked His disciples. Who do people say that I am? That is the most important question that can ever be asked or answered. The question who is Jesus? It's really the question that should motivate us as Christians to help inform people on the right response to that question. That's really why the church is here. We are here to help people understand who Jesus is. It is the most important question anyone can ask and I will tell you this. That question, who is Jesus? It is the only question that you have to answer the right way in order to go to heaven. Only that question. If life were a test and on life's test, you have 100 questions and you answer 99 of the questions correctly but you missed that question, who is Jesus, by answering it the wrong way, missing that question causes you to fail the entire test because that alone is the question that determines whether you're on the winning side or the losing side. Everyone has to answer that question the right way. Who is Jesus? It's not just a question that every human being must be faced with and must answer properly but this question really determines the legitimacy of any religious group. You can judge the validity of a religious group or a denomination or a church by asking the question what do they say about Jesus? What do they believe and teach about Jesus? Oh, I cannot overemphasize the fact that we've gotta get this one right and Jesus was narrowing the focus down to saying okay, I know there are a lot of things that are taught in the Scriptures, I know there are a lot of opinions that are being circulated about religious matters but Jesus looked at them and said what are you hearing people say they believe about me? There are many discussions in which conflicting opinions are of little consequence. We could rattle off a host of them today but in matters of faith, in matters of faith, opinions are of great consequence. And the reason that opinions can be so dangerous is because the wrong opinion about who Jesus is will make the difference between whether you die and go to hell and spend an eternity separated from God, as harsh as that sounds, or whether you die and go to heaven and spend eternity with God. Opinions can be dangerous. Truth is what matters most. Well the second thing that I want you to think about today is not only that opinions can be dangerous, that's why you'd better gauge yours against what God says is true but I want you to write this simple point down if you don't mind and that is Jesus is who He is. He is who He is. In other words, Jesus is not whoever someone wants Him to be. Jesus is not just who I think He is. Jesus is who He is. Peter, when pressed for an answer as to who Jesus is, Peter got it right as we're going to see in a moment and what I want you to think about is the fact that how many people, if we were to go out and survey, number one, there are many people who wouldn't even know who Jesus is in our day and time. Number two, if you find people who think they know who Jesus is and you asked them to describe Jesus, how many people's notion of Jesus of Nazareth, how many people's opinion about Jesus and who He was and what He did and why He came, how many people would nail it? How many people know the truth about who He is and what His mission was and what He did on the cross and why all of that was necessary and that He was raised from the dead and is seated at the right hand of God the Father right now? How many people really understand all of that? And let me ask you this, how many people understand that Jesus came from God, as God, to the earth, to sinners, He became one of us. He did for us what we could not do for ourselves. We could never work our way to heaven so Jesus brought heaven to us and Jesus paid the price for our sins because without that payment for our sins, we would be eternally doomed. How many people understand who Jesus is? Well, you know, Jesus shifted from what are you hearing other people say about their opinion of Me and He pointed close to home and said okay, thank you for those answers. Appreciate that so much. None of those is right. But He looks these disciples in the eye and He says but who do you say I am? Thanks for telling me what other people think but what do you think about me? Who do you say that I am? You know, that is one of the most pressing moments. That is one of the most watershed moments between Jesus and His disciples that I have found in studying the life and ministry of Jesus, is when He looks at them and says tell Me who you think I am. And the truth of the matter is that Jesus Christ, though you cannot see Him, He is looking down from heaven today at you and He is asking you to tell Him who you think He is. What would you have said if you had been in this group of men and Jesus had looked and said tell Me what you think of Me. If Jesus Christ looked you in the eye and said who do you say that I am? Well, Simon Peter spoke out and said You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God. We read it a moment ago when we were looking at this text there in verse 16. What I want us to do is I want you to look back there in the verse where he said you are the Christ and just underline that phrase, the Christ, because Christ is a title for Jesus. In fact, it's got a definite article in front of it. The Christ. And it literally means, as Greek translated from Hebrew, it means Messiah, which is a Hebrew word. So the Hebrew word Messiah has its equivalent as Christ in Greek and that's what we say in English so anytime that we're referring to Jesus as Christ, we're literally saying Messiah. For Peter to say that Jesus was the Christ or the Messiah, it was Peter's way, as a devout Jew, of attributing to the Lord Jesus the identity of the deliverer of the Jewish people that they had anticipated for hundreds of years through the seeds of hope the prophets had planted in their hearts. It's as though Peter was pronouncing of Jesus all the things we've promised in the sacred writings of the Hebrew people, all of the hopes that we have been given that God would send us a helper, that God would send us someone to set us free, that Messiah, You are that one. It's as though Peter took all of the Old Testament Scriptures, rolled them into a scroll, tied a string around them, and place them in Jesus' arms and said You are the fulfillment of all of that. What a confession this was. You are that Christ. You are our Christ. You are God's Christ sent to set His people free. So the Christ is a title but then, he intensifies his confession of faith right here when he says I'll tell you who I think you are, Jesus. I think you are the Christ, comma, the Son of the Living God. The Son of the Living God. Now please understand this. To call Jesus the Son of the Living God, Peter was not only saying in that expression that Jesus had been sent by God but Peter was saying that Jesus was God. For in their understanding of Jesus' claim to be the Son of God, they understood exactly what He meant. He was saying, by claiming to be the Son of God, that He proceeded forth from God and was the same essence as God because God begets God. Deity begets Deity. He is the only begotten of the Father. You say well how do you know that the Jews attributed deity to the expression Son of God? Well we have a little insight into that in John chapter five and verse 18 where it says therefore the Jews sought all the more to kill Jesus. Why? Because He not only broke the Sabbath but also said that God was His Father and what does that mean? That means He was making himself equal with God. Look at what's underlined there. Don't miss it. They were resentful and considered Him a blasphemer because He said God was His Father which was making Himself equal with God. Oh, they understood that to be called the Son of God meant that you were making yourself equal with God. So when Peter says this, that You are the Son of the Living God, what Peter was saying is yes, You are the Christ sent from God but You are also God Who came from God. I love talking about this because the more I explore the depths of the understanding of who Jesus is, something calming happens in my spirit. Something that causes me to reverence Him more and to realize that this eternal God stepped into a human uniform and became like us in order to relate to us and in order to save us and in order to be punished for us and even now having been raised from the dead and taken back to heaven by the glory of God and seated at the right hand of God, the Bible says He is every moment of every day praying for us. God talking to God about you and me. Jesus, what an awesome Savior we have. And I think that those of you watching me today, you would probably concur with me that these words spoken by Simon Peter, I learned them years ago in the King James Version. Thou art the Christ, the Son of the Living God. These were the most important words ever to come from the lips of Simon Peter in all the days that he lived. Nothing more important was ever spoken by him than to say Thou art the Christ. Jesus, You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God. And let me tell you something, folks. This was the real deal. There was nothing pretentious about this. This was genuine, because Jesus not only heard what Peter's lips were saying but Jesus understood what Peter's heart was saying and Jesus validated what Peter had confessed by saying you got this one right and I know you believe it. Jesus legitimized Peter's confession. Why is it important, as we see in this passage, that Jesus validated Peter's confession? I wanna tell you why. Because there are many people who will make a similar confession for whom that confession is merely a reciting of facts they've learned. As preachers have said through the years, it's the difference between head knowledge and heart knowledge. There are many people who can spit out facts about who Jesus is, that Jesus is the Son of God, Jesus died on the cross, that Jesus was raised from the dead, but the question is, out of all the people who know how to say the right words about Jesus, how many of them genuinely know Jesus? How many of them are really saved? So I just have to share a little struggle that I've had through the years. As a pastor, as a minister, or just being a Christian. We are all under the band-aid to share the gospel with people we know, people we love, total strangers, and with all the nations of the world. Remember the great commission. We're in Matthew 16. Well the last verses of Matthew's gospel, Jesus said go and make disciples of all the nations. If you really take that seriously, that is a very intimidating task because you look at it and say look at this big world we live in. How could we ever make disciples of every person in every nation on every continent? That's an amazing, awesome task. So if that weren't intimidating enough, I'll tell you something else I've struggled with through the years. Can I just be honest with you? And I have to trust that you're giving me permission to do that. One of the other intimidating things that I have faced through the years of being in ministry, starting in a small rural congregation in southeast Virginia to a suburban congregation in central Florida and now serving here, one of the most difficult questions I've had to ask, balancing it with this awesome, overwhelming task to share Christ with everybody in the world, is grappling with the reality that not everybody who goes to church is saved. And through the years, it has caused me to wonder, is everyone who shows up every Sunday morning really saved? Some people who are active and involved, how do we know that people have truly been saved? And of course it's something that I'm not able to answer and thank God it's not up to me to determine. I'm just being honest with you and telling you that by people's conduct and people's words and people's decisions and sometimes people's cruelty, it makes you wonder if they're just saying that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God, but the question is has that Jesus taken up occupation in that person's life? Is Jesus the Lord of that person's life? Has Jesus changed that person's life? Because the Bible makes it clear that just because we say the right words does not mean that we have been transformed by that truth in our hearts. It's the difference, as someone put it, being a professor of Christ versus a possessor of Christ. My prayer for everyone watching today, I pray that you're not just one who professes Christ but that you truly possess Christ, that Jesus is real to you, that Jesus lives in your heart. I love how Jesus responded to Simon Peter after Simon Peter spoke up and said Jesus, I'll tell you who You are. You're the Christ, the Son of the Living God. In verse number 17, Jesus said blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, and Bar-Jonah, that's a Hebrew expression, the word Bar means son of and it was often used to describe a son's identity in relation to his father. So he said blessed are you, Simon, son of Jonah. That's what that really means. Peter's dad's name was Jonah. And I think there's an implied play on words here wherein Jesus is saying in the same way that you are the son of Jonah, you have rightly acknowledged that I am the Son of God. We both know who our dads are. He said blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah. But He goes on to say the reason that you know what you know, look at what He says in verse 17. Flesh and blood did not reveal this to you. He said no human being could've helped you understand it. A human being could've taught you to think those things and to say those things but what Jesus was saying is I know that what you said is also what you've come to believe and what Jesus said is no human being could've given you what only God has given you. Jesus was saying that only the Father in heaven could've revealed what Peter confessed concerning who Jesus is. Everybody following what we're saying here. Jesus said only the Father in heaven could have shown you that. You say well how does that work? How does it work that the Father in heaven can show Simon Peter or anyone who Jesus really is? Well I don't understand how all of that works but I can tell you what I learned from this and from other passages in Scripture and that is for any sinful, fallen human being to truly understand who Jesus is and believe in the Lord Jesus Christ requires intervention from the heavenly Father in order to help that person understand their need for Jesus and their understanding that Jesus is Lord and Savior. Only God can bring us to that awareness. We can't figure that out on our own. We're not bright enough. We're walking around as people who are confined in darkness who can only see darkness and without the Father's help, none of us could understand who Jesus is much less call on Him as our Lord and Savior. Today as the doctrine of the Holy Spirit was expanded in the New Testament even by Jesus who taught a lot about the Holy Spirit, we understand the Father uses the Holy Spirit to show us who Jesus is. The Holy Spirit is the One who turns the light on Jesus and says look, look at Him. He is the Son of God. He is God in human flesh. He is the one who died on the cross. The Holy Spirit shines the light and helps us understand. This is a powerful passage of Scripture. Peter, you didn't figure this out on your own, Jesus said. And Peter, nobody could explain this to you and help you understand this unless God Himself was showing you. So here's how it works when someone hears about Jesus. God has to help that person understand. One of my favorite verses is where Paul was down by the river in the city of Philippi and there was this Jewish business woman who had a fabric company and Paul led her to Christ but when it describes it for us in Acts chapter 16 and verse 14, the Bible says there was a woman named Lydia from the city of Thyatira, a seller of purple fabrics, a worshiper of God. She was listening and look what the Bible says. The Lord opened her heart to respond to the things spoken by Paul. See, this is what I want you to realize, that the same thing that Peter said to Jesus, only the Father could've shown you who I am for you to make that type of confession from your heart. The Bible says the same thing of Lydia. God in heaven opened the door. It means that God brought understanding to her heart and she was saved. I wanna add something else to that, that even after you become a Christian, even after Jesus is in your heart, the Holy Spirit continues to enlighten our understanding and reveal God to us. In one of the most powerful prayers that Paul ever prayed for Christians in Ephesians chapter one and verse 18, he writes my prayer for you is that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints. Look at what's underlined there. He says I'm praying that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened. So whether we're talking about what Jesus said to Peter, flesh and blood didn't show you this. Only My Father could've revealed this to you. Or what the Bible says about Lydia, that she wanted to understand that gospel that Paul was presenting but it took the Lord opening the door of her heart to help her understand or what Paul even prayed for Christians in Ephesians one. He says I'm praying that God will continue to enlighten your heart, your understanding, to show you more about God. Even though you're a Christian, you need to continue growing. So we're saying here today that Jesus is who He is despite what the conflicting opinions and un-truths and misunderstandings there are about Him but only God can show us who Jesus is. Here's the last thing that I wanna mention to you and it's simply this. The church is going to win. The church is going to win. Write that down. Say it out loud with me. Say it, will you say it with me right now? The church is going to win. After Peter made that confession, thou art the Christ, the Son of the Living God, Jesus says in verse number 18, and I also say to you that you are Peter and on this rock I will build my church and the gates of Hades, some translations say hell, shall not prevail against it. Now there has been a lot of debate among scholars about a play on words between the word Jesus used for Peter, his name Petras, which means a small rock, versus the word that Jesus used when he said and upon this rock which is a different word meaning a boulder or a large stone, and the reason why that's such a source of debate is because there's a certain idea that has circulated for hundreds of years mainly by the primary Christian church that existed before the reformation which was that Peter was the first pope. Whatever the play on words implies is this, I really believe that when Jesus says upon this rock I will build My church, I believe the rock upon which Jesus will build His church, He was referring to what Peter had said, not who Peter was and what is it Peter had said? Peter had said You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God, and I believe that is the rock on which Jesus said He would build His church. The rock of the confession by men and women and boys and girls that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God. What's so interesting about this is that the word church is not used in Mark, Luke, or John. The four books of our New Testament that tell us about the life and the ministry and the words of Jesus. Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. The word church is only found in Matthew. Here in the 16th chapter and then in the 18th chapter. So it's a curious thing that church is only found twice in Matthew's gospel and never in the other three gospels but the word church here is not referring to a local church as much as it is to God's church which we now know is 2000 years in the making and the word church means the called out ones. It means those who've been called to God and have placed their faith in Jesus Christ. They are now a part of the assembly of called out ones. That's what church really means. So when Jesus says upon this rock I will build My church, we need to understand that Jesus is the church's foundation. Did you get that? Jesus is the church's foundation. He is the rock upon which the church rests because there is no solid rock but Christ so the reason the church is gonna win is because we've got a solid foundation. Let me tell you something else. Not only is the church's foundation the Lord Jesus Christ but the church's builder is the Lord Jesus Christ. He says upon this rock I will build My church. So we've got a responsibility to tell other people about Jesus Christ. I'm thankful to be in a church that takes that mandate seriously but only Jesus builds the church. And takes a lot of pressure off the preacher, I can tell you that. Because there's so many times when you're discouraged because you haven't seen people saved in a while. You haven't seen as many people come to Christ as you wish and that's been the story, it seems, of my whole ministry. I've never been an effective evangelistic person. I've tried and I continue to try but the reassurance I have is that Jesus said don't worry about it. Your job's to tell 'em. My job's to build the church. I heard a preacher years ago who said to young pastors he was encouraging, he said your job as a preacher is to fill the pulpit. It's God's job to fill the pew because Jesus said I will build my church. Not only is Jesus the church's foundation and Jesus is the church's builder but don't miss this. Jesus is the church's owner. Oh, I said it right. Because when Jesus said upon this rock, He said I will build my church. Underline that in your Bible. Jesus called the church His. Listen to me wherever you are in whatever city you're watching. Jesus says the church belongs to Him. It doesn't belong to people. It doesn't belong to a person. The church belongs to Jesus and do you want to know why it belongs to Him? Because He paid for it with His blood. The church belongs to Christ. I want to remind all of those who are watching today that our world may not like the church but our world needs the church. I want to remind everyone watching today that America may be turning its back on the church but America needs the church. And I wanna say as someone who lives in metropolitan Atlanta, most people in Atlanta, Georgia give no thought about church and have no regard for church but little do they know how much they need the church because the church is the presence of God in every city where there is a church and every state and every country. People need the church and don't even realize the value of the church but I hope you as a member of God's church realize the significance, the crucial, essential significance of God's church and look at the promise Jesus made. He said the gates of hell, did you see that? The gates of the abode of death. The gates of hell will not triumph, will not prevail, over the church. Unless I'm misreading this, this says that God's church has been given a promise of invincibility. We will win. Oh, there will be churches, local churches, we all know them. Churches that used to be strong now are weak. Churches that used to be open now are permanently closed. Not for a pandemic but closed forever because the Spirit of God departed them but we're talking about God's church, not just any one expression of that. Jesus said the gates of hell, no matter how fiercely they war against God's church, the gates of hell will not prevail. This means that opposition cannot defeat the church. This means that persecution cannot defeat the church. This means that Satan cannot defeat the church. This means that socialism cannot defeat the church. I'm gonna tell you something else. Covid-19 cannot defeat the church. You wouldn't believe, you know how I mentioned in the church, there is no shortage of opinions. We've gotten all kinds of opinions about keeping the church closed. Good people, people I love, telling us we're bowing down to the socialist, we're bowing down to the antichrist, we're yielding to government control and I just want you to understand one thing. None of that is true. We're trying to be responsible. We're trying to protect people but you see, one of the things that I know God has used this pandemic to accomplish, He's used it to force churches, most of whom did close down, to begin using technology that many of them did not know how to use and were unaware was just at their fingertips and even churches out on dirt roads in south Georgia realized that if they were unsure about their members coming and spreading the virus, all they needed was someone to hold up an iPhone with a Wi-Fi connection and to point it at the pastor and let him preach and what used to be a message for 40 people on a good Sunday when the church was packed, now from an iPhone was being broadcast from that little four-way intersection at a rural crossroads out in the country and it can be viewed by anybody around the world. You see, years ago for a church to go on television, you had to have the staff for it, you had to have multi-million dollar elaborate facility and equipment, all kinds of fancy cameras and a lot of resources to make that happen and now that's no longer the case. All you need is a camera of any kind and a Wi-Fi connection and what I'm telling you is through Covid-19, thousands of churches are now beaming the gospel out over the internet who would have never even known they could do it if they hadn't been forced to discover how to. So there are a lot of people who are going to look at the negatives of a church that has remained closed. I'm looking at the positive because even here, we have heard from so many of our hundreds of home bound members who were never able to come to church before Covid who have missed out on a live worship experience and they are pleading with us, please don't stop the livestream even when you reopen the churches. Here's the point. No matter what hell throws our way, we stand on the promise that Jesus said the gates of hell shall not prevail against the church. We will not be defeated. We will overcome. Our doors will be opened again one day and this house will be filled but one day what I want to tell you is as God's people, we're all gonna be airlifted out of here in an awesome event called the rapture and we'll leave this sick mess behind and be forever more with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. You see the good news today is it's not just a matter of you belonging to the church. If you're a Christian and I'm a Christian, we are the church and the church is the winning side to be on. Father, thank you, thank you, thank you for the wonderful opportunity You've given us today to gather and worship and to focus on the beauty of Jesus and the glory of the church and the promise that we are on the winning side because You are our foundation. You, Lord Jesus, are the builder, and You are the one who owns us as Your purchased possession and how I pray these words have encouraged and strengthened a weary heart today in Jesus' name, amen.
