Build God a church, I had no idea on how to accomplish this task laid before me. It would be over a year later before the Holy Spirit quickened this verse to me.
I Will Build My Church…Matthew 16:18 (KJV)
When I arrived in Boulder, Colorado to build God a church, I had no idea on how to accomplish this task laid before me. It would be over a year later before the Holy Spirit quickened this verse to me. And thereby lifting an enormous burden or pressure or maybe a worry, not sure…I just felt better after this Matthew verse! I’ll put the whole verse right here…
Matthew 16:18 (KJV) And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. Again, I’m using the SwordSearcher Bible Software (not a paid endorsement).
I did a little search for the words, “I will Build” and was surprised at the diversity of these words. I found 27 verses and 2 of them where serious warnings! OH MY! You know what, it is so important to know the Word of God. Being constantly distracted from it brings nothing good out of it.
Jesus will build his church
Study takes time and time is all we have. How much time, is different for each one of us. Currently at my age 65 years, 2 months and 12 days, as of this publish date, my time line is a tiny bit shorter than it was! I wrote it like that because it sounded funny!
Going back to the KJV Bible, Matthew 16:18, I have heard some get the idea that Jesus was talking to Peter and that upon Peter, the Apostle, Jesus will build his church. That’s not what I see. Go back a few verses, I’ll put them here…
I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven
Matthew 16:13 (KJV) When Jesus came into the coasts of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, saying, Whom do men say that I the Son of man am?
14 And they said, Some say that thou art John the Baptist: some, Elias; and others, Jeremias, or one of the prophets.
15 He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am?
16 And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.
17 And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-jona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.
18 And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.
19 And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.
Add yourself to my prayer list
Jesus have been pointing to himself
Now, go back and re-read our key verse…can you maybe see Jesus patting his chest, or pointing to himself, and then saying, I will build my church…? I can almost see it…why? Because going back into the Old Testament and Moses and the wilderness adventures, do you remember the rock?
The Word says that this rock was Jesus! The verse above says, “…upon this rock…” now, could Jesus have been pointing to himself while he was saying these words to Peter? Maybe, I don’t know…but Peter is not the rock, and Peter is not the foundation of the Church of God. Peter did build upon the rock. And Peter wrote a lot of scripture by the Holy Ghost. Peter is amazing! Even his shadow was amazing…
Acts 5:15 (KJV) Insomuch that they brought forth the sick into the streets, and laid them on beds and couches, that at the least the shadow of Peter passing by might overshadow some of them.
Acts 5:16 (KJV) There came also a multitude out of the cities round about unto Jerusalem, bringing sick folks, and them which were vexed with unclean spirits: and they were healed every one.
When you see something for the very first time
Let’s go find some verses that relate to Matthew 16:18…
The first time the words “I will build” appear in scripture is 1 Samuel 2:35 …note: when you see something for the very first time in scripture, stop, take note of it, because it is important!
1 Samuel 2:35 (KJV) And I will raise me up a faithful priest, that shall do according to that which is in mine heart and in my mind: and I will build him a sure house; and he shall walk before mine anointed for ever.
1 Samuel 2:35 (KJV)
Now, that verse really says a lot about our Lord God! Let’s break it down…
- And I will raise me up
- a faithful priest,
- that shall do
- according to that which is in mine heart
- and in my mind:
- and I will build
- him a sure house;
- and he shall walk
- before mine anointed
- for ever.
Do we have enough time on earth
Oh wow, there is to much here for me to write for this blog post! There are at least 10 sermons right there in this single verse! And I have heard pastors say, “I don’t know what to preach on because I have to preach every Sunday, I run out of things to preach on!” I’ll tell you what, let’s NOT go there! Deal?
Let’s instead tackle point 1. (you know it just dawned on me that this is just 1 verse of the 27 that I was referring to that related to the words “I will build”…my my, do we have enough time on earth to unpack the Holy Bible? That’s probably why, we keep on studying when we get to heaven! Amen!
Jesus said, you have seen the Father
1. “And I will raise me up” … “And” is to be included with the rest of the gospel, not excluding it. “I” is the Holy Ghost moving through the prophet Samuel, and referring to himself. “Will” is the creative plan of the Father and what he plans to do with his creation. “Raise” is the idea of lifting up and increasing, this is also a work of the Holy Ghost. It was the Holy Ghost who raised Jesus, the Son of God, up from the dead. “Me” refers to the Godhead, God is plural, Father, Son, Holy Ghost…together they work as one, if you have seen me, Jesus said, you have seen the Father. Jesus said, me and my Father are one. And there are many more scriptures telling of the trinity. Next word is “up” and this can go from a little higher to all the way to heaven, but it does not refer to lowering into hell or even under the earth, or even eventually the lake of fire. I actually like this little word …up… I’m laughing now…
…because my mind jumped back to the early 70’s and the drug scene…isn’t that weird…sometimes I can’t wait to get out of this earthly and worldly carcass!
God is preserving each and every word
God is good and he is watching over his word and he is preserving each and every word with the utmost ability and highest power…God Almighty, for who he can swear with none other. (Remember the story of Abraham and the blood covenant made with the Father?)
Some of the other verses are: 2 Samuel 7:13; 2 Samuel 7:27; 1 Kings 5:5; 1 Kings 11:38; 1 Chronicles 17:12; Isaiah 45:13; Jeremiah 22:14; Jeremiah 24:6; Jeremiah 31:4; Jeremiah 42:10; Amos 9:11; Haggai 1:8; and Acts 15:16. There are several more however they relate to destruction and that’s not exactly what refers to our key verse Matthew 16:18.
Study the Word my friend, because, “there be gold in them thare hills partner!” Grab a pick and shovel and shove off…
I’m going to end here tonight…I haven’t had dinner yet and it’s already 8:30 pm! Been working on the church all day…great things are coming, Lord willing!
Respectfully in JESUS,
John Choque.
Touching People For Heaven
“And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”
—Acts 2:21 (KJV).
This is the most important decision of your life. You receive eternal life by receiving Jesus Christ as your Saviour and Lord. “Jesus, if you’re real, here I am.” —John Choque, 1974.
Two services I use to help support the ministry
If you would like to pledge to a brand new missionary type of church, that is being built by creating cell groups, then please use this service to give and support the work. (JC membership link) The idea is to have accountability and transparency regarding finances. Thank you for your faith.
This is a simple and effective service to hold my prayer list of people whom I’m talking with for salvation, ministry and in creating cell groups. (JC commission link) The idea is that after witnessing with a gospel tract, I stay in contact for follow up and prayer. God bless you.
I will build my church…this is actually a very provocative statement! There is power in these words. The mere fact that they were spoken by God himself is astonishing. Study the Word of God and learn even more miraculous events!