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How Jesus Builds His Church
How Jesus Builds His Church
David W Palmer
Peter received revelation from God. This overflowed in his powerful, destiny-setting confession that Jesus is the Christ. Yesterday, we saw the first of the amazing outcomes Jesus declared over him: Jesus said, “Blessed are you Simon.” Today, we look at how Jesus expanded on this to show, among other things, how revelation from heaven connects us to his work in building his church:
He Changes Us when We Hear Heavenly Revelation
(Matthew 16:17–18 NKJV) 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. {18} And I also say to you that you are Peter ...”
This passage shows how the revelation that Simon received from heaven changed his identity; he went from being Simon, meaning to hear, to Peter, meaning a rock or stone. His ability to hear revelation from Father made him solid like a rock. For us, the ability to see and hear from God comes with our new birth (See: John 3:3–8). If we operate in this supernatural ability by meditating in his word, listening to anointed messages, pressing into worship, and drawing near to God; we too can receive revelation from Father. When we do, like Peter, we too will become solid in our faith and grounded in our identity in Christ Jesus.
He Builds His Church by Revelation
(Matthew 16:18 NKJV) “… and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.”
Next, Jesus made the profound statement: “On this rock I will build My church.” We could mistakenly assume that he was speaking of Peter when he said this. But Peter only became a rock because he received revelation from heaven that made him solid. It is the revelation that is the rock on which Jesus builds his church. In particular, from the context preceding this statement, we see that it is first the revelation that Jesus is “the Christ, the Son of the Living God” (Mat. 16:16 NKJV). But because the context includes what Jesus said in the next verse, we can safely expand our understanding of this rock to include a broader range of revelation:
(Matthew 16:19 NKJV) “And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”
We also note that in verse 18 Jesus said, “I will build my church.” The church belongs to Jesus; it is his church, his bride, his senate, and his body, etc. and he is building it. This is confirmed in Acts:
(Acts 2:47 NKJV) ... the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved.
He Builds His Church by Speaking
Jesus is building his church. How does he do this? If we can discover how Jesus builds his church, we can maximize our cooperation with him. First we ask, “How does he do everything he does?” The answer: his words! By speaking, Jesus:
Jesus prayed by speaking; he taught by speaking; he corrected the Pharisees by speaking, and made disciples by speaking, etc. So, how would we expect him to build his church? By speaking, of course. When we hear him speaking that for us equates to hearing revelation from God. When we hear and speak his words, he acts and builds.
We Cooperate with Jesus Building by Prophesying
Bearing in mind that Jesus builds through speaking, we ask, “What kind of speaking does Jesus use to build his church?” We ask this because we want to cooperate with him in what he is doing, and we want to allow him to use us as his mouthpiece. But what speaking in particular builds the church? The Holy Spirit helps us here:
(1 Corinthians 14:4 APE) He who speaks in languages builds himself up, and he who prophesies builds the church up.
The Holy Spirit explains that when we prophesy, we contribute to the building of the church. Why is this?
(Revelation 19:10 NKJV) “… the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”
When we prophesy, we are testifying to what Jesus is saying. And the only way to know what Jesus is saying is to receive it by revelation from the spirit realm—via the Holy Spirit. There it is again; revelation is the rock on which Jesus builds his church.
We Cooperate with Jesus by Speaking the Truth in Love
What other type of speaking does the Holy Spirit say builds the church?
(Ephesians 4:15–16 NKJV) “But, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ— {16} from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.
We could précis this Scripture if we jump over the explanations in the middle of it: “Speaking the truth in love … unto the edifying of itself in love.” We are therefore grammatically correct to say that it is the “speaking” that causes the edification of the church. Speaking, then, is part of the process Jesus uses to edify, or build, his church. So we now know that edifying (building) the church is done through speaking. Therefore the apostles, prophets, etc. equip God’s people by preparing them to speak the truth in love to each other. Of course, speaking the truth in love is speaking what Jesus wants said. This again shows how Jesus builds / edifies his church by speaking.
(1 Thessalonians. 5:11 NKJV) “Therefore comfort each other and edify one another, just as you also are doing.”
Another way to look at this is that we need to speak true doctrine, which is what Jesus teaches. Profession, or confession, means to “Say the same thing.” So for us to be true in doctrine would be to say the same thing as Jesus.
Ephesians 4:15 says, “Speaking the truth in love.” Jesus says in John 14:6 that he is the truth, and in 1 John 4:8 the Holy Spirit reveals that God is love. Again we see from this that speaking the truth in love is saying exactly what Jesus would say himself. A perfectly mature Christian, therefore, is a person who always says what Jesus wants said; they speak true doctrine, they speak the truth in love, and they speak prophetically by revelation from heaven. What Jesus says through them, builds his church.
(James 1:26 NIV) “If anyone considers himself religious and yet does not keep a tight rein on his tongue, he deceives himself and his religion is worthless.”
(Ephesians 4:29 EMTV) “Let no corrupt word proceed from your mouth, but only what is good for edification, that it may give grace to them that hear.”
From these two passages, we see that Jesus is quite serious when he challenges us about our speaking. He wants us to “keep a tight rein” on our tongue. He directs us: “Let no corrupt word proceed from your mouth.” The Master has clearly given the responsibility for this to us. Thankfully, his grace is available to help us fulfill his directives.
When we need to find that grace, a good place to start is by meditating on the very passage that directs us to obey it. Every word Jesus speaks has self-fulfilling power built into it. In truth, our Lord bridles his own tongue to strictly adhere to what he commands us to do with our words; he only speaks to us what is good, and what edifies; everything he says gives “grace to them that hear.” This is why every directive, command, and instruction Jesus gives us is full of love and edification. What’s more, the grace to obey what Jesus says is built into his words. We can receive and benefit from his amazing grace, if we invest the time and focus needed to: receive it, meditate in it, long to obey it, and fellowship with the Holy Spirit around it.
Today, I encourage you to take up that grace, receive his ability to stop the unproductive words, and to bridle your tongue to only speak words that edify and minister grace to others. This brings us back to Matthew 16, where Jesus said that this begins by receiving revelation from heaven. If we do, we can then speak what Jesus wants said in prophecy, in true doctrine, in accurate confession, and in love. We can literally be Jesus’s mouthpieces on earth as he speaks through us and builds his church. And remember, he wants every member of his church to contribute to this; let’s make sure we do our part:
(Ephesians 4:15–16 NLT) Instead, we will speak the truth in love, growing in every way more and more like Christ, who is the head of his body, the church. {16} He makes the whole body fit together perfectly. As each part does its own special work, it helps the other parts grow, so that the whole body is healthy and growing and full of love.
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By DAVID W. PALMERHow Jesus Builds His Church
David W Palmer
Peter received revelation from God. This overflowed in his powerful, destiny-setting confession that Jesus is the Christ. Yesterday, we saw the first of the amazing outcomes Jesus declared over him: Jesus said, “Blessed are you Simon.” Today, we look at how Jesus expanded on this to show, among other things, how revelation from heaven connects us to his work in building his church:
He Changes Us when We Hear Heavenly Revelation
(Matthew 16:17–18 NKJV) 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. {18} And I also say to you that you are Peter ...”
This passage shows how the revelation that Simon received from heaven changed his identity; he went from being Simon, meaning to hear, to Peter, meaning a rock or stone. His ability to hear revelation from Father made him solid like a rock. For us, the ability to see and hear from God comes with our new birth (See: John 3:3–8). If we operate in this supernatural ability by meditating in his word, listening to anointed messages, pressing into worship, and drawing near to God; we too can receive revelation from Father. When we do, like Peter, we too will become solid in our faith and grounded in our identity in Christ Jesus.
He Builds His Church by Revelation
(Matthew 16:18 NKJV) “… and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.”
Next, Jesus made the profound statement: “On this rock I will build My church.” We could mistakenly assume that he was speaking of Peter when he said this. But Peter only became a rock because he received revelation from heaven that made him solid. It is the revelation that is the rock on which Jesus builds his church. In particular, from the context preceding this statement, we see that it is first the revelation that Jesus is “the Christ, the Son of the Living God” (Mat. 16:16 NKJV). But because the context includes what Jesus said in the next verse, we can safely expand our understanding of this rock to include a broader range of revelation:
(Matthew 16:19 NKJV) “And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”
We also note that in verse 18 Jesus said, “I will build my church.” The church belongs to Jesus; it is his church, his bride, his senate, and his body, etc. and he is building it. This is confirmed in Acts:
(Acts 2:47 NKJV) ... the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved.
He Builds His Church by Speaking
Jesus is building his church. How does he do this? If we can discover how Jesus builds his church, we can maximize our cooperation with him. First we ask, “How does he do everything he does?” The answer: his words! By speaking, Jesus:
Jesus prayed by speaking; he taught by speaking; he corrected the Pharisees by speaking, and made disciples by speaking, etc. So, how would we expect him to build his church? By speaking, of course. When we hear him speaking that for us equates to hearing revelation from God. When we hear and speak his words, he acts and builds.
We Cooperate with Jesus Building by Prophesying
Bearing in mind that Jesus builds through speaking, we ask, “What kind of speaking does Jesus use to build his church?” We ask this because we want to cooperate with him in what he is doing, and we want to allow him to use us as his mouthpiece. But what speaking in particular builds the church? The Holy Spirit helps us here:
(1 Corinthians 14:4 APE) He who speaks in languages builds himself up, and he who prophesies builds the church up.
The Holy Spirit explains that when we prophesy, we contribute to the building of the church. Why is this?
(Revelation 19:10 NKJV) “… the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”
When we prophesy, we are testifying to what Jesus is saying. And the only way to know what Jesus is saying is to receive it by revelation from the spirit realm—via the Holy Spirit. There it is again; revelation is the rock on which Jesus builds his church.
We Cooperate with Jesus by Speaking the Truth in Love
What other type of speaking does the Holy Spirit say builds the church?
(Ephesians 4:15–16 NKJV) “But, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ— {16} from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.
We could précis this Scripture if we jump over the explanations in the middle of it: “Speaking the truth in love … unto the edifying of itself in love.” We are therefore grammatically correct to say that it is the “speaking” that causes the edification of the church. Speaking, then, is part of the process Jesus uses to edify, or build, his church. So we now know that edifying (building) the church is done through speaking. Therefore the apostles, prophets, etc. equip God’s people by preparing them to speak the truth in love to each other. Of course, speaking the truth in love is speaking what Jesus wants said. This again shows how Jesus builds / edifies his church by speaking.
(1 Thessalonians. 5:11 NKJV) “Therefore comfort each other and edify one another, just as you also are doing.”
Another way to look at this is that we need to speak true doctrine, which is what Jesus teaches. Profession, or confession, means to “Say the same thing.” So for us to be true in doctrine would be to say the same thing as Jesus.
Ephesians 4:15 says, “Speaking the truth in love.” Jesus says in John 14:6 that he is the truth, and in 1 John 4:8 the Holy Spirit reveals that God is love. Again we see from this that speaking the truth in love is saying exactly what Jesus would say himself. A perfectly mature Christian, therefore, is a person who always says what Jesus wants said; they speak true doctrine, they speak the truth in love, and they speak prophetically by revelation from heaven. What Jesus says through them, builds his church.
(James 1:26 NIV) “If anyone considers himself religious and yet does not keep a tight rein on his tongue, he deceives himself and his religion is worthless.”
(Ephesians 4:29 EMTV) “Let no corrupt word proceed from your mouth, but only what is good for edification, that it may give grace to them that hear.”
From these two passages, we see that Jesus is quite serious when he challenges us about our speaking. He wants us to “keep a tight rein” on our tongue. He directs us: “Let no corrupt word proceed from your mouth.” The Master has clearly given the responsibility for this to us. Thankfully, his grace is available to help us fulfill his directives.
When we need to find that grace, a good place to start is by meditating on the very passage that directs us to obey it. Every word Jesus speaks has self-fulfilling power built into it. In truth, our Lord bridles his own tongue to strictly adhere to what he commands us to do with our words; he only speaks to us what is good, and what edifies; everything he says gives “grace to them that hear.” This is why every directive, command, and instruction Jesus gives us is full of love and edification. What’s more, the grace to obey what Jesus says is built into his words. We can receive and benefit from his amazing grace, if we invest the time and focus needed to: receive it, meditate in it, long to obey it, and fellowship with the Holy Spirit around it.
Today, I encourage you to take up that grace, receive his ability to stop the unproductive words, and to bridle your tongue to only speak words that edify and minister grace to others. This brings us back to Matthew 16, where Jesus said that this begins by receiving revelation from heaven. If we do, we can then speak what Jesus wants said in prophecy, in true doctrine, in accurate confession, and in love. We can literally be Jesus’s mouthpieces on earth as he speaks through us and builds his church. And remember, he wants every member of his church to contribute to this; let’s make sure we do our part:
(Ephesians 4:15–16 NLT) Instead, we will speak the truth in love, growing in every way more and more like Christ, who is the head of his body, the church. {16} He makes the whole body fit together perfectly. As each part does its own special work, it helps the other parts grow, so that the whole body is healthy and growing and full of love.