And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.

Matthew 16:18 (ESV)

On September 6, 2006 the New York Times published an unusual piece, a description of the Zoroastrian faith and its imminent demise. Zoroastrianism is a monotheistic religion founded between 1500 and 600 BC by the prophet Zarathustra. However, centuries later, due to a refusal to proselytize, high rates of intermarriage, and internal quarreling, this ancient religion is on the brink of extinction (Zoroastrianism has less than 200,000 adherents and a negative growth rate). Some Zoroastrians are clearly frustrated that their faith, once the religion of kings, is now in shambles. A senior priest, living in Chicago, described the pedestal from which his religion has fallen: “At one point we had reached the pinnacle of glory of the Persian Empire and had a beautiful religious philosophy that governed the Persian kings.”1 The Times article raises an interesting question for Christians to consider: How can the Church be certain that extinction is not right around the corner for her?

Christ answered this question clearly in Matthew 16:18. Peter had just confessed that Jesus is the promised Messiah. Such faith, declared Jesus, is a gift of God (16:16-17). There were others who thought Jesus was merely a fine teacher or perhaps John the Baptist risen from the dead. The truth, however, was revealed to Peter: Jesus is “the Christ, the Son of the Living God” (v. 16). Jesus is simply promising to build His Church on Peter’s confession.

The last part of verse eighteen is a fantastic claim: “the gates of hell shall not prevail against” the Church. This is a promise that the combined powers of death and Satan and all that is wicked will not topple nor be finally victorious against God’s people, and so the Church can be confident and hopeful that she will last.

Notice this is not a promise made to the other religions of the world. Though Islam, for now, is the fastest growing world religion (thanks to the growth of Muslim families), it lives without the promise of Christ that the gates of hell will not prevail against Islam. Islam will not last. The same holds true for Hinduism and Buddhism; though they are large numerically, they do not have the promise of Christ to sustain them. The Zoroastrians have nearly come to the end of their journey, their once grand religion, at least in the eyes of man, has been reduced to a few families scattered throughout the globe.

So, how does one know the Christian Church will last? Because it is the largest religion? No. Because it has successful publishing houses? No. Because Christians are able to influence public policy? No. Christians know the Church will last because Christians are a people with a claim to the promise, Christ’s promise that the Church will not and cannot be defeated.

The Church can, therefore, stand firm on the bedrock promise that she will endure, indeed, persevere. “Persevere” is the key word. Unlike the Zoroastrians who long for those days of glory during the heights of the Persian Empire, there are no halcyon days for Christ’s followers. Though, His promise is that hell will not have the last word, this promise includes the fact that those within the Church’s spiritual walls will be “persecuted for righteousness’ sake” (Matt. 5:10). Therein lays the majesty and mystery of the Church on earth: her body will be often bruised but never, ever destroyed.

Footnotes:
1
Laurie Goodstein, “Zoroastrians Keep the Faith, and Keep Dwindling,” The New York Times, September 6, 2006, http://www.nytimes.com/2006/09/06/us/06faith.html?ex=1315195200&en=848e5bdc41363089&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss (accessed December 11, 2006).

article adapted from Kairos Journal

First Baptist Church of Perryville is located one and a half miles east of Rt. 222.