“And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it” (Matt. 16:18).
What happens if the foundation of the church of Christ is shaken? Can the building stand? To answer this question, we must first discover what the foundation of the church is. The New Testament says there is no foundation that can be laid except that which is in Christ. He is the chief cornerstone, but in today’s passage He is not called the entire foundation. The foundation in this context is the prophets and the apostles. The apostle Peter confesses that Jesus is the Son of the Living God, and Jesus says that the church will be built upon this rock. The rock is not Peter himself, but Peter’s confession—the apostolic word.
In Revelation 21, the heavenly city coming down from above is described as having twelve foundations—the names of the twelve apostles. The significance of this is that the church is one, holy, catholic, and apostolic. It is this last attribute that is attacked more than any other in the church today because the Scripture, as the standard for the church, is being rejected. Rejecting the Scripture—the apostolic word—is an attack on the church’s foundation.
Now, when the foundation is shaken, the church cannot stand. We can even say that, when the foundation is rejected, the church is no longer a church. Historically, Christianity has been apostolic. You might reject the teaching of Paul, and not believe the teaching of John, but if that is your view, don’t try to steal the church of Christ and build it on some other foundation. Just have the integrity to reject Christianity outright rather than try to build a new “improved” version on some other foundation. To make anything other than the apostolic word the foundation of the church is simply dishonest.
The term 'apostle' means one who is sent. In Greek culture an apostle was somebody who was an emissary, authorized by the king to represent him in his absence. The supreme apostle was Christ, who was sent by His Father. Christ delegated His authority to the twelve apostles to speak on His behalf. They did not transmit their own teaching, but the teaching of Christ. Those who received them, received Christ, and those who rejected them, rejected Christ. And so, to reject their teaching is also to reject Christ—to reject the authority of Scripture is to undermine the foundation of the church.
On what other foundations do people try to build the church? What are some reasons people give for rejecting the authority of Scripture? Why is it impossible to have a Christian church if you do not have the Scriptures—the apostolic word—as the foundation? Skim Psalm 119, praising God for His Word.
