The Church is an unshakable kingdom

Published 11:33 am Friday, August 7, 2020

Question: Can Satan ever destroy the church?

We learn in Hebrews 12:18-22, 27-28, that the kingdom of God, the Church is an unshakable kingdom. The Hebrew writer says we have not come to Mount Sinai (or to any other similar mountain), but we have come to Mount Zion. Bible scholars know that this is a direct reference to the Lord’s church. God wants us to know that the Church is unmovable. In other words it cannot be overthrown or destroyed. Jesus in the parable of the wise man in Matthew 7:24-27, teaches the same.

The divinely promised Church is one that will never fail. This is the kingdom of the Christ and Luke says it will never end (Luke 1:33). Unable to end the Church outright, Satan seeks, through the hands of wicked men to restructure the Church, thereby destroying it. Many believe as times change and people with it, that the Church needs to change to meet the changing times. They believe that the Church of the past cannot serve the needs of people today. Nothing can be further from the truth.

A characteristic of the Lord’s church is that it is both human and divine. It is divine in its concept and nature and has a singular purpose but it is an institution made up of human beings. On the divine side we see pure perfection, however, on the human side we see imperfection as men falter. This explains any problem in the Church; as men and their ideology changes, they want the Church to change to meet their thought process. But Jesus is the head of the Church with all authority (Col. 1:18, Matt. 28:18). He is also the foundation of the Church (1 Cor. 3:11). This being true, His message, regardless of the issue, is the message that counts. In Gal. 1:6-10, Paul warns us that there is only one Gospel. That Gospel contains the teaching of Jesus and His inspired writers and must never be altered by men.

The Church is an institution that will stand forever. We learn from the book of Revelation that there is a great victory for the Church over Satan and his followers. This does not mean that the Church will never suffer any harm (Revelation 6:9-11). There is no doubt that the Church will suffer loss as men in it falter, but it will eventually be victorious. In Chapter 20 of Revelation, after Satan has been defeated, we see the souls that stood firm for God sitting on thrones.

In essence this is a scene of victory for faithful Children of God, the Church. There is a scene of peace as the rider of the white horse, Christ reigns supreme and His faithful followers reign with Him (Revelation 19:11-16). We see that in the end there is victory for Jesus and His saints. We see that all the evil forces combined could not, and cannot, destroy the Lord’s church. It is indeed an unshakeable kingdom.

Are you a part of that Kingdom? If not, you can be if you are willing to submit to Jesus and His authority. The Gospel of Christ demands that believers repent of their sin, confess Jesus’ name among men, and be buried with Christ in baptism. Those who do so will live and reign with Christ in eternity (Rom. 8: 35-39).