John 1:1
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
John 1:14
The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
Matthew 16:13-20
When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?”
They replied, “Some say John the Baptist;others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”
“But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?”
Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”
Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven.
And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.
I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”
Then he ordered his disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Messiah.
The Bible contains God’s promise and Will. Therefore, we must read the Bible. The New Testament was established upon the Old Testament, and God fulfills His promise again upon the foundation of the New Testament at the time of the Second Coming. Therefore, we should know the Bible and God’s 6,000-year history properly in order to deeply and valuably realize the Word and history of the Advent.
God Comes Through the Word
In each time period, God sends His messenger to deliver what He wants to say to the earth and to fulfill His Will. God appears through that Word, allows us to know His Will and purpose, and helps us to live according to that Will and purpose. The Old Testament fulfilled God’s Will, centering on the Word that God had given to Moses. In the New Testament time, God sent the savior to the Earth as His body and worked through him by appearing through the Word.
In John Chapter 1, just as it says that God is the Word and that the Word became flesh and came, God sent Jesus as His body. And, using that body, God carried out salvation history. Jesus went around with his disciples every day and did God’s work by preaching the gospel, despite relentless criticism and severe persecution. Through Jesus, God fulfilled the promises made through the Old Testament prophets.
The Greatest Discovery
Peter made the greatest discovery, and that discovery became his eternal blessing. He discovered the Messiah sent by God through the Word. By receiving that eternal blessing, God’s church was established.
At first, Peter only followed Jesus around. He did not know who Jesus was. But as God revealed to him more and more about Jesus, Peter came to realize things perfectly. More than anyone, Peter recognized Jesus as the Messiah and confessed that he was the Son of God. This made him the greatest of all the disciples.
Therefore, in Matthew Chapter 16, Jesus referred to Simon Peter (Simon was Peter’s original name) as “Bar-Jonah,” which means “son of Jonah” in Aramaic. What Jesus meant was, like prophet Jonah in the Old Testament, Peter would bring many people to salvation through repentance.
Jesus also described Simon Peter as “the rock” (“Peter” literally means “rock” or “stone” in Greek.) He blessed that his church be established upon the rock called “Peter” and that the power of Hades would not be able to overcome it.
But why did Jesus call Simon Peter “the rock” upon which his church would be established? It was because Peter’s faith was rock solid. He stood firm on the Word and clearly knew the one God sent. This came from properly understanding God’s Word of truth. With that solid foundation, even Satan and Hades would not be able to overcome it. Therefore, God blessed Peter through Jesus to establish his church upon this solid faith.
How to Defeat the Power of Satan and Hades
So how would one overpower Satan and Hades? Like Peter, by standing firm on the Word to establish your faith correctly, you can establish perfect spiritual love with God that can overcome even Satan and Hades.
You must also know how God’s history was made. To do so, you need to understand that God works through the Messiah and recognize who the Messiah is. Then you can realize how God works at this current time just as he did in the past without any misunderstanding. Then you will gain perfect salvation. You need to fully know Jesus. Then your faith and the truth will be established, and upon that foundation, the history of God’s Will will be established, and the power of Hades will be unable to overcome it. You will receive the key to Heaven like Peter, and your mission will be such that whatever you bind on Earth will be bound in Heaven, and whatever you loose on Earth will be loosed in Heaven.
God is the Word. His Word appears through the body of the one He sends. We need to listen to that Word through the Messiah and know God’s purpose, establish our faith, and establish God’s history. God, the Holy Spirit, and the Holy Son, who are the essence, are always with you and act with you. By making your faith solid, establishing your love for the Holy Trinity and the Messiah, you will receive all kinds of blessings from God as a result!
