Run to the Rock
CHRIST JESUS
By Pastor Max
Solbrekken, D.D.
“Jesus saith unto
them, Did ye never read in the Scriptures,
The STONE which the builders rejected, the same is become the Head of
the Corner: this is the Lord's doing, and it is marvelous in our eyes?
“Therefore I say unto you, the Kingdom of God shall be
taken from you, and given to a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof. And
whosoever shall fall on this STONE shall be broken: but on whomsoever it shall
fall, it will grind him to powder.” (Matt.21: 42-44)
Our Saviour was quoting a prophecy by David, concerning the Messiah. (Psalms
118: 22, 23). His warning, however, went unheeded. Instead of receiving their
Messiah, Lord and Saviour, they delivered Him to the pagan Romans to be
crucified on Golgotha as a common criminal.
Just as Jesus warned, the nation of Israel was crushed,
decimated, and destroyed. In 70 A.D. a scant 37 years later, Jerusalem lay in
ruins and Israel remained non-existent as a nation for nearly 2,000 years until
God in His mercy returned them to their land in 1948 A.D.
His Word still holds true today. If you throw yourself upon His mercy, you will
end up being broken and His mercy and grace will heal you. If, however, He
falls on you in judgment you will be destroyed!
My advice for everyone is to believe His Word and cast yourself upon Him to
receive His grace and mercy! He has promised to hear our prayers, forgive our
sins, heal our sicknesses, and grant full pardon and eternal Life!
St. Peter said: “To Whom coming, as unto a LIVING STONE,
disallowed indeed of men, but chosen of God, and precious, Ye also as lively
stones, are built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood,
to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.
“Wherefore also it is contained in the Scriptures, Behold I lay in Sion a
Chief Corner Stone, elect, precious: and he that believeth on Him shall not be
confounded.
“Unto you therefore
which believe, He is precious: but unto them which be disobedient, the STONE which
the builders disallowed has become the Head of the CORNER,
and a STONE of stumbling, and a ROCK of
offense, even to them that stumble at the Word. being disobedient: whereunto
also they were appointed.” (1 Peter 2: 4-8)
Dotty Rambo wrote
the great song, 'I go to the Rock'. Others have written hymns that
have given comfort and strength to multitudes across the ages! They have mostly
been the Holy Scriptures put to music. In 1880, Vernon J. Charlesworth wrote, 'A
Shelter in the Time of Storm. It goes like this:
The Lord's our Rock, in Him we hide, a Shelter in the time of storm
Secure whatever ill betide, a
Shelter in the time of storm
Oh, Jesus is a Rock in a weary land, A Weary land, a Weary land,
Jesus is a Rock in a weary land, A Shelter in the time of storm
A shade by day, defense N by night, A shelter in the time of storm
No fears alarm, no foes afright, A Shelter in the time of storm
O Rock Divine, O Refuge dear, A Shelter in the time of storm
Be Thou our Helper ever near, A Shelter in the time of storm
ROCK OF AGES CLEFT FOR ME!
In 1776 Augustus M. Toplady wrote the words of the glorious hymn, 'Rock
of Ages'. Here are those inspiring, anointed, and riveting words:
Rock of Ages, cleft for me, Let me hide myself in thee
Let the water and the blood, From Thy wounded side which
flowed
Be of sin the double cure, Save from wrath and make me
pure
Not the labour of my hands, Can fulfill Thy laws demands
Could my zeal no respite know, Could my tears forever flow
All for sin could not atone, Thou must save and Thou alone
Nothing in mine hand I bring, Simply to Thy cross I cling
Naked, come to Thee for dress, Helpless, look to thee for
grace
Foul, I to Thy fountain fly, Wash me, Saviour, or I die
While I draw this fleeting breath when my eyes shall close in
death
When I rise to worlds unknown, and behold Thee on Thy throne
Rock of Ages, cleft for me, Let me hide myself in Thee.
ON CHRIST THE SOLID ROCK I STAND!
Edward Mote (1797 - 1874) wrote one of my favourite songs, 'The
Solid Rock'. These powerful evangelical words that God gave him
have inspired multitudes. They were his testimony and by God's grace, they are
also my personal testimony. Here they are:
My hope is built on nothing less, Than Jesus' blood and
righteousness
I dare not trust the sweetest frame, But wholly lean on Jesus' name
On Christ the solid Rock I stand, All other ground is sinking
sand
When darkness veils His lovely face, I rest on His unchanging grace
In every high and stormy gale, My anchor holds within the veil
On Christ the solid Rock I stand, All other ground is sinking
sand
His oath, His covenant, His blood, Support me in the whelming
flood
When every earthly prop gives way, He then is all my hope and stay
On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand, All other ground is sinking
sand
When He shall come with trumpet
sound, Oh, may I
then in Him be found
Clothed in His righteousness alone, Faultless to stand before the
throne
On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand, All other ground is sinking
sand
JESUS THE CHIEF CORNERSTONE
Much confusion has been generated by the age-old,
manufactured doctrine held by the Roman Catholic Church on Simon the son of
Jonas, whom Jesus called Peter.
To call him the ROCK upon which the Church of Jesus
Christ is built is not only scandalous but an outrageous identity theft! They
are guilty of grand larceny in the first degree!
To STEAL from Jesus Christ His very name; the Chief Corner Stone, the Rock
of Offence and the Foundation of the Church is not only unforgiving; but
blasphemous. And upon this phony name grab they have built their church!
Jesus Christ had a habit of giving nicknames to people. He called James and
John the 'sons of thunder' and Simon the son of
Jonas 'petros the fragment of a rock', while He called
Himself 'Petra, the huge unquarried boulder'. He called
Herod, that fox and the scribes 'vipers'!
St. Peter's name was Simon which means a reed,
and very often a person's name reflected his personality. We see this truth
emerge in the life of Jacob whose name means swindler, trickster. Almighty
God made a name change and called him Israel, a prince of God.
Jesus knew Simon's personality was changeable and weak like a reed and
that had to change if he was to become a solid, trustworthy leader. He would
make his character rock-like instead of reed-like.
Immediately after the Holy Spirit had revealed to Simon that Jesus was the
Christ the Son of God, he tried to dissuade Him from going to the
cross: “From that time forth began Jesus to show unto His disciples, how
that He must go unto Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the elders and chief
priests and scribes, and be killed and be raised again the third day.
“Then Peter took Him; and began to REBUKE Him, saying, Be
it far from Thee, Lord: this shall not be unto Thee. But He turned, and said
unto Peter, Get thee behind Me, Satan: thou art an offense
unto Me; for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but
those that be of men.” (Matt.16:
21-23)
Two things happened, Simon became PROUD of his new name, and the old
changeable reed nature kicked in and he began telling
Christ how to run His business. He went ballistic, physically taking hold of
Jesus and rebuking Him. That was the REED nature
that Jesus was going to change in the 'Big Fisherman'! How
did Jesus handle the situation?
GET THEE BEHIND ME SATAN!
Jesus called him 'Satan' (Enemy, Opposer). The Lord was
speaking to the Devil who was directing Simon's actions and speech. He was
still a Reed! And just before going to the cross, Jesus
warned Peter:
“Simon, Simon (reed, reed), behold, Satan has desired to
have you, that he may sift you as wheat: But I have prayed for thee, that thy
faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren.” (Luke
22: 31, 32)
Simon Peter answered: “Lord, I am ready to go with Thee, both into
prison, and to death. And He said, I tell thee, Peter, the cock shall not crow
this day, before that thou shalt thrice deny that thou knowest Me.” (Luke
22: 33, 34)
The BOAST made by Simon Peter turned out to be just talk and the prophetic
statement made by Jesus of Nazareth was fulfilled to the letter. Each time I
read this it brings great sadness to my heart. Here is the tragic
account:
"Now Peter sat without in the Palace: and a damsel came unto him, saying,
Thou also wast with Jesus of Galilee. But he denied before them all,
saying, I know not what thou sayest. And when he was gone out into the
porch, another maid saw him and said unto them that were. This fellow was also
with Jesus of Nazareth.
And again he denied with an OATH, I do NOT KNOW the man. And after a while came
unto him they that stood by, and said to Peter, Surely thou also art one of
them; for thy speech betrayeth thee. Then began he to CURSE and to
SWEAR, saying, I know NOT the man.
"And immediately the cock crew. And Peter remembered the Word
of Jesus, which said unto him, Before the cock crow, thou shalt
DENY Me thrice. And he went out, and wept bitterly." (Matt. 26:
69-75)
Here is St. Luke's commentary on Peter's denial: "As the Lord
turned and, and looked upon Peter and Peter remembered the Word of the Lord,
how He had said unto him, Before the cock crow, thou shalt deny Me thrice. And
Peter went out and wept bitterly. " (Luke 22:61,62)
I believe that the COMPASSION, together with sadness, and forgiveness that
Simon Peter saw in Jesus' eyes saved the backslidden Apostle from doing what
Judas had done, finding a tree from which to take his own life!
Even in that dark moment,
hearing one of His Inner Circle apostles curse and swear that he did not know THAT
MAN, must have torn at Christ's heartstrings! Not only had Simon the
son of Jonas denied that he knew Jesus but stated that if he was not telling
the truth let a curse fall upon him!
St. Paul who agreed with St. Peter and the Prophets, on Jesus' status as the
Foundation of the Church, writes: “For through Him (Christ) we
both (Jews and Greeks) have access by one Spirit (Holy
Spirit) to the Father. Now therefore, ye are no more strangers
and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints, and of the household of
God:
“And are built upon the FOUNDATION of the apostles,
and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the Chief Corner
Stone.” (Eph.2:18-20)
Again St. Paul writes: “For we are labourers together with God: ye are God's
husbandry, ye are God's building. According to the grace of God which is given
unto me as a wise master builder, I have laid the FOUNDATION,
and another buildeth thereupon.
“For other FOUNDATION can no man lay than that is laid,
which is Jesus Christ.” (1 Cor.3: 9-11). The Bible says: “And they continued steadfastly
in the Apostle's Doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of
bread and in prayers.” (Acts 2: 42)
For three years after his amazing encounter with Jesus Christ
on the Damascus Road and his healing and Baptism in the Holy Ghost under the
hands of Ananias, St. Paul stayed in Arabia being tutored by our Lord.
He then went up to Jerusalem and spent fifteen days with Peter and met James
the Lord's brother, who was the Pastor of the Church.
The Apostle's Doctrine had no mention of Simon Peter's supremacy. St. Paul
writes: “And when James, Cephas, and John who
seemed to be PILLARS, perceived the grace that was given to me they gave
to me and Barnabas the right hand of fellowship, that we should go unto the
heathen, and they unto the circumcision.” (Gal.2:9)
St. Paul places James ahead of Peter in his letter to the Galatians. He also blames Peter for vacillating and
displaying his old Simon (reed nature): “But when Peter was
come to Antioch, I withstood him to the face, because he was to be BLAMED. For
before that certain came from James, he did eat with the Gentiles; but when
they were come, he withdrew and separated himself, fearing them which
were of the circumcision.” (Gal. 2: 11, 12)
If St. Peter had SUPREMACY
over the church, he would NOT have been publicly rebuked and corrected by St.
Paul. St. Peter received the Correction that the great theologian and Church
Builder in the Gentle world gave him!
And Peter's man-fearing attitude in appeasing a certain faction of the
church - in opposition to the teachings of Christ - led some
of the brethren into error and influenced Barnabas, until St. Paul upset their
pride-filled partiality by rebuking and correcting Simon the son of
Jonas!
JESUS: DON'T LORD IT OVER OTHERS!
The Bible states: “But Jesus called them unto Him, and said, Ye know that
the Princes of the Gentiles exercise dominion over them; and they that are
great among you, let him be your minister: and whosoever will be CHIEF among
you, let him be your SERVANT:
“Even as the Son of Man came not to be ministered unto but to minister, and to
give His life a ransom for you.” (Matt. 20: 25-28). And St. Peter wrote:
“The Elders which are among you I exhort, who am also
an Elder and a Witness of the sufferings of Christ and a Partaker of
the glory that shall be revealed:
“Feed the flock of God which is among you, taking the oversight thereof, not by
constraint, but willingly; not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind; neither
as being lords over God's heritage, but being examples to
the flock. And when the CHIEF SHEPHERD shall appear, ye shall
receive a crown of glory that fadeth not away.” (1 Peter 5: 1-5)
The teaching of 'one man lording it over others' is not
found in the Gospels or in the Epistles of the New Testament! Jesus
alone is the Head of the Church and the Holy Spirit has been given to the
Church to lead and direct us into all Truth.
St. Peter is being VICTIMIZED by the Roman Catholic Church. He would be
the first to rebuke their false teachers who continue espousing and proclaiming
such an erroneous characterization of him for their politico-religious
purposes. He clearly taught that he was only an Elder among elders!
According to the BIBLE the
Holy Spirit is in charge of the Church that Jesus Christ shed His blood to
Purchase! (Acts 20: 28)
Jesus said: “Nevertheless I tell you the truth; it is expedient for you that I
go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come
unto you; but if I depart, I will send Him unto you.
"And when He is come, He will reprove the world of SIN, and of
RIGHTEOUSNESS, and of JUDGMENT: Of sin because they believe not on Me; of
righteousness, because I go to My Father, and ye see Me no more; of judgment,
because the prince of this world is JUDGED.” (John 16: 7-11)
The Holy Bible states: “As they ministered to the Lord, and fasted, the Holy
Ghost said, Separate Me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called
them. And when they had fasted and prayed, and laid their hands on them, they
sent them away.” (Acts 13: 2,3)
In October 1986 I had the privilege of being one of six preachers to address
the 35,000 people gathered for the First Pentecostal Conference of Latin
America in Sao Paulo, Brazil, on the topic of the Holy Spirit.
Shortly before that Conference, Newsweek Magazine's Cover carried the
Headline: LATIN AMERICA CARDINAL RED TURNING PROTESTANT BLACK! This
referred to Protestants carrying their black Bibles to church. The
statistics spoke for themselves: 400 Roman Catholics were converting EVERY
HOUR to Evangelical Christianity, through our Lord Jesus Christ!
THE HOLY SPIRIT: NO EARLY RETIREMENT!
In my weekly column in the Edmonton Sun, I wrote about the
great Conference in Sao Paulo and I ended my column with these words: “The
Roman Catholic Church teaches that the Pope is the vicar of Jesus Christ and as
such is guiding the Church. The Holy Bible, however, teaches that upon His
ascension to Heaven Jesus Christ poured out upon the Church the Blessed Holy
Spirit to empower, lead and guide His Church. I'm sorry John Paul 11, I didn't
know that the Holy Spirit has taken Early Retirement.”
JESUS said to His disciples: “Whom do men say that I the Son of man am? And
Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ the Son of the
Living God. And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou,
Simon Barjona (Reed son of Jonas): for flesh and blood hath not revealed this
unto thee but My Father which is in Heaven.
And I say also unto thee, Thou art Peter (petros, a little rock)
and upon This Rock (Petra, an unquarried boulder) I will
build My Church and the gates of Hell shall not prevail against it. And I will
give unto thee the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven: and
whatsoever thou shalt bind upon earth shall be bound in Heaven and whatsoever
thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” (Matt. 16: 13-19)
Some say that Peter was given
primacy over the other apostles and that he is the foundation of Christ's
Church. How ridiculous! A little later, Jesus is speaking to all
the disciples with the same words: “Verily I say unto you,
whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in Heaven: and whatsoever ye
shall lose on earth shall be loosed in Heaven.” (Matt. 18: 19)
St. Paul declared: “And are built upon the FOUNDATION of the
Apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ HIMSELF being the Chief
Corner Stone: In Whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto a
holy temple in the Lord ye also are builded together for a habitation of God
through the Spirit.” (Eph. 2: 20-22)
Disproving the FALLACY that St. Peter is the foundation of the Church, we have
the word of the Angel sent by our Lord Jesus Himself to St. John regarding the
New Jerusalem: “And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and in them
the names of the TWELVE APOSTLES of the Lord.” (Rev. 21: 14)
[G.1]
And notice that St. Paul, the Apostle to the Gentile World wrote: “According to
the grace of God which is given unto me, as a wise Master builder, I have laid
the FOUNDATION, and another buildeth thereon. But let every man take heed how
he buildeth thereupon. For other foundation can NO MAN lay then that is laid,
which is JESUS CHRIST. Now if any man build upon this Foundation (CHRIST)
gold, silver. Precious stones, wood, hay, stubble;
"Every man's work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it,
because it shall be revealed by fire; and the FIRE shall try every man's work
of what sort it is.” (1 Cor. 3: 10-13)
There are a number of questions that demand an answer: Why would Jesus
immediately after declaring Simon (Reed) the Petros (Rock) call him Satan
(Enemy, Opposer, Wicked One) when Simon rebuked Jesus for saying that He had
come to die and be raised on the third day? Answer, He was turning him
from a reed character to a rock character!
THE KEY TO THE KINGDOM OF GOD!
What is the Key to the Kingdom of God? It is believing that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of
the Living God! That He came to earth as the propitiation for
our sins to meet the Demands of Divine Justice in payment for
Adam's high treason against Almighty God, through the shedding of His pure and
perfect BLOOD on Calvary's Cross at Golgtha.
It is believing that death could not hold God's Pashcal Lamb, and that on the
third Day He arose from the dead and is today seated on His Father's right hand
as our Heavenly High Priest. It is believing the record that God gave of His
Son!
Who else made the statement that Simon the son of Jonas made? Although the Holy
Spirit revealed to Simon who Jesus really was, the pagan Samaritan woman at the
Well of Sychar also confessed Jesus Christ as the Messiah:
“The woman saith unto Him, I know that Messias cometh, which is called
Christ: when he is come, He will tell us all things. Jesus saith unto her, I
that speak unto thee am He. The woman then left her waterpot, and
went her way into the city, and said to the men, Come see a man who told me all
things that ever I did. IS NOT THIS THE CHRIST?” (John 4: 25, 26, 28, 29)
In concluding this important paper on Christ, the Rock and Foundation of the
Church, here is a powerful truth: “Jesus saith unto them, Come and
dine. And none of the disciples durst ask Him, Who art Thou?
Knowing that it was the LORD. Jesus then cometh, and talketh
bread, and giveth them and fish likewise. This is now the third time that Jesus
showed Himself to His disciples, after that He was Risen from the dead.
JESUS CALLED HIM SIMON MEANING REED!
“So when they had dined, Jesus saith to Simon Peter, Simon (Reed)
son of Jonas, lovest thou Me more than these (fish)? He saith unto Him, Yea,
Lord; Thou knowest that I love Thee. He saith unto him, Feed My lambs. He saith
unto him the second time, Simon (Reed), son of
Jonas, lovest thou Me? He saith unto Him, Yea, Lord; Thou knowest that I love
thee. He saith unto him Feed My sheep.
“He saith unto him the third time, Simon (Reed),
son of Jonas, lovest thou Me? And he said unto Him, Lord, Thou knowest all
things; Thou knowest that I love Thee. Jesus saith unto him, Feed My sheep.”
(John 21: 12-17)
It is obvious that Jesus Christ had
forgiven Simon the son of Jonas. It is also clear that He had a work for him to
do and that was to minister to His sheep. It is also clear that Our Lord did not
call him Peter (petra, rock). He was working on the son of
Jonas to change his character from reed-like to rock-like!
A legend says that every time throughout his life, whenever St. Peter
heard a rooster crow, he fell to his knees in thankfulness for God's great
mercy to a former liar, coward, and Christ denier!
Was Simon the son of Jonas ever a Pope? Never, don't sully
his name with that baggage! Was he a great man of God and one of the
leading apostles? Definitely! Did he err and was he corrected by St. Paul? Yes,
he did, and being an uneducated man, he had a great respect for the Apostle to
the Gentiles. The Bible states:
“Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be diligent that
ye may be found of Him in peace, without spot, and blameless. And
account that the long-suffering of our Lord is salvation; even as our beloved
brother PAUL also according to the wisdom given him, hath written unto you;
“As also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things; in which are
some things hard to be understood, which they that are unlearned and unstable
wrest, as they do also the other Scriptures, to their own destruction.
“Ye therefore, beloved, seeing ye know these things before, beware lest ye
also, being led away with the error of the Wicked, fall from your own
steadfastness.” (1 Peter 3: 13-17).
I believe that Jesus’ forgiveness of Simon Peter
proves beyond the shadow of a doubt the great MERCY of GOD toward us all. A man
who had walked with our Saviour for three years, denied repeatedly that he knew
Jesus and with an oath that it was so! And to use such a lying, cursing,
man-fearing person as a great man of God is to me the best argument proving the
Love and Mercy of Jesus Christ toward us all! Thank You Jesus! Amen.
ONE FINAL WORD OF WARNING!
Remember: If you cast yourself into the loving arms of Jesus Christ you will be
safe for time and eternity. You will be broken so that He can restore you and
heal you. Do not reject His love and mercy NOW for one day in the future He
will be your judge, and His holy righteousness will destroy you forever! He
waits for you now. Call upon Him in sincerity and truth! (John 3: 16 –
18). Amen.
Max Solbrekken World Mission Box 44220 RPO Garside Edmonton, AB T5V 1N6; Email: [email protected]; comehometojesus.ca; Facebook; Youtube; Donations can be made by e-Transfer; Make your donation to [email protected]; May God bless you!
