Run to the Rock
JESUS CHRIST
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, an 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
offence, even to them that stumble at the Word. being disobedient: where unto
also they were appointed.” (1 Peter 2: 4-8)
RUN
TO THE ROCK CHRIST JESUS!
I go to the Rock of my Salvation; I go to the Stone
that the builders rejected
I run to the Mountain, And the Mountain
stands by me
When the earth around me is sinking sand, On the Solid Rock I stand
When I need a Shelter from the storm, I go to the Rock!
Dotty Rambo wrote the great song, 'I
go to the Rock'. Others have written hymns which 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, defence 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 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 myslf in thee. |
Edward Mote (1797 - 1874) wrote one of my favourite songs, 'The
Solid Rock'. These powerful evangelical words which God gave him
have inspired multitudes. They were his testimony and by God's grace they are
also my personal testimony. Here they are:
ON CHRIST THE SOLID ROCK I STAND
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…all
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…all
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…all
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…all
|
JESUS
THE CHIEF CORNERSTONE
Much confusion has been generated by of 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 nick names 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 offence 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
which 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 heart strings! 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 there upon.
“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 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 where unto 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)
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?
The key 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.
The key 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 no 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).
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 Box 44220 RPO Garside Edmonton, AB T5V 1N6 Canada. Email: [email protected]; comehometojesus.ca; You can use e-Transfer to donate to this Ministry. Make your donation to [email protected]. Blog:MSWM; FaceBook; Youtube. Thank you and God bless you! Amen.