The gates of hell shall not prevail

Matthew 16:18 (NKJV) 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.

Matthew 16:18 (The Message) And now I’m going to tell you who you are, really are. You are Peter, a rock. This is the rock on which I will put together my church, a church so expansive with energy that not even the gates of hell will be able to keep it out.

The gates of an ancient city were the legitimate way to enter that city. If your purpose was to go into town, you wouldn’t climb over the wall, you’d go through the gate.

The gates are also the first line of defense, so they have to be sturdy. If you want to keep enemy warriors out of your city, the first thing you do is close the gates. Any other entrance to the city will be more difficult.

The passage from Matthew says the gates of hell “will not prevail”. Gates are a passive defense – they don’t go out to war, they just keep people out. Too often the church acts on the defensive – we hide within our church walls, behind our shields of faith, and hope the devil will go away while he attacks us on our “turf”. We wait for things to happen, then react. Instead, we’re to take the offensive stance and use our swords of the Spirit (God’s word) and prayer to attack the enemy’s acts (See Ephesians 6:10-18)

Is your faith aggressive? Or is it reactive? Or is it passive?

Doug