The first key reference we have to the nature of the Church was very early in Jesus ministry. John writes the account of Jesus first miracle at the wedding in Cana and his first Passover celebration with his friends. John records for us the first time Jesus cleared the temple and accused the religious leaders of making it a “marketplace”. The confrontation resulted in the exchange here :
John 2: 18-22 ( NLT )
18 But the Jewish leaders demanded, “What are you doing? If God gave you authority to do this, show us a miraculous sign to prove it.” 19 “All right,” Jesus replied. “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.”20 “What!” they exclaimed. “It has taken forty-six years to build this Temple, and you can rebuild it in three days?” 21 But when Jesus said “this temple,” he meant his own body. 22 After he was raised from the dead, his disciples remembered he had said this, and they believed both the Scriptures and what Jesus had said
Jesus sets forward the spiritual nature of the Church in His resurrection. This supports the confession of Peter in Jesus being the Son of the Living God and Jesus confirmation that His Church would be built on that foundation. A foundation of Faith in Spirit and not location or structure.
Matthew 16:16-20 (NLT) Peter’s Declaration about Jesus
16 Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” 17 Jesus replied, “You are blessed, Simon son of John, because my Father in heaven has revealed this to you. You did not learn this from any human being. 18 Now I say to you that you are Peter (which means ‘rock’), and upon this rock I will build my church, and all the powers of hell will not conquer it.
The resurrection of Jesus on Easter morning is the cornerstone of Christian faith. It is the fulfillment of the Promise made by God to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Delivered and advanced by Moses and Joshua and predicted by all of the Prophets. Jesus sacrifice in death provides forgiveness of sin in a perfect sacrifice for all mankind and his resurrection confirms the promise of eternal life. These facts summarize the New Covenant and provide a path forward for God’s people in the Church. God is eternal and complete in all He does so going in a New Direction without aligning it with the Old would have left too much ground for division. There is no forgiveness of sin without the shedding of blood and that stands in agreement between followers of both the old and new testaments. A belief in Christ simply acknowledges God’s Power and Love to provide a perfect sacrifice that could be offered one time and cover all people’s sins. In our next post we will discuss the confirmation of the physical link between the old and new covenants………