Upon This Rock.

"Upon this rock". These are the words of Jesus. We have rightly understood that Jesus is the rock that He is building His Church on, but have we rightly understood the revelation of Who Jesus is that enables us to have a rock solid faith? Religious people today make the mistake of interpreting Jesus' words through focusing on self-effort and spending their energy on trying to fulfill the word of Jesus in their own strength through various religious expectations that are more man's attempts to build His Church than it is Jesus building His Church.

We must understand that if we do not become a rock through the finished work of Jesus on the cross and His resurrection, an extension of the Rock Christ Jesus, and accept all that took place at those world changing events, we will continue to try to build His Church through man-made endeavors. The religious system that is practiced today has been in place for some 2000 years and beyond, yet it has not been successful in making many disciples of Christ...though it has been successful people in making disciples of religious denominated systems.

Peter through focusing on himself was always trying to be a self-made rock for Jesus. He was the first to answer the questions asked by Jesus. He was the one who stepped out of the boat to walk on the water. He was the one who said I will never deny you. Yet in his zeal to change himself into a rock for Jesus he usually found himself in the fallible mode which prompted from Jesus, "you of little faith".

Here was Peter just after walking on the water and no other disciple had the faith to do so, isn't that proof enough that he had a big faith, not a little faith? Is it possible that Jesus was not referring to Peter's faith to walk on water by His words, "you of little faith? Could it be that Jesus was asking Peter why He had such little faith regarding his keeping his focus on Him? Was Peter's faith rooted in the fact that it would give him the ability to do things for God rather than abiding in Christ so Christ could do His work through Peter?

In Christendom today there is much emphasis on having faith to do things for God, when in fact faith is not needed for things, it is needed to understand Christ's accomplishment on the cross and to fully comprehend and understand the implication of Christ in us and us in Christ. Christ will accomplish more through us working with Him than we will ever accomplish by asking His blessing on our working for Him. We need to have our faith and trust in the greatness of Christ working in us and not faith to merely do great things for Christ. Many people who claim to have great faith in doing things for Christ have become spiritual religious elites who manipulate the people of God for their own ends and people have faith in the spiritual elites faith rather than in Jesus the establisher of faith.

We will never become rocks of stalwart faith that Jesus calls us to be by our own will. We can only become a rocks of stalwart faith by giving up our self-will, give up our trying to live the life of faith in our own strength and live in the love and grace of God and have the faith to allow Him to transform us by His Holy Spirit for it His is Spirit that will make us strong in faith. Faith is not a self-effort endeavor to build, it is a gift of God based on the complete finished work and love of Christ through His covenant of grace we have with Him.

We need to keep our focus on Jesus and rest in the understanding that God is the One who transforms our life to reflect His love and Grace. Having great faith is not measured by doing great works for God. Instead it is through beholding the greatness of Jesus that allows His Spirit to work His works through us and finish the good work that God has foreordained to complete through our lives.

Great faith is recognizing, understanding, accepting Who Jesus is...What Jesus has done...what Jesus is doing...and what Jesus will do in and through people who forfeit Religion-O-Centric-Ness  for Christ-O-Centric-Ness! 

Religion nor man's Bible-ology is the WAY...JESUS is the WAY!