THE ROCK

Pr. James Victor Lubwama

Mathew 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.”

In the bible God refers to himself as the rock;

• Rock of ages - Isaiah 26:24 (CEB) “Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord is a rock for all ages.” 
• Split rock - Isaiah 48:21 (ESV) – “They did not thirst when he led them through the deserts; he made water flow for them from the rock; he split the rock and the water gushed out.”

In the New Testament - Mathew 7:24-25, Jesus narrates the parable of the builder.  
“Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock: 25 and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock.”

Both houses were built to completion but one collapsed and the other stood firm. Applying the word of God to your life will give your life stability during the storms of life. You don’t know which storms will come or when they will come but one thing i know is that, you will crumble when tough times come if you’re building your life on anything other than God’s Word. Build your life upon the unchanging Word of God. No storm can overcome that rock.

Jesus wanted us to know the significance of that parable because; God is a builder and he builds on rocks! The bible says; “………on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.”  What’s the revelation behind this scripture?

Church; God is a builder and he wants to build the church. What is the church? It’s you and me - we make up the church – people, not buildings. 1 Corinthians 3:16 (NIV) says; “Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in your midst?” 

Rock; You cannot separate God from his word because the word from his mouth is the rock. Jesus was telling Peter that upon this rock (word of God), I will build my church (your life). Do you have a Rhema word or prophesy upon your life? What God speaks about your life, family or country is the rock which you need to stand on and see salvation. You will never see the salvation of the Lord until you stand on his word. God honours his word not your complaints. Do you have a rock? Actually I have many rocks, so every now and then I confess and proclaim these words and in doing so am reminding God to implement his plans for me and the ministry.

God is the principal builder and has got the plan and materials necessary to build you according to his design and specifications. He is the architect and engineer of your life, but he is ready to build you on a solid foundation – The rock. God only builds on rocks! Upon this rock, I will build James, Milly, Ivy etc. God doesn’t just build anyhow but as he builds you, he follows a plan specifically designed for you.  He says in Jeremiah 29:11 (GNT) “I alone know the plans I have for you……”

When the builder is constructing, he starts with the foundation, and thereafter embarks on the super-structure. For those who have ever built, you know that the foundation consumes a lot of materials especially bricks because they are twisted to make a Flemish bond. Due to the compactness, you can barely see the work done by 10,000 bricks. This is akin to our salvation journey. When you have just converted to salvation, someone can barely see the change in you substantially but deep within your core, rests great transformation. Within, you are rooted with compact materials and pronounced modification as a basis for formation of a new being (2 Corinthians 5:17). God always transforms us from the inside-out.

God wants to build you but you are not established on a rock. Once you are on the rock, construction commences. He has all the materials necessary to build you. If God spoke in your life, continue confessing that which he spoke until he fulfills, give him no rest until he makes you and your family praise. The bible says in Isaiah 46:11 (NKJV) “……Indeed I have spoken it; I will also bring it to pass. I have purposed it; I will also do it.” Don’t despise the word of the LORD because when you stand on it, you will surely see the salvation of the Lord.

God is governed by his word. The Rock is his plan, and when you show it to him, he will fetch the materials and begin construction. Sometime back, I attended a seminar in the capital and the preacher an American evangelist named Donah Putnum prophesied unto me and said; ‘you will speak with a prophetic voice to the nations.’ The Lord was saying that He will use my voice in various nations. He was making a covenant with my voice to speak prophetically in people’s lives and that is why I speak prophetically because my voice was set apart. That’s why when God’s people are troubled and they come to me, I speak prophetically and things are transformed. I haven’t traversed nations yet but the time is coming.

Jesus onetime rebuked the disciples after resurrection in Luke 24:25-27 (NASB) 
“And He said to them, “O foolish men and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken! 26 Was it not necessary for the Christ to suffer these things and to enter into His glory?” 27 Then beginning with Moses and with all the prophets, He explained to them the things concerning Himself in all the Scriptures.” 
Don’t be slow at heart too; grab every word that was spoken unto you and store it in your heart

I encourage you to keep the prophesy about you, and God’s word in your heart not only in your notebook or journal. Proclaim them every day. Do you want to see the salvation of the Lord, just stand on the rock. The bible says in Exodus 14:13 that; stand still and you will see the salvation of the Lord. When do you stand still? When you are standing on the rock

God is building you in line with the word that was spoken about you. If you want God to construct your life, all you have got to do is to get hold of his His Word. Speak forth the words prophesied unto you. Proclaim the written word of God upon your life even when the current situation is contradictory to your destination because there is power in them. What does the bible say about you? You will be heads and not tails, above only, you shall eat the fruits of your labour, there will be no barrenness in you etc.

If God spoke, he will surely perform because;

1. He achieves his word. Isaiah 55:11 (NASB) “So will My word be which goes forth from My mouth; It will not return to Me empty, without accomplishing what I desire, and without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it.”
2. He fulfills the words of his servants. The bible says in Isaiah 44:26 (GNT) “But when my servant makes a prediction, when I send a messenger to reveal my plans, I make those plans and predictions come true……”

When you believe and confess the word of God, then the builder comes in to do the needful. I am what I am because of God’s word.

Stand on the rock!