“And the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.” is how Jesus concluded His words to Peter: “Thou are Peter, and on this rock, I build My Church.”
We don’t have to be overly bright to make this connection: “If a church has given in to evil, it cannot be His Church, because the “gates of hell” actually have prevailed against it. How do we know if we are in a denomination of which Jesus approves?
If a denomination says that it’s all right to use artificial birth control that destroys the tiniest of unborn children, “the gates of hell” have prevailed against it.
If a denomination says that frequent divorce and remarriage are allowable without proper annulment procedures, “the gates of hell” have prevailed against it.
If a Christian group says that “abortion is a right” or that it must be allowed, “the gates of hell” have prevailed against it.
What of a denomination whose clergy includes those who use deadly birth control? Whose clergy practices that which the Bible forbids? “the gates of hell” have prevailed against it.
A church over which “the gates of hell” have prevailed is not, and cannot be, part of The Body of Christ. It can only be as a vicious virus, attacking His Body.
A group whose missionaries attack, undermine, and weaken His obedient Church can only do so because “the gates of hell” have prevailed over it.
Now, what of each one of us? If we are subsidizing, funding, or donating to a church over which “the gates of hell” have prevailed, how likely is it that we will be saved?
