The Church Triumphant

--> nakuha ko ito sa aking daily devotionals. magandang balik-balikan.

"I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth
you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have
overcome the world." —John 16:33


Sometimes people get upset with the church. They may have been mistreated,
or perhaps someone representing the church didn't do a good job of that. Or
maybe they did a horrible thing in the name of the church, and there is no
excuse for that.

Then again, it may be the people who are supposedly bitter at the church
feel that way because they have lived in disobedience. They did something
wrong, and then they faced the repercussions of that in the church. Maybe
they were told not to live that way any longer. And so they became angry at
the church.

The church has its strengths, and the church has its weaknesses. But no
matter what, Jesus Christ established it, and we are part of it. We need to
love the church, support the church, and be a functioning part of the
church. And if you are looking for a hypocrite-free church, your search is
over, because no such church exists. So stop looking. Every church has
hypocrites, because every church is made up of human beings just like you
and me who fall short. We all have our shortcomings. We all have our flaws.
But Jesus established the church, and He said, "Upon this rock I will build
my church, and all the powers of hell will not conquer it" (Matthew 16:18).

We live in a culture where the church is under attack. Our values are
mocked and laughed at. Our belief about the family, about what matters in
life, is being challenged by an increasingly secular culture. And sometimes
we wonder, Is evil going to prevail? But Jesus said of the church, "All the
powers of hell will not conquer it." Read the last page of the Bible, and
you will see that the church wins in the end.