When Jesus and His guys were way north of Jerusalem, in what is nowadays Syria, on their way to Caesarea Philippi, He asked them what was the word on the street about Him…? They gave various answers, and then He asked His guys who they thought He was…?
Peter in particular responded that he thought Jesus was the Messiah, the Son of the living God. And Jesus confirmed that He was indeed. And on that declaration (which Jesus referred to as a rock) of Peter’s, He said He’d build His ekklesia…His movement, His congregation, His gathering, His assembly…and that the gates of Hades would not overcome it.
He made it clear that He was starting something new and that death itself would not overcome it. His death wouldn’t stop it, and none of their deaths would stop it either. What they were about to begin together, this new movement, nothing was gonna stop it.
Rome wasn’t fond of people who started new movements, and the Jewish Temple wasn’t fond of people who started new movements. And they were all aware of what happened to people who started new movements. And it happened to Jesus.
And some of those same men who were with Him when these things happened would later document why His death was not the death of the movement. And the reason His death wasn’t the death of the movement was because Jesus didn’t do what other dead people do.
