Last night, I recalled something that occurred in the final semester of high school.  I’d already gotten into the college of my choice and was pretty much coasting my way into graduation.  I still had this one class, this one teacher, Marsha Newton-Graham who seemed to actually want to test us on actual material.  It was AP Biology and it was a huge test on plants.  I knew going in the test was going to have three sections.  Well, as I said, it was my senior year and, at a certain point, I’d slowly checked out of doing readings or homework or really anything that resembled work, actually.  So, the night before the exam, I tried to figure out how much studying I needed to do.  I figured I knew the first of the three sections, pretty well.  Figured with some study, I’d get 80% of those questions right.  On the second section, ahhh, I guessed I knew about 75% of the material.  Then, on the last section, I thought I could get about 40% of the questions.  Wanting to only study about an hour, I figured I’d shore up sections one and two.  ​Sound like a good plan, right?  ​Well, not so much.  I made a 32.  

  Needless to say, with a score that low, I was invited to speak with the teacher after class.  During our conversation, I told her about my strategy. She offered a counter-solution.  She told me I might have done better, looking at the final section and integrating it with the rest of the material. Sometimes, she said, what came last was the thing that helped make sense of all the material, especially when it came to the world of plants.  

​  With that in mind, here is a reading from the Gospel of Matthew, the 16th chapter, verses 13-18.  Hear now the Word of our Lord, Jesus Christ. “When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, ‘Who do people say the Son of Man is?’  They replied, ‘Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.’  ‘But what about you?’ He asked.  ‘Who do you say I am?’  Simon Peter answered, ‘You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.’  Jesus replied, ‘Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by My Father in heaven.  And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock, I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.’”

  Per my AP biology teacher’s insight of many years ago, I want to begin our discussion of this passage at the very end with the hopes of integrating the entire passage.  The whole, “Gates of Hell” part.  What Jesus says is that the Gates of Hell will not be triumphant.  Notice, to begin with, that this statement would necessarily entail that evil will keep on trying to triumph.  Honestly, I think this part is pretty easily verifiable given the data these days just as it probably has been since the Fall.  But what are the gates of hell or hades and what do they have to do with the rest of this passage?

  Well, to begin with it draws our attention to the fact that evil, under the banner of some otherworldly power is vying to control things.  Now whether you want to plot that out as the DEVIL or something less defined, a quick glance at any internet news compiler most days confirms the truthfulness of the Bible here.  Thankfully, we don’t have to worry about evil triumphing over everything and everyone.  

  Scripture reminds us in several different ways that the end is determined.  In the 16th chapter of the Gospel of John, Jesus declares to the gathered disciples, and to us, “Take courage, I have conquered (past tense) the world.”  Then, turning to Revelation we see that there is no jeopardy for the entire world lapsing into enteral darkness.  Jesus wins.  The good guys ride off into the sunset so to speak.  That isn’t to say that there aren’t still skirmishes going on.  

  The best way I’ve ever heard to think about this is using a World War II analogy.  Once the Allied forces successfully secured a beachhead at Normandy, the European theater was essentially won.  Supplies could be flooded in from America and other places.  Germany had no such ability as their forces were already beleaguered.  That didn’t mean fighting didn’t still occur.  Or lives lost.  Gosh, y’all, did you ever see that HBO show, Band of Brothers?  It recounts the efforts of Easy Company, a paratrooper squadron that jumped into Normandy.  It’s a good show but there’s one episode that is just so terribly depressing.  It’s right towards the end.  Hitler is holed up in the Eagle’s Nest, other Germans are beginning to sue for peace.  The war is in its final hours.  But there’s still fighting.  This one episode tells the story of a young lieutenant who knows how close to the end things are.  But there are still active missions and he sends a young paratrooper into a dangerous situation.  The young man ends up getting shot and killed.  Then, the call comes in.  Cease fire.  

  Ugh, it just breaks my heart.  Such a pointless and unnecessary loss of life.  And you know what else breaks my heart?  There are still so many people lost out there.  

  Look around, or perhaps look honestly into your own heart.  For many, the gates of hell have encroached all the way up and into their lives.  Oh, there are the obvious ones who’re lapsing into darkness.  But, make no mistake about it, there are a thousand other forms of darkness which can penetrate into a person’s soul.  

  And while we don’t have to worry about utter darkness for everyone forever, make no mistake about it, there remains the potential for losing people.  And here, whether you want to take that on a here-and-now level or on an eternal one, the Bible gives you cause to believe both.