The Benefits of True Revelation from Heaven

David W Palmer

What affect did Father’s revelation of who Jesus is have on Peter?

(Matthew 16:18-20 DKJV) I also say to you, that you are Peter (rock), and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell will not overpower it. {19} And I will give to you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you will bind (forbid) on earth will have been bound in heaven; and whatever you will loose (permit) on earth will have been loosed in heaven.” {20} Then he ordered the disciples to tell no one that he is the Christ.

This fundamental but infinitely powerful revelation transformed Peter. Originally, he was called Simon (meaning reed); but Jesus had previously changed his name to Peter, meaning rock. Here in this passage, he confirmed that his intention to transform Peter’s nature from reed to rock is happening. Earlier it was prophetic; here the prophecy is coming to pass because of the revelation. The revelation that Jesus is the Christ changed Peter from a flighty, unstable person to a solid foundational member in his church.

Earlier, in his Sermon on the Mount, Jesus said that his word—when believed and obeyed—is ‘rock’ (Mat. 7:24}: it forms a solid foundation for anyone. When revelation of it comes into our heart—when we hear, believe and act on God’s word—it forms that absolute assurance and rock-solid foundation upon which we can build our life. Moreover, it becomes so solid and foundational that it can anchor many other people along with it. In truth, the person with this and ongoing revelation can be a solid footing for the new people Jesus adds to his church. The recipient of God’s revelation can provide clear direction and light for all that follow. They can also be a [temporary] source of spiritual food and light for baby Christians growing into their own relationship with God etc.

We can easily see from this that revelation builds the church. Added to this is the simple fact that Jesus said, “I will build my church.” Putting this together we see that Jesus—God’s anointed Living Word—builds the church. Our challenge is to understand how the lifeless printing of words in a book called the Bible can come to life and actively build Jesus’s church.

The written logos form of God’s word becomes alive when we receive the revelation of it in our hearts. This is when faith, light ,and life come with it, and when we have the depth of assurance that overflows in bold and frank confession of it, and in courageous steps of faith-filled action based upon it.

Jesus truly builds his church this way; and because the Living Word is also the “sword of the spirit” (Eph. 6:10–19 KJV}, the gates of hell simply cannot withstand it. The Living Word is the invincible weapon for which the enemy has no armor or defence. Satan and his hoards cannot protect themselves against the passionately declared Living Word of the Living God, when the true believer releases it.

Again, I reiterate: our enemy has weapons—including fiery darts, accusation, deception, condemnation, along with the natural elements like wind and lightening. Thankfully, we have armor and a shield to protect us from his assaults. Unlike his weapons, ours are “mighty through God,” and our enemy has no defence to shield himself from them. In the following verse, Jesus confirms that he stripped the enemy of the “armor in which he trusted.”

(Luke 11:20-22 DKJV) “But if I with the finger of God throw out devils, no doubt the kingdom of God is come on you. {21} When an armed strongman keeps his palace, his goods are safe and in peace: {22} But when someone stronger comes upon him, and overcomes him, he takes from him all his armor in which he trusted, and divides his spoils.”

The revelation of Jesus as the Christ that Peter received from heaven certainly changed him—ultimately it changed the whole world. In the same statement, Jesus promised three other things:

Through the ongoing process of revelation from heaven to his intimate followers, he would build his church

In the same way he would provide “keys”—the keys of the kingdom of heaven.

Revelation from heaven that makes the word alive is also an invincible weapon that the ‘gates of hell’ cannot overpower.

How does all this relate to the Elijah type of ministry that God is restoring in these days? To operate effectively in the spirit and power of Elijah, we need ongoing, life-giving revelation from heaven. We can receive it in right relationship with God if we “take heed” to the “more sure word of prophecy”—God’s written word.

No matter what the challenge coming against you, you can receive a key from Jesus to bind it up. That is, if you take the time and focus to receive revelation from the Living Word in the way Peter described. And no matter what locked door or impossible situation you face, if you receive revelation from Jesus, you can unlock it. Wow! This is another of Jesus’s open-ended promises: “Whatever” you bind … Loose …. Truly …

“No weapon formed against you shall prosper, and every tongue which rises against you in judgment You shall condemn. This [is] the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and their righteousness [is] from Me,” Says the LORD. (Isaiah 54:17 NKJV)