Francis Petros 12-STEM Our Lady of the Holy Rosary

Religious Education 3
Module No.3: The Apostolic Foundation of the Church

Learning Activities/Assignments:

1. Reflection
Give your reflection from the divinely inspired Scripture according to (Mt.
16:18)

Upon reading the sacred scripture I can conclude that Jesus told Peter the
obvious context. He wasn't literally building the Church upon Peter. Rather, He's
giving Peter the assurance that upon that Rock the Church will be built. It is the solid
rock. The Rock is referred to in the Old Testament as a description of the triune God.
With God as the foundation the Church then how can the gates of Hell prevail
against it? If Peter a man who needed salvation was the foundation then it wouldn't
make any sense at all.

Moreover, I think about a lot of situations where the Church was attacked by
persecution and how it stood through the years. The Pharisees tried to destroy it.
The Roman Empire tried to destroy it. The Roman Catholic institution tried to
destroy it while she was claiming to be the Church founded on 33 A.D. when she
isn't. The Islamic forces tried to destroy it. Atheist governments tried to destroy it.
Yet it stood still. Persecution only made it stronger. The bloodier the persecution the
more Christianity grew instead. It's all because Christians have something to die for
and they continued loving their enemies by God's grace.

So, what are the keys of Heaven? The Roman Catholic institution claims to
have the literal keys but let us understand what the keys mean. Keys are used to
open locked door. This is the key of the preaching of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. This
is where the Gospel is preached and those who receive it are loosed and those who
reject it are still bound.

The Reformation itself is also proof that the gates of Hell can't prevail against
the Church. The Dark Ages collapsed because of more Gospel preaching. The so-
called "apostolic power" of Rome crumbled as a result of the Reformation spreading
like fire. The power of the papacy was challenged. The Counter-Reformation was
launched yet the Reformation further strengthened the true Church that was
established last 33 A.D. The claims of Rome to be that Church were further shattered
and the Gospel was spread, more Bibles were made available and revival only broke
down Hell's doors everywhere it went.

I can therefore say that the gates of Hell are broken down by the Church. The
Church serves not only as a hospital for repentant sinners but also as a museum of
saints whose lives are made righteous by God. The Church's function doesn't cease
as a hospital for the repentant and a museum of righteous saints who were once sick
sinners - it is also a mighty army. It is a mighty army that will seek to preach the
Gospel, bring sinners to repentance and it will showcase what God can do to make
repentant sinners into righteous saints by the grace of God.
2. In your own point of view, list downs all the requirements of qualification of
an apostle of Jesus.
What are the relational for your requirements?

For me, to be an apostle of Jesus you must have these following qualifications:
 Submission to Christ- The biblical concept of submission is to place oneself
under the authority of another. When we submit to God, we give our lives to
His authority and control. In what ways can we submit ourselves to God? One
way to submit to God is through salvation. We begin submission to God by
believing in Jesus as God's Son who rose from the dead to give us eternal life. 
 Willingness to suffer for Christ.- In the end, as Christians; we should be
willing to suffer for Christ because when we chose to accept Him as our Lord
and Savior of our lives, we know that there are going to be risks following
after Him but that shouldn’t deter us from seeking the eternal reward in
Heaven. If we focus on the suffering on Earth, we will lose sight of why we
chose to follow Christ. I am willing to stand up for my faith and even suffer
physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually if it means that I am faithful
to Christ.
 Holiness- Holiness is more than being good and morally upstanding. When
referring to the holiness of God, the holiness definition takes on a much
richer meaning. God's holiness is His defining characteristic. The holiness of
God is a term used in the Bible to describe both His goodness and His power.
 Sincerity- Sincerity can help us avoid stumbling or causing others to stumble
as we approach Jesus Christ's return. This is also an important requirement.
 Grace on your life- Grace is the free and undeserved assistance God offers
us so that we might respond to his call to share in his divine life and attain
eternal life. God’s grace, as divinely offered gift, does not take away or restrict
our freedom; rather, it perfects our freedom by helping us overcome the
restricting power of sin, the true obstacle to our freedom. We call the grace of
the Holy Spirit that we receive through faith in Jesus Christ the New Law.
 Must put his Master above those nearest and dearest to him- we should
all understand that Jesus did not mean by this that we cannot love God and
family at the same time, that we can only love God while hating those nearest
and dearest to us. What our Lord means is that our love for Him must have
precedence over any other. Our attachment to Him must be greater than any
other. While husbands are to love their wives
 Must value following Jesus Christ above life itself.- The basic instinct to
preserve life is inherent in all of creation. To be an apostle demands a
devotion to the Lord Jesus that surpasses the instinct to preserve our own
life. The history of the church sufficiently proves that this requirement has
resulted in the death of countless Christians through the centuries.
 Must place his commitment to Christ above material possessions-
Simply put, we must love God more than we love money and what it can buy.
 Must daily die to self-interest- Taking up our cross daily is speaking of our
willingness to lay aside all self-seeking and selfish ambition. It means that
our desire and ambition is not to satisfy ourselves, but to please the Savior.
He, rather than self, is the object of our supreme affection. Pleasing Him is the
highest, most compelling motive of our lives.
 3. Answer the following questions.
A. Name some of the apostles
1. Andrew
2. Peter
3. Matthew
4. Simon the Zealot
5. James the son of Zebedee
6. John the son of Zebedee

B. Name occupations or professions of the apostles you have mentioned.

1. Andrew- Fisherman
2. Peter- Fisherman
3. Matthew- Tax Collector
4. Simon - Zealot
5. James the son of Zebedee- Fisherman
6. John the son of Zebedee- Fisherman
C. Who betrayed Jesus? Who denied Jesus?

Judas Iscariot, one of Jesus' twelve apostles, betrayed his master to the
authorities. This act led to the crucifixion and death of Jesus and it was Peter who
denied Jesus "in front of everyone", according to the Gospel of Matthew, thus making
a public witness affirming this with an oath.

Evaluation:

1. Written Test
Answer the following questions concisely.
1. Apostolic Succession- is the method whereby the ministry of the Christian
Church is held to be derived from the apostles by a continuous succession, which
has usually been associated with a claim that the succession is through a series
of bishops.
2. Apostolic in teaching- preached one message with the Old Testament as the
foundation and the New Testament its fulfillment.
3. Apostolic in character- Untainted by the world. hough they lived in the world,
they identified not with it. They identified themselves with the culture of Christ,
holy, set apart for His glory.
2. Share something about the life of any of the apostles. In your own opinion,
who is the greatest among the apostles? Justify your answer.

Generally, Peter, John or Paul are obviously the three top contenders for the most
important apostle of Jesus.

If you'd asked which of the three is most liked by Bible readers, the answer is probably
John. His gospel is a treasure. The beginning verses are a beautiful narrative about Jesus as
the Word. And of course John 3:16 is one of the most familiar of all Bible verses. Of all the
apostles John is the only one not martyred, and at the end of his life Jesus gave him a vision
of the future as recorded in the prophetic Book of Revelation. It is also interesting that John
was the only apostle brave enough to witness Jesus's resurrection. From the cross, Jesus
asked him to take care of Mary his mother. Obviously no apostle was closer to Jesus than
John.

As for Peter, some people gives an excellent argument that he should be the considered
the most important apostle.
 However I think Paul is the greatest among the apostles. He is responsible for writing
most of the New Testament. It is arguable that we would not have an understanding of the
basic tenants of the Christian faith without him. And while it is debatable, I'd argue that he
was the 12th disciple, replacing Judas, rather than Mathias who was picked by the other 11
by casting lots. Jesus chose Paul (then Saul) by appearing to him as he was on his way to
persecute Christians! I think a lot of believers, myself among them, identify with Paul as
someone with a sinful background "the chief of all sinners," as he called himself -- who in
humility was rescued by Christ and devoted his life to serving him out of deep love and
gratitude for his grace.

3. What is your understanding of the statement: “I will give you the keys to the
kingdom of heaven”?

Jesus said to Peter: “I will give you the keys of the kingdom of the heavens, and
whatever you may bind on earth will be the thing bound in the heavens, and whatever you
may loose on earth will be the thing loosed in the heavens.

The identification of these keys logically must be based on other Scriptural information.
Thus, the use of the word “key” in Jesus’ statement to Peter indicated that Peter would have
the privilege of initiating a program of instruction that would open up special opportunities
with respect to the Kingdom of the heavens.

So basically the keys to the Kingdom of Heaven in the Bible refer to the authority of
Peter and the Church. This passage should not be accepted as something Jesus said, but
something the Church put in the mouth of Jesus by inserting it into the Bible that it wrote
and published.

In reality, the key to the Kingdom of Heaven is the wisdom that we should treat each
other with the love and respect that we ought to give a member of our own family. This
does not mean unconditional love, it means mercy and respect. It means self-preservation
without hated, jealousy, greed or revenge. It means we do to our adversary what we would
have our adversary do to us. It means mercy even before justice. It means we need and
should need the help of others and we should be glad to help our neighbors. It means we
cannot and should not abandon others because then we would lose ourselves. That is the
real reason we need to be strong: we may need to do double duty for ourselves and then for
each other. The Church has tried, but too often failed in this mission.

That is how the keys to the Kingdom of Heaven work. That is the way Jesus lived. This is
obviously the key to the Kingdom of Heaven because it would unlock and release the best
in us and imprison the worst in us. Jesus may have taught this, but why do we need
anybody to teach us such elementary truths? We listen, but cannot hear.