“And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.” (Matthew 16:18)
Adrian Rogers, commenting on this verse, brings up a great point. Definitely something to think about in these days we are living:
“….so many people have the idea that here’s the church like a fortress, and we’re all inside, huddled, trying to make it out till Jesus gets here, you know. And here are all of the forces of hell with all of their battering rams just beating and beating and beating and beating on the church. Yet, the gates of hell don’t prevail; there she stands. That’s not the picture. Nobody beats on anything with gates. Gates are not a weapon of offense. What does he mean: “the gates of hell shall not prevail”? Gates are not weapons of offense; gates are weapons of defense. The idea here is not a church on the defensive; the idea here is a militant Church.”
Rogers, A. (2017). The Great Escape. In Adrian Rogers Sermon Archive (Mt 16:13–19). Rogers Family Trust.