Matthew 16 On This Rock I Will Build My Church!


Click Link to Read Matthew 16
15 “But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?” 16 Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” 17 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. 18 And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades[c] will not overcome it. 
This is a crucial point in Matthew's gospel.  Jesus was born from the line of the Messiah through King David. He was born in the town of David, Bethlehem.  He preached and taught about the kingdom of heaven in ways that baffled the elders.  He was rejected by the very people he came to save.  And he healed and delivered all people. Unlikely people like tax collectors, prostitutes and lepers.  The untouchables in society. When the leper asked if Jesus was willing to touch him he said, "I am willing!"  Unlike the Pharisees who avoided the lepers like the plague, Jesus showed them God's love and mercy.  
And so now comes the key point where he asks the disciples who do they say he is?  And for the first time Peter gets it right.  He is spot on when he says, "You are the Christ (Messiah) the Son of the living God."  Jesus calls Peter "blessed", because this was not revealed to him by human wisdom or understanding, but by God the father in heaven.  The one they had been waiting for, the Messiah, was here and this would be the sticking point for the Jews.  They were waiting for a different kind of Messiah, not a peaceful, humble servant from Galilee.  
And then we come to a verse that has often been controversial in the church's history.  Jesus says to Peter, "You are Peter, and on this rock i will build my church and the gates of hell will not overcome it."  For the Catholic church Peter is the literal rock, which Jesus would build his church on. Peter was the first pope of the church.  Pope meant "papa" in Latin.  The pope was the father of the church.  This would evolve into a doctrine called "apostolic succession" or the "historic episcopate", which taught that every succesive pope in the Catholic church was a descendant of the apostle Peter.  In this way, Jesus would build his church. 
The Protestant church uses a different tack.  They believe Jesus is using figurative language when he says Peter is the rock on will build this church.  Jesus is the true rock and foundation of the church.  Our confession that Jesus is the son of the living God is the sole source of our salvation, and it alone buiilds the church.  As the old hymn goes, "The church's one foundation is Jesus Christ, her lord. The charter of salvation by Water and the Word."   
At the end of the day, the key verse is Peter's confession of Jesus as the Messiah is not revealed to him by man but by God.  Our faith in Jesus is a gift that we could never earn.  We will never know why some believe in Jesus and some don't. But we do know faith it is a gift from God.  Our job in the church is to preach and teach that Jesus is our Lord and Savior and trust that God will build His church on the rock of Jesus! 

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