“UPON THIS CHURCH”: A COMMENTARY ON MATTHEW 16: 17 – 19
Consider Matthew 16: 17 – 19:
17And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.
18And 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.
19And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. [Bold emphasis is mine.]
The above passage has caused much confusion in the Christian world; but there need not be such confusion. While I do not claim to be able to dissect all the intricacies of word-point analysis of the above passage, I do know this much: Jesus would never make us depend a human agency for salvation. He has a role for His church, and that role involves leading people to Him. It does not involve setting up men on a pedestal for others to give their supreme regard to. Now, we want to consider Matthew 16: 17 – 19 from an angle that does not concern itself so much with the petra-petros argument, and yet still show that no man-made system can use Matthew 16: 17 – 19 for its justification. We will consider the following points.
1. A. It is Jesus who builds his church. Jesus said, “I will build my church”. Therefore, any man-made system, even by Peter himself, could not be true to the statement-phrase “I will build my church”. Let us say for argument sake that Jesus saw something in Peter that made Him want to build His church on Peter (though nowhere in the text do we see the direct statement-phrase, “I will build my church on Peter.”). Then Peter would still not have the say in how the church was built. Jesus is the one claiming the prerogative to build His church. He never gave Peter the prerogative to build His church.
B. It is Jesus who gives the keys. Jesus said, “I will give…” It was not Peter claiming, but it was rather Jesus giving.
The idea is that God has a divine prerogative to do what He wants with what is His, including human beings, including Peter. Again, let us say that Jesus (who is God) wanted to build on Peter. Then Jesus still had the prerogative to build on Peter, even without Peter usurping any power in the building phase. But notice that nowhere in the text did Jesus directly state, “I will build my church on Peter.” Paul makes the point clear that God has the right to do what he wants with created beings. After all, God is sovereign (Yet, this does not mean that God is arbitrary. Nowhere does Paul say that God is arbitrary.). Here is the passage (Romans 9: 14 – 24):
14What shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness with God? God forbid.
15For he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.
16So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy.
17For the scripture saith unto Pharaoh, Even for this same purpose have I raised thee up, that I might shew my power in thee, and that my name might be declared throughout all the earth.
18Therefore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth.
19Thou wilt say then unto me, Why doth he yet find fault? For who hath resisted his will?
20Nay but, O man, who art thou that repliest against God? Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, Why hast thou made me thus?
21Hath not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump to make one vessel unto honour, and another unto dishonour?
22What if God, willing to shew his wrath, and to make his power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath fitted to destruction:
23And that he might make known the riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy, which he had afore prepared unto glory,
24Even us, whom he hath called, not of the Jews only, but also of the Gentiles?
2. Nowhere in the Bible does Peter claim to be the founding father of the church of Christ. He was just an apostle like the other apostles.
3. Peter was not above rebuke and his methods of interaction in the body of Christ (among the believers) was not above rebuke—and such rebuke-demanding behavior was certainly not settled in heaven, nor heaven-derived. For, we see that, even after Pentecost, when the church of Christ was in full swing, established and spreading the gospel, Peter still had some growing up to do. And he did grow, following his own testimony in the faith (as per 1 Peter 2:1, quoted in the conclusion of this paper). Now, we consider the following passage (Galatians 2: 11 – 12):
11But when Peter was come to Antioch, I withstood him to the face, because he was to be blamed.
12For before that certain came from James, he did eat with the Gentiles: but when they were come, he withdrew and separated himself, fearing them which were of the circumcision.
4. The Bible clearly shows Jesus as the foundation of His church. The following passage (1 Corinthians 3: 10 – 12) (not unique in the Bible, for other Bible passages bear similar tidings) shows us this:
10According to the grace of God which is given unto me, as a wise masterbuilder, I have laid the foundation, and another buildeth thereon. But let every man take heed how he buildeth thereupon.
11For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ.
12Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble (bold emphasis, mine)[.]
IN CONCLUSION, we can smell a rat when we come close enough. And, we know that for centuries men in high places have been perverting the Word of God, misusing it to justify their evil works. Such works include perverted forms of the institutionalizing of religion, substituting a man-made system for the true mode of communion in Christ. Matthew 16: 17 – 19 has been used to justify one such perverted institutionalization. Now, we clearly see, from the Word of God, how the spirit of the argument begging affirmation from Matthew 16: 17 – 19 is not truly Christ-like. After all, did not the servant of Christ, the apostle Paul, through and by the Holy Spirit, write, or speak (as in the case of the Acts passage), the following (and this is the Word of God)?
Philippians 2:5-11 (King James Version)
5Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:
6Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God:
7But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:
8And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.
9Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name:
10That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth;
11And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
2 Thessalonians 2:3-7 (King James Version)
3Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;
4Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.
5Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things?
6And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time.
7For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way.
Acts 20:28-31 (King James Version)
28Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood.
29For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock.
30Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them.
31Therefore watch, and remember, that by the space of three years I ceased not to warn every one night and day with tears.
Now, we should clearly see (with discernment from God), what spirit motivates those who abuse the Matthew 16: 17 – 19 passage. It is the very spirit of the devil himself, whether people are acting through willfulness or through being deceived. But, before we close this necessarily expansive conclusion, let us hear what Peter himself says (in 1 Peter 2: 1 – 10) about building “up a spiritual house.” Notice that nowhere did Peter refer to himself as the foundation on which such a house is built. Even more importantly, he, while reminding us that Jesus is the “CHIEF CORNER STONE”, also let us we too “as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house…”
1 Peter 2:1-10 (King James Version)
1 Wherefore laying aside all malice, and all guile, and hypocrisies, and envies, and all evil speakings,
2As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby:
3If so be ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious.
4To whom coming, as unto a living stone, disallowed indeed of men, but chosen of God, and precious,
5Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.
6Wherefore also it is contained in the scripture, Behold, I lay in Sion a chief corner stone, elect, precious: and he that believeth on him shall not be confounded.
7Unto you therefore which believe he is precious: but unto them which be disobedient, the stone which the builders disallowed, the same is made the head of the corner,
8And a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offence, even to them which stumble at the word, being disobedient: whereunto also they were appointed.
9But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light;
10Which in time past were not a people, but are now the people of God: which had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy. [Bold emphasis, mine].
