Jesus took His disciples to Gentile territory, in the region of Caesarea Philippi. They were about 120 miles from Jerusalem in the northern part of Palestine. The region was strongly identified with various religions: It had been a center for Baal worship; the Greek god Pan had shrines there; and Herod the Great had built a temple there to honor Augustus Caesar. It was in the midst of this pagan superstition that Peter confessed Jesus as the Son of God. And it was probably within sight of Caesar’s temple that Jesus announced a surprise: He would not yet establish His kingdom, but He would build His church.
If anyone else asked, “Whom do men say that I am?” we would think him either mad or arrogant. But in the case of Jesus, a right confession of who He is is basic to salvation (Rom. 10:9–10; 1 John 2:18–23; 4:1–3). His person and His work go together and must never be separated. It is amazing to see how confused the public was about Jesus (John 10:19–21). Perhaps, like Herod, the people thought Jesus was John raised from the dead.
It had been prophesied that Elijah would come again (Mal. 4:5), and some thought that this prediction was fulfilled in Christ. However, Jesus did not minister as did Elijah; it was John the Baptist who came “in the spirit and power of Elias” (Luke 1:13–17). Jeremiah was the weeping prophet whose tender heart was broken at the sight of the decay of the nation. Certainly this attitude was seen in Jesus, the Man of Sorrows.
One thing is clear: We can never make a true decision about Jesus Christ by taking a poll of the people. (But some people do get their “spiritual knowledge” this way!) The important thing is not what others say, but what do you and I personally say? The decisions of the crowd (wrong or right) can never substitute for personal decisions.
Peter had the correct response: “Thou art the Christ [the Messiah], the Son of the living God!” This confession was Peter’s response to the revelation God the Father had given him. Jesus Himself explained this experience in Matthew 11:25–27. This revelation was not the result of Peter’s own investigation. It came as the gracious act of God. God had hidden these things from the proud Pharisees and Sadducees and revealed them to “babes,” the humble disciples.
It should be noted that there had been other confessions of faith prior to this one. Nathanael had confessed Christ as the Son of God (John 1:49), and the disciples had declared Him God’s Son after He stilled the storm (Matt. 14:33). Peter had given a confession of faith when the crowds left Jesus after His sermon on the Bread of Life (John 6:68–69). In fact, when Andrew had brought his brother Simon to Jesus, it was on the basis of this belief (John 1:41).
How, then, did this confession differ from those that preceded it? To begin with, Jesus explicitly asked for this confession. It was not an emotional response from people who had seen a miracle, but the studied and sincere statement of a man who had been taught by God.
Also, Jesus accepted this confession and built on it to teach them new truth. It must have rejoiced His heart to hear Peter’s words. The Lord knew that Peter could now be led into new steps of deeper truth and service. All of our Lord’s ministry to His disciples had prepared the way for this experience. Let’s look at these great words and concepts individually.
Rock. These Jewish men, steeped in Old Testament Scripture, recognized the rock as a symbol of God. “He is the Rock, his work is perfect” (Deut. 32:4). “The Lord is my rock, and my fortress” (Ps. 18:2). “For who is God save the Lord? Or who is a rock save our God?” (Ps. 18:31).
But let’s investigate the Greek words that the Holy Spirit led Matthew to use. “Thou art petros [a stone], and upon this rock [petra—a large rock] I will build my church.” Jesus had given Simon the new name of Peter (John 1:42) which means “a stone.” The Aramaic form is Cephas, which also means “a stone.” Everyone who believes in Jesus Christ and confesses Him as the Son and God and Savior, is a “living stone” (1 Peter 2: nasb).
Jesus Christ is the foundation rock on which the church is built. The Old Testament prophets said so (Ps. 118:22; Isa. 28:16). Jesus Himself said this (Matt. 21:42) and so did Peter and the other apostles (Acts 4:10–12). Paul also stated that the foundation for the church is Jesus Christ (1 Cor. 3:11). This foundation was laid by the apostles and prophets as they preached Christ to the lost (1 Cor. 2:1–2; 3:11; Eph. 2:20).
In other words, when the evidence is examined, the total teaching of Scripture is that the church, God’s temple (Eph. 2:19–22), is built on Jesus Christ—not on Peter. How could God build His church on a fallible man like Peter? Later, the same Peter who confessed Christ became an adversary and entertained Satan’s thoughts (Matt. 16:22ff.). “But that was before Peter was filled with the Spirit,” some argue. Then consider Peter’s doctrinal blunders recorded in Galatians 2, blunders that had to be dealt with by Paul. This event occurred after Peter was filled with the Spirit.
Church. This is the first occurrence of this important word in the New Testament. It is the Greek word ekklesia (ek-klay-SEE-uh) from which we get our English word ecclesiastical, referring to things that pertain to the church. The literal meaning is “a called-out assembly.” The word is used 114 times in the New Testament, and in ninety of these references, a local church (assembly) is in view. However, in this first use of ekklesia, it seems likely that Jesus had the whole church in mind. He was not just building a local assembly, but a universal church composed of all who make the same confession of faith that Peter made.
The word ekklesia was not new to the disciples. This word was applied to the popular assembly of Greek citizens that helped to govern a city or district (Acts 19:32, 39, 41). Also, the Greek translation of the Old Testament (the Septuagint) used ekklesia to describe the congregation of Israel when it was gathered for religious activity (Deut. 31:30; Judg. 20:2). However, this does not mean that the Old Testament congregation of Israel was a “church” in the same sense as the churches of the New Testament. Rather, Jesus was introducing something new to His disciples.
Jesus spoke about “my church” in contrast to these other assemblies. This was to be something new and different, for in His church, Jesus Christ would unite believing Jews and Gentiles and form a new temple, a new body (Eph. 2:11—3:12). In His church, natural distinctions would be unimportant (Gal. 3:28). Jesus Christ would be the Builder of this church, the Head of this church (Eph. 1:22; Col. 1:18).
Each believer in this church is a “living stone” (1 Peter 2:5). Believers would meet in local congregations, or assemblies, to worship Christ and to serve Him, but they would also belong to a universal church, a temple being built by Christ. There is a oneness to the people of God (Eph. 4:1–6) that ought to be revealed to the world by love and unity (John 17:20–26).
Gates of hell. A better translation would be “gates of hades.” Hell is the final destiny of all unsaved people after the judgment of the Great White Throne (Rev. 20:11–15). Hades is simply “the realm of the dead.” It holds the spirits of the unsaved dead and releases them at the resurrection (Rev. 20:13; where “hell” ought to read “hades”). According to Jesus, hades is down (Matt. 11:23), and it is a prison to which He holds the keys (Rev. 1:18).
On the basis of Luke 16:19–31, some people believe that all the dead went to hades prior to the death and resurrection of Christ—believers to a paradise portion and unbelievers to a punishment portion. We are certain that believers today, when they die, go immediately into the presence of Christ (2 Cor. 5:6–8; Phil. 1:23).
“Gates” represent, in the Bible, authority and power. The city gate was to a Jew what city hall is to people in the Western world. Important business was transacted at the city gate (Deut. 16:18; 17:8; Ruth 4:11). “The gates of hades” then would symbolize the organized power of death and Satan. By His death and resurrection, Jesus Christ would conquer death, so that death would not be able to hold any of His people. Christ would “storm the gates” and deliver the captives! This declaration certainly is verified by 1 Corinthians 15:50ff., Hebrews 2:14–15, and other Scriptures.
Keys of the kingdom. A key is a badge of authority (Isa. 22:15, 22; Luke 11:52). “The kingdom of heaven” is not heaven, for no man on earth carries the keys to heaven! (All of the jokes about “St. Peter at the gate” stem from this misunderstanding. They are both unbiblical and in bad taste.) We use keys to open doors. Peter was given the privilege of opening “the door of faith” to the Jews at Pentecost (Acts 2), to the Samaritans (Acts 8:14ff.), and to the Gentiles (Acts 10). But the other apostles shared this authority (Matt. 18:18), and Paul had the privilege of “opening the door of faith” to the Gentiles outside of Palestine (Acts 14:27).
Nowhere in this passage, or in the rest of the New Testament, are we told that Peter or his successors had any special position or privilege in the church. Certainly Peter in his two epistles claimed to be nothing more than an apostle (1 Peter 1:1), an elder (1 Peter 5:1), and a servant of Jesus Christ (2 Peter 1:1).
Binding and loosing. This was a very familiar phrase to the Jews, for their rabbis often spoke of “binding and loosing,” that is, forbidding or permitting. Our Lord’s statement in Matthew 16: referred to Peter. But His statement later in Matthew 18: included all of the apostles. As the representatives of their Lord, they would exercise authority according to His Word.
The Greek verbs in Matthew 16: are most important. The Expanded Translation by Dr. Kenneth S. Wuest reads, “And whatever you bind on earth [forbid to be done], shall have been already bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth [permit to be done], shall have already been loosed in heaven.” Jesus did not say that God would obey what they did on earth, but that they should do on earth whatever God had already willed. The church does not get man’s will done in heaven; it obeys God’s will on earth.
The apostles were not to share this truth about Jesus being the Son of God with other people until after His resurrection and ascension. Then the “sign of Jonah” would be completed, the Spirit would be given, and the message could be proclaimed. The nation in general, and certainly the religious leaders in particular, were not yet ready for this message. Read Peter’s sermon at Pentecost and see how he proclaimed Jesus as the Christ (Acts 2).