Matthew 16:18 Commentary - Dr Peter Masters

Navigator

Matthew 16:18

Comments

In order to understand these words we must bear in mind two important things: that Simon had been given the name Peter by Christ, and that two words are used in this verse – ‘Peter’ and ‘rock’ – which are related but different. When Christ says ‘on this rock I will build my church’, what is he referring to? Once we understand that the name Peter means a stone (John 1:42) – John uses the Aramaic name ‘Cephas’ which is equivalent to the Greek name ‘Peter’ – we might be inclined to think that Christ is saying he will build his church on Peter as an individual. But we have to be more careful and more Biblical than that. In fact the name Peter and the Greek word for rock are related but are not the same. Peter is a masculine word (as it is bound to be when given to a male) and means a stone. But the word rock in this verse is feminine and means a large rock, a slab of stone, bedrock which is suitable for a foundation. That there is an intended connection between the two is obvious, but the difference between them is significant. If the rock is Peter as an individual then why are two different words used? The predominant view of the Protestant churches is that it is Peter’s confession of faith that is referred to, not Peter as an individual. The disciples have just been asked by the Lord who they say that he is, and Peter has answered for them. For that he is rewarded with this assurance of blessing which picks up on his name Pater. But it was Christ who gave Simon this new name of Peter, and its meaning is highly significant here. It is this name change and the reason for it that Christ calls attention to by these words. Peter’s name had been changed because his character had been changed, and it was Christ who was bringing about that change. Peter became what he was, a man of faith, because the Lord gave him that strong faith which would overcome the world, on one occasion praying for him that his faith would fail not. It is not Peter as an individual that Christ refers to, but the faith that had been given to him by God, which was expressed by his confession. There is a similarity between the two words, but there is also a contrast. Peter was a small stone, but he gained his strength and stability from the great rock in which he trusted. The faith which made Peter into a strong stone, also makes the whole church into a great building built upon the rock, Christ Jesus. It is a building which nothing can destroy and which will break every enemy that rises up against it. Every true member of Christ’s church expresses the same confession that Peter gave here.Christ says he will build his church, and it is something new. It has a connection with Old Testament Israel, but it is not the same thing. The church is not Israel, but it is the international church of Jesus Christ. It would be composed of regenerate members, only those who believed in him. Often he gathered his disciples but others present were present also, and he prepared them for this. He spoke of the church in these explosive graphic pictures. It has no inter-church government, no hierarchy, but only individual churches directly under Christ. We believe there is a pattern church in the New Testament. Paul says so. He tells us to do all that he did, for a pattern, an example. We have licence to organise ourselves in quite different ways.In all this we must not lose sight of Christ’s wonderful promise to keep his church. ‘The gates of hell shall not prevail against it.’ This term or something akin to it is used four or five times in the Old Testament. Hell is seen as a fortress; the gates signify the intake point as it seeks to engulf others. The gates also speak of where devils emerge to attack. It is a symbol of hostility. The true church is a company of true believers and war is being waged on many fronts. Persecution, often physical, occurs repeatedly. No reason to doubt it will come back, but it will not be successful.

Application

Firstly, death will never destroy the witness of the church. They could martyr all the preachers, but it did not work. And other way round also – Satan keeps his people enclosed in his fortress, but he can’t keep out the gospel. This message plucks men and women out of his stronghold. Secondly, Christ has warned us we will always be children of the little flock. Although we are a vast number, and heaven will be filled, the fact is that on earth we will never be a majority. Many are called but few chosen. There will be a periodicity about this: times of ascendance, and times of decline, nevertheless over time Christ will have the pre-eminence. Now we are in an age when godlessness seems to triumph. The fact that the church is called out of a hostile environment is its glory. The church of Christ will never be eliminated till the end. Generations of Christians, particularly churches may lose their candlestick, but when you take all into account, there will always be a flame.

You might think that the matter of who runs the church is not a big issue, but it is. Mistakes always have a beginning and the idea of a pope has led to many other errors. There is not a word about this in the passage but the Roman Catholic church teaches that the authority given to Peter was passed on to his successors. If this only involved Peter, we might not be so anxious, for he never committed all these errors, but to say that the headship of the church is given to Peter is a root of error. By teaching this the Roman Catholic church creates an additional authority alongside the Bible. Successive popes have added to the Bible. They have added new teaching practices, and claimed Christ’s authority for doing so; it is a matter of adding a second Bible. What is our authority? The Bible alone.

Questions

What does the rest of the New Testament say about Peter? Peter as an individual was weak at times. The New Testament gives him a surprisingly small role, Paul writing far more of the New Testament, and Peter playing a very important but nonetheless smaller part in the great commission. After Acts 15 – about halfway through the book – Peter isn’t mentioned again; he disappears from the record, not because he is disapproved of, but because the focus moves to Paul and the spreads of the gospel to the Gentiles. In the letter to the Galatians, Peter’s serious fall is recorded and he had to be corrected by Paul. He failed to act consistently with the truth of the gospel. In the New Testament Peter is never seen as a teacher or pastor in Rome. Yes he may have gone there, and even died there, but if the whole church is to be under the pope, the Bishop of Rome, then it is extraordinary not to mention his ministry there. Paul says that he longed to visit Rome. Why? Because they have no apostolic person there, and so Paul will impart some spiritual gift to them. Peter is called ‘one’ of the pillars of the church (Galatians 2:9), but James is named before him and it is James who puts forward the argument. This does not support the idea that Peter was the head of the church on earth. Nowhere else in the New Testament is there the slightest hint that the church is built on Peter. Certainly, a verse in Ephesians called the apostles the foundation, but that is a rare use of the term which refers to the apostles’ role as channels of New Testament revelation. Far more often however the Scripture speaks of Christ as the foundation, and Paul says there is really no other foundation (1 Corinthians 3:11). Peter did truly have a privilege. He answered for all, and perhaps he got his reward for being the first to make this confession. He was not the pope, but he was the first to say this, and he took the leading role in preaching to the Jews at Pentecost, and to Cornelius as the gospel advanced to the Gentiles.

Outline

Purpose

Introduction

Matthew 16:18 Commentary and Bible Study