Interesting take. Here are a few other things to consider in order to see the whole picture at a more macro level. The idea of Petrine primacy doesn't just come from Matthew 16, to my understanding. Before posting other things here, I also would like to point out that Even Matthew 16 itself, if you keep reading, goes on to say: MT 16:19 and I will give to thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven; and whatever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.
MT 16:18 And I tell thee this in my turn, that thou art Peter, and it is upon this rock that I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it; 18 κἀγὼ δέ σοι λέγω ὅτι σὺ εἶ Πέτρος, καὶ ἐπὶ ταύτῃ τῇ πέτρᾳ οἰκοδομήσω μου τὴν ἐκκλησίαν, καὶ πύλαι ᾅδου οὐ κατισχύσουσιν αὐτῆς.
MK 3:14 and he appointed twelve to be his companions, and to go out preaching at his command, 15 with power to cure diseases and to cast out devils. 16 To Simon he gave the fresh name of Peter; 16 καὶ ἐποίησεν τοὺς δώδεκα, καὶ ἐπέθηκεν ὄνομα τῷ Σίμωνι Πέτρον:
In lists of the Apostles, Peter listed first, and Judas always last. Mt 10:2; Mk 3:16; Lk 6:14; Acts 1:13
JN 1:42 and brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him closely, and said, Thou art Simon the son of Jona; thou shalt be called Cephas (which means the same as Peter). 42ἤγαγεν αὐτὸν πρὸς τὸν Ἰησοῦν. ἐμβλέψας αὐτῷ ὁ Ἰησοῦς εἶπεν: σὺ εἶ Σίμων ὁ υἱὸς Ἰωάννου, σὺ κληθήσῃ Κηφᾶς, ὃ ἑρμηνεύεται Πέτρος.
JN 21:15 And when they had eaten, Jesus said to Simon Peter, Simon, son of John, dost thou care for me more than these others? Yes, Lord, he told him, thou knowest well that I love thee. And he said to him, Feed my lambs. 16 And again, a second time, he asked him, Simon, son of John, dost thou care for me? Yes, Lord, he told him, thou knowest well that I love thee. He said to him, Tend my shearlings.[2] 17 Then he asked him a third question, Simon, son of John, dost thou love me? Peter was deeply moved when he was asked a third time, Dost thou love me? and said to him, Lord, thou knowest all things; thou canst tell that I love thee. Jesus said to him, Feed my sheep.
Luke 22:31 And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan has claimed power over you all, so that he can sift you like wheat: 32 but I have prayed for thee, that thy faith may not fail; when, after a while, thou hast come back to me, it is for thee to be the support of thy brethren.
Acts 4:7 And they had Peter and John brought into their presence, and asked them, By what power, in whose name, have such men as you done this? 8 Then Peter was filled with the Holy Spirit, and said to them, Rulers of the people, elders of Israel, listen to me.[2] 9 If it is over kindness done to a cripple, and the means by which he has been restored, that we are called in question,
John 21:3 Simon Peter told them, I am going out fishing; and they said, We, too, will go with thee. So they went out and embarked on the boat, and all that night they caught nothing.; ...7 Whereupon the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, It is the Lord. And Simon Peter, hearing him say that it was the Lord, girded up the fisherman’s coat, which was all he wore, and sprang into the sea. 8 The other disciples followed in the boat (they were not far from land, only some hundred yards away), dragging their catch in the net behind them.
First official act of the Church government: Acts 1:15 At this time, Peter stood up and spoke before all the brethren; a company of about a hundred and twenty were gathered there. 16 Brethren, he said, there is a prophecy in scripture that must needs be fulfilled; that which the Holy Spirit made, by the lips of David, about Judas, who shewed the way to the men that arrested Jesus. 17 Judas was counted among our number, and had been given a share in this ministry of ours. 18 (With the price of his treachery, this man came into possession of a field; and afterwards, when he fell from a height, and his belly burst open, so that he was disembowelled, 19 all Jerusalem heard of it, and the field came to be called, in their language, Haceldama, that is, the Field of Blood.)[4] 20 Well, in the book of Psalms the words are written, Let their camping-place be deserted, and let no man be found to dwell in it. And again, Let another take over his office.
First Post ascension preaching of the Gospel: Acts 2:14 But Peter, with the eleven apostles at his side, stood there and raised his voice to speak to them; Men of Judaea, he said, and all you who are dwelling in Jerusalem, I must tell you this; listen to what I have to say.
First Post ascension miracle: Acts 3:4 Peter fastened his eyes on him, as John did too, and said, Turn towards us; 5 and he looked at them attentively, hoping that something would be given him. 6 Then Peter said to him, Silver and gold are not mine to give, I give thee what I can. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk. ....; 12 Peter, when he saw it, addressed himself to the people;
Acts 15:6 When the apostles and presbyters assembled to decide about this matter 7 there was much disputing over it, until Peter rose and said to them, Brethren, you know well enough how from early days it has been God’s choice that the Gentiles should hear the message of the gospel from my lips, and so learn to believe.
1Cor:4 that he was buried, and then, as the scriptures had foretold, rose again on the third day. 5 That he was seen by Cephas, then by the eleven apostles, 6 and afterwards by more than five hundred of the brethren at once, most of whom are alive at this day, though some have gone to their rest. 7 Then he was seen by James, then by all the apostles; 8 and last of all, I too saw him, like the last child, that comes to birth unexpectedly.
Acts 8:19 Let me too, he said, have such powers that when I lay my hands on anyone he will receive the Holy Spirit. Whereupon Peter said to him, 20 Take thy wealth with thee to perdition, thou who hast told thyself that God’s free gift can be bought with money. 21 There is no share, no part for thee in these doings; thy heart is not true in the sight of God. 22 Repent of this baseness of thine, and pray to God, in the hope of finding pardon for the thought which thy heart has conceived. 23 I see plainly that a bitter poison has taken hold of thee; thou art the bondsman of iniquity. 24 And Simon answered, Pray for me to the Lord, that none of this harm you have spoken of may fall upon me.
Of course there are more scriptures that point to Peter's primacy, and in fact the entirety of the New Testament mentions him an astounding 191 times in contrast to the next most mentioned Apostle, (John), who appears in the NT only 48 times. This, in itself is no proof, but certain worth a moment to ponder.
May God bless and keep you,
Steve
The Confession; The Rock; The Church
Matthew 16:16-18
During the earthly sojourn of Jesus Christ there was much confusion and controversy about His identity. The question came up over and over, who is He? (Jno. 7:40-44).
He was aware of this, and He was especially concerned that His disciples knew who He was. The time came for that teaching. He had gone with His disciples to the area of Caesarea Philippi. It was here that He asked them two questions. The first had to do with what impressions the public had: "Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?" Then the Lord asked His disciples to speak for themselves, and Peter spoke up ...
"And Simon Peter answered and said, 'You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.' Jesus answered and said to him, 'Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My father who is in heaven. And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it." - Matt. 16:16-18.
There are three vital things here to be studied and distinguished: THE CONFESSION, THE ROCK, AND THE CHURCH.
Peter's Confession: "You are the Christ, the Son of God."
A variety of opinions prevailed among the people of that day about who the Son of Man was. By divine revelation Peter knew the truth, and he spoke it on this occasion without fear: "You are the Christ, the Son of God." Would you agree, this confession is important? Certainly. In fact, we know that the person who refuses to acknowledge this truth is refusing to be saved! Jesus said "if you do not believe that I am He, you will die in your sins," (Jno. 8:24). And He said through John, "whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God," (1 Jno. 5:1). Likewise, "whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God dwells in Him, and He in God," (1 Jno. 4:15). This confession is the proposition that lies at the very foundation of the gospel plan; it is a truth that must be confessed and believed. It is important.
If this confession is important, wouldn't you agree, anything the Bible connects to it is also important? Or to state this another way: If this confession is important,
that which is built on it is also important! The church is built on this truth Peter expressed. Jesus, the Head of the church, said: "...on this rock I will build My
church!"
"This Rock!"
Should we think of "this rock" as the man, Simon Peter? In favor of this view, the name Peter means "rock," and the Roman Catholic edition of the New Testament has this footnote: "This rock was Peter."
This argument is made for one purpose: TO GIVE CREDIBILITY TO THE IDEA THAT PETER WAS THE FIRST POPE IN ROME. Of course, that idea can be rejected on the basis of any number of scriptural facts. But in regard to our text, consider these points:
(1) While the word "Peter" in the Greek is PETROS, which means small rock, the word "rock" as that which the church is built on is PETRA, which means a massive stone.
(2) Further, while PETROS (Peter) is masculine, PETRA is feminine in gender. These observations alone indicate, the Lord was talking about two distinct things. And, in the King James, the Lord referred to Peter as "thou," but He referred to the rock as "this."
"This rock" that the church is built on isn't Peter, it is the confession Peter made. You see, the church wasn't built on Peter, it was built on the truth about the divine
Person, Jesus Christ. Peter expressed the truth, "Thou art the Christ, the Son of the Living God." Jesus replied, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heven."
"And I also say to you that you are Peter (petros), and on this rock (petra) I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it." Agreeing with this, the statement written by Paul in 1 Cor. 3:11, "For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus christ." Likewise, in Ephesians 2:20 - "And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief corner-stone."
"I Will Build My Church!"
This statement identifies Jesus as the builder and owner of the church; it is a simple matter of grammar and wording: "I will build MY church." In the shedding of His
blood, His resurrection from the dead, ascension to God's right hand, and in the preaching He commissioned the apostles to do - HE BUILT HIS CHURCH. Those who come to Him in obedient response to the gospel become a part of His church, His body. They belong to Him.
Another point of grammar, when the Lord said, "I will," that indicates present intention to do something in the future! He was telling His chosen men, Here is what I
intend to do. He hadn't built the church yet, but He would in the future: "I will" became reality (see Acts chapter two)
It should be observed, the word "church" in this statement is singular. He said, "I will build My church." He didn't promise to set up a vast conglomeration of denominational bodies; he didn't say, "I will build my churches." There is one church! "The body" in Ephesians 1:22,23 is singular. "There is one body," (Eph. 4:4), and "...by one spirit we were all baptized into one body," (1 Cor. 12:12,13).
The text puts before us these facts about Christ and His church.
1. Jesus is "the Christ, the Son of the Living God."
2. God revealed this to Peter, not "flesh and blood."
3. Jesus told these men, He would build His church on this confession, and "the gates of Hades" would not prevent it.
What a privilege to be a part of Christ's body; to be baptized into this realm of fellowship with God and cooperation with His children to do His work.
May God Bless and keep you.
Quasar92