"And I also say unto thee, that thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it" (Matthew 16:18).
For 1,750 years this verse has been used by the Roman Catholic Church to attempt to demonstrate that the bishop of Rome, or the pope, has the authority of Peter that Jesus gave to him. Is this what the Bible teaches regarding Peter? Let us compare what God's Word reveals about Peter with what Roman Catholicism teaches about the pope.
Peter does not claim to be pope.
If Peter understood that Jesus gave him such authority, we would expect him to claim it in his writings. Yet Peter not only never claims to be pope, or special in any such way, he even calls himself "a fellow elder" to other elders (1 Peter 5:1). We never see Peter taking on any special authority or distinction in the New Testament, unlike popes in Roman Catholicism.
Peter does not accept special honors.
Even though people bow before the Pope, when Cornelius bowed before Peter, Peter told him to get up, for "[he himself] is also a man" (Acts 10:26). Peter honored Christ, and did not accept honor.
Peter does not accept special titles.
Peter is "an apostle of Jesus Christ" (1 Peter 1:1), or "a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ" (2 Peter 1:1), but does not claim the title of "Holy Father" or any such thing. Even though Peter is an elder (1 Peter 5:1), he does not use it as a title. Peter no doubt remembered the command of Jesus to not be called "father" (Matthew 23:9).
The other disciples do not see him as a pope.
If Jesus does give Peter special authority, we would expect the eleven disciples to recognize this. Nevertheless, not long after the events of Matthew 16, James and John seek the left and right hands of Jesus in His Kingdom (Matthew 20:20-23). The ten others, Peter being one, were indignant at the brothers, desiring that position for themselves (Matthew 20:24). If Peter understood that he would be pope, why would he be concerned?
Peter was married.
We are told in Matthew 8:14-15 that Jesus heals Peter's mother-in-law; such indicates he was married. Paul attests to "Cephas", or Peter, having a wife in 1 Corinthians 9:5. Such is expected of one who is an elder (1 Timothy 3:2, Titus 1:6). A pope is called upon to be celibate, however, despite what the New Testament teaches.
The other Apostles share Peter's authority.
The same promise made to Peter regarding loosing and binding in Matthew 16:19 is made to all the apostles in Matthew 18:18. The "keys to the Kingdom of Heaven", the message of salvation, was preached by all the Apostles (Acts 2:42). There is nothing that Peter does that the other Apostles do not also do.
Peter is so named earlier.
According to John's Gospel, Simon receives the name "Peter" when he is first called by Jesus (John 1:42). While Jesus may re-affirm this later in Caesarea Philippi (Matthew 16:13), the name goes back to an earlier time in a different context.
Other Gospel writers do not mention Peter's naming.
Matthew, Mark, and Luke all record Peter's confession that Jesus is the Christ (Matthew 16:14-17, Mark 8:27-30, Luke 9:18-20), yet only Matthew records Peter's "commission" (Matthew 16:18-20). If this were truly understood as the establishment of Peter's authority, and that he should be pope, we would expect it to be recorded in other Gospel accounts, especially in Mark, who is believed to have been Peter's associate!
Jesus, not Peter, is the true Rock.
Paul, in 1 Corinthians 3:11, establishes that Jesus is the foundation that has already been laid. Peter is part of the foundation of the church, along with the other apostles and prophets, but Jesus is the "chief cornerstone" (Ephesians 2:19-22).
Jesus builds His Church on Peter's Confession, not Peter.
While Jesus may call Simon "Peter", or "rock", in Matthew 16:18, "this rock", the one upon which He will build His church, is Peter's confession, and not Peter himself. Jesus' church is built upon Him as the Christ, not on Peter or a pope (Ephesians 2).
The Bible does not show that the Apostles' authority was handed down.
The measure of the Spirit given to the Apostles was not transferable (Acts 8:14-16); we receive no indication that elders were given the authority to bind and loose as the Apostles were given.
We can see that Peter was no pope. The claims of the Roman Catholic church regarding the Pope are not supported by the Scriptures. Let us hold to God's Word, not the traditions of men!
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