Did Jesus Say He Would Build His Church Upon Peter?

Throughout the Bible, only Jesus Christ authoritatively said, “…I WILL BUILD MY CHURCH…” No man ever said that. Moses, Elijah and John the Baptist never said, “I will build my church.”

“And I say unto thee, that thou art Peter, and upon this rock I WILL BUILD MY CHURCH…” (Matthew 16:18, KJV).

It appears only Matthew recorded this important statement made by the Lord. But did Jesus say that He would build His Church upon Peter? There are pastors who argue that Jesus, per the statement, meant that He would build the Church upon Peter.

It is true that Christ called Peter a stone but He never said He would build His Church upon a weak and mortal man, Peter, who was later referred to as Satan for being earthly-minded (Matt. 16: 23).

In fact, Jesus Christ did not say that He would build His Church upon a stone (petros) but on rock (petra). Now, we need to know the particular rock the Lord said He would build His church on.

Even before the Lord Jesus made that statement, He had earlier sought Peter’s opinion on who He Christ was. Peter confessed to Jesus saying, “THOU ART THE CHRIST, THE SON OF THE LIVING GOD”.

This confession is the basis of the rock (petra). So, our Saviour told Peter that upon his confession that He (Jesus) was the Christ, the Son of the Living God, He would build His Church.

Peter could not be the cornerstone strong enough to carry the weight of the Church. In fact, when you study Matthew 16:18 carefully, you will realize that many people have misunderstood the words of the Lord.

Our Saviour never said, “You are Peter, and upon you I will build my Church.” No! He never said that. He said, “You are Peter, and on this rock I will build my Church…”

It is important to observe here that “Peter” and “this rock” are not related. They are not synonymous. In other words, they are not the same. The Lord was rather showing Peter a different kind of rock upon which He would build His Church.

That rock He referred to was He Himself. Christ is the foundational rock or cornerstone upon which His Church is built. The apostle Peter himself, later in his first epistle, confirmed this truth.

He said: “As you come to him (Jesus), A LIVING STONE REJECTED BY MEN but in the sight of God chosen and precious…” (1 Pet. 2:4). Peter described the Lord Jesus as the living stone to which Christians come for salvation.

Paul made the allusion even clearer and emphatic when he wrote: “…For they drank from the same spiritual ROCK THAT FOLLOWED THEM, AND THE ROCK WAS CHRIST” (1 Corinthians 10: 4).

Now we know that the congregation of the people of Israel drank water from the rock at Horeb as Moses struck it with his staff (Exodus 17:6). While speaking about the Lord Jesus, King David also said:

“THE LORD IS MY ROCK and my fortress and my deliverer, MY GOD, MY ROCK, in whom I take refuge…” (Psalm 18: 2). “For who is God, but the LORD? And who is a ROCK, EXCEPT OUR GOD…” (Psalm 18:31). “The stone that the builders rejected has BECOME THE CORNERSTONE” (Ps. 118:22).

The Bible makes it abundantly clear that Christ is the Rock. He is the cornerstone and foundation of the Church. Peter, a mere man was not, is not and cannot be the stone upon which the Christian Church is built. Christ is the foundational rock of His Church, making His love strong and immovable, his righteousness everlasting and salvation eternal.

“For no one can lay a foundation other than which is laid, WHICH IS JESUS CHRIST” (1 Corinthians 3: 11).

Christ is the foundational rock on which the Church rests or is built. This makes Jesus the Head of the Church, His body. It was He who died and shed His blood for the Church.

By James Quansah