Mat 16:13...Now when Jesus came into the district of
Caesare'a Philip'pi, he asked his disciples, "Who do men say that the Son of man is?"
Mat 16:14...And they said, "Some say John the Baptist, others say Eli'jah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets."
Mat 16:15...He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?"
Mat 16:16...Simon Peter replied, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."
Mat 16:17...Jesus answered, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jona! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven.
Mat 16:18...And I tell you, you are Peter, and
on this rock I will build my church, and the powers of death shall not prevail against it.
Caesarea Philippi was like a red-light district in their world and devout Jews would have avoided any contact with the despicable acts committed there. It was a city of people eagerly knocking on the doors of hell.
Standing near the pagan temples of Caesarea Philippi, Jesus asked his disciples "Who do you say that I am?" Peter boldly replied, "You are the Son of the living God."
Jesus continued,
"You are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it" (see Matt. 16:13-20).
At that time, Jesus and his disciples were in Caesarea Philippi when he said that His church would be built on the "rock." He was standing on
the very rock of Caesarea Philippi,
a rock literally filled with niches for pagan idols, where ungodly values dominated.
By saying that
the gates of hell would not overcome, Jesus suggested that those gates were going to be attacked.
Standing as they were at a literal "Gate of Hades," the disciples may have been overwhelmed by Jesus' challenge. They had studied under their rabbi for several years, and now he was commissioning them to a huge task: to attack evil, and to build the church on the very places that were most filled with moral corruption.
Jesus presented a clear challenge with his words at Caesarea Philippi: He didn't want his followers hiding from evil: He wanted them to storm the gates of hell. (
Gates of Hell)
The interesting part of this article for me was that when Jesus said this it was neither in Jerusalem nor in Rome at the time. It was after that that they returned to Jerusalem, to the Mt. of Olives. Here Jesus tells them to..."
not to depart from Jerusalem, (
Act 1:4 )
So then Jesus says to
the 12 disciples (not just Peter)..."But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you;
and you shall be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Sama'ria and to the end of the earth." (Act 1:8)
Now later on we see just how the early church was governed...."And when Paul and Barnabas had no small dissension and debate with them, Paul and Barnabas and some of the others were appointed to go up to Jerusalem
to the apostles and the elders about this question....When they came to Jerusalem,
they were welcomed by "the church and the apostles and the elders," and they declared all that God had done with them. (
Act 15:2,
4)
And that is how the Protestant churches, for the most part, are governed today! No Pope needed - especially a false pope!
