…and upon this rock I will build My church
Matthew 16:18
When Jesus asked His disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” they told Him that some said He was John the Baptist, and others thought He was Elijah. Still, others said Jeremiah or one of the prophets.
And when He asked, “Who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
Happily, Jesus responded that God the Father revealed this answer to him and not a person.
Jesus continued, “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 will not overpower it.”
Petros means” little stone or pebble,” and petra means “a mass of connective rock.”
In other words, Jesus was saying, “Peter, you are a little stone, and on this massive connective rock, I will build my church?”
So, what is “this massive connective rock?”
And how does it answer the question about what the church is according to the Bible?
Let’s keep looking.
Table of Contents
What is the Church According to the Bible?
The true church comprises people everywhere in the world who, like Peter, believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God. The church age formally began at Pentecost and will continue until the Rapture, when believers meet Jesus in the air. In other words, according to the Bible, the church are individuals who, during the church age, put their faith in Jesus as their Savior. It is not associated with any one religion or denomination. The true church has believers from every nation, tribe, people, and language.
What the True Church is Not
The true church is not a building. Or a specific organization.
Some religious organizations say they are the true church. Catholics, Mormons, Jehovah’s Witnesses, and 7th Day Adventists, to name a few, all claim you must be one of them to be saved. Salvation belongs to their church only.
Obviously, they can’t all be right, but can they all be wrong? It depends on what the Bible says.
The above churches use the Bible. But they also have additional Scriptures they put on par with the Bible, which often cloud the way they interpret it. Let’s look at two that claim they are the only true church and how they use the Bible to justify it.
The Catholic Defense
Catholicism, in particular, uses Matthew 16:18-19 to say that Peter is the rock on which Christ built His church. From there, they conclude that Peter was the first pope. Therefore, they are the true church.
However, there is no biblical or historical evidence that Peter was the first pope or was ever even in Rome.
The Catholic church interprets Matthew 16:18 differently. Essentially, they claim that Jesus is saying, “You, Peter (petros), are the rock, and I will build my church on you, and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.”
However, this interpretation is inconsistent with other Scriptures that say Jesus Christ is the rock (petra).
The Mormon Defense
Why do Mormons think they are the true church? I found this online:
You can look up these Scriptures and see if they say what the LDS church claims. But for this article, I’ll only mention two of them.
Right off the bat, you will notice that they are talking about something physical, not spiritual. And I assume Mormons would say only their church meets all of these qualifications.
2. The true church must bear the name of Jesus Christ.
Ephesians 5:23 For a husband is the head of his wife as Christ is the head of his church. He is the Savior of the body, the church.
The LDS have “Jesus Christ” in their church name, but is that what this verse means? No. Nor is having “Jesus Christ” in your church name what makes the church true. The verse is talking about marriage and is comparing the husband’s role as head of the wife with Christ, who is the head of the church.
So, if they mean that Christ must be the head of the church and the Savior of the body, then they got it right. However, the verse still doesn’t define the true church because it’s talking about marriage and not salvation.
11. The true church must teach that God and Jesus Christ have bodies of flesh and bone.
Luke 24:38 Look at my hands. Look at my feet. You can see that it’s really me. Touch me and make sure that I am not a ghost, because ghosts don’t have bodies, as you see that I do. (See Luke 24:36-39 to see the entire passage they use.)
Acts 1:9-11 After saying this, he was taken up into a cloud while they were watching, and they could no longer see him. As they strained to see him rising into heaven, two white-robed men suddenly stood among them. “Men of Galilee,” they said, “why are you standing here staring into heaven? Jesus has been taken from you into heaven, but someday he will return from heaven in the same way you saw him go!”
Scripture teaches that God is Spirit and only Jesus, the God-man has a physical body. I don’t know what you see in these verses, but I can’t find where it says that God has a body of flesh and bone. And no one disputes that Jesus does.
But to say both God and Jesus have bodies of flesh and bone is wrong. Nor does it have anything to do with what makes up the true church.
From my understanding of the Bible, the true church is spiritual and only involves salvation by faith through Jesus Christ. Therefore, the above qualifications do not qualify as hallmarks of the true church, even if what they say is correct.
Jesus Builds His Church on the Rock
Jesus says, “You are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church,” not “Peter, you are the rock.”
Other Scriptures can help us see that the rock is Christ.
It goes back to the exodus when the Israelites complained because they were thirsty. God told Moses to strike the rock at Horeb (Exodus 17:6) and later speak to the rock at Meribah (Numbers 20:8).
Paul says the rock, besides being physical, was spiritual, and it was Christ.
1 Corinthians 10:4 and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank from the same spiritual rock that followed them, and that rock was Christ.
Paul also says that he laid a foundation as a skilled master builder in the church of Corinth, but it is clear that the foundation he is referring to is Jesus Christ (no mention of Peter). In other words, laying a foundation and being the foundation are different. Paul laid Jesus Christ, meaning he preached the gospel.
1 Corinthians 3:11 For no one can lay any foundation other than what has been laid down. That foundation is Jesus Christ.
Even Peter is only one of many stones (petros) that make up the true church. He calls Christ the living cornerstone and believers living stones built into God’s spiritual temple (the church).
1 Peter 2:4-5 You are coming to Christ who is the living cornerstone of God’s temple…and you are living stones that God is building into His spiritual temple.
All this can be pretty difficult to grasp at first glance. But I hope you can see that no one church or religion is the true church. There is nothing in the Bible to suggest anything other than Jesus Christ is the rock and foundation. And you can only find salvation in Him.
The video below simplifies everything I’ve been trying to say.
Was Peter the Rock on Which Jesus Built His Church?
Final Thoughts
Thank you for reading about what the true church is according to the Bible.
As you can see, it’s not any one church organization but is universal and spiritual. You can’t physically see it as you can a building, but you can see the individuals that make up the true church.
When Jesus said, “Upon this rock I will build my church,” he was talking about Himself and connecting it to what Peter said: “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
Peter’s confession is the basis for the true church. And its foundation is Jesus Christ. You are laying a foundation in your listeners’ hearts and minds when you proclaim the gospel. They hear the truth.
And when they receive by faith the free gift of salvation that God offers through Christ, they become part of the true church.
Today, the church comprises individuals that have trusted Christ as their Savior throughout the world for the past 2000 years.
If you don’t know if you are part of the true church and would like to know more, check out my article on how to know you are going to heaven (and become part of the true church).