Read Matthew 16 here (text coming …) or at Bible Gateway.
This is the Chiastic Structure Teaching Tool for the Peter’s proclamation of the Messiah:
What is the rock upon which Yeshua builds His church? The Pope is supposed to be a direct disciple of Peter in an unending line; so they say it is the Pope that is the rock. However, I don’t agree with that answer, as there have been many popes in the history of the church that were not even saved, and some acted as anti-christs, persecuting the true church of believers. So obviously, not a rock.
But the structure gives us a different answer. Notice that in the B pair, Peter first tells Yeshua who He is, and then Yeshua tells Peter who he is. This knowledge of who Yeshua is, coupled with the knowledge of who we are in Him, I believe, is the rock upon which Yeshua builds His church, that the gates of hell cannot prevail against. Identity.
As to Yeshua’s identity, He is the Anointed One (mashiyach, Messiah) whom the Law and the Prophets declare. He is the One who has authority over heaven and earth, who has delivered us from all the power of the evil one, and who has given His church like authority (Luk 10:19, Mat 28:18).
As to our identity, we are who the Father declares us to be, and not who the enemy derisively declares us to be, or who our own hearts condemn us to be. It is the Father who is the truth-teller. When we become grounded in who Yeshua is, and who we are in Him, then we become an unstoppable force against which the gates of hell cannot prevail.
If there are questions, these are good resources:
Matthew 16:13-19, And I also say to you – Christine Miller
Mashiyach, “Anointed,” Strong’s H4899 – Christine Miller
In Christ: The Meaning and Implications of the Gospel of Jesus Christ – John R. W. Stott
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