"When Jesus came into the coasts of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, saying, 'Whom do men say that I the Son of man am?' And they said, 'Some say that Thou art John the Baptist: some, Elias; and others, Jeremias, or one of the prophets.' He saith unto them, 'But whom say ye that I am?' And Simon Peter answered and said, 'Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.' And Jesus answered and said unto him, 'Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-Jona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but My Father Which is in heaven. And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.' Then charged He His disciples that they should tell no man that He was Jesus the Christ." -- MATTHEW 16:13-20 (KJV)

This is a question of paramount importance to all mankind: Who do ye say I am? What do we say about Jesus? Who do we understand Him to be? Is He the founder and sustainer of the church, or has He given that authority to someone else, some other head? And what is the rock? Is it a person? Is it a group of people?

In verse 14 several of Jesus' disciples answered His question by saying what men were saying about Him. But then in verse 15, Jesus asks, "But whom say ye that I am?" Now it is time for Jesus' followers to make a testimonial confession of the true identity of Who Jesus is. Simon Peter spoke, saying, "Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God."

It is of interest to note that "Peter" was a name given to Simon by Jesus Himself. John 1:42 records this as follows: "And he brought him to Jesus. And when Jesus beheld him, He said, "Thou art Simon the son of Jona: thou shalt be called Cephas, " (which is by interpretation, a stone.)" So here Simon when he initially met Jesus was given something, a name, from someone else, namely Jesus. Now when Jesus asks the question "Who do you say I am," Simon also reveals he has been given something, the true identity of Jesus from someone else, namely Jesus' Father in heaven.

Also of interest is the way Simon said, "Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God." Jesus responded to Him in verse 17, calling him Simon (his natural given name) Bar-Jona; that is, son of Jona. This was Simon's flesh and blood name. This was not a name which was given to Simon by Divinity. But the revelation of Who Jesus is was given to Simon by Divine revelation just as the name Peter was given to Simon by Divine pronouncement.

In verse 18, Jesus says, "And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter." Jesus says here, you are not only Simon, son of Jona (flesh identity), but you are also Peter (spiritual identity), the name that Jesus gave Simon by Divine pronouncement. This is because these passages are all concerning revelation from above. Then Jesus says, "And upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it."

So, the question would be: Since Jesus gave Simon the new name Peter (rock), does this mean Jesus is saying His church is built upon Peter? No. Jesus is saying His church is built on revelation from above; that is, from God in heaven about the true identity of Jesus. Whenever Jesus did anything, He only did what the Father had revealed to Him. John 5:19 reads:

"Then answered Jesus and said unto them, 'Verily, verily, I say unto you, The Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He seeth the Father do: for what things he doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise.'"

So when Jesus gave Simon Bar-Jona the new name "Cephas," or "Peter," it was at the direction of and according to the Heavenly Father's will. And when Simon Peter confessed that Jesus was the Christ, the Son of the living God, it was at God's direction and according to the Heavenly Father's will that Peter had received the knowledge of who Jesus really was. One must understand the subject matter at hand is - Who is Jesus?

Jesus in verse 17 identified Simon as the son of Jona, then announced that His Father in heaven had revealed Jesus' true identity to Simon Bar-Jona. Then in verse 18, Jesus speaks to Simon and uses the name He had given him (Peter). So, here we have two revelations in close proximity.

So, what is the rock upon which Jesus was going to build and is building His church? Psalms 62:1-2 reads:

"Truly my soul waiteth upon God: From Him cometh my salvation. He only is my Rock and my salvation; He is my defence; I shall not be greatly moved."

The Rock is God in heaven and His Divine revelation according to His will of Who Jesus is to His followers. For when one truly recognizes Who Jesus is, which is a work of God in heaven, and exercises faith in Him, they become members of His body. Colossians 1:18 reads:

"And He is the head of the body, the church: Who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence."

What does the expression, "and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it" mean? One would be wise to notice here that the word translated as "hell" in the King James Version is the Greek word hades. This word, hades, is equivalent to the Hebrew word sheol. In Isaiah 38:10 we have a parallel passage we can hold up to this one to add insight to this terminology. This passage reads:

"I said 'in the cutting off of my days, I shall go to the gates of the grave: I am deprived of the residue of my years.'"

Here we find the expression "gates of the grave." The word translated as grave in this passage is the Hebrew word sheol, which is the same as the Greek word hades in Matthew 16:18. So, the phrase the "gates of the grave (sheol)" or the "gates of hell (hades)" means the ability to hold one in death. In Acts 2 the Apostle Peter gave an eloquent account of Jesus Christ rising from the dead in His resurrection. In Acts 2:24 we read:

"Whom God hath raised up, having loosed the pains of death: because it was not possible that He should be holden of it."

So here we see testimony that Jesus Christ rose from the dead. The gates of hades could not prevail against Jesus Christ.

"But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept." -- 1 Corinthians 15:20

Just as the grave was not able to prevail against Jesus Christ, the head of the church (Ephesians 1:22-23), even so the grave will not prevail against those who are His followers, His Body. 1 Corinthians 15:22,23 reads:

"For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ's, at His coming."

These passages are a wonderful assurance that at the time appointed all who are "in Christ" shall be made alive at Christ's coming. Hades (the grave, hell) shall not prevail against Christ's church.

What about the "binding and loosing" which is referenced in verse 19? We can find very similar language used in Matthew 18:18 which reads:

"Verily I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven."

When we examine the verses preceeding Matthew 18:18, we find here that Jesus is describing responsibility and authority within the church. "Binding and loosing" means the church has authority on earth because it has been given that authority by God (Matthew 16:19; 18:18). In 1 Corinthians 6:2-5 the Apostle Paul speaks of the church's authority to judge things pertaining to this life; that is, things on earth.