Page 67 - SoulWinning Crash Course

clusters are bitter: Their wine is the poison of dragons, and the cruel
venom of asps."

2 Samuel 22:32 "For who is God, save the LORD?

and who is a rock, save our God?"

Interpretation 2: The "rock" doesn't refer to a person at all, but to Peter's
confession of faith in Jesus Christ.

When Jesus said "...upon this rock I will build my church...", He was
referring to what Peter did seconds earlier: Matthew 16:16 "And Simon
Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living

God." Jesus was saying that "the church, Which is his body" (Ephesians
1:22-23) would be made up of those who have made a confession similar to
Peter's concerning their belief in the identity of Jesus Christ.

1 John 4:14-15 "And we have seen and do testify that the Father sent the
Son to be the Saviour of the world. Whosoever shall confess that Jesus
is the Son of God, God dwelleth in him, and he in God." After the cross,

the confession of faith would be of Jesus as He is defined more specifically
in "...the gospel...that Christ died for our sins... And that he was buried,
and that he rose again the third day..." (1 Corinthians 15:1-4), and hence,
Jesus said Peter was "Blessed" here, but not yet "converted" (Luke 22:32).

Romans 10:8-10 "...the word of faith, which we preach; That if thou shalt
confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart
that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with

the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth
confession is made unto salvation."

The "gates of hell" are ways of entering hell (e.g. sins, false beliefs), so they
"shall not prevail against" the confession of faith ("this rock") or the ones
who made it (the "church"), because the person's salvation is permanent and
irreversible when the confession is made.

Whether you believe Interpretation 1 or 2, the probable reason for Jesus
saying "thou art Peter" is the same. Notice in the verse before that, Jesus