Another sign that the Lord is choosing Peter personally is the fact that he changed his name. His name was Simon. But then Jesus suddenly declared that his name was Peter. And Peter it was, from that time forward.
It’s not the first time that God changed someone’s name as a sign that they were specially chosen to lead His people.
When He led Abram out of his homeland and into Israel and made His Covenant with him, he changed his name to Abraham.
When he chose Jacob as the leader of His people in the third generation, he named him Israel.
When He chose Saul to be his Apostle to the Gentiles, he changed his name to Paul.
It’s not the first time that God changed someone’s name as a sign that they were specially chosen...
I’m with you on this one.
I am not a Catholic and so my views may be a little weighted against the Papacy/Peter argument. As I look at the verses under scrutiny here I see it a little different than some.
I do believe that Jesus chose Peter, the rock to be the leader, the head of the church on earth after The Lord left the earth but I also believe that Christ was lecturing Peter on how he was to run the church. The “This” that Christ was going to build His church was not Peter but the knowledge or faith in Christ.
Christ just got done telling Peter that Peter only knew that Christ was The Son of God because His Father made it known to him. Every person who becomes a follower of Christ and is Baptized into a church must also know just like Peter that Christ is Lord. To me the scripture we are talking about says that The Lord is basing His Church on the Knowledge that Christ is the Son of God and that Peter was to use this means of his receiving that information to run the church in Christ’s absence.
If you don’t know Christ is Lord then I’m not sure anything else matters. If you do know it you must wonder how it is that you know it. The Holy Spirit reveals truth to us. If you don’t have the revealed truth that Jesus is Lord how in the world can you Have His church. Once God has revealed this wonderful truth to you, THEN you are on the right track at least heading in the right direction.
There you have it, 51 Biblical Proofs Of A Pauline Papacy And Ephesian Primacy!