Was Peter the First Pope?

What I’m going to talk about today is perhaps THE MOST misunderstood verse in the entire world today.

And I say that because there are about 1.4 billion Catholics in the world. If we were to consider Catholics a denomination of Christianity, then we Protestant denominations are far outnumbered. We who are Methodists, Pentecostals, Baptists, Southern Baptists, Free Will Baptists, Independent Fundamental Baptists, whatever those guys in Skillet are- all of us. If you added up all of the Protestant denominations together, you’d be under a billion, so we are far outnumbered by the Catholics.

And we Protestants agree with Catholics on a lot of things: the deity of Christ, the Trinity, Creation of the World from nothing, the authority of the Bible, the supremacy of Chick-Fil-A, lots of doctrines that we build our faith on.

But the reason I say that we’re tackling the most misunderstood verse in the whole Bible today is because Protestants have a very different take on this verse than Catholics do. And it’s this verse that suggests that the worldwide church was started with and built on Peter. 

All because…Jesus said so. Or that’s what it sounds like, at least.

In Matthew 16, Jesus said, 

And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. 

And Peter there, by the way, is Petros in the Greek, which means “stone.”

Wait a minute- do Protestants have this right? Is the church built on Peter? Was Peter truly the first pope?

I find this to be weird, and I’d like to explore why it’s in the Bible. 

Turn to Matthew 16, and let’s get weird.

0:00 - Introduction

2:00 - The Context

8:00 - Petros and Petra

14:15 - Next Time

16:40 - Closing Thoughts

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Hosted by Luke Taylor

If you’re intrigued by strange Bible stories, uncovering Bible mysteries, or learning about unusual biblical teachings, this podcast is for you! Dive deep into weird Bible facts, biblical controversies, and the supernatural in the Bible, while exploring the hidden stories of the Bible you may have never heard. Get a fresh perspective as we explain the Bible in ways that challenge the norm and uncover the unexpected. I’m so glad you’re here- don’t forget to SUBSCRIBE so that you never miss an episode!