The Rock of the Church

The archaeological site of Caesarea Philippi is located in northern Israel at the foot of Mount Hermon, near the city of Dan, and is a major source of the Jordan River. This place may be the Baal-gad mentioned in the Old Testament (Joshua 11:17), where the Canaanites worshipped Baal. The Greeks later replaced Baal with their god Pan and renamed the area Paneas. Philip the Tetrarch, son of Herod the Great, rebuilt the city and named it “Caesarea Philippi” to flatter both the Roman Caesar and himself; “Philippi” means “of Philip.” Today, the site is known as Banias. While it was once filled with pagan temples, it now lies in ruins.

 From left to right: The marble temple dedicated to Roman Emperor Caesar Augustus built by Herod the Great (with the Cave of Pan behind it), a plaza dedicated to the Greek shepherd god Pan and the nymphs, a marble temple dedicated to Zeus, king of the Greek gods, a shrine for the Greek goddess of retribution, Nemesis, a tomb-temple for sacrificing goats, and the Temple of Pan and the flocks. Many other shrines dedicated to other idols were also carved into the rock face. Jesus intentionally led His disciples on a difficult 60-kilometer journey from Capernaum to this place, to stand amidst these pagan temples and ask His disciples, “Who do you say I am?” Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Jesus replied, “And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell will not overcome it” (Matthew 16:15-16, 18).

The name “Peter” means “stone.” After he confessed that Jesus was the “Son of the living God” and the promised “Christ” of the Old Testament, the King of the Kingdom of Heaven revealed His plan to establish His kingdom. Jesus would “destroy him who holds the power of death—that is, the devil” through His death, and build His “church” through His resurrected life. He would then use this church, which has grown to the stature of Christ, to confront the “gates of hell” and make the kingdom of heaven manifest on Earth, “saving His people from their sins.” The foundation of the church is not Peter, this “stone,” but the great “rock” of the “correct understanding of Christ.” In the four Gospels, only Matthew mentions the “church” twice (Matthew 16:18 and 18:17). The resurrected life of Christ supports the church, enabling it to continue growing despite two thousand years of trials, proving that “the gates of hell will not overcome it.”

(Edited and compiled based on the Chinese Union Version Bible and Comprehensive Biblical Interpretation)