Organized Religion

The only organized religion that is true, is God's church. Anyone who requires you to be a member of their church / denomination / group / institution instead of letting you have direct contact to God is leading you astray. Anyone who demands actions from you that are not in the Bible is wrong. For example, no mere mortal should be your intercessor.

In the Old Testament, God's laws were laid down through Moses. In the New Testament, Jesus Christ (Yeshua HaMashiach) fulfilled those laws and began His church.

Matthew 16 - "on this rock" - IN CONTEXT!


Verses 5 - 12, (summarized) Yeshua makes an analogy of the Pharasies and Sadduces being like yeast in bread, and we should be wary of it. The disciples didn't understand at first, meaning they took "yeast" = "bread" that you eat at face value.
Verses 13 - 14, (summarized) Yeshua asks His disciples who they think the Son of Man is, and they lose track of that too.
Verse 15, He (Yeshua) said to them, “But who do you say that I am?”
Verse 16, Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
Verse 17, Jesus (Yeshua) replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven.
Verse 18, And I tell you that you are Peter (a little stone), and on this rock (Christ/Messiah, the cornerstone) I will build my church, and the gates of Hell will not overcome it.

The word for “Peter,” Petros (a small stone) (John 1:42). Jesus/Yeshua used a play on words here with petra (“on this rock”) which means a foundation boulder, as in Matthew 7:24, 25 when He described the rock upon which the wise man builds his house.

If the translators replaced the second "and" in verse 18 with "but" it would have been clearer to the average reader.