Chapter Six
Rome's Doctrine of Apostolic Succession

Was Peter the First Pope?

       When Jesus came into the coasts of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, saying, Whom do men say that I the Son of man am?
         And they said, Some say that thou art John the Baptist: some, Elias; and others, Jeremias, or one of the prophets.
         He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am?
         And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.
         And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven. And I say unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven (Matthew 16:13-19)

       The fallacy of papal infallibility, and consequently the entire theological structure of the Roman church, rests upon the assumption that Christ conferred upon Peter in the above verses from Matthew's gospel the first place of honor and jurisdiction in governing His Church, thereby designating him as the first pope. The very existence of the Romish papacy depends upon this claim being true, for each pope claims to derive his authority and his alleged infallibility from Peter through what is known as "Apostolic Succession." Therefore, it is of necessity that we closely examine the passage in question to determine just what the Lord's intentions were in speaking these words.
       First of all, two different Greek words were used for "rock" and "Peter" in Matthew 16:18 -- the former (petra) indicating an immovable mass of rock, and the latter (petros) referring to a small chip of that rock. Thus, by giving Simon the name of Peter (petros), the Lord Jesus identified him as but a part of that rock upon which the Church was established, but not the rock itself. Who or what, then, was the rock of which Jesus spoke? Peter himself gave us the answer to that question in Matthew 16:16. In response to Christ's inquiry, "But whom say ye that I am?" Peter answered, "Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God." Clearly, Jesus Christ Himself, as the God-Man, was and ever remains the Rock, or Cornerstone, of the true Church, not Peter or any other mere mortal man:

       As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby: if so be ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious. To whom coming, as unto a living stone, disallowed indeed of men, but chosen of God, and precious, ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ. Wherefore also it is contained in the scripture, Behold, I lay in Sion a chief corner stone, elect, precious: and he that believeth on him shall not be confounded. Unto you therefore which believe he is precious: but unto them which be disobedient, the stone which the builders disallowed, the same is made the head of the corner, and a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offence, even to them which stumble at the word, being disobedient: whereunto also they were appointed (1 Peter 2:4-6).

       In this passage from Peter's first epistle, he unabashedly ascribed the name petros to every believer in Christ and wrote that God has assembled His elect together as "an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ." There is no mention here of an earthly hierarchy of popes, bishops, and priests who are set apart from the people of God and to whom their consciences must be subject, for Peter clearly places all Christians on an equal footing with himself under the headship of Christ alone. It is true that Christ has indeed placed placed pastors and teachers among His people "for the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, [and] for the edifying of the body of Christ" (Ephesians 4:12), but the necessity of learning, order, and discipline in the Church does not detract from the fact that every Christian is a petros, and that these "lively stones" are constructed together to form what the Reformers called "the priesthood of all believers." Nowhere in Scripture are we ever told that Jesus Christ ordained Peter, or any other man, to take His place as "head of the church" (Ephesians 5:23) and her "Shepherd and Bishop" (1 Peter 2:25). Contrary to the claims of Rome, the Church began long before the First Century in the very Garden of Eden, and the eternal Son of God, has always been the Rock upon which it is built:

       He is the Rock, his work is perfect: for all his ways are judgment: a God of truth and without iniquity, just and right is he.... For their rock is not as our Rock, even our enemies themselves being judges.... For the LORD shall judge his people, and repent himself for his servants, when he seeth that their power is gone, and there is none shut up, or left. And he shall say, Where are their gods, their rock in whom they trusted, which did eat the fat of their sacrifices, and drank the wine of their drink offerings? let them rise up and help you, and be your protection. See now that I, even I, am he, and there is no god with me: I kill, and I make alive: I wound, and I heal: neither is there any that can deliver out of my hand (Deuteronomy 32:4, 31, 36-39).

         There is none holy as the LORD: for there is none beside thee: neither is there any rock like our God (1 Samuel 2:2).

         And David spake unto the LORD the words of this song in the day that the LORD had delivered him out of the hand of all his enemies, and out of the hand of Saul: and he said, The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; the God of my rock; in him will I trust: he is my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my high tower, and my refuge, my saviour; thou savest me from violence.... For who is God, save the LORD? and who is a rock, save our God? (2 Samuel 22:1-3, 32).

         Truly my soul waiteth upon God: from him cometh my salvation. He only is my rock and my salvation; he is my defense; I shall not be greatly moved.... In God is my salvation and my glory: the rock of my strength, and my refuge, is in God (Psalm 62:1-2, 7).

         For we are labourers together with God: ye are God's husbandry, ye are God's building. According to the grace of God which is given unto me, as a wise masterbuilder, I have laid the foundation, and another buildeth thereon. But let every man take heed how he buildeth thereupon. For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 3:9-11).

         Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea; and were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea; and did all eat the same spiritual meat; and did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ (1 Corinthians 10:1-4).

         Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreignors, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God; and are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone; in whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord: in whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit (Ephesians 2:19-22).

Is the Roman Papacy Valid?

       If Peter's supremacy in the Church of the First Century can be thus proven to be a fabrication of Rome, then the Romish papacy, which derives its supposed authority from him, is consequently invalid. This assertion is further substantiated in the tenth chapter of the gospel of Mark. Following a dispute among the disciples over which of them was to be the greatest among them, the Lord Jesus sternly rebuked them by saying:

       The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat... and love the uppermost rooms at feasts, and the chief seats in the synagogues, and greetings in the markets, and to be called of men, Rabbi, Rabbi. But be not ye called Rabbi: for one is your Master, even Christ; and all ye are brethren. And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven. Neither be ye called masters: for one is your Master, even Christ. But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant. And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted (Matthew 23:2, 6-12).

       The Lord's obvious displeasure with such behavior among His people is likewise inferred from His warning to the church at Pergamun in Revelation 2:15-16: "So hast thou also them that hold the doctrine of the Nicolaitans, which thing I hate. Repent; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will fight against them with the sword of my mouth." Although neither Scripture nor history has left us a record as to the identity of the sect known as the Nicolaitans, a dissection of the term itself will give us an idea of what it was that the Lord hated about their doctrine. Apparently, "Nicolaitan" is a compound of two Greek words: nikao, or "to conquer" or "to subdue," and laos, which is translated "laity" or simply "people." Nicolaitans, therefore, would have been those within the Church who sought to divide an otherwise equal fellowship of believers by usurping the throne of Christ and lording themselves over the consciences of God's people. This is precisely what the Roman papacy has done in declaring "it to be necessary to salvation for every human creature to be subject to the Roman Pontiff." Romanists would do well to heed the words of their own alleged "first pope":

       The elders which are among you I exhort, who am also an elder, and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of the glory that shall be revealed: feed the flock of God which is among you, taking the oversight thereof, not by constraint, but willingly; not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind; neither as being lords over God's heritage, but being ensamples to the flock, and when the chief Shepherd shall appear, ye shall received a crown of glory that fadeth not away (1 Peter 5:1-4).