Jesus says to Peter, "I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on Earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on Earth shall be loosed in heaven."
YOU hold the Keys to the Kingdom of Heaven You can unlock the door at any time You ARE the Key It is up to you.
“whatever you bind on Earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on Earth shall be loosed in heaven." You have the power to unite Heaven and Earth and to be sovereign as the Son of God and Christ King…..
When it is recorded in the Gospel that Jesus gave Peter the Keys to the Kingdom, this does not mean that he appointed Peter to be the leader of the Church and found the lineage of the Papacy….. He is just telling him that he can have the keys of the kingdom, just as any person has that right and privilege….
When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, He questioned His disciples: “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” “But what about you?” Jesus asked. “Who do you say I am?” Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Jesus 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. And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven. Whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” Then He admonished the disciples not to tell anyone that He was the Christ. - Matthew 16
He is just praising Peter for rightly understanding that Yeshua was “the Christ, the Son of the living God.” (as are you) He is saying it is that understanding that is “on this rock I will build My church” - not on Peter himself as a spiritual authority with the duty to create the whole Church structure…..
The scene at Caesarea Philippi follows Peter’s confession that Jesus is the Messiah. Jesus responds with a wordplay: “You are Peter [Petros], and on this rock [petra] I will build my church; I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven.” Most contemporary scholars accept that, in its immediate literary sense, “this rock” refers to Peter himself, given the deliberate pun and the Aramaic background (Kepha). The verse also introduces “church” (ekklesia), a rare term in the Gospels, indicating a community gathered under Jesus’ authority.
The “keys” allude to Isaiah 22:22, where the royal steward receives “the key of the house of David,” a symbol of delegated governance. “Binding and loosing” are rabbinic terms for authoritative halakhic decisions, admission/discipline in the community, and teaching authority. I