God protects the church of Christ. One means is the so-called Petrine office. And that has implications both for the Church leadership and the individual member.
At the core of it all is Matthew 16: 18: “And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.”
The indestructible church
“Jesus Christ reveals here that His church is indestructible,” a recently published doctrinal letter states. We do not have to worry about the survival of the church of Christ. The Almighty is watching over it. Christ will lead His work to perfection.”
But “Jesus is not talking about the church in the sense of an institution endowed with its own structure and properties, nor of all the activities familiar to us in our congregations. The promise of Christ concerns only that which constitutes the essence of His church: the preaching of the gospel, the dispensation of the sacraments, and the fellowship of the believers”.
Building on that which endures
This is a requirement of the Apostles for their mission to lead the church (CNAC 7.6.2): “More than ever, we must give priority to that which is called to endure until the return of the Lord: the preaching of the gospel, the dispensation of the sacraments, and our fellowship,” Chief Apostle Jean-Luc Schneider underlines. “These priorities must be reflected in all the decisions we make concerning the allocation of our human and financial resources,” he says further.
Developing, strengthening, and tending
The establishment of the so-called Petrine office is one of the measures Jesus took in order to protect His church from the forces of evil. To this end, he gave Peter the power of the keys (Matthew 16: 19), commissioned him to strengthen his brothers (Luke 22: 32), and entrusted him with His flock (John 21: 15–17).
“The office and tasks which the Lord entrusted to Apostle Peter are today discharged by the Chief Apostle,” the Catechism makes it clear. This is manifested in “keeping the doctrine pure while developing it further, opening up new insights, and uniformly spreading the testimony of faith.”
Focusing on the essentials
Last but not least, it is about the unity of the church. Peter preserved this at the Council of Jerusalem by admonishing the Apostles and Elders to focus on the essentials (Acts 15: 6–11).
“In our time, the Chief Apostle must see to it that the Apostles and the Regional Churches they lead remain united, despite their different cultures and traditions,” it says in the essay. “He does so by emphasising that which is truly essential for salvation.”
And the Chief Apostle “must see to it that all the sheep of Christ have what they need for their salvation. In order to do so, he promotes solidarity among the various components of the church.”
Rock-solid role model
“By designating Peter as the rock, Jesus gave Peter to us as an example,” the Chief Apostle emphasises. “Nothing can separate us from Christ if, like Peter, we have a strong faith in Jesus Christ, the Son of the living God; are humble and realise that we owe our salvation to Jesus; and are truly filled with love for Christ.”
Peter was far from being perfect, Chief Apostle Schneider admits. But Peter’s weakness did not prevent Christ from blessing His church through him. We can be certain: Jesus Christ will lead His work to perfection despite the imperfection of His servants!
The essay on the Petrine office was recently featured in community, 4/2024. The complete text was published in a special edition of the Divine Service Guide 2/2023 and is based on the spiritual part of the District Apostle Meeting that took place in June 2022.
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