𝗣𝗘𝗧𝗘𝗥 𝗢𝗥 𝗣𝗔𝗨𝗟? 𝗪𝗛𝗢 𝗜𝗦 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗠𝗔𝗦𝗧𝗘𝗥𝗕𝗨𝗜𝗟𝗗𝗘𝗥 𝗢𝗡 𝗖𝗛𝗥𝗜𝗦𝗧?

Peter or Paul? Who Is the Masterbuilder on Christ?

— Understanding Matthew 16:18–19 & 1 Corinthians 3:10 Through Right Division

There’s often confusion among Christians about who’s building what in the Bible.
Is Peter the foundation of the church today?
Did Jesus give him the “keys of the kingdom”?
Is Paul really the “masterbuilder”?

Let’s open the Bible and rightly divide the word of truth (2 Tim. 2:15) to understand what’s really going on.

1. What Jesus Said to Peter (Matthew 16:18–19)

“And I say also 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...” — Matthew 16:18–19 KJV

Jesus spoke this to Peter after he confessed, “Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

Peter was given authority to open the doors to the kingdom promised to Israel (Luke 12:32). He used these “keys” when he:

• Preached to Israel at Pentecost (Acts 2)

• Preached to the Jews in Acts 3

• Opened the door to the Gentile Cornelius in Acts 10

The “keys” given to Peter were kingdom keys—not church-age instructions for the Body of Christ.
He was foundational to Israel’s prophetic kingdom church, not the mystery church revealed later through Paul.

2. What Paul Says in 1 Corinthians 3:10

“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.” — 1 Corinthians 3:10 KJV

Paul declares himself the wise masterbuilder of the church which is Christ’s body (Col. 1:18, Eph. 1:22–23).
This church is not built on Israel’s covenants or Peter’s kingdom authority—it’s a new creature (2 Cor. 5:17), revealed as a mystery.

“The mystery, which in other ages was not made known...” — Ephesians 3:5
“...the dispensation of the grace of God which is given me to you-ward...” — Ephesians 3:2

Both Peter and Paul built upon Christ, but they built different things for different purposes under different revelations.

4. Why Mixing the Two Causes Confusion

If we try to blend Peter’s message to Israel with Paul’s message to the Body of Christ, we get:

• A confusing gospel (law + grace)

• Conflicted commands (baptism for remission vs. not sent to baptize)

• Church division, false accusations, and legalism

That’s why right division matters.

Paul was the first to preach Jesus Christ according to the revelation of the mystery (Rom. 16:25).

He was given the pattern for today’s church (1 Tim. 1:16), not Peter.

5. So Who Is Our Masterbuilder?

Answer: Paul.
Not because Paul is better, but because Christ revealed our instructions through him.

Peter never taught salvation by the cross alone to the Body of Christ.
But Paul says:

“I delivered unto you first of all… how that Christ died for our sins… was buried, and rose again...” — 1 Corinthians 15:3–4
“Not of works…” — Ephesians 2:9
“In whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that Holy Spirit of promise.” — Ephesians 1:13

Conclusion:

Christ is the only true foundation.
But Paul is the masterbuilder of the church today, building a spiritual temple (1 Cor. 3:16), not an earthly kingdom.

If you want to build wisely, you must build with Paul’s gospel and understand the difference between prophecy and mystery.

Matthew 16: Peter — Israel — Kingdom
1 Corinthians 3: Paul — Body of Christ — Grace

Both are true.
Both are biblical.
But they’re not the same.

“Consider what I say; and the Lord give thee understanding in all things.” — 2 Timothy 2:7