I know the root of why the Catholics hold this belief of Peter being the rock that Jesus would build His church on , but for the life of me I just can't understand why any protestant denomination would hold the same beliefs or teachings, except for just as Jesus spoke of, leaven.
Peter was as shaky as they come, wavering from one extreme to the next. Peter was also a man. in the book of Matthew Peter is defined a rock but the word translates to little stone or pebble as seen in John. Although the words rock and stone are used interchangeably in our society, but there's a clear distinction biblically in the two.
Mark 15:46 shows this in one verse;
And he bought fine linen, and took him down, and wrapped him in the linen, and laid him in a sepulcher which was hewn out of a rock, and rolled a stone unto the door of the sepulcher.
In the O.T. Rock is solid and what the earth is founded on and stone is what's thrown and able to be moved, thus God wrote the law on stone.
Looking at the fulness of scripture there's no way Peter is the Rock Jesus builds His church on. Jesus even rebukes Peter in the same chapter " get behind me satan".
In Matthew 7 it's clear, if any man hear these words of Mine and do them, I will liken him to a wise man that built his house on the rock. In Matthew 16, Peter had just heard the word from God and proclaimed what he heard, " You are the Son of the living God" and Jesus makes the statement on this rock I will build My church. Even Jesus(Son of man) was called the "chef cornerstone" and we "as living stones". We are all just pieces (stones) of the rock.
God's word is the Rock which the Church will be built, Rhema and written. The Rhema clarifies the written. It was the Rhema that clarified what was written to Peter.