We explored Matthew 16:19 back in TOTT issue 79 (“Upon This Rock,” Sept./Oct. 2012), the main purpose of which was to demonstrate through both Scripture and history that Peter was not “the Rock” on which the Church was built, as is claimed by Roman Catholicism. We revisit this verse, however, for another purpose: to reemphasize exactly how our Lord intended to do this building. Did He intend to do this exclusively through the local church or did He intend for those churches to be aided by other separate entities commonly called “parachurch organizations” or “parachurch ministries.” We will first quickly review what the Church is and then define the parachurch and examine both its pros and cons.
