The Letters of Peter

Peter: Who was he?

Peter is Greek meaning “rock”. The word “Peter” was not a person’s name at that time in history, but a noun or word of description. Peter’s original name was Simon meaning “hearing”. There was no one else named “Peter” in New Testament times. That’s one way we know that he wrote the letters of 1 & 2 Peter.

Simon was a master fisherman on the Lake of Galilee. He was a crusty and unassuming individual, yet he became one of the earliest disciples of Jesus and one of Jesus’s closest friends. He was also the first to recognize Jesus as the Messiah and became the natural leader of the twelve apostles.

Peter is most famous for his three-time denial of Jesus. Since he was one of Jesus’s closest friends and had been the first to know Jesus as the Messiah, that makes his denial of Christ even more distressing.

Through the stories about him, we know he was constantly making mistakes, very forgiving, sometimes boisterous and enthusiastic, well-intentioned and self-confident. His confidence waned, however, as he grew more humble in Jesus’s presence.

Sources for what we know about Peter come from the Gospels, Acts, Galatians, and his two letters of 1 & 2 Peter.

• He was the son of Jonah (or John).
• (John 1:44) a native of Bethsaida (literally a ‘fisher home’ near the Lake of Galilee).
• (Mark 1:21, 29-31) (1 Corinthians 9:5) At the beginning of Jesus’s ministry, he lived at Capernaum with his wife and her family near the synagogue. Living in Galilee surrounded by Gentiles, Peter may have spoken Greek, but his native language would have been Aramaic and his Galilean accent was quite obvious in Jerusalem at the trial of Jesus.
• (Matthew 26:73) (Acts 4:13) The Sanhedrin saw Peter and John as “uneducated, common men” because of their lack of education in Jewish law and history. Yet they couldn’t deny what being with Jesus had done for them.
• They could see the change in these men because of the power of Jesus, just as a changed life convinces people of Christ’s power today. One of your greatest testimonies is the difference others see in your life and attitudes because of your belief in Christ.
• (Luke 5:6-9) Peter and his brother, Andrew, were fishermen in partnership with Zebedee and his sons, James and John. Because Jesus drew his followers from the hardy men who braved the west wind’s squalls, men who were not dreamers, but were content to do their work from day to day, it is their speech and simple craft, not the jargon of spiritual fanatics, that has become the language and symbolism of Christianity.
• From his calling by Jesus to his denial of Jesus, Peter was always a man of action, full of impulsive and aggressive energy, had a childlike simplicity, was daring, yet showed a weak and cowardly side also.
• His humility is illustrated in the Gospel of Mark, which shows him in a far less favourable light than the other Gospels.
• The word ‘disciple’ means ‘pupil’, and Peter was willing to learn and was deeply concerned about his faith. Peter and Andrew were probably disciples of John the Baptist during the time he taught and performed baptisms by the River Jordan.
• (John 1:40-42) Peter was introduced to Jesus by Andrew the day Jesus was baptized by John the baptist. Jesus greeted him saying, “So you are Simon, the son of John? You shall be called Cephas” (Cephas is Aramaic for ‘rock’, the equivalent of the Greek word “Peter”. “Peter” became his personal name and was applied to no one else in the New Testament.
• Jesus saw not only who Simon was, but who he would become. That is why he gave him a new name. Peter was not portrayed as ‘rock solid’ throughout the gospels, but he became a solid rock in the days of the early church. His first words to Peter after changing his name were “Come, follow me.”
• Peter and Andrew, along with Philip, probably returned with Jesus to Galilee and attended the wedding at Cana where Jesus changed the water to wine as told in John 2:11, after which they resumed their fishing on the lake.
• (Mark 1:29-31) When Jesus arrived at Capernaum to begin his ministry there, upon leaving the synagogue, he went straight to the house of Peter and Andrew, where he cured Peter’s mother-in-law of a fever.
• (Luke 5:1-11) Later, Jesus used Peter’s boat to speak to the crowds on shore. This was when Jesus told them to cast their nets after they’d fished all night and caught nothing. When they drew up the nets, they were filled with fish, amazing everyone. This was when Jesus invited them to become “fishers of men” by joining him as full-time students and disciples.
• Peter’s house in Capernaum became the headquarters for Jesus’s lakeside ministries, and Peter’s boat was always at His disposal.

In order to do a complete study of Peter, we would have to study the entire book of Acts, along with the four gospels. But in summary, Peter was a man with great faith, many flaws, and someone each of us can identify with. He was eager, impulsive, energetic, self-confident, aggressive, & daring. He was also unstable, fickle, weak, and sometimes cowardly. He was guided more by quick impulse than logical reasoning, and was readily swayed from one extreme to another. He was forward and rash, but his love for Jesus and his association with Him moulded him into a man of stability, humility, and courage.

• (John 6:66-69) This is only one example where Peter showed himself to be the most vocal of all of the disciples.
• When they had questions, it was Peter that spoke up to ask Jesus for answers.
• It was also Peter who stood up for Jesus against anyone who dared to question his authority as the Messiah.
• Peter was entrusted with the preparation of the Last Supper, along with John, where Jesus foretold of his threefold denial.
• It was Peter who tried to prevent Jesus from being arrested by using his sword to cut the ear of one of the soldiers, but he was rebuked by Jesus for this.

Although passionate and well-meaning, he did deny Jesus three times, and he fell asleep in the Garden of Gethsemane when Jesus asked him to be watchful.

Jesus had an inner circle of three that He allowed to accompany Him at certain times.

• These three were James, John, and Peter.
• (Mark 5:37) Only these three were allowed to go with Him when Jesus went into the house to raise the synagogue ruler’s daughter.
• (Mark 9:2) They were the only three allowed to witness the transfiguration.
• (Matthew 26:37) Only these three men were allowed to share the agony in the Garden of Gethsemane.

(Matthew 16:16-18) Jesus told Peter “You are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the powers of death shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven…”

The other disciples did show a little jealousy at times because they didn’t see Peter as being their ‘leader’, nor did they accept that he had any authority over them.

• (Matthew 20:20-28) where the mother of James and John asked Jesus to place her sons on his right and left in his kingdom;
• (Mark 9:33-34) where the disciples argued about who would be the greater;
• (Luke 22:24-27) another argument among the disciples about who was the greatest.
• While He was with them, Jesus alone was recognized as their leader.

The Gospels do not mention anything about Peter from the night of Jesus’s trial to the morning of his resurrection, but 1 Peter 5:1 says that he was a witness of the sufferings of Christ. On the Sunday after the crucifixion, Peter and John ran to the tomb and found it empty. Both Luke and Paul report that Jesus appeared to Peter alone on the day of the resurrection.

(John 21:15-17) When Jesus appeared to the disciples after his resurrection, Jesus tested Peter’s devotion by asking him “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” He asked him three times because he had denied him three times. Then he said “Feed my sheep.”

(John 21:22) Just as the first words Jesus spoke to Peter were “Come, follow me”, his last words to Peter were “You must follow me.” This was spoken right after Jesus alluded to Peter’s death by crucifixion, another way he would ‘follow him.’

Peter stumbled now and then, but he never failed to follow Jesus.

• Note that when Jesus chose his followers, he didn’t choose perfect people. He chose people that would be changed by His love and His teachings, then He sent them out to communicate that his acceptance was available to anyone—even those who often fail.
• We learn from Peter that it is better to be a follower who fails now and then than one who fails to follow at all.

At Jesus’s ascension, he commissioned the apostles to go out into the world to spread the gospel, and after his ascension, it was Peter who assumed the leadership role of the apostles.

• He was the one to suggest a choice for the replacement of Judas and he was the one that spoke for the apostles on the day of Pentecost.
• He was also the first of the apostles to perform a miracle in the name of Jesus by healing the cripple at the Gate of the Temple.
• He defended himself and John before the Sanhedrin court and pronounced the condemnation of Ananias and Sapphira.
• He became well-known for his miracles done in the name of Jesus and it was he and John that were sent to Samaria where, through the laying-on of their hands, the Holy Spirit came to the baptized believers.
• He also converted and baptized Cornelius, a Roman centurion, and his whole household at Caesarea.

In Galatians 2:11-14, Paul mentions his reprimand of Peter during his visit to Antioch, where Peter gave in to the demands of some Jewish-Christians by disassociating himself temporarily from the Gentiles.

Galatians 2:9 tells us that Peter was considered one of the pillars of the church in Jerusalem.

Historians declare that Peter went to Rome where, as an old man, he was crucified head downwards, during the reign of Nero around AD64.

It is believed that these letters were written during his time in Rome during a time of persecution, possibly just before he was crucified.

Many first-century followers of Christ suffered because they were being abused and persecuted for believing in and obeying Jesus. Peter knew persecution because he was beaten and jailed often. He’d seen his fellow Christians die and watched the church scatter. But he knew Christ, and nothing could shake his faith in his risen Lord. In these letters, Peter wrote to the church which was scattered and suffering for their faith, giving them comfort and hope, and urging them to continue in their loyalty to Christ.

LETS DISCUSS IT! I welcome your comments. If you have any comments or questions regarding this study, please contact Joanne at biblestudyFACTS@comcast.net

The next lesson will be posted on or about June 1, 2008.