LEARNING DAILY

Matthew 16:18, And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock, I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.

Peter, also known as Simon Peter, was introduced to Jesus by his brother Andrew. Jesus said to Peter, “Follow Me” and Peter dropped his fishing nets and did so. Peter is known for being impulsive, often aggressive in nature, bold and outspoken, often speaking without giving what he said too much thought. Yet, there was no question about his love and desire to please Jesus.

Peter was a fisherman by trade; several times Jesus found him discouraged because no fish had been caught during the night. When he followed the instructions of Jesus to throw out the nets again, the nets became so full of fish that they began to break and he needed help getting the nets to the boat. Even though he made some promises he could not keep and his hotheaded personality, the Bible usually list his name first when naming the disciples (for example Matthew 10:2). That indicates he was considered at least one of the leaders of the disciples. John MacArthur states, Peter’s name is mentioned in the Gospels more than any other name except Jesus…no one speaks as often as Peter, and no one is spoken to by the Lord as often as Peter…he is rebuked more, and he rebukes the Lord more than any other…no one confessed Christ more boldly, and no one denied Him more forcefully or publicly… no one is praised and blessed by Christ the way Peter was, and yet Peter was also the only one Christ ever referred to as Satan.”

Experience, as many of you know, can be a hard teacher. Even though Peter had his ups and downs, many were painful learning sessions, he declared Jesus “the Christ”. It was then Jesus declared He would build His church on Peter, the Rock (That’s the real Rock, by the way!!). Peter was the only disciple to get out of the boat to walk on water when Jesus told him to come. This Peter was the disciple that spoke up saying he would never deny the Lord; but did so three times as Jesus said he would. Yet, the Lord would later restore him by telling him to “feed His sheep”.

MacArthur shared character qualities defining Peter as a true leader that every Believer can learn from. “Character produces respect…respect produces trust…and trust motivates followers; in spiritual leadership, the goal and objective is to bring people to Christlikeness” (MacArthur).

Peter’s life was an example of submission by the way he submitted to the Lord and to those in authority over him. He developed restraint over his anger as seen when the religious leaders would challenge him. Peter had to become humble, learning the hard way “not to think more highly of himself than he should” (Romans 12:3). Another character trait MacArthur said Peter developed was learning to love others as Jesus did, following Jesus’ command to love God and to love others. During Peter’s life as a disciple and as an Apostle he had to learn to be courageous. The life he led as a preacher of the Gospel would be lived with trouble, torture, persecution, oppression, and ultimately martyrdom. The time he spent with Jesus serves as a reminder of how the Holy Spirit is able to transform lives as Believers walk a narrow way into the kingdom of God.

Peter was crucified upside down, believing he was not worthy to die in the same manner as his Lord.