My name is Peter. My name used to be Simon.
I was born in Bethsaida. My father's name is Jonah. I have a brother named Andrew. We are fishermen.
A man named Jesus came by one day on the beach and invited my brother and me to follow him. We dropped everything and followed him. We followed him around for three years.
This man Jesus was unlike anyone we had ever met. He was a rabbi and his preaching and teaching went to our very hearts. He performed many impressive miracles to help explain what he was preaching and teaching about. He was clearly someone special.
Jesus was the most loving man I had ever met – and his love was contagious. But he kept talking about going up to Jerusalem one day to suffer and die at the hands of our own people and then to be put to death by the Romans – because he loved everyone so much. I tried to talk him out of it – but he became very upset with me and even called me a satan for trying to stop him from doing his duty!
One day when the group of us was walking he asked us who everyone was saying that he was. We all had different answers, but somehow I heard myself say: "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." Jesus turned to me and smiled and said: "Simon, Son of Jonah, no mere human being has revealed this to you, but it was my heavenly Father." It looks like he has made his choice. And so I say to you, now, "you are Peter (Rock) and on this "rock" I will build my church and the gates of the netherworld (hell) will not prevail against it. I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven." I had no idea at the time what he was talking about. But in time it all happened just as he said it would.
The week before he died, Jesus took me and James and his brother John up a high mountain and something amazing happened: everything turned all white and glowing, very white and very glowing; and we heard a voice say: "This is my beloved Son on whom my favor rests, listen to him!" We never forgot what we saw!
The night before he died he did something strange: Jesus took bread and wine at a supper we were having and said: THIS IS MY BODY which will be given up for you; THIS IS MY BLOOD which will be poured out for you. Then he said for us to DO THIS IN HIS MEMORY! It was a while before we truly understood what he was giving us – and what he was asking us to do!
That night I and James and John fell asleep in a garden when he asked us to pray with him. Then later on I denied THREE TIMES that I even knew him. I was so shocked and ashamed after that that I cried my eyes out all night long.
The next day I was in hiding when Jesus died on the cross! I thought they would come to get me too!
But three days later – on a Sunday morning some women came to us all excited with some news that JESUS WAS ALIVE! just as he said he would be! We didn't take them too seriously for a while. But that night Jesus came among us while we were in a locked room (the place where we ate the supper with him) and he said to us: PEACE! then he breathed on us and said RECEIVE THE HOLY SPIRIT, GO AND FORGIVE SINS!
And so it was true, he was alive – and for the next 40 days he prepared us 11 for the day which he would go back to heaven – where he came from in the first place. During that time, one day he asked me THREE TIMES if I loved him; and THREE TIMES I said to him YES, LORD, YOU KNOW THAT I LOVE YOU! to which he said: FEED MY LAMBS, TEND MY SHEP, FEED MY SHEEP! It was clear now that I would truly be in charge of the band of 11 (but soon again to be 12) brother Apostles. And that I would be a key figure in the foundation of the Church that would come to life on the day of Pentecost – which would endure until the end of the world.
On that glorious Pentecost Day – while we were praying with Mary, Jesus mother, in that same upper room where we ate Jesus' Last Supper – the Spirit of God – the Gift of Jesus and His Father came upon us with the sound of a roaring wind; and there were tongues of flame coming to rest on our heads. We were filled with powerful gifts of the Spirit so that we could go and do what Jesus told us to do on his Ascension Day – to baptize and to preach and to teach – everyone – to perform signs and bring the Good News of salvation and the arrival of God's Kingdom - to the ends of the earth.
I spent my time doing that with the Jewish people. I did everything I could to convince them that the long-awaited Messiah had come in Jesus – the long wait was over. And that the deliverance that he brought and the establishment of a kingdom was not an earthly one like they expected – it was rather a much more important spiritual one that would affect absolutely everyone – forever!
After ten years of doing this more or less successfully – shortly after James, the first of our group, was martyred for Jesus in the Roman persecutions of Christians – I too gave my life for him and was crucified. But I asked to be turned upside down in my crucifixion because I was not worthy to die exactly the same way that my Master, My Lord, My Best Friend Jesus did. And this favor was granted me.
Thank you for celebrating my life, my faith, my position in the Church of Jesus and my death this day. You are all in my prayers daily! "Peace to all of you who are in Christ!"
My name is Paul.
I was born in Tarsus. My name used to be Saul. I am a Roman citizen, though also a Jew and studied under Rabbi Gamaliel – a famous teacher in Jerusalem. I professed myself to be a Pharisee. I prided myself on knowing the Jewish legal prescriptions and defended the Jewish faith stalwartly.
I happened to be present when a deacon of the Christian church,, Stephen, was being stoned to death – the first martyr for the sake of the New Way. I did nothing to stop it.
Then one day, my life changed while I was making my way toward Damascus to further thwart the spread of Christianity. There was a blinding light! I fell to the ground! And a voice came that said: "Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?" I knew that it was Jesus speaking directly to me!
I was led into Damascus to the house of a disciple of Jesus named Ananias. I was deeply filled with the presence of Jesus and the Holy Spirit and I asked for baptism immediately and I was baptized and my name became Paul.
It was very clear that Jesus had taken possession of me and that my life's work would be unlike anything I had ever dreamed it would be. All of my energy and talent was suddenly directed the opposite way! The first thing I did was to give public testimony before King Agrippa. This set the stage for the rest of my life.
Jesus knew exactly where he wanted me to be and what he wanted me to do. As Peter – was head of the Church, residing in Rome – whose task was to convert the children of Israel; my duty would be to bring the Gospel message to the rest of the known world. To this end I made three missionary journeys – the territories included Ephesus, Galatia, Corinth, Antioch, Thessalonica and Macedonia.
Just as the 12 relied heavily on the presence of the Spirit to make them strong, courageous and articulate when necessary – so did I also rely on the Spirit. I may be well educated, but I am not all that eloquent a speaker. Yet, it is in my weakness that the power of God can shine forth and Jesus can get his work done using me! And it did shine!
The one thing that ended up happening is that a lot of the letters that I wrote to the Christian communities that I had visited in my journeys actually became part of the Bible – part of a new part of the Bible called the New Testament. I kind of felt the Spirit of God helping me to form words and ideas when I was writing those letters. I also wrote an account of the activity of the apostles in general in setting up the infant Christian communities.
I endured all kinds of treatment in delivering the gospel: both good and bad as I made my journeys. I was treated very well – but also very badly: I was beaten, I was stoned, I was starved, I was shipwrecked, and I was imprisoned several times. Yet, I never gave up hope, and never stopped doing my duty. I kept running the race, as I called it, straining on to get the prize which I know will be life everlasting with Jesus. I love Jesus so much now that I feel that he is living his life completely and directly in me. Would that everyone can have this same experience! And they can, if they just repent of their sins and let Jesus possess them as I did
I am now in prison in Rome because I am a Roman citizen. I rejoice that soon I will be able to die for Christ as I had always longed to do. I know that whether I live or die I am his, so it makes no difference to me. It is the time of the Emperor Nero and the Church is suffering greatly – I am happy to suffer with my fellow Christians. It is my hope that I can be buried at the tomb Peter, my fellow bishop, my fellow Christian, my great and dear friend.
Thank you for celebrating my life and death this day. "May the grace of our Lord Jesus, the love of God the Father and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all" – always!
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