God
of many names and expressions, call us to you today and show us how to be your
children. May all that we speak and
ponder upon be from you. Amen
Greetings from Nazareth! I am Simon Peter’s brother Andrew. I’ve come to tell you the story of my brother
and how it is that he became known as “the Rock”. Now, I will admit that it’s confusing right
off the bat. People call Jesus the Rock
upon which we build our lives. He is
referred to as the Cornerstone; and, most of the time, when you talk about the
Rock—even now—you are talking about Jesus.
But, Jesus himself designated my brother, Simon, as the “Rock” (capital
R) upon which he will build the church.
But, I’ve gotten way ahead of myself.
I’ll never forget the first time I
saw him, Jesus, that is. Simon and I
along with Zebedee’s boys, James and John, had fished all night. We were washing our nets though I don’t even
remember why since we had not caught a darn fish—oops, can I say that
here? Anyway, we’d pulled our boats up
to the edge of the lake and were busy getting them ready for the next
night. We looked up and there was this
man standing near to us. I wish I could
tell you what it was about this man, who, of course, turned out to be Jesus
that made him so different. All I know
was that he absolutely radiated peace and serenity. There was no denying that he had something
the rest of us didn’t have; but once you got to know him, you knew that he
wanted you to have it, too. He called to
us and went out in one of our boats. First, he spoke to the folks who had
suddenly appeared almost from nowhere. I
don’t remember what he said exactly, all I knew was that I was in the presence
of someone who had travelled where I had not yet gone. After he finished preaching, he said to
Simon, “Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch.” Now, as you get to know Simon, you’ll find
out that he often spoke before he thought, he was just like that, always, how
do you say it—putting his mouth in motion before his brain was in gear. So, he up and tells Jesus that we already
tried that all night long. But, he did it
anyway, just because Jesus asked. When
Simon tried to pull the nets back up into the boat he couldn’t do it, they were
so heavy with fish. James and John
brought their boat back out to help and both boats were so full of fish that
they sank—just like that, right then and there.
Simon seemed to know who Jesus was first, he was always the more intense
one of the two of us. Some people
thought we were twins, but, really, I am much taller than Peter. But I digress.
Simon begged Jesus to leave him
because of all the bad things he had done in his life; but, Jesus didn’t
budge. He said to Simon, “Don’t be
afraid, leave your nets and come with me to fish for people.” Fish for people, I couldn’t believe my ears;
but, off we go with this man who would become our very lives for the next three
years. Now, it wasn’t all smooth
sailing, if you’ll forgive my boating metaphor.
We were thrown out of towns and, a lot of the stuff Jesus said to us, we
didn’t really get—at least not the first time he said it. There were wonderful adventures and some
frightening ones, too. Everywhere that
we went, people crowded around Jesus. He
healed sick people, countless sick people.
He cast out demons and ate with sinners.
He seemed all about second chances, making people whole. But, enough about Jesus—you came to hear
about my brother, my big brother who would become the most famous of all of
us.
My brother had many wonderful
experiences with Jesus. Why, one time
when we were crossing over a lake and a storm came up, we were terrified. Jesus came to us and I swear to you, he was walking
on the water. Simon or Peter as he was
called by then, of course, had to try it, too.
And, he almost made it until he got afraid and started to sink. That’s when he called out to Jesus and Jesus
saved him from drowning. Jesus didn’t
seem to hold it against Peter that he didn’t have enough faith. For Jesus, it just seemed natural. Maybe next time, Peter could do it.
Let me tell you about how Simon got
a new name. Jesus was talking with us
and wanted to know what people were saying about him. Who did they think he was? Several answers later, he said, “Who do you
think I am?” Simon said immediately, “You
are the Christ, the Messiah!” Jesus was quick
with his praise for Simon’s answer. He
said, “You know this because you have been told by God.” Then he told Simon that his name was now
“Peter” which means “the rock”. He told
Peter that he would build his church, God’s church, on him and around him. Peter, I worked hard to call him “Peter”
after that, seemed to understand some of what Jesus was saying, but later we
realized that the timing wasn’t right for us to really understand.
Peter also went up the mountain with
Jesus and with James and John. None of
the rest of us got to go, but we were used to that—those three seemed to be
special to Jesus. For a long time, Simon
didn’t tell me what happened, but after Jesus was gone, he told me about Jesus
talking with Moses and Elijah. Then he
told me how embarrassed he was for what he said. Apparently, and this is no surprise, when
Moses and Elijah appeared, Peter went on about building tabernacles or tents to
remember the event. By the time Peter
was done making plans, it was all over and he had basically missed it because
he was so busy in his head thinking of things to do and say. Peter struggled with this all the
time—needing to just stop and listen for a while.
We went on through the villages and
towns, performing miracles and healing people.
All of us were now empowered to perform miracles even though our faith
faltered at times and Jesus would have to show us what to do. It was a hard three years—those years with
Jesus—and, yet, it changed my life forever.
None of us were ever the same, you can count on that. Finally, things started to wind down. First Jesus rides into Jerusalem on a
donkey—it was quite a scene. That last
week was all about Jesus. Even though we
didn’t know what was about to happen, it was if we all slowed down and really
tried to listen. Passover was coming and
on the eve of Passover, we were all at the Passover meal with Jesus. Jesus began talking and called us to remember
him in a very special way. I think that
you still do it, why, yes, I see the table here. Jesus told us that one would betray him. He wasn’t even talking about Peter at the
time, but by now you know how Peter was.
Peter said quickly, “I will never betray you.” Jesus said sadly, “Yes, you will. In fact, by the time the rooster crows you
will have denied me three times.” Peter
was devastated. He could hardly talk and
that was really something for Peter.
You all know the rest of that story,
Jesus was arrested and, sure enough, Peter did deny knowing Jesus three times
that night. When Peter realized what he
had down, he was so very sad. His heart
was broken and he couldn’t believe that God would ever use him again, but he
was very wrong on that count. Peter was
one of the very first ones to see the empty tomb. He was ecstatic and, when Jesus began appearing
to the disciples after his death and resurrection, it seemed that all would be
well.
Jesus, of course, eventually left
this earth and the disciples and all the other followers are waiting—as then
were told—for what is next in Jerusalem.
When the gift of the Holy Spirit arrives and it seems as if chaos
ensues, it is Peter that calms the crowd and gives the sermon of a
lifetime. All through the next years,
Peter travels and spreads the Gospel to all who would listen. I went with him on some of the journeys, and
others accompany him as well. He plants
churches all over the region and travels to them, speaking to them about the
nitty-gritty of the Gospel. It sure
looks like Jesus’ prophecy has come true.
My brother, Peter, later became known as the first Pope. It was amazing to watch Peter grow into
everything that he needed to be to fulfill Jesus’ prophetic words on a simple
hillside long ago.
So, that’s Peter the disciple. Let me tell you about Peter, the
brother. Simon, Peter that is, always
loved but he was searching for more in his life. He was more than a fisherman even before he
met Jesus, he questioned and never settled for easy answers. But he was kind, always kind. His heart was soft, waiting for someone like
Jesus to open it up for the good of the world.
And Jesus did. Peter was never
perfect. Right up to the end with Jesus,
Peter continued to make mistakes—some really hurtful mistakes. But Peter never walked away from the Gospel
and Jesus never turned on Peter. I think
that Peter sent me here to tell you that if you open your hearts, that you can
have a “rock” experience. You can be a
rock upon which God builds a mighty community here—a community that will change
the world. Peter was just a fisherman,
and you are just, well, whatever you happen to be. God makes us into rocks—building material for
the Church itself. Peter would want me
to leave you with this thought: “When
God calls, answer, “I am a rock—I am your rock—use me, use me, use me.” Amen and amen
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