We begin our SERIES from the Epistles of three Apostles with Simon Peter.
Peter – a Foundation of Apostolic Faith
Our best impressions of Simon Peter from the Gospels and the early ACTS of the Apostles cannot fully convey the heart of this ROCK whom JESUS had claimed for building His Church..
We tend to recall moments from back in the AD 30’s with Peter in Jerusalem.. Yet even then the Apostle was sent to surrounding towns with the Gospel.
33 Years – Journeys from Capernaum to Rome
C
Capernaum
Jesus had appeared to Peter and others as they fished near the shore of the Sea of Galilee. The Lord instructed Simon Peter and the Apostles to go into all the world with the Gospel — Good News that they had all seen and touched, and had heard and obeyed the Lord – the risen Christ JESUS.
Now it is Simon Peter who will build not one church in Jerusalem, Capernaum or even Rome, but a living Church throughout the world (of Rome) — connected by the love of Christ and the Holy Spirit into a fellowship of saints sanctified and separated to the faith of eternal life in the Lord Jesus Christ.
Peter’s gospel is an apostolic gospel; Simon Peter’s faith is a Christian faith
So now after Jesus’ ascension, the Apostle will sojourn between Capernaum, Jerusalem and other Jewish communities of Galilee, eventually meeting Jewish believers from every corner of the world who will come to faith in Jesus Christ.
Simon Peter, sought out as a criminal by leading Jews opposing their own Messiah, would eventually be brought to Rome. Christ’s leading Apostle would also eventually be crucified there, but not until an appointed time after many years proclaiming the Gospel.
Like Paul and other Apostles, Peter wrote epistles and instructions for many years to those he had encouraged in the churches throughout Asia.
2 Peter
The World into which the Apostles Preached
~ AD 30’s – AD 60’s
We cannot fully appreciate the magnitude of Jesus’ great commission with only the Gospel accounts or even all Scripture of the Old Testament.
This is due a historic extended silence of God during a post-exilic gap which includes the powerful reign of Alexander the Great (of Macedonia) prior to the dominance of Rome.
a ROMAN world
The Messiah of Israel was given into a Roman world, not a Judaic land.
This Jewish fisherman, Simon Peter of Capernaum on the Sea of Tiberius (so renamed by Rome), though not a Roman, lived a daily existence dependent on Rome, This same dependence had also Romanized the half-Jewish Herod’s, adopted into an all-inclusive culture of the Caesar’s.
Without stepping into the Jewish controversies into which Jesus sometimes ventured about the state of Abrahamic or Mosaic of Semitic faith, let’s just say that Simon Peter’s faith, both before meeting the Messiah and after Jesus’ resurrection until now, is not specifically tied to either the Jewish sects returned from Medo-Persia or those Jews left in a devastated Israel and Judah.
Simon Peter sought to preach the Gospel to his fellow Jews, many who were local proselytes. Rome frequently rejected Jews, often sent on their way at any sign of controversy in distant provinces.
The Apostle writes to churches in lands once dominated by Alexander. And thousands of Jews had remigrated into a European world from an ancient Asia, once dominated by the Babylonians, Medes and Persians. [See your Old Testament.]
Greek culture prevails long after the return of the Jews into a Herodian re-built Roman Jerusalem.
The Twelve Apostles (and I include Matthias) led by Simon Peter were all Jews. And the scattered Jews throughout a world now dominated by Rome wanted to hear from these Apostolic witnesses of the risen Son of David, the Messiah Jesus.
a Second Epistle of Simon Peter
In case you missed the definition of Epistle, you may read it HERE from our introduction.
Simon Peter, a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ,
To those who through the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ have received a faith as precious as ours:
2 Peter 1:1 NIV
Who is Peter writing to?
We’ll get back to that in the context of this second letter, but let’s take a quick glance at his first epistle for an introductory clue.
παρεπίδημος Aliens of the Diaspora
Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ,
To those who are elect exiles of the Dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in the sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience to Jesus Christ and for sprinkling with his blood:
Anatolian peninsula
1 Peter 1:1-2a ESV
We can suppose that both epistles of Peter were sent to all of these churches on the Anatolian peninsula — all Roman provinces throughout modern-day Turkie.
some scholars date the Second Epistle of Peter in AD 64
These Jewish Christians, members of the Diaspora, are addressed here as pilgrims or sojourners… Jews expelled.. and living in a pagan environment.
1&2 Peter An Expositional Commentary, R.C. Sproul
Simon Peter: To the pilgrims
Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, To the pilgrims of the Dispersion..
1 Peter 1:1a New King James Version
"But WAIT.."as the old late-night TV ad suggested..
You probably have the WRONG PICTURE of PILGRIMS with an implanted prejudice of clashing cultures.
properly, “one who comes from a foreign country into a city or land to reside there by the side of the natives; hence, stranger; sojourning in a strange place, a foreigner“
Sojourn in this land, and I will be with thee,
Genesis 26:3a KJV – Oath of the LORD to Isaac, son of Abraham in Garar, a location south of Gaza – Source BLB
Alien, migrant, immigrant, foreigner — all have subtle prejudicial meaning.
These Christians to whom the Apostle’s write are rejected by former friends, neighbors and in workplaces. This sect of Jews following the way of the Messiah [or Christos] were also deported along with their families from their homes and Hellenist hometowns.
Therefore Christ-followers must sojourn to distant towns throughout the world of Roman citizens and pagans, those who rejected Jews anyway for the intolerance of their ONE GOD.
Why do they want to hear from Simon Peter?
Place yourself into any of the varied cities or towns in the Roman provinces addressed by the Apostle in ~ AD 64.
RC. Sproul in his PREFACE to 1-2 Peter offers one of the best descriptions of the heart of the saints receiving Simon Peter’s letter in the context of their situation:
Imagine what it would be like to receive a letter from someone who was a personal friend of Jesus during his earthly ministry?
Referring specifically to Peter, James and John, eyewitnesses to the glory of the transfigured Christ, Dr. Sproul continues:
A letter from a man such as this is a treasure for the church. His letter, beyond the value of his own eyewitness testimony and his intimate friendship with Jesus carries with it the weight of the divine inspiration of God the Holy Spirit.
ibid. R.C, Sproul
Why does Peter write a SECOND Epistle to them?
Remembering our AD 1st century cultural setting of the Church, as we discovered in Paul’s missionary journeys, the people living here are Hellenists.
Hellenists worshiped the tree of knowledge — towering temples of their gods — where philosophers plucked the forbidden fruit of wisdom.
Therefore, brethren, be even more diligent to make your call and election sure, for if you do these things you will never stumble
2 Peter 1:10 NKJV
Again, quoting R.C. SPROUL from: BE ALL THE MORE DILIGENT TO MAKE YOUR CALLING AND ELECTION SURE, concerning the recipiants of 1 Peter (likely the same churches):
The gnostics took a variety of religions and philosophies and thought to blend them to produce a new religion or philosophy… They targeted the early Christian community.. The only way the Gnostics could seduce Christians to believe their heresy was to undermine the authority of the Apostles.
ibid. p.6
Therefore,
Simon Peter, doulos and Apostle of Jesus Christ
2 Peter 1:1
writes an epistle —
(Remember the one definition emphasizing its impact as a letter of written command?) —
to encourage Elders ‘ (and those saints willingly obedient to their teaching [doctrine] and authority)
in the (precise and correct) KNOWLEDGE of God [epignōsis theos] and of Jesus our Lord..
How do WE respond after hearing a letter from an Apostle of Jesus Christ written to our Church?
We are about to take a look at the faith of three Apostles through Epistles they sent to many churches.
But more than that:
The Gospel of Jesus Christ proclaims connections — relationships that matter.
We receive the same love evident through these connections to God and the Apostles, who continue to mean much to 21st century Christians who believe with Apostolic faith.
Apostolic Unity in the Gospels
When someone asks us about our faith, their questions may boil down to a single foundational question:
“Faith in what?”
or perhaps, “faith in whom?”
Let’s begin with what the Lord says about these connections. Jesus actually presents His clarifying question to the Apostles.
And out of all the possibilities of their answers, one stands out in every Gospel.
Peter’s answer to Jesus
Gospel of Luke
9: And calling the twelve together, He gave them power and authority over all the demons and to heal diseases. And He sent them out to preach the kingdom of God and to heal the sick…
And departing, they were going from village to village, proclaiming the gospel and healing everywhere.
.. and He questioned them, saying, “Who do the crowds say that I am?”
.. And He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?”
Luke 9:18b,20a BSB
And Peter answered and said,
“The Christ of God.”
Gospel of Matthew
And Simon Peter answered and said,
“You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
Mat 16:16 LSB
Gospel of Mark
And He continued asking them, “But who do you say that I am?”
Peter answered and said to Him, “You are the Christ.”
Mark 8:29 LSB
Peter provided an answer communited to him by the Holy Spirit of God. And the Apostle John through the same Spirit says the same more fully and in mysterious revealed detail.
Gospel of John
Nearly all of us are familiar with John’s introduction of Jesus in his Gospel:
IN THE BEGINNING was the Word [logos]
(We will come to discover that John refers to JESUS as the Word in the flesh.)
and the Word
was with God [Theos]
[but now, in John 1:1, the Apostle clearly states:]
John 1:1 LSB – English translation from Greek New Testament
JESUS IS GOD !
The Gospels all record that the twelve Apostles witness God’s power personally MANY TIMES in JESUS.
“I and the Father are [in essence] one,” John records later in his Gospel [John 10:30].
The Apostle’s Gospel of connection to the Living God revealingly becomes even stronger and more forward-facing after Jesus’ resurrection.
We see this first in Peter and John, but with an additional absolute faith in Christ later proclaimed to all the world by the Apostle Paul.
John 20 – Apostolic Authority from God
ἐμφυσάω
emphysáō– John 20:22, where Jesus, after the manner of the Hebrew prophets, expresses by the symbolic act of breathing upon the apostles the communication of the Holy Spirit to them
He breathed on them and *said to them,
“Receive the Holy Spirit.
Gospel of John 20:22b LSB
Christ’s communication from the One God — Father, Son and now the Holy Spirit given — to His Apostles sent into all the world with Gospel Good News!
conviction of the truth of anything, belief; in the NT of a conviction or belief respecting man’s relationship to God and divine things, generally with the included idea of trust and holy fervour born of faith and joined with it
the conviction that God exists and is the creator and ruler of all things, the provider and bestower of eternal salvation through Christ
a strong and welcome conviction or belief that Jesus is the Messiah, through whom we obtain eternal salvation in the kingdom of God
the religious beliefs of Christians
belief with the predominate idea of trust (or confidence) whether in God or in Christ, springing from faith in the same
which finds its roots in the eternal truth that GOD IS — the Person of JESUS IS God — and Christ chose Apostles to continue God’s work of redemption of sinners by proclaiming the Gospel to all mankind.
Who are Apostles?
ACTS on Mission
Tens of Thousands of men, women and children witnessed the Son of God, JESUS, born as a man to a virgin.
Many followed JESUS as DISCIPLES, listening to His teachings and commands. Sometimes Jesus taught thousands. At other times hundreds would follow their Master (Lord) as a Rabbi sent from God. Jesus would teach a houseful of guests or sometimes just one chosen by Him even without witness of the Twelve.
More than five hundred witnessed Jesus AFTER the Lord’s crucifixion and resurrection from the grave (even as several had seen Him raise Lazarus and others).
.. He called His disciples to Him and chose twelve of them, whom He also named as apostles:
Disciples followed their itinerant Rabbi from mountainside to village to city over three years, hearing the Messiah Jesus teach true faith. Yet even one of the Twelve had been chosen before time to betray the Lamb of God, our Savior redeeming our sins on a Cross in Jerusalem.
The APOSTLE’S sent out by Jesus were all chosen as witnesses to the Son of Man — an itinerant Teacher who was not of this world, but IS before all time — with God and was God.
Three Apostles nearer to Jesus
And He allowed no one to accompany Him, except Peter and James and John the brother of James.
And six days later, Jesus took with Him Peter and James and John, and brought them up on a high mountain alone by themselves. And He was transfigured before them;
James, the older brother of John, became the first Apostle martyred for his faith in Jesus just fourteen years into the establishing of the Church. Another would later replace him, as Matthias would replace Judas Iscariot.
It would be James the half-brother of Jesus who would later lead the church in Jerusalem, writing epistles to followers of The Way and conferring with the Apostles including Peter and John.
We witness these three Apostles nearest to Jesus on several occasions, both before and after the Lord’s resurrection.
Many witness the boldness of Simeon Peter and John in the Temple after Jesus is risen. It’s just once instance where Apostles proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ in the face of imprisonment, persecution and even death.
Σίμων Πέτρος – Simon Peter
So Jesus said to the twelve, “Do you also want to go?”
Simon Peter answered Him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have words of eternal life. And we have believed and have come to know that You are the Holy One of God.”
Gospel of John 6:68-69 LSB
“Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.
And I also say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.
Gospel of Matthew 16:17b-18 LSB
a Fisher of Men
Ἰωάννην Βοανηργές – John son of thunder
Jesus called these two brothers and close friends of His inner-circle of Apostles, “sons of thunder,” and more than once James and John had caused a commotion among his disciples.
And they [James and John] said to Him, “Grant that we may sit, one on Your right and one on Your left, in Your glory.”
.. And hearing this, the ten began to feel indignant with James and John.
Gospel of Mark 10:37,41 LSB
And nearer the time of their journey to Jerusalem for Jesus’ crucifixion:
And when His disciples James and John saw this, they said, “Lord, do You want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them?”
But He turned and rebuked them..
Luke 9:54-55a LSB
THEN on a hideous hill outside Jerusalem, as Peter and the other Apostles hid distanced from the iniquitous crucifixion of Christ, the youngest of these dared a nearby witness of this most ironic Sacrifice of all time — the Son of God, their friend, hanging and pierced on a cursed Cross.
When Jesus then saw His mother, and the disciple whom He loved standing nearby, He said to His mother,
“Woman, behold, your son!”
Then He said to the disciple,
“Behold, your mother!”
From that hour the disciple took her into his home.
Gospel of John 19:26-27 LSB + Witness of the Disciple Jesus loved – youngest of the Twelve
The Lord Jesus entrusted His own mother Mary to the beloved Disciple John, who so often would cling to Him and His every word.
Christ would also restore Peter as the Rock upon which He would build His church.
“Children, have you any fish?”
Jesus’ love and connection to these two Apostles cannot be disputed.
Σαῦλος – Saûlos – Ῥωμαῖος Ταρσέα
After His resurrection the Lord will also embrace an arch-enemy who had not only denied a connection of the Son to God the Father, but even worse had persecuted and killed followers of The Way.
- Saul, Roman Citizen of Tarsus and Leading Jew of the Pharisees
And when Saul had come to Jerusalem, he tried to join the disciples; but they were all afraid of him, and did not believe that he was a disciple.
Acts of the Apostles 9:26 NKJV
Παῦλος – Paulos – ἀπόστολος ἐθνῶν
apostolos ethnos
ACTS on Mission
But I say unto you, Love your enemies,
bless them that curse you,
do good to them that hate you,
and pray for them which despitefully use you,
and persecute you..
Gospel of Matthew 5:44 KJV – from Jesus’ sermon on the mount
.. and the witnesses laid down their clothes at a young man’s feet, whose name was Saul. And they stoned Stephen…
IF you have READ my 2025 CE EASTER post (above), then you may realize that the GOSPEL — in John’s case — has been preached for a number of years.
~ A.D. 85 – the Gospel of APOSTLE JOHN
Do the math and you will easily see that since Christ rose from death sometime around AD 30-33 according to most historical estimates, then EASTER had been celebrated by saints of The Way for OVER 50 YEARS by the time the Apostle recorded:
his Gospel,
three epistles to the Church and
the Revelation of Jesus Christ to John!
– with specific mention of the witness of saints of seven churches as examples to us.
To these He also presented Himself alive after His suffering, by many convincing proofs,
appearing to them over a period of forty days
and speaking of the things concerning the kingdom of God.
JESUS’ historical crucifixion on a Roman cross is an undisputable fact.
Christ’s resurrection after three days — in His recognizable resurrection body, with the wounds of the Cross –– and in the very Spirit of the same JESUS of Nazareth — the Son of Man known personally to hundreds of disciples and thousands of first century witnesses — is true and verifiable fact REJECTED by those who also deny the One Living God of all creation and all of its created.
“For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world,
..but anyone who does not believe is already condemned, because he has not believed in the name of the one and only Son of God.
Gospel of John 17a,18b CSB
“Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.
John closes his proclamation and witness of Apostolic Good News:
This is the disciple who testifies to these things and who wrote them down. We know that his {Jesus’] testimony is true. And there are also many other things that Jesus did, which, if every one of them were written down, I suppose not even the world itself could contain the [scrolls] that would be written.
AND as you know from our 2025 Easter post, the Lord challenged Nicodemus:
“God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in Spirit and in truth.”
Now through the testimony of both Peter and John recorded by Luke in Acts of the Apostles we will glance at the Trinity and introduction of the Spirit on Pentecost ~AD 33.
40 days, and then Pentecost
And while they were gathered together, He commanded them: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift the Father promised, which you have heard Me discuss. For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.
.. they watched as He was taken up, and a cloud hid Him from their sight.
[Two angels instructed the Eleven]
..” This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen Him go into heaven.”
Please consider its Gospel application in your own brief mortal life. - RH
Acts 2 is a powerful chapter that introduces the Holy Spirit’s dynamic presence in the lives of believers and demonstrates the transformation it brings. The followers of Jesus move from being a fearful, waiting group to a bold, active community witnessing for Christ. The chapter underscores the compelling power of the Gospel message and the magnetic draw of a loving, unified, and Spirit-led community. This chapter serves as a timeless model for the Church, inspiring us to be led by the Spirit, devoted to God’s Word, committed to fellowship, and actively involved in meeting the needs of those around us.
On the Day of Pentecost, the disciples are together when a sound like a violent wind fills the house, and they see what seems to be tongues of fire that separate and rest on each of them. Filled with the Holy Spirit, they start to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enables them. A diverse crowd gathers, bewildered because each person hears their native language spoken. Some are amazed and wonder what it means, while others mock the disciples, suggesting they are drunk.
For Paul had decided to sail past Ephesus to avoid spending time in the province of Asia, because he was hurrying to be in Jerusalem, if possible, for the day of Pentecost.
The CHURCHES and their saints in every place have become dear to the Apostles — including Paul.
But for those early years after the RESURRECTION of the Lord Jesus Christ +++ Pentecost continued to provide evidence and witness of the Trinity – God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit.
Twenty years after Christ’s ascension now — twenty years after the first signs of the Holy Spirit in Jerusalem on Pentecost — and during the remaining years of the mortal lives of the Apostles PENTECOST provided the saints of The Way a gospel witness of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ — who will come again in GLORY at the last Day.
What’s NEXT in our witness to the world in 2025 CE?
Lord-willing, in MAY 2025 TalkofJESUS series from Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians will continue.
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