[Mr. Chuck Smith]: The title of today’s sermon is “Cephas – the Fisherman.” I know some of you might find that to be a strange title, but many of you know the actor/wrestler/promoter/ businessman Dwayne Johnson, who was known as The Rock – big chunk of a man, huge man, impressive size. He is a physical specimen. They even say is so chiseled he looks like he was a rock, so they call him The Rock. Well, I’m not going to be talking about the physical specimen today. I’m going to be talking about our example of the spiritual specimen – Cephas, the fisherman.

You may have heard many names used for this individual in the Bible. Some you may have even been confused by. Now, whether he was called Simon bar Jonah, Simeon, Cephas, Peter or Simon Peter, all the names were used in the Scriptures – a reference of this legendary apostle. I would like to go through some things today to look at him – all the legends, the myths – and then some actual truths. Because to appreciate someone’s writings, as we will go into next week – 1 and 2 Peter – we must appreciate the person who wrote them. And I think we can distinguish today some of the uniqueness that was Simon Peter, or Cephas, from, I would have to say, probably even more than Paul. His legend became more of a myth in many areas, and, frankly, in so many areas, they talked about him a lot – untruth.

So, let’s look at some of those myths and legends first. The first one I want to look at was, he was the first pope. He was the first pope with keys to the Kingdom. This legend, or myth – because it was a myth – was put out by the Catholic Church – that he was the very first pope. And anyone that studies history, and studies Catholicism, and goes outside of their teaching will understand that’s not really true. Peter wasn’t… when Peter died, there really wasn’t a Catholic Church. It didn’t really form. And he was not a pope – that they just kind of put in later three or four hundred years after he died – when they put that forward.

Another one – that he was crucified upside down. That is a legend. That is a tradition. It’s not in the Scripture anywhere. It is thought by some of the Christian fathers that this was handed down to them. But we don’t really know. We don’t really know if he was crucified upside down. It doesn’t say it in the Bible. It doesn’t even give his death in the Bible – in the scriptures.

But I do want to go into a little bit of that, because he was killed, according to this legend, according to the main churches, that he was killed somewhere between 64 and 68 AD – ACE, to be more accurate. But we study history, and more of the writings and papers, and notations, and cuneiform tablets, and all the things that were written, and you find that he could not have been killed by Nero, who decided to persecute the Christians anywhere between 66 and 68 AD.

A famous historian writer – you can read her writings – Margherita Guarducci, who understands Hebrew, Greek, Latin – and she did this incredible study, which I read. She points to the fact that between 66 and 68 AD, it very well noted that Nero was not in Rome for the majority of the time. He was in Egypt. He was in various places. But he didn’t stay in Rome those last two years very much, and most of the persecution that he did started in 64 AD, after the city of Rome was set on fire, and it is said that he played his violin while Rome burned. And it was believed by many that he started the fire himself, just so he could rebuild it and be the great leader who built Rome. But, when the people became very upset that these buildings had caught fire and burned, he then decided he needed to shift the blame. So he found this incredible sect going on in Rome at the time that were like the Jews, but not the Jews, as history notes. So, they were known as Christians and they were the ones who would not bow down to the emperor. And that upset him, since he was supposed to be, as an emperor, a god. So, what happens? He decided to start the persecution of the Christians. And that included taking as prisoner, in around 64, finishing almost in 65, both Peter and Paul. And they were both killed.

Now, it’s interesting that Peter would request that… I could see him… if you study Peter, you kind of understand his personality… I could see him asking, as they were going to crucify him, that he be crucified upside down. Besides that being his personality, it’s also a very smart thing to do, because the blood rushes to your head a lot faster, and you lose consciousness, and it would be a quicker death than the other. Paul was a Roman citizen, so he couldn’t be crucified. So, he had his head removed by being beheaded, according to the story. There is nothing in history that we can find that says they were both killed on the same day.

Here’s another one: Peter’s wife was killed just before him. I was told that by someone in Rome. I was told that by a guide, who led us through part of the city of Rome – the Vatican and also took us to Saint Peter’s Square – where he said – this guide said – that Peter’s wife was taken before him to Nero in Saint Peter’s Square – which became named after him – and they offered to spare his wife’s life, if he would denounce Christ and recognize the emperor as god. He did not. They killed his wife and soon after, they killed him. There is nothing in the Scriptures about it. Things are written, but that also is legend – tradition.

Peter was crucified on Saint Peter’s Square. That’s also legend or tradition. As the man pointed to me – as Mary and I were there that one day – it just so happened that the pope – I don’t remember what pope it was – came out and spoke. We were there. I didn’t understand Latin, so it didn’t mean anything to me – or Italian – it could have been either one – but he supposedly spoke in Latin. But they showed where Peter supposedly came before Nero, and that was where he met his end. But that was also tradition, or legend.

Peter was the bishop of Antioch. That is something else that you’ll find, but that also was not true. Nowhere in the Scriptures… it doesn’t even say that Peter ever went to Antioch – more Paul and Barnabas territory. But that is also a Catholic teaching, which is tradition, or myth.

Peter was born in Syria and was a citizen of the Roman Empire, which also was a myth – because the never could have crucified him if that were true – if he was a Roman citizen. And the scriptures do not point that way, because he was Jewish. It brings that point out.

One more – Peter was said to have written the Acts of Peter, the Gospel of Peter, the Judgment of Peter and the Preaching of Peter – all these different books, none of which can you find evidence that those were actually true. But those are floating out there, if you want to try to read them – which I don’t advise you to do that. If they were inspired of God, they would have been in the book of God.

Those are some of the traditions, myths, legends of Peter. Another one that a lot of historians put great faith in – I do not know, I tend to believe it, because of this study – is that the book of Mark was Peter’s account – that Peter, because he was a fisherman – raised to be a fisherman, as typically you followed your father’s footsteps. By the age of 12, fishermen were already on the boat, learning the trade as their father taught them. Even at age eight, nine and 10, they were repairing nets and doing all these things that fisherman would do. And we know, as an adult, Peter had a fishing business. Also, they never received formal training or an education, because what was important was learning how to catch fish. They, then usually – at the time – fishermen did not know how to read or write, which would make sense because they did not take that training. They did know how to count, because they had to count fish and they had to count money, and it was a business. So they would have learned that. But it’s interesting to note later on that he quoted Scripture. And it is also noted that Paul even asked for Mark to come and help him write, because Mark was a man of scholarship and knew how to read and write more than just even two languages.

So, I’ve given you that background because I find it to be interesting. And I want to look now at the truth and the facts from Scripture about this individual, called Cephas, the fisherman. But the first question you may ask, “Why so many names? I know Jamaicans have multiple names. I have a middle name, but I know many of you have two or three names. But why so many names? Well, originally, he was called Simon bar Jonah, which actually meant Simon, son of Jonah. Or, it’s translated in English… it could even be son of John. So that could also be a name, as you check references that he was called Simon bar John – Simon, son of John. It’s interesting that some Greek translations – twice, actually, in the Bible – translated his name as Simeon. They used other names, but because Simeon was also a name that Simon was sometimes referred as.

Jesus, though, called him Simon until He changed his name. And Jesus gave him the name of Cephas, which is an Aramaic name. Cephas. And Cephas’ Aramaic name meant rock, or stone. That’s why you see that. And it’s actually interesting that Scripture calls him Cephas nine times in the Gospels. But the most used was Peter, or even Simon Peter – 156 times. Peter meant – Cephas was Aramaic – translated into Latin, which was petra, which means rock. And that’s why they came up with name Peter.

Now, I’d like to go there, if you will, go with Scripture with me today. We’ll turn to these, because I think it’s important that we understand this individual to appreciate his writings. So I’d like to turn to John 1, verse 44.

John 1:44 – “Now Philip was from Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter.”

Andrew was Peter’s brother. They were in the fishing business with two other gentlemen that you would know as James and John – John, the son of Zebedee. But is says that they were from Bethsaida. Do you know where Bethsaida was? Well, if you have a Bible, turn over into the back where it has the maps. (I didn’t put it up here, because I didn’t want to spend time going to it today.) But, as you’ll see at the back of your Bible, there are maps. And it will show a map, maybe, of Palestine in Christ’s time, or it will show the Sea of Galilee, and it will show the cities at the top of the Sea of Galilee. And there are three – Chorazin, Capernaum and Bethsaida. Those are the tri-cities, and they were known as the fishing villages of the Sea of Galilee. And so, people – men – had their businesses out of those three cities, because it was, basically, right on the Sea of Galilee.

Now, why is that interesting? Because, if you go to the writings of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, you’ll find that they were in Capernaum, they were in Chorazin, they were in Bethsaida quite a bit. Because Peter had a home there. Others had homes in that area. And so, Christ did a lot of His preaching in those three cities, because it was easy to get around. There were roads that led through there. It was a big trade route. So, all the fish was caught, with people moving through, you could sell your fish there. It made it an easy way as one of the main roads that went down by the Sea of Galilee, or as another calls it, the Sea of Gennesaret.

So, I bring that up because it’s interesting that in Matthew 11 – if you’ll turn there with me – you’ll find that Christ is upset with those three cities, because He preached and they really didn’t care. Their lives were pretty good. They were on a trade route. They had all the fish they could want. All they had to do was go down and take some fish – or buy it in the local market. They were doing pretty well. They had a river feeding into the Sea of Galilee. But in Matthew 11:20,

Matthew 11:20-22 – “Then He” – Jesus Christ – “began to upbraid the cities in which most of His might works had been done, because they did not” – do what? – “repent.” So He spent a great deal of His time in these three cities preaching, healing, doing magnificent wonders. Took little to no effect. He says: “Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the might works which were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. But I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the Day of Judgment than for you.” And then He goes on to say, “If the works had been done in you three cities” – hometown of Peter, Philip, Andrew – “if that had been done in Sodom and Gomorrah, they would have repented also.”

So quite a statement about Peter’s hometown! Even when God in the flesh comes down and does this great work and preaches a work of repentance, it has little or no effect. Would that affect you, if you were called like Peter was? Effect you that even your hometown really didn’t buy what your boss was selling? And later on, that you were selling?

I’d like to go to Matthew 8 – we were in Matthew 11. Go back to Matthew 8, as we look at his life – Matthew 8:14-15.

Matthew 8:14-15 – “Now when Jesus had come into Peter/s house, He saw his wife’s mother lying sick with a fever. So He touched her hand, and the fever left her. And she arose and served them.”

What’s interesting about this story here is, if Peter was the first pope, and popes aren’t supposed to be married, how do you reconcile all this? Well, I had to go to the Catholics to find out. I had to find out. “Okay, how do you get around this?” And I found their answer very interesting, because “by the mouths of two or three witnesses is a matter established.” Here, we have not only Matthew’s telling of this, we also have Mark’s telling of it – in the first chapter – and we also have Luke’s telling of it – about Peter’s mother-in-law. Well, according to the Catholic story, Peter was married, but his mother-in-law died before he was called to do this. And so, then, he never was married after. And they go on to explain that his wife is never mentioned in this story. But neither is his father or his mother or his uncle or anybody else. This is a story about Jesus healing his mother-in-law, which I would find interesting or unique. So then I said, “That’s a stretch” – because she wasn’t mentioned – but then… if you will, turn with me to 1 Corinthians, chapter 9 – as Paul is doing a little bit of complaining – as he had a tendency to do, if you’ve really read his writings. He doesn’t mind voicing his opinion when he’s the one who is complaining. So, 1 Corinthians 9:5 – he says, “Hey, you guys are complaining about me doing this…” – and he says:

1 Corinthians 9:5 – “Do we have no right to take along a believing wife, as do also the other apostles, the brothers of the Lord” – which would be James and Judas – “and” – whose name? – “Cephas?”

So how do you get around this when Paul, years later, is saying, “Well, wait a minute, Peter takes his wife with him, and James takes his wife with him, and Judas takes his wife with him. So, why can’t I take somebody with me?” So, that, to me, nailed it – that he did have a wife! And she was doing the work with him.

So then I went back into the Catholic arena to find out how they explained that one. And they explain it away using the Greek, and then changing the Greek into Latin, so that then they can find that word in the Latin can also mean sister. So Peter could take his sister with him – that we see no evidence of in anything else. Just wanted to cover that for you, in case you ever have to answer that question. You see it often on the Internet – people will defend it, saying, “No, Peter was single when he did his work.”

Go with me to Mark. We’ll turn to quite a few verses today, which I typically don’t, but I’m trying to lay the groundwork here. I think you’ll find in Mark 1:16,

Mark 1:16-20 – “And as He walked by the Sea of Galilee, He saw Simon and Andrew his brother casting a net into the sea – for they were fishermen. Then Jesus said to them, ‘Come after Me, and I will make you fishers of men.’ They immediately left their nets and followed Him. When He had gone a little farther from there, He saw James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, who also were in the boat mending their nets. And immediately He called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with” – okay, get this – “with hired servants, and went after Him.”

So, this was not – two guys in a truck; two men and a truck – this was not two guys and a boat. As you can see, they were in the fishing business. They had hired servants. This was a business. And, according to some history, that a friend of mine did while he was over there at the Sea of Galilee, they looked at the typical business at the time, and they were rather large – hired quite a few people. Because I had somebody ask me one time – that didn’t really understand this – the he didn’t respect Peter, didn’t respect Andrew, didn’t respect John and James at all, because they left their poor father having to do their work all by himself. Well, this scripture proves that is not true. It was a business, but they left the business – the family business, as we see – left it to the father. It is believed that most of the disciples were around the age of Christ – or even a year or two younger – so they were in their late 20s or early 30s. So, if their father was 20 years older, he still 50 years old – still a man able to do the work.

I just wanted to bring that out, because Christ said at that time, “Yeah, you’re fishermen. Now, I’m going to make you fishers of men.” So Cephas will become a fisher of men.

What kind of man was he? Go with me to Luke 5. I think Luke 5 tells the best part of the story here – in Luke 5, and verse 1 through verse 11 – I’m reading from the New King James Version. This is Luke’s account. Remember, Luke came later and interviewed people and put this account together. He wasn’t there at this time, but he got other people’s stories.

Luke 5:1-11 – “So it was, as the multitude pressed about Him to hear the word of God, that He stood by the Lake of Gennesaret” – but that is also another name for the Sea of Galilee – “and saw two boats standing by the lake, but the fishermen had gone from them and were washing their nets.  Then He got into one of the boats, which was Simon’s, and asked him to put out a little from the land. And He sat down and taught the multitudes from the boat.” I hope you can get the picture of this in your mind. “When He had stopped speaking, He said to Simon, ‘Launch out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch.’” So He was fairly new to this and was about to show him an example. Many believe this was the story and that we just read at the end of the story, where they did leave. But, verse 5 says: “But Simon answered and said to Him, ‘Master, we have toiled all night” – can you imagine working all night? – “and caught nothing. Nevertheless, at Your word I will let down the net.’”  Probably more or less to show Him, “Guess what, big guy? I’m a fisherman. I know. I know these waters. I’ve been in there for years – decades. I know. If you can’t catch when we were going to catch… I’ll show you in front of all these people.” “And when they had done this, they caught a great number of fish, and their net was breaking. So they signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both the boats, so that they began to sink” – something I’m sure Peter has never seen before – “When Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, ‘depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord!’” It’s interesting how he laid that out. He said, “I don’t need to be in the presence of this holiness!” He was a sinful man. I think we can attest to that – that, in that, when Christ was taken that night, Peter denied him how many times? Three. And even the last time, when a young girl came up and said, “Oh this guy! He was with him!” he started doing what? Cursing. So he was a fisherman – you might say – with the mouth of a sailor. Because it was a rough business. I mean, they were manly men! So, they were used to rough talk. He was used to that. That’s who he was! They lived life to the fullest! And he recognized and he laid out that he was a sinful man. He also had a temper, as we can see, because that night when Christ was about to be taken, Malchus’ – one of the leaders there – servant came up to get Him, Peter pulled out that sword and cut off his ear. He wasn’t really aiming for the ear. He was aiming to make a full cut. So Peter was bullheaded, as we can see. He was one that charged in. Let’s finish this – verse 9:  “For he and all who were with him were astonished at the catch of fish which they had taken.” If you had seen this event and you had been there for decades fishing, your family had been fishing, and all of a sudden, you pull these nets at a time of the day when fish don’t bite. So, it was an amazing thing! “…and so also were James and John, the sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. And Jesus said to Simon, ‘Do not be afraid. From now on you will catch men.’  So when they had brought their boats to land, they forsook all and followed Him.” They gave it all to the father, Zebedee.

So, I’d like you to go back with me to John 1, where we started there – John 1:40.

John 1:40-42 – “One of the two who heard John speak, and followed Him, was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother. He first found his own brother Simon, and said to him, ‘We have found the Messiah’ (which is translated, the Christ). And he brought him to Jesus. Now when Jesus looked at him, He said, ‘You are Simon the son of Jonah. You shall be called Cephas’ (which is translated, A Stone).” – or a Rock.

Why did Christ do this? Because He recognized an alpha-male when He saw him. And He recognized that this guy was a natural leader. He was a rock who could stand, when others may… You didn’t see anybody else pulling out a sword or jumping to Christ’s defense that night, did you? Peter definitely had a life that was like this. He was also the one – being the natural leader – that Christ came to later, and told him, “Satan has asked for you. He wants to sift you like wheat.” He was looking for somebody and he wanted to take out the leader, because, if he took out the leader, the others may scatter.  Well, he did find somebody, and he was able to sift him like wheat, but his name was Judas – not Peter.

I’d like you to go with me to Luke now – Luke 9 – and look at this incredible display of character from Luke – Luke 9:18-20.

Luke 9:18-20 – “And it happened, as He was alone praying, that His disciples joined Him, and He asked them, saying, ‘Who do the crowds say that I am?’ So they answered and said, ‘John the Baptist, but some say Elijah, and others say that one of the old prophets has risen again.’ He said to them, ‘But who do you say that I am?’ Peter answered and said” – what? – “‘the Christ of God.’” He just said it. He recognized it. He knew it. He knew He was the Messiah.

One other thing I’d like to go to is in Matthew 14 – one of the most famous stories of Peter. There was a question… this is one of the questions that was asked… there’s an atheist forum that I occasionally read – just so I get that side of the story. I like to know questions that are coming before they come a lot of times – of how people are looking at things. In this world, with the Internet, you never know what you’re going to get. So I look at this forum. And this is one of the big questions they have. “Who, in their right mind, would believe that one person could walk on water, much less two? It’s impossible – physically, it’s impossible.” I think Christ answered that one. He said, “With God, all things are possible.” And most of us can, probably, attest to that. So let’s go to this story in chapter 14, and let’s go down to verse 22. Matthew was right there. Matthew would have known this story. This would have made an impression on you, no matter who you were.

Matthew 14:22-33 – “Immediately Jesus made His disciples get into the boat and go before Him to the other side, while He sent the multitudes away. And when He had sent the multitudes away, He went up on the mountain by Himself to pray. Now when evening came, He was alone there. But the boat was now in the middle of the sea, tossed by the waves, for the wind was contrary. Now in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went to them, walking on the sea.” In case you didn’t know, the Sea of Galilee is large. If I remember right, it’s 14 miles this way (waving north and south) and 7 miles across (waving east and west). If I’m off a little bit, you can tell me, but I think that’s about the size. So this is a big sea – a big lake. “And when the disciples saw Him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying -” “It’s Halloween!” No. They said, “‘It is a ghost!’ And they cried out for fear. But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, ‘Be of good cheer! It is I. Do not be afraid.’ And Peter answered Him and said, ‘Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water.’ So He said, ‘Come.’ And when Peter had come down out of the boat, he walked on the water to go to Jesus.” Imagine! He had lived all his life on the sea. The sea was rough. He’d been a fisherman all his life. He knew nobody would walk on water. You didn’t see the other fishermen who were in the boat, “Here, let me walk on water.” This is Peter. This is who Peter was. So he said, “Hey, I’m game!” So verse 30: “But when he saw that the wind was boisterous, he was afraid.” What did he do? He took his eyes off Christ. He took his eyes off his Master. When do we sometimes fear and get ourselves into trouble? When we take our eyes off the Master – take our eyes off our Savior. “And beginning to sink, he cried out, ‘Lord, save me!’” Been there a few times. How about you? Nobody wants to volunteer. Nobody is a Peter. “And immediately, Jesus stretched out His hand and caught him, and said to him, ‘O you of little faith, why did you doubt?’ And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased. Then those who were in the boat came and worshiped Him, saying, ‘Truly, You are the Son of God.’”

The thing that’s amazing to me about this story is, it goes into great detail here. But what’s interesting is, that Mark’s account – in Mark 6 – you don’t have to turn there; it makes interesting reading later – in Mark’s account, which is supposed to be – according to tradition – Peter’s account, Peter tells this story, but guess what’s left out? Peter. The story of Jesus walking on water, and He comes in and He calms the storm, and everything else, but the story of Peter is left out – which I find interesting, because we find it intriguing – the story of Peter – but I don’t think Peter found it, obviously – not too intriguing, so got Mark to leave that part out.

So, we know that Peter denies Christ three times. What’s interesting is, he said before that, he’s the one that told Christ, I will never forsake You! I’ll never leave You! – which is good example to us to measure our words. I wish I had the faith, I wish I had the trust that Peter had, but the one thing I don’t want is to have to go through what Peter went through for being so bold. Because Christ is the One who told him.

Peter was on the mountain of transfiguration – with Peter, James and John – told in three of the gospels. And so Peter actually got to hear the voice of God that said, “This is my Son, in whom I am well pleased,” as they got to see Jesus Christ in His glorified state – a picture of what we will look like in the Kingdom. That’s what this fantastic show of the gospel… when you get into the transfiguration, if you’re not excited by that… But He only gave the vision to these three. This made such an impression on Peter that in 2 Peter, he had to mention it. Now, in case you ever hear people saying, or teachers teaching, that this was not the voice of God – because they’re referencing John 5, where Christ said, “No one has seen or heard His voice” – Christ, in John 5, you look at the context, He’s talking to the Pharisees and Sadducees. They hadn’t heard His voice. Peter was there! He heard His voice. And it’s given in three accounts that they heard His voice. And Peter wants to make sure that everybody understood that it wasn’t some angel, because… I’d like you to go with me to 2 Peter – as I wrap this up today. I’d like you to turn 2 Peter 1:16 – we’ll delve into these words even more next week.

2 Peter 1:16 – “For we did not follow cunningly devised fables when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of His majesty” ­– on the transfiguration mount, they saw Him glorified. “For He received from God the Father honor and glory when such a voice came to Him from” – what does your Bible say? Mine says: “the Excellent Glory” - (capital E, capital G) – “…when such a voice came to Him from the Excellent Glory saying ‘This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.’ And we heard this voice, which came from heaven, when we were with Him on the holy mountain.” – heard the voice of God. Incredible!

Would that make a lasting impression on you? I think it would on all of us.

Next week, I want to explore and mine the gold from this incredible individual who lived and died in the faith. I want to go into 1 and 2 Peter, because he leaves us with his last and lasting words – in those very short books. You can read both of them through in ten minutes – fifteen, if you’re a slow reader like I am and get going off on this road, and this road, and check this out. But it is such an inspiring two books that is tied to his name. I’d like to do that, because I wouldn’t even mind opening up next week to some of you, and just some of your thoughts on those inspiring words. So I am asking you to read 1 and 2 Peter this week, so you can come back here next week, when I hope we’ll have more people here, because we will have lower positivity rates and we can get this ship back sailing like it was a year and a half/two years ago.

You and I are blessed to have the words preserved for us in these incredible two books from a man who not only knew Christ, he lived with Christ, and he died defending and living the way of God. And I hope that you are as inspired as I am by his writings, so that we could do the same, because I rather die just like that – believing and living as Christ lived.