companions. peter s the most human of the disciples because he just reacts off the cuff all the time, shoots from the hip. so he s hot headed. he has a bit of a temper of him. he ll say things which he then regrets. he changes his mind about things. he s the most three-dimensional of the disciples. significantly, according to john s gospel, early on in his ministry jesus renames peter. peter s actual name is simon, or simeon, and he appears to have been renamed by jesus, and he s renamed peter, or kephas, in aramaic, and this is the word for rock, and it seems to be that he s nicknamed rock because in spite of all peter s failings, he s the one that jesus trusts to be the rock at the heart of the movement. jerusalem. after spending many months preaching around galilee, jesus,
jerusalem, the holy city. several days after jesus triumphant entry, he calls peter and all the apostles together for a meal. this is the cenacle, so called from the latin root for supper. this is actually a crusader church that was built on a 5th century tradition of this being the place of the last supper with jesus and his disciples. when jesus and his disciples meet for the last supper, there s a number of key events that have happened, open conflicts with the authorities, and the tension in the narrative is really ratcheting up. peter thinks that, with jesus
hope, full of excitement as they re going into jerusalem. and so you can imagine that peter s thinking, this is the beginning of some kind of revolution, that they re gonna be taking over, that they re gonna have power and authority and that this is the beginning of something glorious. expectations are running very high. messiah, messiah, messiah. but according to the gospels, within days, peter will have abandoned jesus and stood by as his friend and teacher is taken to the cross. he s swine. i swear i do not know the man. this holiday, let them shine like never before.
you know that i love you. in the same way that peter denies knowing jesus three times before the crucifixion, so he recommits his life to jesus three times after the resurrection, committing to feeding the flock of the disciples, and ultimately being their leader. feed my sheep. feed my sheep. it s a beautiful, poignant moment of restoration. it s the moment where peter is, once again, the rock. he s re-established as the rock who will be key in the early christian movement. peter was convinced that jesus was the messiah and became resolute in spreading that message. peter isn t just static in jerusalem. he doesn t just stay in jerusalem. he does go out on mission.
he probably was always aware that peter wasn t as grounded as peter himself thought he was. after the last supper, jesus leads his disciples out beyond jerusalem s walls, to a place called gethsemane. it s here where jesus is betrayed by judas. jesus of nazareth! peter then gets violent and attempts to defend jesus. it s just an emotional, rash act born out of love for jesus and a desire to protect him. after jesus arrest, peter is in danger for his life. we have a history of rebellions against the roman government, and during most of these, if a leader is rounded up and executed, the followers are rounded up and executed as well.