TWELVE COMMON MEN

TWELVE COMMON MEN Simon Peter Apostle of the Foot-Shaped Mouth

Multitudes Disciples Apostles Peter, Andrew, James and John John Jesus

TWELVE COMMON MEN • Jesus Knew Their Faults • Trained on the Fast Track • Given Exclusive Leadership and Authority • The Foundation of the NT Church • Real Men • Not Priests or Scribes • Slow Learners • Spiritually Dense • Politically Diverse • 11 Galileans • Men Like You

Common Men… Introduction • The four lists: Mt. 10:2-4; Mk. 3:16-19; Lk. 6:14-16; and Acts 1:13. • Peter always heads the first group, Philip, the second and James the son of Alphaeus the third. • Group one -the disciples that appear to be the most closely tied to Jesus. (Jn. 1:35-42) An Uncommon Calling

Common Men… Introduction • Group two has a lower profile • Group three is hardly mentioned at all except Judas Iscariot. • What a varied group they were, from fishermen to tax collector to political activist. An Uncommon Calling

Common Men… Simon, also named Peter • 7 Simons listed in the Gospels; two among the Twelve. We are interested in Simon Bar-Jonah (Mt. 16:17; Jn. 21:15-17.) • Jesus nicknames him Peter or “Rock.” • When Jesus is displeased with Peter he calls him Simon. • Simon’s personality was brash, vacillating, undependable, impetuous, impulsive, and overeager. An Uncommon Calling

Common Men… Simon, also named Peter • Secular Simon - house- Mk. 1:29; Lk. 4:38; Acts 10:17- mother-in-law – Mk. 1:30; Lk. 4:38- fishing business – Lk. 5:1-11 • Unspiritual Simon - unregenerate - Lk. 5:5 - key failures – Lk. 22:31;Mk. 14:37,38 - impatient - Jn 21:3- Jesus calling him to repent – Jn. 21:15-17 An Uncommon Calling

Common Men… Simon, also named Peter • His best friend John calls him Simon Peter 15 times; Peter calls himself Simon Peter in 2 Pet. 1:1. • On the day of Pentecost, it was Peter the Rock who preached the first gospel sermon (Acts 2). • He was just like us; sometimes spiritual, other times carnal, yet he became the leader of the twelve. An Uncommon Calling

Common Men… “I Will Make You Fishers of Men” • Simon, Andrew, James and John were fishermen. They fished the Sea of Galilee. • Peter and Andrew were originally from Bethsaida (Jn. 1:44) but were living in Capernaum (Mk. 1:21,29). • Capernaum was a major town on the north shore where Jesus made his headquarters while in the region. He would pronounce woe on both cities (Mt. 11:21-24). An Uncommon Calling

Common Men… “I Will Make You Fishers of Men” • Peter was married (Lk. 4:38; 1 Cor. 9:5); • Peter was the leader (protos) of the Apostles. • Jesus chose Peter to lead; • Therefore God chose Peter to lead. An Uncommon Calling

Common Men… “I Will Make You Fishers of Men” • No Apostle is mentioned in the Gospels as often as Peter. • No Apostle speaks to or is spoken to by Jesus as often as Peter. • No Apostle is rebuked by the Lord as often as Peter. • Only Peter rebukes the Lord! • No one confessed Christ more boldly or denied Christ more adamantly. • No one was praised or blessed by Jesus like Peter • But no one else was called Satan either. An Uncommon Calling

Common Men… “I Will Make You Fishers of Men” • What then was in Peter’s make-up that allowed God to mold a great leader? • The right raw material. • The right life experiences. • The right character qualities. An Uncommon Calling

Common Men… Raw Material That Makes a Leader • Inquisitiveness • Initiative • Involvement An Uncommon Calling

Common Men… Inquisitiveness • Curiosity is crucial to leadership. • Those that are happy to remain ignorantly content, complacent and comfortable will not make a great leader. • A good leader is asking the right questions and genuinely looking for right answers. • Good leaders are driven by an enthusiasm for knowing and understanding. • Which Apostle asked more questions than all the others combined? Mt. 15:13-15; Lk. 12:41; Mt. 18:21; Mt. 19:27; Mk. 11:21; Jn. 21:20-22 An Uncommon Calling

Common Men… Initiative • A leader needs drive, ambition, and energy. He must be willing to start things off. • Who was usually the first to answer a question posed by Jesus?- Mt. 16:13-16 is a great example. • Who was willing to pull a sword against the multitude? (Mt. 26:47-52; Mk. 14:43; Lk. 22:47)- What did Peter think he was going to do against this multitude?- He obviously failed to se the big picture! • Peter’s brashness, properly harnessed becomes a positive characteristic needed by a true leader. Example? An Uncommon Calling

Common Men… Involvement • True leaders are always in the middle of the action. - Who jumped out of the boat and walked on the Sea with Jesus? (Mt. 14:26-28) (PPT Pres.)- Should we criticize Peter because of his lack of faith that caused him to sink? • Peter’s denial is another weak spot in Peter’s armor. - He was close enough to Jesus that their eyes met when the rooster crowed. - Even in his denial, he never completely deserted the Lord. An Uncommon Calling

Common Men… Life Experiences That Shape a Leader • Experience can be a hard teacher. • Great defeats often follow great victories. (Mt. 16:16-23)- Without discipline, we can become Satan’s mouthpiece as easily as Christ’s. • We must mind the things of God and do the will of God. • Great boasting can lead to big lies. • Some experiences are bitter, distressing, humiliating and painful; others are encouraging, uplifting and glorious (the transfiguration). An Uncommon Calling

Common Men… Character Qualities That Define a Good Leader • A leader who lacks character cannot be trusted; it’s that simple. • Spiritual leaders should be leading us to Christlikeness. (1 Cor. 11:1) • These qualities might not match the world’s first choices. • SUBMISSION • RESTRAINT • HUMILITY • LOVE • COMPASSION • COURAGE An Uncommon Calling

Common Men… Submission • Submission is a quality that a spiritual leader must possess. • If he expects followers to submit to him, then he must submit to all in authority over him; especially God and His Word. • How did the Lord teach Peter to submit? • Jesus pays the Temple tax (Mt. 17:24ff). • Peter learned his lesson on submission (1 Pet. 2:13-18). An Uncommon Calling

Common Men… Restraint • Restraint is another characteristic Peter had to learn. • Those with natural leadership abilities are often short on discipline, moderation, and reserve. • Anger is often a problem of those who lead. We know Peter had hot-headed tendencies. • Learning restraint through rebuke. - Malchus’ ear, Jesus rebuked Peter not only in front of friends, but the enemies as well. • What did Peter learn? (1 Pet. 2:21-23) An Uncommon Calling

Common Men… Humility • Leaders are often tempted by the sin of pride. • Peter had a huge amount of self-confidence. (Mt. 26:31-33; Lk. 22:33) • Another lesson that Peter did learn (1 Pet. 5:5-6)- Humility became a characteristic for which Peter was well-known in his life, his message and his leadership style. An Uncommon Calling

Common Men… Love • Learning to be a servant-leader. - Mk. 9:35 – modeled by the Lord in the Upper Room (Jn 13:4-9). - Meanwhile the disciples were arguing as to who was the greatest (Lk. 22:24).- Of course Peter did not want the Lord to wash his feet. • Jn. 13:34-35: The new commandment. The mark of a true disciple. • Peter learned to love and made love a hallmark of his teaching (1 Pet. 4:8). An Uncommon Calling

Common Men… Compassion • Lk. 22:31,32. Spiritual leaders must be patient comforters. • 1 Pet. 5:8-10 – Peter understood human weakness and the need for compassion. An Uncommon Calling

Common Men… Courage • Not the daring impetuousness that caused him to draw his sword at the betrayal. - Instead he needed a mature, settled willingness to suffer for Christ. • The price for preaching Christ for Peter would be death (Jn. 21:18-19). • Peter’s spiritual courage is born on Pentecost. (Acts 1 and 2)- Acts 5:29 – before the Sanhedrin. • The source of his courage – his security in Christ. (1 Pet. 1:3-7). An Uncommon Calling

Common Men… Conclusion - Simon Becomes Rock • By Christ’s example and the power of the Holy Spirit, Peter became a great leader. • 3,000 were saved after he preached on Pentecost. • He healed the lame, even with his shadow. • He raised the dead (Dorcas). • He took the gospel to the gentiles. • He wrote two books of the NT. An Uncommon Calling

Common Men… Conclusion - Simon Becomes Rock • Did he become perfect?- Gal. 2- Which came first the incident described in Gal 2 or the Jerusalem Council of Acts 15? • Peter’s End (Jn 21:18,19) Tradition had him crucified with his wife. • 2 Pet. 3:18 – He followed his own advice and became Rock – a great leader of the early church. An Uncommon Calling

Multitudes Followers Believers Committed Deeply Committed Jesus Where are YOU?

The Twelve

J.R. Miller “The only thing that walks back from a tomb with the mourners and refuses to be buried is the character of a man. What a man is survives him. It can never be buried.” Return

Mike Lawrence, Bybee Church of Christ

(Return)

Jesus had the disciples get in the boat and go ahead of Him to the other side

In the early morning some distance from the shore and in a storm Jesus went out to them walking on the water, they cried in fear

Peter replied to Jesus.

Peter got down out of the boat.

Peter walked on the water to Jesus.

But when he saw the wind, he was afraid.

Peter cried out, Lord, save me!

Immediately Jesus reached out His hand, caught him and spoke to him.

When they climbed in the boat, the wind died down. Those in the boat worshipped Him, saying You are the Son of God!

TWELVE COMMON MEN