• The apostle Peter

    • Fisherman to fisher of men

      • John 1:35-42

      • Matthew 4:18-20 – start of the process

    • Hot and cold

      • Mark 8:31-33

      • John 13:6-9

      • John 13:31-38; Matthew 26:74-75, 57-58

      • First gospel sermons in Acts 2 and Acts 3

      • Withstood persecution of the council – Acts 4:1-31

      • Influences others into hypocrisy – Galatians 2:11-14

    • Was he the rock on whom the church was built?

      • John 1:42 – Peter or rock?

      • Matthew 16:13-20 – Is Peter this rock?

      • From Peter himself: I Peter 2:4-8

      • Backed up by Paul: I Corinthians 3:9-11

    • Was Peter the “Head Apostle” or “Chief Apostle”?

      • Hebrews 3:1 – Someone greater than Peter

      • Galatians 2:6-10 – not exclusive

    • Peter not always “preeminent”

      • James took front and center in much of Acts

        • Acts 12:17; 15:13; 21:18

      • Who sends the boos on a mission? Acts 8:14-15

      • No doubt, Peter was a prominent apostle

      • No indication that he ruled over them

      • With no position held, it couldn’t be passed down

  • Apostolic succession

    • Several schisms teach and follow this

      • Roman Catholicism

      • Eastern Orthodoxy

      • Mormonism

    • Hinges on two ideas

      • Peter was the head apostle

      • His authority was passed on to subsequent generations

      • New apostles replace those who pass on or step down

    • Matthias

      • Added to the eleven to make twelve again

      • Criteria defies continual replacement – Acts 1:21-22

        • Be a witness “with us”

        • Must have been present along with apostles

    • What about Paul?

      • Special mission, special apostleship

      • Mission determined by God, not man

      • Appointment directly from Jesus

    • Some call selves apostles but are not – Revelation 2:2

  • Veneration

    • Adulation bordering on worship

      • To apostles

      • To select or prominent saints

      • Special places of worship

        • Bearing saints’ names

        • Some containing their remains – Matthew 23:27

      • Contrast with apostles’ attitudes

        • Where did early church gather in Jerusalem?

        • What made place of worship holy? Matthew 18:20

        • We keep the things we do and places we do when we do them by the authority of Jesus Christ

      • Would the apostles approve?

    • Scriptures to consider

      • I Thessalonians 2:5-7

      • Acts 14:11-18

      • I Corinthians 15:9-10

      • II Corinthians 11:7-15

      • Acts 10:25-26

      • Matthew 17:4-5

  • Peter in tradition

    • Executed in Rome by Nero

      • Crucified upside down

      • Same time as Paul’s execution

      • Remains in St. Peter’s Basilica along with Paul’s

    • Count Joseph’s Commission in the fourth century

      • From Emperor Constantine

      • Martyrium built on site of Peter’s and Andrew’s home

  • The apostles – in closing

    • Single most convincing evidence

      • Never sought power or wealth

      • Unfailing witnesses of the gospel

      • Endured much discomfort and cruelty

      • Died for the faith, what they knew to be true

        • Deaths often by cruel means

        • Could have renounced faith

    • Why would they do this for a lie?