| The Christian Life | June 1943 |
A Marvelous Change
The Two Peters
“When thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren.”—Luke 22:32
PETER believed that Jesus was the promised Messiah. To him the Messiah would be the most outstanding Conqueror of all history—one whose victories for truth and righteousness would result in the establishment of God’s will throughout the whole earth. God had made the promise that “of the increase of His government and peace there shall be no end.”—Isa. 9:7
Peter believed this promise and had confidence that Jesus would measure up to all that would be required in order to fulfill it. To him it was inevitable that Jesus must go forth in the world as a mighty Conqueror. So when he became a follower of the Master it was natural that he should be governed by this viewpoint.
As the close of the Master’s earthly career drew near we find Peter not at all sympathetic with the turn of events. He was considerably disturbed by certain things which Jesus had said about the manner in which those events would culminate. There was no doubt in his mind that Jesus was the One who would subdue all enemies under His feet. So we can well imagine his feelings when the Lord announced that He was going up to Jerusalem, where He would be put to death.
Peter could see no reason why his Master, the Messiah, the One whom God had sent to conquer the world, should so needlessly expose Himself to danger, and he said so. He said to Jesus, “Be it far from Thee, Lord: this shall not be unto Thee.” (Matt. 16:21,22) Why did Peter say that? Because he, as yet, was being governed by his personal, human viewpoint.
All the kings who had ever lived and all the conquerors who had ever subdued enemies, great or small, had done so by sheer force of arms—certainly not by surrender. If Jesus were to be the greatest King, the most outstanding Conqueror of all time, how could He be so foolish as to go where He knew His enemies were plotting to kill Him.
No wonder Peter said to his Master, “Be it far from Thee, Lord.” We all remember the reply, “Get thee behind Me, Satan.” Jesus explained that Peter was not expressing God’s viewpoint, but rather, reflected what all men had thought for thousands of years, a viewpoint that had not, and could not, produce lasting blessings.
Jesus further explained that all who seek to save their lives will lose them, but that those who lose their life for His sake and for the Gospel’s sake shall find it. Peter couldn’t understand such philosophy. Jesus had said on another occasion that there were many things He would like to tell them, but they could not bear them then. (John 16:12) However, He promised that when the Spirit of truth would come, it would guide them into ell truth. When this promise was fulfilled, Peter understood.—John 14:16,17,26; 16:13
They went up to Jerusalem. While Jesus and His disciples were assembled in the upper room, the Master inquired whether or not there were any swords in the company. He was assured that there were two. A little later these swords again enter the narrative. After the Gethsemane experience, just as Jesus met the mob that came out of the city to arrest Him, Peter began to make use of his sword. This was the same Peter who had explained to Jesus that it was a great mistake to go up to Jerusalem and expose Himself to danger. Peter had assured the Master that though men should be offended by Him, yet he could not, that he would gladly die with Him.—Matt. 26:33-35; John 13:37
Peter tried to make good this assurance. He drew his sword and attacked that mob of people who were seeking: Jesus’ death. He was not afraid! He had physical courage! Like all the conquerors of the past, Peter believed that the only way he could gain a victory was by the use of the sword, and if Jesus Himself were foolish enough not to defend the Kingdom interests, certainly he was willing and anxious to do so, Before Jesus made Peter put up his sword, the servant of the high priest had lost an ear.
Why did the Master ask about swords and yet was not willing that they should be used? It was to demonstrate that He was voluntarily giving Himself up to arrest, He wanted it known that He was not arrested and put to death because there was no one willing nor prepared to defend Him. Not only were there on earth those who were willing to die for Him, but He also explained that if He wished He could call upon the Father and the Father would send Him twelve legions of angels for protection.—Matt. 26:53
We can imagine how Peter felt when Jesus denied him the privilege of using that sword. He had cautioned his Lord against going up to Jerusalem and was rebuked for it, and now he was again rebuked. Surely he must have felt discouraged and bewildered. Perhaps this turn of events and this irrefutable evidence that Jesus would not permit the use of force to save His life, caused Peter temporarily to wonder if after all this One whom he had followed was truly the Messiah. Might not this to some extent account for the fact that we find this same Peter later denying his Lord? Then, too, there is a distinction between physical courage and moral courage. Peter’s dissembling after Pentecost would seem to indicate his lack of the latter, while possessing much of the former.—Gal. 2:11,12
Up to this point, Peter still had the human, personal viewpoint—the outlook that calls for fighting and force to attain victory. He did not, and at the time could not, understand how surrender and sacrifice could result in victory. And so, when Jesus was raised from the dead, word was sent to His disciples, with special emphasis on the fact that Peter should be told.—Mark 16:7
This was a further special dealing with Peter in order to prepare him for the future ministry. Jesus wanted Peter to know that God’s way had scored a victory. He wanted him to know that although He had voluntarily given up His life in sacrifice, yet He was now victorious because God had raised Him from the dead. Peter probably thought that with the death of Jesus all of the Messianic hopes centered in Him had vanished, but Jesus wanted him to know that He who had lost His life in the divine way of sacrifice had saved it. So the message was “Go … tell His disciples and Peter.”
The New Peter
Before the crucifixion Jesus had said to Peter that when he was converted he should strengthen the brethren. Peter wasn’t in any position to strengthen his brethren until he was converted. And what was this conversion? It was, among other things, a conversion from his worldly viewpoint which called for the use of force and arms to gain victory, to the viewpoint of God and of Jesus, that the most outstanding victories are obtained by the way of surrender and sacrifice.
Peter’s full conversion to this viewpoint was finally accomplished at Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit came upon the waiting disciples. And after Peter was converted, how wonderfully he was able to strengthen his brethren. He became an outstanding exponent of how to die sacrificially. This is seen from his First Epistle. This entire Epistle is devoted to the subject of self-sacrifice and suffering, culminating in death as God’s way for those attaining exaltation and glory in the Kingdom.
In this Epistle, Peter points out that it is a great favor from God that any Christian should have the privilege of suffering and dying with Christ. (I Pet. 4:12-14) In the opening chapter (10th and 11th verses), he shows that the Spirit of God, testifying through the prophets, had foretold the sufferings of the Christ and the glory that should follow. Throughout the remainder of the Epistle he continually reminds the followers of Jesus that they have the privilege of sharing in these foretold sufferings, in the hope of partaking also of the promised glory.
We can’t imagine Peter before Pentecost writing of the privilege of voluntary suffering, or yielding himself without a struggle and saying that such a privilege would be a favor from God. No, instead of this, when Jesus suggested such a thing, he said to Him, “Be it far from Thee, Lord.” But now Peter had been converted. He saw things the Lord’s way. It was the way of love, as against human reasoning.
“For even hereunto are ye called,” Peter explains. Yes, Peter had now learned that victory for righteousness was to be obtained by the way of the cross, by surrender, by sacrifice, because this was God’s way for the Christian. Peter, now being converted, was a new creature, willing and glad to lay down his earthly life following in the footsteps of his Master, and happy to strengthen all his brethren by encouraging them to appreciate privileges of doing good and suffering for it.