Simon who is called Peter." Simon's precedence was evidently the wish of Jesus Himself. The twelve, moreover, accepted it without demur; Simon is almost invariably their spokesman. If ever Jesus had occasion to ask a question of all Simon usually made reply in the name of the others. The only case in which his leadership was disputed was during the rivalry with the sons of Zebedee. To this, however, we must make reference presently.

The newly-appointed apostles were now sent forth on a preaching mission; their business was to herald the advent of Jesus Himself in the districts into which He was about to come. Their theme was to be, "The Kingdom of Heaven is at hand." Certain miraculous powers were bestowed upon them; they were to heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons. They were to travel without gold or silver; they were not to take two coats or shoes or a staff, but were to trust to the hospitality of those to whom they preached. They were to regard themselves as sheep sent forth in the midst of wolves; they were to be wise as serpents and harmless as doves. They were to expect persecution; and here their Master foreshadowed what was to take place long afterwards, namely, that they were to expect to be brought before governors and kings for His sake and for a testimony to the heathen world. They were not to be over-anxious as to the form of their message; "for," said Jesus, "it is not ye that speak, but the spirit of your Father that speaketh in you." They were not to fear opposition, they were bidden to have a high courage and a simple faith. They were to yield themselves in the most thorough obedience and submission to the Leader in whose service they were now enrolled. Jesus expected to be the supreme interest in their lives. He asked for a devotion which should shrink from no sacrifice, reaching the climax of His exhortation in the statement that "He that doth not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. He that findeth his life shall lose it, and he that loseth his life for My sake shall find it."

This preaching journey was Simon's first trial in the work of the ministry. Jesus had not only called him, He had given him work to do. It was but a simple duty, yet the faithful discharge of this preliminary obligation was by-and-by to lead to greater things. There is no doubt that it was Jesus's intention to test in this way the men whom He had summoned to His side. This preaching tour was the humble beginning of the heroic days of the early Church.

IV.

Simon Acknowledges Jesus to be the Christ.

So far our Lord seems to have said little or nothing to His disciples in regard to His own personality. He must have had certain reasons for this course, the principal one being, no doubt, that He shrank from arousing mistaken expectations in the minds of His followers. They looked for a hero Messiah, a great liberator, a secular prince. Jesus knew from experience how extremely difficult it is to change any man's point of view, or to dislodge a prepossession from his mind, hence He preferred to allow His character to produce its own impression, and from this new standing ground to raise men's ideas of the functions of Messiah. His ministry would have been seriously maimed by any premature insistence upon His supernatural claims, indeed, the danger was on certain occasions only narrowly averted. At one time the people would have taken Him by force to make Him a king, at another time they welcomed Him to Jerusalem with hosannas. He was often addressed as the Son of David, a description applicable only to the Christ, as the ready reply of the Pharisees to His own question on a critical occasion clearly shows. "What think ye of Christ? Whose son is He?" They answered without hesitation, "The Son of David." Jesus had no wish to conceal His pretensions, but on the other hand He was careful not to arouse misconception as to His real character by declaring them. This reticence puzzled the religious leaders a good deal, as is evident from their somewhat peremptory demand, "How long dost Thou make us to doubt? If Thou art the Christ, tell us plainly."

With the disciples themselves Jesus pursued the same course, for they were liable to the same danger, the danger of misapprehending the real nature of Messiahship. How long He refrained from speaking plainly on the subject we cannot determine; but some time after the return of the Apostles from the preaching mission He thought the time had come to elicit from them a theory of His Person. One day, on His way through the villages of Cæsarea Philippi, He suddenly put to His followers the question, "Who do men say that I am?" and they answered, "Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others one of the prophets." Jesus continued His interrogation by the further inquiry: "But whom say ye that I am?" Matthew, Mark and Luke[1] are all agreed that Peter furnished the desired response, "Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God." Matthew's account is the most circumstantial and conveys most distinctly the impression that Jesus was pleased with the answer. His words of commendation to Simon on this occasion are a remarkable extension of the prophecy contained in His first greeting to him as set forth in John i. 42. Matthew's version is "Blessed art thou Simon Bar-Jona, for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but My Father which is in heaven. And I also say unto thee that thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my Church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it. I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven."

From this point Simon the fisherman becomes merged in Peter the Apostle. His training had now reached a point when his spiritual perceptions were sharpened and his faith in Jesus had led to the ejaculation which is the fundamental article of the creed of Christendom. Jesus's reference to Simon on this occasion has advanced somewhat in fulness since the day of their first meeting. Then He had stated, "Thou shall be called a rock," now He avers, "Blessed art thou. Thou hast been taught of God; thou art a rock, and on this rock will I build My Church." Here was a high distinction for the first apostle; a trust was committed to him, the guardianship of the newly-formed Church, and how much was involved in that he himself at this particular moment could not by any means foresee. Much discipline is yet needed ere he becomes fit to undertake the grand responsibility. Probably he does not shrink from the task, for he knows not its magnitude, neither is he modest in regard to his own qualifications for it, as will presently appear. He is to be taught by failure and humiliation that to follow Jesus is a way of the cross, that power for the duty is resident, not in Peter the Apostle but in Christ who gave the commission and in the Father who revealed to him the truth about the Son of God.

The period upon the consideration of which we have now entered was a time of spiritual ups and downs for the Apostle Peter. He seems to have been too easily elated, though as easily abased. He now began to feel his importance, and was doubtless somewhat exalted in spirit by our Lord's emphatic commendation of him in the presence of the Twelve. He had declared Jesus to be the Christ, but a Christ who learned obedience through sufferings was as yet unthinkable to him. This crude perception is the explanation of the mistake into which he immediately fell. No sooner had Jesus elicited the declaration that He Himself was the Christ than, after charging the disciples to say nothing to any man in regard to it, He began to teach them the true nature of Messiahship. In