01
Shimon’s Childhood Years
Introduction to the Story of Peter
"No, what are you doing to me? Be careful, that knife is very sharp! What are you doing? You’re going to mutilate me! Forever! Stop it! Keep your horrible old hands away from my privacy! You’re hurting me! Ouchhhh!"
Shimon tries to tell the cruel men exactly what he thinks of them because they have just cut off a part of his manhood! But his words come out as incomprehensible babbling, for he is, after all, just a mere seven days old!
The men laugh heartily and clap their hands as the priest steps back with the tiny piece of skin in his hand. Little Shimon’s father, Jonah, swells with pride because his firstborn has now become a true Israelite.
It is around the year 1 BC, and little Shimon - perhaps better known as Simon - had just experienced his first great storm in life, right inside the synagogue of Capernaum in Galilee! Many more storms would follow, for Father Jonah is already planning at his little boy’s circumcision how he will one day take him along on his fishing boat. But before that can happen, young Simon must receive an education, and this worries Jonah, for he is merely a fisherman himself!
Eventually, little Simon will receive a different name, but it will take a full thirty years before he is called Peter, the Rock. Moreover, it will take not only physical storms on the Sea of Galilee to earn that name but also immense spiritual storms!
One year after this traumatic event, little Simon gets a companion - a brand-new baby brother. Father Jonah decides to name this little newcomer Andrew. Together, these two brothers would go on to share wonderful adventures!
The two boys became best friends, playing together joyfully and getting up to all sorts of mischief. But when Father Jonah returned from the water, they would run to him, grabbing onto his knees, eager to sit wide-eyed at his feet and listen to his wonderful stories - stories about Adam and Eve, Noah and the Great Flood, Great-grandfather Abraham, and many more.
As they grew older, they had to retell these stories to their father so he could hear whether they remembered them correctly. Nothing was to be added or left out!
As they continued growing up, Daddy Jonah’s stories gained more depth. Now they had to start learning about things like the Ten Commandments and many other laws and regulations, making young Simon’s head spin!
One day, Father Jonah decided that Simon was big enough to join him on a fishing trip. Simon loved this new adventure and could barely contain his excitement! But he soon realized that it was actually hard work. A year later, little brother Andrew also joined, and before long, the two became part of the team of fishermen. Daddy Jonah taught the boys every trick in the fishing trade.
Meanwhile, Simon’s thirteenth birthday was approaching. On the one hand, there was a huge knot in his stomach, but at the same time, he was extremely excited. He had studied hard for the day when he would stand before the wise men in the synagogue and read from the Torah. By now, he had memorized large portions of the Law, and at thirteen, he was considered mature enough to understand it fully and uphold it as expected of all good Jews.
Among the fishing boats, Simon and Andrew soon befriended James and his fiery little brother John. Their father was also a fisherman and expected them to help him on his boat. The two brothers were constantly at each other’s throats! Before long, they earned the nickname “Boanerges” - Sons of Thunder - because of their hot-tempered nature.
The stage was now set for the great task that would rest upon Simon and his friends' shoulders. But first, there was the Baptist - John was his name. A rugged prophet who lived on locusts and wild honey, and who, incidentally, was distantly related to Simon. The two brothers immediately connected with John, and the seed of repentance was planted in their lives. One day, their curiosity was piqued when the prophet declared that the long-awaited Messiah was already among them!
"I wonder where that Messiah is now?" they asked each other. "And what does He look like? Will we recognize Him when we see Him?"
But their meeting with the Messiah would happen much sooner than they could ever have imagined. And that encounter would bring a radical change in both of their lives.
With Simon, each of us can relate, because we realize that it is not by his own strength that he becomes the rock, Peter, but solely by God’s great grace. There is hope, then, for me and for you!
Prayer:
Lord,
thank You for a man like Simon Peter - that I can learn from his
life!