The Festival of the Confession of St. Peter, 18 January

COLLECT OF THE DAY

Heavenly Father, You revealed to the apostle Peter the blessed truth that Your Son Jesus is the Christ. Strengthen us by the proclamation of this truth that we too may joyfully confess that there is salvation in no one else; through the same Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. 

The confession of St. Peter did not arise in the imagination of Peter’s heart but was revealed to him by the Father. The reason this confession is important is seen in Jesus’ response: “You are Peter [Greek Petros], and on this rock [Greek petra] I will build My church” (Matthew 16:18). As the people of God in the Old Testament began with the person of Abraham, the rock from which God’s people were hewn (Isaiah 51:1-2), so the people of God in the New Testament would begin with the person of Peter, whose confession is the rock on which Christ would build His Church. But Peter was not alone (the “keys” given to him in Matthew 16:19 were given to all the disciples in Matthew 18:18 and John 20:21-23). As St. Paul tells us, Peter and the other apostles take their place with the prophets as the foundation of the Church, with Christ Himself as the cornerstone (Ephesians 2:20). The confession of Peter, therefore, is the witness of the entire apostolic band and is foundational in the building of Christ’s Church. Thus the Church gives thanks to God for St. Peter and the other apostles who have instructed Christ’s Holy Church in His divine and saving truth. (The Treasury of Daily Prayer, Concordia Publishing House)

Readings:

Acts 4:8-13

Psalm 118:19-29 

2 Peter 1:1-15

St. Mark 8:27-9:1

Jesus called Simon “Peter”, or “Rock”.  A rock by itself is generally not of much use, maybe as ballast or a weapon.  Upon the rock of Peter’s Confession, Jesus said He would build His Church.  For a rock to be used in building it needs to be chiseled.  Jesus spend three years on earth chiseling Simon Peter.   Peter, like all Christians, are chiseled and hewn by the Lord to be built into His spiritual temple built upon the only cornerstone, Christ Himself:

1 Peter 2:⁴ As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, ⁵ you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.

Peter had a lot of rough edges as we all do.  His particular rough edge is well described by Pr. Johann Gerhard in describing Peter’s fall, after he said he would never forsake Jesus, speaks about Peter’s rough edge which is mine as well:

We should also contemplate how Peter came to such a fall, in order that we should avoid the same.  he was entirely too daring (presumptuous)-meaning that it al depended upon a good heart and good intentions. When he notice others who were not like him in this matter, he held them in disdain (see Matthew 26: 33)  Thus he experienced how very little we are capable of if God does not sustain us. Therefore we should indeed not rely on the strength of our faith, or on our good intentions.  God’s power does it, and it alone must do everything.  Indeed we should always keep in our heart the admonition which Christ gave to Peter and the other disciples: Watch and pray, so that you do not fall into temptation.

As when Peter start sinking into the deep when he walked on the water to Jesus, but he saw the storm, and began to sank, Peter was looking to himself for faith. “Faith looks to Jesus Christ alone, who did for all the world atone.” (“Salvation Unto Us Has Come”)  The Lord continued chiseling Peter’s rough edges after His Ascension, see Acts 11: 1-12b. Faith is finally not look what I can do, but true faith is look at what Jesus has done!  And the Apostle Peter did so preach and he fed Christ’s Sheep the Gospel.