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LIBRARY OF PRINCETON 
 
 THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY 
 
 BS2515 .GSl 
 
 Exalted fisherman; a pratttc. 
 
 AND DEVOTIONAL STUDY tn THE I 
 EXPERIENCES OF THE APOSTLE S" 
 
The 
 
 Exalted Fisherman 
 
 A Practical and Devotional Study in 
 
 the Life and Experiences of the 
 
 Apostle St. Peter 
 
 BY 
 
 JOSEPH NELSON GREENE 
 
 Author of " The Gospel in Literature." 
 
 CC"i 20 1925 
 
 I 
 
 THE METHODIST BOOK CONCERN 
 NEW YORK CINCINNATI 
 
 ^mtmammur* 
 
CoFTBiaHT, 1914, BT 
 
 Joseph Nelson Gbeene 
 
PAGE 
 
 Contents. 
 
 PART I. 
 
 THE TESTING TIME. 
 
 I. The Call of Simon, - - - _ 9 
 
 II. Walking the Waves, - - - 23 
 
 III. The Divine Confession, - - - 36 
 
 IV.'^The Transfiguration, - - 51 
 
 V. Lessons from the Teacher, - - 66 
 
 (a) On Giving Offense, - - 66 
 
 (b) On Forgiveness, - - - 74 
 VI. Lessons from the Teacher, - 81 
 
 (a) On Reward of Service, - 81 
 
 (b) On the "Last Things," - 87 
 VII. In the Upper Room, ... 95 
 
 VIII. In Gethsemane, - - - - no 
 
 IX. The Three Denials, - . _ 125 
 
 X. Repentance and Restoration, - 139 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 PART II. 
 
 THE SEASON OF SERVICE. 
 
 PAUE 
 
 XI. Peter at Pentecost, - - - 157 
 
 XII. Peter as a Preacher, - - 169 
 
 XIII. Peter AS A Miracle Worker, - 182 
 
 XIV. Peter Persecuted, - - - 196 
 XV. Peter God's Executioner, - - 209 
 
 XVI. Peter in Prison, - - - 223 
 
 XVII. Peter in Samaria, - - - 236 
 
 XVIII. Peter at Lydda and Joppa, - 249 
 
 XIX.' Peter AND Cornelius, - - 262 
 
 XX. Peter Herod's Victim, - - 276 
 
 PART III. 
 THE DAYS OF DECLINE. 
 
 XXI. The Conference at Jerusalem, - 291 
 
 XXII. The Incident at Antioch, - 304 
 
 XXIII. Traditional Accounts, - - 316 
 
Foreword. 
 
 We are in the age of the practical. Books 
 and men are valuable as they touch in a 
 practical way daily problems and common 
 life. In the religious realm as well as else- 
 where that only is worth while which is help- 
 ful. There is a place for doctrine and theory, 
 but utility has a stronger appeal for this age. 
 
 With a view to the practical and the de- 
 votional this volume is written. The char- 
 acter of Saint Peter is prolific in helpful 
 suggestions. These suggestions are herein 
 applied in the practical and devotional way. 
 The historical, descriptive, and exegetical 
 elements are not omitted, but the practical 
 and devotional are chief. 
 
 The general plan is to present the life of 
 Saint Peter by treating chronologically each 
 prominent recorded incident in his life. The 
 life is divided into three parts. By studying 
 
 5 
 
FOREWORD. 
 
 the details of each part a comprehensive 
 view of the life is received and the suggestive 
 lessons readily appropriated. The plan 
 offers much material of value to ministers, 
 teachers, and Christian workers generally. 
 The author desires to acknowledge his in- 
 debtedness to many authors and works, chief 
 among which are "The Training of the 
 Twelve," by A. B. Bruce; ''The Life and 
 Times of Jesus," by Edersheim; "The Mir- 
 acles of Our Saviour," by W. M. Taylor; 
 "The Apostolic Life," by Joseph Parker; 
 Hastings' Bible Dictionary, and The Cam- 
 bridge Bible. 
 
PART ONE. 
 THE TESTING TIME. 
 
 (From the Call of Peter to Pentecost) 
 
CHAPTER I 
 
 THE CALL OF SIMON. 
 
 Theke is in Switzerland a class of men whose 
 business is to photograph the mountains of 
 the Alps and sell the pictures to travelers. 
 These men have found that some of the moun- 
 tains are too large to be taken by their cam- 
 eras, hence their viewpoint must be shifted 
 and such mountains as the Matterhorn be 
 taken in sections. 
 
 It is likewise true that some lives are so 
 great that they can not be photographed at 
 a single glance or from a single viewpoint. 
 When we undertake to photograph the lives 
 of those men whose character proportions 
 were made colossal by their spiritual experi- 
 ences and by their association with the Son 
 of God, we discover that the picture must be 
 taken in sections. The different periods com- 
 posing the life must be noticed. The steps 
 in the development of the life, and the in- 
 fluences leading to that development must be 
 studied. This fact is signally true of that life 
 
 9 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 which began its fellowship with the Savior as 
 an uncouth fisherman, and closed it as an 
 exalted and empowered apostle, — the life of 
 Simon Peter, the exalted fisherman. 
 
 The boyhood days of a great life are al- 
 ways full of interest to the student inasmuch 
 as ' * the child is the father of the man. ' ' The 
 child that is foretells the man that is to be. 
 The environment of Peter's early days evi- 
 dently affected somewhat his later life, inas- 
 much as he was brought up in a fish town. 
 The home of his childhood was Bethsaida, 
 the word meaning in the original, "Fish- 
 town." This was the Bethsaida that stood 
 on the west side of the Sea of Galilee. Here 
 Peter's parents lived their humble lives. The 
 father was evidently a fisherman, Jona by 
 'name, while, according to tradition, the 
 mother's name was Joanna. Peter and An- 
 drew, his brother, were taught the craft of 
 their father and grew up to know little out- 
 side of the circle of a fisherman's life. The 
 education of Peter was apparently a very 
 limited one, consisting of the meager instruc- 
 tion he received in the synagogue schools 
 found in almost every Jewish community. 
 That he was unlettered is evident from a 
 
 10 
 
THE CALL OF SIMON. 
 
 reference to Mm in the Book of Acts (4: 13), 
 wherein he is spoken of as being ''unlearned 
 and ignorant." The probability is that 
 Peter spent his early days more in work 
 than in study. This fact is all the more 
 probable since Peter seems to have been 
 left an orphan, as is concluded by some stu- 
 dents because no reference is made to his 
 parents. In his fishing enterprises he is rep- 
 resented as being associated with James and 
 John, but his father is not mentioned. Hence, 
 it is inferred that Peter was one of that class 
 of boys who at an early age have to provide 
 for themselves. 
 
 Most of Peter's early life was likely lived 
 in Bethsaida. Later, however, when the Gos- 
 pel accounts open, we find him married and 
 living in Capernaum with his wife and 
 mother-in-law. Very little is said concern- 
 ing his wife, but her loyalty to him and his 
 cause is inferred from a tradition which as- 
 serts that in the end she shared martyrdom 
 with Peter for the cause of Christ. 
 
 The time of Peter 's birth is not definitely 
 known. It is not later than 27 or 28 A. D., 
 when we find him a man with a family living 
 in Capernaum. At that time he must have 
 
 11 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 been a man of mature years. We may safelj- 
 assume that bis birth occurred some time 
 jjrior to the birth of Jesus. He is repre- 
 sented in tradition and in art as being older 
 than others of the disciples. In the lists of 
 the apostles given in the Gospels, Peter's 
 name stands first, which may lend some color 
 to the belief that he was first in years among 
 The Twelve. 
 
 When John the Baptist came preaching 
 the doctrine of repentance, Peter became one 
 of his disciples, and with others was duly 
 baptized. The leading of Peter from this 
 discipleship mtli John into final apostleship 
 with Christ was a process consisting of at 
 least three distinct steps. We may desig- 
 nate them as the first call to discipleship, 
 the second call to discipleship, and the choos- 
 ing as an apostle. 
 
 The first call to discipleship with Christ 
 occurred along the River Jordan, at a spot 
 not far from the line separating Samaria 
 from Judea. On the day following his testi- 
 mony before the priests and Levites, John 
 the Baptist was walking with his new dis- 
 ciples John and Andrew, when Jesus ap- 
 peared before them, John the Baptist intro- 
 
 12 
 
THE CALL OF SBION. 
 
 ducing Him by saying, "Behold the Lamb of 
 God." John and Andrew, who up to this 
 time had been the disciples of John the Bap- 
 tist, turned and followed Jesus. These men 
 have the distinction of being the first per- 
 sons of whom it was said, ''They followed 
 Jesus." However, on that same day, An- 
 drew, with the true evangelistic spirit, sought 
 out his own brother, Simon Peter, and 
 brought him to Jesus. The fact that Simon 
 was at this time called to discipleship is seen 
 from the statement addressed to him by 
 Jesus, ''Thou art Simon, the son of Jona: 
 thou shalt be called Cephas, which is by in- 
 terpretation, a stone." This incident con- 
 stituted Peter's first call to discipleship. 
 (John 1:35-42.) 
 
 On the day following this call, Jesus, in- 
 tending to go into Galilee, called two other 
 disciples, Philip and Nathanael. With this 
 company of five followers He proceeded to 
 Cana, where the first miracle, that of turn- 
 ing water into wine, was performed. The 
 movements of this little company are fol- 
 lowed only with some difficult)^, but it ap- 
 pears that they journeyed from Cana to 
 Capernaum. After tarrying there a short 
 13 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 time, they journeyed to Jerusalem, where oc- 
 curred the first cleansing of the temple by 
 Jesus, and also the conversation with Nico- 
 demus. Then came the journey northward 
 again, the little company passing through 
 Samaria, in which country occurred the fa- 
 mous conversation between Christ and the 
 woman of Samaria. Jesus journeyed with 
 the disciples as far as Cana, where it seems 
 that a temporary separation occurred be- 
 tween the disciples and their Master. The 
 disciples from this point seem to have pro- 
 ceeded to Capernaum, while Jesus went again 
 to Jerusalem to attend an unnamed feast. 
 Later, Jesus returned to Nazareth, where 
 occurred His rejection by the people of His 
 own town. Thence He proceeded to Caper- 
 naum, where His disciples had preceded Him, 
 and where He found them at their former 
 occupation of fishing. 
 
 The second call of Peter to discipleship 
 occurred at this point. Peter and Andrew, 
 in company with James and John, were fish- 
 ing in the Sea of Galilee. They had toiled 
 all night and caught nothing. In the morn- 
 ing Jesus appeared to the tired fishermen 
 and turned their disappointment and failure 
 14 
 
THE CALL OF SIMON. 
 
 into joy and success. He instructed Simon 
 to push out his boat from the shore and let 
 down his net for a new effort. After raising 
 a brief objection, Simon followed the instruc- 
 tions, and he and his friends caught that 
 morning such a draught of fishes as never 
 before had rewarded their efforts. The ef- 
 fect was more pronounced on Peter than on 
 any of his companions. He seemed to catch 
 a vision of the power and authority of his 
 Master, and upon landing he fell at the feet 
 of Jesus and cried, ** Depart from me, for I 
 am a sinful man.'* It was probably the re- 
 membrance of the objection he had just of- 
 fered to the instructions of Jesus that caused 
 him to feel such a sense of humility and 
 guilt. Peter must be credited with ability 
 to see his faults, and he had many. But 
 he was always penitent when he felt the 
 force of those faults. This trait in his nature 
 made him the kind of clay that the Master 
 could mold into such a useful vessel. It was 
 here at the side of the Sea of Galilee, while 
 the penitent disciple was in his penitence, 
 that Jesus made the second call to disciple- 
 ship, saying, ''Fear not; from henceforth 
 thou shalt catch men. ' ' Peter had just made 
 
 15 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 a wonderful catch of fish while acting under 
 his Master 's instructions. Now, acting under 
 the same instruction, he was to become as 
 successful in catching men. With such an 
 object lesson before him, Peter could not 
 doubt the Master 's ability to lead in a larger 
 angling enterprise, so he, with his compan- 
 ions, immediately ''forsook all and followed 
 Him." This is the second and permanent 
 call to discipleship. 
 
 The third call was the call to apostle- 
 ship. This call consisted in the separation 
 of twelve men from the body of the disciples 
 and the setting aside of The Twelve for spe- 
 cial work. Peter was one of The Twelve, and 
 his name heads the list. This separation to 
 apostleship occurred during the Lord's Gali- 
 lean ministry, shortly before His delivery of 
 the Sermon on the Mount. 
 
 These three steps constitute the process 
 of Peter's elevation to apostleship. A fourth 
 call is sometimes mentioned, the reference 
 being to that time after the resurrection 
 when Jesus, walking again by the Sea of 
 Galilee, said to Peter, ''Follow Me." This, 
 however, was more of an incidental instruc- 
 tion than a definite call, and need not, there- 
 
^ 
 
 THE CALL OF SIMON. 
 
 fore, be considered in a study of Peter's call 
 to apostleship. (John 21: 19.) 
 
 Scattered along the pathway of this call 
 of Peter to final apostleship there are some 
 striking scenes which emphasize important 
 spiritual truths. It will be profitable to now^ 
 call attention to them and observe their prac- 
 tical value. The scenes may be appropriately 
 labeled as follows: 
 
 First, an excited brother. The direct ef- 
 fect of Andrew 's discovery of the Christ was 
 an enthusiasm for a like discovery on the 
 part of his brother Simon. Evidently in 
 Andrew's thought nothing that could come 
 into the life of Simon at that time was so 
 important as the discovery of the Christ. 
 The record says that he first found his own 
 brother, Simon. Whatever other work there 
 may have been that day for Andrew or his 
 brother, it was all submerged in the supreme 
 purpose of finding the Christ. Peter would 
 not have found Christ that day had it not 
 been for the intense earnestness of his 
 brother Andrew. Perhaps he never would 
 have found Christ had he not found Him that 
 day. Who knows? This spirit of Andrew 
 is the natural birthright of eve^y true Chris- 
 
 17 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 tian. He who finds Christ in the fullness 
 of His saving and blessing presence mil ex- 
 perience the overflow of altruism which finds 
 its level only in the bringing of another soul 
 to enjoy the same experience. God's 
 method of building up His Kingdom is for 
 the overflow of one soul's delight in finding 
 the Master to sweep another soul into the 
 Kingdom. It is for one Christ-filled life to 
 draw another life which knows not the Christ. 
 If every new convert through the ages had 
 followed the example of Andrew, there would 
 not be an unsaved soul in the world to-day. 
 Second, empty boats filled. Behold the 
 disappointed fishermen on the shore wearied 
 after their long, fruitless toil. The boats 
 are riding lazily on the waves, empty and 
 idle. But see them later weighted to the 
 sinking-point with fish. What had made the 
 difference? Christ had come in the mean- 
 time. That was all. The empty boats spake 
 of failure, the full ones of success. The ef- 
 fect of the coming of Christ into life is just 
 that — the turning of failure into success. 
 Life's shore-line is lined with the empty boats 
 that speak of dismal disappointments, and 
 furnish the evidences of manhood and wom- 
 
 18 
 
THE CALL OF SIMON. 
 
 anhood squandered fruitlessly. Failure is 
 prevalent. Yet there is not a single empty 
 boat but that could be abundantly filled were 
 Christ admitted into it. The cause of a large 
 amount of worthless living is the conducting 
 of life in the absence of the Christ principles 
 and life. The best guarantee of a successful 
 life is the presence of the Christ in the life 
 mth His divine ideals and principles. 
 
 Third, forsaken nets. The statement is 
 made that when the Master had called the 
 disciples to Himself, with the assurance that 
 they should become fishers of men, that they 
 forsook all and followed Him. Among the 
 things forsaken were their nets, the sign of 
 their craft. Scattered along the shore of the 
 sea were those forsaken implements sug- 
 gestive of their old vocation. Discarded and 
 forgotten they lay, while their owners fol- 
 lowed the advancing Christ. Silent they lay, 
 5^et loud in their utterance of spiritual truth. 
 No life can follow Christ in the best sense 
 without a complete forsaking of the former 
 implements of worldliness. A full abandon- 
 ment of the unrighteous life is necessary. 
 The sin-nets must be left behind. "Worldly 
 ambition, selfishness, anger, lust, and the long 
 
 19 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 list of kindred evils must be discarded by 
 the sea before the advance with the Savior is 
 possible. Let the follower of Jesus ever re- 
 member that there is irrevocable enmity be- 
 tween the world and the Kingdom, and while 
 the former is retained the latter can not be 
 entered. 
 
 Fourth, a fever-smitten home. One of the 
 first places in which we find Christ, after He 
 leaves the seashore with His disciples, is the 
 home of Peter, in which Peter's mother-in- 
 law lay smitten with a fever. Before Jesus 
 entered the home it was a scene of suffering. 
 Pain and sorrow were there. But a wonder- 
 ful transformation occurred when Christ en- 
 tered the home. With striking simplicity and 
 ease Christ relieved the suffering, and the 
 rejoicing woman rose from her bed of sick- 
 ness to minister unto her guests. 
 
 The Talmud recites a magic formula for 
 the curing of such a burning fever as is hero 
 mentioned. It advises that an iron knife be 
 tied by a braid of hair to a thornbush, that 
 the verses from Exodus 3 : 2-5 be repeated, 
 that the thornbush be cut down during the 
 repeating of a stated formula, and the result 
 vAW be that the virtue engendered thus will 
 
 20 
 
THE CALL OF SIMON. 
 
 be transmitted to the afflicted one, and the 
 fever will be healed. The absurdity of this 
 method of cure is in striking contrast with 
 this direct and simple method by which 
 Christ cured sickness in Peter's home. The 
 benefits of Christ's presence are not difficult 
 to receive. No weird, agonizing- process has 
 to be endured to receive His blessings. He 
 gives freely and frankly to such as will re- 
 ceive. 
 
 But the important point to be observed 
 here is the effect of the coming of Christ 
 into the home. At the presence of Jesus the 
 fever was rebuked and departed like an evil 
 spirit from the suffering body. Disease and 
 suffering vanished, and health and joy came. 
 It was a new home after the coming of Jesus. 
 Thus in the beginning of His ministry the 
 Lord acted the prophecy of His power to 
 transform the home. Nothing is more needed 
 amidst the unrest of modern social life than 
 homes that are made happy and healthful 
 by the presence of Christ. The home is the 
 heart of society. Keep it right and the social 
 blood will be pure. Robert Burns, in ''The 
 Cotter's Saturday Night," describes a home 
 in which the father at eventide calls the fam- 
 21 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 ily around the fireside while he reads from 
 the Word of God and lifts up his voice in 
 prayer. It is the picture of a hgme in which 
 Christ is enthroned. And the poet, after de- 
 scribing the scene, says, "From scenes like 
 •these old Scotia's grandeur springs." It is 
 from such homes as these that the grandeur 
 of any nation springs. Such homes are the 
 guarantee of a safe and sane social and in- 
 dividual life. The presence of Jesus means 
 spiritual health for the nation, for society, 
 for the home, and for the individual. 
 
 22 
 
CHAPTEE II. 
 
 WALKING THE WAVES. 
 
 Between the call of Simon, as noticed in the 
 preceding chapter, and the event which fur- 
 nished the subject of this chapter, there oc- 
 curred another event in which Simon Peter 
 was concerned, namely, the healing of 
 Jairus's daughter. The name of Peter is 
 mentioned in connection with this healing as 
 being one of the three chosen friends whom 
 Jesus elected to accompany Him. This fact 
 suggests the nearness of Peter to the Mas- 
 ter's heart. He was one of the inner circle 
 of the Master's friends. The incident of the 
 healing, however, is of no great importance 
 in the study of the life of Peter, hence we 
 pass by it, mentioning it only for the sake 
 of chronological order. 
 
 The account of Christ's walking on the 
 waves is given in three of the Gospels, Mat- 
 thew, Mark, and John. But the effort of 
 Peter to imitate Christ by attempting him- 
 self to walk on the waves is recorded by Mat- 
 
 23 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 thew only. For a complete description of the 
 incident it is necessary to draw from all the 
 Gospel accounts. 
 
 The event occurred shortly after feeding 
 the five thousand near Bethsaida, on the 
 northeastern side of the Sea of Galilee. The 
 immediate result of Christ 's miracle in feed- 
 ing the five thousand was that the people 
 were aroused to compel Him to become king. 
 To prevent His disciples from participating 
 in that distasteful purpose, Jesus persuaded 
 them to cross over the sea, going either 
 to Bethsaida on the western side, or to 
 Capernaum. He then dismissed the multi- 
 tude and went alone up into a mountain to 
 pray. Leaving Him alone for a moment in 
 the solitude of the mountain retreat, we will 
 follow the experiences of the disciples. 
 
 Obedient to the instructions of Jesus, the 
 disciples began the voyage to the western 
 shore of Galilee. It was evening. The pros- 
 pect of a safe and pleasant journey was be- 
 fore them. But after they had rowed twenty- 
 five or thirty furlongs, a distance of two and 
 one-half or three miles, a sudden storm arose. 
 It was one of those local squalls so common 
 on the Sea of Galilee. The suddenness of 
 24 
 
WALKING THE WAVES. 
 
 this storm suggests some interesting facts 
 concerning this little sea. It is not a large 
 body of water, being something like six miles 
 in width and some sixteen or seventeen miles 
 in length. The sea lies in a deep depression, 
 which is probably volcanic in origin. The 
 surface of the lake is about seven hundred 
 feet below the level of the sea. From the 
 edge of the water a low beach stretches for 
 a short distance. This beach is bordered by 
 mountains which rise to considerable height, 
 some of them reaching as high as two thou- 
 sand feet. The difference of elevation be- 
 tween the lake and the mountains makes a 
 striking difference in their temperatures. On 
 the lake it is warm and sultry, while on the 
 mountains it is cool and invigorating. This 
 difference in temperature accounts for the 
 sudden squalls. The warm air rising from 
 the lake creates an opening for the cooler air 
 from the mountains to occupy, which it does 
 freely, rushing in sometimes at a terrific rate. 
 Sudden and dangerous storms are the result. 
 It was a storm of this kind that overtook the 
 disciples. It struck them when they were 
 about half way across the lake, and it was 
 evidently severe in its character, for the dis- 
 25 
 
 / 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 ciples rowed against it until the early morn- 
 ing hours and had made very little progress. 
 It was while they were in the midst of 
 their toiling against the waves that Christ 
 appeared unto the disciples, walking on the 
 waves. There are two or three explanations 
 given for His appearance at that moment and 
 in that way. It is thought by some that 
 from His elevated position on the mountain- 
 side Jesus could look out over the lake, lying 
 there like a sheet of silver in the moonlight, 
 for such a storm as has been described could 
 occur without clouds blackening the heavens. 
 Looking thus, it is supposed that Christ saw 
 the boat lying like a dark object on the water 
 and making no progress. He therefore went 
 to their relief, walking on the water the dis- 
 tance of two and one-half or three miles. 
 This theory is objectionable because no moon- 
 light would be sufficiently bright to enable 
 Christ to identify His own disciples at such 
 a distance. There were likely other boats 
 on the sea, caught by the storm. At so great 
 a distance it would be next to impossible to 
 distinguish one boat from another even in 
 daylight, much less by moonlight. The 
 theory that Christ came to the disciples be- 
 
 26 
 
WALKING THE WAVES. 
 
 cause He saw from the mountain their dis- 
 tress must be given up. 
 
 Another theory is that Jesus prayed in 
 the mountain until the fourth watch, as the 
 account says, by which time it was light 
 enough to see the toiling disciples, and thus 
 observing their helpless condition, Jesus 
 came to their relief. The time indicated in 
 the account would be somewhere between 
 three and six o'clock in the morning. But, 
 assuming that the hour was so late as that, 
 and that it was daylight, the same objection 
 would hold as in the former case. The dis- 
 tance would be too great to distinguish the 
 boat from others. 
 
 There is, however, another theory which 
 seems more reasonable. It is that Jesus 
 prayed in the mountain until a late hour, as 
 was His custom, and then, following His 
 original intention, started to Capernaum on 
 foot, walking along the northern shore of 
 the lake. We must remember that He had 
 sent His disciples back by boat, hence He 
 must have intended to make His return jour- 
 ney on foot. The natural route would be 
 along the northern shore. Now, if the map 
 of the Sea of Galilee be studied, it will be 
 
 27 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 seen that the disciples, in rowing from their 
 starting-point on the eastern shore and going 
 directly to Capernaum, would not at any time 
 be much more than one-half mile from the 
 northern shore line. Jesus, passing along the 
 shore in the light of the early morning, could 
 see the storm-tossed boat and the toiling dis- 
 ciples. Seeing them thus in their helpless 
 condition, He immediately went to their re- 
 lief, walking on the waves a distance of one- 
 half mile instead or two or three miles. 
 
 Mark tells us that Jesus made as if He 
 would pass by the Disciples. The purpose 
 of this act was evidently to attract attention 
 before advancing directly toward the disci- 
 ples, thus avoiding some of the fright which 
 might be occasioned if they saw the strange 
 figure bearing directly down upon them. 
 Even as it was they supposed that they had 
 seen an apparition, and cried out in their 
 fear. Their fears were quickly relieved, how- 
 ever, as they heard the familiar voice of the 
 Master sounding above the noise of the waves 
 and saying, " It is I ; be not afraid. ' ' 
 
 The part that Peter played in this inci- 
 dent occurred at this point. He answered 
 the voice of Jesus by saying, ''Lord, if it be 
 28 
 
WALKING THE WAVES. 
 
 Thou, bid me come unto Thee on the water. ' ' 
 That ''if" sounds like Peter had some doubt 
 as to whether the strange figure were really 
 the Lord. But it must not be so interpreted. 
 Peter had perhaps doubted at first, and imag- 
 ined he saw a ghost. But now his doubts 
 were vanishing, for he recognized the Master. 
 Some one has said that "if " was the last echo 
 of his doubt. It was as if Peter said, "Lord, 
 since it is Thou and not a ghost, let me come 
 to Thee on the waves 1 ' ' This request shows 
 the childlike impulsiveness of Peter. The 
 possession of that impulsiveness of nature 
 may have furnished one ground for Christ's 
 interest in Peter. Impulsiveness is very 
 closely akin to energy, and when rightly con- 
 trolled by judgment, is a power. Jesus per- 
 haps saw that this element in Peter would 
 become tempered, and after a while be har- 
 nessed by the power of the Holy Spirit, as it 
 really was at Pentecost, and that then its pos- 
 sessor would become a most valuable instru- 
 ment in establishing the Kingdom on earth. 
 And so Jesus reckoned with that impulsive- 
 ness as in the present case. He doubtless 
 saw, too, a good opportunity to teach a 
 needed lesson in human helplessness and di- 
 29 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 vine power. His reply to Peter therefore 
 was, * ' Come. ' ' And so Peter makes the start 
 He does n 't stop to think of the absurdity of 
 his venture, or of the danger involved. His 
 whole thought is fixed on Jesus. And, 
 strange as it may seem, he actually walks a 
 little on the water. (Matt. 14:29.) That 
 concentration of thought on Jesus seems to 
 furnish Peter a bridge above the waves, and 
 on it he walks. 
 
 That triumph over nature, however, was 
 exceedingly short. Suddenly a strong gust 
 of wind came sweeping over the crest of the 
 waves. It struck Peter with full force and he 
 became alarmed. For a moment he forgot 
 Jesus and thought of the wind and the dan- 
 ger. The consequence was that he began to 
 sink. The waters rose higher and higher 
 about him, and in his alarm the sinking man 
 cried, ''Lord, save me." Jesus immediately, 
 or, as the original word implies, in great 
 haste, stretched forth His hand and rescued 
 Peter. Jesus then in addressing Peter gave 
 him a new name, even as He did when He first 
 called him to discipleship. According to the 
 King James translation, Jesus said, ''0 thou 
 of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?" 
 
 30 
 
WALKING THE WAVES. 
 
 But literally He said, ' * Littlef aith, wliy did 
 you doubt?" The new name He gives Peter 
 is ' * Littlef aith. " Various were the names 
 the Lord gave to this changeable disciple: 
 ' ' Cephas, " " Littlef aith, " ' ' Satan. ' ' Yet in 
 all of these instances Jesus was evidently 
 attempting to reveal to Peter a glimpse of 
 his needy nature. In this instance, having 
 administered the gentle rebuke contained in 
 the name '* Littlef aith, " Jesus stepped with 
 Peter into the boat, and the storm ceased. 
 
 In this strange incident the truth is strik- 
 ingly presented that the disciple must be 
 utterly dependent upon the Master for power. 
 This was a lesson Peter needed very much 
 to learn. He was inclined to look to himself 
 for the sources of power. Instead of feeling 
 the need of borrowing power from the Mas- 
 ter, Peter felt that he had ability to loan. On 
 the night of denial, instead of feeling that he 
 had need of the Lord's assistance, he felt 
 rather that the Lord had need of him, hence 
 Peter even dared to assure the Lord that he 
 would stand by Him to the last. Peter lacked 
 the sense of dependence, and was supplied 
 with an over-amount of self-assurance. He 
 was slow to learn his needs. In the present 
 31 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 instance, while he had every opportunity of 
 learning the lesson of dependence on the 
 Lord, he learned it poorly, as later events 
 show. However, the fact that he came to 
 learn the lesson at last is evident, for after 
 the experience at Pentecost, Peter did not 
 assume to do any of the work of the Kingdom 
 in his own strength. It was always "in the 
 name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth. ' ' Despite 
 Peter's poor learning of the lesson, it was 
 there. Modern disciples, reading this event 
 in the light of subsequent years, may learn 
 the lesson better than did Peter. Yet the 
 lesson is as poorly learned by many. It 
 surely would be unbecoming for a modern 
 Christian who has failed to learn the lesson 
 to censure Peter for his dullness. The truth 
 stands to-day as evident as it did in the time 
 of the Psalmist and the time of Peter, **Our 
 help Cometh from the Lord. ' ' 
 
 There is an old tradition to the effect that 
 when the Holy Family were making their 
 flight into Egjq^t, and as they were approach- 
 ing the city of Heliopolis, a tree which grew 
 near the city and which was supposed to be 
 the seat of a god, bowed its branches to the 
 earth in homage to the infant Christ. Idols 
 
 •?9 
 
WALKING THE WAVEi^f. 
 
 also fell from their places at the approach of 
 the Holy Babe and lay in broken fragments 
 by the wayside. The evident purpose of the 
 tradition is to present the power of Jesus 
 as the power above all powers. It contains, 
 therefore, a germ of truth. The power of 
 Jesus is supreme. The power the Christian 
 needs to welcome into his life is the power of 
 Christ. The life that is the most satisfactory 
 to itself and the most pleasing to the Master 
 is the one that leans not at all on self, but 
 altogether on Christ. The hand that saved 
 Peter is the one even to-day that gives the 
 best support when the sea is rough or the 
 way dark. 
 
 Peter discovered also that the transfer 
 of his attention from Jesus was dangerous. 
 He walked the wave successfully while his 
 eye was fixed on the Master. But when he 
 looked away from Jesus and saw the stormy 
 sea, he was smitten with fear and began 
 to sink. 
 
 The transfer of attention from Jesus to 
 the world is always dangerous. As long as 
 the eye of the Christian is fixed on the Mas- 
 ter, he is safe. While the Savior is looked 
 to as the life's Guide; while the will of 
 
 ' 33 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 Christ is supreme; while the world is for- 
 gotten in the fixed purpose of the soul to look 
 to the Lord for guidance, the life can never 
 sink. But let the attention be taken from 
 the Lord and centered on the world; let 
 Christ be obscured and the elements of the 
 carnal life magnified, and the life will surely- 
 become engulfed. Ask any of the large and 
 sad army of fallen disciples for the story 
 of their fall, and the answer will be that their 
 decline began when they transferred their 
 gaze from Christ to the world. There is 
 much sound pliilosophy in the injunction to 
 run with patience the race, looking — continu- 
 ally looking — unto Jesus, the Author and 
 Finisher of our faith. The heart sometimes 
 follows the eye spiritually as well as materi- 
 ally. 
 
 The safest and happiest life is the one in 
 which Jesus holds the hand. The picture of 
 Jesus and Peter walking hand in hand across 
 the water back to the boat is a suggestive 
 one. Peter's fears are all gone now. There 
 is a smile of assurance on his face, because 
 he is now in league with the Master of the 
 sea. He himself is master of the sea. Mas- 
 ter, not because of any virtue he possesses, 
 34 
 
WALKING THE WAVES. 
 
 but because Jesus holds his hand. The spir- 
 itual application of that picture is inspiring. 
 Safe and victorious is that life which walks 
 hand in hand with our Lord. The path may 
 be rough, the dangers may be many, but with 
 Christ the life may move serenely and tri- 
 umphantly on. Fears are transformed into 
 smiles, and the sinking life rises to a forward 
 march in company with the King. 
 
 There is a beautiful spirit revealed in a 
 prayer Martin Luther once uttered. He said : 
 "0, my most dear God, I thank Thee that 
 Thou hast made me poor and a beggar upon 
 earth. God, punish me rather ^^'ith pesti- 
 lence, terrible sickness, with war, with any- 
 thing rather than that Thou he silent unto 
 me." The longing of the good man's soul 
 was that the Lord should be consciously near 
 unto him ; that as the Lord walked with Peter 
 across the waves, so He should walk ever 
 at his side. The troubled but trustful re- 
 former knew the value of that companion- 
 ship. Its absence would be worse than pesti- 
 lence or sickness. Likewise, the concern of 
 every Christian should be that the Lord be 
 not absent from him. His prayer should be 
 that the Lord be not silent unto him. 
 35 
 
CHAPTER III. 
 
 THE DIVINE CONFESSION. 
 
 The life of St. Peter is so closely connected 
 with the life of Christ that in stnd\ing the 
 former we must frequently refer to the latter. 
 In the scene described in the last chapter, 
 Jesus was in the vicinity of the Sea of Gali- 
 lee. Shortly after performing the miracle 
 of walking the waves, Jesus took a journey 
 northward into a country He had not visited 
 up to this time. This journey is known as 
 the first northern journey for retirement. 
 It was during this visit that the Syrophoe- 
 nician's daughter was healed. The visit 
 seems to have been of short duration, for we 
 soon find Jesus returning to the Sea of Gali- 
 lee, passing through Decapolis. He prob- 
 ably returned by way of the eastern Beth- 
 saida, as it was about this time in His public 
 ministry that we find Him healing the blind 
 man near Bethsaida, and feeding the multi- 
 tude of four thousand in the same vicinity. 
 From these events, however, Jesus turned 
 36 
 
THE DIVINE CONFESSION. 
 
 again to northern Galilee, going, as Matthew 
 says, into the coasts of CaBsarea Philippi. 
 This is known as the second northern jour- 
 ney for retirement. It was in the neighbor- 
 hood of Caesarea Philippi that the event dis- 
 cussed in this chapter occurred, namely, 
 Peter 's confession of his faith in the divinity 
 of Christ. 
 
 The purpose of Jesus in taking this jour- 
 ney to the north was probably to avoid the 
 dangers and inconveniences arising from His 
 miraculous ministry in Galilee. The bloody 
 hand of Herod, which had caused the death 
 of John the Baptist, was now seeking His 
 life. The Sadducees and Pharisees were be- 
 coming annoying in their persecutions. They 
 had just demanded a sign from Jesus, which 
 He had refused to give, and His enemies were 
 therefore saying that He was not able to give 
 proof of His Messiahship. It is probable, 
 too, that within the circle of His own dis- 
 ciples a little discontent had begun to arise. 
 They had expected Christ to become king, and 
 yet only a short time before, when the multi- 
 tude had desired to declare Jesus king. He 
 had refused and seemed almost grieved at 
 the suggestion. It was natural that His dis- 
 37 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 ciples should be a little discouraged. If the 
 truth could be known, we would probably find 
 that the shaking of the faith of Judas and the 
 beginning of his apostasy dated from these 
 troubled days and seemingly unhappy ex- 
 periences of Jesus around the Sea of Galilee. 
 With such conditions confronting Him, it 
 was natural that Jesus should desire to with- 
 draw with His disciples, leaving behind the 
 multitudes and the enemies, and seek a quiet 
 spot where He could commune with the Fa- 
 ther and instruct His chosen followers as to 
 the crisis of suffering and death toward 
 which He must soon proceed. Hence He 
 sought one of nature's most quiet retreats, 
 where the chief spectators would be the 
 mountains and the forest trees. The spot 
 selected was in the neighborhood of Mt. Her- 
 mon, one of the most picturesque regions 
 found in all Palestine. It was here that Peter 
 made his confession of faith in the divinity 
 of Jesus. 
 
 The path which Jesus and His compan- 
 ions must have traveled leads, as we are told, 
 over *'an unwonted carpet of turf, through 
 trees of every variety of foliage, through a 
 park-like verdure," until the snow-covered 
 
 38 
 
THE DIVINE CONFESSION. 
 
 top of Mt. Hemion appears. The snowy top 
 is gradually shut from view by its approach- 
 ing nearness. The rush of waters is heard 
 as they leap down the mountain side and oft* 
 into the valley. Soon an ancient Roman towm 
 looms up on the mountain side, lying amid 
 groves of olive trees. This is Cassarea Phi- 
 lippi, which in the time of Jesus was a thriv- 
 ing little city. Close to this town the moun- 
 tain side forms a solid wall of stone — a rocky 
 cliff. From a depression or cave beneath 
 this rocky wall there issue many little 
 streams, which collect into a basin and form 
 a larger stream, which as it flows on widens 
 into the famous Jordan River. The cave in 
 the rocky wall just mentioned is the upper 
 source of the Jordan. It was near the base 
 of this quiet Mt. Hermon, where no sound 
 save the murmuring of the waters and the 
 singing of the birds could disturb Him, that 
 Jesus led His disciples and put to them the 
 questions concerning His Divine Sonship. 
 (Matt. 16:13-20.) 
 
 The question proposed first by Jesus was, 
 *'Who do men say that I, the Son of man, 
 am?'^ The conversation which follows re- 
 veals clearly the opinion of the public con- 
 
 39 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 cerning Jesus. If the question arises as to 
 why Jesus put this question to His disciples, 
 the answer, in part at least, would be that 
 He desired to call their attention to the preju- 
 diced opinion the public held of Him, and in 
 the face of that false opinion to test the 
 opinion held by the disciples, and if possible, 
 strengthen them in the true view. The faith 
 in the hearts of the disciples that Jesus was 
 really the Son of God w^ould mean much in 
 strengthening the devotion of the disciples in 
 that time of crisis. He was just about to 
 reveal to the disciples something of His ap^ 
 proaching suffering and death, and He de- 
 sired them to be thoroughly grounded in the 
 faith of His divinity before He revealed to 
 them those coming calamities which might 
 further disturb their already troubled minds. 
 So the question is put touching the public's 
 view of His divinity. The answer to His 
 question was, ''Some say that Thou art John 
 the Baptist; some Elias, and others, Jere- 
 mias, or one of the prophets." The answer 
 showed that the opinion of the public was 
 at least complimentary. The public did not 
 think Jesus was actually one of the great men 
 named, but that He was a great person such as 
 
 40 
 
THE DIVINE CONFESSION. 
 
 they had been. Just as when we hear a great 
 orator we say, ** Another Demosthenes has 
 arisen," so they were saying, "Another John 
 the Baptist, Elias, or Jeremias has arisen." 
 The largeness of the compliment is seen when 
 we recall in what great prominence these 
 names were held among the Jews. The pub- 
 lic estimated Jesus highly, but they had not 
 risen to the lofty conception that He was the 
 Messiah. It was to this higher conception, 
 however, that Jesus desired to lead the dis- 
 ciples, hence He asked the second question, 
 which provoked Peter's opinion of Jesus. 
 
 This second question was, ''Who say ye 
 that I am?" The emphasis is thrown upon 
 the word * * ye. " Jesus wanted to draw a con- 
 trast between the opinion of His disciples 
 and the opinion of the public. It may be sup- 
 posed, too, that Jesus was exercising some- 
 thing of a personal element in asking this 
 question. He would emphasize the fact of 
 His Sonship, certainly. But aside from that. 
 He would enjoy the personal satisfaction of 
 hearing from the lips of His disciples a con- 
 fession of His greatness, which was denied 
 Him by the public. Link this personal ele- 
 ment with the desire of Jesus to have His 
 41 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 disciples thoroughly grounded in the faith of 
 His divinity before the final crisis came, and 
 the motive of the Master becomes apparent. 
 
 In answer to this second question came 
 the divine confession from the lips of Peter, 
 "Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living 
 God." In this statement we see Peter at his 
 best. He seems to rise for a moment above 
 his other self as Mt. Hermon arose in snow- 
 capped grandeur above the common hills. 
 Peter was a mixture of good and bad, of 
 strength and weakness. AVe saw his little- 
 ness as he was sinking helplessly beneath the 
 waves, crying for help. We here see his big- 
 ness as he stands spokesman for the disciples 
 and Church, and makes the first recorded 
 confession of the divinity of Jesus. The con- 
 fession appears the grander when we recall 
 the fact that it was made in the face of an 
 opposite public opinion, and in spite of the 
 wavering faith of some of the disciples. 
 Peter frequently went with the crowd, but 
 here he stands opposed to the crowd, and 
 alone stays the tide of criticism and doubt. 
 
 The content of this confession is deeply 
 significant. Peter confessed to the Messiah- 
 ship of Jesus. But that was not all. The 
 
 42 
 
THE DIVINE CONFESSION. 
 
 Jews looked for a Messiah who should be 
 merely a man endowed with unusual gifts. 
 Peter declares Jesus such a Messiah, but 
 more. He is the Son of God. In short, 
 Peter's confession went not only past public 
 opinion, but past the Jewish expectation, and 
 declared Christ divine. 
 
 There can be no doubt of the fact that 
 Jesus appreciated this opinion of Peter. His 
 actions showed it. He immediately gave a 
 benediction and a promise of reward. 
 
 The benediction consisted in the utter- 
 ance, ''Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-jona: 
 for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto 
 thee, by My Father which is in heaven." 
 Peter was fortunate or blessed in that he had 
 learned that Jesus was the Son of God, but 
 he was fortunate also because that truth had 
 been revealed to him from a divine source. 
 The expression "flesh and blood" is used 
 here to designate the human source of knowl- 
 edge in contrast with the divine. Peter had 
 not learned his lesson from any human 
 source, but from God. In spite of his imper- 
 fections, Peter had advanced sufficiently in 
 his association with Jesus to be able to re- 
 ceive impressions from divine sources. His 
 43 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 experience would seem to indicate that faith 
 in Christ as the Son of God flourishes best 
 in that life that is open to the impressions 
 from divine sources. 
 
 The promise of reward referred to above 
 was given in the words of Jesus, ''Thou art 
 Peter, and upon this rock I build My 
 Church." The word Peter in the original 
 is "petros," which means rock or a piece of 
 rock. When Jesus first called Peter, He said 
 to him, ' ' ThoU art Simon ; thou shalt be called 
 Cephas, which is by interpretation a rock." 
 Here that prophecy is fulfilled and Peter be- 
 comes the rock. Literally, Jesus said, * ' Thou 
 art rock, and upon this rock I build My 
 Church." 
 
 What rock I Jesus did not mean the man 
 Peter, but rather the truth which the man 
 had uttered, namely, that Christ was the Son 
 of God. In the thought of Jesus the truth 
 is personified and becomes identical with the 
 man. For present purposes they are one. 
 The truth and the man are so much one that 
 Jesus can say to thi^ man, "Thou art truth — 
 the rock truth — and upon you I build My 
 Church." The rock truth which Peter for 
 the time being personified was th« divinity 
 44 
 
THE DIVINE CONFESSION. 
 
 of Jesus. That truth stands as the founda- 
 tion rock upon which the Christian Church is 
 built. Any theory that denies the divinity 
 of our Lord is a blow struck at the very 
 foundation of the Church. Jesus was say- 
 ing to Peter in substance, "You have within 
 you the truth of My divinity. That truth is 
 the foundation rock of My Church. I there- 
 fore call you the possessor of that truth 
 'rock,' and upon that rock truth I build My 
 Church. ' ' 
 
 Jesus also added, "The gates of hell shall 
 not prevail against it." This is the first re- 
 corded utterance of Jesus concerning His 
 Church. In it He suggests the permanency 
 of the Church. The term ' ' hell ' ' is used here 
 in the sense of the abode of death and de- 
 struction rather than a place of punishment. 
 The thought of Jesus, therefore, is that all 
 the combined forces of death and destruction 
 shall not be sufficient to overthrow His 
 Church. This is a bold assertion, especiallj' 
 since it was made in the face of a severe criti- 
 cism and at a time when opposition was vio- 
 lent and the faith of the disciples wavering. 
 But the testimony of history has sanctioned 
 that assertion, and incidentally lent color to 
 45 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 the claim of the Speaker that He was divine. 
 Else how could He have foreseen the out- 
 come? 
 
 Another feature of the reward that came 
 from Peter's confession was the promise of 
 Jesus that into liis hands He would commit 
 the keys of the Kingdom. (Matt. 16:19.) 
 The key was the badge of authority. The 
 authority herein committed to Peter was 
 given not because of any human qualifica- 
 tions to receive it, but rather because of the 
 diviner qualifications in the presence of the 
 Father just evidenced, and the faith just ex- 
 pressed. The scope of the authority granted 
 is seen in the expression, ** Whatsoever thou 
 shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: 
 and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth 
 shall be loosed in heaven. ' ' The terms bind 
 and loose are used in the sense of prohibit 
 and permit. The meaning is that whatsoever 
 Peter prohibited or permitted in the Church 
 was to receive the sanction of heaven. Let 
 it not be presumed that this clothing A\ith 
 authority constituted Peter dictator of 
 heaven so that whatever he commanded 
 heaven obeyed. The meaning is rather that 
 Peter was to be controlled so much by heaven 
 
 4G 
 
THE DIVINE CONFESSION. 
 
 that his actions would be the outgoing of 
 heaven's dictation. He and heaven were to 
 be in harmony, so that whatever he did was 
 to be heaven's doing through him. What- 
 ever he prohibited or permitted on earth was 
 to be prohibited or permitted in heaven be- 
 cause their wills were one. The authority 
 given Peter was merely that which consti- 
 tuted him in harmony mth the will of God 
 and made him able to express that \vill. It 
 did not in any sense vest him with arbitrary 
 power to forgive sin, as some would have 
 us believe. The main thought, however, to 
 be emphasized in this connection is that it 
 was Peter who stood as the first confessor 
 of the fundamental doctrine of the Church 
 that Christ is divine, and that the confession 
 itself was such an important one that it drew 
 from the Master a benediction and a gracious 
 promise of reward. 
 
 One can hardly study this incident with- 
 out being impressed with the thought that 
 a confession of Christ openly and frankly 
 made is a satisfaction to the Master Him- 
 self. Jesus was pleased with this confession 
 of Peter. If in that far-away day such a 
 confession was pleasing, it must be certainly 
 
 47 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 80 in this day when there is so much for- 
 getfulness of the Master, and when He is put 
 to a new shame by His own followers and 
 crucified by the world again and again. 
 Christ expects His true followers to be will- 
 ing to confess Him not only as the Son of 
 God, but as their personal Savior. The 
 tendency to shrink from that confession is 
 not only displeasing to the Lord, but detri- 
 mental to the disciple. There is a new spear- 
 thrust for the Savior in every spirit akin 
 to that possessed by the Brooklyn merchant 
 who went to his pastor to inquire if Jesus 
 Christ would be willing to take him into His 
 concern — the Kingdom — as a silent partner. 
 The minister said, ''Why do you ask?" The 
 merchant replied, "Because I wish to be a 
 member of His concern, but do not want any- 
 body to know it." The good pastor taught 
 the right doctrine when he replied: "Jesus 
 Christ takes no silent partners. The firm 
 must be Christ & Co., and the names of the 
 company must all be written out on the sign- 
 board. ' ' Jesus craves the fellowship of those 
 who can say \nth Peter, "Thou art the 
 Christ, the Son of the living God," and then 
 add, as the Earl of Shaftesbury used to add 
 48 
 
THE DIVINE CONFESSION. 
 
 ill talking to his Ragged School boys, ''My 
 Savior." 
 
 It is implied in this incident that the keys 
 to the Kingdom's benedictions are received 
 upon the grounds of faith and confession. 
 Faith born of the presence of God and con- 
 fession born of the will of man are the two 
 hands into which the keys of the Kingdom 
 are placed. The keys signify the liberty and 
 power of enjoying the blessings of the King- 
 dom. Every clerk in a commercial establish- 
 ment will remember the day when for the first 
 time the proprietor placed in his hands the 
 key to the establishment, and told him to 
 come and go as he pleased. It meant that all 
 the proprietor had was entrusted to the clerk. 
 But in a larger sense God gives to His worthy 
 ones the keys of the Kingdom. To those of 
 us who can be trusted He throws wide open 
 the doors. All He has is not merely en- 
 trusted to us, but is ours — ours to use and 
 enjoy. He bids us come in and go out and 
 possess as we please. A spiritual Croesus 
 does that one become whose faith and con- 
 fession have wrung from the hand of God 
 the keys to the Kingdom. 
 
 Coleridge and Charles Lamb were once in 
 49 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 conversation when the former said, * ' I think, 
 Charles, ygu have never heard me preach." 
 And Lamb repHed, **My dear boy, I never 
 heard you do anything else." It would be 
 difficult to pay to any man a higher compli- 
 ment than that. The very life a perpetual 
 sermon! And yet the life that is a daily 
 sermon is possible to every one who by a con- 
 fessed faith in Christ as the Son of God, gets 
 the keys to the Kingdom, unlocks its treas- 
 ures, and by the hand of love scatters those 
 treasures through a needy world. 
 
 50 
 
CHAPTER IV 
 THE TRANSFIGURATION. 
 
 Peter manifested a sublime faith when he 
 said, *'Thou art the Christ, the Son of the 
 living God." But it was only a momentary 
 faith. It had been preceded by doubts, and 
 came to mark the high tide of faith. It was 
 to be followed by an ebb-tide. There was 
 soon to be a lowering of both faith and spirits 
 on the part of Peter and some of liis com- 
 panions. The evidence of that waning faith 
 is seen in an incident which almost imme- 
 diately followed the confession of Peter. 
 Jesus, having strengthened the disciples in 
 the faith of His Messiahship, began to ac- 
 quaint them with the fact of His approach- 
 ing death. Such a fate was so inconsistent 
 with the idea of His Messiahship as held by 
 the disciples that they could not accept His 
 words. They chose rather to believe that the 
 Master in foretelling His passion was merely 
 giving expression to some gloomy thoughts 
 born in an hour of dark moodiness. They be- 
 51 
 
THE EXALTED FISHEEMAN. 
 
 lieved such a fate impossible to their Leader. 
 So, feeling that they were right and that 
 Jesus was wrong, Peter took Jesus aside and 
 began to rebuke Him by saying, ''Be it far 
 from Thee, Lord; this shall not be unto 
 Thee." Peter meant his words to be a con- 
 solation to the Lord, but they were poorly 
 applied. Perhaps we see here an effect of 
 Peter's exaltation a short time before. Some 
 people are unbalanced by unusual honor or 
 success. Peter was subject to that failing. 
 He seems here to be so lifted up by his recent 
 honor that he usurps an unwarranted posi- 
 tion and assumes to become dictator to the 
 Son of God. In so exalting himself Peter 
 overreached the mark. His exaltation in be- 
 ing granted the keys of the Kingdom was 
 an honor which almost unbalanced him. 
 Jesus had given him an inch, and he had 
 taken a mile. Jesus had only offered him 
 the keys, and he assumed proprietorship. 
 There was, therefore, need for a puncturing 
 of his pride and the teaching of a lesson in 
 humility. Hence, while shortly before Jesus 
 had spoken to Peter the most flattering words 
 he had ever heard, now He gives him the 
 most scathing denunciation he ever received: 
 
THE TRANSFIGURATION. 
 
 "Get thee behind Me, Satan; thou art an 
 offense unto Me: for thou savorest not the 
 things that be of God, but those that be of 
 men. ' ' 
 
 An hour or so before Jesus had called 
 Peter the foundation of the Church. Now 
 he is "Satan" and an "offense." An hour 
 ago he was a rock to build on. Now he is 
 a rock of offense. The term "savorest" is 
 used here in the sense of "to think" or "to 
 mind. ' ' Literally, the Lord is saying, ' ' Thou 
 thinkest not upon the things that be of God, 
 but the things that be of man." The logic 
 of the Lord's declaration is that the mind 
 that is absorbed in the affairs of men, while 
 it forgets the interests of God, is more Sa- 
 tanic than divine. 
 
 This rebuke of Jesus had the effect of 
 humbling the proud spirit of Peter, and of 
 making serious the thought of the other dis- 
 ciples. While shortly before they were walk- 
 ing the mountain top of exaltation, now they 
 were in the valley of humiliation. Observe 
 their position. They were in a strange, soli- 
 tary place with the Master, who had just 
 given a stinging rebuke. They had no future 
 to anticipate except one darkened by the 
 53 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMxiN. 
 
 prospect of suffering and death of their 
 Master; no prospect for themselves except 
 that of contempt and reproach from their 
 friends when at last they should become as 
 scattered sheep mthout a Shepherd. It was 
 a discouraging situation, to say the least. 
 As we often say, however, the darkest hours 
 are just before daybreak. After the storm 
 comes the sunshine. So it was in the case 
 of the disciples at this time. Soon their 
 clouds were to break away and the brightest 
 sun of all their experience was to shine upon 
 them in the scene of the transfiguration. 
 
 We will study the event of the transfigu- 
 ration as it is recorded in the gospel accord- 
 ing to St. Matthew. (Chap. 17.) The scene 
 of ''The Divine Confession" was near 
 Caesarea Philippi, close to the base of Mt. 
 Hermon, in one of nature's quietest halls. 
 The scene of the present event is in the same 
 locality, but on the mountain side instead of 
 at the base. The account speaks of a high 
 mountain apart into which Jesus and the 
 disciples wont. Mt. Hermon answers to this 
 description as no other mountain in this lo- 
 cality. Mt. Hermon is an elevation which 
 is more of a mountain range than a single 
 
 54 
 
THE TRANSFIGURATION. 
 
 peak. There are three distinct peaks pre- 
 sented. Two of them are close together and 
 in a Hne running north and south, while the 
 third lies off to the west, separated from the 
 two by a deep valley. These peaks are the 
 tallest in Palestine, rising more than nine 
 thousand feet above the sea level. One fea- 
 ture connected with Mt. Hermon will make 
 it easily remembered. It casts the most re- 
 markable shadow to be seen anywhere in the 
 world. When the evening sun begins to ap- 
 proach the horizon in the west, the shadow 
 of the mountain top begins to creep slowly 
 down the mountain side. It reaches the base 
 and travels across the plain toward the east, 
 w^rapping the city of Damascus in its shadow 
 as it goes. The shadow moves on until it 
 reaches the eastern horizon and then creeps 
 up the side of the sky until the pointed 
 shadow of the mountain top is plainly seen 
 against the sky. Over seventy miles of plain 
 the shadow stretches itself, and then lifts its 
 head above the eastern horizon. 
 
 It was evening when Jesus and His dis- 
 ciples ascended the slope of Hermon. They 
 could doubtless see the shadow as it moved 
 on like a mighty tide across the plain. Jesus 
 55 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 could strengthen the faith of His disciples 
 by telling them that the Kingdom He came 
 to found would rise higher than the top of 
 old Mt. Hermon, and that its shadow, like 
 the one just creeping across the plain, would 
 move on and on until the whole earth would 
 be enfolded within it and the point of the 
 shadow rise up to touch the very throne of 
 the Father in heaven. 
 
 With such scenes before them, and per- 
 haps with such thoughts as these in their 
 minds, Jesus and His disciples move toward 
 the mountain top until the whole land is 
 wrapped in the shadow of the night and the 
 stars come out in the blue sky and twinkle 
 above in true Oriental brilliancy. A quiet 
 spot is found, and there the Lord begins to 
 pray. Luke tells us that He went up into 
 the mountain to pray. This was His purpose. 
 
 After six days of gloom following the 
 conversation described in the last chapter, 
 the disciples were to see the brightest pic- 
 ture of their lives. They had been in the 
 valley long enough. Now Christ would exalt 
 them and from the mountain top give them 
 a glimpse of another world. How skillfully 
 our clouds are removed and our needs sup- 
 
 56 
 
THE TRANSFIGURATION. 
 
 plied by the wisdom of God! He never lets 
 His children suffer beyond what they are 
 able to endure, and follows the dark days 
 Avith brighter ones. We all have our "six 
 days ;" our periods of loneliness, sorrow, and 
 defeat. But we have the right to look to the 
 after-time when God shall more than atone 
 for all the darkness. AVe do not know how 
 long the ''six days" will be, but there is a 
 transfiguration at the end. And if the trans- 
 formation be even delayed to the end of life 's 
 journey, it will come. And as the old life of 
 darkness slips off and we pass into the light 
 of the new life, we will know what Paul meant 
 when he said, ''I reckon that the sufferings 
 of this present time are not worthy to be 
 compared with the glory that shall be re- 
 vealed." 
 
 ''Jesus taketh Peter, James, and John." 
 This was Christ's triangle of friendship. On 
 three different occasions He is recorded as 
 taking Peter, James, and John. It was a tri- 
 angle of friendship composed of characters 
 strikingly different. John is known as the 
 gentle, loving disciple. Peter was of the 
 fiery, impulsive nature. James is considered 
 as of the reliable, businesslike tj'pe. The 
 
 57 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 characters in Christ's triangle of friendship 
 ranged, therefore, from the calm to the tem- 
 pest. This fact is not without its significance. 
 It is a hint as to what the Church of Christ 
 should be. The Church is to be composed of 
 opposite natures, and yet all are to be blended 
 into a harmonious unit. Unity in diversity 
 is the characteristic of the Church. In no 
 other institution among men can characters 
 of such conflicting elements be blended into 
 such a harmonious whole. Such harmony is 
 possible only on that basis which is peculiar 
 to the Church, namely, brotherly love. Love 
 is the only tie that can bind conflicting dif- 
 ferences into perfect harmony. 
 
 Having taken His triangle of friendship 
 into the mountain apart, the account tells 
 that Jesus was transfigured before them. 
 The meaning of the term ''transfigured" is 
 a question which has been much debated. 
 Many explanations have been offered from 
 both the physical and spiritual standpoints. 
 Without attempting to explain all the mys- 
 tery connected with this phenomenon, it is 
 safe to assume that in His communion with 
 the Heavenly Father, the spiritual nature of 
 Jesus was so intensified that it manifested 
 
 58 
 
THE TRANSFIGURATION. 
 
 itself tlirough the physical until His face 
 was made to shine as the sun and His gar- 
 ments became bright and glistening. 
 
 The purpose of such an exhibition of di- 
 vine power is not difficult to imagine. Jesus 
 Himself was in need of strength for the ap- 
 proaching ordeal of Gethsemane and Cal- 
 vary, and that inflow of divine influence 
 would be to Him like the whispering of a 
 voice from another world encouraging Him 
 to be brave. As for the disciples, w^ho were 
 soon to be Shepherdless, this mountain scene 
 would stand as a constant inspiration in their 
 hours of trial. There are times when the 
 earth needs to feel the touch of heaven and 
 hear the Voice celestial. Such was the need 
 in the present case, and the answer came in 
 the form of the transfiguration scene on the 
 side of Mt. Hermon. 
 
 ''There appeared unto them Moses and 
 Elias talking with Him." These were divine 
 visitors sent by divine authority upon a di- 
 vine mission. It was a mission of helpful- 
 ness. These divine messengers had long been 
 with the Father, the one fourteen hundred 
 and the other nine hundred years. They 
 were well equipped to carry a message from 
 59 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 heaven to earth. It must have been an in- 
 spiration to see them and talk with them. 
 Interesting to us to-day would it be to know 
 the substance of the conversation carried on 
 between the Lord and the heavenly visitors. 
 Luke has given us a hint of it by suggesting 
 what the theme was in part at least. Luke 
 says they spoke of "His decease." (Luke 
 9:13.) It would seem that these two mes- 
 sengers were just the ones of all the inhab- 
 itants of heaven to talk with Jesus upon that 
 particular subject. There was no one upon 
 earth mth whom Jesus could satisfactorily 
 discuss that subject. He had just tried it 
 with His disciples mth unpleasant results. 
 Gladly, therefore, would the Lord welcome 
 the visitors from the other world to talk ^vith 
 them of His decease (literally, "exodus"). 
 The theme would be one of mutual interest, 
 for the decease had been the most remarkable 
 event in the lives of both Moses and Elias, 
 as it was to be with Jesus. Moses could tell 
 Jesus how in Nebo's lonely mountain God's 
 hand had rocked him to sleep in death and 
 carried him to the eternal home. Elias could 
 tell Him how in that quiet spot in Gilead the 
 chariot of God had come for him and carried 
 
 60 
 
THE TRANSFIGURATION. 
 
 him away, leaving the weeping Elisha to 
 carry on his work. And both could tell Jesus 
 how much more glorious His decease would 
 be than theirs ; how in the ages to come Nebo 
 would grow more lonely, and Gilead would be 
 forgotten, as the cross of Calvary grew 
 larger and larger and the thought of hu- 
 manity became more and more centered upon 
 it. They could tell Jesus that not a soul 
 would enter the Kingdom by passing over 
 Nebo or through Gilead, but long processions 
 of toiling generations coming after Him 
 would enter the Kingdom by passing through 
 Gethsemane and Calvary ; that in the ages to 
 come the hosts of heaven would forget Moses 
 and Elias as they prostrated themselves at 
 the feet of Christ, confessing Him as Lord 
 because He had made His exodus by the 
 cross. 
 
 But as the conversation proceeded, Peter 
 interrupted it mth a strange expression, 
 ''Lord, it is good for us to be here: if Thou 
 wilt, let us make here three tabernacles ; one 
 for Thee, one for Moses, and one for Elias." 
 Mark says Peter knew not what he said, and 
 Mark deserves thanks for the apology. It 
 was a presumptuous interruption at least. 
 61 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 Here again we see the unreasoning, impulsive 
 nature of Peter. Though a divine conversa- 
 tion were in progress, he must get into it 
 some way. It was his childlike disposition to 
 be a part of everything he saw or heard. 
 
 While Peter knew not what he said, his 
 remark revealed the uppermost thought of 
 his mind. He wanted the heavenly visitors 
 to remain. He would build dwelling-places 
 for them. More, it would be delightful for 
 him to live up there on the mountain side in 
 such company, far away from the sinful 
 world. Peter's thought was a forerunner of 
 the monastic idea which later became promi- 
 nent in the Church. This incident may be 
 said to mark the birth of that monastic idea. 
 Peter would build a monastery on the moun- 
 tain side and live in a heavenly atmosphere. 
 He would live apart from the needy world 
 and spend his days listening to the words 
 of the celestial visitors, Moses and Elias. 
 
 But hardly had Peter's dazed thought 
 framed itself into words when a scathing 
 rebuke fell from the skies. It was the voice 
 of God saying, ''This is My beloved Son; 
 hear ye Him." It was as if the voice of God 
 said: "Peter, you need not long to hear My 
 62 
 
THE TRANSFIGURATION. 
 
 messengers talking of heavenly things. You 
 have with you One greater than Moses or 
 Elias. You have My Son. Hear Him. Hear 
 Him as He tells you that your sphere is not 
 on the mountain side with heavenly visitors, 
 but in the valley among needy men. Hear 
 Him as He tells you of the stern duties of 
 life. Hear Him as He sends you out among 
 men to serve them and, like Himself, die for 
 them." And as Peter stands wondering at 
 the meaning of it all, a sudden fear seizes 
 him, with the rest of the witnesses, and they 
 throw themselves on the earth, hiding their 
 faces against the cool mountain sod. But 
 at the touch of Jesus their fears are quieted 
 and they rise to learn that the strange vis- 
 itors are gone and they are alone in the 
 mountain stillness. In silence they move 
 down the mountain side, wondering at what 
 they have seen and heard, but confident that 
 they have as their companion the Son of 
 God — the link between earth and heaven. 
 And this was the lesson of all lessons they 
 needed at that particular time. 
 
 The circumstances connected with this 
 scene are suggestive of at least two valuable 
 truths : 
 
 63 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 1. For every hour of trial there is a voice 
 of consolation from a divine source. These 
 voices from heaven came to Jesus when He 
 most needed them. It was an hour of trial 
 for Him inasmuch as Gethsemane and Cal- 
 vary were looming up in the distance, and 
 the burden He was bearing was becoming 
 constantly heavier. God will never permit 
 His children to be tried too sorely, but witli 
 the trial send some consolation. In every 
 hour of discouragement His voice will whis- 
 per its message, and fortunate is that one 
 who has an ear to hear the voice. AVith 
 every trial there is a possible transfiguration. 
 
 2. The Christian mission is not to live 
 apart from the world in pious inactivity, but 
 rather to go into the world of toil and suf- 
 fering and help bear a brother's burden. 
 The Christian is not called to believe and to 
 enjoy merely, but to serve as well. One of 
 the greatest epitomes of the life of Jesus is 
 that statement which says He went about 
 doing good. Our actual doing of good, as 
 well as our being good, is pleasing to the 
 Father. A great man once said, in speaking 
 of the unlettered Moody and the scholarly 
 Canon Liddon, ** Moody will do more in an 
 
 64 
 
THE TRANSFIGURATION. 
 
 hour than Canon Liddon in a century. ' * That 
 was a noble tribute to the value of service. 
 The tribute of having rendered worthy serv- 
 ice is one every Christian ought to covet. 
 The Christian aim ought to be to give much 
 of fruitful service to the world, remember- 
 ing that the Lord Himself said, ''Herein is 
 My Father glorified, that ye bear much 
 fruit." 
 
 65 
 
CHAPTER V. 
 
 LESSONS FROM THE TEACHER. 
 
 (a) A Lesson on Giving Offense. 
 After the scene of the transfiguration de- 
 scribed in the last chapter, Jesus and the 
 three disciples slowly descended Mt. Hermon, 
 Jesus instructing the three that what they 
 had witnessed should be told to no man. 
 It was probably early morning when this 
 little company reached the rest of the dis- 
 ciples, who had remained at the base of the 
 mountain. Luke says it was the ' * next day. ' ' 
 A crowd of people had collected about the 
 disciples. When the people saw Jesus they 
 ran to Him and saluted Him as a conquering 
 King. Among the people was a father who 
 had brought a demoniac child to the dis- 
 ciples to have him healed. The disciples had 
 attempted a cure, but had made a dismal 
 failure. The father, therefore, brought the 
 child to Jesus that He might make him whole. 
 Jesus thrust the evil spirit from the child 
 as easily as He would brush the dust from a 
 
 00 
 
LESSONS FROM THE TEACHER. 
 
 disciple's cloak. A significant thing in con- 
 nection with this healing is the fact that 
 Jesus passed directly from communion to 
 service ; from prayer to action. In the moun- 
 tain He prayed; at its base He served. The 
 Christian life is not one of communion 
 merely, but of action as well. The value of 
 the communion lies in the fact that it pre- 
 pares the better for service. 
 
 From the scene of healing the child, 
 Jesus turned to begin the journey southward 
 toward Capernaum. The most prominent 
 event occurring on the journey was a dis- 
 pute among the disciples concerning the ques- 
 tion as to who should be greatest in the 
 Kingdom of heaven. This spirit of conten- 
 tion was soundly rebuked by the Master, who 
 after entering into one of the Capernaum 
 homes, took a little child up in His arms and 
 said to the disciples, ''Except ye be converted 
 and become as little children, ye shall not 
 enter into the Kingdom of heaven." The 
 inference is that while they held the spirit 
 just displayed they were not ready for ad- 
 mission into the Kingdom of heaven, much 
 less prepared for holding an exalted position 
 therein. It was while in the city of Caper- 
 67 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 naum on this visit that Jesus taught the les- 
 son on giving offense. (Matt. 17:24-27.) 
 This lesson we now notice. 
 
 The incident which furnished the oppor- 
 tunity for the lesson is recorded by Matthew 
 only. That fact is suggestive inasmuch as 
 the incident involved the payment of tribute 
 money, which would be a matter of interest 
 to Matthew, who was a tax collector. This 
 incident concerning the pajnnent of tribute 
 seems to have made a deeper impression on 
 him than on others, and naturally so. 
 
 The collectors of taxes in Capernaum 
 came to Peter and asked him if his Master 
 paid tribute money. The fact that the ques- 
 tion was addressed to Peter shows the promi- 
 nence in which he was held by those even 
 outside the disciples. He was recognized as 
 a leader, and it was supposed that if any one 
 could answer the question proposed, Peter 
 could. 
 
 The tribute money referred to in the ques- 
 tion was doubtless the annual tax of a half- 
 shekel which was expected of the temple 
 worshipers. In the Revised Version the ex- 
 pression is translated, ''they that received 
 the half-shekel." According to an old cus- 
 68 
 
LESSONS FROM THE TEACHER. 
 
 torn among the Jews, whicli custom had its 
 origin in a command of Moses, every piale 
 Jew above twenty years of age was expected 
 to pay an annual tribute of a half -shekel, an 
 amount equal to about thirty cents. This 
 money was applied to the paying of the ex- 
 penses of the temple worship. The payment 
 of the tax was not obligatory, and yet it was 
 honorable, and all who expected to stand in 
 favor with their fellows paid it. The tax 
 collectors of Capernaum were wondering 
 what the attitude of Jesus would be toward 
 the payment of this tax. Would He disre- 
 gard the letter of the Mosaic law? They 
 knew how Jesus emphasized the spirit of the 
 law rather than the letter. "Would He dis- 
 regard the custom concerning the tribute 
 money? In order to have their question an- 
 swered they came to Peter and asked him if 
 his Master paid the temple tax. Peter with- 
 out hesitation answered in the affirmative. 
 Some critics think that Peter answered thus 
 hastily, not because he knew the facts in the 
 case, but because he feared the odium that 
 might attach to Jesus if it became known that 
 He did not pay the temple tax. This inter- 
 pretation would, of course, imply fabrication 
 69 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 on the part of Peter. It is not necessary, 
 however, to thus question his sincerity. Let 
 us give the erring man all the credit we can. 
 He probably knew that Jesus had formerly 
 paid the tax, so when the question was asked 
 he was ready with the answer. Peter prob- 
 ably thought no more about the incident until 
 he came into the house where Jesus was, and 
 was surprised by a question put by the Lord 
 which showed that Jesus knew of the con- 
 versation which had taken place. The ques- 
 tion was, "What thinkest thou, Simon? Of 
 whom do the kings of the earth take custom 
 or tribute 1 of their own children or of stran- 
 gers ? ' ' Notice the use of the term * ' Simon. ' ' 
 It is no longer ' ' Satan, ' ' the term of rebuke. 
 Neither is it the prophetic term, * ' rock. ' ' It 
 is the affectionate term, *' Simon." Jesus 
 had a wonderful aptness in adapting Himself 
 to conditions. When the stern rebuke was 
 needed He could give it. Here, when Ho 
 would come close to a disciple's heart and 
 teach an important lesson. He prepares the 
 way for the reception of the truth by giving 
 a loving address. 
 
 Peter answered the question by saying 
 that the kings of the earth exact tribute of 
 70 
 
LESSONS FBOM THE TEACHER. 
 
 strangers and not their own children. Jesus 
 made the strange reply, '^Then are the chil- 
 dren free. ' ' The meaning of Jesus evidently 
 was that the Father in heaven was the King, 
 and that He Himself was a Child or Son. 
 Being a Son, he was free ; or, in other words, 
 was not obliged to pay tribute. It was as if 
 the Master said; ''I am the Son of God; the 
 temple is My Father's house. He exacts 
 tribute of strangers to pay its expenses, but 
 the Son is freed from payment, just as in an 
 earthly kingdom the king exacts tribute of 
 strangers while the children are free." It 
 looked thus far as if Jesus was contradicting 
 the answer Peter had given the tax-gatherers. 
 He was denjdng that it was necessary for 
 Him to pay tribute. But the reply of Jesus 
 was not yet completed. There was a ' ' never- 
 theless ' ' attached which explained His mean- 
 ing. ' ' Lest we should offend them, go . . . 
 and give unto them for Me and thee." By 
 these words the Lord was declaring that He 
 was ready to do something He was not 
 obliged to do lest He might offend a brother. 
 We begin to see the lesson that Jesus would 
 teach Peter. It was the need of self-denial 
 in order to avoid offense. The lesson was 
 
 71 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 taught in a tangible Tvay. Peter was sent 
 to the sea to catch a fish, in the mouth of 
 which a shekel was found, and -^^^th it the tax 
 of both Peter and Jesus \vas paid. 
 
 The incident was an object lesson teach- 
 ing the truth that the true Christian spirit 
 is one that limits self for the sake of others. 
 The Christian is to be ready to sacrifice some 
 natural rights and privileges that others be 
 not offended. It is unchristian for a person 
 to do everything he has a right to do if in 
 the doing there is danger to another soul. 
 The force of this lesson as applied to daily 
 life may be seen by stating its truth in both 
 the positive and negative form. 
 
 Positively stated, it means that the 
 Christ-spirit does things that are not abso- 
 lutely necessary for the sake of others. For 
 example, we sometimes hear people say that 
 it is not necessary for them to attend re- 
 ligious services, for they can live a Christian 
 life without so doing. Now, granting that 
 the statement is true (though it is to be seri- 
 ously questioned), how about the effect on 
 the weaker brother? There are struggling 
 souls that need sadly the helps of divine wor- 
 ship, and the example of absence on the part 
 
 72 
 
LESSONS FROM THE TEACHER. 
 
 of a stronger brother m^ be very damaging 
 to tliem. The Christ-spirit says to be careful 
 lest we offend. This principle may be ap- 
 plied likewise to Church membership, Church 
 work, the habit of prayer, giving liberally, 
 and to many other practices of the religious 
 life. The Christian spirit will do for the sake 
 of others some things that are not essential 
 so far as self is concerned. 
 
 Negatively stated, this truth means that 
 the Christ-spirit refrains from doing some 
 things for the sake of others, even though 
 the self might enjoy those things. The ques- 
 tion of the Christ-spirit is not merely what is 
 right for self, but also what is safe for others. 
 The individual may have a right to do some 
 things so far as his own life is concerned 
 which he has no right to do so far as some 
 other lives are concerned. A Christian 
 should refrain from doing those things which 
 may be harmful to others, though they may 
 mean no harm to himself. The expression 
 of Jesus is a good one to hold in mind as 
 we measure conduct — *'lest we offend." 
 This rule applied to the problem of question- 
 able amusements, will settle many difficulties. 
 The Christian perspective must be wide 
 73 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 enough to include the welfare of the brother 
 as well as the pleasure of self. 
 
 (b) A Lesson on Forgiveness. 
 
 While yet in the house in Capernaum, 
 Jesus taught Peter another lesson, this time 
 on the subject of forgiveness. It was one of 
 a series of lessons illustrative of the spirit 
 the true follower of Jesus Christ should pos- 
 sess. The lesson on giving offense had been 
 followed by one on the need of possessing the 
 childlike spirit. Then came the lesson on 
 forgiveness, which we now notice. (Matt. 
 18:15.) 
 
 Jesus began the lesson by saying, *'If thy 
 brother trespass against thee, go and tell him 
 his fault between thee and him alone. ' ' This 
 instruction was unusual. The rabbis taught 
 that if one offended another, the offending 
 one should approach the offended and make 
 the matter right. This, too, is the thought 
 of the world to-day. But Jesus went a step 
 further. He taught that the offended one 
 should, if necessary, approach the offender 
 for the sake of harmony. This was a broader 
 spirit than the average Jew had been ac- 
 customed to manifest. It meant that har- 
 
 74 
 
LESSONS FEOM THE TEACHER. 
 
 mony and the spirit of brotherly lOve were 
 worth more than that j^ride which refuses 
 to sue for peace. 
 
 But Jesus further described to Peter how 
 the offended should deal with the offender. 
 The first step, as we have seen, was that he 
 should be spoken to in private. Secondly, 
 he should be approached in the presence of 
 two or three witnesses. Thirdly, if he still 
 be unreconciled, the matter should be brought 
 to the Church. Then, if he still refuses to 
 be reconciled, let him become as a stranger. 
 The evident meaning of Jesus is that the 
 Christian spirit does everything within the 
 bounds of possibility to preserve peace and 
 harmony. Nothing can limit the effort of 
 the Christ-spirit toward peace save the abso- 
 lute refusal of the offender to be reconciled. 
 The inference is, however, that such a re- 
 fusal may sometimes come. When that time 
 comes, the Christian has gone as far as he 
 needs to go. He has done his full duty. Nor 
 need he feel condemned if an estrangement 
 still exists. He has done all, and is clear. 
 The responsibility is with the other party. 
 
 Peter heard these words of Jesus. He 
 pondered them. He seemed to think that he 
 75 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 saw the point and had learned the lesson. 
 He saw that the spirit of forgiveness must 
 bo broader than he liad formerly thought. 
 So, like a child who thinks he has learned a 
 lesson when he has only half learned it, Peter 
 approached Jesus and began to parade his 
 supposed learning. You may have seen a 
 child learning to count ten. He received in- 
 struction for a few moments, supposed he 
 had learned the lesson perfectly, then ran to 
 some one to exhibit the new knowledge, say- 
 ing, ''Listen to me count ten." Then he be- 
 gan, ''One, two, three, — " then stammered 
 and hesitated, and finally in sheer despera- 
 tion rushed to the end of the task by adding, 
 ' ' eight, seven, five, ten. ' ' And he closed try- 
 ing to make himself and others believe he had 
 done a good job. In much that same way 
 Peter came to Jesus. He began his display 
 by saying, "How oft shall my brother sin 
 against me and I forgive him?" Then he 
 attempted to answer his own question by 
 saying, "Till seven times?" In this remark 
 Peter reveals a little advancement after all. 
 The teaching of the rabbis was that one 
 should not forgive another more than three 
 times, and the actual practice was even below 
 76 
 
LESSONS FROM THE TEAOHER. 
 
 that standard. Peter had enlarged liis con- 
 ception considerably, and thought he was do- 
 ing remarkably well to rise from three to 
 seven times. Yet the fact that he had really 
 learned very little of the lesson was revealed 
 in the reply of Jesus, "I say not . . . 
 seven times : but seventy times seven. ' ' How 
 narrow the spirit of Peter looked in com- 
 parison with that broad' spirit revealed in 
 the answer of Jesus! Travelers discover 
 that the real height of a mountain is appre- 
 ciated only by comparison. High mountains 
 often appear low, and low ones high, until a 
 comparison with others is made, when the 
 true height appears. Had Peter stood en- 
 tirely alone when he made his statement of 
 *' seven times" he would have looked tall. 
 But when he was measured against the ''sev- 
 enty times seven" of Jesus, he looked small. 
 Jesus did not mean to teach that one 
 should forgive another just four hundred 
 and ninety times. He meant, rather, that 
 there should be no limit to one's willingness 
 to forgive, save the brother's unwillingness 
 to be forgiven. It is the spirit of forgive- 
 ness that Jesus would emphasize. That 
 spirit should abound and be inexhaustible. 
 
 77 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 The relation of the spirit of forgiveness to 
 salvation is taught by Jesus in a parable 
 which He immediately gives. In it He sug- 
 gests that the spirit of forgiveness is es- 
 sential to final salvation. The parable pic- 
 tures the fate of a servant who was forgiven 
 a debt of something like fourteen million 
 dollars, and who afterward refused to for- 
 give a debt of some seventeen dollars owed 
 him by another. This contrast in forgiveness 
 represents the difference between God's for- 
 giveness and man 's. Man is the mcked serv- 
 ant, who, though forgiven much, refuses to 
 forgive another. The fate of the wicked serv- 
 ant in the parable was that he was despised 
 of his master and delivered over to prison. 
 Jesus, in drawing the moral, says, *'So like- 
 mse shall My Heavenly Father do also unto 
 you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every 
 one his brother their trespasses." The evi- 
 dent meaning is that we can not be forgiven 
 of God unless we have the spirit of forgive- 
 ness toward our brothers. This is a thor- 
 oughly natural conclusion, as may be seen by 
 looking the case squarely in the face. The 
 forgiveness of God is not received by the one 
 who is unforgiving, simply because God can 
 
 78 
 
LESSONS FROM THE TEACHER. 
 
 not forgive such an one. Unforgiveness is 
 sin. God can not forgive sin which is delib- 
 erately retained. While sin is persisted in it 
 can not be forgiven. It is only when sin is 
 forsaken that forgiveness can be offered of 
 God. If we retain hatred and unforgiveness, 
 we must stand self-condemned and unfor- 
 given before God. 
 
 These lessons afford a glimpse of the 
 broadness and beauty of the Christian spirit. 
 It is more than ordinary. It is peculiar. 
 "We must as Christians avoid giving offense, 
 and if offended, be the first to sue for peace. 
 We must be as humble in spirit as a child. 
 We must possess an inexhaustible spirit of 
 forgiveness. In a word, we are to have the 
 spirit of Jesus. The elements of the Chris- 
 tian life reflected outwardly are the results 
 of the Christ-spirit enthroned within. The 
 true outer life can not long exist unless the 
 true spirit dwells within. The thistle can 
 not produce the beauty and fragrance of the 
 rose because it has not the rose life dwelling 
 within. But it is no task for the rose to 
 produce the beauty and fragrance, for it has 
 the life within of which these are the natural 
 outcome. So the one who has not the spirit 
 79 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN, 
 
 of the Master can not easily reflect the Christ- 
 life, but where the spirit is within the life 
 comes naturally. It should be the aim of 
 every Christian, therefore, to reach a posi- 
 tion where, laying aside anger, malice, strife, 
 and all uncleanness, he can say with Paul 
 that sentence which is the mightiest testi- 
 mony of the disciple of Jesus, * ' Christ liveth 
 in me.'' 
 
 80 
 
CHAPTER VL 
 
 LESSONS FROM THE TEACHER. 
 
 (c) A Lesson on Rewakd of Service. 
 After teaching the lesson on forgiveness re- 
 corded in the last chapter, Jesus departed 
 from Capernaum and from Galilee to return 
 no more until after His crucifixion and resur- 
 rection. Li company with His disciples, He 
 began a slow journey toward Jerusalem, 
 passing along the eastern borders of Jordan, 
 through Perea, and finally crossing Jordan 
 for a visit in Bethany, where He enjoyed the 
 hospitality of the home of Mary and Martha. 
 The remainder of the life of Jesus prior to 
 the crucifixion was spent in the vicinity of 
 Jerusalem ; He visited the city several times, 
 and several times withdrew for safety or se- 
 clusion. It was during one of these seasons 
 of withdrawal near the city of Ephraim that 
 the lesson on the reward of service was 
 taught. (Matt. 19:27-30.) 
 
 The lesson had its origin in the coming 
 of the young ruler to Jesus to learn the way 
 of eternal life. He had supposed that the way 
 
 « 81 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 to life was through obedience to the law, but 
 Jesus taught that the element of denial or 
 sacrifice was as essential. Jesus impressed 
 that necessity by requiring the young ruler 
 to forsake all and follow Him. Peter was 
 near by and heard the conversation. As he 
 heard Jesus make the demand to forsake all 
 and follow Him, he thought of his own case. 
 He reasoned that he had met that require- 
 ment; that he had actually forsaken all in 
 order to follow Jesus. Then a question 
 seemed to present itself to him : * * What will 
 I get in return for all this sacrifice? What 
 profit will it bring me?" Peter possessed a 
 commercial mind. It moved in the circle of 
 profit and loss. Often after a night of hard 
 toil on the Sea of Galilee in catching fish, he 
 had wondered what the profit would be. 
 Now, as he had forsaken everything to follow 
 Jesus, he wondered what the reward would 
 be. With his characteristic impulsiveness he 
 determined to find out. So he approached 
 Jesus with the words, ''Behold, we have for- 
 saken all and followed Thee; what shall we 
 have therefor?" There are some who are 
 inclined to make light of the sacrifice of Peter 
 as suggested here, and say that all that he 
 
 82 
 
LESSONS FROM THE TEACHER. 
 
 gave up was a worn-out boat and some old 
 fish-nets. But it should not be forgotten that, 
 however little Peter gave up, it was all he 
 had. He forsook much. Not only had he 
 nets and boats, but he had a home and a wife 
 in Capernaum, and these in a sense were left 
 behind. Peter's home was as dear to him as 
 any man's. His wife was as dear as any. 
 His property was worth as much to him as 
 the wealth of others. Peter had made his 
 sacrifice. And he asked his question in sin- 
 cerity, and perhaps with the ring of sadness 
 in his voice, as he thought of what had been 
 left behind. The denial was great to him, 
 and having, as he did, the commercial mind, 
 it is not surprising that he should have a 
 question concerning the reward and ask the 
 Master frankly, ''What shall we have there- 
 for!" 
 
 The question indicates something of the 
 hope yet lingering in the minds of the dis- 
 ciples, and the conception they yet had of the 
 Kingdom Jesus came to establish. It was the 
 old idea of an earthly kingdom, whose prov- 
 inces should be ruled by the chosen followers 
 of Jesus. Peter probably thought he had 
 given up his boats and nets for a royal robe 
 83 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 and a scepter. That material gain was to be 
 his compensation; that honor, his reward. 
 Hence his question. 
 
 The reply of Jesus reached beyond 
 Peter's expectation. God's rewards are al- 
 ways surprising in their abundance. He 
 gives beyond what we expect. So it was in 
 this case. Jesus in His reply indicated a two- 
 fold reward for service. One was a special 
 reward applying to the chosen apostles only, 
 while the other was a general reward apply- 
 ing to every follower. The language the 
 Lord used was readily understood by the dis- 
 ciples, for He followed the thought they had 
 presented concerning the Kingdom. There is 
 to be a Kingdom. There are to be thrones. 
 But the Kingdom will not be earthly and the 
 thrones perishing. The Kingdom is the eter- 
 nal Kingdom, which shall see the spiritual 
 plans of the Lord consummated and the spir- 
 itual thrones established. It is to be the 
 Kingdom of the *' regeneration," the term 
 having reference to the time of the new 
 heaven and earth wherein dwelleth right- 
 eousness : the time which Peter in his old age 
 described, and which John saw in his vision. 
 
 Jesus implied that His apostles were to 
 84 
 
LESSONS FROM THE TExlCHER. 
 
 receive a special reward in the spiritual 
 Kingdom when He said, '^Ye shall sit on 
 twelve thrones judging." The Lord meant 
 doubtless that in the new order of things His 
 chosen ones were to occupy important posi- 
 tions and assist in the administration of the 
 spiritual affairs of that Kingdom. The ques- 
 tion as to the nature of that work is left in 
 mystery, as is so much of the content of the 
 spiritual Kingdom. But that something of 
 prominence and spiritual authority awaited 
 the apostles as a reward in the consummated 
 Kingdom is indicated in the reply of Jesus 
 to Peter. 
 
 But the promise of a general reward fol- 
 lowed also. In substance Jesus said (verse 
 29) that "every one" who had made the sac- 
 rifice and followed Him should receive a re- 
 ward. This reward is one that concerns both 
 the present and the future. In the present 
 it is to be * 'a hundred-fold" income. This is 
 another way of saying that the one who sub- 
 mits his life fully to God never loses any- 
 thing by the surrender, even in the material 
 way. He even receives his reward. The re- 
 ward may come in an increase of the very 
 things he had to sacrifice. But if it does 
 85 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 not come in that way it will come in another. 
 It may be in part in the sweet peace and 
 bright hope felt in the life that is consciously 
 right with God. This is better than houses 
 and lands, for it brings a happiness and 
 peace they can not bring. Happiness may 
 exist without material wealth. Happiness 
 and virtue are better than riches. Hence we 
 sometimes hear men say they would not part 
 with their religion even if there were no here- 
 after assured by it. They say it because they 
 are experiencing somewhat of the ''hundred- 
 fold" now in the contentment and righteous- 
 ness which no man taketh from them. 
 
 This general reward touches the future, 
 however, as well as the present. According 
 to the reply of Jesus, those who pay the price 
 of denial and follow Him ' ' shall inherit ever- 
 lasting life." This is the climax of the re- 
 ward. Ultimately the reward should be an 
 eternal life exempt from the toil, sorrows, 
 and disadvantages of the temporal life, and 
 crowned with unbroken fellowship with the 
 King and with a redeemed citizenship. If 
 Peter comprehended what Jesus meant, he 
 surely thought that he had struck a great 
 bargain. Yet that bargain is the heritage of 
 
 86 
 
LESSONS FBOM THE TEACHER. 
 
 every one who will forsake all and follow the 
 Christ. The reward of that act is a life in 
 the present worth a hundred-fold more than 
 houses and lands, and in the world to come, 
 life everlasting. 
 
 (d) A Lesson on ''The Last Things." 
 In this lesson there i; a change of time 
 and place. It is Tuesday of Passion Week, 
 and the place is on the side of the Mount of 
 Olives, near Jerusalem. Jesus had been in 
 the city all day, but as the evening hour ap- 
 proached He and His disciples left the city 
 and went out to the Mount of Olives for the 
 night. As they passed from the temple, the 
 disciples called the attention of Jesus to the 
 immense stones of which the temple was built. 
 Jesus replied that great as the temple was, 
 there should not be left one stone of it upon 
 another. It was probably this remark which 
 caused the disciples to question Jesus fur- 
 ther, after they had come to the Mount. 
 Peter, James, John, and Andrew came to 
 Him privately and asked Him concerning the 
 destruction of the temple and the end of the 
 world. The disciples seemed to connect the 
 destruction of the temple with the end of the 
 
 87 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 world. The questions to the Lord were 
 likely put by Peter, who was usually spokes- 
 man for the disciples. He was one of the 
 four who came privately to the Lord, and of 
 the four was naturally the leader. The an- 
 swer of Jesus was a long one, fully recorded 
 in the twenty-fourth and twenty-fifth chap- 
 ters of Matthew. In this answer Jesus 
 touches upon both the destruction of the 
 temple and the end of the world, frequently 
 called ''the last things." We will consider 
 here, however, only His teaching concerning 
 the last things which are connected with the 
 second coming of the Lord, or the end of the 
 world. The teachings of Jesus on this sub- 
 ject fall into two divisions, one dealing with 
 the signs preceding the coming, and the other 
 dealing with the characteristics of the com- 
 ing itself. 
 
 Six distinct signs are mentioned as pre- 
 ceding the coming. They may be stated as 
 follows : 
 
 1. False Christs shall arise. In almost 
 every age this sign has been fulfilled. 
 
 2. Political strife shall be common. 
 There shall be wars and rumors of war. This 
 sign also has had its fulfillment. 
 
 88 
 
LESSONS FROM THE TEACHER. 
 
 3. Strange physical phenomena shall be 
 witnessed. There shall be famines, pesti- 
 lences, and earthquakes in divers places. 
 This sign, too, has been repeatedly fulfilled. 
 
 It will be noticed that all three of the fore- 
 going signs were fulfilled in the lifetime of 
 the disciples. The Lord characterized them 
 as the "beginning of sorrows," which indi- 
 cated that the end was not yet. He then 
 proceeded to the further signs: 
 
 4. Persecutions shall arise. The Lord 
 foretold how the disciples would be delivered 
 up to meet affliction and be hated and killed. 
 We have only to recall the final fate of the 
 twelve apostles to realize how well this sign 
 w^as fulfilled. 
 
 5. Apostasies shall occur. False proph- 
 ets shall arise, many shall be offended, shall 
 betray and hate one another. Because in- 
 iquity shall abound, love shall wax cold. In 
 this age this prophecy is being realized. We 
 are in the midst of apostasy variously named. 
 Criticism of everything sacred abounds. The 
 sword-point is turned upon the inspiration 
 of the Word, the genuineness of much of the 
 Scriptures, the divinity of Jesus, the reality 
 of the Holy Spirit, and many other important 
 
 89 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 tenets of the Christian faith. Up to this 
 point we may say that the signs named by 
 Jesus have all been fulfilled. But another 
 remains : 
 
 6. The world shall be evangelized. The 
 gospel of the Kingdom shall be preached in 
 all the world. This is the only sign yet to 
 be fulfilled before the second coming of our 
 Lord, according to His own teaching. Upon 
 it, then, should be placed the Christian's 
 earnest thought and deepest interest. The 
 fulfillment of this sign is committed entirely 
 to the hands of the disciples of Jesus. It 
 is for the sake of its fulfillment that every 
 Christian needs to be interested in the spread 
 of the gospel in foreign lands. How soon it 
 will be fulfilled will depend entirely upon the 
 willingness of Christian people to send the 
 gospel to every creature. 
 
 These are the signs preceding the second 
 coming of Christ. Having named them, the 
 Lord proceeded to give some of the charac- 
 teristics of the coming itself. The twenty- 
 fifth chapter of Matthew is devoted to this 
 purpose. Therein three prominent features 
 are noticed. 
 
 1. The time of the coming is uncertain. 
 
 9a 
 
LESSONS FROM THE TEACHER. 
 
 This truth is taught in the parable of the ten 
 virgins. None of the virgins knew the hour 
 of the bridegroom's coming, yet five were 
 prepared and five were unprepared. The 
 fate of the two parties is presented in the 
 joy that awaited the prepared and the sorrow 
 that awaited the unprepared. The teaching 
 of the parable is revealed in the words, 
 "Watch therefore, for ye know neither the 
 day nor the hour wherein the Son of man 
 Cometh. ' ' The thing that concerns the Chris- 
 tian chiefly is not the time or manner of the 
 Lord's coming, but the preparation for that 
 coming. The ideal condition is a state of 
 constant preparedness for that event. 
 
 2. During the Lord's absence the chief 
 requirement is faithfulness. This fact is 
 presented under the parable of the talents. 
 (Matt. 25:14-30.) The parable presents 
 forcefully the truth that the measure of the 
 disciple 's acceptance is not the number of his 
 talents, but the way he uses them; not his 
 ability so much as his faithfulness. However 
 different their talents may be, God holds in 
 equal favor those who are equally faithful. 
 
 3. There is to be a final judgment based 
 on man's conduct. The basis of this judg- 
 
 91 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 merit is presented in one of the most graphic 
 pictures ever drawn by Jesus. (Matt. 25: 
 31-46.) There is to be a general assembly 
 of all the nations of the earth and a passing 
 of judgment upon each individual. Some are 
 to pass into the darkness and sorrow of 
 alienation from God. Others are to pass into 
 the light and joy of the presence of God. 
 The passing of the sentence is not an arbi- 
 trary act on the part of the Almighty, but 
 the inevitable consequence of the individual's 
 actions. The basis of the decree is, therefore, 
 not God's decree, but man's conduct. The 
 actions of man toward his fellow-man form 
 a large part of the basis of judgment. A 
 truth emphasized is that God and man are 
 so closely united that the serving or non- 
 serving of man amounts to the serving or 
 non-serving of God. ''Inasmuch as ye have 
 done it unto one of the least of these My 
 brethren, ye have done it unto Me." 
 
 It is taught here that our future destiny 
 is dependent, in part at least, upon our pres- 
 ent relation to man. We are our brother's 
 keeper. We are to show our love for God by 
 serving the children He has bought with a 
 price. The sincerest gratitude we can render 
 92 
 
LESSONS FEOM THE TEACHER. 
 
 God is service rendered His children. The 
 Father is pleased with our prayers of thank- 
 fulness, but He is better pleased with our 
 deeds of thankfulness. Dr. W. M. Taylor, 
 in one of his books, relates an incident that 
 is a good illustration of the truth here sug- 
 gested. More than a hundred years ago, 
 when the custom was to convey wheat to the 
 mill in a sack laid upon the back of a horse, 
 a poor man in Scotland was making a journey 
 to the mill with a heavy sack of grain. The 
 path was rough, and the horse stumbled, 
 throwing the sack of grain to the ground. 
 The poor man was old and weak and was 
 not able, unassisted, to replace the sack on 
 the horse's back. He was perplexed and al- 
 most discouraged when, noticing a man ap- 
 proaching on horseback, he determined to 
 ask for help. But when the horseman ap- 
 proached, he proved to be a nobleman who 
 lived in a nearby castle, and the old man's 
 heart sank, for he did not dare to ask a noble- 
 man to assist him with his load. But the 
 nobleman, seeing the situation, rode up, dis- 
 mounted, and said, ' ' Let me help you, John. ' ' 
 Together the men lifted the sack into posi- 
 tion, and then the old man, taking off his 
 93 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 broad Kilmarnock bonnet, said, "Please, 
 your lordship, how shall I ever thank you 
 for your kindness?" "Very easily, John," 
 was the reply. "Whenever you see another 
 man wanting assistance as you were just now, 
 help him, and that will be thanking me." 
 
 Well, we were once on the highway strug- 
 gling with our burden of condemnation and 
 guilt. We tried to lift it. It was heavy. 
 We were discouraged. But we looked and 
 behold, a Nobleman from the skies appeared: 
 God's only Son. He stooped and lifted the 
 load on His own shoulders, and we were free. 
 And if the question should rise to our lips, 
 "Lord, how shall I ever thank Thee?" the 
 answer comes, "When you see another 
 mortal struggling in sin or needing help, give 
 him assistance, and in so doing you will 
 thank Me." This is what the Lord meant 
 when He said, "Inasmuch as ye have done 
 it unto one of the least of these My brethren, 
 ye have done it unto Me. ' ' 
 
 94 
 
CHAPTER VII. 
 IN THE UPPER ROOM. 
 
 Passion- Week is tlie most memorable week 
 in human history. Its events deal not only 
 with human life, but with human destiny. 
 It bridges the space between God and man 
 and makes it possible for men to say that 
 they are no more strangers and foreigners, 
 but fellow-citizens with the saints and of the 
 household of God. 
 
 The most memorable night of Passion 
 Week was Thursday night, the night of de- 
 nial. That night is the world 's sacred night. 
 We followed Jesus in our thought as He 
 walked the wave \vdth no higher feeling per- 
 haps than that of astonishment at His utter 
 disregard for the laws of nature. We looked 
 upon that quartet on the Mount of Trans- 
 figuration, surrounded with divine glory, 
 with feelings of amazement doubtless be- 
 cause of those supernatural manifestations. 
 But we can not enter into a study of the 
 events of that dark, sad Thursday night of 
 95 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 Passion Week without feelings of holy awe. 
 As we cross the threshold of that night and 
 have its scenes flashed before our minds, a 
 voice seems to whisper to us, "Put off thy 
 shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon 
 thou standest is holy ground." It is the 
 night in which we see the Lord deliberately 
 planning to pour out His life-blood for men, 
 meanwhile spending His last moments in 
 speaking wise words and doing kind deeds 
 in behalf of those who were soon to repay 
 Him in treachery and desertion. There are 
 several events in that night which provide 
 interesting subjects for study. We are con- 
 cerned here only with those scenes in which 
 Peter figured prominently. In this chapter 
 and those immediately following, these scenes 
 mil be noticed. We turn our attention now 
 to the scene in the "Upper Room." 
 
 The lesson on * ' the last things ' ' had been 
 taught on Tuesday of Passion Week, as 
 Jesus and His disciples w^ere on the side of 
 Mt. Olivet. The following day, Wednesday, 
 is known as the day of quiet or retirement. 
 Jesus is thought to have spent this day in 
 the village of Bethany, wdiere He was sur- 
 rounded by His friends and where He could 
 96 
 
IN THE UPPER ROOM. 
 
 by prayer and meditation strengthen Him- 
 self for the ordeal which He was about to 
 face in Gethsemane and on Calvary. On the 
 following day, Thursday, the day for eating 
 the Passover, He sent two of His disciples 
 into the city to make ready the feast. The 
 two were Peter and John. The prominence 
 in which the Lord yet held Peter should be 
 noticed. He is the first selection from among 
 the disciples to prepare the Passover feast. 
 The preparation consisted of two distinct 
 steps : First, selecting a place for the meal. 
 Second, arranging the necessary provisions 
 for the meal. 
 
 The place for holding the Passover was 
 indicated by Jesus. He instructed Peter and 
 John that they would be led to the proper 
 place by a man whom they would find carry- 
 ing a pitcher of water. When it is remem- 
 bered that it was the custom for the women 
 and not the men to carry the water, it will 
 be seen that the sign indicated by Jesus was 
 one easily distinguished. A man carrjdng 
 water was an unusual sight. The two dis- 
 ciples, upon entering the city, found the man 
 indicated and, following him to his home, 
 made request for a room in which to hold 
 
 ' 97 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 the feast. It may be of interest here to ask 
 concerning the identity of this man. There 
 is good reason to suppose that he was a dis- 
 ciple of Jesus because of the kindly way in 
 which he granted the request made by the 
 disciples. They asked merely for a room, 
 but this man gave them not only a room, but 
 the best room in the house. The original 
 Greek word used shows that the disciples 
 asked for a humble place, the word **ka- 
 talma'"' being used. The room in which 
 Jesus was born is described as '^katalma." 
 It was a humble place. Jesus sought nothing 
 better as a place for eating the feast of the 
 Passover. But this man gave, not a ''ka- 
 talma," but a large upper room, considered 
 the best room in the house. This fact indi- 
 cates that the man was a friend of Jesus. 
 Tradition says that he was the father of 
 John Mark. If this be true, the Master spent 
 this last night before the crucifixion with 
 friends near. The room granted, known as 
 the Upper Eoom, occupied the uppermost 
 part of the house and was usually reached 
 by an outside stairway. This fact would 
 make it possible for the Lord and His dis- 
 ciples to enter and possess the room with- 
 
 98 
 
IN THE UPPER ROOM. 
 
 out disturbing any one lOr being disturbed. 
 The room was "furnished,'* as the account 
 says, which means that it contained a table 
 for the supper and the couches to be arranged 
 around it in Oriental style. 
 
 Here the disciples prepared the Passover. 
 The lamb necessary for the feast was pre- 
 pared with the usual ceremonies, doubtless 
 being slain at the temple between the hours 
 of three and six in the afternoon, as was the 
 Jewish custom. In the preparation it was 
 necessary that the lamb be roasted on a 
 pomegranate spit in such a way that its flesh 
 at no time came in contact with the oven. 
 In addition to the lamb, it was necessary 
 to prepare the wine, the unleavened bread, 
 the bitter herbs, and the festive lamps. 
 
 Before the evening hour had arrived the 
 preparations were completed, and Peter and 
 John went forth to meet Jesus and the other 
 disciples as they came from Olive's slope to 
 eat the Passover. Doubtless all the little 
 company cleansed themselves at the public 
 bath, as was the custom, and then at the ap- 
 pointed hour proceeded to the Upper Room. 
 The company may be looked upon as a family 
 of which Jesus is the Head. According to 
 99 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 custom, at least ten persons are necessary 
 to constitute a family for eating the Pass- 
 over. The family of Jesus was, therefore, 
 full size. Soon after entering the room the 
 threefold blast of the silver trumpet at the 
 temple rang out, announcing that the feast 
 was on. Jesus and The Twelve reclined at 
 the table, and the feast began. 
 
 The positions which the disciples occupied 
 at the table furnish a subject of interest, and 
 help in remembering the scene. An order 
 of arrangement that meets all the details of 
 the gospel accounts is suggested by Eder- 
 sheira, who, being a Jewish convert to Chris- 
 tianity, was thoroughly familiar mth the 
 customs of the Jews, both modern and an- 
 cient. He assumes that Jesus and His dis- 
 ciples were around three sides of a long 
 table, forming thus a figure somewhat in the 
 shape of a horseshoe. The arrangement may 
 be seen by studying the design taken from 
 Edersheim. 
 
 At one end of the table was John, while 
 just across from him on the opposite side 
 was Peter. Next to John and on the same 
 side of the table was Jesus, while next to Him 
 came Judas, the traitor. This order is sug- 
 100 
 
IN THE UPPER ROOM. 
 
 gested by certain references made in the Gos- 
 pels to the acts and conversations occurring 
 at the table. It explains how it would be 
 possible for Jesus to whisper to John, telling 
 
 him the sign by which to detect the traitor. 
 It shows how it was possible for Jesus to in- 
 form Judas that he was the traitor without 
 others hearing His remark. It shows, too, 
 how it was possible for Peter to speak to 
 John across the table and ask who the traitor 
 101 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 was. Thus placed at the table, the feast 
 began. 
 
 It seems that at the very beginning of the 
 feast a contention arose as to the privilege 
 of occupying the seat of highest honor next 
 to Jesus. It seems sad that the Last Supper 
 should be marred by the presence of strife, 
 yet such was the case. We may imagine from 
 past actions that Peter would be prominent 
 in this contention, and it is likely that he 
 secured a position next to the Lord. Then 
 came the rebuke from Jesus, in which He 
 taught that humility was more beautiful than 
 strife, and that he who would be the greatest 
 must be the humblest. It would be like Peter, 
 too, as he realized the force of this lesson, 
 to rush from the head of the table down to 
 the foot in evidence of his humility. At any 
 rate, it seems evident that he occupied a posi- 
 tion at the foot of the table opposite John, 
 as suggested above. 
 
 It was because of this strife that Jesus 
 warned and tested Peter, telling him that on 
 that night Satan would sift him as wheat. 
 Peter, ^\dth his usual self-confidence, in- 
 formed the Lord that he was ready to go 
 with Him to prison or even unto death. It 
 102 
 
% 
 
 IN THE UPPER ROOM. 
 
 was in answer to this assumption on the part 
 of Peter that Jesus foretold to him that on 
 that very night he was to deny Him thrice. 
 The supper proceeded. There are a few 
 features connected with it which should be 
 noticed. The disciples doubtless reclined at 
 the table, instead of being seated as is the 
 custom to-day. The Jewish law directed that 
 persons in eating the Passover recline on 
 pillows laid around a low table, the head 
 resting on the left hand so that the right 
 might be free. Imagine the disciples thus 
 located. The first act in the Pascal Supper 
 was the blessing of the first cup by the head 
 of the table. This Jesus did, and afterward 
 took bread and passed it to the disciples. 
 This part of the ceremony was usually fol- 
 lowed by the head of the table rising and 
 washing his hands. Jesus rose to this office, 
 but instead of following the usual custom, 
 brought in a new ceremony. It v/as the wash- 
 ing of the feet of the disciples — an object 
 lesson in humility, made the more needful by 
 the dispute which had just arisen. Jesus rose 
 from the table, laid aside His upper gar- 
 ment, girded Himself with a towel, poured 
 water into a basin, and prepared to do the 
 103 
 
.y 
 
 THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 work of the meanest slave, namely, washing 
 the feet of those at the table. Thus girded. 
 He came to Simon Peter and began the 
 menial work. Since Peter occupied the end 
 of the table, it was natural for Jesus to come 
 to him first. The part of the table project- 
 ing beyond the couches, as shoTNTi in the dia- 
 gram, would be used for the basins, water 
 and extra vessels. To this point Jesus would 
 have to proceed in preparing Himself for the 
 service contemplated. From this point it was 
 natural that He should turn to the place occu- 
 pied by Peter, it being immediately at hand. 
 As Jesus approached Peter, the latter was 
 amazed at the act and surprise leaped from 
 his lips in the words, ' * Lord, dost Thou wash 
 my feet?" The arrangement of the words in 
 the original reveals more clearly the surprise 
 and embarrassment of Peter. The original 
 has it, "Lord — Thou — of me — washest the 
 feet!" It is an exclamation of surprise with 
 the emphasis thrown on the contrast between 
 the One to do the washing and the one to be 
 washed ; between Jesus the Master and Peter 
 the servant. There was something so gro- 
 tesque in the thought of the Master becoming 
 servant to the servant that Peter's impulsive 
 104 
 
IN THE UPPER ROOM. 
 
 nature rose in protest, and he declared, 
 *'Thou shalt never wash my feet." Peter 
 e\idently thought it would be more appro- 
 priate for liim to wash the feet of Jesus than 
 for the reverse to be permitted. The spirit of 
 Peter's protest must, therefore, be admired, 
 while his utter inability to comprehend the 
 meaning of the Lord's act must be regretted. 
 But Jesus brought Peter to his senses by 
 saying, ''If I wash thee not, thou hast no 
 part with Me. ' ' Peter immediately reversed 
 his attitude, as his wont was. He saw that 
 refusal would mean separation from the 
 Master, while submission meant continued 
 fellowship. He therefore swung from one 
 extreme to the other. If washing meant to 
 have a part with Jesus, he would have not 
 only his feet washed, but his hands and his 
 head. Hence he replied to Jesus, ''Lord, not 
 my feet only, but also my hands and my 
 head." But Jesus informed him that such 
 an extreme act was unnecessary, and pro- 
 ceeded with the solemn and sacred task of 
 washing the disciples' feet, and wiping them 
 with the towel. This was an act indicative 
 of humility and service on the part of Jesus, 
 and it has its lessons of importance. 
 105 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERIVIAN. 
 
 The meaning of the act is twofold. In 
 the first place, the washing was typical of 
 cleansing from sin through the work of 
 Jesus. This thought was expressed in the 
 words of Jesus to Peter, " If I wash thee not, 
 thou hast no part with Me." No one can be 
 a partaker of the Kingdom save by the wash- 
 ing of Jesus. He was going from that Upper 
 Room to shed His blood that by it men might 
 be washed from sin. Unless He shed that 
 blood there could be no remission of sin. 
 Except a man be purged through the shed 
 blood he has no part with Christ. 
 "^ In the second place, the act was tj^ical 
 of Christian service in its essential spirit. 
 Jesus said, "I have given you an example 
 that ye should do as I have done unto you. ' ' 
 The meaning is not that men should literally 
 wash the feet of one another, but that they 
 should have the spirit of humility and serv- 
 ice which was exhibited by Jesus when He 
 washed the disciples ' feet. The example was 
 in the spirit, not in the act. As Jesus humbly 
 served, so men should do, for the servant 
 is not greater than the Lord. The spirit of 
 humble service is the essential thing. What 
 a benediction to the Church it would be if we 
 
 106 
 
IN THE UPPER ROOM. 
 
 really possessed that spirit ! Did we have it 
 there would be no strife or contention. These 
 arise from our desires to be masters rather 
 than servants. Did we have it there would 
 be less distress outside the Church. Society 
 is not founded on the principle of service to 
 others. It is, rather, the principle of others 
 serving us. Men are inclined to make serv- 
 ants of others, rather than become servants 
 to others. Men are willing to make foot- 
 bridges of others over which they may walk 
 to some coveted goal. When society reverses 
 the present order and begins to act on the 
 principle of service to others, there will be 
 less of inequality, injustice, oppression, and 
 distress. 
 
 This act of service in the Upper Room 
 being completed, the supper was soon ended. 
 Before the little company left that room at 
 about the midnight hour, other lessons had 
 been taught and words spoken which have 
 been a benediction to every age. Among 
 these may be mentioned the following : 
 
 1. The comforting deliverance of Jesus 
 recorded in the fourteenth chapter of St. 
 John. It may be called Christ's dying mes- 
 sage to the world, and has brought unmeas- 
 
 107 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 ured comfort to troubled hearts in all con- 
 ditions of need. 
 
 2. The lesson on the necessity of abiding 
 in Christ, taught in the fifteenth chapter of 
 St. John. 
 
 3. The memorable prayer of Jesus for 
 His disciples, recorded in the seventeenth 
 chapter of St. John. This prayer is sup- 
 posed to have been uttered in the Upper 
 Room. 
 
 4. These lessons, with all the comfort and 
 instruction they contain, come to us as our 
 heritage from that sad night of long ago. 
 No time was lost that night. Every moment 
 was well improved. If there can be found 
 anywhere an illustration of the truth that 
 out of the fullness of the heart the mouth 
 speaketh, it was here. The heart of Jesus 
 was full. He was facing death. Like a dying 
 father who calls his sons around his bed to 
 give them farewell instructions, Jesus called 
 His disciples into that room and talked with 
 and prayed with them. Every passing mo- 
 ment was filled with some word or act. But 
 at last the end came. The moment for de- 
 parture arrived. Mark tells us that ''when 
 they had sung an hymn, they went out into 
 
 108 
 
IN THE UPPER ROOM. 
 
 the Mount of Olives." It was a going out 
 into darkness, into betrayal, denial, agony, 
 and death. One of England's greatest 
 preachers, commenting on this scene, says: 
 ''There never was such a going out before; 
 there never will be such a going out again. 
 Let us be very quiet just now: the Master 
 has gone out — He is on His way to Geth- 
 semane ! 
 
 *'To Gethsemane!" 
 
 109 
 
CHAPTER VIIL 
 IN GETHSEMANE. 
 
 In describing the scene in that Upper Room 
 in Jerusalem, both Matthew and Mark con- 
 chide by saying, ''And when they had sung 
 a hymn, they went out into the Mount of 
 Olives." Imagine the little company leav- 
 ing the room and passing out into the streets 
 of Jerusalem. If we ask the position occu- 
 pied by Peter as the company walked through 
 the streets, a satisfactory answer will be 
 found in assuming that he walked either at 
 the Master's side, or followed close behind 
 Him like a child. In fact, the conversation 
 indulged in on the way to Gethsemane would 
 seem to indicate that Peter and Jesus walked 
 side by side. Peter was clearly close to 
 Jesus, for when the latter talked, Peter heard 
 and was the first to answer. It would be in 
 keeping with suggestions elsewhere made to 
 imagine that Peter walked on one side of 
 Jesus and John on the other. The two who 
 110 
 
IN GETHSEMANE. 
 
 had prepared the feast for the Lord in the 
 Upper Room would have a right to lead the 
 way with Him to Gethsemane. 
 
 It must have been near midnight when 
 Jesus and His disciples walked through the 
 streets of the city, yet those streets were 
 doubtless filled with people who were pre- 
 paring to go up to the temple, whose gates 
 were opened at midnight. Passing through 
 the city, Jesus and His little company left 
 the city by the eastern gate, north of the 
 temple, and crossed the brook called Kidron. 
 It was perhaps close to the brook that the 
 conversation occurred to which reference has 
 already been made. The conversation is so 
 important that it should be noticed in pass- 
 ing. Jesus said to the disciples, ''All ye 
 shall be offended because of Me this night. ' ' 
 There was a sweeping accusation in that 
 statement. Not only were Judas and Peter 
 to prove unfaithful, but all the disciples were 
 to become offended. How well this prophecy 
 was carried out may be seen in the fact that 
 before that night passed ''they all forsook 
 Him and fled." The word "offended" as 
 used here by Jesus means literally to stum- 
 ble. All were to stumble or fall in their faith 
 111 
 
• THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 and devotion to Jesus that night, because of 
 what should befall Him. 
 
 Peter heard the statement of Jesus and, 
 as usual, took exception to it. He did not 
 know that Jesus knew him better than he 
 knew himself. The statement of the Lord 
 was sweeping, but Peter did not propose to 
 be encompassed by it. Hence he impulsively 
 declared, ' ' Though all men shall be offended 
 because of Thee, yet will I never be offended. ' ' 
 Then came from Jesus the still more startling 
 declaration, ''In this night, before the cock 
 crow twice, thou shalt deny Me thrice." 
 Calmly it was said, as though spoken by One 
 to whom the future was as well known as 
 the present. But Peter still had a contempt 
 for the suggestion, and replied, ''If I should 
 die with Thee, I will not deny Thee in any 
 wise. ' ' This was not the proud assertion of 
 a boastful man. Peter said it in sincerit)^ 
 He meant it. He was yet all aglow with the 
 lessons he had learned and the gentle words 
 he had heard in the Upper Room, and he 
 really felt so attracted to the Lord that he 
 thought he was willing to make great sacri- 
 fices for Him. Peter little knew his own 
 weakness and did not know how he would 
 112 
 
IN GETHSEMANE. 
 
 tremble when the time of crisis came. Like 
 the drunkard who swears honestly that the 
 last drop of liquor has been tasted, and yet 
 falls when the temptation sways him, Peter 
 thought he Avas strong enough to stand, but 
 was mistaken. How little we know of our own 
 weakness ! When we think we are strong we 
 are often weak. Our weakness, however, like 
 that of Peter, is often in the fact that we are 
 self-centered instead of God-centered. The 
 old lesson needs to be ever newly learned that 
 if one would be strong, it must be in the Lord 
 and in the power of His might, and not in 
 the power of self. 
 
 After this conversation the little company 
 proceeded to Gethsemane. This was a quiet 
 garden spot on the slope of Mt. Olivet, and 
 a place where Jesus had often retired before. 
 It was to be the scene that night of the agony 
 of the Master. 
 
 There were two scenes in the garden in 
 which Peter figured prominently. In the 
 first, Peter appears as a sleeping senti- 
 nel. After entering the garden, Jesus left 
 eight of the disciples behind Him, going 
 forward a short distance with Peter, James, 
 and John to pray. These three men were 
 
 « 113 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 taken by Jesus several times on special 
 missions. They were with Him when He 
 raised the daughter of Jairus, and again 
 were with Him on the Mount of Trans- 
 figuration. The quartet in the garden are, 
 therefore, familiar figures. Jesus doubtless 
 took these three with Him on this occasion 
 because He wanted the consoling presence of 
 His nearest friends in His last hours before 
 death. One approaching rapidly the end of 
 life will naturally cling closely to his nearest 
 friends. So Jesus, facing this dread hour 
 and His hastening death, would have His 
 bosom friends near Him. Proceeding with 
 these three friends into the garden, Jesus 
 opened His heart to them, saying, *'My soul 
 is exceedingly sorrowful, even unto death." 
 This statement is at once a measure of His 
 grief and a prophecy of its outcome. The 
 Lord was exceedingly sorrowful; that is, 
 weighted down with a crushing burden of 
 grief. And had He not great cause for 
 grief? Judas was soon to betray Him with 
 a kiss. Peter was soon to deny Him with an 
 oath. The disciples were soon to forsake 
 Him and flee. He was soon to experience the 
 loneliness of the withdrawal of the Father's 
 114 
 
IN GETHSEMANE. 
 
 presence while He would be left standing 
 alone with the billows of death and hell roll- 
 ing over Him. He was soon to suffer the 
 agony and shame of a death by crucifixion. 
 Little wonder He was exceedingly sorrowful ! 
 But He implied in that statement that the 
 outcome of His sorrow would be death. The 
 last hour was at hand. The sorrow was to 
 be augmented until it culminated in death. 
 This fact Jesus would have the three friends 
 understand. Understanding it, one would 
 naturally expect them to be sympathetic and 
 alert. But not so. Soon a startling indif- 
 ference was evidenced. Jesus, leaving the 
 three together, went forward a short distance 
 to pray alone. His prayer was suggestive: 
 **0 My Father, if it be possible, let this cup 
 pass from Me. Nevertheless, not My will, 
 but Thine be done. ' ' In praying that the cup 
 might pass from Him, Jesus was not neces- 
 sarily asking that He might escape death. 
 He was expecting that fate, and was ready 
 for it. But there were other elements of 
 bitterness in His cup more dreaded than 
 death itself. The treachery of Judas; the 
 falling away of Peter; the scattering of His 
 sheep; the temporary triumph of His ene- 
 115 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 mies over His cause; these to a nature as 
 sensitive as Christ's would be painful in the 
 extreme. Might not this cup of bitterness 
 pass away? Jesus might naturally hope 
 that there would be a w^ay for accomplishing 
 the desired end without the attendant apos- 
 tasies and humiliations. Yet He was willing 
 to suffer even this if need be, hence the 
 prayer, ''Thy will be done." 
 
 Coming from His season of prayer and 
 hungering for sympathy, Jesus approached 
 Peter, James, and John and found them 
 asleep. His disappointment was revealed in 
 the words which He spake to Peter, ''What, 
 could ye not watch with Me one hour!" 
 Why He addressed the words to Peter may 
 be seen when we remember that it was he 
 who had said, only a little while before this, 
 that he was ready to go mth the Master 
 even to death. After that boast, he of all 
 the disciples should have been watchful. 
 But even Peter sleeps ! A sleeping sentinel ! 
 There is something not only sad, but very 
 suggestive in the situation. Here is a sol- 
 dier in God's garden at a post of duty, yet 
 he is asleep. How oft the scene is repeated 
 in the present day! Wlien Jesus stands be- 
 IIG 
 
IN GETHSEMANE. 
 
 fore His modern followers and points to the 
 fields white and ready for the harvest, and 
 asks that the sheaves be gathered in, and 
 we fail to heed, are we not as really asleep 
 as was Peter in the garden? If we go on 
 our own way, seeking our own selfish pleas- 
 ures while God's children are hungering and 
 His cause suffering, and the Lord is saying, 
 ''Feed My sheep," are we not asleep? 
 When in this land of ours the bloody as- 
 sassin Intemperance stands with drawn 
 sword, letting that sword fall something like 
 twelve times every hour, and each time slay- 
 ing somebody's father, husband, brother, or 
 son, and we stir not to stop the bloodshed, 
 are we not asleep 1 Christian people are too 
 often asleep to some of these needs, and 
 ought to be aroused. 
 
 Three times Jesus came from His pray- 
 ing and found Peter and the others asleep. 
 At the third time the crisis had passed and 
 Jesus said to the sleepers, "Sleep on now 
 and take your rest." It was only another 
 way of saying: *'I do not need your watch- 
 fulness now. I have endured the agony 
 alone. The hour is come in which the Son 
 of man is to be betrayed into the hands of 
 117 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 sinners." Perhaps at that very moment the 
 light from the torches in the hands of the 
 approaching mob could be seen flashing 
 through the darkness. The mob entered 
 Gethsemane led by the traitor Judas. Jesus 
 knew that His hour had come. So He 
 changed His injunction to the sleepers and 
 said, ''Rise, let us be going: behold, he is at 
 hand that doth betray Me." These words 
 of Jesus, together with the light and sounds 
 from the advancing crowd, aroused the 
 sleeping sentinels, and they became alert. 
 Jesus advanced to meet the mob, and as He 
 did so, Judas greeted Him, thromng his 
 arms around the Master's neck and kissing 
 Him. That token of affection became the 
 sign of treachery, for by it the mob recog- 
 nized Jesus, and advanced with staves and 
 swords to lay hands upon Him. It w^as just 
 here that Peter figured in the second scene 
 of that sad night in the garden. 
 
 In this second scene Peter appeared as 
 the fighting disciple. The sleeping sentinel 
 was suddenly transformed and assumed a 
 new part. From the one extreme of leth- 
 argy he passed to the opposite extreme of 
 violence. He had carried with him from 
 118 
 
IN GETHSEMANE. 
 
 the Upper Eoom a short sword. This sword 
 Peter hastily drew and struck a blow in de- 
 fense of the Master. The blow fell on the 
 head of the servant of the high priest and 
 the ear was severed from the head. Peter 
 was now fully aroused. He remembered 
 how he had said he would die for the Master 
 if necessary. He remembered, too, with 
 shame how he had slept when the Master 
 wanted him to watch. He now proposed, 
 therefore, to atone for his neglect and make 
 good his word. We must admire the motive 
 of Peter here, and give him credit for pos- 
 sessing something of the courage of the sol- 
 dier. He was ready for a fight. He was 
 keyed up now to face any danger. But as 
 usual, his impulsiveness proceeded on mis- 
 taken grounds and brought him to embar- 
 rassment. Before Peter had an opportunity 
 to strike a second blow, he heard the gentle 
 yet firm voice of the Master saying, "Put 
 up again the sword into his place." Peter 
 with the meekness of a child obeyed in- 
 stantly. While we must deplore his inability 
 to understand Jesus, we must yet admire 
 Peter's willingness to obey Him. Peter 
 meant well, but he frequently did poorly. 
 119 
 
< 
 
 THE EXALTED J^ISHERMAN. 
 
 Had he reversed his actions that night, it 
 would have been better. He should have 
 been awake when he slept, and peaceable 
 when he fought. His defense of Jesus 
 availed nothing. The quiet submission of 
 Jesus gave the mob its opportunity, and 
 Jesus was seized and dragged away like a 
 felon, while the disciples, according to the 
 sad record, all forsook Him and fled. The 
 crowd led the Lord out from the garden — 
 out to the mock trial, to the crown of thorns, 
 to the cruel cross. 
 
 The scenes in which Peter figured that 
 night have some valuable lessons for the 
 Christian student. We will notice three of 
 them briefly. >i' 
 
 V 1- Peter's self-confidence suggests the 
 
 ,^ danger of trusting self. In the conversation 
 on the way to the garden, Peter evidenced 
 confidence in his own loyalty. He felt that 
 he was strong within himself and that there 
 was no danger. Results showed, however, 
 that when he thought himself the safest he 
 was in the greatest danger. His danger was 
 in trusting his own strength. Had he relied 
 on the power of the Master instead of the 
 power of self, his record that night would 
 120 
 
IN GETHSEMANE. 
 
 have been different. Pride goeth before a 
 fall in religious matters as well as elsewhere. 
 The one who boasts of what he will do, mean- 
 while leaving God out of the count, is likely 
 preparing for a fall. The Christian should 
 always add as a qualification to his proud 
 assertions, ' ' If God wills. ' ' History tells us 
 that William II of England once stood on 
 some high rocks in North Wales and caught 
 a glimpse of the coast of Ireland. He im- 
 mediately exclaimed, "I will summon here 
 all the ships of my realm and with them make 
 a bridge to attack that country. ' ' When this 
 threat was reported to the Prince of Lein- 
 ster, he inquired, ''Did the king add to his 
 migl .y threat, ' If God please ? ' " Being told 
 that the king made no reference to God, the 
 prince replied, "That man puts his trust in 
 human, not in divine power; I fear not his 
 coming. ' ' King William was shot dead with 
 an arrow while hunting in a forest some time 
 later and never made his boasted conquest. 
 It is always best to form a partnership with 
 God in life's endeavors. The Christian 
 should avoid the mistake of the king and 
 of Peter, and trust always in divine power 
 rather than human. 
 
 121 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 2. Peter's sleepiness in an hour of need 
 is a warning against allowing ourselves to 
 be overcome with worldly cares and selfish 
 desires while the cause of Christ is left to 
 suffer. Each Christian is placed by divine 
 appointment at some post of duty. That fact 
 is certain. God expects watchfulness and 
 faithfulness. It is easy to fall into a spiritual 
 slumber even when watchfulness is badly 
 needed. Some time ago, at a railway cross- 
 ing where he had served for years with 
 marked faithfulness, a watchman in Indiana 
 was found asleep in his chair. His friends 
 approached him in surprise, for never in 
 twenty years had he slept at his post of duty. 
 But a closer investigation showed that his 
 sleep was a sleep of death. He was dead in 
 his chair. His was a splendid record. Faith- 
 ful unto death! To no sleep was the watch- 
 man willing to succumb save the sleep of 
 death. A faithfulness like that should be the 
 aim of every Christian. The Master's in- 
 junction is to watch — even unto death. 
 
 3. Peter's attempt to fight suggests that 
 wisdom should be used in our methods of 
 serving Jesus. His purpose to serve Jesus 
 was right, but his method was wrong. The 
 
 122 
 
IN GETHSEMANE. 
 
 method would have resulted in more harm 
 than good. The method of Jesus was always 
 love. Force and violence were aside from 
 His spirit. It is possible to have the sincere 
 purpose of doing the Master a service and 
 yet employ a method which would be dis- 
 pleasing to Him. Methods of force, of hate 
 or revenge, of selfish parade, of insincerity 
 or worldliness, are all foreign to the wish 
 and plan of Jesus. We hear frequently of a 
 public dance being given under the name of 
 a charity ball, the proceeds to go for so-called 
 Christian charity. When the fact is recalled 
 that the public dance is responsible for the 
 downfall of eighty per cent of the fallen 
 women of this country, it can be seen that 
 such a function given in the name of Chris- 
 tian charity would be about as pleasing to 
 Jesus Christ as would be the stealing of 
 somebody's pocketbook for the purpose of 
 getting some missionary money. The fact is 
 that the Church to-day needs sadly a revival 
 on the point of proper methods of serving 
 Jesus, lest the service be offered in a way 
 which is a positive offense. 
 
 In the experience of every one there 
 comes the dark, solemn walk to some Geth- 
 
 123 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 scinaiie, where the test of our worth and 
 loyalty is made. There is but one qualifica- 
 tion that can support us in the walk and 
 cause us to stand in the test, and that is the 
 presence of the Lord Jesus. Would we sing 
 a song as we go; would we stand aright, 
 watch aright, serve aright, we must have that 
 one essential qualification, — Christ within. 
 
 124 
 
CHAPTER IX. 
 THE THREE DENIALS. 
 
 Matthew closes his description of the scene 
 in the garden with the words, ''Then all the 
 disciples forsook Him and fled." It almost 
 makes lis indignant to think that in the hour 
 of His sorest need all of the trusted friends 
 of Jesus should thus deny Him and leave 
 Him friendless, helpless, and exposed to the '/ 
 insults of the heartless mob. It is comfort- 
 ing, however, to know that the desertion was 
 of short duration, at least as far as two of 
 the disciples were concerned. Peter and 
 John speedily rallied and determined to 
 watch the outcome of the Master's arrest. 
 Whether these two disciples were together 
 when they determined to follow Jesus, we 
 do not know. We know more of the actions 
 of Peter at this particular time than of John. 
 As the mob led Jesus back to the city, Peter 
 followed, we are told, afar off. The actions 
 of Peter are so closely interwoven vnth the 
 fate of Jesus that in following the career of 
 125 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 the latter we best get an understanding of 
 the actions of Peter in that fatal ni^ht. 
 Jesus was led by His captors back to the city, 
 traversing perhaps the same pathway He had 
 trodden with His disciples only a short time 
 before as they went to Gethsemane. He 
 probably entered the city by the same gate 
 through which He went as He walked to His 
 agony. 
 
 Entering the city, Jesus was led first to 
 the home of Annas, who but recently had 
 occupied the office of high priest, and who 
 because of that fact was a man of great in- 
 fluence. His son-in-law, Caiaphas, was the 
 acting high priest. It may have been largely 
 a matter of compliment to Annas that Jesus 
 was taken to him first instead of to Caiaphas. 
 Or, it may have been that the accusers of 
 Jesus preferred to have Annas try and con- 
 demn Him, inasmuch as he was a man of 
 much influence with the Roman authorities 
 because of his great wealth and liberal views. 
 A condemnation from him would be speedily 
 sanctioned by the Roman governor. At any 
 rate, Jesus was led first to Annas. We know 
 nothing of what happened there — whether 
 Jesus was questioned much or not at all. We 
 126 
 
THE THREE DENIALS. 
 
 only know that Annas sent Jesus to Caiaphas, 
 the high priest, for trial. The trial was held 
 in the house or palace of Caiaphas. It was 
 there, too, that the three denials of Peter 
 occurred. The scene here is so important 
 that it should be fixed in our minds. The 
 palace of Caiaphas was likely built in the 
 usual Oriental style. There would be an 
 outer court or yard next to the street, from 
 which a wicket gate would admit a person 
 through a wall into an inner court. Around 
 three sides of this inner court there would 
 be open porches, through which one could 
 pass to the rooms of the palace. 
 
 It seems evident that Peter and John had 
 come together at some place before tliej'' 
 reached the palace of Caiaphas, and likely in 
 company came to the palace. John was 
 known to the high priest and the attendants 
 at the gate, and had no difficulty in being 
 admitted through the wicket gate into the 
 inner court. Peter, however, was not so for- 
 tunate and was stopped at the gate that his 
 case might be investigated. Hence the state- 
 ment is made that he stood without at the 
 gate. John had hurried in without noticing 
 the difficulty of Peter, but when he observed 
 127 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 that Peter had failed to enter, he went back 
 and, speaking to the maid who kept the gate, 
 secured permission for Peter to be brought 
 into the inner court. The maid scanned him 
 closely as he passed, and doubtless remem- 
 bered that she had seen him at the temple 
 in company with Jesus. Some interpreters 
 place the first denial of that night here at the 
 gate as Peter entered. They do so because 
 the account by John seems at first glance to 
 imply that the denial occurred here. But by 
 noticing more closely, it will be seen that 
 John does not really say that it was at the 
 gate that the maid spoke to Peter, but that 
 it was the maid who kept the gate who spoke 
 to Peter. John does not indicate the place. 
 But the other three Gospels imply that Peter 
 was within the court by the fire when the 
 maid approached him. Mark and Luke both 
 clearly state this fact. So it is safe to place 
 the first denial at the fire in the center of the 
 inner court. It must be remembered that the 
 time of year was early spring and the nights 
 were cool, hence those servants and attend- 
 ants who did not go into the palace built 
 them a fire in the court and sat around it 
 warming themselves. 
 
 128 
 
THE THREE DENIALS. 
 
 When Peter entered he was probably 
 chilled in soul as well as body, and almost 
 trembling with fear at the consequences 
 should it be discovered that he was a friend 
 of Jesus and the one who had w^ounded the 
 servant of the high priest in the garden. He 
 approached the fire to warm, and was evi- 
 dently followed there by the maid who kept 
 the gate. John meanwhile had gone into the 
 palace to witness the trial of Jesus. As 
 Peter sat at the fire surrounded by the ene- 
 mies of Jesus, the maid spoke to him and 
 said, "Art thou not also one of this Man's 
 disciples?" Peter was alarmed. In that 
 company a confession of discipleship would 
 be dangerous. If it did not mean violence 
 and bodily hurt to Peter, it might mean ban- 
 ishment from the palace. Hence, quickly 
 and with a boldness born of desperation, 
 Peter replied, ''I am not." Luke tells us 
 that the maid said to the other men at the 
 fire, ''This man was also with Him." Con- 
 siderable suspicion was thus attached to 
 Peter. Matthew and Mark tell us that fol- 
 lowing this denial Peter walked out into the 
 porch. He was nervous and while in the 
 light of the fire was too closely watched for 
 129 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 comfort. Hence he withdrew for a walk 
 through the porches surrounding the palace. 
 But his absence from the company at the fire 
 might excite more suspicion than his pres- 
 ence, so he soon strolled back to the fire and 
 took his place among the servants and of- 
 ficers. But hardly had he returned when an- 
 other maid, or possibly the same maid, ap- 
 proached him and said, ''Thou art also one 
 of His disciples." But Peter denied again, 
 this time with an oath, and said, ' ' I am not. ' ' 
 This second denial was probably only a few 
 moments after the first. Luke tells us that 
 something like an hour elapsed between the 
 second denial and the third. It was an hour 
 filled with events so interesting that we must 
 pause and notice it. 
 
 During the hour the attention of those at 
 the fire was turned from Peter to other ob- 
 jects. Those other objects were the members 
 of the Sanhedrin, who during the hour began 
 to come into the court and to pass through 
 it to the room in the palace of the high priest, 
 where the trial was to be held. These mem- 
 bers had held themselves in readiness for a 
 night call in order that they might try Jesus, 
 and now they were hastily assembling. It 
 130 
 
THE THREE DENIALS. 
 
 should be noted that this court which as- 
 sembled to try Jesus was not an entirely legal 
 court, and hence the trial was in some re- 
 spects an irregular proceeding. The court 
 was self-constituted, and had for its purpose 
 the finding of a charge against Jesus on the 
 strength of which they might pass the death 
 sentence and present Him to Pilate for the 
 purpose of having the sentence executed. 
 
 The members of the court sat on cushions 
 arranged in the form of a horseshoe, with 
 Caiaphas at the central point. At his side, 
 according to custom, sat the oldest members 
 of the court, at their sides the next oldest, 
 and so on down to the youngest. At each 
 end of the horseshoe sat a scribe writing 
 down the proceedings. Before Caiaphas 
 stood Jesus, and back of Him the bailiffs with 
 thongs in their hands. So far the assembly 
 had the appearance of lawfulness. Neverthe- 
 less the proceedings were irregular and in 
 some respects unlawful. According to Jew- 
 ish law the accused was to be held innocent 
 until proven guilty. This court assumed the 
 guilt of Jesus. Again, it was unlawful to 
 conduct a criminal trial in the night time, 
 and also unlawful to pronounce a sentence 
 131 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 of guilt until the day after the trial had oc- 
 curred. These points were all violated in the 
 case of Jesus. The violation shows the des- 
 perate purpose of His enemies to convict 
 Him at all hazards. 
 
 The trial proceeded, and while it was in 
 progress those around the fire were so in- 
 terested in speculating on its outcome that 
 Peter was forgotten for the time being. But 
 about the time the trial closed and the mem- 
 bers of the Sanhedrin were passing out, 
 Peter came again into the light of the fire, 
 and those who sat about it turned to him for 
 the third time. One of the sei^ants of the 
 high priest who was related to the man whom 
 Peter had struck in the garden said, "Did not 
 I see thee in the garden with Him?" If 
 Peter had been alarmed before, he was more 
 so now, as he stood before one who had seen 
 him in the garden and had witnessed his act 
 of violence. It would require a big lie now, 
 thought Peter, to save him. As men usually 
 do when they have a weak cause to defend, 
 Peter grew boisterous. The account says 
 that he began to curse and to swear, de- 
 claring between his awful oaths that he knew 
 nothing of Jesus of Nazareth. 
 
 132 
 
THE THREE DENIALS. 
 
 What a scene that! As we look at that 
 swearing, lying, disloyal man, we wonder if 
 this can be the same man who, up yonder in 
 the quiet shades of Mount Hermon, so en- 
 joyed the companionship of the heavenly 
 visitors that he longed to remain in their 
 presence, and proposed to build three dwell- 
 ing-places in order that the divine companion- 
 ship might be continuously enjoyed. Can 
 this be the same man who in the Upper Room 
 had prayed that the Lord might wash not 
 his feet only, but also his hands and head? 
 Can it be the same man who, only a few brief 
 hours ago, swore that he would die before 
 he would betray his Master? Yes, it is the 
 same man. And yet how changed he is! 
 How fallen! This fall of Peter shows us 
 how possible it is for a nature which is capa- 
 ble of great good to be also capable of great 
 evil. Those intense, energetic natures which 
 are able to accomplish the most good when 
 rightly guided are often capable of accom- 
 plishing the greatest evil when misguided. 
 The pendulum that swings the farthest in one 
 direction also swings the farthest in the op- 
 posite direction. Human life is much the 
 same. This experience of Peter is at any 
 133 
 
THE EX^VLTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 rate a warning to us. The standing we have 
 to-day is no guarantee of the standing we 
 have to-morrow. We need to loe on our guard 
 lest we fall. 
 
 In the history of these three denials of 
 Peter there are several features which are 
 worthy of special attention because of tlieir 
 practical suggestiveness. We will notice 
 three of them. 
 
 1. The causes which led to Peter's fall. 
 If we study that night of denial closely we 
 will find that there were several steps which 
 led to the final fall. First of all, there was 
 that pxpud, SjelfrConfidenL&pirit of Peter. He 
 was so confident of his own ability to stand 
 that he could chide the Master for suggest- 
 ing the possibility of a fall This self-confi- 
 dence blinded Peter to his own weakness. 
 Such a spirit is always attended with dan- 
 ger. The life that is the most proud and 
 self-confident religiously is most ready for 
 a fall. Its strength is in self instead of in 
 God. On the other hand, the life that hesi- 
 tates to trust self, but in the spirit of 
 humility exercises mighty faith in God, is 
 always the safest in the presence of tempta- 
 tion and sin. 
 
 134 
 
THE THREE DENIALS. 
 
 Peter's neglect of duty was another step 
 in his downfall. He slept in the garden when 
 he should have been watching. Many a 
 backslidden disciple, recalling the beginning 
 of his decline, can see that the downward 
 start was in some neglect of duty. It was 
 when he absented himself from the house of 
 God, or omitted the reading of the Word, or 
 neglected the duty of daily private prayer, or 
 neglected some other means of grace. It is 
 safe to say that a life that never neglects 
 any known Christian duties will never have 
 the sad experience of apostasy that Peter 
 had. 
 
 Again, another step in Peter's fall was 
 the act of sin in smiting the servant in the 
 garden. It was an act contrary to the will 
 and spirit of Jesus. It placed Peter under 
 the oppressive consciousness of guilt. Weak- 
 ened by self-confidence, and adding the evil 
 of neglect, Peter was ready to become an easy 
 victim of sin. Sin helped to unnerve him 
 until he was ready for a fall into almost any 
 abyss. 
 
 2. The immediate cause of each denial. 
 The first denial was caused by a desire for 
 an advantage involving wrong conduct. 
 135 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 Peter wanted the advantage of holding a 
 place in the court along with those who w^ere 
 not the friends of Jesus. It was an advan- 
 tage that involved the telling of a lie. Yet 
 Peter was mlling to pay the price. He de- 
 sired to hold his position in the court though 
 he had to assume to be the enemy of Jesus 
 to do it. The desire for any position that 
 involves sin is a dangerous possession for 
 a Christian. Paul understood that when he 
 exhorted the followers of Christ to covet 
 only the best things. 
 
 The second denial was the result largely of 
 sinful association. Peter placed himself in as- 
 sociation with the enemies of Jesus, and that 
 companionship had its effect upon him. It 
 caused him to take upon liimself for the time 
 being the nature of those mth whom he as- 
 sociated and to pose as an enemy of Jesus. 
 This was not a desirable position for Peter 
 to occupy. Association always has its ef- 
 fect. Sinful association is never safe. It 
 is often the forerunner of actual sin. For 
 this reason one needs to be exceedingly care- 
 ful of the company he seeks or tolerates. It 
 is diflScult to remain clean in a coal mine. 
 
 The third denial was prompted by the 
 136 
 
THE THREE DENIALS. 
 
 consciousness of sin and guilt. Peter was 
 guilty of the wrong of striking off the ear 
 of the servant of the high priest. The con- 
 sciousness of the sin was vivid. When men- 
 tion of the sin was made, Peter trembled. 
 Sin doth make cowards of us all. And more, 
 unrighted sin leads to worse ruin. As the 
 disease hidden within the body will ruin the 
 body, so sin hidden in the life will ruin the 
 life if not itself removed. 
 
 3. The rapid progress of sin. The first 
 sin of Peter was merely a falsehood. When 
 asked by the maid if he was one of the dis- 
 ciples, he said merely, *'I am not." But the 
 second sin was more than a falsehood. It 
 amounted to perjury. Peter not only denied 
 that he was a disciple, but took oath to that 
 effect. The third denial was still worse. In 
 addition to the former offenses, Matthew 
 tells us that Peter began to curse and to 
 swear. This denial was the combining of a 
 lie, perjury, and blasphemy. In these facts 
 may be seen the rapid and awful growth of 
 sin. It asks only for a foothold in the life. 
 That once granted, it makes a steady advance 
 that can be checked only by the power of God. 
 
 Poor Peter! How sadly fallen and hu- 
 137 
 
THE EXALTED FISIiERMAN. 
 
 miliated! It seemed as if he had now gone 
 to the last extreme. 
 
 Who falls from all he knows of earthly bliss, 
 Cares little into what abyss. 
 
 But Peter did care, as we shall see later. 
 But at present we must leave him standing 
 in the night, his curses yet falling from his 
 lips, the flickering light of the fire causing 
 the shadows to come and go across his face, 
 symbolic of the tides of darkness at that 
 moment rolling over his soul. 
 
 138 
 
CHAPTER X. 
 REPENTANCE AND RESTORATION. 
 
 In the last chapter we left Peter standing in 
 the sin of his third denial, the curses yet fall- 
 ing from his lips. That position was a rather 
 undesirable one for a disciple of Jesus, but 
 we have the satisfaction of knowing that 
 Peter did not long remain in that position. 
 Peter had too good a heart and too much love 
 for the Master to remain long in the state of 
 sin. We soon find him coming back to his 
 better self. From the condition of sin he 
 speedily passed to that of repentance, and 
 finally to restoration. There were two events 
 following the third denial almost immedi- 
 ately which contributed to Peter's speedy re- 
 covery. The events were seemingly very 
 insignificant, and yet were of the highest 
 importance. 
 
 The first event was the crowing of the 
 
 cock. To the others in the court the crowing 
 
 of the cock meant nothing more than the 
 
 heralding of an approaching day. But to 
 
 139 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 Peter that sound was a night alarm arousing 
 him as from a slumber to the consciousness 
 of impending danger. Jesus had told him 
 that before the crowing of the cock he should 
 deny Him. As Peter, therefore, heard the 
 shrill notes of the fowl sounding out on the 
 night air he was startled. Like a man who 
 is suddenly awakened from his dreams to 
 face an unexpected danger, Peter was now 
 thoroughly aroused. He remembered the 
 words of Jesus, and how he had laughed at 
 them and thought a denial impossible. He 
 now saw, however, that Jesus was right. He 
 saw, too, how weak and how mean he had 
 been. He saw the need of his own nature as 
 he had never seen it before. He saw the 
 awful danger into which he was sinking. 
 Peter saw, and was now thoroughly awake. 
 The second event to which reference has 
 been made followed immediately after the 
 first. While the echoes of the cock 's warning 
 were yet ringing in his ears, Peter turned 
 from the fire in the court, before which the 
 denials were made. The men who had been 
 attending the trial of Jesus were at that 
 moment filing down from the court room and 
 were passing through the open porch toward 
 
 140 
 
REPENTANCE AND RESTORATION. 
 
 the wicket gate. They were leading with 
 them the Divine Prisoner. Submissively the 
 Captive was walking, not a murmur escaping 
 His lips. He was being led as a lamb to the 
 slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers 
 is dumb, so He opened not His mouth. As 
 Peter turned from the fire, Jesus was passing 
 by. He turned His eyes toward Peter. Luke 
 says, ''The Lord turned and looked upon 
 Peter." Just one glance it was, but a glance 
 that had a world of meaning hidden in it. 
 It was a piercing glance. It was a searching 
 glance. Had Jesus flung a dart into the 
 heart of Peter it could not have hurt him 
 more. Peter felt that darts were more de- 
 served than the kind of a glance he received. 
 The glance reached his heart. It recalled 
 again the prophecies Jesus had made con- 
 cerning him. It seemed to flash upon him the 
 awfulness of the denial and fall. It told 
 Peter that the Lord knew all of his weakness 
 and sin. It showed him, as by a searchlight, 
 the greatness of his transgression. There 
 was something of a rebuke in the glance, yet 
 there was so much of tenderness and of for- 
 giveness that the heart of Peter was melted. 
 That look from the Lord plowed the nature 
 141 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 of Peter to its depth. It stirred remorse 
 and shame within him until he could endure 
 it no longer and, as the account says, he went 
 out into the darkness and wept bitterly. He 
 probably followed Jesus and His captors 
 out through the wicket gate, and while the 
 Lord was led on to the judgment hall of 
 Pilate, Peter stood alone in the night and 
 wept. 
 
 Bitter tears ! Yet we must welcome them 
 and rejoice, for in them we find the first in- 
 dication of the fallen man's return to grace. 
 Those tears were the redeeming feature of 
 Peter's actions on that sad, dark night. They 
 were the foretokens of his salvation from the 
 sin of the fall. If he had hardened his heart 
 and persevered in his sin, there would have 
 been no salvation for him. But when we see 
 him in tears because of his sin we know he is 
 on the way to recovery. Happy the man who 
 can weep because of his transgression ! The 
 man who is heartless and unmoved in the 
 midst of his sin has little hope of redemption. 
 But the man who is so smitten by his sin that 
 he can go out and weep bitterly is one who 
 by his very condition has opened heaven's 
 gate for his return. There is an old story 
 142 
 
REPENTANCE AND RESTORATION. 
 
 of a candidate for the Eternal City who ap- 
 proached the gates bearing in his hands gold 
 and silver and precious gems. By these he 
 hoped to gain admission to the city. He 
 presented his treasures in turn, but each was 
 rejected as being insufficient. Other treas- 
 ures of earthly value were presented, but 
 with like results. At last the candidate pre- 
 sented a tear-drop from the eye of a penitent 
 sinner. The angels of heaven looked upon 
 it with admiration. To them it seemed as 
 a diamond of rarest value and greatest 
 beauty. Upon its presentation the gates of 
 heaven were thrown back and the candidate 
 given a glad welcome. The tear of penitence 
 is the key to heaven. We should rejoice as 
 we see these tears of penitence in the eyes 
 of Peter, for they were the agency for open- 
 ing the gates of pardon to the sinning man. 
 Wherever there is a sinner to-day weeping 
 because of his transgressions, there is a can- 
 didate for pardon and for the Kingdom of 
 God. Tears of penitence are the pledge of 
 pardon and restitution. 
 
 An unwritten chapter in the life of St. 
 Peter might be inserted just here. Those 
 bitter tears were shed early on Friday morn- 
 
 143 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 ing. From that time until an early hour on 
 Sunday morning we have no account what- 
 ever of Peter's actions. Two days of silence ! 
 Perhaps his sorrow was so deep and his 
 shame so great that the sacred writers have 
 preferred not to make a show of it. Perhaps 
 Peter retired from public gaze and kept the 
 bitter experiences of those intervening hours 
 hidden from every one but himself. At any 
 rate, we are left with nothing more satis- 
 factory than speculation concerning those 
 days. We are justified in supposing, how- 
 ever, that there were prayers for forgiveness 
 mingled with those tears. During the two 
 days of silence Peter was probably suffering 
 in heart-broken penitence. The records are 
 strangely silent concerning him. On the day 
 following the denial, when the Lord was be- 
 ing crucified, we have no account of Peter 
 being near the cross. John and the women 
 were there, but Peter is not mentioned. 
 Probably he was suffering somewhere alone, 
 feeling too guilty to look upon the Lord in 
 His agony. When the Lord was being low- 
 ered from the cross, and during those long 
 hours He was hdng in the tomb, Peter was, 
 so far as we know, a silent and almost for- 
 144 
 
REPENTANCE AND RESTORATION. 
 
 gotten member of the apostolic band. But on 
 Sunday morning, the morning of the resur- 
 rection, the restitution of this fallen man 
 began. 
 
 In the process of that restitution there 
 are several steps which should be noticed. 
 The first step was, of course, the repentance, 
 to which reference has already been made. 
 No backslider from the grace of God can find 
 his way back to the Father without first re- 
 penting of his sin as did Peter. But Peter 
 took another and more advanced step, which 
 was wise. He sought association with 
 Christ's people. On that Sunday morning 
 we find him with the disciples. When he 
 sought their company he took a step toward 
 restitution. Peter was associated with John, 
 at least, on the resurrection morning. When 
 Mary Magdalene came early in the morning 
 to the tomb she found it empty and ran, as 
 the account says, and told Peter and John 
 what she had found. Hence the two friends 
 were together once more on that resurrection 
 morn. Together they ran to the tomb. It 
 was an interesting race. John was flying on 
 the wings of love, and Peter on the wings of 
 sorrow. Love won, as it ever wins. The men 
 145 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 entered the tomb, Peter after John, found 
 evidences of the resurrection, and returned 
 to the city to tell the news. Here Peter's 
 restitution was completed by another step 
 which awaited him. That step was the re- 
 ceiving of evidences of divine forgiveness 
 and acceptance. 
 
 There were two events which evidenced 
 that forgiveness and acceptance. The first 
 was the message which Jesus sent to Peter 
 through the angel at the tomb. The angel 
 said to the women, ^'Go your way, tell the 
 disciples and Peter that He goeth before you 
 into Galilee." The angel was the Lord's 
 messenger speaking from the tomb where He 
 had lain, and the special reference to Peter 
 would be an evidence to the backslider that 
 the Lord had already forgiven him. How 
 Peter must have rejoiced when he heard that 
 special message directed to him! It meant 
 that in spite of his sin, Jesus still loved him. 
 Perhaps the sinful disciple felt that his de- 
 nial had forever separated him from his 
 Lord. But now he knew that the Master was 
 still thinking of him kindly, and there was 
 hope for pardon. 
 
 Though tliis message made Peter happy, 
 
 146 
 
EEPENTANCE AND RESTORATION. 
 
 the Lord wanted to give him a more personal 
 consolation, so we come to the second event 
 mentioned above. It was the appearance of 
 Jesus Himself unto Peter. We have no 
 knowledge of the exact time or place of this 
 meeting, the event being left somewhat in the 
 dark by the Gospel writers. There is only 
 one reference made by them to this meeting 
 between Peter and the Lord. When the two 
 disciples came from their walk to Emmaus 
 and entered the room where the other dis- 
 ciples were waiting, the latter said to them, 
 "The Lord is risen indeed and hath appeared 
 to Simon." Merely the fact of the meet- 
 ing is mentioned. The details are left to be 
 filled in by the imagination. Perhaps the 
 meeting was an unexpected one to Peter. 'We 
 can imagine something of how the guilty dis- 
 ciple would feel and act. He would be smit- 
 ten with sorrow and shame as he recalled his 
 sin. He would fall at his Master's feet and 
 tearfully beg His forgiveness. And the Lord 
 would lift him tenderly from the ground and 
 tell him that his sin had been already for- 
 given. Perhaps a kiss of pardon would be 
 placed upon the disciple's brow. The Lord 
 would speak to the penitent man words of 
 147 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 warning and kind advice, and then perhaps 
 suddenly vanish. But the heart of the dis- 
 ciple would be filled with joy because the 
 Lord had appeared to him and spoken the 
 words of pardon. The penitent sinner was 
 now the restored apostle. 
 
 There is a depth of meaning in the treat- 
 ment the Lord gave Peter after the denials. 
 It shows how much the Lord loves even the 
 sinner who betrays Him. It shows, too, that 
 the Lord mil employ every means for the 
 backslider's reclaim. The wrongdoer who 
 repents of his sin and seeks a better life by 
 association with God's people will surely be 
 met, pardoned, and restored by the Good 
 Master. 
 
 The Meeting in Galilee. 
 
 One other scene in the life of Peter de- 
 serves notice before we close the first part 
 of his life and begin the second with the scene 
 at Pentecost. It is the meeting in Galilee be- 
 tween the Lord and His disciples. The 
 events which have been considered in the 
 chapters just preceding this occurred in or 
 near Jerusalem. Now the scene shifts back 
 to a familiar place, the Sea of Galilee, near 
 148 
 
REPENTANCE AND RESTORATION. 
 
 wliich the early life of Peter was spent. Mat- 
 thew tells us that the eleven disciples re- 
 turned to Galilee after the appearance of the 
 resurrected Christ in Jerusalem. They did 
 this not only because it was going back home, 
 but also because Jesus had told them to re- 
 turn to Galilee. There in Galilee the Lord 
 again met the disciples. On the day of the 
 meeting seven of the eleven were present. 
 It seems that they had gone back to their old 
 trade of fishing in the Sea of Galilee. This 
 occupation had been proposed by Peter him- 
 self, who said, *'I go a fishing." The other 
 disciples readily accompanied him. It is not 
 to be supposed that this return to their 
 former occupation was intended by the dis- 
 ciples to be permanent. It was merely for 
 temporary employment until the Master 
 should again come to them, as He had prom- 
 ised. Nor did the disciples have long to wait. 
 One morning as they returned to the shore 
 after a night of hard toil and fruitless, they 
 found the Lord waiting for them. His first 
 word spoken to them was full of significance. 
 He knew the fishermen were tired and hungry 
 after their long season of labor, so He said 
 to them, ''Children, have you any meat?" 
 149 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 His first thought was of their physical wants. 
 Herein is a valuable suggestion as to the 
 method of dealing with needy men. The 
 inner and higher life can be more easily 
 reached after the physical life has been sat- 
 isfied. Improving man's temporal condition 
 by bettering him socially will open the way 
 to reach more readily the moral and spiritual 
 condition. Jesus first of all fed the disciples. 
 But after they had dined He began to teach 
 Peter higher things. Three times the Lord 
 asked of Peter the question, "Lovest thou 
 Me ? ' ' Receiving the affirmative answer, the 
 Lord three times laid upon Peter the grave 
 duty of feeding the flock. Peter had fallen 
 not a great while before, but now he was re- 
 stored, and the Lord, knowing his mettle^ was 
 willing to trust him for the future. How 
 worthy Peter was of that trust we shall see 
 later. 
 
 There is a suggestion in this threefold 
 question of the Lord to Peter. The question 
 given three times would probably suggest to 
 Peter the threefold denial of which lie had 
 recently been guilty, and reveal to him the 
 danger of placing his confidence in himself. 
 As he faced the future service the basis of 
 150 
 
REPENTANCE AND RESTORATION. 
 
 his strength should not be confidence in him- 
 self, but rather love for and dependence upon 
 his Master. Hence the repeated question, 
 ''Lovest thou Me?" 
 
 One more important lesson the Lord 
 taught Peter in that meeting in Galilee. 
 After giving to Peter the commission to feed 
 the sheep, and after teaching him that his 
 safety was in love for his Master, Jesus said 
 to him, * ' Follow Me. ' ' Obeying this instruc- 
 tion, Peter turned from the seashore and be- 
 gan to walk away in company with the Lord. 
 It seems, too, that John began to follow them, 
 which fact raised a question in the mind of 
 Peter. To the Lord he said, ''What shall 
 this man do?" It was as if Peter said, 
 ''Lord, why should John be coming after 
 usf " There may be a suggestion of jealousy 
 or of selfishness in the question. There was 
 in it, at least, an unwarranted curiosity. 
 Hence, the answer of the Lord was signifi- 
 cant: "What is that to thee? Follow thou 
 Me." How easy it is for our actions in the 
 Kingdom of God to be altered or at least 
 colored by the actions of other people. One 
 brother is offended because another brother 
 engages in questionable actions. Another 
 151 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 can not worship in a certain Church because 
 a supposed hypocrite is there. Another is 
 jealous and says, "Lord, what business has 
 this man to take such a prominent part in 
 the work of the Church!" To all this quib- 
 bling Jesus gives the answer : '■ ' What is that 
 to thee? Follow thou Me. " In other words, 
 our responsibility to the Lord is not altered 
 in the least by what another may do or fail 
 to do. We may deplore certain conditions 
 and actions in others, but after all we have 
 an individual responsibility to the Lord and 
 must follow Him in spite of what others do 
 or say. 
 
 This incident gives us the last glimpse 
 of Peter in the Gospels. He was probably 
 with the other disciples, however, when Jesus 
 gave them the commission to go into all the 
 world and preach the gospel. Some time 
 later Jesus was with His disciples in Jeru- 
 salem again, and there He taught them con- 
 cerning their future mission. Then He led 
 them out as far as Bethany, in the neigh- 
 borhood of which occurred the ascension. 
 **He was parted from them and a cloud re- 
 ceived Him out of their sight." The last 
 words of Jesus to His disciples were signifi- 
 152 
 
REPENTANCE AND RESTORATION. 
 
 cant. He said, ''Tarry ye at Jerusalem until 
 ye receive power from on high." In the 
 Book of Acts the secret of that power is given 
 in the words, ''Ye shall receive power after 
 that the Holy Ghost is come upon you. ' ' In 
 this last message the Lord has given the key 
 to the Church's success and to the indi- 
 vidual's power. It is the Holy Ghost. What 
 a vast difference that power made in the life 
 of Peter will be seen in the following chap- 
 ters. 
 
 153 
 
PART TWO. 
 
 THE SEASON OF SERVICE. 
 
 (From Pentecost to the Council at Jerusalem, 
 51 A. D.) 
 
CHAPTER XL 
 PETER AT PENTECOST. 
 
 The studies considered in Part One were 
 taken from the Gospels. For the lessons now 
 to be considered we must pass to the Book of 
 Acts. The connecting link between the Gos- 
 pels and the Acts is the ascension. It is the 
 event last spoken of in the Gospels and first 
 spoken of in the Acts. The ascension closes 
 one era and opens another. The history of 
 Jesus ends and the history of His Church 
 begins. In the Gospels the history centers 
 around one life largely, the life of Jesus. In 
 the Acts the history centers around two men, 
 Peter and Paul. Peter is the chief figure in 
 the first part of Acts, up to the time of the 
 council at Jerusalem, about the year 51 A. D. 
 After that time Peter suddenly drops from 
 view and Paul takes his place as the chief 
 leader in the Church. We are concerned 
 with the character of Peter, however, rather 
 than Paul. 
 
 Peter in the Acts is a different man from 
 157 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 Peter in the Gospels. Pentecost has come 
 in the meantime. Before Pentecost, Peter 
 was an impulsive, vacillating, and even cow- 
 ardly follower of the Master. But after 
 Pentecost, Peter becomes the wise, bold, and 
 steadfast leader of the Church. Formerly 
 he had been the schoolboy learning his les- 
 sons at the feet of a Master, and learning 
 them slowly and poorly. But now he be- 
 comes a man asserting himself with a power 
 that is felt in the world. To use a figure 
 Jesus once applied to John the Baptist, for- 
 merly he was a reed shaken by the wind. 
 Now he was become not only a prophet, but 
 more than a prophet. 
 
 The career of Peter was followed in Part 
 One to the scene of the ascension. That 
 event probably occurred somewhere near 
 Bethany, on the eastern slope of Mt. Olivet. 
 The highest point on Mt. Olivet is about 
 twenty-seven hundred feet above the sea 
 level, and about three hundred feet above 
 the spot occupied by the temple in Jeru- 
 salem. This highest point is to-day called 
 the Mount of Ascension, and tradition has 
 it that this is the very point from which 
 the Lord ascended into heaven. But since 
 158 
 
PETER AT PENTECOST. 
 
 Luke says that Jesus led the disciples 
 out as far as Bethany for the ascension, 
 it is probable that in that neighborhood 
 the Lord was separated from His dis- 
 ciples and caught up into the clouds. The 
 exact spot of the ascension is a matter of 
 uncertainty, to say the least. 
 
 From the scene of the ascension the dis- 
 ciples returned to the city of Jerusalem. The 
 Lord had instructed them to tarry in Jeru- 
 salem until they were endued with power 
 from on high. The instruction was heeded 
 and the disciples entered into their period 
 of tarrying. The place of their waiting is a 
 matter of interest. It is said that upon their 
 return to the city the disciples assembled in 
 the Upper Eoom. The definite article is used, 
 implying that the room was one already 
 familiar to the disciples. It is likely that it 
 was the same room in which the Lord had 
 eaten the last Passover, and tradition asserts 
 that this was the home of the father of John 
 Mark. At any rate, it was a friendly retreat 
 for the disciples. There the eleven assem- 
 bled to await the fulfillment of the promise. 
 Peter's name appears first in the list in this 
 case, as it did in the Gospel narratives, which 
 159 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 fact suggests the supremacy he still held 
 among the disciples. 
 
 The occupation of the Lord's followers 
 during this period of retirement is important 
 to note. Two features were prominent in 
 their conduct, one being a continuance in 
 prayer, and the other being a certain prepa- 
 ration for future service. Not only did the 
 faithful disciples go to the appointed places 
 of public prayer at the appointed time, but in 
 that Upper Room they continued steadfast in 
 prayer. There might easily have been temp- 
 tations to forsake their cause and return to 
 their former employment. They might have 
 been discouraged concerning the prospects 
 for the future. But nothing of this nature 
 is recorded. With one purpose and one heart 
 they prayed. What the content of their 
 prayers was we can only guess. No record 
 of those Pentecostal petitions is given us. 
 We may imagine, however, that they would 
 abound in desires for the speedy sending of 
 the Comforter, and for the power that w^ould 
 come from His presence. However that may 
 be, continued prayer at that time is signifi- 
 cant. When men are seemingly forsaken and 
 feel their helplessness, prayer is natural. It 
 160 
 
PETER AT PENTECOST. 
 
 is a real answer to one's need when death 
 comes and takes away a dear one, when mis- 
 fortune comes and sweeps away property, 
 or when calamity blasts the hopes in life. 
 
 But these disciples did more than pray. 
 They prepared for service. They no longer 
 felt that their cause had failed, as they did 
 at the time of the Lord 's crucifixion, but they 
 were now looking forward to a future of ac- 
 tivity. One act which they performed shows 
 this expectation. It was the choosing of a 
 man to take the place of Judas, who had 
 fallen. The Lord always has some way of 
 filling up the gaps which occur in His Church 
 by the falling away of some of His followers. 
 Churches sometimes have to pass through 
 such seasons of trial that it almost seems that 
 they must perish. Losses come which seem 
 almost fatal. But God in some way atones 
 for the loss. There have been self-important 
 people in the Church, too, who have imagined 
 that if they dropped out the Church would 
 go to pieces. They have dropped out, and to 
 their astonishment the Church has moved 
 steadily on. God filled the gap — if any there 
 was to fill. 
 
 The disciples arranged to fill up the gap 
 161 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 occasioned by the fall of Judas. The method 
 of choosing this new member of the apostolic 
 band was proposed by Peter, who made an 
 address showing that the act of Judas was 
 prophesied in the Scriptures and was one 
 that must needs occur. The fate of Judas 
 was mentioned, but the point that Peter made 
 especially prominent was the necessity of 
 choosing a man to take the place of Judas. 
 Peter quoted the Old Testament Scriptures 
 so freely that we must conclude that he had 
 an intimate acquaintance with them, and we 
 are led to w^onder if a part of the time of 
 waiting in the Upper Room was not spent in 
 searching tliose Scriptures. 
 
 The method of election proposed by Peter 
 was to nominate two men and choose one of 
 the two by lot. The two men selected were 
 Joseph, called Barsabas, and Matthias. 
 Nothing is known of these men aside from 
 their connection with this event. After the 
 nomination of these men the disciples" en- 
 gaged in prayer, asking the guidance of God 
 in the final selection. What a splendid prece- 
 dent ! A good prelude to an election always 
 is prayer. If municipal, state, and national 
 elections were the result of prayer we would 
 
 162 
 
PETER AT PENTECOST. 
 
 have a different life socially and nationally. 
 In the case before us the selection was by lot. 
 Stones or bits of some material were prob- 
 ably placed in a vessel and drawn by turn. 
 The lot fell upon Matthias, and he was num- 
 bered with the apostles. 
 
 At last the ten days of waiting were past. 
 The final day was the day of Pentecost. The 
 word ''Pentecost" having in it the meaning 
 of the ''fiftieth," refers to the fiftieth day 
 after the beginning of the feast of the Pass- 
 over, or more strictly, the fiftieth day after 
 the day in Passover week in which the barley 
 sheaf was offered. This occurred on the six- 
 teenth of Nisan. The Passover began on the 
 fourteenth of Nisan, on Thursday. This 
 would make the sixteenth fall on Saturday. 
 Hence, as some curious people have figured 
 out, Pentecost must have fallen on Sunday, 
 fiftj)^ days later. 
 
 Upon that notable day the disciples and 
 others to the number of more than one hun- 
 dred and twenty were assembled with one 
 accord in the Upper Room. It is to be noted 
 that there was complete unity in the as- 
 sembly. All hearts were as one. The secret 
 of power in any Church is unity of purpose 
 
 163 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 and effort sanctified by the presence of the 
 Holy Spirit. "Where that unity exists the 
 Holy Spirit is likely to be. Hence Ave are 
 not surprised at the descent of the Spirit 
 upon the waiting and united disciples. The 
 coming of the Holy Spirit was accom- 
 panied by a twofold manifestation. There 
 was a sound and an appearance. The sound 
 was unusual in its volume, being as a rush- 
 ing, mighty wind. It was not wind, but a 
 sound as of wind. The physical appearance 
 w^as that of tongues like as of fire. The sound 
 like the wind indicated the active power of 
 the Spirit, while the api)earance like tongues 
 of fire indicated the instrument by which 
 the gospel was to be advanced — the human 
 tongue. Together these manifestations indi- 
 cated that a power mightier than the winds 
 wdiich swept over the sides of Mt. Hermon 
 and shook the cedars of Lebanon was granted 
 to the disciples to loosen their tongues and 
 send them preaching through the nations of 
 the earth, until by the power of that preached 
 Word the nations of the earth should become 
 the Kingdom of our Lord. 
 
 The outpouring of the Spirit had an im- 
 mediate effect upon those present which we 
 164 
 
PETER AT PENTECOST. 
 
 should note. They were filled with the Spirit 
 and began to speak with other tongues as 
 the Spirit gave them utterance. The imme- 
 diate effect, then, of the coming of the Spirit 
 was the impartation of a new power. The 
 coming of the Spirit into a human life is the- 
 secret of the life's power, and provides an 
 equipment for service which would otherwise 
 be impossible. There is no better example 
 of the empowering effect of the Holy Spirit 
 in human life than that of Peter. The com- 
 ing of the Spirit marked the changing point 
 in his life. Jesus had said to him before, 
 ''When thou art changed, strengthen the 
 brethren." Here was the changing time. 
 Formerly Peter had been vacillating and 
 cowardly, but when the Spirit came into his 
 life the coward was changed to the hero and 
 as an apostle became immovable. Peter is 
 a new man. No more does he blaspheme or 
 deny his Lord, but stands with a firmness 
 that mil not deny or betray though death 
 come. Look at Peter trembling like a 
 whipped boy in the presence of the damsel 
 on that sad night of denial; then see him at 
 Pentecost, standing before the multitude with 
 fire in his eye and thunder in his voice, ac- 
 
 165 
 
THE EX A T.TED FISHEBMA^\ 
 
 casing the mnrderers of Christ to their faces 
 and striking conviction to their hearts until 
 they cry out for forgiveness. Behold that 
 contrast and in it you see the transforming 
 power of the Holy Spirit. The writer once 
 heard Dwight L. Moody tell a strange ex- 
 perience. He said that he once went back to 
 a former Church to preach, and used a ser- 
 mon which he had used there before. After 
 the service a friend came to him and said, 
 *'Mr. Moody, why did you not preach us a 
 sermon like that when you were here be- 
 fore?" Mr. Moody said, *'Why, I preached 
 the same sermon here. ' ' The friend doubted 
 it, but Mr. Moody insisted. ' * Well, ' ' said the 
 friend, ''come back and preach it again." 
 Mr. Moody said that he did go back later 
 and preached the same sermon, with the re- 
 sult that near one hundred souls were con- 
 verted. AVhat was the difference? Mr. 
 Moody explained it by sajdng that at first 
 it was Moody preaching for the Spirit, but 
 at last it was the Spirit preaching through 
 Moody. The difference was in the power of 
 the Spirit. This is the great lesson of Pente- 
 cost — the power of the Spirit. "Would we 
 have it we must do as Peter did, wait at 
 
 166 
 
PETER AT PENTECOST. 
 
 Jernsalem in prayer. When Cicero was 
 asked for the rules of oratory, he said there 
 were three: First, ac-tion. Second, action. 
 Third, action. There are likewise three rules 
 for power with God: First, pray. Second, 
 pray. Third, pray. 
 
 But Peter did mo re than wait . He did 
 more than pray. He used the power when 
 it came. To pray for power to hold without 
 use, while we rust out, is folly. God grants 
 power only to those who will use it. From 
 Pentecost on to Ms death, Peter used the 
 p.ower. It is worthy of note, too, that all 
 the disciples who received power on the day 
 of Pentecost began immediately to use it as 
 did Peter. The impression prevails that 
 Peter was the only one who did active work 
 on the day of Pentecost. But the fact is that 
 they were all filled with the Spirit, and all 
 began to speak with other tongues. All used 
 the power given to them. The truth is that 
 the one condition upon which God grants 
 power is that we use it. If we seek it for 
 any other purpose, we seek it in vain. The 
 gift of the Spirit is sometimes sought as a 
 matter of personal satisfaction, or because 
 the Church urges an effort in that direction. 
 
 167 
 
 \/- 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 Meanwhile the idea of possessing the power 
 for the sole purpose of using it for the glory 
 of God is forgotten. In such a case the 
 seeker need not be surprised if the gift is 
 never received. The motive is wrong. God 
 grants the Spirit for service. Peter at Pente- 
 cost seemed to understand this truth and ac- 
 cepted the gift as a new instrument to be 
 used in the Lord's work. How he began to 
 use it will be seen in the next chapter. How 
 he continued to use it will be seen in later 
 chapters. Meanwhile, let us think of Peter 
 as one who has graduated from his school 
 of training and entered the great field of 
 active service, carrying with him that divine 
 credential — the power of the Holy Spirit. 
 
 168 
 
CHAPTER XII. 
 
 PETER AS A PREACHER. 
 
 The descent of the Spirit on the day of 
 Pentecost had an effect upon the disciples 
 and likewise upon those who witnessed the 
 demonstration. It granted to the disciples 
 the supernatural power of speaking in un- 
 known tongues. It stirred the spectators to 
 a desperate attempt to account for the mani- 
 festation on natural grounds. The city of 
 Jerusalem was at that time full of people 
 from ''every nation under heaven." When 
 these strangers heard the disciples speaking 
 in other tongues than their own, so that every 
 auditor heard in his own familiar language, 
 they showed the perversity of human nature 
 by denying that God had done the strange 
 thing, and declared that it was the work of 
 man. Thus upon the first day of the 
 Church's history there was exhibited one of 
 the chief defects of man's nature. It was 
 that of ^\'itnessing the work of God and yet 
 failing to give God credit for it. God is 
 169 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 visible in the earth, sea, sky, and air. We 
 look at His work daily, yet we fail to realize 
 that we see God in His work. In the spring 
 days the grass begins to grow and the flowers 
 to bloom. The trees take on new foliage, and 
 all nature assumes a new attire. We see it 
 all, but we do not realize that we see God 
 working. We call it nature changing, but it 
 is God working. We see human lives trans- 
 formed, old defects taken away and new 
 powers given, and we say man has changed. 
 We attribute it to some human agency, but 
 it is God at work. 
 
 So these strangers in Jerusalem on the 
 day of Pentecost made the mistake of at- 
 tributing divine manifestations to human 
 agencies. They gave out as an explanation 
 of the supernatural manifestations one of the 
 silliest reasons recorded in any book, and yet 
 the reason was hardly less silly than some 
 more modern attempts to attribute the work 
 of God to the agency of man. The explana- 
 tion offered was that the disciples were filled 
 with new wine. Think of the foolishness 
 of the assertion! It implied that wine had 
 the power to make a man speak a foreign 
 tongue. It meant that wine could enable a 
 170 
 
PETEE AS A PREACHEE. 
 
 Jew to speak the Arabian language, or the 
 Cretan, or the Greek I Would a sane person 
 to-day expect wine to enable an American to 
 speak Spanish or French? It is true that 
 wine can do some strange things, but no one 
 has ever heard of it assisting to an intelli- 
 gent mastery of foreign languages. Instead 
 of adding sense in speech, wine usually takes 
 it away. The folly of this explanation is, 
 therefore, apparent on the face of it. Never- 
 theless, it furnished Peter with a text for a 
 sermon, and we soon see the former blas- 
 phemer transformed into a fearless preacher 
 and, standing before the hostile crowd, de- 
 livering the message in the name of the Mas- 
 ter whom he had recently denied. We will 
 notice both the preacher and his sermon. 
 The preacher exhibited several definite char- 
 acteristics which are worthy of notice. 
 
 He was tactful. Formerly Peter had woe- 
 fully lacked tactfulness. He seldom delib- 
 erated or reasoned. He acted without 
 thought, by sheer impulse. His former motto 
 was act in haste and repent at leisure. But 
 as Peter stood up to preach on the day of 
 Pentecost he manifested the tact and discre- 
 tion of a veteran orator. His task was to 
 
 171 
 
THE EXALTED FISHEEMAN. 
 
 persuade a crowd that was opposed to him. 
 A mistake at the start would throw the peo- 
 ple entirely out of touch with him and be 
 fatal to his purpose. But Peter made no 
 mistake. He began his address not by mak- 
 ing a statement of his own, but by taking a 
 statement from the mouths of the people 
 themselves. He let them speak through him. 
 The statement referred to is the one con- 
 cerning drunkenness, already mentioned. It 
 was as if Peter said: "You say these Gali- 
 leans are drunk. Let us notice your state- 
 ment a moment." He then proceeded, not 
 to condemn them harshly for their statement, 
 but by the use of cold reasoning, wliich they 
 were obliged to accept, to show them that 
 their statement was wrong. "It is but the 
 third hour of the day," said Peter. Now, it 
 was the custom of the Jews upon Sabbaths 
 and feast days to refrain from eating or 
 drinking until after the hour of the morning 
 prayer, which was the third hour, or about 
 nine o'clock. Upon this day of Pentecost 
 there would, therefore, be no drinking until 
 after the third hour. It is to this well-known 
 custom that Peter referred. In substance he 
 said to his audience, "You know these men 
 
 172 
 
PETER AS A PREACHER. 
 
 do not drink until after the third hour, hence 
 they can not be drunk." 
 
 The explanation which the people had of- 
 fered being thus overthrown, the way would 
 be cleared for the offering of another and 
 better one. The people themselves would be 
 ready to listen to another. Here was Peter's 
 opportunity. He boldly offered the explana- 
 tion that this work was by the power of God 
 and not a freak of man. But he did not offer 
 the explanation upon his own authority. 
 Had he done so, his testimony would prob- 
 ably have been rejected. But he offered it 
 upon the authority of the Jewish Scriptures, ■ 
 and in the words of the revered Prophet Joel. 
 Now, the Jews were firm believers in their 
 prophets and in their Scriptures. Their ut- 
 terances were accepted as almost law. Hence, 
 when Peter quoted Joel, and made him say 
 that this manifestation was the outpouring 
 of the Spirit of God, the people were not 
 ready to deny the explanation. So by this 
 display of tact Peter placed the multitude in 
 sympathy with himself and prepared the way 
 for the other messages he had to bring. 
 
 Again, Peter was Scriptural as a 
 preacher. In his sermon at Pentecost he 
 
 173 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 displayed a splendid knowledge of the proph- 
 ets and Psalms. He seemed to recognize the 
 A, truth, which is the key to all effective preach- 
 ing, that power lies in having a Scriptural 
 foundation for the message presented. In 
 this respect Peter would have made a poor 
 preacher for some modern pulpits. His ad- 
 herence to the Scriptures would be too close 
 to please the taste of his auditors. To be 
 popular with some modern congregations the 
 preacher must take his text from some recent 
 novel and present a literary essay, or else 
 select some scientific or philosophic subject 
 and deliver a discourse with very little ref- 
 erence to God or the gospel of Jesus Christ. 
 No one ought to object to the preacher using 
 current literature, science, or philosophy to 
 ornament and make attractive his gospel 
 message. But when such incidentals are 
 made a substitute for the gospel itself, while 
 God and the Savior are pushed to the back- 
 ground, a solemn protest ought to go up from 
 the Christian Church. Peter had too much 
 respect for the Scriptures to be guilty of 
 such soulless preaching. This Pentecostal 
 preacher, like the Master whom he served, 
 had a Scriptural ground for everything. The 
 
 174 
 
PETER AS A PREACHER. 
 
 Master, in His temptation on the Mount, and 
 in His controversies with His foes, could al- 
 ways protect Himself by saying, * ' It is writ- 
 ten.'* Peter possessed something of that 
 same ability. 
 
 If the question be raised as to how Peter 
 acquired this ability, the answer will suggest 
 itself, in part at least, to the effect that divine 
 inspiration had something to do with it. It 
 is apparent that on the day of Pentecost 
 Peter was unusually inspired by the presence 
 of the Divine Spirit. A part of that inspira- 
 tion was the illuminating of his mind so that 
 whatever Scripture he had formerly known 
 or heard was brought to his thought though 
 it had been long unused. It was used with 
 telling effect. In addition to this inspiration, 
 it is probable that Peter had added to his 
 store of' information during those ten days 
 of waiting in the Upper Room. We know 
 that he spent much time in prayer, and it is 
 likely that his prayer was supplemented by 
 the searching of the Scriptures. At any 
 rate, Peter was familiar with the writings 
 of the fathers. This is the fact of practical 
 importance. It pays to know the Bible. It 
 provides a defense against doubt. It gives 
 175 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 strength in temptation and comfort in dis- 
 tress. Search the Scriptures. The more we 
 know of the Book, the better Christians we 
 are. 
 
 Again, Peter as a preacher was coura- 
 geous. He did not preach at Pentecost for 
 the pleasing of the popular ear. His pur- 
 pose was not that the people might go away 
 and say that it was a beautiful sermon. He 
 was preaching to show men the need of re- 
 demption and the way thereto. Hence, he 
 spoke to those present about their sins; not 
 about sins, but about their sins. The sins of 
 the ancients were omitted and those men in 
 Jerusalem were brought face to face with 
 their sins. Peter looked his congregation 
 squarely in the face, and with a voice that 
 had no room for apology hurled the accusa- 
 tion of their guilt upon them. In this respect 
 also Peter Avould have met poorly the de- 
 mands of some modern Churches. The 
 preacher of to-day is sometimes required to 
 discourse upon the sins of the patriarchs and 
 boldly denounce the sinners who have been 
 dead for ages, but the sins of the present gen- 
 eration are to be let severely alone. There 
 is a suggestive story told concerning an emi- 
 
 176 
 
PETER AS A PREACHER. 
 
 iient minister who paid a \^sit to a brother 
 minister, and as the visit was to include a 
 Sunday, the visiting minister was asked to 
 preach in the morning service. He con- 
 sented, and at the hour appointed for the 
 service the tAvo ministers entered the pulpit 
 together. The pastor of the congregation 
 looked carefully over the assembly and then 
 whispered to the visiting minister : ' ' I hope 
 you won't say anything about dancing this 
 morning. Some of my dancing members are 
 present." After a short silence the pastor 
 again whispered to the visiting minister and 
 said, ''Please don't say anything about the 
 theater, because a number of my people at- 
 tend." Another period of silence followed, 
 and then the pastor said to the visitor, just 
 before he stood to begin his sermon: "Please 
 do n 't say anything about drinking. A good 
 many of my men like to take their drinks 
 occasionally." Then the visitor in a per- 
 plexed tone asked, ''What in the world shall 
 I preach about ? ' ' And the pastor answered : 
 ' ' Give it to the Mormons. There are none of 
 them present." 
 
 Now, strange and ridiculous as that inci- 
 dent may seem, it illustrates all too truly 
 
 " 177 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 much of the present-day demand in preach- 
 ing. The great concern seems to be to avoid 
 saying anything about the defects of the 
 people addressed. Yet one of the aims of 
 true preaching is to reveal to men their sins 
 and defects that they may become better. 
 Peter told his hearers of their sins. He said 
 to them in substance, ''You men are mur- 
 derers ; murderers, not in the ordinary sense, 
 but you have killed the very Son of God.'* 
 The accusation went like a knife to the hearts 
 of the people, who in their distress cried out 
 for pardon and salvation. The tactful. Scrip- 
 tural, and courageous method of Peter was, 
 therefore, effective, as such a method will 
 usually be. 
 
 Peter was on this occasion a model 
 preacher, and the sermon which he produced 
 may be called a model sermon. When we 
 study the content of that sermon we dis- 
 cover that its keynote was Jesus Christ. The 
 feeling of Peter seemed to be akin to that 
 of Paul, who determined to know nothing but 
 Christ and Him crucified. Jesus Christ was 
 all that Peter knew in his sermon at Pente- 
 cost. He stated four facts concerning Christ. 
 
 First, lie was crucified. No one doubted 
 178 
 
PETER AS A PREACHER. 
 
 that. But Peter pointed out that His cruci- 
 fixion was a part of the plan of God. It was 
 done in harmony with the *' determinate 
 counsel and foreknowledge of God." It was 
 done because there must be an atonement for 
 the sins of men. The question of the real 
 import of the atonement, that mystery into 
 which the Church has so boldly and foolishly 
 plunged in her theology, was left untouched 
 by Peter. He was content to name merely the 
 fact that the atonement was necessary from 
 the standpoint of God. Jesus was crucified. 
 
 Second, He was raised from the^ dead. 
 This was a point the people were not so ready 
 to accept. But Peter made it easy for them 
 to accept it by quoting from their own Scrip- 
 tures the prophecy of the resurrection. The 
 statement of David was cited, ' *■ Thou wilt not 
 suffer thine Holy One to see corruption." 
 The testimony of David would not be rejected 
 by the Jews. This Peter knew. And he pro- 
 ceeds to show that the words of David re- 
 ferred not to David himself, but to Jesus, who 
 was crucified. 
 
 Third, He was exalted by the right hand 
 of God. Peter again manifested his acquaint- 
 ance with the Scripture when he said, ''The 
 179 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 Lord said unto my lord, sit thou on My right 
 hand. ' ' Here the climax of Peter 's argument 
 is reached. If this crucified Man was raised 
 from the dead and exalted to the right hand 
 of God, as the Scriptures taught. He must 
 indeed be the Messiah. Some of the crowd 
 saw the point Peter made. They had mur- 
 dered the Messiah. They were pricked in 
 their hearts and cried, ''What shall we do to 
 be saved f" It was toward this point of con- 
 viction and penitence that Peter had been 
 working. He Avas now ready to make the 
 most important statement of all concerning 
 the crucified Christ. It was : 
 
 Fourth, He is the Way of salvation. To 
 the guilty murderers of the Lord Peter 
 pointed out the only way of salvation. His 
 sermon, therefore, is the gospel in a nutshell. 
 The crucified, risen, exalted Christ is the only 
 means by which men may be saved. 
 
 The aim of Peter's sermon now becomes 
 apparent. In one word, it is souls. That is 
 the great aim of all true preaching. He who 
 substitutes any other aim as supreme in 
 preaching has degraded the calling. L\anan 
 Beeclier was once asked in Ids old age this 
 question: ''Doctor, you have lived a long 
 180 
 
PETER AS A PREACHER. 
 
 time and have seen much, and learned many 
 things. What is the chief thing T' He an- 
 swered, *'It is not theology, it is not contro- 
 versy, it is saving souls." The answer is 
 true. Peter had that conception, and God 
 honored him. Where is the preacher who has 
 had the marvelous results Peter had? Three 
 thousand souls were converted that day! 
 What a revival it was! Jesus had said to 
 Peter, **Upon this rock I build My Church." 
 The building began that day with Peter and 
 his three thousand souls as the rock of 
 foundation upon which the Church was to be 
 built. 
 
 Peter's season of service was now begun. 
 He was now a fruit gleaner in a large degree. 
 In the Psalms we are told that *'He that 
 goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious 
 seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoic- 
 ing, bringing his sheaves with him." Peter 
 on that dark night of denial went forth weep- 
 ing bitterly, carrying with him the seeds of 
 repentance. On the day of Pentecost he 
 came again with rejoicing, bringing his 
 sheaves with him. Surely a man so honored 
 of God in the beginning of his ministry is one 
 of whom we have a right to expect great 
 things. 181 
 
CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 PETER AS A MIRACLE WORKER. 
 
 A BUSY and exciting day was Pentecost. The 
 gospel sermon of Peter was followed by fears 
 and wonderings, amidst which many turned 
 to the Lord. The baptism of these new con- 
 verts followed. Even after the day had 
 ended the disciples were kept busy caring 
 for their converts. But amid their busy 
 times and remarkable experiences they found 
 time to worship. As the Revised Version 
 has it, they continued *' steadfastly with one 
 accord in the temple and breaking bread at 
 home." This fact applies not only to the 
 case of Peter, but to the other disciples as 
 well. All were busy and all showed the true 
 Christian spirit of worship. 
 
 The record states that some time after 
 Pentecost, the exact time being unknown, 
 Peter and John went up to the temple at the 
 hour of prayer. Peter and John! Friends 
 still ! The varied scenes through which they 
 had passed had not shaken the friendship be- 
 182 
 
PETER AS A MIRACLE WORKER. 
 
 tween these two opposite characters. John 
 had been ashamed of Peter when he blas- 
 phemed and denied his Master, but he had 
 remained a loyal friend. Now he was proud 
 of the Pentecostal preacher. It is pleasing 
 to note here a friendship that can outride 
 all the changing fortunes and accidents of 
 life. In all the earth can there be found any- 
 thing more beautiful than a friendship of 
 this kind? We should rejoice to see such an 
 attachment existing between Peter and John 
 and be glad to meet them again in each 
 other's company. Several times in the Gos- 
 pels these two men were presented to us as 
 companions. They were together on the 
 Mount of Transfiguration, at the raising of 
 the daughter of Jairus, and in the garden of 
 Gethsemane during the Lord's agony. It 
 w^as Peter and John whom the Lord sent into 
 the city to make ready the Passover. It was 
 Peter and John who ran the footrace to the 
 sepulcher on the resurrection morning. And 
 it is Peter and John still who on this present 
 occasion go up to the temple for prayer. 
 
 It was in connection with this visit to the 
 temple that the first miracle of Peter was 
 performed. To understand clearly the mir- 
 
 183 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 acle, it will be necessary to notice some facts 
 concerning the temple. The temple in ques- 
 tion was the one built by Herod and some- 
 times called the third temple. The first one 
 was built by Solomon in the golden age of 
 Jewish history. The second one was built 
 by the Jews returning from their captivity 
 in Babylon. The third was the one built by 
 Herod the Great. This temple did not con- 
 sist of one immense building, as we might 
 imagine, but of a central building, or temple 
 proper, surrounded by a series of courts 
 marked off by terraces and walls. The tem- 
 ple building occupied the highest point of 
 elevation, and from it the terraces sloped 
 downward forming the courts. The outer 
 court, or the one the farthest from the temple, 
 was the court of the Gentiles. It was so 
 called because the Gentiles w^ere allowed to 
 enter it, but could go no further. Next came 
 the court of the women, so named because 
 the women might enter it, but could approach 
 no nearer the temple. Then came the court 
 of the Israelites, into which the males of the 
 nation might enter, and next to this came 
 the court of the Priests, which immediately 
 surrounded the temple proper. There w^ere 
 
 184 
 
PETER AS A MIRACLE WORKER. 
 
 gates openiug successively from one court to 
 another. One of these gates was commonly 
 known as the Gate Beautiful. Josephus has 
 a description of one of the temple gates which 
 is believed to be the Gate Beautiful. Ac- 
 cording to this description the gate was un- 
 usually beautiful. It was of Corinthian 
 brass, being thus more excellent than those 
 that were covered with silver and gold. ' ' Its 
 height was fifty cubits and its doors were 
 forty cubits, and it was adorned after a most 
 costly manner." This Beautiful Gate is sup- 
 posed to have been the one opening from 
 the court of the Gentiles to the court of the 
 w^omen. By this gate, on their way to the 
 temple, Peter and John found a destitute 
 beggar. It can be easily seen that by this 
 gate would be a very wise place for the beg- 
 gar to place himself, for here he would face 
 all classes of people. The Gentiles would 
 be in the court about him, and the women, the 
 Israelites, and the priests would all have to 
 pass by him as they went toward the inner 
 courts. 
 
 When Peter and John met this beggar 
 they found a case of unusual helplessness. 
 The man was born a cripple. We suppose 
 
 185 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 he was unable to walk or support himself, 
 because he was laid every day at the gate by 
 his friends. He had doubtless followed this 
 profession of begging for many years. He 
 was a man past forty years of age, and had 
 known nothing but a dependent life in all 
 that time. As Peter and John were passing 
 this beggar of forty years asked of them an 
 alms. He asked as he had asked of hundreds 
 of others, in a mechanical way, perhaps 
 hardly daring to hope that there would be 
 a favorable reply. Perhaps he expected the 
 two men to pass by without a word. But 
 he received a surprising response. The two 
 men stopped and, facing the beggar, Peter 
 said, "Look on us." This was an act that 
 aroused expectation within the breast of the 
 poor beggar. The account says he looked, 
 expecting to receive something. But the 
 next sentence of Peter must have dashed all 
 his hopes to the ground, for Peter said, ' ' Sil- 
 ver and gold have I none." How the counte- 
 nance of the beggar must have changed ! He 
 must have thought that the two men were 
 mocking him, or at least were only going to 
 speak a word of sympathy. But the beggar 
 wanted more than sympathy. SjTupathy was 
 186 
 
PETER AS A MIRACLE WORKER. 
 
 a good thing, but it would not buy bread. 
 The beggar wanted money, and the man 
 Peter had said he had none. The beggar was 
 disappointed and perhaps in his heart wish- 
 ing that the men would pass on, when Peter 
 said, "Such as I have give I thee." What! 
 Was something to be given after all? The 
 beggar was now expectant again. What 
 would the gift be? Would it be a coat, a 
 cloak, or a sandal? As the beggar debated 
 in his mind what the gift might be, Peter 
 spake again, ''In the name of Jesus Christ 
 of Nazareth, rise up and walk." Then the 
 strong hand of the apostle reached forth and 
 grasped the helpless hand of the beggar. A 
 sensation such as had never before been felt 
 thrilled every muscle of the crippled form. 
 The glow of strength and energy which had 
 not been felt in forty years leaped through 
 the shriveled body. The hand that touched 
 the beggar lifted him up. He stood ! Those 
 limbs that for forty years had been helpless 
 supported him. He walked ! Not a step had 
 he taken in all those years, yet he walked. 
 What an experience! Little wonder he was 
 filled with gratitude and joy! The account 
 says the poor beggar walked with Peter and 
 187 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 Jolin into tlie temple leaping and praising 
 God. Like a child who leaps and shouts be- 
 cause of some newly found joy, this man 
 manifested his gratitude as he followed his 
 benefactors into the place of worship. Ho 
 had asked for an alms. He had received a 
 new life. 
 
 Historically this incident is interesting as 
 it reveals such a new and unusual phase of 
 the life of St. Peter. Peter here appears 
 thoroughly at home in handling supernatural 
 forces. As a miracle worker he appears quite 
 different from his former weak and vacil- 
 lating self. We are reminded again that 
 Pentecost has come in the meantime and 
 Peter is a new creature. But this incident 
 has its spiritual and practical signijficance as 
 well as the historical. Among its many les- 
 sons we may name the foUomng: 
 
 First, it is not necessary for men to lie 
 helpless at misfortune's door. There is a 
 divine help which may be claimed and which 
 w^ill furnish relief from much of the misfor- 
 tune of life. The sufferings and sorrows of 
 men are augmented by two common defects 
 which are observable in the case of this beg- 
 gar. These defects are, ignorance of possi- 
 
 188 
 
PETER AS A MIRACLE WORKER. 
 
 bilities and the littleness of our requests of 
 God. 
 
 The beggar failed to realize his possi- 
 bilities. He did not understand that before 
 him were representatives of divine power 
 who were able to remove all his distress. It 
 is too often true that men fail to realize the 
 power that is around them and ready to serve 
 them. The fact of God's abiding presence 
 is not felt in its full force. The Master said 
 that He would send the Holy Spirit and that 
 He would abide with us forever. The spir- 
 itual Christ as our Burden-bearer, as our 
 Light, our Guide and Wisdom, is ever before 
 us, and yet we live as if in ignorance of the 
 fact. Much of the distress and burden- 
 bearing of our lives would be relieved if we 
 M^ould only appreciate and appropriate the 
 comfort and power of the ever-present 
 Christ. 
 
 The littleness of the beggar's request is 
 suggestive of the same defect in many Chris- 
 tian lives. The beggar asked for alms only, 
 while a new life was waiting for him. The 
 Christian often asks of God in the spirit of 
 the beggar, expecting something small — if 
 anything at all. Too often we feel that if 
 
 189 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 God will only pardon our sins and hold us 
 in His Kingdom until we die, and then let 
 us slip quietly into the eternal city, we will 
 be satisfied. We want nothing better. And 
 yet God has better things in store for His 
 children. He wants to bestow upon them His 
 riches. He wants them to be not only for- 
 given, but joyful in His presence and useful 
 in His service. He wants human lives to 
 abound in spiritual blessings and in useful- 
 ness. He wants His children to ask largely, 
 putting Him to the test, and His promise is 
 that He will open the windows of heaven 
 and pour out such a blessing that there shall 
 not be room to contain it. With such a God 
 as ours, and with such a promise before us, 
 we ought not to fear to ask largely, nor fail 
 to expect much. 
 
 Second, money does not constitute the 
 highest riches. Peter said, *' Silver and gold 
 have I none." He was poor in purse, but he 
 was richer than a millionaire. He had riches 
 of a kind not to be measured by silver and 
 gold. Let it never be forgotten that the 
 wealth that is the most valuable is spiritual 
 and eternal. It is the wealth that produces 
 character here and a blessed destiny here- 
 190 
 
PETER AS A MIRACLE WORKER. 
 
 after. It is the wealth that enriches the soul. 
 Jesus had these respective values in mind 
 when He said, ''What shall it profit a man 
 if he shall gain the whole world and lose his 
 own soul?" One may possess all the silver 
 and gold of the earth, but if he has not the 
 spiritual wealth that makes the soul beauti- 
 ful here and safe hereafter, he is as poor as 
 a beggar. The time will come when the man 
 who has spent all his time in getting money 
 will realize its vanity and be willing to ex- 
 change his wealth for what Peter possessed 
 at the Beautiful Gate. Here is one of the 
 most foolish mistakes of mankind. Men 
 neglect their own development and the in- 
 terests of their homes, forget God and spend 
 their energies and time in a wild rush for 
 wealth, and when the time comes for passing 
 into another world they discover with sad- 
 ness how poverty-stricken they are. It is 
 better to be poverty-stricken in silver and 
 gold, and rich in eternal wealth, than to be 
 poverty-stricken in eternal wealth and rich in 
 silver and gold. To the Church at Smyrna 
 the Spirit said, ' ' I know thy poverty, but thou 
 art rich. ' ' Of many so-called poor to-day the 
 Lord can say, ' ' I know thy poverty, but thou 
 191 
 
THE EXALTED FISHEEMxVN. 
 
 art rich," for while they have little silver or 
 gold, they are rich in spiritual things. 
 
 Third, our duty to the world is measured 
 by what we have to give. Peter said, ' * Such 
 as I have give I thee. " It is our duty to give 
 to the world. Giving in the sense of charity 
 is not here meant. Nor does this incident 
 teach the duty of giving in the sense of char- 
 ity. It is more of a rebuke to our promiscu- 
 ous giving than anything else. It implies 
 that there is something better to give than 
 money or clothes. It teaches that it is better 
 to give a needy man a chance to make a man 
 of himself and enter into a life where he 
 doesn't need to beg. The duty of society 
 is to give every able man such an oppor- 
 tunity to labor that there will be no occasion 
 for begging. Our duty individually is to con- 
 tribute to the betterment of the world, yet 
 not in the money sense. How then? As we 
 can. Like Peter, we are to give such as we 
 have. The abilities of all men are not the 
 same, hence all men are not expected to 
 benefit the world in the same degree or the 
 same way. Let no one worry because he has 
 not as much of brain or talent to give as has 
 192 
 
PETER AS A MIRACLE WORKER. 
 
 another, but let him give freely of such as 
 he has. 
 
 Lest these statements seem a little vague, 
 let us be more specific. Every one, regard- 
 less of financial or intellectual ability, can 
 make the world better by giving these things : 
 
 1. Kindly consideration for others. Ap- 
 preciate the discouragements and struggles 
 of others, and lighten them as much as pos- 
 sible by a friendship that is kind. Do not 
 ignore or despise or provoke, but rather re- 
 veal a considerate spirit. Ian MacLaren 
 once said: *'Be kind. Every man is fight- 
 ing a hard battle." It is true. There are 
 in the lives of all burdens and sorrows that 
 are unseen, and this fact makes it all the 
 more needful that every man display a spirit 
 of consideration. Be kind. 
 
 2. An influence for righteousness. Every 
 life helps to tilt the balance toward right- 
 eousness or unrighteousness. When your in- 
 fluence is thrown with the right, you are 
 doing the world a real service. If it is thrown 
 on the side of wrong, you are a real enemy to 
 the world's best interests. Every life is 
 counting one way or the other. Even though 
 
 « 193 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 the influence may seem to be small, it can be 
 thrown on the side of right. Thus every life 
 may give something to the world which is 
 worth while. 
 
 3. A consistent Christian profession. A 
 powerful contribution to the world's good 
 and to the Kingdom of God is a consistent 
 Christian life. Godly living draws more men 
 toward the Kingdom of God than good 
 preaching. You may not be rich, wise, or 
 eloquent, but if you are consistent in your 
 Christian profession you are making a con- 
 tribution to the world that may send the 
 thrill of a new life leaping through some sin- 
 crippled soul. Every individual can contrib- 
 ute a holy life to the world — and God asks 
 nothing better. With these opportunities 
 before each life, no one has a right to com- 
 plain or become despondent. Better would 
 it be to say with Peter, * ' Such as I have give 
 I thee." 
 
 This was Peter's first miracle. Yet it 
 was not Peter's miracle. It was Christ's 
 miracle worked through him. There are 
 some facts connected with it which should 
 not be overlooked. 
 
 Peter's faith was the cause of it. He him- 
 194 
 
PETER AS A MIRACLE WORKER. 
 
 self explained to the people that it was 
 through faith in the name of Jesus that the 
 man was made whole. (Acts 3: 16.) 
 
 Christ's power was the agency. Peter 
 disclaimed any credit for the miracle, but 
 asserted that it was done through the power 
 of Jesus Christ. (Acts 3:12, 13.) 
 
 Man's health was the result. The help- 
 less man was made whole. In these three 
 facts we see the divine process illustrated. 
 Man's faith secures God's power, and God's 
 power secures man's health. 
 
 1.95 
 
CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 PETER PERSECUTED. 
 
 The men who bring things to pass are the 
 men who usually receive the severest oppo- 
 sition. The man who is merely negative and 
 never lets the world feel his presence is not 
 apt to make many enemies or receive much 
 criticism. But the man who is positive and 
 aggressive, and who makes things move, will 
 before long become the target for the oppos- 
 ing shafts of some one. The fact that people 
 oppose and condemn us may be an evidence 
 that we are making ourselves felt in the 
 world. While such opposition may not be 
 conclusive evidence of our importance, it yet 
 has the consoling value of being suggestive 
 of it. People never try to muzzle a dead dog. 
 Hence it follows that the men who are 
 aggressive in doing good often have to suffer 
 for their efforts. Moses was very much pro- 
 voked when he saw an Egj^^tian smiting a 
 Hebrew slave, and he resented the insult by 
 smiting the Egyptian, and in that act he 
 196 
 
PETER PERSECUTED. 
 
 struck one of the earliest blows in behalf of 
 human liberty. But Mosee had to suffer a 
 long exile because of his aggressiveness. 
 Socrates was a faithful servant of the right. 
 He attempted to elevate the lives of the 
 Athenian youth in his day and prepare them 
 for an immortal existence in the world to 
 come. But he had to drink the poisonous 
 hemlock and die for his trouble. Telemachus 
 shuddered at the inhumanity of the gladia- 
 torial contests and determined to stop them. 
 But his effort toward reform cost him his 
 life. William Lloyd Garrison would remove 
 from his land the stain of human slavery, 
 but he had to pay the price of violence at 
 the hands of the mob. The man to-day who 
 would aggressively oppose evils in the form 
 of intemperance, corrupt social order, or un- 
 clean politics will likely meet the fate of seri- 
 ous opposition. It costs something to do the 
 right. 
 
 Peter was no exception to this rule. He 
 gave strength and health to a helpless mortal 
 who had not walked for forty years, as we 
 saw in the last study. The poor man leaped 
 with joy because of his recovery and sang 
 the praises of Ms benefactor. The whole city 
 
 197 
 
THE EX.VLTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 of Jerusalem ought to have rejoiced with him. 
 There were present, however, men who were 
 so evil of heart that they were much grieved 
 because of the miracle of healing. They de- 
 termined that the man who had done the 
 kindly service should suffer for it. They 
 therefore began a studied persecution of 
 Peter and John. There are three parties 
 named as taking part in the persecution. 
 
 The first party was composed of the 
 priests, who were the religious leaders of the 
 Jews and who ought to have rejoiced in any 
 benefit brought to a suffering mortal. But 
 in this case they opposed Peter and John 
 largely because of jealousy. They were sore 
 troubled because these apostles were them- 
 selves assuming to be religious teachers and 
 were acquiring considerable influence. The 
 priests assumed to have a monopoly upon 
 the right to give religious instruction, and 
 were unwilling to have the assumed right 
 interfered with. Hence they led the oppo- 
 sition. 
 
 The second party was the captain of the 
 
 temple. Evidently this ofiicer was not the 
 
 captain of the Roman soldiers stationed in 
 
 the tower of Antonio, adjoining the temple, 
 
 198 
 
PETER PERSECUTED. 
 
 but was rather the captain of the Jewish 
 guard of the temple. This officer would be 
 himself of the line of the priests and, there- 
 fore, would be in sympathy with them. He 
 would also want to quell any possible dis- 
 turbance about the temple, and since Peter 
 and John furnished the opportunity for some 
 unusual confusion he would be opposed to 
 them. 
 
 The third party was the Sadducees, who 
 were opposed to the doctrine of the resur- 
 rection, and were grieved at Peter and John 
 because they taught *' through Jesus the 
 resurrection from the dead." For this 
 reason they were ready to join the other 
 parties in the opposition. 
 
 The enemies, therefore, were many and 
 the opposition was strong. The result was 
 that Peter and John were arrested and placed 
 in confinement over night inasmuch as the 
 arrest occurred late in the evening. Think 
 of it! Arrested and imprisoned for aiding 
 a suffering man and teaching the way of 
 eternal life! From the temple where they 
 had gone to worship these apostles were led 
 as criminals. They were led to a prison cell 
 somewhere in the city, the exact place being 
 199 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 unknown. An officer 's hand thrust them into 
 the prison; an officer's hand closed and locked 
 the door upon them, and they were left alone 
 with the silence and the night. 
 
 The disciples were imprisoned, but their 
 enemies could not check the influence of the 
 work they had done. That influence moved 
 steadily on. The interesting statement is 
 made that many that heard the Word be- 
 lieved, ''and the number of the men came to 
 be about five thousand." They could lay 
 hands on the preacher, but they could not 
 stop his work. You can destroy the cannon 
 after the shot is fired, but you can not call 
 back the ball as it speeds on its way. You 
 may destroy the instrument after the mes- 
 sage is sent, but you can not call back the 
 message as it leaps with lightning speed to 
 its destination. You may put the preacher in 
 bonds, but you can not check the influence of 
 his work. Like the white horse of Gustavus 
 Adolphus II, of Sweden, which dashed over 
 the battlefield of Lutzen long after the rider 
 had fallen from the saddle, the truth which 
 men speak and the influence of their lives 
 moves on and on long after they have fallen 
 from the fight. So was it in the case of 
 200 
 
PETER PERSECUTED. 
 
 Peter. The workman had fallen for a mo- 
 ment, but the work moved on. 
 
 "When the night of confinement in the un- 
 known prison had passed and the morning 
 had come, Peter and John were brought forth 
 for trial. The account says that the rulers 
 and elders and scribes were gathered to- 
 gether in Jerusalem. The statement refers 
 to the meeting of the Sanhedrin, which was 
 in reality the supreme court of the Jewish 
 people. The Sanhedrin had authority to pass 
 upon all cases, both civil and religious. It 
 had the power to pass any sentence, even the 
 sentence of death. But there its power 
 ended. It did not have the power to execute 
 the death sentence, inasmuch as the Roman 
 Government reserved for itself that right. 
 Hence, while the Sanhedrin could condemn, 
 it could not kill. 
 
 This court desired to establish the charge 
 of heresy against Peter and John. Hence 
 the question was put to them, ''By what 
 power or by what name have ye done this ? ' ' 
 Their expectation and desire was that Peter 
 and John would answer that it was in the 
 name of Jesus of Nazareth that the man had 
 been healed, and on the strength of that as- 
 201 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 sertion they intended to make the charge of 
 heresy. But the answer was given with such 
 boldness and so much more completely that 
 they were somewhat confused. Peter replied 
 not only that the work was done in the name 
 of Jesus of Nazareth, but also added, ' ' Whom 
 ye crucified" and ''whom God raised from 
 the dead. ' ' Here was not only heresy in the 
 eyes of the Sanhedrin, but a charge against 
 them of murder, and an assertion of the 
 hated doctrine of the resurrection. There 
 was such a display of boldness that they were 
 astonished. And yet the evidence was all on 
 the side of Peter and John. There stood the 
 healed man. They could not deny the fact 
 that he had been healed. If the healing had 
 not been done by the power of Jesus of Naz- 
 areth, they could not explain how it had been 
 done. Public sjmipathy was aroused for the 
 disciples. The members of the Sanhedrin 
 were in an embarrassing condition. They 
 could not undo what had been done. Since 
 Peter and John were so bold, they feared to 
 take any new steps lest they might make mat- 
 ters worse for themselves and better for 
 Peter and John. They finally concluded that 
 the quietest way out of the difficulty was the 
 202 
 
PETER PERSECUTED. 
 
 best. So after a few moments of private con- 
 sultation, the Sanhedrin decided that the best 
 thing to do would be to exact from Peter 
 and John a promise that they would not teach 
 or heal in the name of Jesus of Nazareth, 
 and grant them their liberty upon that con- 
 dition. But the Sanhedrin little knew the 
 mettle of the men with whom it was dealing. 
 When the apostles were charged to observe 
 silence, Peter again manifested his boldness 
 by replying, *'We can not but speak of the 
 things which we have seen and heard." 
 Again the plans of the Sanhedrin were de- 
 feated. But though they were desperate, 
 they were shrewd. They had judgment 
 enough to see that their case was hopeless 
 inasmuch as the people were with the 
 apostles, and ''glorified God for that which 
 was done." There was but one resort left 
 for the Sanhedrin — a resort which is often 
 sought by those whose cause is weak — a 
 threat. So they threatened Peter and John, 
 and let them go. 
 
 In this incident there are some phases of 
 Peter's changed character which stand out 
 prominently. Notice his boldness as con- 
 trasted with his former cowardice. It took 
 
 203 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 a high degree of boldness to stand before an 
 assembly such as Peter faced and speak as 
 he did, a charge of murder against them. If 
 we seek the source of the boldness we mil 
 find it suggested in that verse which says 
 that Peter was filled with the Holy Ghost. 
 (Acts 4:8.) This w^as the secret of his bold- 
 ness and power. It was not Peter speaking 
 after all. It was the Holy Ghost speaking 
 through Peter. A great divine has well ex- 
 pressed it by saj-ing it was "Peter multiplied 
 by Deity." No one can measure the power 
 of a life filled by the Holy Ghost. It is per- 
 sonality multiplied by divinity. The real 
 strength of any Church or individual depends 
 upon that one thing, the filling of the Holy 
 Spirit. Possess that and no one can prophesy 
 to what lengths the influence of Christian 
 work may go. 
 
 The effect of Peter's boldness is made 
 prominent here. Those who observed him 
 took knowledge of him that he had been with 
 Jesus. Association with the Master left its 
 stamp upon these apostles. Companionship 
 with Jesus produces its marked effects. It 
 stamps the life. One of the best compliments 
 that can be paid a follower of the Master is 
 204 
 
PETER PERSECUTED. 
 
 to say of him that his life shows that he has 
 been in fellowship with Jesus and has learned 
 of Him. 
 
 A new criterion for Peter's life is also 
 revealed in this incident. A new measure of 
 his conduct is revealed in the expression, 
 "Whether it be right." Prior to Pentecost 
 Peter had acted from impulse and desire. 
 Now he acted from a conviction of what was 
 right. The sublimest criterion for a man's 
 life is this adopted by Peter, * ' Whether it be 
 right." The ordinary standards are much 
 lower than that. We often make pleasure 
 the measure of action. If a certain act will 
 bring us personal enjoyment, we will per- 
 form it. If not, Ave will leave it undone. 
 Sometimes the question, Is it popular? con- 
 trols our conduct. If a certain course will 
 meet the approval of the popular crowd we 
 will follow it. If it would receive the dis- 
 approval of the multitude, we leave it un- 
 touched. The question of what is right has 
 too small a place in our lives. Or again, we 
 are swayed in these days by the considera- 
 tion, "Is it profitable?" If there is money 
 in it, we will act. If there is a possibility of 
 loss, we will refrain, however right and just 
 
 205 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 the cause may be. Let it be noted, however, 
 that Peter never asked what was pleasant, 
 popular, or profitable. His sole aim was to 
 know what was right. Knowing the right, he 
 was ready to do it, regardless of cost. 
 
 We notice here also the fire of conviction 
 in the character of Peter. As spokesman for 
 John and himself, he said, ''We can not but 
 speak." Convictions must be expressed. 
 Peter now belonged to the class of men who 
 must speak their convictions though death 
 be the result. 0, for more men of that type ! 
 These are the kind of men who move the 
 world. ''We must speak," said Peter. 
 "Threaten us if you mil. Put us in prison 
 if you want. Lead us to the cross if you 
 must. But we must speak the truth that 
 burns within us." That truth in Peter's 
 thought was so vital and so urgent that it 
 must find expression at all hazards. History 
 shows that those men who have been a bene- 
 diction to the world are the men who have 
 been set aflame by their convictions. Wil- 
 liam Lloyd Garrison felt the burning of con- 
 viction when he said, "I will not excuse, I 
 will not equivocate, I will not retract a single 
 inch, and I will be heard." He, like Peter, 
 
 206 
 
PETER PERSECUTED. 
 
 must be heard. And the burning truth he 
 uttered helped to remove from our history 
 the blot of human slavery. In the religious 
 world we need that fire of truth, that kind of 
 conviction. The Kingdom would be more 
 advanced if we had more of that brand of 
 men whose minds and hearts are so full of 
 the gospel truth that they must speak what 
 they have seen and heard and felt. 
 
 Contrast the practice of many lives in the 
 Church to-day with the example of Peter here 
 given. Peter must speak. He could not keep 
 still. He bubbled over. But some people to- 
 day have to be pleaded with, coaxed and per- 
 suaded before they speak a word of religious 
 truth or experience. Some people can sit all 
 through a praise service and instead of feel- 
 ing that it is their duty to speak, seem to feel 
 that duty lies in keeping silence. It ought 
 not so to be. The Church needs badly the 
 spirit of Peter. It needs the spirit that will 
 make her membership bold in utterance, right 
 in standards of living, and enthusiastic in 
 the expression of convictions. 
 
 This event, then, furnishes another evi- 
 dence of the radical change that was wrought 
 in Peter j a change that made it possible for 
 
 207 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 him to strengthen his brethren even as Jesus 
 had instructed. The strength of the testi- 
 mony to the change as found in this incident 
 lies in the fact that here Peter was tested at 
 a weak point where formerly he had failed. 
 It was at the point of ability to stand in the \ 
 face of suffering and persecution. Peter for- 
 merly stood well enough until he came to the 
 danger of having to suffer for his loyalty 
 to Jesus. There he failed. Now, however, he 
 is willing to face suffering, and even death if 
 need be. He is a new man ready for a larger 
 service. 
 
 In this changed life we see a pledge of 
 what is possible in every life. Old sins, old 
 weaknesses, old defects may pass away and 
 all things become new. The great Pompey 
 once boasted that mth a stamp of his foot 
 he could call all Italy to arms. It was a 
 mighty boast. But our God without boast 
 does a mightier thing. He sendeth forth His 
 word and a new life is called into existence; 
 a transformed life without sin and condemna- 
 tion, but full of truth and power. The cow- 
 ard becomes the hero, and the sinner becomes 
 the saint. Such a changed life is the pos- 
 sible heritage of every soul. 
 208 
 
CHAPTER XV. 
 
 PETER GOD'S EXECUTIONER. 
 
 One of the clearest evidences of the posses- 
 sion of the Christ spirit is the absence of 
 selfishness. The more of the Christ spirit 
 one possesses, the more unselfish he becomes. 
 It is interesting to note to what a large de- 
 gree this spirit of unselfishness was pos- 
 sessed by the early Christians, and how it 
 was manifested. In Acts (4:32) we find 
 these remarkable words, **And not one said 
 that aught of the things he possessed was his 
 own." (R. V.) Those early disciples seemed 
 to feel that when they became Christians they 
 entered a community of brothers where all 
 were in a sense equal, and where self-interest 
 and self-possessions were lost. What belonged 
 to one seemed to belong to all. They were 
 of one heart, one soul, and one property. The 
 most striking evidence of this unselfish spirit 
 was the surrender of personal property to be 
 the property of all. Such as were possessed 
 of houses and lands, sold them and brought 
 209 
 
THE EXALTED FISHEEMAN. 
 
 the price of the sale and laid it in money at 
 the apostles' feet. It must have been a 
 strange sight to behold men and women who 
 had struggled perhaps for years for the ac- 
 cumulation of property, sell out that prop- 
 erty and, instead of using the money for 
 traveling, or buying a summer home, or in- 
 vesting it where it would bring a large rate 
 of interest, surrender it all into a common 
 fund, from which the needs of all were to be 
 satisfied. Yet such a practice seems to have 
 been common, and w^as probably frequently 
 witnessed among the believers, who came 
 soon to number about five thousand. Here 
 was a company of men and women five thou- 
 sand strong in which there was no struggle 
 one against the other for bread. There was 
 no conflict of the weak against the strong. 
 There was no competition by which one man 
 struggled to outclass his neighbor. There 
 was no exalting of some in luxury while 
 others remained in poverty. They had all 
 things common. But the remarkable thing 
 about that communism was that it was en- 
 tirely voluntary. There is no reference made 
 in the ancient records of any apostolic re- 
 quirement to sell all personal property and 
 210 
 
PETER GOD'S EXECUTIONER. 
 
 create a common fund. It is true that Jesus 
 said to the rich young ruler that he should 
 sell all that he had and give to the poor. Yet 
 that was a specific requirement to meet a 
 specific need, and was never cited by the 
 disciples as an instruction to be universally 
 followed. We rob this early Christian com- 
 munism of its beauty if we consider it any- 
 thing other than voluntary. Indeed, Peter 
 implies that it was entirely a voluntary mat- 
 ter when he says to Ananias, ''While it re- 
 mained was it not thy own? And after it 
 was sold, was it not in thy power ? ' ' He thus 
 implies that it was within the power and 
 right of Ananias to do with his property as 
 he might choose. He was not obliged to offer 
 it to the common fund. Hence this com- 
 munism was just a spontaneous expression 
 of the brotherly love that filled the hearts of 
 the early Christians when they received the 
 Holy Spirit. Self-love died. They lived for 
 and loved others. It was natural that they 
 should express their love in some way, hence 
 they sold out personal interests and gave to 
 the common good. In a word, interest in the 
 brotherhood predominated over interest in 
 self. 
 
 211 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 There have been those who assert that 
 this communistic band was a type of what 
 Christian society should be, and efforts have 
 been made to form commonwealths on such 
 a basis. Whatever our opinions may be con- 
 cerning such attempts, or concerning com- 
 munism itself, we must all confess that the 
 original Christian spirit was communistic. 
 Unselfishness and brotherly love reigned su- 
 preme. And we must also confess that this 
 same spirit must predominate when the 
 Kingdom of God comes upon earth. Chris- 
 tian communism is one of the things of which 
 Jesus said, "Ye can not bear them now," 
 and yet it is not a wild speculation to sup- 
 pose that it will come in the course of time. 
 The ills of society to-day are caused largely 
 by man placing his finger on a certain object 
 and saying to his fellow-man, ''Hands off, 
 this is mine." Let us hope that the time 
 will come some day when **mine" will be 
 changed to ''ours" and men in society will 
 say, "This is ours — and God's." 
 
 There is one striking example given of 
 a man who sold out all he had and gave the 
 proceeds to the common fund. It was Barna- 
 bas, who afterward became the traveling 
 
 212 
 
PETER GOD'S EXECUTIONER. 
 
 companion of Paul. Barnabas was probably 
 a large land owner, and seems to have been 
 a man of considerable influence because of 
 Ills wealth. Yet all that he had he sold and 
 laid the price of the sale at the feet of the 
 apostles. As we are delighted to-day when 
 a rich man gives a large sum of money for 
 a college or a Church or to found a library, 
 so the early Christians were delighted with 
 the gift of Barnabas. His fame spread 
 abroad, and everybody was talking of his 
 magnificent sacrifice and the pure Christian 
 love that prompted it. It is easy to see that 
 there might be some people who were a little 
 envious of Barnabas, and who wished that 
 they might be as favorably spoken of as he. 
 Such a feeling may have possessed Ananias. 
 He saw how Barnabas was adored, and per- 
 haps craved a little of the esteem for himself. 
 Love of popularity often carries men to an 
 unreasonable extreme. Ananias went to an 
 extreme. Perhaps he reasoned that since the 
 selling of property and giving of the pro- 
 ceeds to a common fund had made Barnabas 
 popular, a similar act on his part would ac- 
 complish for him the same result. Then the 
 possibility suggested itself to him of selling 
 
 213 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 his property and turning over to the apostles 
 only a part of the proceeds, making them 
 believe that the full price had been surren- 
 dered. The apostles would never be the 
 wiser, he thought, and his fame would be just 
 as great, perhaps, as if he should give over 
 the entire amount. Thoughts like these 
 doubtless went through the mind of Ananias, 
 and as a result he planned his lie against the 
 Holy Spirit. Before carrying out his plan, 
 however, he let his wife into his secret, and 
 together they decided to sell out and turn 
 over a part of the money, yet leaving the im- 
 pression that the whole amount was being 
 given up. It is important to notice the motive 
 which seemed to be back of this action. The 
 sale was not prompted by love for others or 
 for God, but rather by a desire to appear 
 Christian and stand in favor with the people. 
 They would appear Christian when in reality 
 they were at heart selfish and worldly. It 
 was an act of hypocrisy. Their evil scheme 
 was carried out as planned. The land was 
 sold and, likely with some parade, the money 
 was brought and laid before the apostles and 
 the people given to understand that the full 
 amount had been surrendered. 
 
 214 
 
PETER GOD'S EXECUTIONER. 
 
 The result of the act was not what was 
 expected. God can not be deceived. Neither 
 could Peter, who was filled with the Holy 
 Ghost, be deceived. He detected the lie, and 
 proceeded to administer a terrible rebuke. 
 The rebuke fell first on Ananias, as his wife 
 was absent when the offering was presented. 
 Peter condemned Ananias by saying to him 
 that Satan had filled his heart. He pointed 
 out to the erring man that his lie was one 
 not merely before men, but before God. He 
 had lied to the Holy Ghost. With such stern 
 utterances Peter publicly exposed the hypoc- 
 risy. The effect of the rebuke was the same 
 as if a blow had been struck with God's 
 sword in the hand of Peter as God's execu- 
 tioner. Ananias dropped to the floor dead, 
 his life given as a penalty for his lie. Im- 
 mediately his body was taken up, the burial 
 shroud wound around him, and he was car- 
 ried out to his grave. There is nothing un- 
 usual in the seeming hasty burial, inasmuch 
 as it was the custom among the Jews to bury 
 on the day of the death, and often within 
 three or four hours after the death. 
 
 According to the account, it was some- 
 thing like three hours after the death of 
 215 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 Ananias when Sapphire, his wife, came in. 
 She came in ignorance of the fate that had 
 overtaken her husband. She came as guilty 
 as he. Peter said to her, *'Tell me whether 
 ye sold the land for so much." The refer- 
 ence was doubtless to the amount Ananias 
 had offered to the apostles. Sapphira an- 
 swered, *'Yes." She by word of mouth 
 added her lie to the deception of her hus- 
 band. A double tragedy was the result. 
 Peter answered her lie by saying, "Behold, 
 the feet of them that buried thy husband are 
 at the door and shall carry thee out." And 
 Sapphira, at that thrust of the sword in the 
 hands of God's executioner, fell down dead. 
 At first glance this seems like a harsh 
 proceeding, and we feel inclined to criticise 
 Peter for the act. But it must be remem- 
 bered that it was not the act of Peter so much 
 as the act of the Holy Spirit through Peter. 
 Peter was simply the executioner in the 
 hands of the Spirit. And if the act of the 
 Spirit seems severe, we must remember that 
 the hypocrisy of Ananias and Sapphira came 
 at a time when deception could not be tol- 
 erated in the Church of God. It was at the 
 very beginning of Christianity, and the 
 216 
 
PETER GOD'S EXECUTIONER. 
 
 purity of the Church must be preserved at 
 all hazards. Members within must be made 
 to realize the sacredness of their profession, 
 and those without must be taught the danger 
 of dishonestly insinuating themselves into 
 the fellowship of the Church. Severe meas- 
 ures were demanded, for the times were 
 critical. There are similar cases on record 
 where God had to take life to teach needed 
 lessons. Nadab and Abihu were slain for 
 offering up strange fire. Achan was slain 
 for stealing the Babylonish garment. In 
 both these cases the sin committed was of a 
 nature that demanded a severe rebuke in or- 
 der to save the morals of the chosen people. 
 So, too, Sapphira and Ananias were slain 
 for lying to the Holy Ghost, lest their act 
 unrebuked might encourage a corruption in 
 the new Church which ultimately might bring 
 it to ruin. The effect felt immediately by 
 the Church, and by those outside the Church, 
 justified the means. The account says that 
 great fear came upon all the Church and upon 
 as many as heard these things. The Church 
 feared to pretend or to deceive. The world 
 feared to trifle with the Holy Spirit, the life 
 of the Church. 
 
 217 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 Let us notice the significance and result 
 of this sin. It was the sin of h>i)Ocrisy prac- 
 ticed by deed rather than by word. This was 
 true especially in the case of Ananias. It is 
 just as sinful in the sight of God to be a 
 deceiver by deed as by word. There are 
 many people in the Church who make the 
 statement that they do not like to get up in 
 a prayer or class meeting and offer a testi- 
 mony for fear they might say something 
 that would seem inconsistent and then they 
 would appear as hypocrites. That is without 
 doubt a worthy fear, if it is honest. But the 
 strange thing to be noted in this connection 
 is that so many of those same people go out 
 into the world and act in a way that is in- 
 consistent and do not seem in the least dis- 
 turbed by the hypocrisy which attaches to 
 their acts. But in reality there is no differ- 
 ence. Hypocrisy acted is as bad as hypocrisy 
 spoken. In the sight of God, hj^DOcrisy is 
 hypocrisy, whether it be spoken or acted; 
 whether it be exhibited in the Church or in 
 the world. One who acts in an inconsistent 
 way in the world ought to hesitate a long 
 while before offering as an excuse for not 
 testifying in public the statement that he 
 218 
 
PETEB GOD'S EXECUTIONER. 
 
 does not want to appear inconsistent or hypo^ 
 critical. 
 
 God despises the spirit of hypocrisy. 
 This is one of the great lessons in the fate 
 of Ananias. That fate shows God's contempt 
 for the hypocrite. The spirit of Ananias is 
 herein condemned, yet it is alarmingly easy 
 to exhibit that spirit. There are many ways 
 in which one may almost nnConscionsly ex- 
 hibit that hypocritical spirit. For example, 
 association with a Church as a member gives 
 one a respectable standing in a community, 
 and sometimes is even the means of increas- 
 ing trade for a business man, hence it is 
 easily possible for people to unite with a 
 Church and profess a religious life for the 
 sake of these advantages. Such persons, 
 however, are not religious for religion's sake, 
 but for the sake of worldly advantage. 
 Again, liberality is commendable to-day, as 
 it was in the days of Ananias and Barnabas, 
 hence it is possible for people to give liber- 
 ally, not because they love the cause, but be- 
 cause of the credit that may come from such 
 liberality. And sometimes, too, people lay 
 claim to a higher degree of spiritual life than 
 they really possess, and thus become guilty 
 219 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 of a phase of hj^ocrisy. In all of these ways 
 and iu many others it is possible to exhibit 
 something of the spirit of Ananias and of- 
 fend the goodness of God. 
 
 The natural result of such pretense is the 
 fate of Ananias — death. It is death, not 
 physical, but spiritual. "Whenever one de- 
 parts from the path of strict honesty with 
 God he begins a journey toward death. De- 
 ception and spiritual power can not exist in 
 the same life. Therefore, be honest with 
 God. Do not keep back part of the price you 
 assume to give the Lord. If you have prom- 
 ised the Lord your life, give it to Him and 
 do not divide it between Him and the enemy 
 of your soul. If you have promised Him 
 service in any department of the Church 
 work, give it to Him and do not cheat Him 
 out of time and talent. Do not serve self 
 and forget God and the Church. Be sure of 
 this, that the time is coming some daj^ when 
 every pretense will be discovered and ex- 
 posed. If that time be not before, it will be 
 at the bar of God. Be honest with God. The 
 one who practices dishonesty always gets the 
 worst of the bargain. 
 
 A little berry-peddler called one morning 
 
 220 
 
PETER GOD'S EXECUTIONER. 
 
 at a home and said to the lady of the house, 
 "Do you want to buy any berries to-day T' 
 The little fellow was poorly clothed and 
 his feet were travel-stained, but his heart 
 was rich and true. He carried on his arm 
 a basket of fresh, large raspberries, wliicli 
 looked inviting as they lay beneath the green 
 leaves partially covering them. Telling the 
 boy she needed some berries, the lady took 
 the basket from him and carried it into the 
 house to measure out the desired amount. 
 The boy did not follow her to witness the 
 measuring, but amused himself mth some 
 canaries that hung in a cage by the door. 
 When the lady returned she said to the 
 boy, ''Why did you not come in and see 
 if I measured your berries aright? I might 
 have cheated you." The boy only smiled 
 and said, *'I am not afraid, for you would 
 get the worst of it." "Get the worst of 
 it?" exclaimed the lady; "what do you 
 mean?" "Well," said the boy, "I would 
 only lose my berries, but you would lose 
 your honor. Do n 't you think you would get 
 the worst of it?" The philosophy of the boy 
 was sound. The one who attempts deception, 
 whether it be on man or God, gets the worst 
 221 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 of the bargain. 'T is better always to be 
 the one deceived than the one deceiving. 
 The words w^hich Shakespeare causes Polo- 
 nius to speak to his son Laertes are worth 
 being remembered by every Christian : 
 
 This above all: to thine own self be true, 
 And it must follow, as the night the day. 
 Thou canst not then be false to any man. 
 
 And we may add, ' * Nor to God. ' ' 
 
 222 
 
CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 PETER IN PRISON. 
 
 The sad fate of Sappliira and Ananias, while 
 it was terrible in itself, had a splendid effect 
 upon the disciples and people alike. It not 
 only taught every one the danger of hypoc- 
 risy, but it brought the religion of Jesus 
 Christ before the people in a favorable way. 
 It taught the valuable lesson that Chris- 
 tianity was a system which could not tolerate 
 immorality. The power of Peter was also 
 magnified in the eyes of the people by the 
 miracle worked through him. The result was 
 that there was a remarkable migration of the 
 people to the standard of the apostles. The 
 account says that believers were the more 
 added to the Lord, multitudes both of men 
 and women. The fame of Peter was heralded 
 abroad. The people some way believed that 
 he who had been God's executioner in dealing 
 out justice could also be God's minister in 
 dealing out mercy. So to him the people 
 brought the sick and those troubled with evil 
 223 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 spirits. These afflicted people were laid on 
 beds or couches in the streets, that the 
 shadow of Peter might fall on them as he 
 passed. There was a faith among the people 
 that there would be a healing power in even 
 the shadow of this wonderful man of God. 
 
 Here is the highest tribute that thus far 
 has been paid to Peter by the people. It 
 meant that in their eyes he had become so 
 much like his Master that, as there was virtue 
 found in touching the Master's garment, so 
 there would be virtue found in lying within 
 the shadow of the apostle. 
 
 Some critics have pointed out the fact 
 that Luke in this account does not say spe- 
 cifically that the people were healed by lying 
 in the shadow of Peter, and they therefore 
 deny that any miracle was here performed. 
 They assert that all that Luke says is that 
 the people expected to be healed. They 
 would thus rob this incident of its signifi- 
 cance. Yet the implication clearly is that 
 the people were healed. In the verse imme- 
 diately following the one in which mention is 
 made of the shadow, the statement is made 
 that there came also a multitude out of the 
 cities round about Jerusalem bringing their 
 
 224 
 
PETER IN PRISON. 
 
 sick, ''And they were healed every one." 
 This statement about the people being healed 
 evidently applies to the people within the city 
 as well as to those brought from without. 
 There should really be no hesitation about 
 believing that the people were healed by the 
 shadow as well as by other methods employed 
 by Peter. This interpretation should not be 
 difficult for those to accept who believe in 
 miracles at all, and especially so when we 
 remember that the healing in all these cases 
 was not so much the work of Peter as the 
 power of God working through Peter. The 
 account clearly indicates that those who were 
 healed were those who had great faith, hence 
 the healing was an act by which God honored 
 the faith of those who believed. 
 
 There is a practical significance in this 
 shadow-healing which should not be over- 
 looked. There is a sense in which a shadow 
 falls from every life for the healing or hurt- 
 ing of other lives. A secret power which 
 we call influence goes out from each life to 
 touch other lives. There are some lives 
 whose very presence is a blessing to us, so 
 that we crave their companionship and feel 
 a sense of loss when they are taken from 
 225 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 us. Their shadow has fallen on our lives to 
 bless us. But on the other hand, there are 
 some lives which are almost a curse to us. 
 They arouse the evil rather than strengthen 
 the good. Their presence is a disturbing in- 
 fluence to us, and we feel relieved when they 
 are gone. The shadow falls from such lives, 
 but in a hurtful way. Thus every life casts 
 its own shadow for hurt or help. Mrs. Bal- 
 lington Booth, while once doing some faith- 
 ful and effective work among the prisoners 
 at Sing Sing, was suddenly taken very ill, 
 and it was reported that she would have to 
 die. During her illness her husband received 
 a note from one of the prisoners who was 
 waiting to have the death sentence executed 
 upon him. The note read : *'I do not belong 
 to the Volunteer Prison League, but your 
 wife's presence here has transformed this 
 place in such a way that I feel good in spite 
 of myself. When I heard she was going to 
 die I wanted to pray that she might get well, 
 but now that the warden has told me that 
 she will get well, my heart is so full of joy 
 that I can die in peace." The shadow of the 
 good woman's life had fallen over the life 
 of the bad man and had cured some of the 
 
 226 
 
PETER IN PRISON. 
 
 pain of his condition. When the saintly 
 Florence Nightingale walked past the cots on 
 which the wounded soldiers lay, her shadow 
 falling upon them w^as like the spreading of 
 an angel's vdng over them, and that shadow 
 was balm for the healing of many an aching 
 heart. There are many such lives. They 
 bring peace with them, and healing dwells 
 in their shadow. 
 
 Peter was persecuted because there was 
 healing in his shadow. The head of the per- 
 secution in this case was the high priest. 
 He and those with him were filled with jeal- 
 ousy because Peter was becoming more of 
 an idol with the people than they. Great is 
 the selfishness and cruelty of jealousy! It 
 would deprive the people of blessings and 
 permit them to sit in pain rather than sacri- 
 fice a little popularity! So the high priest 
 laid hold of Peter and the other apostles and 
 placed them in the common prison. This is 
 the second time since Pentecost that Peter 
 has been imprisoned. The first time was 
 because of the healing of the lame man at 
 the Gate Beautiful. In this second case it 
 is also because of a healing work. These 
 facts show the utter desperation to which the 
 
 227 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 enemies of Christianity were driven in their 
 efforts to destroy the rising faith. Although 
 the new faith exhibited itself as an angel of 
 mercy to suffering men, it must be suppressed 
 lest its advocates secure greater popularity 
 than the leaders of the old faith ! 
 
 Nothing is told us concerning the place of 
 Peter's imprisonment save that it was the 
 common or public ward. But wherever it was, 
 the apostles were not destined to remain long 
 within its walls, for the Lord had planned 
 an escape for them. The account says merely 
 that the angel of the Lord opened the prison 
 doors. A great deal of speculation has arisen 
 among critics as to the manner in which the 
 doors were opened. Some have supposed that 
 a peal of thunder sprung the lock. Others 
 have suggested that an earthquake threw the 
 doors ajar. Still others think that some friend 
 appeared and unlocked the doors. But it is 
 safe to follow the account as given. It re- 
 veals the care that God has for them that 
 put their trust in Him. The Word tells that 
 He will with every temptation make a way 
 of escape. Some way which we maj^ not be 
 able to see is provided. When the high priest 
 locked Peter up, he supposed his victim to 
 
 228 
 
PETER IN PRISON. 
 
 be full}^ within his power. It has been said 
 that man proposes, but God disposes. So it 
 was in this case. The persecutors proposed, 
 but God disposed. God disposed of the case 
 in a way surprising to the persecutors. It 
 was by delivering the victim entirely out of 
 their hands. He unlocked the prison doors 
 and the captives were set free. 
 
 It will be observed that God never de- 
 livers His people without a purpose. He 
 liberated Peter, not that he might be idle, 
 but that He might send him on a mission. 
 The delivering angel said to him, ''Go stand 
 and speak in the temple to the people all the 
 words of this life." The expression "this 
 life" means the Christian life or the new 
 life in Christ. Peter 's commission, therefore, 
 was to preach and heal in the name of Jesus, 
 just as he had done before his imprisonment. 
 New evidence of the transformed nature of 
 Peter is seen in the willingness with which he 
 obeyed this command from the Lord. It in- 
 volved danger and required courage to obey. 
 But Peter never hesitated. He "entered the 
 temple early in the morning and taught. ' ' 
 
 The high priest, being in ignorance of the 
 escape of his prisoners, called an early meet- 
 229 
 
THE EXALTED FISHEBMAN. 
 
 ing of the council the following morning, and 
 sent to the prison to have the apostles 
 brought to trial. But when the messengers 
 returned and reported the prison empty, the 
 high priest and his helpers were much dis- 
 tressed and wondered whereunto the matter 
 would grow. But they were not turned from 
 their evil purposes, and hearing that the 
 apostles were teaching in the temple, they 
 sent the captain of the temple with his of- 
 ficers to bring them to trial. The significant 
 statement is made that they brought the 
 apostles mthout violence, because they feared 
 the people. In that brief statement is re- 
 vealed the respect the rulers have for the 
 voice of the people. The people have only 
 to make their voice heard to be guaranteed 
 a hearing from the rulers. Eeforms in his- 
 tory have frequently been the result of the 
 voice of the people. Corruption exists 
 largely because the people do not assert 
 themselves and let their voice be heard. It 
 may be accepted as a law that when the 
 people speak with a positive voice, the rulers 
 will listen and heed. 
 
 The trial of the prisoners began. Jesus 
 had taught these men that they should be 
 230 
 
PETER IN PEISON. 
 
 brought before the councils for His sake, but 
 that he that endured to the end should be 
 saved. That prophecy was here fulfilled, and 
 Peter in this case indicated that he intended 
 to be one of the saved because he was faithful 
 to the uttermost. 
 
 The charge brought against the apostles 
 was, that in spite of the warning of the high 
 priest they had continued to teach the gospel 
 of Jesus. The evident purpose of the arrest 
 was that the apostles might be so intimi- 
 dated that they would cease their preaching 
 and teaching. But that they were not to be 
 thus frightened from their work was shown 
 by the position taken by Peter. That posi- 
 tion was revealed in the simple declaration, 
 ^'We ought to obey God rather than man." 
 Peter then followed that declaration of prin- 
 ciple with a sermon. It was a sermon worthy 
 of study. The Bible student is struck by the 
 similarity between this sermon and the one 
 preached by Peter on the day of Pentecost. 
 Preachers are sometimes criticised to-day for 
 repeating a sermon, but there is a precedent 
 for such a practice in the case of Peter. This 
 sermon was almost a repetition of the one at 
 Pentecost. The two were built up on prac- 
 231 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 tically the same outline. The points made 
 in the former sermon were: the people had 
 killed the Son of God; God had raised Him 
 from the dead ; God had highly exalted Him ; 
 Jesus was the only means of pardon and sal- 
 vation. Exactly the same points are made 
 here, though not in exactly the same order. 
 (Acts 5:30-32.) 
 
 The two sermons are, therefore, similar 
 in substance. Peter, however, in this sermon 
 emphasized an additional point, namely, that 
 the apostles were witnesses of these things 
 together with the Holy Ghost. Being wit- 
 nesses, they must speak. This was Peter's 
 argument. It meant that the injunction of 
 the high priest and his followers was not to 
 be heeded. The result may be easily imag- 
 ined. The persecutors were angered and 
 sought to slay Peter and liis companions. 
 One thing transpired, however, to save them. 
 It was the logic of Gamaliel, an ancient doc- 
 tor of the law, held in high esteem among 
 the people. The argument briefly stated was 
 that the court should not concern itself un- 
 duly about the apostles for the reason that 
 if their work was of man, it would naturally 
 come to naught as other similar movements 
 232 
 
PETER IN PRISON. 
 
 had done. Bnt if the work were of God, it 
 could not be overthrown, and it would only 
 be fighting against the will of God to attempt 
 it. This logic prevailed, and after the 
 apostles had been beaten and commanded to 
 teach no more in the name of Jesus, they 
 were liberated. The logic of Gamaliel is good 
 to apply in all cases where the question of 
 the value of certain religious movements 
 arises. False theories may be advanced ; ob- 
 jectionable movements may be started. But 
 the Christian worker need not worry unduly. 
 If God is not in them, the theories and move- 
 ments will come to naught. If God is in them, 
 they must live. 
 
 The result of this persecution against 
 Peter and the apostles is revealed in the 
 words, "They ceased not to teach and to 
 preach Jesus Christ." The persecution was 
 fruitless. Never has violence been the means 
 of checking Christianity in its marvelous 
 growth through the years. The result of 
 such a method has always been the same 
 as in this case, namely, increased strength 
 for the oppressed cause. Those early ex- 
 periences of the apostles were, therefore, 
 prophetic in a twofold way. 
 233 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 First, tliey were prophetic of the per- 
 petual opposition that awaited the cause of 
 Christ. Never has Christianity been free 
 from opposition. Christianity means a cru- 
 sade for right in the highest sense. A cru- 
 sade for the right always provokes opposi- 
 tion. Sometimes the opposition will come 
 from those of whom it is least expected, but 
 it will come. If the ancient apostle received 
 his opposition in the manner then in vogue, 
 the modern disciple will receive his after the 
 manner of his day, though the manner be 
 vastly changed. Modern opposition is more 
 subtle, but it is as real. It does not incur 
 the risk of life, but it incurs the risk of prin- 
 ciple. It demands again the spirit that can 
 say, **We ought to obey God rather than 
 men. ' * 
 
 Second, these experiences were prophetic 
 of the perpetual success that awaited the 
 cause of Christ. It is an apparent truth that 
 kites rise against and not with the wind. 
 So has it been with Christianity. Her oppo- 
 sition has been the opportunity for her rise. 
 To the Christian who knows the history of 
 the past there is no discouragement in the 
 fact that opposition exists. Jesus Himself 
 234 
 
PETER IN PRISON. 
 
 foretold that condition. But He likewise 
 foretold that His cause should prevail until 
 every tongue should confess Him Lord. In 
 Browning's ''Pippa Passes" there is an ex- 
 pression used which expresses the faith 
 which every Christian ought to possess, de- 
 spite opposition and hardships, and the faith 
 which all the history of God's Kingdom in 
 the past fully justifies: 
 
 "God 's in His heaven — 
 
 All 's right with the world 1" 
 
 ^'T 
 
 u -u*. 
 
 235 
 
CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 PETER IN SAMARIA. 
 
 The imprisonment of Peter, which was pre- 
 sented in the last chapter, was followed by 
 two or three important incidents, according 
 to the account given by Luke. The Church 
 membership increased rapidly, and new needs 
 arose with the increased membersliip. Col- 
 lections for the poor were needed, and were 
 taken and distributed among the unfortu- 
 nate. This charitable work grew to such di- 
 mensions that it was impossible for the 
 apostles to attend to it and also to do the 
 work of the ministry. Their conviction was 
 that they should attend to the spiritual part 
 of the Church work, but that others should 
 be chosen to look after the temporal affairs, 
 or as they expressed it, to serve at tables. 
 Certain assistants were therefore chosen, 
 whose duty it was to aid in spreading the 
 gospel by managing the temporal affairs con- 
 nected with the Church life, while the 
 apostles were left free to preach the Word 
 236 
 
PETER IN SAMARIA. 
 
 and attend to the spiritual work. These as- 
 sistants were seven in number and were 
 called deacons. Among the seven were two 
 whose names are important, Stephen and 
 Pliilip. Stephen's career seems to have been 
 a short one. Because of his aggressiveness 
 he received the bitterest opposition from the 
 enemies of Christianity, and was finally tried 
 and stoned to death. Dr. Parker, of London, 
 once called attention to the fact that this 
 grave of Stephen was the second one dug thus 
 far in the history of the Christian Church. 
 The first one held the remains of Sapphira 
 and Ananias. In the first lay victims smitten 
 by God's thunderbolts because of their hy- 
 pocrisy. In the second lay a faithful dis- 
 ciple smitten by the anger of men because 
 of loyalty to God. Over the first no tears 
 were shed. Over the second loud lamenta- 
 tions were made by saintly men. Sapphira 
 and Ananias died with the blackness of de- 
 spair in their faces, and fell into hopeless 
 graves. Stephen died with a divine light on 
 his countenance, which made it appear like 
 an angel's face, and he was laid away in a 
 grave bright with hope. Those two graves, 
 as extreme as they are, mark the destinies of 
 237 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 all men. The grave of the unfaithful or th* 
 grave of the loyal will be the destiny of 
 every man. The character of the present is 
 determining the grave of the future. From 
 the grave of the future will grow the flower 
 of eternal destiny — the destiny of salvation 
 or of destruction. 
 
 Following the death of Stephen, a gen- 
 eral persecution was begun against the 
 Church at Jerusalem, insomuch that its mem- 
 bers were forced to scatter abroad among 
 the neighboring provinces and cities. The 
 scattering, however, was only a means of 
 spreading the new gospel, and thus the per- 
 secution, which was intended as an injury, 
 proved to be a friend to the new cause, aiding 
 in its advancement. Philip, whose name in 
 importance stands side by side with Ste- 
 phen's, was evidently driven by this perse- 
 cution to the city of Samaria. This city lay 
 about forty miles northward from Jerusalem. 
 It will be remembered that the Samaritans 
 were a mixed race of people, foreign blood 
 having been mixed vnih and made to pre- 
 dominate over the Jewish. The Samaritans 
 had adopted the Jewish religion, but had 
 mortally offended the Jews by establishing 
 238 
 
PETER IN SAMAEIA. 
 
 an independent priesthood and form of wor- 
 ship. These people did not possess all the 
 religions prejudices of the Jews, hence could 
 more readily accept the teachings of the new 
 sect of Christians. We are not surprised, 
 therefore, to discover that Philip had great 
 success in Samaria. The account says that 
 the multitude gave heed with one accord when 
 they heard Philip and saw the signs he per- 
 formed. Many believed and were baptized. 
 When the apostles back at Jerusalem heard 
 that the people of Samaria had believed and 
 received the gospel, they sent a delegation of 
 their own number to that city to care for 
 the new converts and continue the work. 
 This action on the part of the apostles was 
 the part of wisdom and showed their desire 
 that the growth of the gospel might become 
 permanent. 
 
 The delegation sent to Samaria was com- 
 posed of Peter and John. We have reason 
 to believe that these two men were the choice 
 of the apostles to carry on the work in 
 Samaria, inasmuch as the account says the 
 apostles sent them. There was in all proba- 
 bility a meeting called and a discussion of 
 the men to be sent. The mission was an im- 
 239 
 
THE EXALTED FISHEEMAN. 
 
 portant one, and the sense of the apostles 
 was that the proper ones to be sent were 
 those two men, who had stood so close to 
 Jesus in His life, and who had become so 
 prominent in the work of His Kingdom since 
 His departure. So Peter and John, those 
 two who had for so long been bosom friends, 
 were sent. 
 
 The significance of this mission should be 
 noted. Here were two Jews sent by Jews to 
 minister to formerly despised Gentiles. The 
 Jews had a contempt for all Gentiles, but 
 especially for the Samaritans. The bitter 
 feeling existing between the Jews and the 
 Samaritans may be understood by recalling 
 the conversation between Jesus and the 
 woman of Samaria at the well of Sychar. 
 When Jesus asked a drink of the woman, she 
 was surprised and said, ' ' How it is that Thou 
 . . . being a Jew, asketh a drink of me ... 
 for the Jews have no dealings with the Sa- 
 maritans ? ' ' And when the disciples returned 
 and found Jesus talking with the woman 
 they, too, were surprised, and marveled at the 
 sight. Prejudice in the case was deep-seated. 
 Yet in spite of the old hatred we here see two 
 of the very disciples who had marveled going 
 240 
 
PETER IN SAMARIA. 
 
 to those same despised Samaritans to minis- 
 ter to them. What was the cause of this great 
 change? Now the wall of partition between 
 the Jews and other nations was broken down. 
 How had it happened? The secret was that 
 these men had caught so much of the spirit/ 
 of the Master that their prejudices had been 
 removed and they were willing that the bene- 
 fits of the gospel should be received by the 
 Gentiles as well as themselves. Herein we 
 see the inevitable effect of the possession of 
 the spirit of Jesus. It reduces our pride, 
 destroys our prejudices, places unfortunate 
 people in favor before us, and makes us feel 
 that in spite of poverty, position, or misfor- 
 tune, all men are our brothers. 
 
 It is important to notice the work of these 
 delegates to Samaria. Two special features 
 of their work are prominently mentioned. 
 The first is the invoking of the Holy Spirit. 
 
 We meet a strange fact here. The Samar- 
 itans were converted and were baptized, but 
 had not yet received the Holy Spirit — in His 
 fullness, at least. This fact is suggestive 
 and likewise destructive to some theories fre- 
 quently held. It shows that there is no es- 
 sential relation between baptism and the gift 
 
 '' 241 
 
THE EXALTED FISHEBMAN. 
 
 of the Holy Spirit. It is sometimes claimed 
 that baptism is the act by which the Holy 
 Spirit is given. But here is a case where 
 many were baptized and the Spirit was not 
 given. A little later we shall see that in 
 Ceesarea certain ones were converted and re- 
 ceived the Holy Spirit without being bap- 
 tized. Hence we have both extremes, bap- 
 tism without the Holy Spirit and the Holy 
 Spirit without baptism. There can, there- 
 fore, be no essential relation between the two. 
 More than baptism by water is necessary 
 to fit one for discipleship. Baptism by the 
 Holy Spirit is also needed. If, as we are 
 sometimes told, baptism is the great essen- 
 tial, why should there have been in this case 
 an invoking of the Spirit? It would be diffi- 
 cult to find a stronger statement of the in- 
 sufficiency of baptism than the one made in 
 connection with this case, ''Only they had 
 been baptized into the name of the Lord 
 Jesus." They had ''only" been baptized. 
 The words leave the impression that they 
 had merely begun the Christian life. Such 
 was the case. Only the first steps had been 
 taken. A greater stop was to follow, and that 
 step was the reception of the Holy Spirit. 
 242 
 
PETER IN SAMARIA. 
 
 The importance of the gift of the Holy 
 Spirit is here\\T.th suggested. The account 
 says they received the Holy Spirit, which 
 means that the Spirit was received in a spe- 
 cial way. They had, it is true, been influ- 
 enced by the Holy Spirit in conversion, and 
 in that sense had received Him. It was by 
 the influence of the Holy Spirit that they 
 had been convicted, made to believe, and 
 commit their lives to Jesus Christ. But the 
 reception of the Spirit spoken of here is the 
 special reception which we may call the bap- 
 tism for service. It was very customary in 
 the early Church for the new convert to re- 
 ceive some gift of the Spirit fitting him for 
 service. Such gifts as those of tongues, 
 prophecies, or teaching were received. The 
 thought impressed by these facts is that dis- 
 ciples of Jesus are born into the Kingdom 
 to serve, and need the gift of the Holy Spirit 
 to that end. The modern Church too fre- 
 quently fails at this point. If the Church 
 to-day insisted on a complete surrender to 
 God, and anointing of the Holy Spirit for 
 service, she would be a greater power than 
 she is. A Church without the Holy Spirit 
 is like an engine without steam. The engine 
 243 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 may be beautiful and perfect in its mechan- 
 ism, but it will be useless because it lacks 
 power. So with the Church ignoring the 
 power of the Spirit. 
 
 The second feature in the work of these 
 delegates to Samaria was the teaching of the 
 right motive in service. The case of Simon 
 the sorcerer furnished the opportunity for 
 this lesson. Simon was one who had believed 
 and been baptized, as we suppose, in good 
 faith. However, some of his old nature still 
 clung to him. He had formerly by the use 
 of magic assumed to be some great one, and 
 had commanded a large following. But when 
 he saw the work of Peter and John, he recog- 
 nized superiors and knew that these men ex- 
 ercised powers which he did not possess. 
 When he saw that by the laying on of hands 
 the apostles gave the Holy Ghost, he con- 
 cluded that he might purchase the power at 
 a price. Hence he proposed to Peter that 
 for a sum of money there might be trans- 
 ferred to liim the power of giving the Holy 
 Ghost. Observe that his motive was not that 
 he might glorify God by the use of the power, 
 but rather that he might be able to grant the 
 power of the Holy Spirit to whom he would. 
 244 
 
PETER IN SAMARIA. 
 
 Ill other words, there would be both money 
 and honor for him in the possession of the 
 power. By giving to others the power of 
 the Spirit he could receive large sums of 
 money, as he did formerly with his sorcery. 
 Also he would receive a large following and 
 be looked upon with great favor. Thus 
 Simon reasoned. 
 
 It was because of the wickedness of Si- 
 mon's motive that Peter replied as he did, 
 "Thy silver perish with thee because thou 
 hast thought to obtain the gift of God with 
 money." Not only was the motive of Simon 
 wrong, but he had an erroneous notion of 
 the method of obtaining the gift of the Spirit. 
 He thought to buy it with a price. He did 
 not know that the currency that passes with 
 God is not gold or silver, but faith. God's 
 standard is not the gold standard or the 
 silver standard, but the faith standard. 
 Simon's judgment was not right. But worst 
 of all, his heart was not right. His motive 
 was wrong. 
 
 Herein lies a very important lesson. It 
 
 is extremely easy to become possessed of a 
 
 wrong motive in working for God. It is 
 
 easy to be enthusiastic when we think our 
 
 245 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 enthusiasm will bring us some profit in the 
 way of honor or money. We become willing 
 to give a large sum of money to the Church 
 if we think everybody will know about it and 
 compliment us for it. We are willing to toil 
 earnestly if we think the people will consider 
 us some great one because of the burden we 
 bear. But in such cases the motive would 
 certainly be wrong. It is self and not God 
 Avho is served when such motives control. 
 We need to be careful of our motives. If 
 we find them wrong, there is need to apply 
 an immediate remedy. That remedy is sug- 
 gested in the context, in the requirements 
 Peter made of Simon. There were two re- 
 quirements, repentance and prayer. 
 
 The first requirement Peter made of 
 Simon was, ''Repent of this thy wickedness." 
 The discovery of sin must always be fol- 
 lowed by repentance if pardon is to be re- 
 ceived and if the life is to be made right. 
 If the human soul could see the sorrow 
 caused the Divine Heart because of its sin, 
 a corresponding sorrow w^ould be aroused 
 within, which would be relieved only by a 
 complete turning from all wrong. 
 
 But in addition Peter said, ''Pray God if 
 246 
 
PETER IN SAMARIA. 
 
 perhaps the thought of thy heart may be for- 
 given thee." Prayer for forgiveness must 
 follow repentance. Prayer must precede 
 pardon and restoration to divine favor. The 
 prayer for pardon and mercy is the pathway 
 to peace. The cry of the publican, ''God, be 
 merciful to me a sinner," is the forerunner 
 of the justified and happy life. A missionary 
 tells of a Hottentot in South Africa who was 
 living with the family of a Dutchman whose 
 custom it was to have family prayers. The 
 Hottentot was stricken with a sense of sin, 
 and while in that condition one morning his 
 master read the parable of the Pharisee and 
 the publican. "Two men went up into the 
 temple to pray." The Hottentot whispered, 
 ' ' Now I '11 learn how to pray. ' ' The Dutch- 
 man read, ' ' God, I thank Thee that I am not 
 as other men." "No, I am not, but worse," 
 said the Hottentot. The Dutchman contin- 
 ued, "I fast twice a week and give tithes of 
 all I possess. ' ' The Hottentot said, " I do n 't 
 do that; how can I pray!" But the Dutch- 
 man read on about the publican, who did not 
 so much as lift up his eyes to heaven. 
 "That 's me," whispered the poor Hottentot. 
 "Stood afar off," read the other. "That 's 
 247 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 where I am," said the Hottentot. ''But 
 smote upon his breast, sajdng, 'God, be merci- 
 ful to me a sinner.' " The African jumped 
 up and cried: "That 's me. That 's my 
 prayer." And smiting his troubled breast, 
 he groaned, "God, be merciful to me a sin- 
 ner. ' ' And it is said that, like the publican, 
 the poor African went to his house a justified 
 and happy man. For all conscious wrong the 
 true remedy is that given by Peter — Peter, 
 who had passed the way of tears and peni- 
 tence: "Repent — Pray God." 
 
 248 
 
CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 PETER AT LYDDA AND JOPPA. 
 
 Between the event discussed in tlie last chap- 
 ter and the one to be presented in this chap- 
 ter a new character appears in the history 
 of the Church. This character appears as a 
 star which is to shine brighter and brighter 
 in the history of the early Church until all 
 the others are eclipsed by it. It is Saul of 
 Tarsus, soon to be known as Paul the Apostle. 
 Up to this time Peter has been the central 
 figure in the history of the Christian Church, 
 but this new star has arisen to outshine him. 
 The narrative of the conversion of Saul 
 brings this new character into prominence. 
 Saul increases in prominence, and as he does 
 so Peter begins to decrease. He finally drops 
 from sight so far as the account in the Book 
 of Acts is concerned. But before he finally 
 disappears from view there are two or three 
 interesting glimpses of him given by Luke. 
 To one of these our attention is now directed, 
 namely, to the miracles at Lydda and Joppa. 
 249 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 This is not the first time that Peter has 
 been presented as a miracle worker. His first 
 miracle was the healing of the lame man at 
 the Gate Beautiful. Then occurred the heal- 
 ing of the afflicted people by his shadow pass- 
 ing over them. In Lydda and Joppa we see 
 Peter again in the role of a miracle worker. 
 In this latter case the miraculous power is 
 carried to the highest possible degree, that 
 of raising the dead. 
 
 The event at Lydda is narrated in four 
 short verses in the ninth chapter of Acts, be- 
 ginning with the thirty-second verse. The 
 expression, ''As Peter passed through all 
 quarters," seems to imply that he had been 
 continuing his missionary labors and was 
 probably acting as a general overseer of the 
 Christian communities. This fact is another 
 mark of the prominence w^hich Peter held 
 even up to this time, and shows that until 
 the appearance of Paul, no one had exercised 
 more influence than he in the early Church. 
 
 In the course of these missionary jour- 
 neys Peter came down to Lydda. Lydda was 
 at that time a city of considerable impor- 
 tance, lying about twenty-five miles north- 
 west of Jerusalem. The Word of God had 
 250 
 
PETER AT LYDDA AND JOPPA. 
 
 already been preached there, for ^'saints" 
 or Christians were dwelling there when Peter 
 arrived. Among these believers was one 
 named ^neas, who was an invalid afflicted 
 with the palsy. The sufferer had been unable 
 to walk for a period of eight years. Him 
 Peter healed of his affliction. The account 
 of the healing is given in a few words, with- 
 out any attempt to describe details. There 
 is nothing more remarkable in this miracle 
 than many others recorded before, and others 
 perhaps never recorded, so the question 
 arises as to why this miracle is mentioned 
 at all. It could not have been merely to re- 
 veal the power of Christ to heal, for that 
 power had been revealed over and over. This 
 case is mentioned perhaps to reveal the spirit 
 the followers of Christ should have with 
 reference to those who suffer. It will be 
 noticed that this healing is voluntary on 
 Peter's part. In other cases we usually find 
 the afflicted one crying for help. The lame 
 man at the Gate Beautiful stopped Peter and 
 John and asked an alms of them. The af- 
 flicted one usually made the advance. But 
 in the case now before us Peter makes the 
 advance and says, '*-^neas, Jesus Christ 
 251 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 maketli thee wliole : rise and make thy bed. ' ' 
 It is an act revealing the true Christ-spirit. 
 It is a spirit not willing that any one should 
 suffer needlessly. Peter's act was equivalent 
 to saying, *'^neas, Jesus Christ doesn't 
 want a mortal to suffer as you do, but offers 
 healing. ' ' Such is the real attitude of Christ 
 toward His people. He is in sjnipathetic 
 relation with each of His followers, rejoicing 
 in their joys and sorrowing with them in 
 their griefs. This is the sympathy of feeling 
 that should exist among His followers. This 
 spirit of offering relief is the spirit His fol- 
 lowers ought to exhibit. 
 
 This act of Peter was not only voluntary, 
 but unselfish as well. Peter did not say, *'I 
 make you whole." He said, ''Jesus Christ 
 maketh you whole." He did not seek any 
 glory for himself, but gave it all to the Lord. 
 This is a valuable lesson for all Christians 
 to learn. The most effective way of doing 
 Christian work is to allow self to sink com- 
 pletely out of sight while the Master and the 
 interests of His Kingdom are pushed to the 
 front. The more self is out of sight, the more 
 Christ will be in sight. The more self is for- 
 gotten, the more one thinks to do for the 
 252 
 
PETER AT LYDDA AND JOPPA. 
 
 Master. Mark Guy Pearse says that he once 
 saw an old man fishing for trout and pull- 
 ing out the beautiful fish with surprising 
 regularity. He approached the old gentle- 
 man and said : "You manage it very cleverly, 
 my friend. I have passed several down the 
 stream who don't seem to be catching any- 
 thing. ' ' The old man stuck his rod into the 
 ground and replied: "Well, you see, sir, 
 there are three rules for catching trout, and 
 't is no good trying if you do n 't mind them. 
 The first is, keep yourself out of sight. The 
 second is, keep yourself further out of sight. 
 The third is, keep yourself still further out 
 of sight. Then you '11 catch them." Mr. 
 Pearse says that as he walked away from 
 the old man he said to himself, "Good rules 
 for catching men, too. ' ' And it is true. The 
 best rule for successful Christian work is to 
 keep self out of sight and keep Christ to the 
 front. If the Christ is to increase, the dis- 
 ciple must decrease. 
 
 The effect of this miracle by Peter was 
 very pronounced. "All that dwelt in Lydda 
 and Saron . . . returned to the Lord." 
 Saron, spoken of elsewhere as Sharon, was 
 a fertile plain extending for a distance of 
 253 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 thirty miles along the shore of the Mediter- 
 ranean Sea. It was the country producing 
 the flowers spoken of in the Bible as the roses 
 of Sharon. The result of Peter's miracle was 
 that not only the people of Lydda, but the 
 people of the plain of Sharon believed in 
 Jesus Christ. They believed because of what 
 they had seen and heard. It is ever true that 
 the more the spirit of Christ is seen, the 
 more the people will desire Him. He who 
 would magnify Jesus should strive to reflect 
 His spirit through the daily life. 
 
 The second miracle mentioned in this con- 
 nection occurred at Joppa. Joppa was a sea- 
 port town on the Mediterannean, about ten 
 miles northwest of Lydda. In that town lived 
 a good woman who was much loved because 
 of deeds of charity. The woman, Tabitha by 
 name, though better known as Dorcas, was a 
 believer in Christ. Dorcas was taken seri- 
 ously sick wliile Peter was yet in Lydda, and 
 to the sorrow of her many friends the sick- 
 ness resulted in death. The sorrowing 
 friends, hearing that Peter was in Lydda, 
 sent to him urging him to come immediately 
 to Joppa. With much more detail than was 
 given in the case of the miracle at Lydda, the 
 254 
 
PETER AT LYDDA AND JOPPA. 
 
 account tells us how Peter hurried to Joppa, 
 came into the presence of the dead woman, 
 and, having put the weeping friends out of 
 the room, by prayer and faith restored the 
 dead to life. 
 
 As has been pointed out, this was the 
 climax of the miracles of Peter. The raising 
 of the dead to life is the climax of all mir- 
 acles. It was the climax of the miracles of 
 Jesus Christ. When we see Peter exercising 
 this marvelous power and by its use placing 
 himself by the side of his Master, we see the 
 supreme testimony to the completeness of his 
 transformation. On the night of denial Peter 
 had not enough power to refrain from lies 
 and blasphemy. Now he has enough power 
 to raise the dead to life. Pentecost has come 
 between. 
 
 Without attempting to notice the details 
 of this miracle, it will yet be profitable to 
 observe some of its practical suggestions. 
 Three of these are given here as worthy of 
 consideration : 
 
 1. The usefulness of a good man to his 
 fellow-men. They sent for Peter. He was 
 ten miles away. There were other Christian 
 men in Joppa, but they wanted Peter. They 
 
 255 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 knew that he was a man of God who could 
 help them in their distress. It is a splendid 
 thing to be so good and so trusted that others 
 feel that you can help them in time of need. 
 It is a compliment of the highest type to be 
 sent for to bring consolation to those who 
 suffer. It is a compliment, however, which 
 every Christian ought to merit. 
 
 It is well that there are Christian friends 
 who can help in time of need, but it is better 
 still that there is a Divine Friend who may 
 be called upon by every distressed soul, even 
 Christ the Son of God. His presence is more 
 valuable than that of even the good man of 
 God. He is the best Friend in joy or sorrow. 
 When Robert G. Ingersoll died, his wife was 
 prostrated with grief and refused to be con- 
 soled. She could not bear the thought of 
 giving up the body for cremation, but wanted 
 to keep the lifeless clay as long as possible. 
 Her mourning was hopeless. The separation 
 was for her an eternal one, and hence no con- 
 solation could be offered. But if the mourn- 
 ing woman could have taken the Son of God 
 by faith for her Friend, she would have re- 
 ceived consolation for her troubled heart and 
 Avould have found the grace of the Lord suf- 
 256 
 
PETER AT LYDDA AND JOPPA. 
 
 ficient. The best Friend to send for in time 
 of trouble is Jesus the Comforter. 
 
 2. The influence of a good life lives after 
 the life has ended. Though dead, Dorcas still 
 lived in the lives of those whom she had be- 
 friended. One of the most touching scenes 
 depicted in the Word is that of those women 
 standing over the corpse with tears in their 
 eyes and with anguish written in their faces, 
 holding in their hands the garments those 
 dead hands had made. By their actions the 
 women were saying that though the body 
 must disappear, they would yet keep and 
 value the mementos the body had touched. 
 It is strange how some object otherwise all 
 but worthless will suddenly become very val- 
 uable when one who used it or touched it 
 has gone away never to return. A pair of 
 baby shoes, a lock of hair, an old book, or 
 a withered flower will often tell the story of 
 a life which though now gone is still making 
 its impression on other lives. Dorcas was 
 a good woman and had left a good impres- 
 sion on all who knew her. Those whom she 
 had befriended were now attempting to show 
 their love for their benefactor by fondly dis- 
 playing the garments she had made for them. 
 
 " 257 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 It pays to live such a life that others by it 
 are influenced for good. Such a life is a 
 blessing to itself and to others while it lives, 
 and after it is gone it "will still continue to 
 be of blessed memory to many. After the 
 body of Daniel Webster had been laid to rest 
 an admiring friend was accustomed to visit 
 his grave, and upon one occasion, while 
 wringing his hands in sorrow, the friend was 
 heard to exclaim, '^0 Daniel Webster, the 
 world is lonesome without you." The aim 
 of every true life should be to live so help- 
 fully that after it is gone there will be a sense 
 of infinite loss felt in the community from 
 which it departs. 
 
 3. The secret of usefulness is in com- 
 munion ivith God. Peter prayed. He prayed 
 alone. There are times when one needs to 
 be alone with God. Peter felt such a need 
 at this time. He was facing the most difficult 
 task he ever faced, that of raising the dead 
 to life. He knew his source of strength was 
 in God. So he prayed. It would be well for 
 every disciple to learn the lesson of depend- 
 ence as well as Peter had learned it. He 
 learned his lesson by bitter experience. Not 
 
 258 
 
PETER AT LYDDA AND JOPPA. 
 
 all will have the bitter experience, but the 
 lesson needs to be learned. When a great 
 trial comes, or a crisis is faced, the source of 
 strength is the Lord. The life that then looks 
 to God through prayer and dwells with Him 
 by private communion will be the victorious 
 life. 
 
 Observe, however, that Peter did more 
 than pray. He rose from his knees to act. 
 He put to service the power he had taken 
 from the altar of prayer. He said to the 
 dead woman, "Tabitha, arise." The woman 
 opened her eyes, and when she saw Peter she 
 sat up, and he presented her alive to her 
 friends. It was a marvelous deed ; the climax 
 of all Peter's acts. But again we need to 
 remark that it was not Peter who did the 
 miracle, but the Lord working through Peter. 
 The preparation of Peter as the agency for 
 the miracle was completed on his knees in 
 the act of prayer. He who would be power- 
 ful in life must be fervent in prayer. 
 
 The closing verse of this narrative re- 
 veals something of the sanctifying influence 
 of the spirit of Christ upon a life. The state- 
 ment is made that Peter tarried many days 
 259 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 with one Simon a tanner. There is a world 
 of meaning in that verse. It shows that a 
 mighty stop in breaking down Jewish preju- 
 dice had been taken in the life of Peter. A 
 tanner was looked upon as one unclean by 
 the Jews because of his business. He was 
 therefore shunned by the average Jew. Yet 
 here was Peter stopping with a tanner. He 
 could not have done that a few months before. 
 If such a thing had been suggested, he would 
 have taken it as an insult. But now he is 
 different. The spirit of Christ has been 
 working in his nature and he is greatlj^ 
 changed. Only once after this do we see even 
 a glimpse of the former spirit displayed, and 
 that is when Paul censured Peter for reveal- 
 ing a little Jewish prejudice at Antioch. But 
 old things are now passing away. The spirit 
 of love and brotherhood is now filling him. 
 Such is always the effect of the spirit of 
 Christ on the life. It creates an interest in 
 and a love for all. He who shuns another 
 because he is poor or ignorant, or because 
 he happens to be unfortunate, has not the 
 spirit of Christ. The Christ-spirit loves and 
 helps all. Before one becomes useful in the 
 
 260 
 
PETER AT LYDDA AND JOPPA. 
 
 largest degree lie must possess that spirit. 
 A splendid liint as to the manner of obtaining 
 it is seen in this case of Peter. Such prayer 
 and work as characterized his life at this 
 time will result in the possession of the true 
 Christ-spirit. 
 
 261 
 
CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 PETER AND CORNELIUS. 
 
 The decline of Jewish prejudice in the life 
 of Peter was evidenced, as was stated in the 
 last chapter, by the fact of his lodging with 
 Simon the tanner. Another evidence of that 
 decline was seen in the case of Peter's deal- 
 ing with Cornelius. The experience with 
 Simon, however, was a preparation for the 
 experience with Cornelius, hence should be 
 noticed carefully. The greatness of Peter's 
 condescension in stopping at the house of 
 Simon the tanner is seen in observing the 
 condition of the latter as viewed from the 
 Jewish standpoint. Simon was of a class 
 much despised by the Jews. His residence 
 was by the seaside, because a tanner was 
 obliged by law to have his place of business 
 at least fifty cubits from the limits of a town. 
 Simon evidently had his business in connec- 
 tion with his residence by the seaside. The 
 tanner was looked upon with such contempt 
 that special regulations were passed for his 
 262 . 
 
PETER AND CORNELIUS. 
 
 control. If a tanner married without inform- 
 ing his intended Avif e of the nature of his busi- 
 ness, that fact alone was sufficient ground 
 for a divorce. The Jews had a law requiring 
 the childless widow to marry a brother of her 
 deceased husband. But if that brother hap- 
 pened to be a tanner, the law was set aside 
 by that fact. There was a gulf fixed between 
 the tanner and good Jewish society. Yet here 
 we find Peter overleaping all these prejudices 
 and lodging with Simon the tanner. Like one 
 presenting an interesting drama, the author 
 of Acts ushers Peter into the home of Simon 
 and then drops the curtain upon the scene. 
 But the events behind the scene helped pre- 
 pare the way for another soon to follow. 
 
 When the curtain rises again the scene 
 has shifted to the city of Caesarea. This was 
 a city of considerable importance, situated 
 on the shore of the Mediterranean Sea, about 
 thirty miles north of Joppa and seventy miles 
 northwest of Jerusalem. Josephus called it 
 a city of palaces. Its magnificence was due 
 to Herod the Great, who built and named it 
 after Caesar Augustus. According to Jo- 
 sephus, Herod ** built it all of white stone, 
 adorned it with most splendid palaces and 
 263 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 . . . with a harbor that was at all times 
 free from the waves of the sea." The in- 
 habitants of the city were largely Gentiles, 
 though there were some Jews there. The 
 Greek language was the one in common use. 
 This city under the Romans became the home 
 of the procurators and the headquarters of 
 the Roman troops stationed in Judea. In 
 this city lived Cornelius, the Roman cen- 
 turion, who is the cliief figure in the incident 
 now before us. 
 
 In Peter's experience with Cornelius we 
 have presented an instance of the mysterious 
 way in which the providence of God some- 
 times moves to perform its wonders. In the 
 providence of God the time had now arrived 
 when the door of salvation was to be thrown 
 open to the Gentiles as well as the Jews. 
 Peter and Cornelius were agencies through 
 which Providence worked, but the method 
 employed was that of the mysterious visions 
 sent to both men. Before going further into 
 the incident, it will be well to notice the char- 
 acter of Cornelius. 
 
 It is one of the incongruities of human 
 life that characters are sometimes found 
 completely out of harmony with their en- 
 264 
 
PETER AND CORNELIUS. 
 
 vironments. History reveals men in advance 
 of their age. Men are often found who in 
 disposition and in culture are far beyond 
 their surroundings. Cornelius was a man of 
 this kind. He was a Roman, but far ahead 
 of the average Roman in morality and re- 
 ligion. He was ahead of the average J6w 
 also in these same respects. He is described 
 in the Word as being "a devout man and 
 one who feared God with all his house, which 
 gave much alms to the people, and prayed to 
 God alway. ' ' Cornelius was an officer in the 
 Roman army, occupying the position of a 
 centurion. A centurion was a commander of 
 one hundred men, the company being called 
 a century. Two centuries were united to 
 form a band. Cornelius was one of the cen- 
 turions of the band called the Italian band, 
 a body of two hundred men. Three bands 
 were united in the Roman army to form a 
 cohort, this being a body of six hundred men. 
 Ten cohorts formed the famous Roman 
 legion, which marched six thousand strong. 
 
 While occupying the position of a stern 
 warrior, Cornelius was yet a devout man. 
 The word ** devout" as used in this connec- 
 tion implies, as is indicated by the original 
 265 
 
THE EXiU^TED FISHERMAN. 
 
 Greek word, a genuine piety. In spite of a 
 position that was calculated to produce any- 
 thing but piety, Cornelius was deeply re- 
 ligious. This fact is significant. It suggests 
 the possibility of religious character irre- 
 spective of environment. Cornelius was liv- 
 ing in a very trying place for a godly man. 
 He was a victim of those environments so 
 common to the life of a soldier. In this land 
 in time of war many a loving mother has sent 
 her stainless boy to the army and into the 
 field, only to have him returned to her later 
 all corrupted by the practices of army life. 
 Sin surrounds the camp of the soldier usu- 
 ally. Cornelius lived in the midst of such 
 surroundings as corrupt life. He was doubt- 
 less subject, too, to some persecutions be- 
 cause of his faith. It must be remembered 
 that Cornelius was a Roman. He would 
 naturally be expected to be a supporter of 
 the Roman religion, and offer his prayers to 
 Jupiter or some unknown heathen god. But 
 he had cut loose from the Roman religion and 
 was offering his prayers to the God of the 
 Jews. He feared God with all his house and 
 prayed to God alway, the account says. This 
 might easily be considered an act of disloy- 
 266 
 
PETER AND jCORNELIUS. 
 
 alty from the standpoint of the Romans, and 
 because of it Cornelius might have suffered 
 some persecution from Roman hands. Nev- 
 ertheless, we find him true to God and devout 
 in his life. He led a religious life in irre- 
 ligious surroundings. 
 
 A Christian life can be lived anjnvhere. 
 The assertion is sometimes made that it is 
 impossible to live a Christian life in a cer- 
 tain business or in a certain place. Such a 
 statement is an excuse offered to justify a 
 shameful absence of moral courage. There 
 are certain trying places in which, because 
 of moral weakness, men fail to maintain a 
 Christian life. But their failure does not 
 justify the claim that the Christian life can 
 not be lived there. The Christian life can 
 be lived in any sort of surroundings. That 
 fact has been proven over and over. But if 
 such a life is lived, there are some require- 
 ments that must be met. Two of these are 
 worthy of emphasis : 
 
 First, there must be the spirit and cour- 
 age of perseverance. That is the spirit that 
 wins elsewhere. Grit in the Christian life is 
 as essential as in any other phase of life. No 
 man can expect to become great in learning 
 267 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 without making an heroic effort. Lincoln 
 reading by the light of pine knots, and Gar- 
 field sweeping rooms to pay school expenses, 
 are examples of the price that must be paid 
 for learning. In business the law is the same. 
 The foundation of the Vanderbilt wealth was 
 simply the grit and perseverance of one Cor- 
 nelius, who began life as a poor boy. And the 
 story of many of the rich is that they have 
 come up through tribulation. The law of 
 culture is likewise that of toil and courage. 
 The musicians, artists, and orators who have 
 risen to the top have been those who have 
 had the grit to surmount great difficulties. 
 And if this is the law elsewhere, we need not 
 be surprised to find it is the law of the re- 
 ligious life. A person who has not the pluck 
 to amount to anything elsewhere has a poor 
 show in the religious life. And the reverse 
 is just as true. A person who can not amount 
 to anything in religion has a poor show else- 
 where. 
 
 Second, there must be dependence on di- 
 vine leadership. Human tenacity is good, but 
 it is not enough. Man's determination may 
 produce a morality, but it can not produce 
 spiritual growth. That must come from di- 
 268 
 
PETER AND CORNELIUS. 
 
 vine aid. The one who would attain a spir- 
 itual growth which will enable him to live a 
 Christian life anywhere must feed himself on 
 the truth of God's Word, commune with the 
 Spirit of God in prayer, and avail himself 
 of every possible means of grace. Human 
 grit must be supplemented by the indwelling 
 of the Divine Spirit. 
 
 Where these two elements are found it 
 is possible to live the Christian life in spite 
 of adverse surroundings. Such living has 
 often been witnessed. Cornelius in the rough 
 army life was an example. The martyrs, in 
 spite of threatened death, so lived. Many 
 faithful witnesses for the Lord in business, 
 in the professions, in shops, on the railroads, 
 and in other places where sin abounds, are 
 living the faithful life even to-day. He who 
 can not live such a life is hardly worthy of 
 the name of Christian. These faithful ones 
 are they who win and wear the crown at last. 
 John in his vision learned that the ones 
 clothed in white around the throne of God 
 were those who had come up through tribu- 
 lation. In the trying places of earth they 
 had faithfully lived their lives and had at 
 last come to their reward of crown and robes. 
 269 
 
f 
 
 THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 It is significant that a character like Cor- 
 nelius should receive a revelation from God. 
 The Heavenly Father is ever ready to speak 
 to those who are ready to hear. He is ready 
 to use those who are ready to be used. Cor- 
 nelius was ready for the vision when it came. 
 When the angel of the Lord appeared to the 
 pious centurion, he evidenced his readiness 
 for the revelation by saying, ''What is it, 
 Lord?" The reply of the angel emphasizes 
 the importance of prayer and righteousness : 
 "Thy prayers and thine alms are come up 
 for a memorial before God. " God had better 
 things in store for a man who could pray 
 and live like Cornelius. The purpose of God 
 for Cornelius was revealed in the instruction 
 to send to Joppa and inquire for one Simon 
 Peter, who lodged with Simon the tanner. 
 AVlien Simon Peter was found he would give 
 instruction as to what should be done further. 
 The instructions of the angel were carried 
 out, Cornelius sending three messengers to 
 Joppa to inquire for and learn of Peter. 
 
 As interesting as any fiction is the story 
 
 of the method by which God prepared Peter 
 
 for the reception of these messengers, and 
 
 for the work He desired Peter to do. A sec- 
 
 270 
 
PETER AND CORNELIUS. 
 
 ond vision sent to Peter at Joppa supple- 
 mented the one sent to Cornelius at CsBsarea. 
 It was a vision of a vessel like a great sheet 
 let down from heaven and containing all 
 manner of four-footed beasts and creeping 
 things and fowls of the air. Of these Peter 
 was commanded to kill and eat. What that 
 command meant to Peter can be understood 
 only by recalling the common Jewish training 
 and prejudice. The Mosaic law described 
 numerous beasts and creeping things as un- 
 clean, and he who touched them was also con- 
 sidered unclean. It will be remembered that 
 Daniel and his companions chose to live on 
 pulse rather than defile themselves with the 
 king's meat, which they considered unclean. 
 Instances are on record wherein Jews have 
 suffered death rather than permit themselves 
 to become unclean by eating the flesh of 
 smne. In the light of such a belief among 
 the Jews, we need not be surprised that Peter 
 refused the request to eat of those animals, 
 declaring that he had never eaten anything 
 common or unclean. This refusal offered the 
 opportunity for the Lord to teach a desired 
 lesson, so Peter heard the strange words, 
 ''What God hath cleansed that call not thou 
 271 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 common." Three times was the lesson 
 taught, and while Peter stood wondering 
 what it might all mean, the solution came 
 in the appearance of the three messengers 
 from Cornelius asking Peter to come with 
 them to Caesarea and teach the Roman cen- 
 turion the things he needed to know concern- 
 ing Christ. Then Peter understood the 
 vision. The Romans and other Gentiles were 
 considered unclean by the Jews. But this 
 Roman at Caesarea God had cleansed and 
 would send Peter as a messenger to teach 
 him the gospel of Jesus Christ. This fact 
 taught the larger fact that the Gentiles were 
 to be the objects of God's favor as well as 
 the Jews. Them God had cleansed. What 
 He had cleansed Peter had no right to call 
 unclean. Peter learned the lesson. So we 
 see this strict Jew again breaking through 
 the wall of Jewish prejudice and going down 
 to Caesarea, and there preaching the gospel 
 to a despised Roman with such power that 
 not only he, but all who heard him were filled 
 with the Holy Spirit and baptized into the 
 new faith. 
 
 Here was the great object at which God 
 had been aiming all through that process of 
 272 
 
PETER AND CORNELIUS. 
 
 visions and journeyings. It was the offering 
 of the gospel to the Gentiles. By that process 
 a great and effectual door was opened 
 through which all nations might pass into 
 the Kingdom of Christ. The two hinges of 
 that door were a pious Gentile and a pious 
 Jew, both of whom were much given to 
 prayer. 
 
 Some observations helpful to the Chris- 
 tian life of to-day may be drawn from this an- 
 cient incident. It suggests that our decided 
 advances in the religious life are made largely 
 through prayer. Peter and Cornelius were ^-'■ 
 both at prayer when their revelations came 
 from the Lord. It is the spirit of prayer 
 that gives opportunity for God to send to 
 our lives the visions and experiences He 
 would have us receive. Failure to possess 
 the spirit of prayer has robbed many a soul 
 of the visions God has wanted to send. How- 
 ever magnificent may be the visions awaiting 
 us in the providence of God, they will never 
 be received unless we attain through com- 
 munion with God that susceptibility of soul 
 making possible the impressing of the 
 heaven-sent picture. 
 
 Again, the mysterious circumstances of .^~- 
 
 " 273 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 life are often God's preparation for higher 
 experiences and more useful service. The 
 visions were strange to both Peter and Cor- 
 nelius. The mysteries were not understood 
 at first, but the men followed the divine lead- 
 ing and were brought to a larger experience. 
 In the life of mankind it is often true that 
 the season of sorrow, of misfortune, perhaps 
 of death has come, and with it a sense of mys- 
 tery. Why such experiences should come is 
 more than the unfortunate victim can under- 
 stand. Yet often it is discovered that God's 
 shaping hand is moving through the trial, 
 and the sufferer finds himself possessed of 
 a quality of life or a power for usefulness 
 which he had never thought to possess. The 
 mysterious and dreaded circumstances have 
 afforded God the opportunity for developing 
 a life. 
 
 The truth is likewise suggested here that 
 -in leading His people onward God opens one 
 door at a time. Peter's experience here is 
 interesting. In leading him away from nar- 
 row Judaism to a broader Christianity, God 
 first opened the door to Samaria and we find 
 Peter working there among those who were 
 half Gentile and thoroughly disliked. Next 
 274 
 
PETER AND CORNELIUS. 
 
 we see the door opened to the home of a de- 
 spised tanner, and at Simon's table in Joppa 
 Peter came in personal touch with one con- 
 sidered unclean. And finally, in the case of 
 Cornelius we see him led through the larger 
 door of gospel privilege for the entire Gen- 
 tile world. 
 
 This is God's way with His children. 
 Step by step He leads us on. Door after 
 door He opens for us. And the amount of 
 our advancement is measured by our willing- 
 ness to enter these doors. This being true, 
 the question of the Christian should be that 
 of the pious Roman soldier, ''What is it, 
 Lordf What door shall I enter next?" We 
 need not ask to see the distant way, but in 
 the spirit of the old song ever say, "One 
 step enough for me." He who, like Cor- 
 nelius, attains to the spirit of constant prayer 
 and remains willing to be led one step at a 
 time, is one whose future is safe for time and 
 eternity. God will lead him through many 
 opening doors to larger fields and broader 
 visions. 
 
 275 
 
CHAPTER XX. 
 PETER HEROD'S VICTIM. 
 
 The action of Peter in preaching to the Gen- 
 tiles at Caesarea and elsewhere, and baptiz- 
 ing them in the name of Jesus, was decidedly 
 heretical in the eyes of the more orthodox 
 Jews at Jerusalem. When they heard of 
 Peter's conduct they determined to give the 
 offender a severe chastisement for his sup- 
 posed breach of faith. Their opportunity 
 came when Peter returned to Jerusalem. 
 One who has noticed the excitable nature 
 of the Jew as manifested both in hot words 
 and nervous actions can imagine the scene 
 upon Peter's arrival at Jerusalem. The 
 Jews gathered around him with bitter re- 
 proaches. They freely condemned him for 
 his actions. They claimed that he had acted 
 in an unwarranted way and had turned 
 traitor to his own people in bearing their 
 gospel to the despised Gentiles. With that 
 scathing sarcasm that only an excited Jew 
 could display, they said, ''Thou wentest in 
 276 
 
PETER HEROD'S VICTIM. 
 
 to men uncircmncised and did eat with 
 them. ' ' The accusers had in mind evidently 
 not only Peter's experience with Cornelius 
 at CoBsarea, but also his conduct toward 
 Simon the tanner at Joppa. 
 
 The reply which Peter made to his ac- 
 cusers should be carefully noted. He did 
 not attempt to argue the case with them. He 
 simply began a narration of the events that 
 had happened in his recent experience. He 
 told of his strange vision and its meaning; 
 of the call of the messengers to come to 
 Caesarea ; of the way the Holy Ghost fell on 
 the Gentiles while he was speaking to them. 
 In a word, he simply told what God had done 
 through him, and what he had done by the 
 aid of the Holy Spirit. The divine leading 
 in the case was so evident that even those 
 prejudiced Jews had to admit it. As the 
 evidence grew conclusive they began to show 
 a more beautiful spirit. They not only held 
 their peace, but began to glorify God for 
 w^hat He had done and said, ' ' Then unto the 
 Gentiles also has God granted repentance 
 unto life." Prejudice had suddenly van- 
 ished. There was a reason for it. The facts 
 narrated were convincing. The best possible 
 
 277 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 way to overcome the prejudice or misconcep- 
 tions which otliers may hold concerning our 
 lives is the evidence that those lives are God- 
 led. The conviction that God's will is con- 
 trolling a life will overthrow prejudice con- 
 cerning it. The influence of such a life will 
 of its own force disarm others of their op- 
 position. The other truth is also apparent, 
 that in spite of our criticism of other lives 
 they may be God-led, and therefore we need 
 to be careful lest we by our opposition fight 
 against God. 
 
 But we must turn now from this scene 
 of the carrying of the gospel to the Gen- 
 tiles to a scene vastly different. We turn to 
 the effort of certain ungodly ones to stay 
 the sweeping tide of Christianity. Herod 
 Agrippa I was now ruler over Palestine and 
 had identified himself with the sect of the 
 Pharisees in order to gain favor. It was 
 probably for the same reason that he be- 
 came a persecutor of the Christians. One 
 of the early victims of his heartless perse- 
 cution was James, the brother of John. Him 
 Herod put to death. James seems thus to 
 have been the first apostle to suffer death 
 for the Lord's sake. It will be recalled that 
 278 
 
PETER HEROD'S VICTIM. 
 
 this same James was one of the favorite 
 disciples of the Lord. He was one of the 
 three who belonged to the inner circle of 
 Christ's friends. Peter, James, and John 
 were the three forming that circle. But now 
 by the work of Herod the circle was broken. 
 Peter and John were permitted to tarry a 
 while, but James was taken. His death must 
 have caused much sadness to Peter and John, 
 but they never faltered in their work for the 
 Lord. When Herod saw that the death of 
 James greatly pleased the Jews, he deter- 
 mined to continue the persecution. He next 
 proceeded to lay hands on Peter also. He 
 probably intended that Peter should meet 
 the same fate that had befallen James. The 
 first step toward that ultimate fate was the 
 imprisonment of Peter. His place of con- 
 finement was probably the tower of Antonia. 
 The great care taken to keep Peter secure 
 after his arrest was striking. He was 
 guarded by four quaternions of soldiers. A 
 quaternion was a company of four. Peter 
 was therefore guarded by four squads of 
 soldiers, each squad consisting of four men, 
 thus making sixteen in all. Moreover, the 
 prisoner was placed in a cell and chains were 
 279 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 fastened upon him. According to Roman 
 custom, these chains were attached also to 
 the guarding soldiers, so there could be no 
 possibility of escape. Yet in spite of all 
 these precautions this unusual prisoner was 
 strangely delivered from his enemies. The 
 cause and method of that deliverance are 
 given in the narrative now before us. 
 
 The cause of the deliverance was, accord- 
 ing to the narrative, the prayers of the Chris- 
 tian Church. The account says that prayer 
 was made earnestly of the Church unto God 
 for Peter. These early disciples were genu- 
 ine Christians and manifested an interest in 
 others. That interest is a mark of the Chris- 
 tian spirit. When their brother in the Lord 
 was in distress, their hearts went out in sym- 
 pathy toward him. It is too often the case 
 that Christian people forget the brother in 
 distress. An analysis of ordinary Christian 
 prayers will reveal the fact that petitions 
 are made largely for self and only in a small 
 degree for others. Often it is true that the 
 need of others does not enter into the prayer 
 at all. A certain Christian gentleman was 
 recently passing through a dark and trying 
 experience, and while he was in the midst of 
 280 
 
PETER HEROD'S VICTIM. 
 
 the struggle a Christian lady was heard to 
 remark to a friend, ' ' I never prayed for any 
 one in my life as I have prayed for that 
 man." That was a manifestation of a beau- 
 tiful Christian spirit. But it was a spirit 
 every Christian should possess. If Chris- 
 tians gave the needs of others a larger place 
 in their prayers, their own lives would be 
 richer and the world would be better. Those 
 early disciples prayed for Peter, and that fact 
 evidently figured as a cause in his deliver- 
 ance. 
 
 The method of deliverance used in this 
 case was one of divine appointment. An 
 angel of the Lord was sent to the prison cell. 
 The prisoner was asleep. A touch of the 
 angel's hand awoke him. The picture of an 
 angel awakening as presented here is a sug- 
 gestive one. It is a type of that other awak- 
 ening in which a spirit messenger arouses 
 man from the sleep of the temporal life into 
 the light of another and eternal day. 
 
 Peter heard the angel's injunction, 
 ''Arise." He obeyed. As he arose the 
 chains fell from his wrists. "Gird thyself 
 and bind on thy sandals." That instruction 
 was a promise of liberty. A journey was in 
 281 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 prospect. Tlie prison walls were to be left 
 behind. ''Cast thy garment about thee," 
 continued the deliverer. The reference here 
 is to the cloak or outer garment which Peter 
 had cast off upon entering the cell. He was 
 now to walk out into the cool night air, and 
 the garment was needed. The angel led the 
 way from the prison and Peter followed. 
 He followed like a man in a dream. The 
 experience was exceedingly strange, and 
 Peter, being just aroused from his sleep, did 
 not comprehend its meaning, but thought he 
 saw a vision. The watching soldiers at the 
 door were safely passed. The outer wall was 
 reached and the huge iron gate opened seem- 
 ingly of its own accord, and the prisoner and 
 his guide passed out into the street and to 
 liberty. The strong walls of Antonia's 
 tower, the chains and guarding soldiers were 
 not sufficient to hold the man whom God 
 would free. 
 
 In the street the angel left Peter, and he, 
 being thoroughly aroused and refreshed by 
 the night air, realized his deliverance. But 
 where should the delivered man go? He was 
 in a dangerous situation, for there were ene- 
 mies all around him in the city. There was, 
 282 
 
PETER HEROD'S VICTIM. 
 
 however, one home in that city in which 
 Peter felt he would be safe, and in which he 
 would likely meet with loving friends. It 
 was the home of Mary, the mother of John 
 Mark. It was the home in which it is sup- 
 posed Peter and John prepared the Last Sup- 
 per for the Lord, and therefore the home in 
 which Peter had declared that he would go 
 with his Master even unto death. And al- 
 though he had once proven untrue, he had 
 now almost paid the vow. 
 
 Peter went directly to this home. While 
 he expected to find there some very close 
 friends, he probably expected to find also 
 some of the brethren, for he knew that in 
 those dangerous times of persecution the 
 Christians often held meetings of prayer in 
 the night. So with some expectation Peter 
 came to the gate leading to the house. It 
 will be recalled that during the trial of Jesus 
 the gate to the home of Caiaphas was kept 
 by a damsel. Here again we find a similar 
 case. The outer gate to which Peter came 
 was kept by a little maid named Rhoda or 
 Rose. Peter applied for admission, and the 
 girl upon hearing his voice recognized it. 
 Without waiting to open the gate to allow 
 
 283 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 the escaped prisoner to come in, she ran in 
 her excitement to tell the news to the people 
 assembled in the house. Some uncharitable 
 critics have stated that it is in the nature 
 of woman to covet the opportunity of being 
 the first to disclose a secret. Whether the 
 general accusation be true, it seems to have 
 applied in the case of Rhoda. Her surprise, 
 mingled with her desire to tell a great secret 
 which would be a refreshing bit of good news, 
 caused her to hurry to the people who were 
 at that moment in the house praying for the 
 deliverance of Peter. In a hurried and ex- 
 cited way Rhoda told her secret. She had 
 wanted to surprise the people, but the sur- 
 prise was not so great as she had anticipated, 
 for the people, instead of being surprised 
 at the news, simply refused to believe it. 
 They even surprised the girl herself by de- 
 claring that she was mad. But as that accu- 
 sation seemed a little severe, they changed 
 it and said that Rhoda had seen a vision, or 
 perhaps the angel of Peter had appeared. 
 But they were sure she had not seen or heard 
 Peter himself. But the girl 's persistency had 
 some effect, and while they were discussing 
 the matter* they began to move out toward 
 284 
 
PETER HEROD'S VICTIM. 
 
 the gate. Listening, they themselves heard 
 a knocking, and upon opening the gate found 
 themselves standing face to face with the de- 
 livered apostle. Peter, after quieting their 
 exclamations of surprise, explained the proc- 
 ess of his escape to them. Peter also re- 
 vealed immediately a spirit that was certainly 
 commendable. He so far forgot himself and 
 his danger that he could apply himself to 
 the needs of others. He remembered that 
 there were in Jerusalem many brethren who 
 would be glad not only for his deliverance, 
 but also for the evidence of the Lord's pres- 
 ence and power in that deliverance. Hence 
 he gave instructions for the news to be car- 
 ried at once to the brethren. One of these 
 brethren is mentioned specifically. It is 
 James. The James mentioned is not the son 
 of Zebedee, but as many scholars suppose, is 
 James the brother of the Lord. As to Peter 
 himself, we are told only that "he departed 
 and went into another place." This state- 
 ment is with one exception the last one made 
 concerning Peter in the Book of Acts. The 
 ** other place" spoken of was doubtless some 
 place of safety and retirement outside the 
 city, the exact spot being unknown. With 
 285 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 Peter in that place of safety, we will let the 
 curtain drop on his life for the period now 
 being considered. 
 
 This incident is suggestive of several 
 valuable truths, which we will notice as we 
 close the study: 
 
 1. God is mighty to deliver in spite of 
 human machinations. All the precautions of 
 Herod were as nothing in the face of God's 
 purpose to deliver Peter. Man's best laid 
 plans are insufficient to overturn the pur- 
 poses of God. God's pre-eminence is the 
 guarantee of the soul 's security. To the soul 
 that trusts in Him there is given a way of 
 escape from every temptation that allures 
 and every chain that fetters. 
 
 2. Prayer is mightier than prison bars. 
 Prayer offered by Peter's friends found its 
 way to the throne of God, and God in re- 
 sponse opened the door of Peter's prison 
 cell. This is the method of prayer. Ef- 
 fective prayer avails wdth God, and He in 
 turn reaches through His power the object of 
 the prayer. Prayer thus becomes the instru- 
 ment by which the greatest victories of God 's 
 people are gained. 
 
 3. Consciousness of being right with God 
 
 286 
 
PETER HEROD'S VICTIM. 
 
 gives a peace that nothing can disturb. That 
 is a striking picture which represents Peter 
 as sleeping calmly in the prison cell. The 
 surroundings were undesirable. Death was 
 perhaps waiting on the morrow. But Peter 
 was sleeping peacefully. The secret of his 
 peace was his rightness with God. In life 
 or death he was the Lord's. The conscious- 
 ness of being right with God gives a peace 
 which abides amidst the accusations of ene- 
 mies and the hardships of the world. In- 
 justices may be meted out and disappoint- 
 ments may come, but a calmness reigns in 
 the soul. 
 
 4. Christians are often too unready to 
 accept God's answers to their prayers. Peter 
 appeared before his friends at the very time 
 they were praying for his deliverance. Yet 
 they were unready to believe that he had 
 been delivered. They could not believe that 
 the very thing for which they had been ear- 
 nestly praying had happened. In other 
 words, they could not believe their prayers 
 had been answered. This is a failing of 
 Christian people all too common. We pray 
 and are surprised when God answers our 
 prayers. God answers prayer. The answer 
 
 287 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 is not always in the manner anticipated. It 
 may be in a manner altogether different. 
 But He answers. It is desirable for the 
 Christian to possess such a faith in God that 
 if the praj^ers are answered exactly as ex- 
 pected the answer is not dishonored by un- 
 belief; and if the prayer be answered in a 
 manner unexpected, the answer is still ac- 
 cepted in a spirit of believing humility. The 
 followers of Him who promised to answer 
 prayer should not be guilty of the incongruity 
 of offering prayer but refusing to accept its 
 answer. 
 
 288 
 
PART THREE. 
 
 THE DAYS OF DECLINE. 
 
 (From the Council at Jerusalem, 51 A. D., to the 
 Death of Peter.) 
 
CHAPTEE XXI 
 
 THE CONFERENCE AT JERUSALEM. 
 
 In a former chapter the statement was made 
 that upon the appearance of Paul in early 
 Church history, Peter began to decline in 
 prominence and finally disappeared, so far as 
 the history of him in the Book of Acts is 
 concerned. In the incident we are now to 
 consider, the conference at Jerusalem, we 
 get the last glimpse of Peter furnished in 
 the Book of Acts. This conference was the 
 first and one of the most important councils 
 in Church history. In it Peter acts as one of 
 the leading figures, sharing prominence with 
 Paul, Barnabas, and James. 
 
 The conference at Jerusalem occurred 
 about the year 51 A. D., according to well- 
 accepted chronology. The necessity for the 
 conference was found in a dispute amounting 
 almost to a dissension, which arose in the 
 early Church concerning the question of cir- 
 cumcision. The rapid growth of Christianity 
 291 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 had broug'lit a mixed multitude into the fel- 
 lowship of the Church. Converts were made 
 not only from among the Jews, but many 
 were added from Gentile sources through the 
 Avork of Peter and Paul. It was natural that 
 the Jewish converts should cling to their Jew- 
 ish traditions and be influenced by their Jew- 
 ish prejudices. Inasmuch as it had been 
 customary under the old traditions for prose- 
 lytes to be initiated into Jewish fellowship 
 by circumcision, it was natural for the Jews 
 to believe that Gentiles coming into Christian 
 fellowship should submit to the same cere- 
 mony, and especially since Christianity origi- 
 nated among the Jews and was an offshoot 
 of Judaism. Two classes of believers, there- 
 fore, grew up in the Christian Church, and 
 became more and more distinct. One class 
 was composed of those so colored by former 
 Judaistic ideas that they demanded that all 
 Gentile converts be circumcised. The other 
 was composed of a broader and spiritual 
 class of people who saw more clearly the 
 meaning of the gospel and who believed that 
 the circumcision of the Gentiles w^as an 
 unnecessary and burdensome requirement. 
 The controversy was one which was evidently 
 292 
 
THE CONFERENCE AT JERUSALEM. 
 
 hotly waged. One might expect it to be .1 
 warmly debated question when one recalls 
 on the one hand the wall which for ages had 
 separated the Jew from the Gentile, and on 
 the other hand the natural devotion of the 
 Jew to his old customs and traditions. As 
 a matter of fact, the disputed question 
 brought the Church face to face with a 
 crisis. 
 
 The importance of this debated question 
 is realized when one stops to consider what 
 the consequences might have been had the 
 question been settled differently. A contrary 
 decision would doubtless have placed upon 
 Christianity a yoke the burden of which 
 would have been too heavy to bear. Com- 
 pulsory circumcision would have placed ex- 
 ceedingly narrow limits upon Christianity. 
 More than that, the emphasizing of an ex- 
 ternal ceremony as an essential would have 
 obscured the real spirit of Christianity. The 
 letter wliich killeth would have been substi- 
 tuted for the spirit which maketh alive. The 
 wise decision of that council conserved the 
 free and broad spirit which, in spite of mis- 
 understanding and much smothering beneath 
 unw^elcome rubbish, has been the glory of 
 293 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 Christianity tlirougli the ages. It seems a 
 little strange, in the face of that early de- 
 cision, that the Church has ever attempted 
 to bind her adherents with the letter of the 
 law instead of liberating them with the spirit 
 of the gospel. The attempts which the 
 Church has made to erect a dogma as a test 
 of acceptance with God, or to enjoin a cer- 
 tain ceremony as an essential to salvation, 
 or exalt any rite above righteousness, has 
 been an exhibition of the same spirit dis- 
 played by those Judaizers who demanded the 
 circumcision of the Gentiles as a step in the 
 process of their redemption. The dispatch 
 and wisdom with which the first council of 
 the Church disposed of that error and nar- 
 rowness should stand as a constant rebuke 
 to all who would seek to exalt the letter 
 which killeth rather than the spirit which 
 maketh alive. 
 
 The detailed account of the proceedings 
 of the conference is given in the fifteenth 
 chapter of Acts. We may call this chapter 
 the Minutes of the First Christian Confer- 
 ence. The conference was held, as we have 
 seen, in the year 51 A. D., before the first 
 and second missionary journeys of St. Paul. 
 294 
 
THE CONFERENCE AT JERUSALEM. 
 
 The dispute over the question of circum- 
 cision grew heated in the city of Antioch, 
 where Paul and Barnabas tarried after the 
 first missionary journey. Some Judaizers 
 from Jerusalem had come to Antioch teach- 
 ing dogmatically that, in order for the Gen- 
 tiles to be saved, they must submit to cir- 
 cumcision ''after the manner of Moses.'* 
 This teaching aroused the opposition of Paul 
 and Barnabas, who had in their missionary 
 labors seen the Lord graciously save many 
 Gentiles without the accompanying act of 
 circumcision. The difference between these 
 two apostles and the Judaizers was that the 
 former spoke from experience and the latter 
 from theory. The former argued from a true 
 conception of the spirit of Christianity, the 
 latter from an utter misconception of its 
 meaning. The Judaizers considered salva- 
 tion as a series of judicial enactments, while 
 Paul and Barnabas correctly conceived it as 
 a personal relation between the individual 
 and God. The difference was, therefore, a 
 fundamental one, and it is not surprising 
 that the contention waxed warm. It was a 
 matter of importance not only to the disput- 
 ing parties, but to the Church at large. 
 295 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 Hence it was concluded that the matter 
 should be settled by the authority of the 
 Church. The proposition that the matter in 
 dispute should be carried from Antioch to 
 Jerusalem indicates that at this time the 
 center of authority in the Church was Jeru- 
 salem, and that it was in the apostles and 
 elders in that city. The conference was 
 called, and Jerusalem made the place of 
 meeting. 
 
 The conference was made up of many 
 prominent people of the early Church. The 
 apostles are spoken of in the records as a 
 part of the assembly. This does not neces- 
 sarily mean that all the apostles were pres- 
 ent, but some of them. Peter and James 
 are especially mentioned because they took 
 prominent part in the proceedings. In his 
 letter to the Galatians, Paul, speaking of this 
 gathering, mentions John also. 
 
 The James here mentioned is not to be con- 
 fused with James the brother of John. He 
 had been put to death several years before 
 by the command of Herod. The James men- 
 tioned in this case is the James known as 
 *'tlie Lord's brother," who was prominent in 
 the affairs of the Church at Jerusalem, and 
 296 
 
THE CONFEEENCE AT JERUSALEM. 
 
 who presided at this council. The question 
 can not be discussed here as to whether this 
 James is the same as James ''the son of 
 Alphaeus. ' ' 
 
 Aside from the apostles, the elders are 
 mentioned as being present. The "Church'' 
 is likewise mentioned, indicating that many 
 disciples from the common ranks were pres- 
 ent. It seems, therefore, that the meeting 
 was a general one in its nature. To the meet- 
 ing as thus constituted Paul and Barnabas 
 came with the delegation from Antioch. Two 
 names are specifically mentioned in the ac- 
 count of the meeting. They are Silas and 
 Judas who, with Paul and Barnabas, were 
 sent by the Church at Antioch to deliver the 
 message to the conference. 
 
 The debate on the question to be consid- 
 ered was evidently opened by the Judaizing 
 party, for the account says that certain of 
 the sect of the Pharisees which believed de- 
 clared that it was needful for the Gentile 
 converts to be circumcised and to keep the 
 law of Moses. From the reading of the ac- 
 count as contained in the fifteenth chapter of 
 Acts, it seems possible that this argument 
 was begun before the meeting was formally 
 
 297 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 assembled. The question was one of com- 
 mon conversation and of increasing interest. 
 Hence the apostles and elders came together 
 \vith the Church to consider the matter. 
 AVhen the meeting was called, the question 
 was seriously taken up. 
 
 According to the account in Acts, there 
 were four addresses of importance made 
 upon the question. The first w^as by Peter, 
 who was followed by Barnabas and Paul, and 
 last of all by James, who evidently acted as 
 chairman, rendering in his address the final 
 decision of the conference. We are concerned 
 principally wdth the address of Peter, inas- 
 much as we are considering his life and char- 
 acter. The addresses of the other speakers 
 concern us only as they contributed to the 
 ultimate settlement of the question at stake. 
 Mention of that settlement will be made in 
 the next chapter. 
 
 It is apparent that the address of Peter 
 would be received with great consideration 
 by the council inasmuch as he was one who 
 had journeyed with the Lord from the be- 
 ginning. He would know, therefore, the 
 spirit of the Master. Furthermore, Peter 
 had spent years in laboring among the Gen- 
 298 
 
THE CONFEEENCE AT JERUSALEM. 
 
 tiles, and his valuable experience gained 
 therein would give his words something of 
 the weight of authority. It may be assumed, 
 then, that in this instance Peter was heard 
 was intense interest. The address which he 
 delivered is typical of the man. It has cer- 
 tain characteristics which mark it as similar 
 to the sermons of Peter delivered in earlier 
 days. For example, it displays tact in get- 
 ting the confidence of those addressed, for 
 it appealed to their knowledge of facts in- 
 stead of offering arbitrary assertions. Like- 
 wise, the address has the old familiar key- 
 note of salvation by Jesus Christ. 
 
 There are four propositions prominent in 
 the address of Peter. We are not to assume 
 that the address is recorded in full in the 
 Acts, but the four propositions given doubt- 
 less contain the substance of it. The propo- 
 sitions follow: 
 
 1. God chose the Gentiles as subjects to 
 hear the word of the gospel. Peter reminds 
 his auditors that they know this fact, and that 
 this choice was made a long time before. 
 He further declares that it was by his mouth 
 the Gentiles were to hear the gospel, which 
 fact the auditors also knew. These facts 
 299 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 were known so well that no one would dis- 
 pute them. They furnished common stand- 
 ing ground. Nobody among the Christian 
 hearers would dispute the facts stated. But 
 Peter had not as yet touched the disputed 
 point at all. All Christians would agree 
 that God had included the Gentiles in the 
 plan of salvation, but the question was, hoiv 
 were they to receive that salvation. What 
 was to be the condition of acceptance ? Must 
 they follow the old custom among the Jews 
 and be circumcised, or could they be accepted 
 without it? Peter did not touch upon the 
 main question in his first proposition, but 
 by it having gained a common ground on 
 which to stand with his opponents, he went 
 on to the second proposition. 
 
 2. God made the condition of salvation 
 to be faith in Christ. Here Peter approached 
 the point in dispute. The condition of ac- 
 ceptance was not circumcision, but faith. 
 They were purified by faith and not by cir- 
 cumcision. Peter strengthened his statement 
 by showing that God had put no difference 
 between the Jews and Gentiles, granting the 
 Holy Spirit to both and purifying the hearts 
 of both by faith. When he showed that God's 
 300 
 
THE CONFEBENCE AT JERUSALEM. 
 
 seal had been set upon the method of receiv- 
 ing the Gentiles by faith alone in the act of 
 granting to them the Holy Spirit, he placed 
 the question beyond all dispute. He cited a 
 matter of experience and of history that 
 could not be rejected. If God had placed His 
 sanction upon the free acceptance of the Gen- 
 tiles, what right had man to demand another 
 method of acceptance? This historic evi- 
 dence of the granting of the Holy Spirit is 
 the strong point in Peter's address. That 
 argument was simply unanswerable. It was 
 the strength of that historic fact that led him 
 on to the next proposition. 
 
 3. Attempting to enjoin circumcision is 
 equal to tempting God. The argument of 
 Peter was that to enjoin circumcision would 
 be to go beyond God's own requirement. If 
 God granted the Holy Spirit in the absence 
 of circumcision, for man to require circum- 
 cision would be to despise the method of God. 
 Furthermore, Peter pointed out the fact that 
 it would be placing upon the new converts a 
 yoke too heavy to be borne. That Peter 
 herein pointed out a real danger may be seen 
 when one stops to consider the slow progress 
 Christianity must of necessity have made 
 301 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 among the nations of the world had circum- 
 cision been made a necessary yoke. 
 
 The last proposition of Peter was in the 
 form of a summary. 
 
 4. Faith in Christ is the universal condi- 
 tion of salvation. This was the heart of 
 Peter's gospel always. And it was the secret 
 of his success in evangelism. It is the truth 
 which through the ages has given wings to 
 the gospel. Every great Christian reformer 
 and evangelist from Peter to the present day 
 has had this truth for his theme. On it as 
 a platform the feet of the successful preacher 
 and Christian worker must ever be placed. 
 
 The soundness of Peter's argument is evi- 
 denced in the fact that he was supported in 
 his position by the speakers who followed — 
 Barnabas, Paul, and James. Moreover, the 
 position of Peter was accepted by the con- 
 ference and formally sent by chosen members 
 to the Church at Antioch as the final decision 
 of the first Christian council. 
 
 It is a matter of interest to note that 
 
 after all the changes and trying experiences 
 
 through which Peter has passed, when we 
 
 come to hear his voice for the last time in 
 
 302 
 
THE CONFEEENCE AT JERUSALEM. 
 
 the history of the early Church, that voice 
 rings true in sounding the note of universal 
 redemption through Christ — "We believe 
 that through the grace of the Lord Jesus 
 Christ we shall be saved, even as they." 
 
 303 
 
CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 THE INCIDENT AT ANTIOCH. 
 
 With the close of the conference at Jerusa- 
 lem the Book of Acts drops the curtain on 
 the life of Peter. Nor does the New Testa- 
 ment elsewhere throw much light on the clos- 
 ing days of his life. Some facts are learned 
 by inference from the two Epistles which 
 bear his name, and there is one distinct ref- 
 erence made to him in Paul's letter to the 
 Galatians. Aside from these sources, there 
 is little to be learned in the New Testament 
 concerning the closing days of Peter's life. 
 Much is mentioned by tradition, as will bo 
 shown in the closing chapter, but reliable 
 history is lacking. 
 
 The reference to Peter made by Paul, as 
 mentioned above, is recorded in the second 
 chapter of Galatians, from the eleventh to 
 the fourteenth verses. From this reference 
 and from suggestions found in tradition and 
 secular sources, a probable account of Peter's 
 life at this period may be had. Peter evi- 
 304 
 
THE INCIDENT AT ANTIOCH. 
 
 dently went to Antioch not a great while 
 after the conference at Jerusalem, for the 
 incident mentioned by Paul occurred in 
 Antioch while Paul and Barnabas were yet 
 co-laborers, which means before their sepa- 
 ration at the beginning of their second mis- 
 sionary journey, about 52 A. D. During his 
 residence at Antioch, Peter lived out the 
 spirit of the declaration made by the Jeru- 
 salem conference. He communed freely with 
 the Gentile converts. Jewish prejudices were 
 forgotten and the broader Christian spirit 
 prevailed with him. He ate with the Gentiles. 
 The love-feast and the Supper of the Lord 
 were enjoyed with them. There seemed to be 
 neither Jew nor Gentile, but Christ was All 
 and in all. 
 
 But a change in conditions soon occurred. 
 Certain Jewish converts from the Church in 
 Jerusalem came to Antioch and found Peter 
 eating with the Gentiles. These certain ones 
 from Jerusalem were doubtless of the Ju- 
 daizers who are spoken of in Acts 15 : 5, and 
 who originated the controversy which was 
 settled by the council at Jerusalem. They 
 were converts from among the Pharisees and 
 had as a governing rule of conduct a pro- 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 hibition against eating meat with the Gen- 
 tiles, whom they considered unclean. This 
 eating referred to in the case of Peter was 
 probably the partaking of the agape, or love- 
 feast. The eating of this feast was held as 
 a mark of brotherly love among early Chris- 
 tians. A refusal to eat it would be regarded 
 as a denial of the spirit of brotherhood. 
 Hence in the thought of Peter it was neces- 
 sary that the custom of eating the agape 
 should be maintained. He gave himself to 
 the custom. 
 
 When the Judaizers from Jerusalem ob- 
 served that Peter ate with the Gentiles, they 
 began a process of bitter denunciation. One 
 thing in the favor of these critics was the 
 fact that they purported to come from James, 
 and would claim, therefore, the sanction of 
 James to their objections. Moreover, they 
 were tactful enough not to attack the decision 
 of the council. They made no effort to annul 
 its decrees. They merely accused Peter of 
 going beyond anything intended by the coun- 
 cil when he condescended to eat with the 
 Gentiles. The council had decreed that the 
 Gentiles should be admitted into Christian 
 fellowship without circumcision, but it had 
 
 306 
 
THE INCIDENT AT ANTIOCH. 
 
 not decreed that their admission to such fel- 
 lowship justified Jews in eating with them 
 as they did with members of their own na- 
 tion. This was the line of argument urged 
 by the objectors from Jerusalem. 
 
 It is easy to see that such an objection 
 would place Peter in a dilemma. Perhaps he 
 was tempted to think he had swung to an 
 unwarranted extreme; that James himself 
 would not sanction his actions; that his ac- 
 tions were giving offense to his brethren. At 
 any rate, Peter closed his intimate relations 
 with the Gentiles and separated himself from 
 them. The only recorded reason for this 
 action is that he feared them of the circum- 
 cision. What does that mean? The '^ cir- 
 cumcision" evidently means Christians who 
 had been converted from the Jewish faith — 
 converted Jews. But why did Peter fear the 
 converted Jews! Surely not because of any 
 bodily harm that might come to him. Since 
 Pentecost he had repeated^ shown that he 
 had no fear of bodily harm. His fear was 
 not that they of the circumcision might hurt 
 him, but that he by his actions might hurt 
 them of the circumcision. If by continuing 
 his close relations with the Gentiles he should 
 307 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 offend the Jewish Christians and lose his in- 
 fluence over them, and perhaps alienate them 
 from Christianity itself, his conduct would 
 certainly be harmful. It would be better for 
 him to separate himself, at least for a time, 
 from such close contact with the Gentiles. 
 Thus Peter probably reasoned. At any rate, 
 he withdrew and separated himself from 
 them. 
 
 This act on the part of Peter has gen- 
 erally been interpreted as a mark of weak- 
 ness or cowardice, and as a return to the 
 same spirit that possessed him on the night 
 of the denial. However, it is not necessary 
 to so consider his conduct. In the light of 
 the interpretation just given, his act may 
 well be considered as a mistake in judgment 
 rather than a display of weakness or cow- 
 ardice. Peter evidently acted sincerely, 
 though he was mistaken in his judgment. 
 And when Paul withstood him to the face 
 and, by the argument recorded in the second 
 chapter of Galatians, pointed out his error, 
 we have every reason to believe that Peter 
 corrected his error, for the later epistles of 
 both Paul and Peter reveal nothing to indi- 
 cate that Peter continued a blameworthy at- 
 
 308 
 
THE INCIDENT AT ANTIOCH. 
 
 titude toward Christian doctrine and prac- 
 tice. Much to the contrary, however, is re- 
 vealed. 
 
 Moreover, there is no evidence of a con- 
 troversy carried on between Peter and Paul, 
 or of a strained relation existing between 
 them, as is so often represented. The fact 
 that Paul withstood Peter to the face means 
 nothing more than that in a frank way Paul 
 declared to Peter his error. There is every 
 reason to believe that Peter received the 
 words in the same manly way in which they 
 were spoken. No trace of ill-feeling on his 
 part toward Paul is revealed in his writings. 
 On the contray, there is evidence of a most 
 brotherly feeling, such as that in the thir- 
 teenth verse of his second epistle, where 
 Peter speaks of Paul as ''our beloved 
 brother." Peter and Paul were friends. 
 They had been friends before the incident at 
 Antioch. They were friends afterward, by 
 the testimony of their writings. There is no 
 reason for believing that they were not 
 friends at the time the incident occurred. 
 It is a weakness in judgment to conclude that 
 because one person criticises the conduct of 
 another, that therefore they two are not 
 309 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 friends. It is an error to assume that be- 
 cause people differ in opinions and express 
 opposite views that therefore they are not 
 friends. One of the sacred privileges of 
 friendship is the unrestrained expression of 
 opinion, and that without any thought of of- 
 fense. This privilege Paul and Peter exer- 
 cised, and are not to be condemned because 
 of it. Men who can frankly express opinion 
 and as frankly receive the opinions of others, 
 are deserving of our respect rather than our 
 censure. 
 
 The censure directed against Peter be- 
 cause of his conduct in the incident at Antioch 
 is mitigated somewhat by the fact that he 
 was not entirely alone in his actions. Others 
 of unquestioned sincerity and courage took 
 the same view of the case that Peter did. 
 Paul says, ''Other Jews dissembled likemse 
 with him; insomuch that Barnabas also was 
 carried away with their dissimulation." In 
 the minds of such men as Peter and Barna- 
 bas there were evidently good grounds for 
 the position taken. They were mistaken, but 
 theirs was the mistake of men with good in- 
 tentions. The mistake was of the judgment 
 and not of the heart. Nevertheless the mis- 
 310 
 
THE INCIDENT AT ANTIOCH. 
 
 take had its bad effects, which Paul felt called 
 upon to correct. He therefore called the mis- 
 taken men to their senses. The mistake was 
 apparently not persisted in, and the evil re- 
 sults were not very far-reaching. The results 
 were not disastrous so far as the relations 
 between Peter and Paul were concerned. 
 Nor were the results disastrous to the future 
 loyalty and usefulness of either. 
 
 This incident at Antioch, while it may be 
 considered unfortunate in the early history 
 of the Church, yet has its practical sugges- 
 tions for the Church in all ages. 
 
 It suggests how easy it is for well-mean- 
 ing Christians to err in their judgment. In 
 those early beginnings of the Church life 
 Christian men made mistakes. Their errors 
 were prophetic of those that men in every 
 future age would make. The Church never 
 has been free from mistakes, nor will she 
 be in the years ahead. But the disgraceful 
 chapters in her history are not those record- 
 ing mistakes. The disgraceful chapters are 
 those which record something worse than 
 mistakes. We need not grieve greatly be- 
 cause mistakes are made, so long as the in- 
 tent is right. The problems of the Christian 
 311 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 life and the life of the Kingdom are so com- 
 plicated that mistakes are likely to occur. 
 If the mistakes be those of the judgment and 
 not of the heart, there is small ground for 
 condemnation. 
 
 The attitude for Christians to assume 
 toward these mistakes is one of charity 
 rather than censure. The exhortation of 
 Paul in the thirteenth chapter of First 
 Corinthians is applicable here. Charity is 
 needed. If one errs in his conduct and falls 
 below the standard of religious living as we 
 see that standard, the right course to pursue 
 would be that of Paul in the incident at An- 
 tioch — enlighten rather than condemn. Paul 
 in this case had a better vision of proper 
 conduct than did Peter. He had more light. 
 Having more light, he gave it to Peter. His 
 example is w^orthy of imitation. He firmly 
 but kindly opposed the wrong conduct and 
 pointed out a better course. Better far 
 would it be in the Church to-day if erring 
 Peters were thus kindly but firmly dealt with 
 by Pauls possessed of better light, instead 
 of making the transgressor the object of 
 slanderous gossip and bitter reproach. 
 
 This incident at Antioch suggests, too, 
 312 
 
THE INCIDENT AT ANTIOCH. 
 
 that it is the right of Christians to be per- 
 mitted to point out in kindness the errors of 
 their fellow-Christians. The injunction to 
 bear one another's burdens is clearly a Chris- 
 tian one. One of the ways of bearing those 
 burdens is helping another to get rid of error 
 in practice or belief. Because of immaturity 
 in experience and limitations in knowledge, 
 young disciples of the Lord are very likely 
 to become guilty of mistaken actions and 
 notions. Evidently the way to improvement 
 in such cases is through a recognition of the 
 mistakes. And who has a better right to 
 point out the mistakes than the fellow-Chris- 
 tian who may have wider knowledge and who 
 is supposed to have at heart the highest in- 
 terests of all his brethren. The fact is that 
 if the Church, instead of censuring such in- 
 cidents as this ancient attempt to set right 
 an erring brother, would encourage such at- 
 tempts as the inherent right of Christian 
 fellowship, more rapid progress would be 
 made toward better ideals of Christian life. 
 Finally, this incident suggests that Chris- 
 tians should be willing to receive friendly 
 criticism and admonition in a friendly way. 
 Peter evidently did so, and profited by such 
 313 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 a course. Modern Christians would do well 
 to display a similar willingness to know de- 
 fects and improve upon them. One of the 
 last admissions some people are willing to 
 make is that they are wrong or have been 
 mistaken. Yet it is evident that the way to 
 improvement is effectually blocked as long 
 as one refuses to make that admission. One 
 of the first steps toward future perfection 
 is the recognition of present imperfection. 
 It follows, then, that the person who points 
 out to another a defect has done a real serv- 
 ice by making possible an improvement of 
 life. It is becoming and quite wise on the 
 part of those who are informed of their de- 
 fects to kindly accept the criticism given and 
 profit by it, instead of fostering ill-will 
 toward the one pointing out the error. One 
 of the charming graces of Christian char- 
 acter should be that of accepting brotherly 
 correction as an opportunity for improve- 
 ment rather than as an occasion for bitter- 
 ness. 
 
 John Ruskin, in speaking of the erroneous 
 
 creeds held by some people, said, '*I want 
 
 to macadamize some new roads to heaven 
 
 with broken foolsheads.'* The words were 
 
 314 
 
THE INCIDENT AT ANTIOCH. 
 
 a protest against some errors of theological 
 belief. A similar protest needs to be uttered 
 against some errors of practical belief. The 
 way to a better heaven on earth might be 
 macadamized by broken misconceptions con- 
 cerning Christian relationships. If men 
 would destroy forever the notions that dif- 
 ferences of opinion are grounds for the 
 estrangement of lives; that the offering of 
 kindly criticism is an offense instead of a 
 favor ; that the reception of kindly criticism 
 should invite revenge rather than reforma- 
 tion, then a better highway to more heavenly 
 human relationships would be assured. 
 
 315 
 
CHAPTER XXIII. 
 TRADITIONAL ACCOUNTS. 
 
 The incident at Antioch discussed in tlie last 
 chapter closes the history of Peter's career 
 so far as the New Testament is concerned, 
 with the exception that a few meager sug- 
 gestions are given in the two epistles bear- 
 ing his name. These suggestions indicate 
 the unfailing interest which Peter continued 
 to manifest in the cause of Christ. They 
 imply that after the incident at Antioch his 
 spirit of evangelism carried him far from 
 the mother Church at Jerusalem and his 
 friends at Antioch. The First Epistle of 
 Peter seems to have been written from 
 ' ' Babylon, ' ' where Peter had been visited by 
 Silvanus, who is called a faithful brother. 
 The meaning of the word ''Babylon" has 
 been a matter of much discussion. Some 
 have contended that the city on the Eu- 
 phrates in the East is meant. Others have 
 argued that the term is a sjiubolic one for 
 the city of Rome, and therefore it was from 
 the Imperial City that Peter sent his letter 
 316 
 
TRADITIONAL ACCOUNTS. 
 
 to the Christians of Asia Minor. These per- 
 sons argue also that the letter was sent to 
 the Christians of Asia Minor by the hand of 
 Silvanus, whose name is mentioned in the 
 letter. This view is held by many who do 
 not accept the theory of the Eoman Catholic 
 Church that Peter was the first bishop of 
 Rome. The view that the ''Babylon" from 
 which Peter wrote his first letter is the city 
 of Rome, is one most generally held by care- 
 ful Bible students, though many strongly op- 
 pose this view and contend for the city on 
 the Euphrates. 
 
 The origin of the Second Epistle of Peter 
 is also a matter of some doubt. While the 
 history of the letter itself is uncertain, it yet 
 makes certain the fact that the end of Peter 's 
 life is not far away. In the letter Peter says, 
 ''Shortly I must put off this my tabernacle, 
 even as our Lord Jesus Christ hath showed 
 me." This letter also suggests that the 
 friendly relation between Peter and Paul was 
 still unbroken. Toward the end of the letter 
 Peter speaks of Paul as ' ' our beloved brother 
 Paul, ' ' and in the same connection commends 
 the doctrine of Paul as contained in his let- 
 ters to the disciples of Jesus. 
 317 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 It appears, then, that from reliable his- 
 toric sources we get very little concerning 
 the end of Peter's life. There is, however, a 
 great mass of statements concerning his last 
 days found in traditional sources. In this 
 mass there is likely a mingling of some fact 
 with much fancy. It becomes a difficult 
 task in some instances to distinguish the 
 fact from the fancy. These traditional ac- 
 counts are full of interest, and while not 
 entirely trustworthy, may yet serve to throw 
 some light on the closing days of the life 
 of Peter. 
 
 The well-known assumption of the Church 
 of Rome is that Peter spent his last days in 
 the city of Rome and met his death there. 
 This assumption is based on a tradition which 
 declares that Peter first visited Rome about 
 40 A. D., remaining there but a short time, 
 and returning to Jerusalem, where he was 
 imprisoned by Herod Agrippa, as recorded 
 in the twelfth chapter of the Book of Acts. 
 After his miraculous release from prison, 
 Peter returned to Rome according to the tra- 
 dition. Persecutions of Christians in the 
 Imperial City drove him again to the city of 
 Jerusalem, where he happened to be at the 
 
 318 
 
TRADITIONAL ACCOUNTS. 
 
 time of the first Christian council, in 51 
 A. D. After this conference in Jerusalem, 
 Peter returned to Eome, this being his third 
 visit to that city. He there engaged in active 
 Christian work, making converts and laying 
 firmly the foundations of the future Church. 
 The tradition asserts that Peter was still at 
 Eome when Paul arrived for his imprison- 
 ment there. The messengers sent to meet 
 Paul at Appii Forum and the Three Taverns 
 were sent by Peter, so the tradition says. It 
 also describes how Peter and Paul worked 
 together in Rome until the persecution under 
 Nero brought both to death. During this 
 persecution Peter was persuaded by Chris- 
 tian friends to attempt to escape. But as he 
 left the city he saw the Lord in a vision and 
 said to Him, ''Lord, where goest Thou?" 
 The Lord answered, ''To Rome to be cruci- 
 fied yet again." Peter himself then went 
 back to the city, being now willing to go 
 even to death with his Master. Ultimately 
 Peter was brought to his death by the igno- 
 minious process of crucifixion. The tradition 
 has it that Peter felt himself unworthy to die 
 exactly as his Lord had died, therefore re- 
 quested that as a mark of his own unworthi- 
 319 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 ness he might be crucified with his head 
 downward. His request was granted, and 
 thus gladly the apostle came to the martyr's 
 death. So the tradition says. 
 
 Another tradition asserts that at Peter's 
 request his friends built a tower for him in 
 the city of Rome, where he might live in 
 seclusion and in humility to the end of his 
 days. He lived in this tower for six years 
 and then died. He was buried within that 
 tower. This old tradition says, ''And this 
 tower may be seen in Rome and they call it 
 Peter, which is a word for a stone, because 
 he sat in a stone to the day on his death." 
 
 This account of Peter's death is so un- 
 natural and unhistoric in tone that it pre- 
 cludes serious consideration. The story 
 bears on its face evidences of fantastic cre- 
 ation. The tradition of the Church of Rome, 
 on the other hand, mingles with its fancy so 
 much of possible fact that it deserves more 
 careful consideration. 
 
 The claims of the Roman tradition are in 
 the main reasonable, but their fatal lack is a 
 basis in historical fact. The sources of these 
 claims are not historic, but speculative. As 
 one authority has pointed out, these claims 
 320 
 
TRADITIONAL ACCOUNTS. 
 
 of Rome ''are an inheritance not from the 
 authentic teachings of the apostles or tlie 
 Apostolic Church, but from the Ebionite 
 heretics whom she condemned." 
 
 The claims of Rome that Peter was in 
 touch with the affairs of the Christian 
 Church in Rome for a quarter of a century, 
 and that the last years of his life were lived 
 there as the head of the Church, seem ex- 
 ceedingly unlikely, inasmuch as no mention 
 of such facts is made by any of the New 
 Testament writers. St. Luke includes Rome 
 in the history of the early Church as recorded 
 in Acts. He describes the arrival of Paul 
 and himself in Rome, and their meeting with 
 the chief of the Jews there. But no mention 
 is made of Peter as being in Rome. Had he 
 been found there, Luke could hardly have 
 omitted the mention of that fact. Again, 
 Paul, in writing his letters from Rome, men- 
 tions the presence there of Luke, Demas, 
 Tychicus, Aristarchus, Epaphroditus, Mar- 
 cus, and Epaphras. But there is no mention 
 of Peter. It is impossible to believe that both 
 Luke and Paul would have failed to mention 
 the presence of Peter in Rome had he been 
 there, especially since the mention of his 
 
 2» 321 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 presence would have been a matter of such 
 interest to Christians everywhere. 
 
 While the New Testament w^riters are 
 silent concerning the residence of Peter in 
 Eome, some outside sources make mention of 
 his being in that city. Whether this mention 
 is based on fact or tradition is a disputed 
 question. Dionysius of Corinth, Irenaeus, 
 Tertullian, and others mention the presence 
 of Peter and Paul in Rome as co-laborers. 
 
 In view of all these facts, about the safest 
 conclusion at which one may arrive is, that 
 while there is no convincing evidence that 
 Peter ever lived for any considerable time 
 in Rome, and while the contention that he 
 was the first pope of Rome is utterly unliis- 
 toric, yet it is probable that in the course of 
 his evangelistic labors Peter visited Rome. 
 It is probable, too, that there he met the mar- 
 tyr's death during the persecutions under 
 Nero. On the other hand, it is not probable 
 that Peter and Paul were laborers together 
 for any great length of time in Rome, else 
 mention of Peter's presence would have been 
 made in the w^ritings of Paul. It is likely 
 that Peter visited Rome toward the close of 
 Ixis career. The persecution under Nero be- 
 322 
 
TRADITIONAL ACCOUNTS. 
 
 gan about 64 A. D. It was likely during this 
 persecution that Peter reached Rome, being, 
 as P'arrar suggests, brought there as a pris- 
 oner, or coming to strengthen the Jewish 
 Christians in the trying time of their perse- 
 cution. We know that Peter was in Jerusa- 
 lem at the time of the council at Jerusalem, 
 in 51 A. D. He was evidently not in Rome 
 when Paul wrote his letter to the Christians 
 in that city, for no mention of his presence 
 is made by Paul. Had Peter been in Rome, 
 Paul would doubtless have known that fact 
 and made mention of it. Peter was evidently 
 not present during Paul 's first imprisonment 
 in Rome, from 61 to 63 or 64 A. D., for in 
 none of the epistles written during that 
 period does Paul mention his presence. Nor 
 is any mention of him made in the epistles 
 written during Paul's second imprisonment, 
 from 66 to 67 A. D. In the face of all these 
 facts, it seems reasonable to conclude that 
 Peter went to Rome shortly before his death, 
 and after brief labors there met his martyr- 
 dom, as did Paul about the year 68 or 69 
 A. D. It is the opinion of many scholars 
 that the epistles written by Peter were writ- 
 ten from Rome during these brief labors 
 323 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 there, and tliat the "Babylon" mentioned in 
 the First Epistle is the city of Rome, since 
 it is known that the term "Babylon" was 
 frequently used in the early history of the 
 Church to designate that city. 
 
 A tradition claims that the mfe of Peter, 
 after being faithful with him in his evangel- 
 istic labors, likewise met the martyr's death 
 in the Neronian persecution. It is said that 
 Peter, upon seeing his wife led forth to death, 
 rejoiced at her "journey homeward," and 
 for her encouragement addressed to her the 
 words, "0, remember the Lord." With the 
 memory of the Lord's death for her brought 
 thus to her mind, she bravely went to death 
 for Him. Not a great while later she was 
 followed by her husband, who long ago had 
 said, "Lord, I am ready to go mth Thee both 
 to prison and to death." Once he had shown 
 that he was not ready. Now he was ready. 
 Already he had gone with the Lord to prison ; 
 now he gladly went with Him to death. 
 
 A legend of Jerusalem suggests the con- 
 ception which the people in those early days 
 had of the method of Peter's personal min- 
 istry, and likewise pays tribute to the faith 
 which the people had in his unusual power 
 324 
 
TRADITIONAL ACCOUNTS. 
 
 as an apostle. A woman whose husband was 
 sick appealed to Peter to prolong the hus- 
 band 's life. Peter answered, ' ' I will on con- 
 dition that you become a beggar." The 
 woman replied: *'I do not need to become a 
 beggar. I have money enough to support 
 us." Peter said: **You must not beg for 
 money, but for time. Go, and any time you 
 can beg from another's life I will add to the 
 life of your husband." The woman went 
 and found one of the ten lepers who were 
 cleansed. She begged time from him, but 
 his answer was: *'No; I have lost too much 
 time already. I can spare no more." She 
 next found the young man whom Jesus raised 
 from the dead, and begged time from him. 
 His reply was that, having been dead once, 
 he had a still greater desire to live, and would 
 not hasten death again by giving up part of 
 his time. Thus one refusal after another was 
 received until finally the thought came to her, 
 "Why not give from your own life." She 
 returned to Peter and asked if she might give 
 of her own time. Her request was granted. 
 Peter then took one-half of her remaining 
 days and added them to the life of the hus- 
 band, and the happy couple continued the 
 325 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 journey of life side by side and finally to- 
 gether crossed the river of death. So the 
 legend runs. It may have been originated 
 to show that Peter taught the lesson that the 
 Lord taught the world, namely, the joy and 
 profit of self-sacrifice for the sake of another. 
 
 Traditions describing in detail the death 
 and burial of Peter are not lacking. Refer- 
 ence to the manner of his death has already 
 been made. It is stated that after he had 
 been bound to the cross, he made an address 
 to the friends gathered around him, saying: 
 ' ' 0, great and profound secret of the Cross ! 
 It is by it that God draws all to Him. It is 
 the Tree of Life which has destroyed the 
 Empire of Death; it is by the fruit of this 
 tree, Savior, that Thou hast opened my 
 eyes; open now the eyes of all present that 
 they too may contemplate the consolation of 
 eternal life. ' * 
 
 After the death of Peter, his body was 
 taken from the cross by one of Peter's Ro- 
 man converts by the name of Marcellus. It 
 was buried beneath a terebinth tree, and that 
 night Marcellus stood watch over the grave. 
 In the night, it is said, Peter appeared to 
 Marcellus and spoke comforting words, and 
 326 
 
TRADITIONAL ACCOUNTS. 
 
 commissioned him to go and proclaim the 
 Kingdom of God. Marcellus related this ap- 
 pearance to the other disciples, and they were 
 all greatly comforted. It is also said that 
 shortly after his death Peter appeared to 
 Nero and prophesied a terrible fate, which 
 greatly alarmed the emperor. 
 
 Traditional accounts also assert that the 
 body of Peter was buried in the Catacombs, 
 about two miles outside the city, and that 
 after resting there eighteen months, the body 
 was taken up and buried on the Vatican Hill. 
 It is supposed that after many years had 
 passed the bones were again taken up and 
 somewhat scattered, so that part of the body 
 now rests beneath the Church of S. Paolp 
 fuori ]e Mura and another part in a vault 
 known as the Confessio di S. Pietro in the 
 great Cathedral in Rome, while the head is 
 supposed to rest in the Basilica of S. Gio- 
 vanni in Laterano. It must not be forgotten, 
 however, that in all this mass of statements 
 we are dealing with tradition and not with 
 history. 
 
 It is to be regretted that the closing days 
 of the life of St. Peter are wrapped in so 
 much mystery and colored with so much of 
 
 327 
 
THE EXALTED FISHERMAN. 
 
 fantastic tradition. But whatever the real 
 historic facts in the case may be, we may feel 
 assured that the humble fisherman, exalted 
 as he was by the authority of the Christ and 
 empowered as he was by the baptism at 
 Pentecost, came to the end of his troubled 
 career with the fidelity and courage of a 
 Christian soldier. For his life with its range 
 of experiences, we are thankful. We pity 
 him in his mistakes. We weep with him in 
 his penitence. We honor him in his daring 
 endeavor. We rejoice with him in his em- 
 powering. We glory in his vast service for 
 the Kingdom. We behold in him an example 
 of the beauty and fruitage God is able to 
 produce in a life barren of talent and op- 
 pressed by many human frailties. 
 
 The poem wdiich follows furnishes a fit- 
 ting close to this volume and also breathes 
 a prayer which will find a response in the 
 heart of every admirer of the Exalted Fish- 
 erman, Peter the Apostle: 
 
 Lord, when temptations crowd my day. 
 And I the hostile throng must face, 
 
 Keep me from drifting far away 
 To skulk in guilt and sore disgrace, 
 As Peter did! 
 
 328 
 
TRADITIONAL ACCOUNTS. 
 
 Should I from holy ways depart 
 And some sad day my Lord deny. 
 
 With tear-wet eyes and contrite heart 
 
 To Thee for pardon may I cry, 
 
 As Peter did! 
 
 When Skepticism's flings would dare 
 
 Christ's Deity to undermine, 
 May I with unmoved faith declare, 
 
 "Thou art the Christ, God's Son Divine," 
 As Peter did! 
 
 And when the Pentecostal shower 
 Shall baptize men for holy strife. 
 
 May I receive the heaven-sent power 
 To teach lost souls the way of life. 
 As Peter did! 
 
 When civic wrong and social ill 
 
 Would seal the lips that should condemn. 
 
 With, "What is RIGHT, that speak I will," 
 In boldness I would answer them, 
 As Peter did! 
 
 When life's long march comes to a halt, 
 And I from earth's cares find release. 
 
 May I in death the Christ exalt 
 And close a toil-worn life in peace, 
 As Peter did! 
 
 329 
 
BS2515 .G81 
 
 The exalted fisherman; a practical and 
 
 IMlli"l"'°" '^*^^°'°9ical Seminary-Speer Library 
 
 1 1012 00013 4421 
 
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