Some time ago, my friend of several decades, Walter Vogt, sent me this picture. To him it was probably just a picture of a chipmunk in a tree, but to me, it is far more than that!!! Whenever I see a chipmunk, I think of my wife Linda, because that was my pet name for her in high school. But, nicknames can be both a description of a person as well as a term of endearment. Read on to see where I am going with this...
Mark, Chapter 3
13 He went up into the mountain, and called to himself those whom he wanted, and they went to him. 14 He appointed twelve, that they might be with him, and that he might send them out to preach, 15 and to have authority to heal sicknesses and to cast out demons: 16 Simon, to whom he gave the name Peter; 17 James the son of Zebedee; John, the brother of James, and he called them Boanerges, which means, Sons of Thunder; 18 Andrew; Philip; Bartholomew; Matthew; Thomas; James, the son of Alphaeus; Thaddaeus; Simon the Zealot; 19 and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed him.
Matthew, Chapter 16
13 Now when Jesus came into the parts of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, saying, “Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?”
14 They said, “Some say John the Baptizer, some, Elijah, and others, Jeremiah, or one of the prophets.”
15 He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?”
16 Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
17 Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. 18 I also tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my assembly, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it.
14 They said, “Some say John the Baptizer, some, Elijah, and others, Jeremiah, or one of the prophets.”
15 He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?”
16 Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
17 Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. 18 I also tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my assembly, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it.
Simon Peter, now there is one impetuous man!!! But, perhaps that quality about him was just a habit of sizing things up and making a quick decision- the mark of a true leader. Peter (whose name means rock, as like a pebble) was chosen by Jesus and when the twelve were asked who the Son of Man was, responded with the famous statement of verse 16. Jesus' reply has been misinterpreted by many to give Peter more power than he really had. For, the "rock" Jesus talks about is Peter's confession of Jesus as the Christ (verse 16), not Peter himself. How do it know this? Well, common sense, because there can be only one head of the Church and Jesus alone holds this position. Also, Peter is a masculine word and the "rock" is a feminine one, so the two cannot be tied together. In reality, he is ONE of the apostles, not THE HEAD APOSTLE. Peter's alternative name means a lot, but the real designation that is important is that he was a follower of Jesus, a CHRISTIAN!!! Now, if you could choose one nickname for yourself- I wonder what you would pick??? For me, most nicknames I have had over the years aren't very flattering, so I have liked very few of them. I guess I like disciple Rose the best, because here I am retired and still learning (and of course, the word disciple means a learner). The only other nickname that I ever enjoyed was given to me in 1973 by a Methodist minister named Jim Lundin- He used to call me "Moses BEN Rose". Cute, but somehow it doesn't seem to fit anymore. What is really important in all this is WHO DO YOU SAY JESUS IS!!!! Only you can answer that...