SS Peter and Paul

29th June 2008, Feast of SS Peter and Paul
Informal sermon with images, preached at St Alphege, Solihull at the 9.15 Eucharist.

Readings: Acts 12: 1-11 2 Timothy 4: 6-8 & 17-18 Matthew 16: 13-19


So today we remember Saint Peter and Saint Paul. Here is a picture of them.
[Picture - SS Peter and Paul]
That is St Peter on the left holding the two keys. St Peter is often depicted holding keys because of the incident that we heard about in our gospel reading today. Jesus declares that Peter is the Rock on which he will build his church. Jesus says, “I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” It is not easy for us to know exactly what that means, but clearly great authority in heaven and earth has been given to him.
So obviously, that is St Paul on the right. He is often depicted carrying the Word of God, as a book or as a double edged sword. A sharp double edged sword is used as a symbol for the word of the Lord in the book of Hebrews (4:12) and in Revelation (chapters 1 and 2).
But why do we make such a fuss about Peter and Paul? They died almost 2000 years ago, why are they relevant to us now? Well first of all they are important because they are saints, and they show us the way to be saints. We are all called to become saints. We are all called to holiness. God has created us for an extraordinary destiny. We want us to take our place in the kingdom of heaven, and to share in his glory (2 Thes 2:14, 1 Pet 5:1). It is like we are called to be a small crystal of glass in the great chandelier of heaven, where we are illuminated completely by the glory of God.
[Picture - Chandelier]
Of course for this to happen we have to be raised up and cut into shape and cleaned and purified, but eventually will take our place alongside all the other saints around God, the source of all light and life. So the saints are important to us because they show us what our destiny is. They show us how by following Christ and his commandments we can grow in love and become holy.
[Camera on speaker]
But Paul and Peter are also important because they are the great apostles and preachers central to the setting up of the church. Peter was sent (apostle means “sent”) to preach the gospel to the Jews, to the circumcised, and Paul was sent to preach the gospel to the gentiles, the non-Jews, the uncircumcised. (c.f. Gal 2:7ff)
Let’s think about Peter for a moment.
[Picture – icon of Peter]
Peter was originally called Simon. He grew up us as a fisherman, with his brother Andrew. He got to know Jesus, who came to his house and healed his mother-in-law and performed many other miracles (Luke 4: 38ff). Then one day Jesus used Peter’s boat as a platform to preach from.
[Picture – boat]
After this they put out into deep water and caught a miraculous catch of fish. Peter became terrified of the power of Jesus, but Jesus told him not to be afraid, but to follow him and become a catcher of people rather than of fish. (Luke 5: 1-11).
Peter was the leader of the disciples, but he was also the one who made lots of mistakes. Jesus was forever correcting him, and in particular forgave Peter for his three fold denials of Christ, during Christ’s trial. After the day of Pentecost Peter becomes a great preacher and works many wonders. We heard today the story of his miraculous escape from jail. For the apostles he was the first among equals. He was indeed the rock on which the church was founded.
Now let’s think about Paul
[Picture – icon of Paul]
Paul came from an impeccable background. He was a Pharisee, the son of a Pharisee and had had a full Jewish religious education. He was also a Roman citizen by birth and had received an Greek education. As a young man his name was Saul. Like many Pharisees he did not approve of the innovations that Jesus proposed within Judaism, and he actively persecuted the Church. He was present at the stoning of Stephen, and was on his way to Damascus to arrest more Christians when he had an extraordinary vision of Christ.
[Picture – conversion of St Paul]
The experience completely transformed Paul, who became a great preacher and teacher of the faith. He undertook three major missionary journeys to visit the fledgling churches in different places. He endured all kinds of sufferings including shipwreck, prison and being floged. He wrote many letters to the young churches and these quickly became important to the whole church and were included in the New Testament. He was the great theologian of the early church.
[Camera on speaker]
Another important reason why we particularly remember Peter and Paul is their importance as martyrs. There is nothing in scripture about how Peter and Paul died, but there are some traditions found in early church writings. In AD 64 there was a terrible fire in Rome, which destroyed a large part of the city. Nero, the unpopular emperor, was accused of playing his fiddle while Rome burned around him. Nero needed a scapegoat, and he blamed the Christians. A terrible persecution followed. Nero devised extraordinary new tortures to inflict on the Christians. The traditions suggest that Peter was crucified upside down on the site which is now St Peter’s basilica in Rome. Paul, who being a Roman citizen could not be crucified, was beheaded. The early church quickly started to remember Peter and Paul together.
[Pictue - Picture of Peter and Paul embracing]
They were the martyrs on whom the church in Rome was founded.
So as we remember Peter and Paul, we need to give thanks for their great witness to Christ. We need to give thanks for the secure spiritual foundations that they laid for the Church, and the church in Rome in particular. As we think about our own spiritual lives, and our own journeys of faith, let’s be inspired by their examples. Let’s each of us follow the path Christ has prepared for us; Peter and Paul show us that what ever the cost, it is worth it!