John 1:40-43

One of the two who heard John speak and followed him was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother. He first found Simon and said to him, we have found the Messiah and brought him to Jesus. Now when Jesus looked at him He said, “You are Simon the son of Jonah. You shall be called Cephas.”

What an extraordinary meeting. Usually, when you are introduced to someone, they ask you who you are and about your family and background, but not this time – Jesus already knew everything about Peter! He knew his name and character and who his father was. Names in those times revealed something about the nature and character of the person, just as some nicknames do today. Jesus knew what sort of person Simon was. When we meet someone for the first time, we ask the person’s name so that we get it right and can recall it for future use, but not so Jesus, for he immediately said a very profound thing, “You shall be called Cephas”, which in Greek is translated to Petros or Peter.

In just a few moments, Jesus had summed Peter up and changed his name. Has this ever happened to you? What kind of man was Jesus to do this? Simon means a reed, and Peter means a stone; there is a fundamental difference between them, and by this, Jesus indicated that Peter’s whole nature would be changed.

Meeting Jesus is a life-changing experience. Outwardly, Peter seems to have been a rough, tough, brash fellow, but it was all put on and a façade. People like him are often deeply insecure, unsure, unstable, even fearful, and tossed about like a reed in the wind. They cover it up with their outward bravado.

Jesus said Peter would become like a stone, a rock, dependable, sure, not soon shaken. We will bear this in mind when we see in his life, despite his many imperfections, failures, and mistakes, what kind of person he became. 

The Lord has a purpose for us in life and calls us to follow him in order to fulfil his purpose. God is never in a hurry, never gives up, never loses patience, never turns us away, and never abandons us. We see this in Peter.

Matthew 4:18-19 – Later on, when Jesus was walking by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon, called Peter and Andrew, his brother, casting a net into the sea for they were fishermen. Then he said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you into fishers of men”.

The Lord intends to make each and every person who follows him into someone in his own image. Our part is to “follow him” and to never give up despite problems, disappointments, difficulties, mistakes, setbacks or failings. Never doubt the Love the Lord has for you and His faithfulness towards you, for he has called you to follow him and knows everything about you from the day you were conceived. He knows your character and nature, your ups and downs, your insecurities and problems, and he will make you into what he wants you to be. It is a journey, and he is not finished with you until you meet him in glory, where he will reward you. His plan is for our good, and if he could make Peter into a new person, he can do it for us, too.

The Lord alluded to this when he said to all those who trust him that he will give them a “white stone and on the stone a secret new name written which no one knows except him who receives it”. (Revelation 2:17). It typifies the new person that the Lord is forming you into. White represents purity, stone represents strength and steadfastness, and secret in that only he knows your true strength and value.

Peter went up and down and was tossed about by every storm, easily afraid and overwhelmed, but he became strong and sure as a rock, no longer tossed about by fears or failures. He, together with the other apostles, became foundation stones in the eternal City of God, New Jerusalem. (Matthew 16:18).

The Lord did not just make Peter into a great fisherman but he made him into a new person. God’s aim is not to make us into successful businessmen, farmers, doctors or any other kind of official standing but into new creations. (2 Corinthians 5:17).

What new name would you like to be given by the Lord as you follow him? Where before you may have been timid and unsure your new name may describe you as faithful and strong. The Lord has a new name for you which only he knows for he sees you for who you will become. (1 Peter 5:1-4).

The key word is – follow.

 If you were given a new name, what would you like your name to say about you? 

In a few words, what can you learn and apply from this?