Hey, Carpool Crew. It's Pastor Justin and I just wanna let you know about our new show, Carpooling with Heroes of the Bible. Two times a month we'll be releasing a five-episode deep dive into a different hero from the Bible. This time we are talking about Peter. You are about to listen to episode one of those five episodes, and I hope you like it. It's the very beginning, when Jesus called Peter to be one of the disciples. If you enjoy it and you want to continue to listen on to the rest of the episodes, you can subscribe now on Apple Podcasts and it'll get you full access to all the episodes. They're live right now. And guess what? Later this month, we will be releasing five new episodes as we cover Ruth, one of the great heroes from the Bible. So check it out. Enjoy, Carpool Crew. I hope you like it, and consider subscribing so that you get Goodnight Psalms, Carpooling with Heroes of the Bible, and of course our weekend episodes of Carpooling with Jesus. I hope you have an incredible day and enjoy this preview of Carpooling with Heroes of the Bible. Hey, Carpool Crew. Whether you're headed to school, out running errands, or just munching on some waffles at the kitchen table, I'm Pastor Justin and you're listening to the first episode of Carpooling with Heroes of the Bible. We're kicking off a brand new five-episode series on someone you may have heard of: Peter. He's not just the guy who walked on water or denied Jesus three times. Peter's story is way more than just a few big moments in his life. In fact, we're gonna look at who he really was before he became one of the greatest leaders in the early church. So buckle up. We're going all the way back to the moment Peter met Jesus for the very first time. Peter was a fisherman from a small town called Bethsaida. It was located near the Sea of Galilee, a large freshwater lake where many people made their living catching fish. His real name was Simon. He had a brother named Andrew, and they worked together with other fishermen tossing nets into the water before sunrise, hauling them in and selling the catch in nearby villages. Peter wasn't rich. He wasn't famous. He wasn't a rabbi, a scholar, or a synagogue leader. He was loud. He was bold, and he spoke first and fought second. But Jesus saw something more in Peter. In the book of John chapter 1, verse 42, it says, when Jesus looked at him, he said, 'You are Simon, son of John. You'll be called' (which is translated Peter). Peter means rock. And Jesus was saying, 'You might not feel solid right now, but I'm gonna build something strong through you.' He was thinking about the church. One day, Peter was referred to as the rock on which the church was built. Now I wanna hit pause and zoom out for a second. In Peter's day, Jewish boys went to synagogue school starting at around age five. I don't know what you were doing at age five, but for me, I was playing soccer and learning to ride a bike really good, and maybe taking a couple of risks that I shouldn't have. But Jewish boys, they would go to synagogue and spend all day learning the scriptures. Specifically the Pentateuch, which is Greek for 'penta,' which means five, and 'teuchos,' which means book. Pentateuch. It was the first five books of the Bible: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. Now, only the smartest and most promising students were invited to keep studying and eventually follow a rabbi. Everyone else, well, they went back to the family trade. Maybe it was fishing, maybe it was carpentry. You know Jesus's earthly father Joseph, he was a carpenter. And for some it was farming. That means Peter wasn't chosen by a rabbi when he was younger. He wasn't asked to come follow the rabbi and learn and teach and prepare himself. He had already washed out of the religious education track. Nobody expected him to be part of God's big plan. No one at all. But Jesus, Jesus had a different plan. See, he didn't wait in a fancy temple for students to come find him. He went out on boats, to the beaches, to the villages, and called ordinary people like Peter to come follow him. Peter had just been out all night on the water, working with his nets. No fish. No catch. No profit. His hands were rough from the rope. His boat was soaked and he was soaking wet too. His eyes were tired. And that was the big moment. Jesus stepped onto his boat not to fish, but to teach. Jesus spoke to the crowd from the boat using it like a floating pulpit, and after teaching he turned to Peter and said, and this is in Luke chapter 5, verses 4 and 5, 'When he had finished speaking he said to Simon, put out into deep water and let down your nets for a catch.' 'Master,' Simon replied, 'we've worked hard all night and caught nothing, but if you say so, I'll let down the nets.' Now, Peter's first instinct was to obey. And bam. A miracle happened. So many fish that the nets, they began to break. So many fish got dumped into the boat that it actually started to sink. Peter's eyes went wide. He realized that he is in the presence of someone far greater than just a teacher. He drops to his knees and says, 'Go away from me because I'm a sinful man, Lord.' That's in Luke chapter 5, verse 8. Peter didn't feel worthy. He didn't feel ready. But Jesus didn't walk away. He looked Peter in the eyes and said, 'Don't be afraid. From now on you will be catching people.' That's in Luke chapter 5, verse 10. And just like that, Peter left the fish, left the net, left the boat and the family business, and followed Jesus. Now here's a little extra detail for the Carpool Crew. Fishing on the Sea of Galilee was actually really hard work. Fishermen used large circular nets called trammel nets, and they had to throw them out by hand and haul them back in over and over again. These guys were tough. They worked outside. They were sunburned and tanned, and they were strong. Their arms were thick, their forearms were beefy. They were up before dawn, and they knew the weather, the water, and the wind like the back of their hand. Peter wasn't weak, he wasn't lazy. He was used to figuring things out on his own. Working hard with his hands and with his arms. So when he dropped everything to follow Jesus, that wasn't just a casual choice, it was a total life change. And Peter's name change showed that Jesus wasn't just seeing who Peter was. He was calling out who Peter would be. See, Peter is listed first in nearly every disciple list in the gospel. He wasn't perfect. But he was willing. Jesus didn't wait for Peter to clean up his act or learn a bunch and prepare himself. He invited him to just drop what he was doing and come follow. So maybe you're not the fastest kid in class. Maybe you're not the loudest at church. Maybe you don't know every single Bible verse. That's okay. Neither do I. Maybe you don't always get everything right. But guess what? Jesus still calls you, because he doesn't just see who you are now. He sees who you're becoming. You don't need to be perfect to follow Jesus. You just need to say yes like Peter did. And hey, just like Peter, you're part of a story that's still unfolding. Remember, no matter where you are or how you're listening, God loves you and he's calling you to follow him. Next time, we will talk about one of Peter's most famous moments, the day he stepped out of the boat and sank. Thanks for joining me today on Carpooling with Heroes of the Bible. I'll see you next time, Carpool Crew.
