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Sunday 29 June 2025 Saint Peter and Saint Paul, Apostles
The beauty of faith
Acts 12:1-11; 2 Timothy 4:6-8, 17-18; Matthew 16:13-19
Context: ethnically and socio-economically diverse congregation of mixed ages and backgrounds
Aim: to affirm our faith both in moments of triumph and in suffering, as something wonderfully gifted to us that rises above both and secures us in the knowledge of the love of God that transcends all
Paul is rescued from jail by an angel, who leads him out of the city to safety. Peter proclaims Jesus the Christ, the Son of the living God, and is declared the rock upon which the church will be built. Moments of epiphany, revelation, insight, and power for these two men, whom we celebrate as saints this day. Yet who and what we celebrate today is not these moments in themselves, but where these moments led these two men: to their martyrdom in Rome.
A FAITH THAT RAISES, RESCUES, AND REVEALS
As Saint Paul recounts, he is ‘already being poured out like a libation’. The lowly are exalted, lifted up, only to be cast down by an unforgiving empire. Jesus, Peter, and Paul, all three are at the heart of our celebration, because without the coming of the Messiah in Jesus of Nazareth, neither Paul of Tarsus nor Peter of Bethsaida would have been raised up and so suffer
death for their faith in that very same Messiah.
Such it is with our own lives. We follow the faith handed down to us by Saints Peter and Paul, we learn from their teachings in scripture, and we belong to the Church they shepherded. It is such faith that raises us up out of our daily toil and concerns, that gladdens our hearts in the presence of the Lord. It is such faith that rescues us when we feel trapped, lost, or confused, showing us a path to light and safety. It is such faith that reveals to us the glory of God’s creation, the beauty of the lives we share with those we love, and the grace that suffuses all of it.
A FAITH THAT GIVES AND CALLS US TO GIVE
It is also such faith that leads us to give of ourselves, to follow the call of the gospel to tend to the poor, the sick, the lonely, the dying, giving of ourselves until there is nothing left to give. We know such days when we are at the end of our wits, exhausted and worn down by cares and the needs of others, so much so that it seems our fate to spend our days in misery and suffering alongside those we try to care for.
Such is the beauty of our faith, the faith of Saints Peter and Paul in our Lord Jesus Christ, that we know that suffering, martyrdom, the pain of the cross, is not the final word. Peter and Paul went to their deaths proclaiming their faith in the one true God, in Jesus Christ our Lord, knowing in their hearts and souls that death was not the end. This is the faith they have passed down to us. We, who are given much, are given it so that we can give it away to others or, when we have little to give, we can look to others, motivated by the call of the same gospel, to care for us in turn.
This is the beauty of our faith, the faith of Saints Peter and Paul in our Lord Jesus Christ: that when we are in need we can count on our sisters and brothers in the same faith to be there for us, to help us, to rescue us. And then, when we are filled with the good gifts of God, we put them in the hands of others who are in need. God lifted up Peter and Paul, revealed God’s own power and truth to them, not for their own sake, but for the sake of the gospel, so they could spread the Good News of Jesus Christ to all the world, and thus ‘pour themselves out’ in the process.
A FAITH THAT ENDURES, GUIDES, AND SUPPORTS
Without this faith, neither of these men could have lasted long in their missions, their journeys and their struggles. Without this faith, they surely would have been lost long before they arrived in Rome to await the fate of so many of the early followers of the Lord. Without this faith, we too would surely be lost, overwhelmed by the tasks and burdens that lie ahead. Yet we know by this same faith, that our God is with us, standing beside us, revealed as the Messiah, ready to send angels to our need, angels that we can be to each other, if we only look for them. This is the beauty of our faith, the faith of Saints Peter and Paul in our Lord Jesus Christ.
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