Peter.
He is arguably the easiest person to identify with in the Bible. No one in all of Scripture is as volatile and impulsive as Peter (cf. Matt. 14:28; Mark 14:29; Luke 5:8; John 21:7). On his worst days, he bossed Jesus around and denied even knowing him. On his best days, he wrote two books of the Bible and, according to church history, was crucified upside down at his own request because he did not believe he was worthy of dying as Jesus did.
Peter’s life was filled with trials. After failing miserably with everything from cowardice in the gospels to racism in Acts, by God’s grace he began to grow and change, showing that by God’s grace anyone can become a world-changing servant of Jesus. In Peter, we see a normal disciple. Someone who really loves Jesus. Someone who really sins. Someone with whom God is patient as he grows and matures through his sin to love Jesus more and sin less. Perhaps this is why Jesus appointed him as the leader of the disciples as an example for all Christians. His imperfections are endearing and his progress is encouraging.
Peter’s shadow looms over much of the New Testament. In the four lists of the twelve apostles (Matt. 10:2–4; Mark 3:16–19; Luke 6:13–16; Acts 1:13), Peter is always mentioned first because he is their recognized leader after Jesus. As their leader, Peter also acts as spokesman for the Twelve (Matt. 15:15; 18:21; Mark 1:36–37; 8:29; 9:5; 10:28; 11:21; 14:29ff.; Luke 5:5; 12:41).
His father’s name was Jonah (Matt. 16:17), he himself was married (Mark 1:30), and in his missionary days of evangelism and church planting his wife accompanied him (1 Cor. 9:5). The fourth Gospel gives Bethsaida, a largely Greek city, as his place of birth (John 1:44), but he also had a home in Capernaum in Galilee (Mark 1:21ff.). Both places were lakeside, where he worked as a fisherman, and in both there would be frequent contact with Gentiles. He spoke Aramaic with a strong accent (Mark 14:70), and knew Greek as his second language, as was common in that day. It is also likely that Peter was influenced by John the Baptist’s ministry (cf. Acts 1:22), since his brother Andrew was a disciple of John (John 1:39ff.).
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