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However, the time had come when he was sufficiently instructed to be able to go on a mission, "And Jesus called unto Him the Twelve, and began to send them forth by two and two;"^[8]

Peter's Commission.

"And commanded them saying, Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not: But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel, and as ye go preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils; freely ye have received, freely give."^[9]

He told them to travel without money and without extra coats, and to carry blessings and peace to all who would receive them. He told them they would be persecuted, arrested and tried before governors and kings; but He assured them that the Lord would deliver them.

He further said that, "Whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear your words, when ye depart out of that house or city, shake off the dust of your feet. Verily I say unto you. It shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorra in the day of judgment than for that city."

"He that receiveth you receiveth me, and he that receiveth me receiveth Him that sent me. And whosoever shall give to drink unto one of these little ones a cup of cold water only in the name of a disciple, verily I say unto you, he shall in no wise lose his reward."

We do not know who Peter's companion was on this mission; but we are told that they went and preached that men should repent; that they cast out many devils, anointed with oil, and healed the sick, and did many other wonderful things in the name of Jesus of Nazareth.

John the Baptist Beheaded.

While they were on this mission, John Baptist the Baptist was beheaded by order of the wicked king Herod.

In a Desert Place Opposite Capernaum.

Upon their return unto Jesus, "The Apostles gathered themselves together (probably at Capernaum) and told Him all things, both what they had done, and what they had taught." But there were so many people "coming and going" that "they had no leisure so much as to eat;" so Jesus desiring to be alone with the Twelve said, "Come ye yourselves apart into a desert place, and rest awhile." So they entered a ship privately and sailed from the Capernaum side to the northwest coast. But some of the people saw them departing and ran on foot around the northern coast of the lake. Other people saw these running, and joined them so that when Jesus and the Twelve landed, there were hundreds if not thousands of people there to greet them.

As evening approached, the disciples asked Jesus to send the multitude away, so they could go to their cities and buy something to eat.

Another Manifestation.

It was on this occasion that Peter witnessed another manifestation of the power of God, and had repeated the valuable lesson he learned over a year before, when he made a miraculous draught of fishes; viz., That obedience to Christ's words always brings comfort and happiness. Instead of sending the multitude away hungry, Jesus said, "Whence shall we buy bread that these might eat?"

The Multitude Fed.

Philip answered, "Two hundred pennyworth of bread is not sufficient for them, that every one of them may take a little." But from five barley loaves and two small fishes, Jesus, by some process natural to Him but miraculous to us, fed that vast crowd of people, numbering about five thousand.

Peter assisted not only in distributing the bread and fish among the companies, but also in gathering the twelve baskets full left. No doubt he was one of those who said, "This is of a truth that Prophet that should come into the world." Let us hope, however, that he was not one of those who would have taken Jesus by force to make Him king.