In our day, Peter in the Bible would be considered a red-necked Bass fisherman. Do you go to Bass Pro Shop for spiritual counsel and guidance? I doubt it. But perhaps my husband does because he loves to fish. Would anyone trust a fisherman to know anything about spiritual matters?
Peter’s original name was Simon and he was one of Jesus’s twelve disciples. While fishing with his brother Andrew, Jesus called him, and the brothers followed. He was with Jesus until he went to his death. He was impulsive, ambitious, bold, passionate, inconsistent, and zealous as a leader. He had an eagerness that was beautiful but often landed him in trouble as Jesus tried to redirect him. He quickly committed to something without understanding whether he could follow through. He often spoke before thinking and even tried to tell Jesus what to do! Peter was Peter, a red-necked Bass fisherman turned disciple.
And we can’t forget Peter denying Jesus. (John 18:15-18, 25-27) After Jesus was arrested, Peter initially denied him two times. He didn’t bat an eye in denying Jesus. but after the third denial, he heard the rooster crow and remembered Jesus predicting this would happen as Jesus looked at him. Peter sobbed in sorrow! Yet now we see that Peter’s failure was not final.
We find it so easy to judge people for just about anything! Just as Peter had plenty of character traits that could cause people to be judgy towards him, so do you and I. As much as we’d like to say, “How in the world could Peter deny Jesus, not one or two, but THREE times?” we too, could commit so many sins against Jesus. We're often too busy judging others.
Do we look at people with the love of Jesus and believe in them? Do we believe that people can change?
Peter changed over time. The reality is that we all have made mistakes. Not one of us is perfect. We’ve all sinned. Time with Jesus will transform us and that’s what happened with Peter. We see in Acts 4:13 a different Peter “Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated, common men, they were astonished. And they recognized that they had been with Jesus.”
When Jesus called Peter initially, his name was Simon. Yet, Jesus changed His name to Peter, which means rock. (John 1:42) “For three years, Jesus called him ‘Rock’” At the time Peter was NOT like a rock! Jesus saw what Peter could be and transformed Peter into that.
Greg Laurie writes “We see a Simon. God sees a Peter. We see the past. God sees the future. We see a mess. God sees a message. God sees us for who we are in Christ, not what we were in sin. God does not see us in our sins; He sees us in His Son. God can change everything in your story- if you’ll let Him.”
And we can’t forget Peter denying Jesus. (John 18:15-18, 25-27) After Jesus was arrested, Peter initially denied him two times. He didn’t bat an eye in denying Jesus. but after the third denial, he heard the rooster crow and remembered Jesus predicting this would happen as Jesus looked at him. Peter sobbed in sorrow! Yet now we see that Peter’s failure was not final.
We find it so easy to judge people for just about anything! Just as Peter had plenty of character traits that could cause people to be judgy towards him, so do you and I. As much as we’d like to say, “How in the world could Peter deny Jesus, not one or two, but THREE times?” we too, could commit so many sins against Jesus. We're often too busy judging others.
Do we look at people with the love of Jesus and believe in them? Do we believe that people can change?
Peter changed over time. The reality is that we all have made mistakes. Not one of us is perfect. We’ve all sinned. Time with Jesus will transform us and that’s what happened with Peter. We see in Acts 4:13 a different Peter “Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated, common men, they were astonished. And they recognized that they had been with Jesus.”
When Jesus called Peter initially, his name was Simon. Yet, Jesus changed His name to Peter, which means rock. (John 1:42) “For three years, Jesus called him ‘Rock’” At the time Peter was NOT like a rock! Jesus saw what Peter could be and transformed Peter into that.
Greg Laurie writes “We see a Simon. God sees a Peter. We see the past. God sees the future. We see a mess. God sees a message. God sees us for who we are in Christ, not what we were in sin. God does not see us in our sins; He sees us in His Son. God can change everything in your story- if you’ll let Him.”
Take a listen: Graves into Gardens (Elevation worship) https://www.youtube.
Nancy Abbott is the Chaplain of the YMCA of Greater San Santonio.
Nancy Abbott is the Chaplain of the YMCA of Greater San Santonio.
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