I'm so thankful for Peter....

His life is such a hope for the rest of us, is it not? His story, from beginning to end is a series of highs and lows. (Simon) Peter, along with his brother Andrew, is the first we see called to discipleship by Christ. Jesus calls him Peter which means “Rock”. He is rebuked when Jesus says to him, “Get behind me, satan.” (Yipes!) He walks on water. He denies Christ. He is restored by Christ and on the day of Pentecost we see him give the first sermon where 3000 people are saved.
It seems our friend has “finally” gotten things straight. No more ups and downs. All he needed was to be baptized in the Holy Spirit and Peter gets off the spiritual yo-yo…. Right? Wrong….
As we watch his AD ministry unfold, we realize that Peter has some prejudice issues that he must work through and in Galatians 2:11 we see Paul flat rebuke him to his face for his weakness and insecurity – and in the presence of other Christian leaders.
I love this passage….because it shows us that even the greatest of our spiritual leaders are still a work in progress. And that is a comfort to me. I love it because it shows that our journey with the Lord – for our whole lives – is a process.
I love that when God saw Peter, He saw past his impulsive, hot-tempered, weak-willed personality traits and straight to his passionate, loyal, risk-taking, enduring, teachable and loving character. I love what Beth Moore says in her book “Jesus, the One and Only”: She says that Peter may have been able to deny Christ to others, but that he could never deny Christ to himself.
Oh how we are – that we so long for Jesus but allow our rotten flesh to get in the way time and time again. Do you ever wonder – “will I ever get it right?” “Is there any hope for me?” Maybe that’s just what Paul was talking about in Romans 7. His conclusion was – that-yeah, there is hope for me – Jesus. It was Paul who told us it’s by grace that we’re saved, not of ourselves. So it’s fitting that it would be Paul who would stand up with confidence and set Peter straight in front of their associates. I have a feeling that it was a rebuke well given and well received. Because we always see Peter bounce back Always…. And that’s the hope of it.
In the end we see this beloved apostle die a death as dramatic as the life he lived as he is martyred for Christ, crucified, upside down.
Can a huge, passionate, unyielding and faithful heart dwell inside a weak, flawed and thin sack of flesh? I think so. I think Peter shows us it can. Peter was always in process. I’m thankful for the example. It offers me hope.
Ultimately, I believe that Peter’s life was governed by two things: One, that he knew that God unrelentingly loved him and two, that he so desperately loved God.
Psalm 103:8-14
The LORD is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love. He will not always accuse, nor will he harbor his anger forever; he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us. As a father has compassion on his children, so the LORD has compassion on those who fear him; for he knows how we are formed, he remembers that we are dust….