The wheels are spinning! Spend a good amount of time thinking about what needs to change in your life? Better body? Just a look at all those before and after transformations is enough to get me at once excited and discouraged. Need a new career? Maybe even a new environment to start fresh? You are not alone, and the possibilities are endless.
We men and women are conditioned at an early age that we are in control of our futures and all our dreams are possible. But if we're being honest, that's a hard road to walk.
When you're in the church, when you are a follower of Jesus, the standards change. We're not let off the hook for our actions and thoughts. Instead, we're eventually taken to the place where we realize we can't get any better on our own. Then and only then, true change can begin.
We’ve all heard of the Proverbs 31 Woman! You know that incredible wife who can do it all? She not only is well respected in her world but she's a beloved wife and mother and a woman of accomplishment and recognition in the community.
But have you heard of the Psalm 112 Man? Rarely if ever, right?
Take a look at these verses:
1Praise the Lord!
Blessed is the man who fears the Lord,
who greatly delights in his commandments!
2 His offspring will be mighty in the land;
the generation of the upright will be blessed.
3 Wealth and riches are in his house,
and his righteousness endures forever.
4 Light dawns in the darkness for the upright;
he is gracious, merciful, and righteous.
5 It is well with the man who deals generously and lends;
who conducts his affairs with justice.
6 For the righteous will never be moved;
he will be remembered forever.
7 He is not afraid of bad news;
his heart is firm, trusting in the Lord.
8 His heart is steady; he will not be afraid,
until he looks in triumph on his adversaries.
9 He has distributed freely; he has given to the poor;
his righteousness endures forever;
his horn is exalted in honor.
10 The wicked man sees it and is angry;
he gnashes his teeth and melts away;
the desire of the wicked will perish!
In short, a godly man fears the Lord and loves His Word. He's one that's gracious, compassionate, generous and honest. He knows God will triumph, so that is where his focus is- pleasing God. he cares for the poor and cares for those around him instead of just looking out for himself above all others. He knows deep down God will honor him for his faithfulness when the time of ultimate judgment comes.
It's a tall order! How do we get there?
Let me put this idea into your head as we begin: We don’t
understand how to be a man because we don’t understand what we are made for! isn't this where it all begins? Only when we know how we are designed and what our purpose is can we find our true north and move forward.
Must begin by understanding why we are created -to enjoy and glorify God and make Him known (Isaiah 43:7).
o God did not need to create us- He created us because we are important to Him.
o The root word in Hebrew means We are made in His image, and we represent God. (Genesis 1:26).
o For believers to be a community of blessing throughout the earth as we go out (Genesis 12:1-3).
All this comes from Jesus being our role model as well as being our Lord and Savior. We are on a journey of transformation, of self-sacrifice, one that is being directed by the Father and empowered by God's Holy Spirit.
We are so far from perfect and often just far from being godly. But there's hope as we take a look at Peter, one of Jesus' closest followers. He's a man of action, often of ignorance, and one who is competitive with the people around him. Can you relate? I can.
The good news is God's power transformed him and that same God wants to transform us as well!
Thankfully, of all the Twelve who followed Jesus, the Gospels speak most often of Peter, so we get to see a solid look at a transformed life.
We can break down Peter’s life and character into 3 sections:
1-
Peter before meeting Jesus
2- Peter
living with Him
3- Post Ascension Peter
PPeter’s background was pretty ordinary. His dad was a fisherman and so was his brother. Yet, he and his brother are the first two
disciples Jesus calls. How could lowly fisherman change the world?
· During a young boy’s Bar Mitzvah at 13 is when the local rabbis would choose to take on a young teen as a disciple and teach him the ways of the faith. If these religious leaders were not impressed, then the boy would work as a tradesman in the same occupation as his father.
· The local rabbis passed on Peter and Andrew as having the qualities they wanted in their disciples. But Jesus looked beyond the ordinary. He knew they’d have value in the Kingdom!
"But Jesus..." I love those words!
Just what did Jesus see in Peter? The guy was just as ordinary as we are. There's positive traits and
negative ones, but he was fully aware of his sinfulness! (Luke 5:8) He was bold, hot-tempered, and some would say he
was a bigot, elevating Jews above Gentiles.
What did Peter see and learn as he walked with Jesus? How
did Peter Act? We can look at the Bible and see for ourselves much of what happened with this fisherman become leader on the early church.
Peter saw all the miracles Jesus did, the healings, the feeding of the thousands, the casting out of demons. He had Jesus in his home. Peter learned how to be married as well as how to serve God in ministry. (Matthew 10)
We know he always had something to say- not always something good- at the Transfiguration of Jesus, for example (Matthew 17). Peter was competitive with John, another one of Jesus' disciples. He was always striving for attention and comparing himself to others. Even when Jesus gently restores Peter, he can't help himself and has to question Jesus about John’s future (John 21).
Today in the church, we often use Peter as a bad example, but he’s the only one who took risks like walking on water! (Matthew 14)
Peter’s the first disciple to acknowledge Jesus
is the Christ, the Son of the Living God! (Matthew 16)
·
He’s then called Satan for rebuking Jesus when
he shared about his impending death!
·
Peter rebukes Jesus for wanting to wash his
feet. (John 13)
·
He and all the Disciples promised to never
desert Jesus. We remember Peter denied Jesus three times- but when Jesus was
taken away, Peter was the only one to follow Him if at a distance. (Matthew 26)
What happens after Jesus is taken up into Heaven to return at some unknown time in the future? After Jesus’ ascension, Peter’s story continues in the book of Acts.
Think about this: Before the Apostle Paul arrives on the scene,
Peter is the Great Preacher! On Pentecost, Peter preaches and more than 3,000
come to faith and are baptized. That’s a good day! He speaks judgment on Ananias and Sapphira for
lying to the Lord, confronts Simon the Sorcerer, and raises Tabitha from the
dead. He's quite a powerhouse of a man!
Where does this incredible transformation come from? We know the story in Acts, but we may not recognize the truth behind it. Peter and John are seized by the
Sanhedrin because they’re preaching about the Resurrection and many more people were
being saved. They are threatened by the crowds following this Jesus and listening to His disciples.
“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.” (Acts 4:13)
Here's the answer: Transformation into a godly man begins at Jesus’ feet.... And it is worked out in the context of community.
But it’s a continual work! Peter has a fear of man when he stops eating
with the Gentile believers when the Jews come along (Galatians 2). He receives a public rebuke by Paul for this,
yet later refers to Paul as his “beloved brother” (2 Peter 3), showing he has learned how to take correction graciously.
So, don't despair as you continue to walk out a life of faith!
Church tradition teaches that Peter was crucified upside down declaring he was not worthy to die in the same manner as Jesus. Wow.
This once proud and defiant man has become a humble servant of God willing to die for his faith! He reminds the leaders of the young church to shepherd their flock with humility. (1 Peter 5)
Let me close today's thoughts with this teaching from Peter, in the book of 2 Peter 1:3-8:
“3 His divine power has granted to us all things that
pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to
his own glory and excellence, 4 by which he has granted
to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become
partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in
the world because of sinful desire. 5 For this very reason,
make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with
knowledge, 6 and knowledge with self-control, and self-control
with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, 7 and
godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. 8 For
if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from
being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. “
Praise God for His transforming power!
(Copyright Mark Taft.)
