Friday, November 4, 2005
1 Peter 1:1-2 Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, To the pilgrims of the Dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace to you and peace be multiplied.
PETER: AN APOSTLE OF JESUS CHRIST
What do you think of Jesus' disciple, Simon Peter? The Gospels describe him as someone who often opened his mouth without thinking -- like the time he tried to talk Jesus out of going to Jerusalem to suffer and die. Jesus then turned to him and said: "Get behind Me, Satan. You are an offense to Me, for you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men." Then there was that time when Peter, James, and John were on the mountain of transfiguration with Jesus, and Moses and Elijah appeared and were talking to Jesus. Peter opened his mouth then too and said: "Let us make three tabernacles." The Gospel adds that "he did not know what to say," but being the kind of person he was, he had to say something. Then, of course, there was that time when Peter opened his mouth and bragged that his loyalty to Jesus was greater than that of all the other disciples, and soon thereafter saying he did not even know who Jesus was -- yes, even adding curses and oaths to his denial of his Lord.
It would seem that Peter was the kind of man you could not really depend on to tell the truth, and yet Jesus chose this man to be His apostle. And, of course, there were times when Peter got it right, as when he confessed before them all: "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." Then it was that Jesus said to him: "Flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven."
Let us then let Christ's apostle Peter speak to us -- not as a messenger of Satan, not as a person spouting off half-baked human ideas, but as an apostle of Jesus Christ who was given the words he spoke by the Holy Spirit of God. We have such words in Peter's first epistle.
Jesus promised Peter: "I shall send you the Spirit of truth . . . and the Spirit of truth will guide you into all truth. He will take what is Mine and give it unto you."
What a privilege we have -- an apostle of Jesus Christ addressing us as the Holy Spirit guided him. Yes, he was writing in the first place to scattered Christians in various provinces of the Roman Empire, but his words have been preserved by God for our instruction also.
