Hello, and welcome to my page. If you are new here, we’re glad you stopped by! If you are returning, great to see you again! A few months ago, my pastor did a sermon series on 1 and 2 Peter titled, ‘Living Hope.’ I thought I would spend the following several blogs sharing the notes from his sermons on these influential books of the Bible. Join me as we dive into the writings of Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ.
Peter is the same apostle who devoted his life to Christ, yet when Jesus was put on trial, he denied knowing Christ, not once, not twice, but three times. Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John all record Peter’s denials of knowing Jesus. How would you like to be that guy? All four gospels record the same horrible event.
Thankfully, the apostle John records Jesus reinstating Peter as one of his own. John records that Jesus, after his resurrection and appearance to His disciples, asked Peter three times, “Do you love me?” And all three times, Peter says, “Yes, Lord, you know I do.” Peter stresses Christ’s knowledge, not his own grasp of the situation.
So, now that we know a little about Peter, what do his letters to the Christians in Asia Minor and the surrounding areas teach us today?
Let’s look at what Pastor Joel shared in his sermon series titled, ‘Living Hope.’
“Peter is mentioned more, spoken of most, and speaks the most in the books of the New Testament.
Some attributes of Peter:
- growing, striving, wrestling
- fisherman – called to fish for men
- leader of the 12 apostles of Jesus
- also known as Simon
- was rebuked by Jesus more than the others
- confessed Jesus/denied Jesus more
- cast nets and catches boat fulls of fish – Luke 5
- leads the charge to find Jesus
- walks on water/ sinks in the same paragraph
- he got out of the boat when the others did not
- confession spoken of baptisms – You are the Christ
- he saw the transfiguration
- he asked how many times one should forgive
- he didn’t want Jesus to wash just his feet/wash his whole body
- in the garden, Peter is ready to fight/cuts off the guy’s ear
- he’s the guy that would deny Jesus three times
- runs to the tomb
- was restored – from fisherman to shepherd
- preaches the day of Pentecost in the book of Acts
- preaches the gospel of Jesus Christ in Acts 10:34-43
Wow! What a resume!
What a resume for a guy known in his community for being a fisherman.
When I read his resume above, it gives me hope that the Lord can also use someone like me. I didn’t do many of the things Peter did, but my history of where I came from – well, let’s say God has done some amazing things in and through my life I never dreamed he would do. He can do the same in your life, too, if you allow him.
Another thing that sticks out to me about Peter is that he never left, no matter how hard the journey. He stayed close to Jesus and listened to his teachings, guidance, and rebukes. He acknowledged before Jesus his recognition of who Christ was. Following Jesus changed his life, and I imagine he never envisioned those things for himself.
When we follow the Lord, our lives do not look like what we envisioned. God is doing greater things in and through our lives more than we could ever fathom.
The above was just the introduction to this new sermon series, ‘Living Hope.’ We haven’t dug into the Scriptures of 1 Peter yet, but we will next time.
Let me close with these thoughts from Pastor Joel.
“Peter wrote to the followers of the Way. The spirit of God is at work in them and in us. Maybe like them, we have struggles.
The Lord wants us to lean into his grace and peace. Allow the presence of God to lead you once again.
Be reminded we have a living hope in Jesus Christ!”
Thanks, Pastor Joel, for an awesome look into the life of Peter. I can’t wait to see what Peter has to say in his letters.
Jesus is my living hope!
Blessings,
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