Seeing Jesus More Clearly through Relationship (Peter)

Today’s passage is another “meanwhile” passage that like Luke likes to use through the book of Acts. Though these passages like all passages are important, there really are not a standalone sermon as much as they are a good study. However, as I was reviewing these passages I released that we are jumping back into Peter’s ministry and Peter’s ministry will be the focus of the the next several chapters so I was inspired to do a deep dive on who Pete is. Our theme this year has been “Seeing Jesus More Clearly” and we have seen much of this in relation to the church, but I was struck by how Jesus deals with us individualy as indiviguels that make up his church. It struck me that as we are going to go into a holdiy seasion that will be difrent than anything we have ever seen in our life time, I though focusing on how Jesus deals with us indivgualy would be a good way to wrap up where have been in acts. Lets start by looking into Peter’s past. With the holiday break that will take place to focus on advent, starting next week, I though this would be a good time to go over who Peter is how he got to be one of the maine people we hear about and how his relation ship with Jesus is somthing we should pay attention to.

Who is Peter? Simon?

Peter wasn't always Peter

His original name was Simon. We will get to his name in a bit, he was a fisherman from Galilean. By every mesure he was a very ordinary persion. He had a wife, owned his own fishing busines, and was thought to be in busines with James and John.

Simon was no difrent then you and me, he lived in a difrent time, but life was much the same, the stressers of life were not much difrent for him than we have now. I think this important to keep in mind as we walk through this, we often think of our biblical heros, or Christian wariors as people who had a very difrent life than us. In some cases this is true, I think the beuty of Simon is that we can look at this life and see many parells to ours, I think this makes him a very relatabule person.

Simon Meets Jesus

In John 1:35-51 hold the account of Simon meeting Jesus. See Simon had a brother named Andrew, and Andrew was the follower of John the Baptist, when Jesus was beginning His ministry and John the Baptist was pointing his followers to Jesus, this is when Andrew goes home and tells his brother Simon to come with him and meet Jesus.

Now it is general assumed the Simon had become to believe in Jesus as the mesia before they met, but don’t miss this in John 1:42 Jesus walks up to Simon asks him to confirm that his this person and renames him!

I don’t know about you but that would really shake me up

John 1:42 HCSB

and he brought Simon to Jesus. When Jesus saw him, He said, “You are Simon, son of John. You will be called Cephas” (which means “Rock”).

Peter/Rock

Explain this (his new name)

The name peter does not mean rock, like my name Josh means God Is My Salvation according to baby names .com. When the bible says Jesus renamed Simon to Peter it really means He renamed him rock. See Peter is how petros translates to English, but if you were to do a literal translation of his name, we would all call him “rock”.

Now that all aside, Peter has no idea why Jesus is doing this, what would you think? You have just met the one you have just come to accept as the mesia that jersisulum has been waiting on for so long, and now he just named you rock, and moved on to meet some other people?

I think any of us would be a bit shocked by this. Now the bible dosn’t tell us anything more about this and non of the comitatores would lend an opion on this, but I don’t want you to just blow by this, our them has been seeing Jesus more clearly and I think to do that we need focuse on the relational aspect of Jesus, so as we try to relate with Peter this feeling of shock, don’t loose that just because there is no intelectual discustion to be made, God is about feeling, I think if we can feel what thoes who came before us can feel than we can better undersatnd what is going on.

Peter had no idea what Jesus had planed for him, that is true with us today, when we say yes to Jesus, and put our desires aside, we really have no idea were that will take us, and that’s OK, that is where we grow and get stretched

What did his early christian life look like?

Peter’s early christian walked looked a-lot like our early christian walks

Peter was bold at times

He was bold with Jesus being the fist to confess Jesus as God

He was bold in bringing up concerns and questions from the other decibels

asking him to explain parables to the group

He would as probing questions to understand the teaching of Jesus better

At other times he was week in his faith or out of line with his actions

Like when he told Jesus he took Jesus aside and told him that he would never let anyone kill Jesus (Matt 16.22)

Or when he walked on water but began to doubt Jesus and he started to sink (Matt14.22)

He acted out of turn at times

Like when he cut off the ear of the Malchus (John 18.10)

I could go on and on but the point here is that the leader of the 12, the one God has so many plans for, he was all over the map! We all have times like this in our life, usually multiple peaks and valley's, but that does not change how God see’s you, or what God has in store for you. Just as we saw that God had a plan for Peter, He has a plan for each of us, and He is walking with each of us just as he walked with Peter.

Miracles Done by Peter in Acts

Healing the lame Beger (Acts 3:1-10)

The healing of Aeneas (Acts 9:32-35) (today’s verse)

Dorcas Restored to life (Acts 9:36-43) (today’s Verse)

Miracles not done by Peter:

The conversion of the Ethiopian officer (Acts 8:26-36)

Apostolic Signs & Wonders (Acts 5:12-16)

How do this relate to us?

though to expand on is how do we look in our early christiona walk and does that indicate who we will be for ever?

How did Jesus deal with Peter?

thoght to expand on is Jesus knew who perer would ultimatly be

How does Jesus deal with us?

thought to expand on is Jesus knows who will ultimatily be

Thought to expand on: take advantage of the slow holidays to focus on Jesus relationship with us

(brain storm who is Jesus church not sure if I will use this)

people not building

How to be who Jesus knows us to be

have a relationship

spend time in prayer

look for signs

(make any other paralles I can with Peter)

Go be that person (work on slide title)

Call to action

God makes great people out of missfits

This holdiay seasion will be slower than usual, use this time to think about where your relation ship is and how it clould look in the future.