This week we're taking a different look at the "Peter do you love Me" passage. So many sermons have to do with the nuances of the word love, but that's not where we're going this time.
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For those of us who have gone through devastating circumstances, to the point where we really didn't think our heart could take much more without failing, these are the times when we need real comfort, the kind of comfort that can bring back complete rest in our hearts.
Peter had a pretty good list of positive qualities, but there's the old adage "just beyond your greatest strength is your greatest weakness". That about sums it up for Peter. But, at the end of the day, he was a man of action and we would do well to learn from him.
This week we're looking at Peter in the courtyard. It's a story we've all heard so often that the tendency is to not listen too closely. And that ends up being the central issue, doesn't it. Focusing on ourselves, and then, when the pressure is on we react knee-jerk style. This isn't about focusing about others. It's about focusing on ourselves in a different way. Getting quiet, learning to talk to our Living Lord, learning to listen and being willing to be honest in self assessment.
We've learned so much from our discussions of Peter. One of the difficult things for most of us when reading the bible is that a lot of it seems "other". I mean, these are people who walked around in long robes, lived thousands of years ago, and were from the middle east. No electricity, fast cars, cell phones... and on top of that they saw visions, heard God speak in a loud voice, and on it goes. So when you're told that when you leave this fine earth that you're going to be transformed, it just doesn't seem real. But it is.
Yes, you're going to have to listen to the entire sermon for that one. But it relates. Words have power, and they should be directed toward the things that count, the things that make the difference in life. We're still in the life of Peter.
If ever there was a time in all of human history that availability of information was at its pinnacle, we're living in it. You name it: quantity, quality, ease of access. In fact, a new data storage system uses single atoms as computer bits and could hold the contents of the US Library of Congress in a cube just 100 micrometers across... that's a little more than a speck of dust. Understanding God, His reality and how to know Him personally is no longer a matter of lack of info. It's a matter of the heart. Once again, as we've discussed before, it's definitely time to get serious. One thing for sure: He Is.
...and they do more times than not in most of our lives. Life is supposed to be long periods of peace interrupted only be brief periods of difficulty. At least that's the way we hope. What is our immediate response in tough circumstances. Let's dig in to find out the best way.
Those are a couple of words I think everyone on the planet has uttered at some point in there life.... and probably more than a few times. It's usually a lament over what could have been or a desire to be in a different set of circumstances. Once again, meet Jesus.
Those are three constants that change not only physical properties, but they also apply to life. For most of us, where we've ended sure wasn't in the playbook. Or at least how we got there wasn't part of the original plan. Life's circumstances can be tough, but we have a God who knows exactly who we are and exactly who He would like to see us become. So when time, pressure and heat enter our world, let's see what the Lord can do. And who better to study than Peter. Today begins a new series on "Rocky".
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