Peter was always "bigger than life" and that's how most of us remember him. He was the one to jump into the water to reach Jesus first. He was the first disciple to ask, "Lord, save me!"
He was the first to understand Who Jesus was.
In John 13 when Jesus was washing His disciples' feet, we read:
He came to Simon Peter, who said to Him, "Lord are You going to wash my feet?"
Jesus replied, "You do not realize now what I doing, but later you will understand."
"No," said Peter, "You shall never wash my feet."
Jesus' answer?
"Unless I wash you, you have no part of Me."
Peter's reply?
"Then Lord, not just my feet but my hands and my head as well!"
Peter always wanted more.....
And we all remember how Peter exclaimed, "Even if all fall away on account of you, I never will..." No one else made that bold claim.
But we know it came from a heart of courage and love.
These stories about Peter recorded in the gospels tell us a lot about Peter, and so tells us a lot about ourselves.
Peter's personality changed after the resurrection. He became a great preacher and his overwhelming character became more godly -- but when I look at 2 Peter, I can see some of the old Peter, especially in the opening verses:
Simon Peter, a bond servant and apostle of Jesus Christ, to those who have obtained like precious faith with us by the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ:
Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God of Jesus Christ...
Paul also begins his letters with "Grace and Peace" -- (grace always precedes peace) -- but Peter writes that they "be multiplied." He is the only way to word it that way. And he did it that way in both of his letters.
And in 2 Peter 1:8, when referring to the desired traits of a Christian -- virtue, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, brotherly kindness and love -- he says that they should be in "increasing measure," or "abundance" -- just having these traits is not enough, he says -- they should be gaining power in our lives.
For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But if anyone does not have them, he is nearsighted and blind, and has forgotten that he has been cleansed from his past sins. (2 Peter 1:8-9)
Good verses to memorize. If I am developing the traits of a godly life, in increasing measure, my life and ministry will be more effective. And it is linked to my knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. Knowing Him.
If I am not growing in these qualities, that means I have forgotten where I came from! (How could any of us ever forget? But I do!)
Every morning when we awake, every evening when we lie down, and throughout the day -- we need to remember where we came from and what He did about it!
If we get one lesson from Peter, I supposed it would be that we should always ask for more. As Paul said in Ephesians 3:20: Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above what we ask or think.....that's our God!
Tradition tells us that Peter died an agonizing death, crucified upside down, in front of jeering crowds. He did not fall away.
Today martyrs around the world are suffering. This would be a good time to stop and pray, fast and pray, for the struggling (no, not struggling, the strong) Christians in Syria, Egypt, Iran, Indonesia, Korea -- Christians being tortured and killed right now for their faith. It's too much to comprehend. But Peter knew about it first-hand, as did most of our early Church leaders.
Pray for the persecuted church around the world --
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