Acts 4:13
Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated, common men, they were astonished. And they recognized that they had been with Jesus.
As I was praying this morning, God brought to mind the verse in Matthew where Jesus says that He is going to build His Church on Peter. My question is, are we a Church built on Peter in the courtyard, cursing, denying, scared, and cold??? Or are we a Church built on Peter in Acts where he is filled with the Holy Spirit and his fire and boldness astonishes the same men that had Jesus killed?
There wasn’t a lot of time that elapsed between these two versions of Peter, but there was something that happened on the shore that changed him forever. Peter jumped in the water and ran to Jesus, and I’m sure he expected to be shamed, guilted, rebuked, and cast out. Surely after his denial and actions in the courtyard, he would be considered an enemy of Jesus!!!
Then, the heart of Jesus did what it does best; He said, “Let’s eat!!! No condemnation, no “I told you so,” nothing but love from our Savior!!! Jesus doesn’t bring up Peter’s past, but rather heals his heart by lovingly forgiving him and reinstating him.
I think the difference between cold Peter in the courtyard and bold Peter in the Sanhedrin is the love, mercy, and grace found around the fire that day. Peter went from running from a slave girl to preaching to the murderous mob that just killed our Lord!!! That could only come from the Holy Spirit and the love of our Savior!!! It’s impossible to experience the heart of our Savior and stay the same. Your coldness or your boldness will say more about you than 10,000 words can. So, I have to ask: what is your coldness or boldness saying today???
Be encouraged and be encouraging!!! I love you all, God bless, and glory to God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit!!!
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