Peter's Transformation

Peter is Called to be a Disciple

We first meet Peter in John 1:42 when Jesus prophetically speaks a new name over him, “you will be called Cephas (which is translated Peter)”, which means ROCK.  Yet throughout the Gospels we see that Peter way anything but a rock, he was impulsive and unstable, selfish and prideful, yet there was something about Peter, a willingness to follow God that Jesus to use to help him overcome all of his weaknesses.  Jesus never lies, He knew something about His ability to transform a life.  Luke 5:1-11 gives us more insight into the calling of Peter to be  a disciple Here we find Peter after a long night of fishing without having caught anything, but when Jesus asks Him to let down the net (verse 4), Peter immediately obeys (verse 5) and they catch such a large number of fish that their nets began to break (verse 6).  Peter left that incredible catch of fish behind (it would have been worth a lot of money) and followed Christ!  Peter had a willing heart, Peter had an obedient heart…we will see today how Peter was very immature, selfish and prideful, but Peter desired what was right and obeyed.  God can do much with a heart like that!  

Peter's Faith...or lack of faith

Most of us are familiar with the story of when Jesus walked on water in Matthew 14.  The disciples were frightened but Peter tests Jesus, "Lord if it is you, tell me to come to you on the water"

Jesus agrees.  Peter then has the courage to get out of the boat and walked on the water towards Him…what faith!  But verse 30 tells us that Peter became afraid of the wind and began to sink, calling out for the Lord to save Him.  Jesus does save Him.  Peter is learning, this is a victory, even though Peter ultimately failed, he still had more faith than those that remained in the boat and didn't even bother to try! 

We can`t let our past failures keep us from trying again

Peter's Confession of Christ 

In Matthew 16, Jesus questions the disciples, “who do people say the Son of Man is?” We see Peter getting the answer right as he confesses that Jesus is Christ, son of the living God!  Peter is commended for this wisdom which so clearly came from the Lord!  Jesus goes on to say, “you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it”.  Peter must be feeling pretty good about himself right about now.  But if we keep reading, we'll see that Peter still lacks understanding.  

Look at verses 21-23, From that time on Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life. Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. “Never, Lord!” he said. “This shall never happen to you!”

What on earth is Peter doing here? Correcting a teacher was rare in Jewish culture; Peter was out of order!  The Devil had influenced Peter`s thinking so that his values were not God`s. In verse 23, Jesus turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men.”

Whoa!  What rebuke by the Lord.  Jesus exposed Peter`s satanic thinking. Peter had missed the entire purpose for Jesus coming to earth. Peter was using his own thinking, Peter wasn`t thinking what God was thinking.  Yes, Peter recognized Christ as the Messiah, but he still had worldly, clouded thinking.

Peter at a Foot Washing

When Jesus is washing the disciples feet in John 13, Peter objected to having His feet washed by Jesus (v. 8-9), Peter didn't understand.  This shows pride and selfishness that is at the very heart of sin, as Peter is working from a worldly view.  His desire to have his hands and head washed again shows his religious enthusiasm yet with a strong element of self. He is not receiving with humility what Christ is saying and doing. 

Yet Peter had a GOOD HEART

If we keep reading in John 13 we come across more info that tells us something special about Peter.   Peter desperately wants to follow Christ, he wants to lay down His life for Jesus (verses 36-38).  His desire is RIGHT, but He just needs to mature a bit before He can really be used by God in a powerful way, Jesus knows that he will deny Him that very night.  Peter makes a passionate zealous statement, “I will lay down my life for you!”  It must have been extremely difficult for Jesus to burst Peter’s bubble of zeal and to tell Peter the truth about his character.  Peter thought he loved Jesus enough to lay down his life for Him but the fact was that Peter still lacked character,  he was still selfish and immature.  But it was still love…Jesus doesn’t reject Peter’s love but rather desires to see Peter’s love mature and grow.

Peter is still learning, Jesus is gently teaching him important things that he needs to know in order to be useful in the Kingdom of God.  This is Jesus being good to Peter, growing him, stretching him, loving him

Peter’s response is what is going to determine his future in the Kingdom!

Peter Denies Christ

In John 18 we read of Peter's denial of Christ in verses 17, 25 and 27.  Peter denies any association with Christ.  This is Peter's darkest hour, the same man that just boasted of how he would die for Jesus...has weak flesh.  He was unable to live out the sincerity of his heart.  He couldn't follow through on his devotion to Christ.  His spirit was willing but his flesh was weak.  But this was not the end of the story for Peter.

Peter Goes Back to Fishing

In John 21 we find Peter on a fishing boat.  Why?  Do you think he felt like a failure?  Is he giving up? Do you think he may feel a bit embarrassed that he couldn't follow through on his devotion and love for God? So, Jesus goes and meets Peter where he is at. (verse 5). That’s the goodness of our God, Jesus went to Peter, Jesus initiated the conversation. Christ did not give up on Peter!  

Jesus Restores Peter and Predicts Peter's Martyrdom

Also in John 21 we find Jesus reinstating Peter as a shepherd of God's flock.  Peter denied Christ three times  and now three times, Jesus asks him to reaffirm his love for Christ (verses 15-17).  Jesus is not asking Peter these questions for his own sake but for Peter's sake.  Jesus is forgiving and commissioning Peter to be a shepherd, a leader of Christ's flock.  Then, Jesus predicts Peter's martyrdom (verse 18).  In our Western mindsets we often forget how precious martyrdom is, we do almost anything to avoid pain, yet Peter had the right mindset and Jesus is going to commend him for it.  It is important to understand that Peter wanted to die for Christ, this was a passion of his, he had promised that he would do this for Jesus (John 13:38).  Peter had promised this and had failed just a few nights previously.  Now Jesus is telling him that that is not the end of the story…you will be the courageous man that you desire to be, you will die for me! Jesus is giving Peter a gift here, he is telling him, YES, I will strengthen and mature you so that you can become the thing that you desire most, YOU WILL DIE FOR ME!  Next time, you will PASS the TEST! 

Peter Matures

The book of Acts is full of stories about Peter.  After the Day of Pentecost, Peter becomes the ROCK that Christ predicted.  Notice how in Acts 2:38, Peter is the first one to jump up and address the crowd after Pentecost - REPENT believe in JESUS!!! The guy who completely failed Jesus in Christ’s greatest hour of need is the first one to preach the resurrection of Christ at Pentecost. Isn't that amazing!!! The same Peter who had completely failed Jesus, now boldly proclaims that HE IS RISEN, REPENT! And THOUSANDS respond (verse 41). If you read through Acts you will find Peter as a pillar of the early church, He performed many miracles in the name of Jesus and was called to bring the Gospel to the Gentiles – he was led to do this through visions and other supernatural events.  

Peter’s allegiance to Christ was tested a number of times through suffering and imprisonment (see Acts 12) but Peter stood strong, he never denied Christ again!  Peter had learned, he had grown, he had matured!  Peter had changed - thanks to JESUS!  

The records of the early church tell us Peter followed through on His desire to sacrifice all for Christ.  Peter remained in Jerusalem as a leader of the church for some time. Eventually, Peter traveled to Rome to minister. Nero determined to have him executed, but the disciples there urged him to flee the city. As Peter was nearing the city gate, he felt it was his time to die in the way that Jesus prophesied   So, Peter returned to the city and was captured and sentenced to be crucified.  Then, Peter announced that he was not worthy to be crucified in the same position as his Savior and requested to die on the cross upside down. The Romans honored his request. Peter knew that one day he would face death for following Jesus, because Jesus had told him he would. He knew that following Christ would cost Him his life, but he never flinched from the call to follow Him anywhere and do whatever God called Him to do. 

Conclusion

What happened to this man that He was changed so radically from a selfish, proud, spoiled, immature man into a passionate person who sacrificed all for Christ? There is only one right answer – Peter was transformed by the power of Jesus, through the Holy Spirit. Peter knew that he was a sinner, he knew that he was broken, he knew that he was a failure but he ALSO KNEW A REDEEMER who could transform HIM, cleanse Him, grow character in him, root out his selfishness/sin, and free him from his past. That same transforming power is available to you and me.  

One of the biggest questions I get on a regular basis is from ladies who are concerned about their husband’s walk with God or for their children’s walk with God.  My answer is simple - there is no witness like the power of a transformed life! You don’t have to preach ONE WORD to your husbands and kids, you just have to seek JESUS, crying out for Him to transform your life, to free you from bondage, to heal your emotional hurts and relationship wounds, to grow in selfless love and devotion to Christ, His church and His people.  When you live a transformed life your family WILL NOTICE.  

You may have a willing heart, a heart of obedience, like Peter. You may have a deep desire to love God and serve Him, but like Peter, you may find yourself falling short again and again. Like Peter, you may clouded by worldly thinking, you may struggle with pride and selfishness. You may relate to Peter’s religious enthusiasm, zeal and passion yet kick yourself when you can’t follow through on your devotion to Christ. Peter had all the right desires, he even wanted to die for Christ, but he had weak flesh and was immature and selfish throughout most of the Gospels, but though the Jesus Christ, Peter was transformed into the Rock.  

The question isn't whether or not we will fail but rather, what do we do when we fail? Do we pick ourselves back off the ground and continue pursuing God wholeheartedly, or do wallow in self-pity or worse yet, quit? Ladies, it is time to STOP being in bondage to our past faults and failures and to START looking at JESUS for transformation.  He meets you where you are at!  He does not give up on you!   And when you genuinely repent, He forgives and restores and desires for you to do ministry to others.  He also strengthens you so that you CAN follow through on your devotion to CHRIST!  Don’t give up on yourself, JESUS DOESN”T!  COME TO JESUS!  

Journaling and Prayer Questions:

1. Ask the Lord to show you areas where you can relate to Peter.

2. Now ask the Lord to show you characteristics about WHO JESUS IS, that you need to accept for yourself and trust about Him today, in order to grow and mature in your walk with Him.  

3.  Jesus transforms lives! Write a prayer of thanksgiving to Him for this.  Pray that you would NOT give up on yourself but run to Jesus and let Him transform your life.  Pray that you would learn to follow through on your love and devotion to Christ.