Peter: What Can We Learn From Peter's Life?ნიმუში

“An Empowered Leader“

The church in Jerusalem was growing by leaps and bounds, and the ministry of the apostles was powerful as they taught and performed miracles. The faith of these new believers was active and generous. Many who owned land or houses were selling them and giving the proceeds to the apostles to distribute to the needy. Peter was clearly a leader among the apostles and in the church as a whole, and it fell to him to address the actions of Ananias and Sapphira.

This couple had also sold land and brought the money for distribution to the poor. However, they lied about how much of the profits they were gifting. There was no need to lie. No one would have looked down on them for not giving the full amount. Perhaps they wanted to look good in front of the apostles by appearing more generous than they really were. This lie was not only a sin against Peter, to whom they gave the money, but ultimately against God. And God’s judgement in this case was death.

Peter witnessed this shocking event and led the church in its wake, probably helping them understand why God acted as He did. He needed the wisdom of the Holy Spirit, which he surely received. The Holy Spirit was already giving him the gift of knowledge, allowing him to discern the truth about Ananias and Sapphira’s donation to the church. The Holy Spirit was also healing mightily through Peter, to the point that people laid the sick in his shadow for healing. The other apostles were working great miracles as well and teaching by the power of the Holy Spirit. The repeated special mention of Peter shows us that he led the rest. His obedience and willingness to lead with the empowering of the Holy Spirit was bringing multitudes to Jesus. It can’t have been an easy task. He was, after all, an uneducated fisherman from backwoods Galilee. His life had not turned out at all like he expected! But this is what Jesus had trained him for. He could be confident in his leadership because he knew what his calling was and that the Spirit would empower him to live it out.

Reflection:

How can you grow in your trust of the Holy Spirit as you live out the calling He has placed on your life?