Velma stopped by yesterday, her step-son passed away and she was here to attend a barbecue they are holding today in his honor.

It was good to see her.  She stayed over and had a good visit with Carla.  She left after breakfast this morning for the event.

Dogs are doing okay, still an issue or two – mainly around food – but if I remember that they are fine.

Weather is milder than earlier, just in the mid-80’s right now.

Not much else going on.

Mathew 16:15-19  And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.

¹⁷ And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.

¹⁸ And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.

¹⁹ And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.

Some denominations teach that Peter was the first Pope of the church based on these verses.

Others believe (as I personally subscribe to) that Jesus was referring to Peter’s faith and based on such faith is what His Church will be built.

We are not concerned with that at this time.  It is shown throughout the New Testament that Peter was one of the leaders, and with the exception of Paul, seemed to have the most impact on the early formation and growth of the Church.

He was not bashful.  He was bold and a natural leader, people were drawn to him as a person, leader and because of his dominant position in this new religion.

They respected him, they took solace in his teaching, they yielded to him in matters of spirituality.

Acts 5:14-16 And believers were the more added to the Lord, multitudes both of men and women.)

¹⁵ Insomuch that they brought forth the sick into the streets, and laid them on beds and couches, that at the least the shadow of Peter passing by might overshadow some of them.

¹⁶ There came also a multitude out of the cities round about unto Jerusalem, bringing sick folks, and them which were vexed with unclean spirits: and they were healed every one.

How many of these people understood it was God working through Peter, and not Peter himself is hard to tell.  As with Jesus, people can be fickle and follow solely to be part of the excitement of the miracles.

Obviously, Peter was a man of God.  He walked with Jesus, he had a special relationship with Jesus.  He was bold and unafraid to proclaim the deity of Jesus.

As one of Jesus’ Apostles he had great influence over the new believers.

He never said that the miracles that were occurring in his ministry were anything other than Jesus doing it through him.  He did not take credit for the miracles.

But Peter was not perfect.

Paul chastised him because Peter was afraid to stand up to the Jews when it came to fellowshipping with the Gentiles that had accepted Christ.

Peter knew better, he knew that not only Jews could be saved, he had been fellowshipping with the gentiles; but he backed away from them.

Those Jews that had been part of this fellowship also chose to no longer fellowship with the gentiles and followed Peter.

Peter led people away from the true teachings of the Holy Spirit.

Galatians 2:11-13 But when Peter was come to Antioch, I withstood him to the face, because he was to be blamed.

¹² For before that certain came from James, he did eat with the Gentiles: but when they were come, he withdrew and separated himself, fearing them which were of the circumcision.

¹³ And the other Jews dissembled likewise with him; insomuch that Barnabas also was carried away with their dissimulation.

There is a great deal more that Paul has to say and it is important that we understand it, those of us that are not of the Jewish heritage, are saved because of Christ.

The lesson, to me, as I read these verses is that as faithful as Peter was to Christ, he was not perfect; he was a man who chose to lead others off course.  We need to be alert to the fact that people who are leaders can lead US astray if we rely on them and not God’s Word.

There is always a danger that Christian leaders can lead others astray.  Even minor things can cause great dissention in the Church.

Can you imagine how the gentiles in the church felt when Peter, the great Spiritual leader, the man who was doing miracles in Jesus’ name – pulled away from them?

Not only did he pull away from them, but the Jewish part of the congregation followed him.  He abandoned the Gentiles and by his example the Jews also let them.

They were left having to come to grips with that desertion.

Did they feel they weren’t good enough?  Did they feel that they were second class children of God?  Did they question their salvation or what they had been told?

The questions could go on and on.  Peter did not do them justice, nor did he teach them as Jesus wanted him to teach them. 

Why?  fearing them which were of the circumcision

He was afraid, PETER was afraid.  He knew better.

Acts 15:7 And when there had been much disputing, Peter rose up, and said unto them, Men and brethren, ye know how that a good while ago God made choice among us, that the Gentiles by my mouth should hear the word of the gospel, and believe.

He had stood up to the Jewish Christians before, but for some reason he pulled away from the Holy Spirit and, by his example, placed Jewish Christians on a higher level than Gentile Christians.

Gentiles were not good enough to fellowship with the Jews.

Paul set him, and the Galatians, straight as well as preaching that the salvation of Christ was open to all.

Verse 28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.

We need to listen to even the greatest leaders with a discerning ear.  We want to make sure that what we receive is directly from God.  These are men (and women,) imperfect and subject to satan’s subtle guidance from God.

If something sounds or looks wrong we must confirm the message with the Word of God.  We must make sure that it aligns with God’s Word.  Sometimes it is us that didn’t understand and we need to take to heart what has been said.

Other times, it is the speaker that is in err, and ONCE we have determined that, we discard it from our practice or belief.

Many cults have been formed by former Christian leaders that have gone their own way. 

Peter was truly God’s man.  He made a mistake.  He was not like those that used their gifts to lead others into thinking that they, the leader, was equal to God.  But he was wrong, and he was wrong on a grand scale, because he was afraid.  He forgot to trust the Holy Spirit and looked to man.

Paul called him on it and charged the Galatians to remember that everyone that accepts Christ is worthy.

Paul had the stature to chastise Peter.  We need to be aware that we must give deference to those whom God has placed over us. 

Hebrews 13:17 Obey them that have the rule over you, and submit yourselves: for they watch for your souls, as they that must give account, that they may do it with joy, and not with grief: for that is unprofitable for you.

IF we feel they are teaching in error then we must first make sure we stand on Biblical foundations.  If we feel we are, then we can ask the speaker for clarifications, being honest and open with our concerns and desire to see why they are teaching what we question.

If we are unsatisfied with their explanation, we need to discuss it with those that have the authority to ‘chastise’ for want of a better word and correct the speaker.

If Peter can go astray and against what he knows to be the truth, then anyone can.

Leaders have an obligation to be correct with what they teach.

They have an obligation to take seriously their posts and to make sure they are in tune with God and His Holy Spirit.

To do that requires dedication, a willingness to study, to be in prayer so they give the messenger lesson that GOD wants given not what they think.

It is okay to give an opinion when it is clear that it is an opinion – but even that should be based on God’s Word when a leader is professing to be teaching about God’s direction in our lives.

Accepting Christ as our Savior is ‘simple’ we recognize we have sinned against God; we accept Christ as our Savior and we ‘live’ for Him.

It is the living for Him that is complicated.  We want to be able to do it according to God’s Word and we don’t want to lead others away from the truth of that Word.

We have brethren all over this world.  Some are enduring incredible hardships for Christ; some have far less challenges as they go about their daily lives.  But, we are ALL His children one is not better than the other in God’s eyes.

May we make sure that we are truly following and obeying Him.  May we make sure that we are leading others to Him and not some fairy tale vision of Him.

Later, Art :-)

From the ColumbiaRiverGorgeous
May Our Good Lord Bless and Keep YOU....’til we meet again