“Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou Me more than these?” John 21:15
Dear Ones:
Though we derive great encouragement and mutual edification from others in the body of Christ, there is never to be a time when we are to think that our individual calling is that of another individual. We may even be working in the same endeavor, in a church, or a mission, but the uniqueness of each one’s calling is born out by the obvious differences in gifts, capacities, convictions and desires. The will of God brings believers together for edification and service, but never is the individual’s walk with Christ to be based upon that of another believer in the body of Christ. Christ is not only our example, objective, but the very means by which we live, worship, and serve.
Simon Peter was quite a man, one very different from all the other disciples. In the gospels, we discover that he is a fisherman, accustomed to the hard, physical labor of that work. Yet, we find him with a spiritual capacity that is extraordinary, for when Andrew, his brother came to tell him that he had found the Messiah, there was apparently no hesitation in going to see the Lord Jesus. The uniqueness of Peter, and his calling by the Lord Jesus, was declared by the Lord Himself, “Thou art Simon the son of Jona: thou shalt be called Cephas,” which interpreted means, “a stone.” (John 1:42) Here is a man, unlike any other, a simple fisherman, but with a spiritual capacity for God, whom God would use uniquely to “build His church.” (Matt. 16:18) It would be by the preaching of Peter on the day of Pentecost, that the Lord Jesus would begin building that church, as over three thousand souls came to Christ that day.
In spite of the evident working of God in Peter, and the singularity of his calling, we find that he was a man not without faults. After the resurrection, the Lord revealed Himself to the disciples on the shore of the Sea of Galilee. It would be there, in an individual conversation with Peter, that the Lord would ask him, “Do you love Me more than these?” For Peter to rise to the place, and attitude, where the Lord could accomplish through him His great work, Peter needed to see that personal love for Christ was of supreme importance. He also needed to know that there could be no compromise of that love, by a competing lesser love, that for the brethren. The Lord Jesus is NOT saying that one is to not love the brethren. On the contrary, over and over in the Gospels, He gives the admonition to do so. But what He IS saying, is that there can be no competing love with regard to Himself, by anyone. If Peter is to BE and to DO what his calling and gifts demand, it must be for Christ, and Christ alone.
Peter, even after Pentecost, was not a perfect servant of Christ, one without faults. On one occasion, he was reprimanded by the Apostle Paul, who saw a duplicity in him with regard to the application of certain fundamental truths of the Gospel. Though we see an imperfect man, we do see one who is devoted to Christ, one who will follow Him according to the uniqueness of his calling, and the dominant, solitary, affection of his love for Christ.
Dear Father, give us to see and to know that Christ’s calling is deeply personal, and individual. Open our eyes to see and to understand this, as we serve Thee with Your other servants. May we all be One with Thee, and yet, individually dependent upon Thee, with the Lord Jesus as our supreme example, and His Life, by the Spirit, as our entire sufficiency and strength, for Thy glory and honor. We thank and praise Thee, in Jesus’ name, Amen.
Love, Dad