Get Up Like Peter
I've been talking about the women at the empty tomb this week, but today I want to take a little look at Peter, and how he responded to hearing what the women had to say. Luke writes this: "Peter, however, got up and ran to the tomb. Bending over, he saw the strips of linen lying by themselves, and he went away, wondering to himself what had happened." (Luke 24:12)
Eagerness
Three things happen here. First, Peter ran to the tomb. There is an eagerness there! He heard that maybe Jesus was alive, and he ran to see.
Question: are you eager to meet the risen Christ? Do you run to see Him and encounter Him?
Curiosity
Second, when Peter got there, he bent over and took a look at things. I think this is profound. Peter is not only eager, he is inquisitive. He bends over and checks out the evidence. He doesn't just shrug off the women's claims as nonsense.
Question: are you inquisitive about things related to Jesus? Are you 'bending over' to see what evidence there is of His resurrection? Are you seeking to understand and learn and grow in knowledge?
Wonder
Third, Peter walked away from the tomb and wondered to himself what had happened. His eagerness led him there, his inquisitiveness got him examining the evidence, and then he walked off and began pondering and thinking about it all.
I think a lot of the time we hear the Jesus story, and we kind of leave Him behind at church, or on the video we watched. Peter here keeps Jesus in his mind!
Question: is Jesus on your mind much? Do you wonder and think about Him during the day?
There's a line in a Charles Wesley hymn, which I recorded the other day, that says:
Of nothing think, or speak beside,
My Lord, my Love is Crucified.
Surely that was true of Peter?! All that was on his mind and heart was Jesus that weekend. As we see in the rest of the New Testament, Jesus was on Peter's mind always until he died.
So today: run to meet the risen Christ! Bend over to examine the claims about Him, and think about Him all the time.
He will meet you as you come; He will show Himself to you as you seek Him; and He will fill your heart with joy as you focus on Him. I know it.
God is not finished - He is actively at work in His people right now, even through difficulty and struggle. Celebrate His present work in your heart today, not just what He did in the past.
The Psalms call God's people to remember His past faithfulness and celebrate it, yet spiritual amnesia is a real danger for every believer. Pause today to actively recall what God has done for you, and let that remembrance become a song of gratitude.
The cure for sin has already been bought and paid for by Jesus Christ - all you have to do is receive it. Trust Him today as the Great Doctor of your soul, and let Him get you into remission.
In a world of constant change, God alone remains absolutely the same - faithful, powerful, and true. Set your eyes on the unchanging God today, and let Him be your anchor through every shift and season.
God's people throughout Scripture had to embrace constant change, and He calls us to do the same today. Trust that God has not only brought the change in your life for a good reason, but will give you the strength to deal with it.
The best way to deal with disappointment is not to dwell on it, but to flood your mind with God instead - and discover the perfect peace that only He can give. Fix your mind on Him today rather than on what has hurt you.
Every disappointment this side of eternity is temporary - and fixing your eyes on the eternal glory ahead is the key to walking through the pain. Lift your eyes above your circumstances today and place your hope in Him.
Could it be that your disappointment turns out to be the best thing that happened to you?
God can use even our disappointments for good. But we must be willing to deal with them!
Disappointment is inevitable, even for people of faith - but God offers not a way out of it, but a way through it.
Receiving the baptism of the Spirit requires complete consecration of your life to God and genuine faith in His power to transform you. Lay it all before Him today and ask Him to fill you completely.
Paul's conversion produced a fearless courage that sent him back into the very places where people wanted him dead. Come to God today and ask Him to fill you with that same Spirit-given courage.
A life close to God makes us sensitive to His leading - and that sensitivity can change lives. Deepen your devotion today, so that you are ready when the Spirit prompts you.
Peter's repeated failures didn't disqualify him from Jesus' love or mission - his foundation of faith proved stronger than all his flaws. Come back to Jesus today, no matter how far you've strayed.
The Psalms paint a picture of confident, forward-looking hope - those who sow in tears will reap in joy. Lift your eyes today from present difficulty to the glorious future God has promised His people.