DRAWING NEAR
MAY 10
Building a Leader: The Right Results
The twelve apostles included "Simon, who is called Peter" (Matt.
10:2).
God makes leaders by taking people with the right raw material,
putting them through the right experiences, and teaching them the
right lessons. That's how he trained Peter, and the results were
astonishing. In the first twelve chapters of Acts we see Peter
initiating the move to replace Judas with Matthias, preaching
powerfully on the Day of Pentecost, healing a lame man, standing up
to the Jewish authorities, confronting Ananias and Sapphira, dealing
with Simon the magician, healing Aeneas, raising Dorcas from the
dead, and taking the gospel to the Gentiles. In addition, he wrote
two epistles that pass on to us all the lessons he learned from
Jesus. What a leader!
Peter was as much a model of spiritual leadership in death as he was
in life. Jesus told him he would be crucified for God's glory, and
early church tradition tells us that Peter was in fact crucified. But
before putting him to death, his executioners forced him to watch the
crucifixion of his wife. As he stood at the foot of her cross, he
encouraging her by saying over and over, "Remember the Lord, remember
the Lord." When it was time for his own crucifixion, he requested
that he be crucified upside down because he felt unworthy to die as
his Lord had died. His request was granted.
Just as God transformed Peter from a brash and impulsive fisherman
into a powerful instrument for His glory, so He can transform
everyone who is yielded to Him.
You will never be an apostle, but you can have the same depth of
character and know the same joy of serving Christ that Peter knew.
There's no higher calling in the world than to be an instrument of
God's grace. Peter was faithful to that calling--you be faithful too!
Suggestions for Prayer:
Praise God for the assurance that He will perfect the work He
has begun in you (Phil. 1:6). Ask Him to use the experiences
you have today as instruments that shape you more into the image
of Christ.
For Further Study:
Read John 21:18-23.
How did Jesus describe Peter's death? What was Peter's reaction
to Christ's announcement? What misunderstanding was generated by
their conversation?
Drawing Near, Copyright 1993 John F. MacArthur, Jr.
All rights reserved. Used by permission.
http://www.gty.org
~~~
Philippians 1:6 (NKJV)
6 being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good
work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ
John 21:18-23
18 "Most assuredly, I say to you, when you were younger, you girded
yourself and walked where you wished; but when you are old, you will
stretch out your hands, and another will gird you and carry you where
you do not wish."
19 This He spoke, signifying by what death he would glorify God. And
when He had spoken this, He said to him, "Follow Me."
20 Then Peter, turning around, saw the disciple whom Jesus loved
following, who also had leaned on His breast at the supper, and said,
"Lord, who is the one who betrays You?"
21 Peter, seeing him, said to Jesus, "But Lord, what about this
man?"
22 Jesus said to him, "If I will that he remain till I come, what is
that to you? You follow Me."
23 Then this saying went out among the brethren that this disciple
would not die. Yet Jesus did not say to him that he would not die,
but, "If I will that he remain till I come, what is that to you?"
~~~
These devotions are posted with permission from John MacArthur's
first (1993) devotional work, _Drawing Near_, and they are also sent
out daily for free to several folks via e-mail.
In addition, John's second (1997) devotional, _Strength for Today_,
is also available free via e-mail only. _Strength for Today_ follows
the same format as what you have seen here from _Drawing Near_, but
with different monthly themes.
If you would like to receive daily devotions via e-mail from either
of these series, just let me know (via e-mail), and I will gladly add
you to the list(s) of your choice.
You can hear John MacArthur daily via the Internet by visiting:
http://www2.oneplace.com/Ministries/Grace_to_You/
and
http://www.gty.org.uk/
You may email John MacArthur in care of Grace to You at:
letters@gty.org
NOTE for those of you reading via newsgroups: If you wish to reach
me, please contact me via e-mail for quickest results.
In Christ,
Peter
Peter G. Chase :: Columbus, Ohio, USA
pchase1@wideopenwest.com
STOP! Who do you think Jesus is?
http://www.gty.org/Gospel
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To forgive is to set a prisoner free, and to discover that the prisoner was you. -Alistair Begg
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