IN GOOD COMPANY | Katie Hornburg
Underqualified, undereducated, underprepared, ordinary, insignificant, too young, not good enough … the list goes on. If you have ever felt like any of this? This is for you!
Acts 4 is about one of my absolute favourite moments in the Book of Acts: when Peter and John are brought before the teachers of the Law in Jerusalem (when you read Acts 4, you’ll get the backstory).
It says that Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, spoke to them (v. 8), and the teachers, leaders and rulers were astonished by his courage. Even more so because Peter and John were unschooled, ordinary men (v. 13).
Peter and John were fishermen before they followed Jesus; just ordinary men, with regular jobs, unschooled. Then Jesus came around and called Peter, James and John, and they left everything and followed Him (Luke 5:1-11).
But here’s the thing: Peter was not always his name, his name was actually Simon, but the first time Jesus and Simon met, Jesus called Simon ‘Peter’ (John 1:42). Jesus basically changed this guy’s name from Simon to Peter.
Simon ‘Peter’; Peter ‘Simon’ – I know, name change is a thing in the Bible. Though perhaps more confusing is that it seems like Jesus can’t make up His mind on whether to call him Peter, Simon, or Simon Peter.
Why? I’m glad you’re asking. When God changes a person’s name in the Bible, it’s to establish a new identity. Jesus called Simon ‘Peter’, which literally means ‘rock’ in Greek, because He saw the ‘rock’ that he would become. However, occasionally Jesus called Peter ‘Simon’, probably because he sometimes acted like his old self, Simon the Fishermen, instead of his new self, Peter the Rock.
The road from Simon the Fisherman to Peter the Rock has included some major ups and downs. It was Peter who declared that Jesus was the Messiah in Luke 8:18-20. It was Peter who boasted that he would follow Jesus to the end in Chapter 22:33, then denied Him three times in Chapter 22:54-62.
Through all Peter’s ups and downs, Jesus remained faithful to him. He restored Peter to himself and his mission to build the Church (John 21:15-17). Jesus, who chose him, continued to mould him into who He intended Peter to be: the ‘rock’ on which He would build His Church (Matthew 16:18).
Back to Peter and John, ‘the rock’ and ‘the beloved’ disciple, in Acts 4. The leaders, rulers and teachers were astonished by the courage of those ordinary men but, more importantly, they took note that these guys had been with Jesus (v. 13).
“When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus.” - ACTS 4:13
God’s plans for your life are not defined by where you start, or even the ups and downs along the way. His plans for you will always be greater than what you think you will be able to do.
You are not qualified by where you come from, how old you are, how much you have, what you’ve done – you are qualified because you have been with Jesus.
Time spent with Jesus makes all the difference and transforms us from the Fisherman into the Rock.
I encourage you to take a moment to spend time with Jesus today. You won’t regret it.
