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If the Apostle Peter’s life was to be made into a movie, Acts 2:14-41 might be the climax from where we flashback to the ebbs and flows of his dynamic life. From a fisherman he became the fisher of men. The three-time denier of the Saviour—stumbled by his fear of being seen as “one of them” – now identifies with Jesus Christ, preaching to a huge crow that resulted in 3,000 being saved in a single day.
To onlookers, Peter might seem an unlikely leader. Typically, he is the first to jump in and also the first ot bail out. He bids Jesus to ask him to walk on water but recoils when the reality of the splashing waves sink in (Matt. 14:22-33). He confesses Jesus as the Son of the living (Matt. 16:16) but later rebukes the Lord for talking about His death. He and the other disciples could not keep awake in Gethsemane but he later slices off the ear of the High Priest’s servant (Jn. 18:10).
Fast forward to the scene in Acts 2 and we see Peter leading the 11 disciples in addressing the God-fearing Jews near and far meeting in Jerusalem. The Holy Spirit had come on the disciples and they spoke in various languages, causing utter amazement and people to say the disciples were drunk. Peter corrects them. He hauls up history from the Prophet Joel to remind his listeners about God’s promise to send the Holy Spirit—the present—so that those who believe in the Lord will be saved—the future (Acts 2:17-21). He points to the Lord as Jesus of Nazareth whom they crucified and quotes King David’s prophecy that the Holy One would not “see decay” but be raised (Acts 2:30-32) and made both Lord and Christ. It was conviction that demanded response. Paraphrasing the people, they said, “So how?” Peter replied: “Believe and be baptized now!”
That leadership is a gift (Rom. 12:8) is clearly fleshed out in the case of Peter. With Jesus the Master’s touch, Peter the brash is refined into Peter the bold. Mercifully for us, God does not measure the sum of a person by the erratic moments of failure: Peter went from fumbler to failure to forerunner. May we seek this gift of leadership for our Christian walk in the world—to stand up and stand out for our Lord Jesus Christ.
