PEA RIDGE — The Bible is full of stories about different people. Many of these people seem to have lived extraordinary lives. Some of them were very faithful, some were not so faithful. The tales of all those different people make up what truly is the greatest story that has ever been. The Bible is the story of God and how God relates to and interacts with humanity. In reality, the people in the Bible were really not all that extraordinary. They were, for the most part, just regular people like you and m. God used these people to tell the story that guides us even to this very day.
Usually, we can we relate to one or more of the people found in the Bible.
For myself, I seem to relate to the Apostle Peter. Before Peter was an apostle, he was a fisherman. Before I went into ministry, I, too, was a fisherman. At one time in my life I was a fly fishing guide and instructor as well as a commercial fly tier. That was before I heard the words which Jesus spoke to Peter, “Follow me and I will make you fishers of men.”
For Peter and the other disciples, everything should have been quite simple. Jesus told them about the Kingdom of God. He told them about the Good News and about God’s grace for humanity.
All Peter and the other disciples had to do was follow the teachings of Jesus and do the things he commanded them to do. Peter didn’t always get things right.
Most of us don’t.
I grew up on Table Rock Lake. When I was younger, my parents gave me simple rules. Don’t go fishing when we are not there.
Don’t fish in places where we can’t get to you easily.
Be home by dark. Back then it seemed that if I had to wait until they got home to go fishing then a lot of valuable fishing time would be lost, so off to the lake I went. That broke rule number one.
I also liked to fish at the base of the bluffs where thelimestone was crumbling from being pounded by the waves. There were bigger fish in those places. There were also snakes, and scorpions and spiders as well as the danger of falling. That broke rule number two.
Everyone knows that the fishing is best just after dark, so that broke rule number three.
My parents didn’t set these rules as a way to restrict or punish. They put these rules in place to keep me safe and protected.
Over the years on my adventures in fishing, I have experienced multiple stings and bites, severe sunburn, hypothermia, frostbite, Giardiosis, a cracked tailbone and a torn up shoulder. Most of these things would not have happened if I had just followed the simple rules given to me when I was much younger.
It’s the same with God.
Through the examples of people in the Bible, God has given us teachings and commands, not in order to restrict or punish us, but to protect us and keep us safe When I did break the rules my parents gave to me I found out just how much they loved me. The commands that Jesus has given to us allow us to have the opportunity to experience the grace and mercy that comes from God. With all the mistakes Peter made, even denying knowing Christ, Jesus still forgave and called him to be a disciple for the Kingdom.
I don’t know if Peter found this to be the case, but ministry is harder than fishing and a whole lot safer.
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Editor’s note: Brian Timmons is the pastor of Pea Ridge and Brightwater Methodist Churches. He can be contacted at 925-0167 or by e-mail at [email protected].
Church, Pages 2 on 07/20/2011