John 1:35-42:
35 The next day again John was standing with two of his disciples, 36 and he looked at Jesus as he walked by and said, "Behold, the Lamb of God!" 37 The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus. 38 Jesus turned and saw them following and said to them, "What are you seeking?" And they said to him, "Rabbi" (which means Teacher), "where are you staying?" 39 He said to them, "Come and you will see." So they came and saw where he was staying, and they stayed with him that day, for it was about the tenth hour. 40 One of the two who heard John speak and followed Jesus was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother. 41 He first found his own brother Simon and said to him, "We have found the Messiah" (which means Christ). 42 He brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, "So you are Simon the son of John? You shall be called Cephas" (which means Peter).
Jesus asks the disciples what is it they want, and then He tells them to follow Him. The next thing he does is something pretty bold….He changes the name of the most radical among them. If you were to be the CEO (chief executive officer) of a large corporation and the first thing you did was to change the name or the title of one of the people in the company, what would this do? Let’s say, you elevated his/her title from janitor to vice president. The employee would gain a different perspective on his/her job. What about when someone you love calls you by a “pet” name? It could be cutie, bug, sweetie, whatever it is, if it is a term of endearment, how does this make you feel? Jesus meets Cephas, which means stone or pebble. Christ was telling Peter, which means rock, that he is now ruler over him. In the ancient world, when someone in charge changed the name of a subordinate it means he is his sovereign over that person. He is his lord. At the same time, Christ is teaching him that He writes the story. He began it and He will end it. He is still the Fisherman Peter, but God has given him a new calling where nothing is wasted. Not even long, hard, smelly, difficult, failures as a fisherman will ever go to waste. Ever feel this way after a long, terrible, no good day? What about a trial or a known battle that seems to last for the longest time? What have you been called to? Has Christ now called you by a new name? He has promised to make all things new. If He has, then you are His. He writes the story, the pains, the successes, the failures, gives the grace, and the gives calling.
“Calling is the truth that God calls us to Himself so decisively that everything we are, everything we do, and everything we have is invested with a special devotion, dynamism, and direction lived out as a response to His summons and service.”
Os Guinness, The Call
*I Corinthians 6:20, “…you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body.”
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