Struggles Of Life Can Bring Peace.

Acts 9:43 NLT

And Peter stayed a long time in Joppa, living with Simon, a tanner of hides.

ILLUSTRATION:

A daughter was constantly complaining to her father about her problems. He, being a chief, took her to the kitchen and picked out 3 pots. He put water in all three of them and turn the heat on the same for each pot. He then put a potato in the first pot. The next pot he place an egg, the third pot he place coffee beans.

Twenty minutes later he turned the pots off. Placed the potato in a bowl, then the egg in a bowl and lastly he poured the coffee in the third bowl. He showed the daughter the hard potato became soft. The egg become hard and the coffee had a beautiful aroma and was so tasty.

He then told his daughter it's not the struggles of life that can seem to come one after another it's how we react to them.

He asked which reacted to life better in the boiling water and she picked the coffee because it turned into something that reacted to the boiling water the best.

---------------------

The Apostle Peter was a man of many struggles. He was brought up as an Israelite. He was very knowledgeable of the Scriptures. This knowledge wasn’t complete as taught to him and did cause him problems and struggles. He didn’t always listen to or grasp what Jesus said but was always there with him.

The stories of Peter's mistakes often are in the forefront: when he lost faith and sank when walking on water toward Jesus in Matthew 14:22-33; and when Peter denies knowing Christ three times in John 18:15-27. Yet there are many high points of Peter's leadership also are known. When he finally understood what Jesus was saying and it became apart of who he was. It become obvious after the Holy Spirit came down in flames and he preached and 5,000 were saved.

Let us go to Joppa with Peter. He is living with Simon the Tanner. Tanner to the religious people of his time were very unclean. They were like prostitutes and tax collectors to them or worse. Tanners used urine and other unclean things to tan their hides.

But we find Peter living in the guest room there struggling with his life and the things he had learned from Jesus. His main struggle was that God didn't make any difference between Jews and Gentiles. And all his life he had been taught that Gentiles were unclean and not to enter into their homes. Now he was being ask to include them in his ministry of Jesus the Christ.

God came to him and showed him a vision of a huge net, a ship sail, with all kinds of animals in it. Mixed in the sail were clean animals and unclean animals. God said eat they are all clean. Where some people go wrong is thinking God is talking about what we can eat in the animal kingdom. But in God’s way he was saying to Peter there is no difference in Jews and all the other races. What's amazing is Peter got it.

About the same time in God's planing there were two arrivals that were Gentiles at the Tanners gate to talk to Peter. Days before God came to Cornelius, a God fearer (believed in God but didn't follow all the religious laws of the Jews), and told him to sent for Peter to come to his home. Cornelius was a Roman Centurion and a gentile. Peter, without hesitation, went with the runners and went into the Gentiles home.

What had Peter Become? A soft potato, a hard egg, or a wonderful tasty cup of coffee?

What have you become?