“But rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed.”
~ 1 Peter 4:13
Hi James and Ellen,
When you were in Volga about two months ago – where you got to meet and spend time with your grandpaa’s ma, did you like going to Lake Goldsmith and catching bullheads? Your grandpaa enjoys fishing. Your grandpaa a number of times during the three years that he and your grandmaa administrated the rural resident Bible education program and leadership training center that was in Concepción, Nuflo de Chávez – in Bolivia, that he and your grandmaa were the key players in implementing, went fishing in a small river that was located about fifteen miles from Concepción. Your grandpaa would always take someone with him when he went fishing in this river that was located about forty minutes from the Centro de Capacitación (Center of Learning) in Concepción. The year that your dad returned to Bolivia to spend the summer with your grandmaa, grandpaa and Aunt Lynn, your grandpaa took your dad fishing in this river. Ask your dad if he remembers the day when your grandpaa took him to this river to fish. While your grandpaa and dad were fishing in this river, a flock of red macaws landed on nearby tall trees. Your grandpaa picked up a small rock and threw it at the noisy macaws. Even though the macaws were not that close to where your grandpaa was, the small rock that your grandpaa threw – just as the rock arched downward, hit one of the macaws as the macaw was sitting at the very top of one of the trees. The macaw squawked and ruffled its feathers. The small rock did not hurt the macaw. A fish that your grandpaa would catch in this river were small reddish looking piranhas called polemetas. Polemetas are about the size of a large bluegill. Polemetas have very sharp teeth. Your grandpaa sometimes would catch a lot of polemetas. Your grandpaa would sometimes also catch small catfish. Because catfish will hunt for food at night – which makes them easier to catch at night and because your grandpaa thought that the polemetas would not be feeding at night, decided to go fishing one night in this river. Your grandpaa took with him a kid who was a kid of a Centro de Capacitación student. Euclitis was fourteen years old. Euclitis lived with his dad and ma in an isolated jungle village – that was called Pozo Verde, that was located over a hundred kilometers or over sixty miles from Concepción. Your grandpaa liked to take Euclitis with him when he went fishing because Euclitis could – from growing up in a jungle village, identify jungle sounds. Your grandpaa and Euclitis began fishing late in the afternoon in the river. Just as it was getting dark, Euclitis suddenly asked your grandpaa for your grandpaa’s flashlight. When Euclitis pointed the lit flashlight toward the middle of the river, your grandpaa saw two red dots moving in the water. Euclitis told your grandpaa that the red dots were crocodile eyes. When Euclitis gave your grandpaa his flashlight back to him, your grandpaa pointed the lit flashlight straight down towards the water right in front of where he was fishing – which was on a large rock that was a couple of feet above river’s water. Right in front of your grandpaa were two widely spaced red eyes staring up at him. Your grandpaa set a world record pulling in his lines and getting all his fishing stuff and the other stuff that he had taken with him into his C-10 white Chevrolet pickup to . . .
Peter was a fisherman. Peter grew up on the shores of Lake Galilee. Peter left his fishing vocation to become a ‘fisher of men’. Peter was an outspoken guy who became one of Jesus’ most visible disciples. After Peter saw his mentor – Who was Jesus, being whisked away by His Father into heaven, Peter became a leading spokesman for the emergent Christ-follower community of guys and gals. The once impulsive Peter became insightful Peter. The one time bumbling, brash fisherman became a respected spokesman and a leader for an embryonic revolution that was having guys, gals and kids joining a growing community that unconditionally accepted and adhered to a new belief paradigm. Peter wrote two short letters. In the first letter that Peter couriered to dispersed Christ-follower guys and gals – in 1 Peter 4, Peter explains the why for the sufferings and the expectations that Christ-follower guys or gals would experience and were to heed. Peter reminds the Christ-follower guys and gals who he was writing to – who were God’s specially elected guys and gals who had become scattered throughout the developing countries of the known world, that just as Jesus had to physically suffer, that they were to have the same attitude about suffering as Jesus had. Verse 13 says, “But rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed.” Peter wanted every guy and gal who was suffering and who would read his letter to not to feel ashamed for having to physically suffer for Christ’s sake. Peter wanted all the guys and gals who would read his letter to know that suffering enables a guy or gal to straighten out his or her priorities, that suffering will cause sinful desires and practices that a guy or gal has and is doing to become insignificant and that suffering will advance the progress that a guy and gal is making on his or her sanctification curve. Peter knows that all Christ-follower guys and gals fight sin battles. Peter’s expectation of how a Christ-follower guy and gal is to be is to be clear minded and self-controlled – which Peter knew would help the guy and gal to know how to pray. Peter expects each guy and gal who is a Christ-follower to love others deeply. Peter knew that deep love will always cover a multitude of sins.
A polemeta bite is like a sin; it will hurt but it will take a lot of polemeta bites to cause death. A crocodile bite is also like a sin; it will hurt and it could lead to death. Peter’s expectations of a guy or gal who is a Christ-follower is that he or she is to serve God in His strength leading to God keeping him or her from being bit and ruined by sin.
1 Peter 4 (746)