The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. (Proverbs 9:10) Before the fisherman Simon ever became the disciple Peter, he addressed Jesus as “Master”, and reluctantly agreed to cast his net in the place that Jesus suggested, until the miraculous catch produced enough fish for Jesus to reel in three new disciples: Peter, James, and John. Peter respected Jesus, but never imagined the power that Jesus could and would display that changed Peter’s attitude permanently: Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man! (Luke 5:8) He and his companions were all astonished at the catch of fish they had taken, and so were James and John. In the space of an instant Peter knew fear when he recognized a power he had only known in stories, and in that moment Peter was afraid with the fear of the Lord. Jesus saw it and answered Peter, Don’t be afraid; from now on you will fish for people. (Luke 5:10) The three men then left the amazing catch on the beach and followed Jesus.

The fear that Peter displayed to Jesus was also the beginning of wisdom for Peter. It was proof to Jesus that Peter’s spirit was receptive to the Spirit of God, for he recognized God’s Spirit in the miraculous catch, and recognizing, he saw the short comings of his own life, and was afraid.

We can spend a great deal of time loving a gentle, healing Jesus, without ever encountering the fear of the Lord, but Peter’s story reminds us that Peter is the first disciple to recognize and confess , You are the Christ, the son of the living God. (Matthew 16:13 ) The fear of God forms a powerful bond with a powerful God. It leads us to recognize God in the most discouraging disguises: a catch of fish, a fig tree without figs (Matthew 21:19), and a crippled man begging.(Acts 3:1-8)

Jesus said to Peter and to the other disciples , Blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear. (Matthew 13:16) Peter’s eyes and ears were opened the day he saw the miraculous catch of fish; that knowledge worked the fear of God in him for the beginning of wisdom. From then on Peter grew in wisdom and love for Jesus. Peter later wrote, For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God. (I Peter 1:23) Peter looms large in the history of salvation and of the church. It began for him when he knew the fear of God, and Peter became more than wise.

Love in Him,

Prue