Displaying Jesus

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Let me introduce the theme of our passage tonight with a quote from St. Patrick. Yes, the very Saint Patrick that forced many of you to wear green on Monday at the prospect of having handsy coworkers pinch you. I am not sure what comes to mind when you think of St. Patrick. I know for many it is the color green, or the Irish, for others a shamrock, for others green beer, but for me it is this quote. Listen to this prayer from St. Patrick…

"Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me, Christ in me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me, Christ on my right, Christ on my left, Christ when I lie down, Christ when I sit down, Christ when I arise, Christ in the heart of every man who thinks of me, Christ in the mouth of everyone who speaks of me, Christ in every eye that sees me, Christ in every ear that hears me."    -St. Patrick

The heart of this prayer is that he would find himself so totally immersed in Jesus on a daily basis, so enveloped in Jesus from every angle, so dominated by Jesus in all his thoughts, attitudes, motives and actions that when people think of him they think of Jesus; that when people talk of him they end up talking of Jesus; that when people see him they are reminded of Jesus; that when people hear him they hear words that remind them of Jesus.

This is a prayer that we would do well to meditate on and ask of God regularly so that we too could have Jesus on display in all of our lives. I share this prayer from St. Patrick b/c I believe we see it being lived out in the life of Peter in our passage tonight. Peter longed to put Jesus on display in his life and we will see just from Peter tonight. As we consider how Peter put Jesus on display in his life we will be encouraged and challenged to do the same.

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