PT-1 “The Right Virtues”

 

EVENING SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 6/18/2026 8:59 PM

My Worship Time                                                                      Focus:  PT-1 “The Right Virtues”

            In this evening’s SD we are going to begin looking at the last section that MacArthur writes on the Apostle Peter, and then when he gets done with that he will begin to look at Andrew and James which takes place in his next chapter.

            MacArthur writes “The Lord’s molding of the raw material of Peter’s nature through his life experiences produced in him the virtues and character essential to a true spiritual leader.

            “The fundamental, foundational principle of spiritual leadership is submission to God and His Word. As noted above, Peter was aggressive, bold, and self-confident.  He illustrated those  traits when approached by those collecting the two-drachma temple tax.  When they asked whether Jesus was going to pay that tax, Peter replied that He was.  The reality apparently did not sit well with Peter.  When he came into the house where Jesus was staying, the Lord knew that Peter was thinking.  Before he could say a word, Jesus asked him, ‘What do you think Simon?  From whom do the kings of the earth collect customs or poll-tax, from their sons or from strangers?’  (Matt. 17:25).  When Peter replied, ‘from strangers,’ Jesus drew the logical conclusion that  ‘the sons are exempt’ (v. 26).  Even earthly kings do not tax their children; therefore as the Son of God, Jesus was not obligated to pay the temple tax.  But then came the lesson on submission.  To avoid giving offense, Jesus directed Peter to ‘go to the sea and throw in a hook, and take the first fish that comes up; and when you open its mouth, you will find a shekel.  Take that and give it to them for you and Me’ (v. 27).

            “Peter got the point.  Years later he exhorted Christians, ‘Keep you behavior excellent among the Gentiles, so that in the thing in which they slander you as evildoers, the may because of your good deeds, as they observe them, glorify God in the day of visitation’ (1 Peter 2:12).  Believers are to live their lives in such a way as to deny opponents any legitimate grounds for criticizing the gospel.  Then in verses 13-18 Peter spelled out how to do that:

¹³ Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether to a king as the one in authority, ¹⁴ or to governors as sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and the praise of those who do right. ¹⁵ For such is the will of God, that by doing right you silence the ignorance of foolish people. ¹⁶ Act as free people, and do not use your freedom as a covering for evil, but use it as bond-servants of God. ¹⁷ Honor all people, love the brotherhood, fear God, honor the king.¹⁸ Servants, be subject to your masters with all respect, not only to those who are good and gentle, but also to those who are harsh.

Peter had come a long way from the man who had balked at paying the temple tax.  But he had learned the lesson that although he was a subject of God’s kingdom and merely a sojourner on earth, he nevertheless needed to submit to human authority for the Lord’s sake.

            “Second, Peter learned restraint, or self-control.  The danger facing decisive, action-oriented leaders is becoming angry when their goals are thwarted by those who do not share their vision, or who underperform. Peter’s lack of restraint was clearly seen in his singlehandedly taking on those who came to Gethsemane to arrest Jesus (see the discussion above), which earned him the Lord’s rebuke (John 18:11).

            Once again, Peter learned his lesson.  In his first epistle he wrote

For you have been called for this purpose, since also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps, who committed no sin, nor was any deceit found in His mouth; and while being reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously (1 Peter 2:21-23).

He understood the importance of following the Lord’s example.

            “Third, Peter learned humility.  Pride is an ever-present danger for leaders, because of their influence, and because people praise, respect, and admire them.  It was Peter’s proud self-confidence that lay behind his boast, noted above, that he would not abandon the Lord, and the hard fall that he subsequently took shattered that pride.  As he closed his first epistle, he warned elders not to exalt themselves over those they lead (1 Peter 5:3), then exhorted all believers, ‘Clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, for God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble.  Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time’ (vv. 5-6).  Peter’s life, message, and leadership reflected the humility he had so painfully learned.

            “Fourth, Peter learned love.  Leaders, even those in the church, can come to view people as a means to an end; to be task oriented rather than people oriented.  But the essence of true spiritual leadership is humble, loving service to others.  ‘If anyone wants to be first, ‘ Jesus told the Twelve, ‘he shall be last of all and servant of all’ (Mark 9:35).  On the night before His death, Jesus graphically illustrated that principle by humbly washing the disciples’ dirty feet.  That degrading task was usually assigned to the lowliest servant.  But on that evening in the upper room, there was no servant.  And none of the disciples, who as usual were arguing among themselves as to who was the greatest (Luke 22:24; cf. 9:46; Matt. 20:20-28), were going to eliminate themselves from contention by washing the others’ feet.

            “Peter did not understand the significance of the Lord’s action, and protested vehemently  when the Lord came to wash his feet (John 13:6-10).  But when Jesus told him, ‘If I do not wash you, you have no part with Me’ (v.8), Peter, in typical fashion, veered from one extreme to the other.  ‘Lord,’ he said, ‘then wash not only my feet, but also my hands and head’ (v. 9).

            “In the context of His own example, Jesus’ exhortation to the Twelve that believers are to love each other (vv. 34-35; cf. 15:12-13, 17) took on a heightened significance.  Peter got the message, as his exhortation, ‘Above all, keep fervent in your love for one another, because love covers a multitude of sins’ (1 Peter 4:8; cf. 1:22; 2:17; 2 Peter 1:7) indicates.”

6/18/2026 9:44 PM