THE LEAST LIKELY 1

Acts 2:38,39 – Peter said to them, “Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you and your children and for all who are far away, as many as the Lord our God will call to Himself.”

I am excited about 2023. I believe there are going to be some shocking things happen this year, especially in the area of new and unexpected conversions. This is where all moves of God begin, the least likely have a sudden change and become a catalyst for a significant work of the Holy Spirit. Peter was one of these least likely folks. Peter was just an average guy, a fisherman by trade. When the town shut down to go see John the Baptist preach all Peter could see was an inconvenience. There was work to do and bills to be paid, Peter had no time for all of this. After he got past the John the Baptist drama, another preacher came to town, Jesus of Nazareth. This is when the unlikely happened, before you know it Peter left his nets and began to follow Jesus. No one could believe it, but it was true nevertheless. Peter was now fishing for men. That’s when today’s verse comes into play, three years later Peter was the preacher. He basically invented the evangelical message, “believe on the Lord Jesus and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit”. No one would have believed it but the facts were undeniable. This fisherman had been thrust into a brand new world and that world could never be the same. The least likely had become the leader of a world changing movement, he was now a fisher of men.

Maybe you know some unlikely candidates that you would never expect to be a player in the kingdom of God. I think 2023 may have some surprises in store for all of us. Peter went from worrying about paying bills and what the fishing forecast would be for the week to preaching the gospel, healing the sick, and helping birth a world wide religion. No one would have picked Peter for this job, he was definitely in the category of least likely, but God had other plans in store for Him. I think this is what we will see in the days ahead, common people launched into the ministry. The Lord loves to use the least likely, I think some major surprises are in store for all of us this year.