Sleeping Faith

And when Herod was about to bring him out, that night Peter was sleeping, bound with two chains between two soldiers; and the guards before the door were keeping the prison (Acts 12:6 NKJV).

As I read this verse, my mind immediately moves to the scene where Jesus is asleep in the bow of the boat as the disciples were left fighting a storm that caused grown men of the sea to freak out.  What is it about both scenes that seems so surreal? Perhaps it is because we typically associate sleep with a condition of rest and peaceful calmness that the thought of a person sleeping in the midst of hurricane force winds or while bound with chains between two soldiers, seems so difficult to wrap our minds around.  Yet both are perfect pictures of faith.

Hebrews 11:1 says:  Faith is being sure of what we hope for. It is being certain of what we do not see.

Peter’s hope was obviously not in circumstances or things over which he had no control.  His hope was in the unwavering character of Christ that Peter had been able to observe up close and over time.  He had been there when Jesus was asleep in the bow of the boat.  He had been there when Jesus came walking on water in the midst of another storm.  He had been there when Jesus held his tongue before His accusers and never spoke a word in His own defense, though He certainly could have easily discharged the charges without much effort at all.  He had been there when Jesus was beaten almost to death. And he had been there when Christ breathed His last breath.

Peter had finally learned the valuable lesson of faith from his former Mentor.  And now, as with Jesus, Peter’s hope was anchored in the fact that his life was not his own and that whatever happened to him was under the sovereign control of God, not the soldiers on each side, or even Herod who would probably have him put to death the next day.  It was this unwavering focus of hope on the right source that gave Peter the ability to have a good night’s sleep in a situation that would have caused a melt down for most of us.  Our attitudes in the midst of a trial can be a very revealing and accurate measure of where we are placing our faith.

In life I will learn to take note of when I begin to freak out and make the concerted effort to refocus my faith upon Jesus, regardless of what circumstances and life are throwing my way.