John 21:21-22 Peter seeing him saith to Jesus, Lord, and what shall this man do? Jesus saith unto him, If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee? follow thou me.

In these passages Peter was concerned about what Jesus might have been asking John to do as he receives his marching orders. It is an aspect of fellowship that we do things together. The disciples were originally sent out by twos as they went into the countryside at Jesus’ bidding.

Paul and Silas, Paul and Barnabas, Barnabas and John Mark, went out together on mission trips. Was it so out of place for Peter to ask, what about John? We do not know what is at the heart of Peter’s inquiry. Many have given opinions as to Peter’s innermost thoughts, but the passages do not make that plain.

We are nearly two thousand years removed from His physical presents. We hear by faith and often we look to others for some confirmation that we truly are hearing rightly. When it comes to important issues, maybe some life changing decisions, it is wise to seek sound counsel.

You know what isn’t wise? Looking at anyone and wonder why they are not doing anything. I certainly do not know what the Lord has asked of you. That is between you and the Lord. What I can do is offer this; has the Lord changed your heart to one of service? What to do is not nearly as important as if you can see that your heart has changed towards service.

The heart change has to come first and that isn’t always visible to others. That is one of the reasons that fellowship and the bonds of peace are so important. It is how you find where you fit in service.

John 20:22 And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost:

Take in a deep breath thru your nose. What do you smell? Take in a deep breath thru your mouth. What do you smell? There is a great difference between the two. You can still smell by breathing in thru your mouth but that is coincidental and not intentional.

Now take a deep breath thru your spirit. What sense do you use now? Surely it is not smell. Yesterday I spoke about the atmosphere within a church body. When you are within that church body and you take in a breath, the spirit takes in the atmosphere of attitude. Your spirit should tell you if something is unpleasant within the body spiritually. As with any odor, check first to make sure it is not you that reeks.

We can get use to bad attitudes much the same way to get used to bad odors. That is a function of the human condition. The Holy Spirit does not forget the stench of bad attitude. So it is now within your realm of awareness because of the Holy Spirit. What are you to do?

Report your awareness to the head of the church. No, not your elders or pastor, your Lord. Prayer should always be your first instinct. If it is not, be aware that it should be your first instinct. Your new nature as a creation in Christ should be growing in that direction. Take that into consideration before you do anything else.

The Lord will tell you what to do next. Respond to His leading. Do it in a proper manner. There are ways to do things that are orderly and proper. If you cannot see that, return to step one, pray for guidance.