Luke 22:31 And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat. 32 But I have prayed for thee, that your faith fails not: and when you are converted, strengthen thy brethren.
It’s of critical importance for us to observe that the above assessment was made by Christ, Who never makes a mistake in His evaluation of persons. When Christ says to Peter directly those words “When you are converted” Jesus is implying by default that the one to whom He is speaking is not converted at this present time, and therefore, conversion would take place at some later period.
Some persons have been alarmed at this statement from Christ, for Peter, as well as the other disciples had been so close to Christ for most of His ministry, and because of this, many would take it for granted that Peter should have been converted by then.
This should immediately ring alarm bells in our souls for it is a documented fact that being close to Christ does not always mean that a person is converted. In fact, when we study Peter’s experiences, before and after conversion we often would see the man in the mirror, in our own experiences, for there are those who may be currently close to Christ and yet, some are not converted.
Acts 3:19 Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord. 20 And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you.
May God add His blessing to the study of His word. “Good night” and God bless!