Altogether Turned

Luke 22:32

But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren.

Peter was about to face the darkest hour of his life. Though he had great intentions, he had not been converted. Jesus even said to him, when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren. Was Jesus saying that Peter was not saved? No, He was not saying that. Jesus qualifies what He was saying when He told Peter how He was praying for him. Jesus said that He was praying that Peter’s faith didn't fail. He was praying that this failure that Peter was about to face would cause him to be converted.

The word converted comes from the Latin word convertere. It comes from the prefix con which means altogether, and from the Latin vertere which means to turn. In other words, God is telling Peter when he is altogether turned from everything else to God, that he will spend his life strengthening the brethren.

There are many saved who are not converted. You can visit every church on a Sunday morning and find most of the congregation is not converted. Oh, they are saved; they have accepted Christ as their personal Saviour, but they have not been converted. They have yet to convert from the old life completely. These who are not converted are straddling the fence between their old lifestyle and coming altogether over to God’s way of living. They have yet to have enough faith that, if God’s way of saving them is the only way to save them, then God’s way of living is the only way to live if you want to make the most out of your life.

However, there is a danger in not being converted or altogether turned to God’s way. That danger is that their faith fails. In other words, they stop living the faith life to live a worldly life. Those who are never converted or altogether turned will eventually stop serving the Lord. Oh, they are saved, and they may even attend church weekly, but their life is worthless for the cause of Christ. These who are not converted live for themselves. These who are not converted live for the pleasures of the world. These who are not converted simply want to check a box on Sunday that they have done their religious obligation for God that week, but they live the rest of the week for themselves.

The problem with not being altogether turned is that you hurt the cause of Christ. The lost world sees you with your unconverted life and wonder why they should want what you have because they see you wasting your Sunday mornings on something they perceive as not real. The unconverted life never makes an impact on anyone because it is straddling the fence, and it never gives true fulfillment in life.

My friend, the converted life is where you will find true joy in life. It is time you come altogether over and serve God. The converted life knows the joy of living by faith. The converted life knows the excitement of leading someone to Christ. The converted life knows that sacrificing the world for the cause of Christ is no sacrifice at all. The converted life lives a life that when it is done, will bring rewards with it to Heaven.

It is time you come altogether over to the Lord’s way of living and enjoy the blessings of the converted life. You will find that living for Christ will cause you to live for others, which is where true joy is found in life.