Why Peter?

I've been reading Acts a lot over the last year or so (I know it's cliche for a church planter to be spending a lot of time in Acts, but, well, it would be foolish not to seeing as the people in Acts were highly successful church planters).

Anyway, as I read Acts 15 today I was struck by Peter's authority when it came to settling disputes. Basically a bunch of apostles had different opinions about what the Gentiles needed to do to be "in." Finally, Peter stood up and said, "Here's what we're going to do..." And so, they did it. Pretty cool. However, as one who tends to buck authority, I found myself asking why they were so willing to listen to Peter.

I think the answer is pretty simple...Peter and Jesus were tight, and everyone knew it. The people were willing to listen to leaders they knew were close to Jesus.

Isn't it true that we're so much more willing to give credence to what someone is saying if we know they're walking with Jesus everyday? Don't you and I want to hear from people we know are sold out to Jesus and His authority? Isn't the advice we often seek from people we know have genuine faith?

I know that's the kind of leader I want to be - a leader people follow not because I speak well or look nice or tell funny jokes, but because they know I'm close to Jesus.

What about you? Where does your authority (at home, at work, on the basketball court, with your friends, etc.) come from?