THE DENIAL

Confessing Jesus and praising Him loudly and boldly can be easy among friends and fellow believers. But what will we do when our perceptions of Jesus’ power or His love for us are rattled and we find all of our dreams shattered? Will we confess Jesus as Lord then? 

Will we serve Him because we believe and because He is Lord even when everything doesn’t seem to make sense in our limited understanding? 

Peter was one of the Lord’s closest disciples, who witnessed many miracles firsthand, even walking on water with Jesus! But here, on this night, the closest disciple not only fails to witness on His behalf, but as predicted by Jesus, adamantly denies Him three times. That truth sinks deeply into Peter’s heart as the rooster crows. 

I’ve certainly had those moments of failure and regret, and you may have too. The good news is that Peter’s story doesn’t finish here. He comes back to serve and glorify the Lord in mighty ways. So, for those of us who have failed, there is not only hope, but a proven example that Jesus welcomes back failures to make them strong and calls them to His service.

No wonder Peter began his comments in 1 Peter 1:3 by saying, ‘Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead…’ (ESV). 

Peter understood how deeply a person can fall into sin, but even more than that, he understood the wonderful saving grace and mercy of God.

written by HEIDI WYSMAN