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THE VIA CRUCIS / STATION 4
JESUS IS DENIED BY PETER
Luke 22:54-62 (The Message) 54-56 Arresting Jesus, they marched him off and took him into the house of the Chief Priest. Peter followed, but at a safe distance. In the middle of the courtyard some people had started a fire and were sitting around it, trying to keep warm. One of the serving maids sitting at the fire noticed him, then took a second look and said, “This man was with him!” 57 He denied it, “Woman, I don’t even know him.” 58 A short time later, someone else noticed him and said, “You’re one of them.” But Peter denied it: “Man, I am not.” 59 About an hour later, someone else spoke up, really adamant: “He’s got to have been with him! He’s got ‘Galilean’ written all over him.” 60-62 Peter said, “Man, I don’t know what you’re talking about.” At that very moment, the last word hardly off his lips, a rooster crowed. Just then, the Master turned and looked at Peter. Peter remembered what the Master had said to him: “Before the rooster crows, you will deny me three times.” He went out and cried and cried and cried.
Sometimes when you read the stories of the Bible, you can come away with more questions than answers, and sometimes you have to consider a passage or story in context with a bigger picture. This is particularly true when we reflect on Peter’s denial of Jesus. Recall, that just a few hours before He was arrested Jesus told Peter that Peter would deny ever knowing his Master three times. John 13:28 However, at Jesus arrest, this happened:
John 18:10-11 (The Message) Then Simon Peter, who had a sword, drew it and struck the high priest’s servant, cutting off his right ear. (The servant’s name was Malchus.) 11 Jesus commanded Peter, “Put your sword away! Shall I not drink the cup the Father has given me?”
Within an hour or so of his brave and foolish attempt at defending Jesus, Peter is denying he ever knew him. How does a man go from hero to a sad failure in such a short time? What made Peter break? Where did his courage go? Why, Peter? I am not sure what happened to Peter but I will venture a guess.
During Jesus’ public ministry, Peter did some admirable things. He was the first to declare Jesus as the Messiah and the Son of God. He had the faith in Jesus to walk on water. He was chosen to witness the Transfiguration, and he even risked his life by badly swinging a sword to rescue Jesus from arrest. However, Peter did all these things in the presence of Jesus. Peter’s faith, his leadership and courage all flowed from His relationship and trust in his Lord. When Jesus was physically taken from Peter, all hope, all direction, all courage was lost.
That sounds familiar. When I let things, emotions, fear, sin, the world, the flesh and the devil get between me and Jesus, I fall apart as well. I find myself being in denial, being swept away by unbelief and fear, and being just like Peter, I deny Jesus’ Lordship over my circumstances. When that happens, I too cry bitter tears and sometimes feel I have no way back.
The best thing about this story is that Peter’s relationship did not end that dark night, for Jesus never denied Peter. In fact, Jesus chased after Peter, all the way to Galilee. There, Jesus restored the friendship and His Lordship of Peter’s life. Jesus is always faithful that way, even when we are faithless. I have found that when I get lost, the Lion of Judah will always track me down. Sometimes He calls after me, and picks me up like a lost child, sometimes He has to ambush me, and rips my fears, doubt and faithlessness to shreds. Yet, always, always, He lovingly puts me back together. ** (And also, even Malchus’ ear. Luke 22:52)
Do you have any denial of Jesus’ Lordship in your life? Let Jesus deal with it and restore you. May the Lion of Judah pounce on you today!
2 Timothy 2:13 (NIV) If we are faithless, He remains faithful, for He cannot disown himself.
Peace. Phil Parsons
** my paraphrase from The Lion and the Lamb, The Relentless Tenderness of Jesus, by Brennan Manning.
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From Rodger:
I sometimes am amazed at how the Biblical narrative is understated, and how that leads us to somehow revert the Gospel story to a “PG rated” Disney version of events – when the reality is decidedly an “R” rated movie!
Luke’s version really understated Peter’s denial, and while Matthew 26: 69 – 75 comes closer to what probably happened, it still leaves us with a “cleaned up” version of the story:
69 Now Peter was sitting out in the courtyard, and a servant girl came to him. “You also were with Jesus of Galilee,” she said. 70 But he denied it before them all. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he said. 71 Then he went out to the gateway, where another servant girl saw him and said to the people there, “This fellow was with Jesus of Nazareth.” 72 He denied it again, with an oath: “I don’t know the man!” 73 After a little while, those standing there went up to Peter and said, “Surely you are one of them; your accent gives you away.” 74 Then he began to call down curses, and he swore to them, “I don’t know the man!” Immediately a rooster crowed. 75 Then Peter remembered the word Jesus had spoken: “Before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times.” And he went outside and wept bitterly.
Now, stop and think for a moment: What do you usually think of when you hear someone denying something “with an oath?” Or, what does the thought of “swearing with curses” at people bring to mind when you hear them yelled out of a car at the traffic light towards the person that just cut them off and then brake-checked them? Hmmm… Funny how we try to clean it up, isn’t it? Especially when the unvarnished, “full Monty” version actually lends itself to more power when the risen Jesus reinstates Peter at that breakfast gathering by the sea of Galilee (see John 21: 15 – 19).
I’m constantly getting myself in trouble – both in and out of the pulpit – for my language choices. I tell people that I’m simply exercising my spiritual gift of “earthy language,” but that seldom really gets me off the hook. And yet… I honestly think I’d rather err on the side of “TMI” – too much information – as opposed to too much of what I call the “Disneyfication” of the Gospel. We’re dealing with real stuff in Holy Week; stuff that cuts right to the bone of our souls in many ways. “Let’s not trivialize it simply by some kind of cultural overlay about what is “good and proper” and what is not. Especially since there’s really NOTHING “proper” about what Jesus is enduring on our behalf in his passion.