Guest guest Posted October 7, 2005 Report Share Posted October 7, 2005 Dear Friends, This is an interesting article about understanding the meaning and implications of Peter's denial of Christ 3 times on the eve of the Crucifixion. Regards, Semira http://www.velocity.net/~edju/PeterWept.htm Excerpt: Peter, Jesus said, always went where he wanted to go, and this was the enthusiasm of the young man in Peter. He wanted to go see what they were going to do to Jesus, and as he stood by the fire and heard the accusation that he was a follower of Jesus, he saw within himself a love for himself that was greater than a love for Jesus. The pressures of the situation came to bear upon the self-love in Peter's heart and the pressures for self-preservation caused the words to shoot forth from his heart in a mixture of cursing and swearing and oaths: " I don't know the man. " Jesus was being led away to die to fulfill His own words, and that situation confronted Peter with his inability to fulfill his own words: " Jesus, I will die with you. " As Peter stood by that fire, the three denials that came from his mouth broke the young man in him. The crowing of the cock broke the waywardness in him, the independent spirit in him. He had wanted to follow Jesus there, but suddenly he wished he wasn't there. His love for Jesus came face to face with his love for himself. In other smaller situations, Peter probably did what he wanted and went where he wanted with out any effect on his thinking. But in this situation, he had a love for Jesus that wouldn't allow him to just leave and go somewhere else. He couldn't just leave, but he couldn't stay, and his independent spirit broke, the sheep scattered, and Scripture says, (Mat 26:75 KJV) And Peter remembered the word of Jesus, which said unto him, Before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice. And he went out, and wept bitterly. Excerpt: Three times Peter had denied the Lord. Now, in John 21, three times Peter tells the Lord he loves him, but this time it is different. Because of what Peter had gone through within himself, he could now hear the words of Jesus to him: (John 21:18 KJV) Verily, verily, I say unto thee, When thou wast young, thou girdedst thyself, and walkedst whither thou wouldest: but when thou shalt be old, thou shalt stretch forth thy hands, and another shall gird thee, and carry thee whither thou wouldest not. 19 This spake he, signifying by what death he should glorify God. And when he had spoken this, he saith unto him, Follow me. Peter had followed Jesus to the high priests house after declaring he would follow the Lord anywhere. But there he denied Him, and how emotional it must have been for Peter to hear the last two words of these verses: " Follow me. " What we are going to pass through is the result of the travail of His soul, and HE.....IS....SATISFIED. We are His seed who have had our times of denials and tears and of sorrow and of brokenness and now it is time. It is time for us to walk as He walked, not in signs and wonders, but in faithfulness to Him whom He has formed in us. If you have not experienced what I have described, you are walking in the confidence of Peter. You are walking in the self-love of Peter. You are walking in the self-preservation of Peter, and the dangers of your denying Him are great. I believe it is a time when our faces should be on the floor, humbling ourselves before Him that we might settle the issue to really follow Him. The only way to follow Him now is to be like Him now. Jesus is saying, " Do you love me? What is saying to us in those words? His words to us can be summed up in these verses: (John 15:12 KJV) This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you. 13 Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. 14 Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you. 15 Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you. 16 Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you. 17 These things I command you, that ye love one another. 18 If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you. 19 If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you. 20 Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also. 21 But all these things will they do unto you for my name's sake, because they know not him that sent me. 22 If I had not come and spoken unto them, they had not had sin: but now they have no cloak for their sin. 23 He that hateth me hateth my Father also. 24 If I had not done among them the works which none other man did, they had not had sin: but now have they both seen and hated both me and my Father. 25 But this cometh to pass, that the word might be fulfilled that is written in their law, They hated me without a cause. 26 But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me: 27 And ye also shall bear witness, because ye have been with me from the beginning. (John 16:1 KJV) These things have I spoken unto you, that ye should not be offended. 2 They shall put you out of the synagogues: yea, the time cometh, that whosoever killeth you will think that he doeth God service. 3 And these things will they do unto you, because they have not known the Father, nor me. 4 But these things have I told you, that when the time shall come, ye may remember that I told you of them. And these things I said not unto you at the beginning, because I was with you. Ed Tarkowski Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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