"Jesus answered him, wilt thou lay down thy life for my sake? Verily, verily, I say unto thee, the cock shall not crow, till thou hast denied me thrice. Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me." [Jn 13:38-14:1]
When Jesus said, “whither I go, ye cannot come,” [Jn 13:33] Peter pressed the matter, asking Jesus where He was going – after all, could there be a place which Jesus could venture to which Peter could not also? Or so Peter thought. Jesus said again, “whither I go, thou canst not follow me now; but thou shalt follow me afterwards.” [Jn 13:36] To this, “Peter said…Lord, why cannot I follow thee now? I will lay down my life for thy sake.” [Jn 13:37] Yes, even more specifically, Peter added, “though all men shall be offended because of thee, yet will I never be offended.” [Mt 26:33] And if Peter’s obstinacy against Jesus’ clear revelation was not brazen enough, Luke adds that “he said unto Him, Lord, I am ready to go with thee, both into prison, and to death.” [Lk 22:33] In this moment, Peter failed to take heed to that which Paul would later write, “if a man think himself to be something, when he is nothing, he deceiveth himself;” [Gal 6:3] and, “wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall.” [1 Cor 10:12] For Peter looked at his brethren and then upon himself, and thought himself to be better and stronger; further, Peter saw in himself no weakness, boasting of his ability to drink that cup which Jesus was wont to drink, and thus, in this fulfilled the Proverb, “pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall.” [Prov 16:18]
When we, like Peter, forget that even David who was “a mighty man,” [2 Sam 17:10] yes, a “mighty valiant man,” [1 Sam 16:18] said, “[The LORD] delivered me from my strong enemy, and from them which hated me: for they were too strong for me,” [Psa 18:17] then we too shall fall. For we must all come to the recognition that we are weak; that, “there is no king saved by the multitude of an host: a mighty man is not delivered by much strength;” [Psa 33:16] and that if we experience any victory, we might surely say as the saints of old,
“For they got not the land in possession by their own sword, neither did their own arm save them: but thy right hand, and thine arm, and the light of thy countenance, because thou hadst a favor unto them.” [Psa 44:3]
And again,
“For I will not trust in my bow, neither shall my sword save me. But thou hast saved us from our enemies, and hast put them to shame that hated us.” [Psa 44:6-7]
Truly, if I have any strength or power, it has come from God; if any victory, surely The LORD has wrought it; if any courage, His Spirit has prompted me and lifted me up in heart and mind. But on that last Passover night, Simon Peter was full of pride, thinking himself to be as Simon the Sorcerer did, “some great one,” [Acts 8:9] able to handle whatever may come, a true hero among saints. But though Peter’s sin was grievous, and he had yet further to plunge into the valley of humiliation, yet we must recognize that we are no better, and have sinned in like manner to Peter, for we are under the same passions and flesh. But even though these things took place, and even further, that Jesus said to him, “Simon, Simon, behold, satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat,” [Lk 22:31] yet Jesus’ attitude toward Peter was that of love, promise, and hope. For immediately after this word Jesus said, mercifully planting hope, consolation, and calling into Peter’s heart even before his fall, “but I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren.” [Lk 22:32] And again, even after saying the stark truth, “verily, verily, I say unto thee, the cock shall not crow, till thou hast denied me thrice,” [Jn 13:38] yet Jesus went on to say directly to Peter, “let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me.” [Jn 14:1]
What a precious word from Jesus, that though Peter was doomed to fail, being full of pride and weak in the flesh, yet Jesus said tenderly one of the greatest New Testament promises in response,
“Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many dwelling-places: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.” [Jn 14:1-3]
When we are confronted with our inability and lack, when we see how we fail our Lord so often, may we take courage in Jesus’ words to Peter, which were in the same context. Have you failed? Have you fallen? Jesus would say to you as He did to Peter, “let not your heart be troubled.” If we have seen our wrong, if we, like those in Nehemiah’s day, “wept, when they heard the words of the law,” [Neh 8:9] having understood their sin, then let us take heart to those blessed words, “this day is holy unto The LORD your God; mourn not, nor weep…neither be ye sorry; for the joy of The LORD is your strength.” [Neh 8:9, 10] Let us be encouraged that Jesus is not looking upon us with a scowl; for immediately after revealing to Peter that he would betray and deny Himself, He gave him promise of restoration as well as a calling, and He directed his eyes and heart to eternity and to God’s love. And in addition to that, Jesus reminded Peter, as He also reminds us with these words, that no matter our failures, Jesus yet desires to be with us in eternity, for we are His bride and “his banner over [us is] love.” [Songs 2:4] And regardless of our sins in this present life, because of Christ’s blood, God’s disposition toward us, yes, and Jesus’ too, is ever-loving and full of zeal, so that it is true what is written,
“The LORD thy God in the midst of thee is mighty; He will save, He will rejoice over thee with joy; He will rest in His love, He will joy over thee with singing.” [Zeph 3:17]
Let us be reminded that as Peter failed, so too shall we. But as it says, “a just man falleth seven times, and riseth up again.” [Prov 24:16] We can take great comfort in our Lord’s words, which directly followed that revelation to Peter of his imminent failure, “let not your heart be troubled.” Praise God, for through Jesus we can have peace. Let us stay ourselves ever on His words, for we are promised, “thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.” [Isa 26:3]
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