Peter’s Failure
At that moment the Lord turned and looked at Peter. Suddenly, the Lord’s words flashed through Peter’s mind: “Before the rooster crows tomorrow morning, you will deny three times that you even know me.” And Peter left the courtyard, weeping bitterly.
(Luke 22:61–62)
Hope. It is something as important to us as water is to a fish, as vital as electricity is to a light bulb, as essential as air is to a jumbo jet. Hope is that basic to life.
We cannot stay on the road to anticipated dreams without it, at least not very far. Many have tried—none successfully. Without that needed spark of hope, we are doomed to a dark, grim existence. How often the word “hopeless” appears in suicide notes. Even if it isn’t actually written, we can read it between the lines. Take away our hope, and our world is reduced to something between depression and despair.
There once lived a man who loved the sea. Rugged, strong-willed, passionate, and expressive, he did nothing halfheartedly. When it came to fishing, he was determined—and sometimes obnoxious. But he was loyal when it came to friendships . . . loyal to the core, blindly courageous, and overconfident, which occasionally caused him to overstate his commitment. But there he stood, alone if necessary, making promises with his mouth that his body would later be unable to keep.
As you probably realize by now, the man’s name was Peter, not just one of the twelve, but the spokesman for the twelve (whether they liked it or not). Once he decided to follow Christ, there was no turning back. As time passed, he became all the more committed to the Master, a devoted and stubborn-minded disciple whose loyalty knew no bounds.
Ultimately, however, his commitment was put to the test. Jesus had warned him that Satan was hot on his heels, working overtime to trip him up. But Peter was unmoved. His response? “Lord, with You I am ready to go both to prison and to death!” (Luke 22:33). Jesus didn’t buy it. He answered, “Peter, the cock will not crow today until you have denied three times that you know Me” (22:34). Though that prediction must have stung, Peter pushed it aside . . . self-assured and overly confident that it would never happen.
Wrong. That very night, Jesus’ words turned to reality. The loyal, strong-hearted, courageous Peter failed his Lord. Deliberately and openly, he denied that he was one of the twelve. Not once or twice, but three times, back-to-back, he turned on the One who had loved him enough to warn him.
The result? Read Luke 22:61–62 slowly as you imagine the scene.
Taken from Hope Again by Charles R. Swindoll. Copyright © 1996 by Charles R. Swindoll, Inc. Used by permission of HarperCollins Christian Publishing. www.harpercollinschristian.com
