“Now Simon Peter was standing and warming himself. They asked him, ‘You are not also one of his disciples, are you?’ He denied it and said, ‘I am not.’ One of the slaves of the high priest, a relative of the man whose ear Peter had cut off, asked, ‘Did I not see you in the garden with him?’ Again Peter denied it, and at that moment the cock crowed.” --- John 18:25-27
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You are Peter. It is late in the morning. You sit in alone in a corner of the courtyard as the last few people from the massive crowd, there just moments before, filter out into the city. They have just finished shouting, “Crucify Him!!! Crucify Him!!! Crucify Him!!!”. You begin to weep, unable to believe what has happened over the past day. The simple Seder you shared with your friends last evening seems like an eternity ago.
You reflect on all that has happened these past three years. You smile, remembering the joy you felt when you first met Jesus. You had such pride when He said, “And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it.”. The possibilities of a life with this Man, spreading His message of love, grace and redemption, seemed exciting and endless. But what did you do? Did you have faith and stand by His side? No…you failed Him.
When your faith in Him would have let you walk on water, you sank because you did not believe.
When He spoke of His sacrifice to come, you scolded Him.
When He was teaching, your questions were selfish, petty and foolish.
When He offered to serve you, to wash your feet, you rejected His gift.
When He needed you to stay awake and pray with Him, in the Garden at Gethsemane last night, you fell asleep.
When the guards came to arrest Him, your temper flared and you hurt an innocent man; Jesus scolded you.
When the authorities had taken Him, you denied Him once, a second time, a third time.
We are all Peter. We fall short. We have failed Christ at so many points. He is dying on this Good Friday because of us, because of our sins, because we reject Him over and over.
He was mocked, He was beaten, He was crucified, He died.
You are Peter. You have lived a full life, preaching the word of God and the good news of Jesus Christ. Thousands of people have accepted Christ because of your work in the world. You were crucified, just as your friend Jesus was. Yet, you wonder… Your life has just ended and you are sitting in a brightly lit space that has no form. As you reflect upon your life, you remember the moments of failure. You start to weep, just as you did in that courtyard as you watched the thinning crowd, replaying in your mind the three times you denied your Lord, Jesus Christ. The echo of the cock’s crow, reaching you yet again after so many years, mocks you.
But, coming to you in the formless mist is your friend, your teacher, your Lord. He is smiling. He opens His arms to you and takes you in. Instantly, you remember His words, His love, His gift to you. Your faith is complete, your denials forgiven, your worthiness restored. You are filled…bursting…with the awareness of what He has given to you and that in each time you failed, was the gift of redemption. He is not hurt, He is not disappointed, He is not saddened. He turns with you, arm around your shoulders, walking together again as friends, taking you to be with your Father forever.
So, on this Good Friday, know that we are the reason for His death, His sacrifice. Remember that we are Peter.
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