Peter: Dissing Jesus One Minute & Loving Him The Next

"Feed Me!"  

You have to love Peter.  Or maybe you don't.  I don't know you so I won't presume to tell you what to do.

Anyway, Peter is a man of high highs and low lows.  Dude jumped out of the boat when he saw Jesus walking on the water toward them when everyone else was messing themselves and shaking like a leaf.

Then he sank into the water because his fear and lack of faith got the best of him.

He was also eager to build tents for Elijah and Moses when they networked socially with Jesus during the Mount of Transfiguration experience.  They weren't planning on hanging out long enough to need the digs, so he never got to build them.

Then during the Last Supper when Judas was all-Satan-ed up, Peter dramatically declared that he would never betray or leave Jesus only to have Jesus rebuke him by predicting his betrayal as a prologue to the exciting event of a rooster crowing.  Me thinks the burly fisherman doth protest too much.

You get the sense when you read John's Gospel that there was a friendly rivalry between these two.  John-boy was the "beloved disciple" and often subtly refers to himself as such when writing his Gospel narrative.  I guess it's a way to try to remain humble about the honor.

To read his account, you see that when Jesus was arrested and Peter was warming up for his betrayal performance of a lifetime, John was also there:

"And Simon Peter followed Jesus, and so did another disciple. Now that disciple was known to the high priest, and went with Jesus into the courtyard of the high priest.  But Peter stood at the door outside. Then the other disciple, who was known to the high priest, went out and spoke to her who kept the door, and brought Peter in."  JOHN 18:15-16

Now, it's true that the account doesn't specifically say it was John, but among the 10 possibilities (let's go ahead and rule out Judas) for this mysterious other disciple, only John is recorded at being at the cross during Jesus' crucifixion.  John and Peter are almost ALWAYS referred to as being together.  Pretty much any major narrative involving one of them involves the other.  Symbolically their partnership serves as a glimpse of the collaborative relationship between FAITH & DEVOTION (John) and ACTION (Peter).   Additionally, John ALWAYS refers to himself in third person, but typically names the other disciples. 

If it is indeed John (and since I'm the author of this blog, I'm declaring that it is) it is interesting that the only disciple to see Jesus through to the cross and the one who bore such a deep and abiding love for Jesus was probably a first-hand witness to at least one of Peter's denials.  According to the text, Disciple X (see also John) was allowed into the courtyard but the salty rough and tumble Peter was not.  Physically, John-boy was probably not nearly as menacing as Petey and yet he doesn't deny Jesus for fear of peer pressure the way Mr. "Rock" does.  Anyway, John used his street cred with the door-lady and "brought Peter in."  Then the very next verse says, "Then the servant girl who kept the door said to Peter, 'You are not also one of this Man's disciples, are you?' He said, 'I am not.'"  

So, John went to get Peter, vouched for Peter and then "brought Peter in" and in that very same instant, Peter was questioned by this door-lady and denied Jesus.  Ouch.  

That my friends is a literary contrast.  And this English teacher likes it.

So, after Peter denied Jesus and runs from the courtyard weeping, John stays and watches his Savior die for the sins of the world.

The two then also face off in racing to the empty tomb.

And then there is Peter's restoration.  Peter was previously described as a "rock" by Jesus and then he had that epic rooster-crow-inducing FAIL of denial.

So when Jesus appears to the disciples after His resurrection, it should be no surprise that He makes a special point to restore Peter's rock-ness. And just as John gave Peter access to the courtyard that night, it's again John that confirms to Peter that it is Jesus speaking to them from the shore in John 21:6-7:

"And He said to them, 'Cast the net on the right side of the boat, and you will find some.' So they cast, and now they were not able to draw it in because of the multitude of fish. 7 Therefore that disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, 'It is the Lord!' Now when Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put on his outer garment (for he had removed it), and plunged into the sea."

After Peter gets to the shore, Jesus engages him in a little game of "Do You Love Me" where He asks Peter THREE times whether he loves Him or not.  Peter basically answers that he likes him a lot.  And each time Jesus commands him to feed and tend His sheep.  This is to restore Peter to his rightful position as a rock of the faith that will help lay the foundation of the early church.  Jesus knew that Peter had the tenacity and the ACTION to get it done, but here He's restoring Peter's love and devotion (see also relationship) with Him after the nasty denial episode.

Again, interestingly enough, Peter will now get his wish to follow Christ even to death as Jesus predicts that Peter will also die via crucifixion.  Jesus is allowing Peter to truly go where He has gone even after Peter dropped the ball and cajoled a rooster into breaking the serene morning hours with his obnoxious wake-inducing melody.

And even still Peter is comparing himself to John.  He wants to know about John's type of death.  Perhaps because he now feels like he's in the inner circle of relationship again and wants to confirm that all folks in the "in crowd" will suffer and die like that.  Jesus' answer is to again turn the wayward eye of Peter back to Him and not on others.

(Side note:  It's always troubled me that Jesus seems to suggest that John would live to see the end times and the typical "Jesus was just redirecting Peter's attention" explanation never quite cut it.  Thankfully this time reading through the Holy Spirit reminded me that John did in fact see the end times when he wrote the book of Revelation.  Mystery solved.)

John and Peter represent the need for faith and action to work together.  Peter may have had shortcomings and failures but Jesus demonstrated through his story that He is all about restoring broken people by giving them opportunities to learn from their failures and grow closer to Him as a result.

As parents and world-changers in the lives of children, we need to understand that our kids are the same way.  We need to build up both a deep and abiding love of Jesus AND the boldness to act and rock this world to the foundation.  There's a lot to learn from the lives of Peter and John.  

And there are a lot of the Master's sheep to tend and feed.  And if we truly LOVE HIM we will do just that!

Every Day a (Good) Friday

On this holy day where we remember the painful trek to Golgotha that Christ made for us, it's important that each believer stop and calculate the cost of his or her salvation.

I'm personally not good at calculating costs.  Don't tell Dave Ramsey but an accountant I am not.

So, being a more free-spirited kind of person, I don't usually count the cost.  I'm usually in the camp of least resistance.  Not, however, when it comes to my faith.

In a day and age where there are many high profile pastors proclaiming that Jesus is essentially a magic genie that will take every problem away from your life and make your life the stuff of fairy tales, many folks don't have the first clue as to what being a true follower of Christ means.  They've been robbed of the true power behind Good Friday and the walk of a Christian.

Yes, the life of a believer does have every day as a Friday.  It's just that every day is a Good Friday.

That's not to say that Jesus will not bless you.  He will.  It's just that our narrow constructs of what "blessing" means seems to translate into our modern narcissistic worldview of "me me me."  God blessing you does not mean that you will have a mansion, the model family, no history of sickness and virtually no strife.

God's mansion for you comes in the next life.  This life is quite simply not about you.

We are so conditioned thanks to the carnal nature of our world to put our own comfort and ease above all else.  If something is hard, hurts our feelings, or makes us struggle we shrink away from it.

And so, those who cling to Jesus solely as a "get out of jail free" card and magic charm to erase all of their hurt, are missing out on a much larger life-altering blessing.

That's why when pressed for the greatest commandment, Jesus told us in Matthew 22:37-40:

Jesus said to him, "'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.'  This is the first and great commandment.  And the second is like it: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.'  On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets."

Notice Jesus didn't mention that iPads and fancy new cars would be falling from the sky.  He didn't say that the most important thing in life was your personal comfort or happiness.  He did, however, lay out a plan that would leave you fulfilled and whole.

Jesus is talking about the priorities necessary in order to live the Christian life and be a true follower of Him.  It's.  Not.  About.  You.

You don't even make the list.

Your first priority in all that you do, think and experience should be your all-encompassing love of your Lord Jesus Christ.  Your love and relationship with Jesus will not only determine your eternal destination but also the fullness of your wisdom and experience in this life.  He is the "solid rock" on which you stand "all other ground is sinking sand."  Any theology or teaching that starts without Jesus as the first priority and center of everything is false doctrine right from the pit of hell.

The second priority is again not you.  It's other people.  Jesus is telling you that in order to be successful in this whole Christian experience, you need to put Him first and others second.  You come somewhere after that.

In our culture, many in the church are trying to gain favor in our self-centered culture by focusing on your needs and your wants and how you can feel better and become more comfortable by citing verses that refer to Christ giving you whatever you ask for in His name.

That is a distortion of reality and one of the subtle ways that the enemy can warp our thinking and thwart our witness in this world.

Again, this is not to say that Jesus wants you to suffer in this world.  He doesn't.  The world and the enemy do, however.  He wants you to stand with Him and not with the pleasures of this world.

And that involves a choice.

You would think that if Christianity was the secret formula to riches and a life of ease that the disciples and early New Testament believers would have been on Easy Street.  And yet, despite the miraculous world-changing witness that they bore, we find the opposite: people being boiled in oil, crucified, stoned to death, hanged, exiled, beaten repeatedly, mocked, scorned and rejected.

This is why Jesus didn't promise us to "live offa fatta the land."  (A little literary reference to my Of Mice and Men scholars!)

Jesus counts the cost for us.  Right after He predicts His own death on the cross, He tells us in Luke 9:23:

Then He said to them all, "If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me."

ANY basic understanding of God's purpose for your life begins and ends with this verse.  Your life is not your own.  The Bible talks repeatedly of being bought with a price.  We are slaves either to self or Christ.  The Christian life is not about what you can get, how easy you can make life for yourself, or how every day will be like a Friday to you.

It's about understanding the reality of your salvation.  The cost involved in liberating you from an eternity in hell.  The proper response of a freed soul.  It's about following the Master, walking in His steps, and finding your contentment in serving and loving Him.

Every day is literally a Good Friday for the Christian.  We must pick up our cross to follow our Lord.  We must enter into a world at war with our Savior and shine His light for others.  We must put God's plans and desires ahead of our own.  Heck, we must even put other people ahead of our own.  And not just our kids or spouses.  The life of a Christian is one of sacrifice.

And in that sacrifice and diminishing of self comes the blessing.  Not in iPads, new threads and McMansions.  It is the blessing of a life (and a choice) that Jesus laid out in John 10:10:

"The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly. "

The more abundant life is one of purpose, wholeness and blessing.  It may not be the path with the most material wealth.  It may not be the path with the most popularity or earthly power.  It may even not be the path with the least amount of sickness and struggle.

The truth is, however, that one day you will see your Redeemer face to face.  And in that moment when you are basking in His glory and the freedom of being whole in His presence for eternity, you will understand what His definition of a blessed life truly is.

So today, take a moment and think about the sacrifices that Jesus made for you.  He denied Himself His throne in heaven (and refused to seek a throne here as well) and lived a life as the stone that the builders rejected.  The man of sorrows, who was mocked, scorned, beaten and savagely slaughtered on the cross for sins that He never committed.

Fair?  No.  Right?  Yes.  His example showed how He intends to bring about freedom, purpose, restoration and salvation.  And this Good Friday, may you find the abundant life of Christ by embracing the "every day a Good Friday" mentality about your very important mission on this earth.

Lives are hanging in the balance.  Live like it.