John 18 "Denied"

John 18 – Brandon Hatmaker “Denied”
Monday, April 7, 2008

“As Simon Peter stood warming himself, he was asked, "You are not one of his disciples, are you?" He denied it, saying, "I am not." One of the high priest's servants, a relative of the man whose ear Peter had cut off, challenged him, "Didn't I see you with him in the olive grove?" Again Peter denied it, and at that moment a rooster began to crow.” – John 18:25-27

Although in his heart, Peter still loved Jesus and believed in who he was, when asked by others, he denied him. Maybe it was out of self preservation, maybe fear, or even a bit of embarrassment (let’s be honest)… whatever the reason, here was a man who Jesus said was blessed because the father had revealed the truth of who Jesus was to him, and he stood now in denial.

You don’t plan this kind of thing. I seriously doubt it ever crossed Peter’s mind that he would do this. He was in a tough situation. After a night in the garden following the events of the Passion Week, he was probably exhausted emotionally as well as physically. His guard was down, and he stumbled. Okay, he fell. Blew it. Completely. Those moments come when we least expect them, but they come. I wonder today how I’ve denied him without even realizing I’ve done it.

Jesus said that we are to love one another as He has loved us. He said others will know that we are his disciples by our love for one another. One of the greatest ways we deny him today is through how we treat others. It’s amazing even as Christians, how we can set aside compassion and concern and replace it with neglect or even contempt. That has been one of the greatest accusations from skeptics of faith for years.

But we can learn from Peter. His denial happened with two conditions apparent, (1) he was separated from Jesus (Jesus taught about this in John 15 when he warned us to “remain in Him”) and (2) he was more concerned about taking care of himself than he was concerned about Jesus. We should always check these things first. Are we seeking the things of Christ? Are our motives about us, or about Him?