When Jesus found him, Peter wasn’t the Biblical author we know today.
He wasn’t the rock on whom Jesus would build his church.
He wasn’t the great voice of the gospel.
He was a fisherman. He was impulsive. He was aggressive. But when Jesus first met him, he said in Mark 1:17, “follow me,” and Peter listened.
Jesus was not looking for the perfect person but someone willing to be changed by his perfect love. So one day that person could teach others about the change that occurred in them. Although far from perfect, Peter became one of Jesus’s twelve disciples. Peter often spoke with great passion, but that passion was not always backed by understanding and faith.
Therefore during the last supper, when Jesus said to his disciples that they would desert him, Peter promised never to leave Jesus. I picture that to be very enthusiastic and with good intentions, but “Jesus replied, “ I tell you the truth, Peter- this very night before the rooster crows, you will deny three times that you even know me.’”
Peter’s Denials
First: Matthew 26: 69-70, “Now Peter was sitting out in the courtyard, and a servant girl came to him. “You also were with Jesus of Galilee,” she said. But he denied it before them all. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he said.”
Peter acted confused and tried to change the subject when asked if he knew Jesus.
Second: Matthew 26: 71-72. “Then he went out to the gateway, where another servant girl saw him and said to the people there, “This fellow was with Jesus of Nazareth.” He denied it again, with an oath: “I don’t know the man!”
Peter then stepped up the denial with an oath, promising he did not know Jesus.
Third: Matthew 26: 73-75, “After a little while, those standing there went up to Peter and said, “Surely you are one of them; your accent gives you away.” Then he began to call down curses, and he swore to them, “I don’t know the man!”
Peter then escalated his denial to swearing he did not know Jesus and even cursing himself if he was lying.
“Immediately a rooster crowed. Then Peter remembered the word Jesus had spoken: “Before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times.” And he went outside and wept bitterly.”
We see Peter slowly start to deflect the conversation away from Jesus to avoid being uncomfortable and then adamantly deny he ever knew him at all. A couple of hours ago, he promised Jesus he would never deny him. So what changed?
Nothing changed.
Before this series of events, Peter had an upfront faith. Peter said he fully believed, he may have even thought he fully believed, but he didn’t. We know this based on the above passage. Jesus needed to expose in Peter what was living in the deepest parts of his soul; a half-hearted faith in Jesus. This exercise did not feel good for Peter; he wept bitterly after he realized this. It doesn't feel good when Christ exposes our sin, but it is part of our heart's refining process.
After seeing this in himself, Peter became an unashamed, robust and faithful follower of Jesus. The type of person Jesus needed him to be for the church. Sin has a way of creeping into our lives, and if we are not careful, we can develop a lukewarm faith in God.
We don’t start as everything God needs us to be, but if we allow the Lord to expose the parts of ourselves that need his correction, we can be the leaders the church needs.
A lesson not just for pastors but anyone who knows Jesus and longs for an unapologetic faith. A faith that does not wavier when put against pressure. A belief that does not change the subject when Jesus is brought into the conversation. A devotion that boldly proclaims Jesus is the savior.
Peter went from being Peter, the one who denied Jesus, to Peter, the rock of the church because he allowed himself to be changed by God.
I am a huge advocator for self-care but Peter did not self-care his way to being a godly leader. You can exercise regularly, eat healthy, budget well, be kind and still be so far away from God you deny him every day. The only way to change your heart is by not what you do but by allowing the Holy Spirit to move within you. It has to start at the heart or it is all for nothing. We can change our outward appearance and never talk to God but our inward nature is untouchable unless Jesus is brought into the picture.
Peter’s last words to us come from 2 Peter 3: 17-18, “You already know these things, dear friends. So be on guard; then you will not be carried away by the errors of these wicked people and lose your own secure footing. Rather, you must grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.