Matthew 26:33-35
Peter said to him, “Though all become deserters because of you, I will never desert you.” Jesus said to him, “Truly I tell you, this very night, before the cock crows, you will deny me three times.” Peter said to him, “Even though I must die with you, I will not deny you.” And so said all the disciples.
It’s tempting to chide Peter at this moment for being too overconfident. His statement is so bold, so cock sure, all of which makes his later actions so disappointing.
Or is it that his later actions – or really, that we already know what he will do – serve to make his words now seem so bold and foolish? To be honest, I can’t imagine saying anything different in that moment. Peter had been one of the first to follow Jesus and clearly was close to him. And so he cannot imagine deserting him. Moreover, he probably heard Jesus’ words less as prediction and more as discouragement, and so sought to comfort and encourage his friend.
Whatever the reason, Peter isn’t simply being impetuous or overly bold or cock sure, he’s just being genuine, genuinely believing he will stay with his friend. And so when Jesus repeats his assertion, this time with greater specificity about the details of Peter’s desertion and denial, Peter protests that he will never deny his Lord, not even if it costs him his life. But then he fails.
Are we really all that different? How many times, I wonder, have I resolved to stay near what I know to be the will and pleasure of God and yet, in the moment of duress and trial, abandoned that resolve and went my own way? Maybe what’s remarkable isn’t that Peter, not yet knowing his limitations, protests his devotion, but that I, having learned of my shortcomings far too often, still do the same.
Prayer: Dear God, we all fall short of your will and good intentions. Forgive us, renew us, and restore us by the faith of your Son. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
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