We have all reacted with emotion at Peter’s denial of Jesus before the crucifixion. We don’t think we would do the same. How could Peter live with Jesus, see the miracles in person, and become empowered, himself, to cast out demons, then deny all that? How brave was Peter? That question is for every follower of Jesus. We experience epic fails. Recently a friend shared a fail with an uber driver. He had a plan for a gospel conversation and could not open his mouth. We have all been there. His eyes may have teared as he talked about that day. I am ashamed of the many miles of travel for ‘missions’ where I just handed people food, invited them to church, prayed for their child, cleaned their bathrooms, did art projects, taught math, and shelved books, along with many other occupations. There were actions but not a gospel conversation. There were some but it is frustrating to imagine the daily line of non-followers of Jesus heading into the future without the love and goodness of the one true God. Those lives have been purchased by Jesus but they are still lost so what is so embarrassing about Jesus? Who can tell me? They are lost and we fail to open our mouths. I am Peter but after his denial, Jesus said the following in John 21:15-17, following the resurrection of Jesus, “So when they had eaten breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, ‘Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me more than these?’, He said to Him, ‘Yes Lord; You know that I love You’. He said to him, ‘Feed My lambs’. He said to him a second time, ‘Simon son of Jonah, do you love Me?’ He said to Him, ‘Yes Lord; You know that I love You. He said to him, ‘Tend My sheep.’ He said to him the third time, ‘Simon, son of Jonah, do you love me?’ And he said to Him, ‘Lord, You know all things; You know that I love You.'” This is our answer. The Lord knows us. He sees our heart for the lost and our weaknesses. He, Jesus, is gentle and lowly. I’m seeing this through the eyes of author Dane Ortlund, in his book, ‘Gentle and Lowly – the Heart of Christ for Sinners and Sufferers’. We suffer like Peter when we fail the mission. We despise our weaknesses but the true Jesus is emerging. Another author, Brennan Manning, repeatedly wrote that the question God will ask when we enter glory is, “Did you know I loved you?” That’s the story over and over – God’s love and Jesus’ sacrifice. Quoting Manning in ‘The Ragamuffin Gospel’, “My deepest awareness of myself is that I am deeply loved by Jesus Christ and I have done nothing to earn it or deserve it.” A missed uber conversation will never change that. (a photo of a nativity scene in Wiler, Switzerland)
