Mark 14:66-72
The likes of him she thought she would never meet. He had mastered the teachings of the Master Teacher and Redeemer. His words flowed with the truth of agape. It got her attention. She knew he was the one. So, she called him out.
He could not escape, but he could deny. He denied their relationship. Right there on the spot, he denied their relationship. A relationship so intimate. A relationship so divine. A relationship create, not made. A relationship for the ages, not the moment. He denied even knowing the One who had given life to his loins and new birth to his soul. Why?
What was the nature of his fear? What was there to fear losing? Oh, right, he would lose his right to speak of a relationship he denied? He would lose his work, and life occupation that soared beyond imagination from the power of the love he denied, right? He would lose his so-called friends or fellow ethnic buddies, whose love had already saved him, right? Oh, may be he would lose he historic witness or his precious now or anticipated coming fame, right?
She called him out. Witnessed as being one of them by others, he still denied the greatest love of life. You may be vain enough to think this is about you. Are you? I admit, it sounds a lot life me. But its not a story of you or me. Yet, it is the story of every Peter, who denies Jesus, the lover of our souls. Peter denied him. In denying his relationship with Jesus, Peter placed at risk his earthly life, and his soul. Human beings are risk takers, for sure. However, denial is not the end of the story for Peter, and may it not be for us.
True love forgives. In fact, true love warns us of our pending need to deny the relationship. True love even desires the denial for the sake of a purpose greater than our willingness to die. More important than affirming or confirming the earthly relationship is the need to give affirmation to the eternal relationship. No matter how much we love on earth, our love is finite. God, alone, is infinite. We are to live as we live for God, Players.
That is right. We live as live for God. In God is the one true and undeniable relationship. It is the one for which true love forgives, when our soul is at stake. We are too often living in denial. Thank God we are saved by grace. This grace undeserved is so divine.
Can you hear Peter? Can you hear me? Can you hear you saying: "Oh Love of my life, forgive my denial?" Can you hear love saying: "Forgiven, for you know not what you do?"
Saved by grace, living in denial! Living in denial, saved by grace!
Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, forgive the souls of denial. Amen
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2 comments:
Reverend,
Does grace still save us when we know what we do and do it anyway and do not repent? "To him who knows good but does not do good, to him it is sin."
Jesus denied himself to save the world. Is it the same when people deny themselves to save themselves? Is that not selfish? "No greater love than when we lay down our lives for another." That's what Jesus did.
Jesus forgave Peter even before he denied Him because He knew Peter well enough to know his flaws and loved him enough to forgive them even though that denial was a part of the sins that He would bleed and die for on the cross. Denials that He was the Son of a Living God was what killed him - sin. Every time we go against God's will, we deny Who God is, for if we truly knew, we would not. That is why Jesus looked down from the cross and forgave us.
Jesus knew and lived into His commitment and sacrifice even though He did not want to in the end. He knew that walking away from what He had committed to do would be death to those he loved - us. Because we honestly did not know what we were doing, because we honestly did not know that we were killing the very Savior whom we had been anticipating for so long, we could never live into perfection we needed to save ourselves, so we needed God's amazing grace. He died so that we would have the chance to live because He loved us. Oh, to be like Jesus! That's who I want to be like!
Sounds like you are a lot like Jesus, Reverend. Thanks for sharing! Keep up the good work!
So, when, like Brother Peter, do we bring our state of denial to an end?
When?
Thank God for His Grace! Because if our lives depended on the love of our earthly siblings, we would surely die. But by the gift of His Grace, which gives life through our Holy Brother, we live!
So, when, Brother, do we LIVE?!
Chesed!
The Question Is...
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