Luke 22:54-62
Then seizing him, they led him away and took him into the house of the high priest. Peter followed at a distance. And when some there had kindled a fire in the middle of the courtyard and had sat down together, Peter sat down with them. A servant girl saw him seated there in the firelight. She looked closely at him and said, “This man was with him.” But he denied it. “Woman, I don’t know him,” he said. A little later someone else saw him and said, “You also are one of them.” “Man, I am not!” Peter replied. About an hour later another asserted, “Certainly this fellow was with him, for he is a Galilean.” Peter replied, “Man, I don’t know what you’re talking about!” Just as he was speaking, the rooster crowed. The Lord turned and looked straight at Peter. Then Peter remembered the word the Lord had spoken to him: “Before the rooster crows today, you will disown me three times.” 62 And he went outside and wept bitterly. Luke 22:54-62 (NIV)
Peter fails miserably in this moment. For all of his striving to be the best apostle. For all of his eagerness to be the one at Jesus’s right hand--asking the tough questions, making confident proclamations, even walking on water--Peter betrays Jesus when faced with the reality of what the authorities might do to him. It’s a reasonable moment of panic, but it betrays everything he has come to believe in his life.
Fortunately, the story of Peter is also one of the great comeback stories of the bible. After the bitter humiliation of his betrayal, Peter rallies the apostles and leads the early church--even to the point of martyrdom. He turns terror, cowardice, and humiliation into bold leadership that transforms the world.
It’s easy to imagine the end to Peter’s story after he denies Jesus—a fall into despair, a slinking away from the bright light of history, or the even more disturbing path of Judas. The method by which Peter staves off despair and accepts the truth of the resurrection is unspoken in the story, but it’s safe to say that his turnaround is rooted in grace and determination.
It’s easy for us to view Peter as exceptional and to believe that someone selected by God for such a monumental role must be better than us--more gifted, more blessed, more chosen. Instead, Peter’s story is the most common and human one, and it teaches us that failure will be a part of our lives just as new opportunity and redemption will be. As long as we breathe we will fail. Yet as long as we breathe we also have hope and the opportunity to learn and grow.
Questions for Reflection:
- When have you failed at something and come back from that failure? How did you do it? What did you learn from that process?
- The text says that Peter “wept bitterly” (62) after his denial of Jesus. How do you think that moment of loss and grief figured into his ability to move forward?
Prayer:
God of perpetual second chances, remind us that our sins and our failures are not ends but opportunities and that your grace invites us to transform our losses into perseverance and wisdom. Amen.
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