Peter's Denial and the Power of Love Among Disciples

You're listening to the Bible Guys, a podcast where a couple of friends talk

about the Bible in fun, in practical ways. Good morning, Jeff,

Good morning, Chris, good morning, Good morning. I was wondering we

talked all that through good morning good morning to you. Oh wow, yeah,

yeah, yeah. Well, you know there's a lot of tap dancing

in that. You know, Debbie Reynolds. Did you know that she and

Jean Kelly actually had a horrible relationship. I did not, And Jean Kelly

actually, at the end of his life said his biggest regret in his whole

life was how he treated Debbie Reynolds. Really yeah wow. Yeah. By

the way, was somebody famous his mom? Debbie Reynolds was the mom of

anybody. No, somebody famous, Princess Leah Terry Fisher. Yeah. I

think I knew that now that you mention it. Yeah, And so that's

appropriate because it's because you tied this one. Wow. Six degrees, yes,

six degrees. There you go. So here it is. We're going

to do another installment of Bible or Not, okay, and so on this

one, what I'm going to do is I'm going to test you on your

Bible trivia yes, and your Star Wars trivia. Yeah, well, and

so what's going to happen is I'm going to read a word and you have

to figure out if the word is a Bible city, a city in the

Bible which is or a Sith lord from Star Wars. And I just I

found out that this game was happening two seconds ago, and I got to

tell you there are so many already know, there are so many archived names

that never get mentioned even if you were to watch, or sometimes they mentioned

them just in passing, like you know who it is, but it's not

even there's nothing, no backstory. So there's like there's like sixteen seasons or

something like that of like the Clone Wars. It's the cartoon, right,

and they've now said that that's canon. I've not watched any of that,

so there's probably you better catch up. There's probably fifty names of Sith lords

that have never ever been spoken, but I've never even heard. And then

the Bible towns are a lot of times they're very incidental. You don't really

hate there's they're absurd. Yeah, okay, here you go, ready,

go ahead, So this is either a city from the Bible or it's a

sith lord. Ready, maybe I got five of them before you, Javan,

who knows. Okay, it does not sound terrifying enough to be a

sith lord. So that's the only basis I'm going to go off of.

I'm gonna say it's a Bible city. It is a Bible city. Nic,

good job. It's from Ezekiel chapter twenty seven nineteen, a town from

with which the Syrians obtained Iron, Cassia and Calamus. Well, i'd like

to say that I'm that good with the Bible you are, But I'm but

I I would have never remembered that Bible city. Go ahead, relish it

another one, Scion, s c I O n no, s I O

n so Scion, I'm going to say that that sounds fierce enough to be

a sith lord. I'm gonna say, sith lord. I think it sounds

like Zion. It does, which is why I don't think it's about it's

a sith lord. Nice, it's the lord of the plane, a sith

lord who lived in the time of the old Sith Wars. Yeah, which

I would never know by the way I watched all the cannon. There's no

way this is brutal. But you're two for two anyways, yes, lucky

dog in spite of okay, using logic cartan. Oh, that sounds like

it could be anything. How do you spell it? K A R T

A n Oh, that sounds very doable for both. Excuse me. I'm

going to say sith lord. It's a Bible city. No, no,

there you go. It's from Joshua twenty one thirty two. It says it

means double city. It's a town of Naftali assigned to the Gershonite Levites in

one of the cities of Refuge. It's a city of refuge. Huge.

That's a big one. I hope we get to that part. I'd love

to go through the Book of Joshua again and go back and cover those cities

a refuge. Okay, this is a tough one. Nil n I h

l nil. I'm gonna say Bible city. It's a Sith lord. No

oh no, yeah, yeah, it's a Nagi male sith lord serving in

Dark Creates Galactic Empire during the Sith Imperial War in the Second Imperial Civil War.

This is kind of fun. Okay. I have so much tension in

my body right now because I want to I want to finish. Yeah,

okay, so this is it right here, and this is for the win,

yes, this is for the wind. Come on, come on right

here, please be good to me. Masa massa? How do you spell

it? M A S S A like spelling? Use it in the sentence,

please m A S s A. H oh h at the end.

Oh that's about a city. Really sure? Are you sure? Yes?

Okay, you are correct. Yes, it's a name given to the place

where the Israelites, by their murmuring for want of water, provoked Jehovah to

anger against them and Exodus chapter it was the spelling they give that h H.

Should have spelled it, mistake. I'm allowed for a spelling. There's

a rule that says you can't spell it. Okay, Actually I think you'd

have to say massa. But yeah, prodcast So hey, I'm fleeing to

baby. There you go in the red. You're the best guesser in the

room. Okay. Well, hey, that was a neat one. Thank

you, Desiree for putting that on our list today. That was very fun

and you created a lot of tension. So good. Yeah, I could

breathe now. I'd be curious to see if our listeners knew any of those

because I didn't when I read the list I told you before we started,

I didn't know any of them, not in any of them, so that

was crazy. Okay, Well we're continuing now in the last days before the

crucifixion, and Jesus is getting ready to predict Peter's denial, and there's some

really significant statements in this. In these passages again, Matthew, Mark,

Luke, and John all cover them, so we'll jump right into it.

It's just a few verses in each one this time. So Matthew twenty six

thirty one says, on the way, remember they sang a hymn after the

Last Supper and then they go out to the Mount of Olives, So on

the way to the Mount of Olives is what it says. On the way,

Jesus told them tonight, all of you will desert me, for the

scriptures say God will strike the shepherd and the sheep of the flock will be

scattered. But after I've been raised from the dead, I will go ahead

of you to Galilee and meet you there. Peter declared, Even if everyone

else deserts you, I will never desert you. And 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. No, Peter

insisted, even if I have to die with you, I will never deny

you, and all the other disciples vowed the same. On the way in

Mark chapter fourteen, on the way, Jesus told them, all of you

will desert me, for the scripture say God will strike the shepherd, the

sheep will be scattered. But after I am raised from the dead, I

will go ahead of you into Galilee and meet you there. Peter said to

him, Even if everyone else deserts you, I never will. Jesus replied,

I tell you the truth, Peter, this night, before the rooster

crows twice, you will deny three times that you even know me. No,

Peter declared emphatically, even if I have to die with you, I

will never deny you, and all the others vowed the same. In Luke

chapter twenty two, verse thirty one, it says Simon, Simon, Satan

has asked us if each of you like wheat. But I have pleaded in

prayer for you, Simon, that your faith should not fail. So when

you've repented and turned to me again. Strengthen your brothers. Peter said,

Lord, I'm ready to go to prison with you, even to die with

you. But Jesus said, Peter, let me tell you something. Before

the rooster crows tomorrow morning, you'll deny three times that you even know me.

Then Jesus asked them, when I sent you out to preach the good

news, and you did not have money, a traveler's bag, or any

pair of sandals, did you need anything? No, they replied, But

now he said, take your money in a traveler's bag, and if you

don't have a sword, sell your cloak and buy one. For the time

has come for this prophecy about me to be fulfilled. He was counted among

the rebels. Yes, everything written about me by the prophets will come true.

Look, Lord, they replied, we have two swords among us.

That's enough, he said. And then in John thirteen thirty one, it

says as soon as Judas left the room, Jesus said, the time has

come for the son of Man to enter into his glory, and God will

be glorified because of him. And since God receives glory because of the Sun,

he will soon give glory to God, there to the sun. Dear

children, I will be with you only a little longer. As I told

the Jewish leaders, you will search for me, but you can't come where

I am going. So now I am giving you a new commandment. Love

each other. Just as I have loved you. You should love each other.

Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my

disciples. Simon. Peter asked, Lord, where are you going? And

Jesus replied, you can't go with me now, but you will follow me

later. Well, why can't I come now? Lord? He asked,

I'm ready to die for you. Jesus answered, die for me. I

tell you the truth, Peter, before the rooster crows tomorrow morning, you'll

deny three times that you even knew me. So there you go. So

the first three are very different from the last one. Yes, right,

yeah, and tell me why again? What stands out? Well? In

John he's talking all about at the beginning. He gives them the new Commandment

and all those kinds of things, whereas the other ones. Jesus is just

going well different too, Simon Simon Simon Satan has if asked us if so,

Matthew and Mark are very very similar, and they sing their song.

They're going out, hey, well, we will never deny you, we

will die for you, right right, And then they're all like, yeah,

me too, me too, Jesus, I'll die for you. To

Jesus, it's so funny that I'm laughing at It's not really a laugh of

flatter, is it. But but yeah, so, as I was looking

The reason why I said tell me why is because right when you started John,

I looked down out of curiosity to see what scripture Jesus was quoting,

and it was from Zechariah, chapter thirteen, verse seven. God will strike

the shepherd and the sheep will be scattered. Oh yeah, that's that's why.

That's why I think I sort of was reading that when you were reading

John. But but anyway, the point is is that this is actually pretty

crazy because look how absolutely clear Jesus was in Matthew. He didn't say this

in the other versions, but he said, but after I've been raised from

the dead, Yes, right, I mean you know other things I said

that, Mark too, Oh did he? Okay, Matthew, Mark,

it's exactly the same, but after I'm raised from that, so he gives

them clear I mean before he says, strike this temple down three days,

right, I mean, like you know, but he he says it very

plainly, and I almost wonder at this point because you know, clearly it

says that they didn't believe it, right, like like when during the resurrection

or excuse me, during the uh, the crucifixion, and you know,

they did scatter, they lost faith when Jesus was was risen, nobody knew,

nobody understood it. And then it even goes out of its way to

say, uh that we'll read. And then they remembered the words, right,

they're like, oh, and then they remember that he said he was

going to rise from the dead, right, which means that they had forgotten.

So so it just makes me, uh, it makes me believe that

Jesus said so many crazy things that they could not underst stand that maybe perhaps

they didn't know whether to take him literal or not. Well, if you've

been with a teacher long enough, eventually sometimes their voice starts to sound like

Charlie Brown's teacher. Right. Possibly he's just he's talking again, right,

lot of times they're not hanging on every word. You kind of get used

to the great teachers that you're around sometimes, or the other influencers, your

own parents, those of you that are currently parents. You know, sometimes

it's easier to have a coach tell your kid the same thing you would tell

your kid, but they'll listen to that coach, or they'll listen to that

teacher, and they won't listen to you for some reason. Yeah, it's

almost as if maybe perhaps Jesus could have said in this moment, I don't

think you heard me. Yeah, yeah, let me let me say this

again, right, like you all just breezed over it, like you weren't

even talking to me, you know, I think about it. So he's

in this group of what it's at least thirteen of them. It's Jesus in

the twelve. There's very likely the women are around. At this point,

Judas had already left. Yeah, yeah, well I was talking about yesterday

in the in the upper room. Then they sing their song. Judas leaves,

so now it's the twelve of them plus the women or whoever else is

with them. But how very alone he must have felt. He just told

them just a few minutes ago, you know, one of you is going

to betray me. And then he leaves and everybody. They just don't even

understand what he's talking about. Isn't me am I the one that's gonna write?

And then now he goes on and he says, he said, you

know, you guys are going to desert me like not me, I'm not.

I'll die for you Jesus. And how alone he must have felt,

knowing, no, you won't, you just won't. Not today, You're

not. To Peter's credit, he does take out the daggerlf Malcus's ear that's

coming up. He just gave away one of the big secrets. Sorry,

a little bit of cross referencing there, but like, so at least at

least Peter right, uh, you know, maybe in that moment one hundred

percent believes Okay, he wants to Hey, it's going to be there,

This is going down right, so we'll get there. But so Peter says,

hey, I'm ready to do this. I think he means it in

that moment. Now, what's really astounding to me, And this is a

parenthetical kind of an idea, But every one of them said I'll die for

you Jesus. But every one of them abandoned Jesus, every one of them.

But they're only three and a half years into their relationship with Jesus.

Every one of them except John, when they're old, men die for Jesus,

every one of them. And John was tortured, he just didn't die,

right, And so there is something to be said about don't put so

much confidence in how strong of a Christian you are because you read through the

Bible one time and you've been a believer for a year, right, But

understand, stay on this long journey and when you're that older man, that

older woman, you've been walking with the Lord for a long time, the

depth of the desire of your faith when you're only a follower of Jesus for

a year or two, the desire, I think it can really truly be

fulfilled as you continue to spend time over because every one of them do every

one of them will eventually they get to be that, you know, and

and a lot of that. But like I also saw the resurrected Lord,

so that helps. Yeah, And you know, at this point, they're

completely convinced he's the Messiah, He's the son of God. Peter's proclaimed it,

he's got a new name and uh, and so they know it.

But yeah, I think that when it comes down to it. None of

us really understand what it's like, like how we really like, did you

ever see something and you know there's a big heroic moment in the movie and

you think yourself, I'd like to believe I would do that, but you

don't really quite know. You just don't know. So I'm gonna squeeze the

story in. So, when I was working for a car dealership, I

was selling cars. I want to test drive with this with this guy and

explore and you get massive car wreck. So I was. It was the

worst car wreck I've ever been in by far. So the air bag is

deployed, which that's when I found out that air bags can burn you the

chemicals that they get filled with chemicals, not with air. So anyway,

so this guy smashes into this truck totals the car, and air bags deploy

and when the chemicals came out of the air bags, it looks exactly like

smoke like, and I thought the car was on fire. So literally,

you know, I'm just banged around. I hit the air bag, I

unbuckle, and I run across the street and I am now like on the

other side of the road because I'm thinking the car is on fire and it's

going to explode. And then I look over and the guy who was driving

is now like so dazed and everything else. And I'm waiting for me to

go out of the car, but he's in there for at least a minute,

and all of a sudden, he rolls down the window and says to

me, hey, help, I can't get the buckle undone, and there's

smoke coming out of the windows, and so I scream and say it's on

fire. It's gonna blow. And he says, I can't get the buckle

undone, And in that moment, instead of rushing over and helping him with

the buckle across the street, I yell, just mash it harder. Smoke

is coming up, which wasn't smoke. Smoke's coming out of the windows.

Smash, just mash it, rash it really hard. And then and then

later on, you know, he's able to get it and he runs out

that I find out the car wasn't on fire, and I look back at

myself and I was like, who am I in that moment, right?

I am the coward? And I couldn't believe that now grinned it wasn't like

it was my relative or my wife or my son or whatever, which I

would have you know, ran back for hopefully maybe maybe maybe who knows,

but you know, you just don't know, right, And so I give

I give Peter a little bit of credit here because I think he means it

in the moment, but yet when it comes down to it, you know

he does he denies them, as we're about to read here in a day

or two. So anyway, that's huge, And so I think it's one

of those that one it's important to have thought through these things, Yeah,

and to think through what would I do in this really bad moment if you

were ever faced with it. You know, I've told you many times I've

sat down with pastors and that are risking their lives every single day. Yeah,

and they just say, I'm going to keep doing it until I get

arrested. I'm going to keep doing it until they catch me. I'm going

to keep doing it until they kill me. And they've already counted the cost

and they made that decision right. Hopefully, as you think about it ahead

of time, it's not a surprise in the moment you've thought about it.

You decide if a situation like this happens, I'm all in for Jesus.

They are in the spur of the moment, just talking. They're not thinking

it through, right, They're just talking. But Peter goes on and you

know he does actually do what Jesus says. But later on you find Jesus

or Peter risking his life for Jesus all the way to the end of his

ministry when he dies as an old man. And I think there is something

about that that in the spur of the moment, we can just say whatever

whatever and have good intentions but no real ability to back it up. But

when you make a real decision. He had a real encounter with the resurrected

Lord those two things. Then I think he had the whole rest of his

life to contemplate what happened to me on that moment, right, And at

the end he steps up and does what he says he would do. So

there's that. I also think it's interesting the one big difference in these four

passages is Jesus says in verse thirty four, John thirteen, so I'm going

to give you a new commandment, love each other. Right. There's such

an odd commandment to have to give people who've been together for three and a

half years, let alone. He's really kind of announcing, my kingdom needs

to be a kingdom of love. My people need to be people of love.

Just as I've loved you. You should love one another. Your love

for one another will prove to the world that you're My disciples. Your love

for one another the other believers. He's not saying your love for people in

the world. He's saying, here, how you treat each other inside of

my followers, inside the family of God proves to the world that your my

disciples. And for a lot of us, we think typing in all caps

are really strong political opinions that'll prove that we're good Christians. Or we think

that it's being able to win some kind of a Bible trivia thing, or

that we know more big Bible words than other people. That's what proves that

we're God's followers. But Jesus says, you love for one another, how

you treat the other Christians among you. That means there are going to be

Christians who are better Christians than you. There are going to be Christians who

have a different view on things than you. There's going to be Christians who

have stronger rules or weaker rules. There's going to be people who have more

Bible knowledge and less Bible knowledge. And he says, inside of your family

of God, how you love one another in that moment proves that your my

disciples. Sometimes Christians will get frustrated the more mature they become, they'll get

frustrated that they look at other Christians who are not nominal Christians, or newer

Christians or just kind of halfway living a Christian life. They get frustrated,

going, I can't believe those people. They really don't love God. I've

got to leave that group and I've got to go to another group where people

are more committed and love God even more. Right, And I would say,

so I need to divorce the family of God I'm a part of and

go find a new family. And he says, your love for one another,

not for the other group of Christians over there, for the group of

Christians you're in, will prove to the world that you're My disciples. And

so I think a lot of times we're quick to go ahead and divorce the

group of disciples we're a part of because we're frustrated with them. We're just

gonna go find a better group. I think there's some danger in that,

as opposed to we all collectively can make our group better. We can there's

somebody ahead of us that's stronger I spiritually, I need to follow them,

and I need to become stronger in my faith. If there's people behind me

that haven't developed him, how do I wrap my arm around them and bring

them along and say there's more? There's more to the life of following Christ.

How do I take my resources and share in a way that can provide

for somebody who's struggling financially? How can I love them when they're going through

a hard time? Right? We need to be thinking not what is best

for me in the context of the family of God I'm a part of,

but instead figure out how can I demonstrate extreme sacrificial love like Jesus is about

to do here for everybody in my group, right, and we'll all make

the group better. So yeah, and you know, it's it's interesting how

you know when people get mad at church, they walk away from God,

and yet you know it's the people who are imperfect. Yeah, right,

So it's like it's no wonder how we're going to mess this up? Right,

like and he says, he says, you know this, this is

how people will know. Well, I mean even when there's tension inside the

church, because again, people are just imperfect and it's hard to love people

who are very hard to love, right and and and again it's just imperfect

people. That's that's the one thing that I just can't get over, which

is, uh, you know, when people have a bad experience with a

church leader or an elder or you know, a key volunteer, whatever it

is, Uh, they end up walking away from faith, and they walk

away from God and and all of a sudden, now you know, there's

there's a lot at stake, right, I mean their legacy there, Uh,

their their their eternity, you know, the their family's eternity. All

these different things are all at stake because of bad church experiences, because there's

tension in the body of believers. To I would just say, you know,

we have to recognize that we're going to mess this up all the time,

and uh and uh and but but you know, the more that we

you know, submit to it, the more that we surrender to it,

uh, you know, the the better it will be. Yeah. Love

is always a choice, yep, Right, yep. All right. Well,

hey, sounds like that's our time and we've covered a lot, and

so hopefully we will see you next time. I'm on the Bible, guys. Mhm