When You Are Not Who You Thought You Were

 June 23, 2024

Sunday

We think differently about what we will do when things are calm. When things are calm, we tell how we think things should be. We often act much differently when in the thick of things.

People sometimes tell me how I didn't act appropriately in a certain situation. They are correct, but they also weren't there. They didn't feel the pressure. They had time to discern what to do. That is not true in most real-time situations. I suppose our reactions reveal more of who we are than our statements when we are calm.

Peter claimed he would go to the death for Jesus.

Luke 22:33 (NASB 2020) ³³ But he said to Him, “Lord, I am ready to go with You both to prison and to death!”

Jesus knew what would happen. He knew that there had been permission granted in the spiritual world to sift Peter and the other disciples like wheat. He knew that Peter would deny Him three times. Peter didn't think he would. Peter thought he was someone who would stand up when everyone else capitulated.

I believe that is why Peter's pain was so great.

Luke 22:60–62 (NASB 2020) ⁶⁰ But Peter said, “Man, I do not know what you are talking about!” And immediately, while he was still speaking, a rooster crowed. ⁶¹ And then the Lord turned and looked at Peter. And Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how He had told him, “Before a rooster crows today, you will deny Me three times.” ⁶² And he went out and wept bitterly.

Who are you if you are not who you think you are? Peter didn't know. He knew he loved Jesus to a point. That was the problem. He thought he loved Jesus beyond that point. He thought he was someone who would be on the cross beside Jesus. The problem for Peter is that he thought he was a person who lay down his life for his friend when he wasn't.

This is the hardest lesson that many of us must learn. We may think that we love the Lord with all our hearts, but remain silent when He is mocked. We fail to tell anyone about Jesus. We fail to serve. We fail to give. Yet, we want to claim that we love Jesus with all our hearts.

To restore Peter, Jesus confronts him after the resurrection.

John 21:15 (NASB 2020) ¹⁵ Now when they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of John, do you love Me more than these?” He said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.” He said to him, “Tend My lambs.”

Peter needed to understand who he was through loving Jesus. If he loved Him, there would be service that required all of his commitment. This is always where the rubber meets the road. Our identity with Christ must be found in our love for Him. It will result in a life that goes beyond we can make for ourselves. The lack of this love will reveal that we are not who we thought we were.

Just as Jesus prayed for Peter to return, He seeks us to return to Him. It must be more than just saying that we love Jesus with all our hearts. It must be more than singing songs that say we love Him. It must be more than weeping bitterly when we fail. It must be all to Jesus that we surrender.