Peter Denies Knowing Jesus (J68)

Peter told Jesus earlier that day,
He desired to go where the Savior went—
That he would give his life with Him to stay,
But testing him sore was Satan’s intent!
For at the first place Jesus was taken,
The doorkeep asked him, “Are you one of his?”
He said, “I am not.” Peter was shaken,
Fearing arrest, wanting to avoid this!
Twice more, he denied that he knew the Son:
Once, as he warmed himself by the bonfire;
Next, by a relative of the hurt one,
When to fight was Peter’s foolish desire!
His Lord’s denials became a cruel load,
As day was breaking, and the rooster crowed!

Scripture Quoted: John 18:15-17, 25-27 (NIV)
“Simon Peter and another disciple [John] were following Jesus. Because this disciple was known to the high priest, he went with Jesus into the high priest’s courtyard, but Peter had to wait outside the door. The other disciple, who was known to the high priest, came back, spoke to the girl on duty there, and brought Peter in. ‘You aren’t one of his disciples, are you?’ the girl at the door asked Peter. He replied, ‘I am not.’ “ [Brackets added]
… “As Simon Peter stood warming himself, he was asked, ‘You are not one of his disciples, are you?’ He denied it, saying, ‘I am not.’ One of the high priest’s servants, a relative of the man whose ear Peter had cut off, challenged him, ‘Didn’t I see you with him in the olive grove?’ Again Peter denied it, and at that moment a rooster began to crow.”

Commentary on: John 18:15-18, 25-27 (NIV)
Peter recalled his overconfident statement to Jesus at the Passover meal (Matthew 26:35): “Even if I have to die with you, I will not disown you.” When he heard the rooster begin to crow, it came flooding back to him, bringing bitter remorse. Jesus had warned him how Satan wanted to test him and predicted that he would deny Him three times before the rooster began to crow. He went outside the house of the high priest and wept bitterly. However, to his and John’s credit, they did not flee to hiding places when Jesus was arrested as did the other apostles; they followed afar off, and waited in the courtyard of the high priest’s house while that part of the illegal trial was held. It was illegal, because Mosaic Law prescribed that trials were not to be held at night. The religious rulers had decided that Jesus was to die; it didn’t matter to them how many sections of the Law had to be broken to get the job done. They were frightened that the Jewish supporters of Jesus would riot if they held the trial in public according to the rules of Law. Possibly a majority, even, of the common people believed in Him; they had feared that, at any rate.

Good old bumbling, impetuous, foot-in-the-mouth Simon Peter! He was learning some very difficult lessons in spiritual maturity, learning them the hard way. After Jesus ascended to heaven, He sent the Holy Spirit to flood into the apostles, and Peter preached the first sermon of Christ’s future bride, the church, on Pentecost. He was confident, bold, and mature, the unquestioned leader of the apostles. It is fair to say that Simon never again would deny Jesus, and following Him did cost him his life.

“For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whoever believes in him will not die, but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16)

“That if you confess with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord’, and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” (Romans 10:9)