Mark 14:66-72; 16:7
By: Alexander Rico
Now as Peter was below in the courtyard, one of the servant girls of the high priest came. And when she saw Peter warming himself, she looked at him and said, ‘You also were with Jesus of Nazareth.’ But he denied it saying, ‘I neither know, nor understand what you are saying.’ And he went out on the porch, and a rooster crowed. And the servant girl saw him again, and began to say to those who stood by, ‘This is one of them.’ But he denied it again. And a little later those who stood by said to Peter again, ‘Surely you are one of them; for you are a Galilean, and your speech shows it.’ Then he began to curse and swear, ‘I do not know this Man of whom you speak!’ A second time the rooster crowed. Then Peter called to mind the word that Jesus had said to him, ‘Before the rooster crows twice, you will deny me three times.’ And when he thought about it, he wept. (Luke 14:66-72, NKJV)
One day, a Pastor and his friend were playing golf after a Sunday morning service. “Pastor,” his friend asked, “how do you let off your steam when you miss a shot and your ball goes into a sand trap?” After a moment of silence, the Pastor replied, ” Well, I just repeat the names of some of the members in my congregation…with great feeling!”
Forgiveness. It is something we all struggle with. It’s something that needs to take place in that Pastor’s life. But, perhaps today you are reading this, not because you struggle with forgiving others, but rather you want to know if you, yourself can be forgiven of the wrong choices you have made in your lives.
We see here, an account of someone who had done something terrible. Peter, after telling the Lord that he would never denounce him, did just that. He fell short, and worse off, he did it three times.
Maybe today, you have done some terrible things against the Lord. Maybe you stole something from a local market. Maybe, you murdered someone in your heart. Or perhaps, you did all of these things, plus more, and did them more than once.
When I was little, I remember I accidentally broke this glass cup that my mom cherished. It was given to her by my dad’s mom. After breaking it, I felt horrible; she let me have it, through yelling, and a usual pat on the behind. I thought for certain that she’d never forgive me of that awful problem I had generated. But, do you know the cool thing? She did. Sure, I messed up royally, but she still cared about me, despite my mistake.
I know that you can feel that your mistakes, your failures are too great for Christ to ever accept you, and be your Lord and Savior, but the truth of the matter is, he can, and will.
Remember how earlier we were looking at Peter’s failure? Well, now let’s look at how Christ handled that failure, that past mistake. Let’s see if he forgave him.
Mary and the other women went to Jesus’ tomb to anoint the body with oils, but when they got there, they found his body missing and his tomb opened. This is what one of the Angels had said to them:
[…] But go, tell His disciples – and Peter – that He is going before you to Galilee; there you will see Him, as He said to you. (Mark 16:7, NKJV)
Did you see that? Here, the angel makes it a point to notify the women to tell both the disciples and Peter about his travel to Galilee, and that he’ll meet them there. Is that not cool? I can just about imagine Peter’s face having received that information from the women. I am sure that he was feeling horrible, that he was feeling like a useless failure, but Christ tells him through this angel, that despite his fault, Christ was still willing to forgive him. Just as he is with us.
Mahatma Gandhi was quoted as saying, “The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong.”
And this is evident in the character of Christ. He is strong, because he can forgive us, and is willing to do so, despite our failures, despite our short-comings, this is why he died.
For when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. (Romans 5:6, NKJV)
Today, maybe you know that you have done some horrible things, you have made some bad mistakes, and you want to be forgiven. If that is the case; then, by all means, please join me in this simple prayer of acceptance, asking Jesus into your heart, mind, and soul. Why? Well, the Bible says in Romans Chapter 8 verses 9 and 10 that, …if you confess with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord’, and believe in your heart, God raised him from the dead, you will be saved!! For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved!! So what are you waiting for? Please repeat after me.
Lord Jesus, I confess that I am a sinner, and take this time to confess all my sins and ask for your forgiveness. Come into my heart, my mind, and my soul. Take complete control, and be LORD of my life. I ask these things all in your precious holy name, AMEN.
If you prayed that prayer along with me, I’d like to announce that today, the moment you accepted Christ into your life the Bible says, […] there is joy in the presence of God’s angels when even one sinner represents. (Luke 15:10)
So, just like that, you are FORGIVEN! Before, you may have been weeping, knowing you had done wrong and not knowing who to turn to with your confession; but, now the Lord has come into your life and has taken residence in your heart. You can walk now knowing that no matter what happens in your life, you are forgiven, and even better, given eternal life with Him. Now, after receiving Christ into your heart, and life, there are several things you should do to continue to grow in a relationship with God.
- Read the Bible – This is God’s love letter to you. It also provides us with a foundation for relationships with others, and tells us about attitudes, motivation and truth. It is important to know, and enlist the principles in the Bible into your life, they keep you on the right way and allow us to make sound judgments concerning people and doctrine.
- Prayer – In any relationship communication is important, priority factor. God desires to communicate with each of us. Prayer is not just a forum for requests. God wants to hear our feelings, hurts, ambitions and joys. Through this he is able to change and refine those parts of us that need it.
- Fellowship – Get plugged into a church or local group that studies the bible. As we begin to share with others what we have learned from the Bible and prayer, we encourage others to grow and ourselves. Fellowship as God planned it is not a clicke or special club designed for gossip. We must be careful to keep our conversations with others honest. It’s best described as a fire. One coal alone dies down quickly, but a mound of coals burn white hot, just as one Christian alone will struggle to stay ‘on fire’, while a group together keeps each other hot.
- Witnessing – “Go into the world and preach the good news to all creation.” (Mark 16:15). Jesus gave this as a command, not an option. God has chosen all Christians to be agents of His gospel. We are either missionaries or mission fields. That does not mean that everyone should travel to different countries, but it does mean that no matter where go we should be prepared in life and in word to be ambassadors for Christ. “Pray for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given to me so I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel. (Ephesians 6:9)
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