When was the last time I wept? (Mark 14:66 - 72)

Short teachings from Hillcrest Church exploring the background, context, meaning, and significance of the account of Jesus of Nazareth in the book of Mark.

Transcript

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Hey, how are you doing? Hope you're well. Tim here, and we are diving deep into the book of Mark for Lent. Um, so there's so many of these um parts of Jesus' final hours that we may be very familiar with. And as much as anything, as we get closer to Good Friday and Resurrection Sunday, I think I want to just make space uh in this podcast for you to let God speak to you through it. Uh, one of them, of course, uh, we in the last episode we looked at the the end of Jesus' trial where he's shown to be the true prophet because they're mocking him. They say prophesy. And ironically, right when that happens, his prophetic words about Peter denying him are what we see happen next. And that's what I want to look at this denial of Peter, uh, of knowing Jesus. Um, what happens is that uh yeah, Jesus is being mocked, he's being beaten, he's blindfolded, they're uh making fun of him. And uh and then right then we were told about how three times Peter's like in the courtyard by a fire, and the servant girl comes up and says, Um, she says, You are with the Nazarene, Jesus. Um, but Peter replied, I don't know or understand what you're talking about. I mean, I don't even understand what you're talking about. Then she said to those standing around, this fellow was one of them. And again he denied it. And then a little while later we read, uh, those standing around said to Peter, Surely you're one of them. You are a Galilean. I mean, his I don't know if it was his accent, his dress, but they could tell, hey, you're from the north. You're not from around here. Um, and his response is, I don't know this man you're talking about. I don't know this man. This man, Jesus. I think about that line. I don't know this man you're talking about. Peter, of course, we've um we've because the Gospel of Mark records this eyewitness preaching of Peter, we've kind of gotten to walk with Jesus by looking over the shoulder of Peter. Um, I mean, back in Mark chapter 1, right away, it's Jesus the rabbi walking along this the shore of the Sea of Galley, and Peter and Andrew are fishing, and Jesus says, Come follow me, and they decide, they make the commitment to be his apprentices. And we're there when he Jesus heals Peter's mother-in-law. We're there um watching over Peter's shoulder when Jesus heals the paralytic and the leper. Um we're there when he confronts the the Pharisees, when when when Jesus goes into the room of the the 12-year-old girl has died, he takes Peter and James and John, and Peter's there, watches Jesus say Teletha Kum and brings the girl back to life. Uh, we're there when when Jesus says, Who do you people say that I am? And Peter says, Um, you're the Christ. And then right after that, when Jesus says, I'm gonna suffer and die, and Peter says, No, you can't do that. And Jesus has to rebuke Peter. And we're there when Jesus goes up on the mountain and takes Peter, James, and John again, and there's this transfiguration, and and the voice, Moses and Elijah are there, and the voice of the Father says, Here's my beloved son, listen to him. We've experienced this, you know, as it were, over Peter's shoulder. And most recently we're there that right after the Last Supper, Jesus says that um scripture is going to be fulfilled, the shepherd will be struck, and the sheep will scatter, that all of you will abandon me. He says to all his apprentices, his disciples, you're gonna abandon me. And Peter says, uh, surely not me. In verse 31, he says, Even if I have to die with you, I will never disown you. I will never disown you. Jesus says, the roost before the rooster crows twice this morning. You're gonna deny me three times. Peter's like, nope, not me. I will die. It's ironic. I mean, how often the place that we're most, I don't even know, we're most prideful about, most, like, we think it's this place of strength. I would never. I couldn't be tempted there. I wouldn't mess up with that. I would and that's the place where we crack. And just hours later, Peter hears his own voice, hears his words coming out of his mouth. I don't know this man you're talking about. And immediately the rooster crowed the second time, and Peter remembered the words Jesus had spoken to him. Before the rooster crows twice, you will disown me three times. And he broke down and he wept. How much of Peter's story is in me? How often do we trick ourselves into thinking we're stronger than we are? How often in our words or actions do we subtly say, I don't know Jesus? Pretend we don't know Jesus, pretend we can't hear his voice in our ears. Hmm. I do think this text in some ways invites us to weep over that. I find myself asking, when was the last time I wept over my the sin in my life over the ways that I haven't been loyal to Jesus? I think if this Lenten season is meant to lead us into anything like true sorrow, I don't mean the kind of there's a kind of ungodly sorrow, kind of self-loathing, shame. That's not what I'm talking about. But there's a kind of sorrow that's born out of love. And I think Peter surely, like after all those years with Jesus, knowing this truly good man, and then recognizing how how fully the Peter let him down. There's a weeping just a sorrow over the honest state of his own soul. The last time I wept over that. And through it all is the mercy of Jesus. I it's interesting, even the fact that Jesus told Peter this was gonna happen, I think was an act of mercy. I think by Jesus telling Peter this is gonna happen, in some ways prepared Peter to survive it. God's honesty to us about our sin is itself a mercy. And then, of course, the story um skipping ahead, the story doesn't end here because um after the resurrection, of course, Peter comes running to the tomb, and eventually Peter and Jesus they meet on the shore of the Sea of Galilee, the resurrected Jesus and Peter, and they go on a long walk together. Peter's heart is restored, he's forgiven, and he's sent out, which of course is the gospel, right? That we we fail, we recognize our failure, we weep over it, we meet the risen Christ, we're set on our feet, we're sent out again. So as we head now closer and closer to Good Friday, I just invite you to spend some time with the story of Peter's denial and just to reflect on what part of that story resonates with your own story. Grace and peace.