Peter said to him, “Lord, I am ready to go with you both to prison and to death.” Jesus said, “I tell you, Peter, the rooster will not crow this day, until you deny three times that you know me.” Luke 22:33-34
The Passover Supper was supposed to be a special time with the Lord. Despite the Lord’s direction to the place where it was to be held and His teaching to the disciples, the evening was not a time of worship and praise from the heart. The discipled spent time arguing with each other over who would be the greatest in the Lord’s kingdom (even as He stood in the shadow of the cross. The Lord then unveiled to His disciples that one of them would not only not be the greatest in the kingdom, he would betray the Lord. Next the Lord told Simon Peter that Satan had demanded that God allow him to sift Simon Peter like wheat. The Lord told Peter this to warn him and correct him of the direction he was going. We would hope that Simon (and each of us) would listen carefully to the Lord as He warns us as we veer from His path, We hope we would gave ears to hear and listen to the Lord. After the Lord’s warning, we hear Peter’s response.
Lord Peter’s response is respectful of who Jesus is. Surely when one calls Him Lord, he is read and willing to obey.
I am ready to go with you both to prison and to death Instead of falling at the Lord’s feet to thank Him for His prayer and to ask Him what he should do to experience the Lord’s strength in this spiritual battle. Peter flaunts his own strength. The word ”ready” Peter uses means “to meet the opportunity (challenge) at hand; ready because the necessary preparations are done “. Peter in his mind is fully equipped to handle whatever Satan can throw at him whether it is is prison (like John the Baptist) or death (which the Lord keeps talking about). Peter says if the Lord goes with him he can endure anything.
Jesus said, “I tell you, Peter The Lord is about to burst Peter’s bubble of self-confidence.
The rooster will not crow this day, until you deny three times that you know me Not only will Peter not be able to go with the Lord to his death, he is going to deny Him three times before the rooster crows in the morning. The word the Lord uses for deny indicates a strong rejection or renunciation, sometimes in the context of faith or personal allegiance. Peter will forcefully and vehemently deny that he knows Jesus.
What can we learn? How often do we do what Peter does here? He calls Jesus “Lord”. That implies that Jesus has the right to command and direct his life, what He says is to be obeyed. Yet for Peter, like so many of s, this has become a title without meaning because Peter does not agree with what he has been told. He knows his heart and he knows he is willing to go to prison and to does for the name of Jesus. Yet the Lord knows Peter’s heart and He knows Peter is depending on his own strength, not the Lord – failure is imminent. As we near the end of the age and Christians are under attack, many of us believe in our hearts that we will stand for the Lord when challenges, suffering and persecution come. We may commit to the Lord that we will never forsake Him. Before we make that claim we must check to see whose strength we are depending on.