B, Midweek Lent 3 - Mark 14:70b-72 "Peter's Passover Pride"

Mark 14:70b–72 (ESV) And after a little while the bystanders again said to Peter, “Certainly you are one of them, for you are a Galilean.” But he began to invoke a curse on himself and to swear, “I do not know this man of whom you speak.” And immediately the rooster crowed a second time. And Peter remembered how Jesus had said to him, “Before the rooster crows twice, you will deny me three times.” And he broke down and wept.

Peter’s grief was raw and sharp.  The full weight of his ugliness was before him.  He had cut himself off from his Lord, calling down curses upon himself, he excommunicates himself from Jesus after telling Jesus, he would not deny him, but rather die with him.

Peter passed Jesus off; he passed over him in denial.  And at hearing the cock crow, he remembers Jesus’ promise and sees the foolishness of his own promise.  Peter realises his self-preservation had kicked in, to kick out his trust in Jesus and his word.

After Peter and the others fled from Gethsemene, Jesus is humiliated.  Hiding himself in the rabble, Peter cowardly follows at a distance.  The Lord needs Peter to be a witness, to see what happens to him at the hand of the Jews, without the helping hands of those who promised to follow him.

As guilty as those who commissioned false evidence against Jesus, is Peter, who now does not come to Jesus’ defence, but rather remains speechless with his omission of evidence on Jesus’ behalf.

Below in the courtyard Peter warms himself, when a servant girl sees him and says,   “You also were with the Nazarene, Jesus.”  But he denied it, saying, “I neither know nor understand what you mean.” (Mark 14:67–68a ESV)

Peter stands at a distance; he stands below Jesus.  He denies Jesus and says he doesn’t understand what the girl is saying about him and his relationship with Jesus!  The cock crows!  Then he excommunicates himself from Jesus with another lie, “I do not know this man of whom you speak.”

All those who bore false testimony against Jesus gave conflicting evidence.  Twice before the cock crowed, we hear the false witness borne against Jesus, did not agree.  Now, Peter’s lie is the testimony that agrees with the lies of the false testimonies that hands Jesus over to death.

The sin of commission from the mouths of the Jews, seals the fate of Jesus.  Peter adds his sins of omission and commission to also seal Jesus’ fate. 

The weightlessness of his words, despite being delivered with so much passion, proved impotent. 

“If I must die with you, I will not deny you.  Even though they all fall away, I will not.” (Mark 14:29, 31 ESV) Is now part and parcel of Peter’s passing over of Jesus, ““I neither know nor understand what you mean.” “I do not know this man of whom you speak.”

He fell away from Jesus!  He denied Jesus!  He understood exactly what the girl and others had said, and he knew the man of whom others spoke.  The weight of his lying lips spoken with so much passion, proved potent and powerful. 

We can clearly see why Peter’s Passover proclamation gutted him!  When push came to shove, he proved to be no different than any other person.  Frightened, fainthearted, faithless, fake, and futile!

Jesus’ word, “Before the rooster crows twice, you will deny me three times.” (Mark 14:30, 72 ESV) Proved to be true.  Peter’s three-fold denial announced the law to Peter, and it hit him hard.  Despite Peter’s positivity to support the Saviour, his pride crashed head-on with self-preservation to save himself. 

Peters “Passover crash” was the second most crucial thing to happen to Peter, second only to Jesus’ death on the cross!  As hard as Peter’s reality was, it was essential for it to occur, if Peter was to be a follower of Jesus.  Similarly, it is the same for us too.

The old saying, “Pride comes before the fall”, is relevant here!  Peter’s pride needed to pass away, to die its death.  So too does our pride, so Jesus can be our sole Saviour.

It is not a percentage game; we do not provide any percentage in our eternal salvation.  Jesus provides one hundred percent of the perfection in our eternal preservation.

We need to come to the gut-wrenching reality of our powerlessness to save ourselves, so we look to Jesus, and him alone.  Peter could only bear his cross and follow Jesus, after he realised what his cross  actually was, and what only Jesus’ cross could do for him.

Jesus’ cross must come before our cross,  if it doesn’t our cross is the wrong cross to bear.  In fact, if we put our cross before the cross of Christ, it’s a cross against our name, it’s a lie.  This is why when the cock crowed a second time, the pain of Peter’s realisation was great, and it had to be for Jesus’ salvation of Peter to be real.  So too for you and me.

When Peter called down curses upon himself, these curses were “anathema” in the Greek.  Peter unwittingly testified to being anathema or accursed.  Only the cross and resurrection of Jesus could kill Peter’s curse, and raise Peter up, blameless.  Only then, Peter could lead God’s church, not by himself, but by the power of the Holy Spirit in the knowledge of Jesus’ death and resurrection.

In God’s church, sin cannot be passed over.  The recognition of sin, in our lives is hard!  At some stage in your life, God will allow you to weep bitterly over your sin.  As hard as it is, it’s a healthy thing for those being refocused from the self to the selfless, single, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

With Jesus as our true Passover lamb your curse or anathema is removed.  At our resurrection we will see with our eyes what the Apostle John was shown, which is recorded in Revelation chapter twenty-two for our encouragement.  For your faith, hope, and love!

Hear what John reports, “Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb  through the middle of the street of the city; also, on either side of the river, the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month.  The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.  No longer will there be anything accursed, but the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his servants will worship him.  They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads.”  (Revelation 22:1–4 ESV)

Amen.