First off this week, I would like to share my deepest apology to everyone who has been faithful and consistent readers of my blogs in the past. If you look back to my last blog you will see that it was written almost three months ago. I could cite several reasons for the long time between then and now – some of which seem to be pretty justifiable to me, but none of which are real reasons; only excuses! So, please forgive my transgression of procrastination, and let’s pick up where we left off.

In my last blog, I discussed the power of the crowd, and talked about how easy it is to get caught up in the frenzy of the moment just because it seems that everyone else is doing it. In this blog, we will give consideration to what might seem to be the opposite end of the spectrum: the power of fear. Instead of being moved by the excitement of the moment and rushing head-long into the center of the action, we might decide to cower away from the excitement, to escape the frenzy, to hide in the shadows.

Peter is our case study for this blog. His story is quite familiar to us, but let’s remind ourselves of the events leading up to his act of denying the Lord.

“Then Jesus said to them, ‘Tonight all of you will run away because of Me, for it is written: I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered. But after I have been resurrected, I will go ahead of you to Galilee.’ Peter told Him, ‘Even if everyone runs away because of You, I will never run away!’ ‘I assure you,’ Jesus said to him, ‘tonight, before the rooster crows, you will deny Me three times!’

Matthew 26:31-34

Peter, along with the other disciples, must have been utterly shocked by the words of Jesus. They have been with Him for over three years. They have been in some extremely trying situations over that span of time. I’m sure they had experienced the sensation of fear on many occasions as they witnessed the religious leaders strive to stop Jesus from continuing His controversial ministry. But they had stuck it out; they had refused to turn back; they had passed the test.

But now, this night was different. They heard Jesus’ words. They are about to witness Jesus’ struggle in the garden as He pours out His prayer to the Father. The tension that hung in the air was like nothing they had ever experienced. And now, they hear Jesus tell them forthrightly that they will all run away. Each of them would abandon the Lord in His hour of greatest need.

So, how does Peter respond to these revelatory words of the Lord? Let’s listen in once again as he is given opportunity to make his statement of total commitment to the Lord:

“Even if I have to die with You,’ Peter told Him, ‘I will never deny You!’ And all the disciples said the same thing.”

Matthew 26:35

What a bold statement: “Even if I have to die with You!” And, before we come down too hard on Peter let’s remember that he was the one who drew the sword to come to Jesus’ defense in the garden. He did stand true to his word. And yet, after Jesus is arrested, Peter does exactly what Jesus had told him: he denied the Lord three times.

I have titled this blog “The Power of Fear”. I’m quite sure there were other emotions involved in Peter’s action. I’m sure his mind was reeling as he tried to assess the situation. But I’m almost positive as I read these words that his actions were in large part caused by a sense of fear.

There are few other observations we need to make before we judge Peter too harshly. We are informed that he was not the only one to make a rash declaration of total commitment to the Lord. Reread the latter part of v.35 once again: “And all the disciples said the same thing.” Each of the disciples asserted that they would never deny the Lord, even if it costs them their lives. And yet each of them did the same thing: they abandoned Jesus, forsaking Him to face His ordeal alone.

It’s relatively easy for me to sit in my comfortable recliner, over two thousand years removed from the incident recorded by Matthew, and cast my judgment against these men who didn’t have what it takes to stand the test. That is, until I remember the many times I have done the same thing. I am going to risk being completely transparent, realizing that it might cause some of you to think far less of me than you have in the past. The following incident is etched indelibly in my mind. Even though it happened many years ago, I will forever be haunted by this memory.

We were on a mission trip to Rio Verde, Mexico. The purpose of the trip was to help build a mission center in the community to be a center for the evangelism of the area. I was standing at an opening in the wall where a window would eventually be installed, when I was touched on the shoulder by someone standing outside the wall. I was startled by the touch, and then I was astounded by the size of the man who had touched me. I don’t think it would be an exaggeration to say he stood at least 6’8″, and perhaps as much as 6’10”. No only did he stand literally head and shoulders above me, but his frame filled the window opening. To say that he was huge doesn’t tell the tale.

He immediately began to curse and swear, demanding that I tell him what the ______________ ____________ ___________ ____________ we were doing there. He was obviously at least partially intoxicated, as he smelled of alcohol. His fists were clenched tightly by his side as he continued to spew his profanities.

To say I was stricken with a spirit of fear would be a massive understatement. I was completely paralyzed by fear. I could not speak for several moments. I may have even stuttered and stammered as I tried to say something, but words would not come.

I did finally compose myself enough to tell the man that we were there from the US, and we were assisting the local church in building the mission center. He responded with another round of expletives that made clear his complete disapproval of the church, and anything they might try to offer the community.

This would have been a great time to share with this individual the love and grace of Jesus Christ. It was an open door of opportunity for sharing the gospel. But I allowed fear to control, rather than allowing grace to embolden me to share with this man what he so desperately needed to hear.

I have prayed countless times since this incident that God would send someone else to tell the man what I failed to share. I pray that I will one day see him in heaven. I realize that my failure does not shorten the arm of God, or weaken the strength of God in bringing someone else into this man’s life who will be bold enough to share. But for me – well, I failed miserably.

So yes, fear is powerful. It will cause us to fail, even though we have been boisterous in our verbal commitment.

But let’s skip ahead to the end of the story. Yes, Peter failed. Yes, he was overwhelmed with grief as he experienced conviction over his failure. And yes, he must have felt that Jesus would reject him completely. And yet, Jesus did not do as Peter might have expected. Rather, Jesus sent a very personal word to Peter.

After the resurrection, Jesus told some women to go and tell the disciples, and Peter, to meet Him at a certain location. Isn’t it interesting that Jesus singled Peter out? He was a disciple, but Jesus still gave specific instructions to tell Peter to come.

And please, take that message to heart. Those of you who are like me, who can remember specific occasions in which we failed the Lord. His message is specific, and personal. We are invited to come to Him in a spirit of repentance and confession, and allow His amazing grace of forgiveness to wash over us yet again.

And, like Peter, we can come back! Do you need to come back today? Don’t delay – accept the Lord’s invitation and return to the sweet fellowship of His grace.