Peter followed at a distance.
When Jesus was forcibly arrested, Peter made a violent attempt to save Him. It was misguided – contrary to the principles and purposes of the Teacher – and it failed.
Now Peter hangs back. Disconnected and no doubt discouraged. It will get worse for him before it gets better. He will deny Jesus, curse and swear he doesn’t even know Him.
What happened? How does one go from Jesus’ inner circle to almost total disconnection?
Unfortunately, this is exactly what happens at one time or another in the life of almost every student of the Teacher! It happened to Peter because he wasn’t paying attention. He ran ahead of His Teacher!
Earlier that night Jesus warned him that he was a target of the devil’s attack. He instructed him to watch and pray. But Peter, along with the others, fell asleep. But…
When Jesus’ followers saw what was going to happen, they said, “Lord, should we strike with our swords?”
When the mob suddenly appeared, the only voice in Peter’s head was his own. He didn’t wait for the Teacher’s answer. That’s when he made the mistake of acting precipitously and detachment was the result.
Maybe, like Peter, we think we are defending the faith, beginning some new excellent project. Then it happens. We fail.
We fail because it wasn’t the Teacher’s idea for us at all. We didn’t wait for His answer. It was our own voice we were following.
That’s when we too get discouraged with our Christian walk. Disconnect, follow at a distance.
Staying connected is about sustaining our relationship with the Teacher and that is all about paying attention to Him. And sometimes waiting patiently for an answer from Him.
Great thoughts, Denny.
ReplyDeleteHow do we tell if it's our own thoughts, or an answer from the Lord? Or worse, temptation from the evil one?
A few tests:
Does it contradct scripture? If so, it's not the Spirit leading.
Is it in line with how christ would do things? Again, if not... If so doesn't always mean it's the best thing to do.
Is it simply the first thing that popped into your head? Waiting patiently for an answer can be difficult. Often we jump first, then are in a Psalms 40 situation - waiting patiently because we're stuck in the mud and mire!
1 Thess 5:21 But test everything; hold fast what is good.