Then seizing him, they led him away and took him into the house of the high priest. Peter followed at a distance. But when they had kindled a fire in the middle of the courtyard and had sat down together, Peter sat down with them. A servant girl saw him seated there in the firelight. She looked closely at him and said, “This man was with him.” But he denied it. “Woman, I don’t know him,” he said. A little later someone else saw him and said, “You also are one of them.” Man, I am not!” Peter replied. About an hour later another asserted, “Certainly, this fellow was with him , for he is a Galilean.” Peter replied, “Man I don’t know what you’re talking about!” Just as he was speaking, the rooster crowed. The Lord turned and looked straight at Peter. Then Peter remembered the word the Lord had spoken to him: “Before the rooster crows today, you will disown me three times.” And he went outside and wept bitterly. Luke 22: 54-62, NIV.
Merciful God, we realize that whenever You warn us about something, You do it for our good. As we study, please help us to be attentive to Your voice. In the name of Jesus we pray. Amen.
Yesterday we ended our devotional, as Peter was being set up for the fall. Today, we want to pay more attention to the importance of prayer, so we re-visited a part of the scene, from another Gospel; the gospel according to Luke. Peter following Jesus at a distance, seems so odd! It is not like Peter to do this. Peter seems to be always less than an arm’s length away from the Savior. He was always close enough to hear whatever Jesus said; and answer, before anyone else had a chance to even think about the answer. That very night, he was close enough, to cut off the ear (the head was obviously intended) of the high priest’s servant. But not very long after, he had dangerously, distanced himself from the Master!
It took three and a half years for Peter to build up that closeness to Jesus. It took a comparatively short time, for him to distance himself, to his own peril. Perhaps you have heard me mention a sign that I saw at the entrance to the campus of West Indies College, when we took our second daughter there to school, some years ago, “Seven days without prayer, makes one weak.” Of course you recognize the pun; but how significant is the true meaning of those words! We do not know how long it was that Peter had not been praying. What we do know is that he missed an invitation to do so, that obviously would have represented the difference between victory and defeat. Jesus had warned him (46).
Every opportunity to spend time in prayer, neglected, brings us dangerously close to the edge of the cliff of defeat, and loss. Prayer is the lifeline of the soul; we neglect it at our own risk! Today Jesus is saying to each of us, as He said to Peter, “. . . Simon, Simon! Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren’ ” (31). Do you realize the extent of these words, “When you have returned to Me?” A lack of prayer will gradually separate us from God, who is our strength; and when we are weakened, we are very likely to fall! The words of the song writer remind us of the disadvantages of neglecting prayer, “. . . Oh what peace we often forfeit; Oh, what needless pain we bear; all because we do not carry everything to God in prayer” (Joseph M. Scriven, emphasis provided)!
But not only that, God is desirous of using us to strengthen one another! Who knows who might be needing a word from you; a prayer from you. I have said this before, but I will say it again: We cannot give what we ourselves do not possess! If we are following the Lord from a distance, how will we be able to bring others close to Him? May God help us to “return to [Him],” today; that we will not “fall into temptation;” and that we may be able to “strengthen” others.
We will continue this conversation tomorrow.