Be like Peter

John 13: 36-38

Simon Peter said to him, “Lord, where are you going?” Jesus answered him, “Where I am going you cannot follow me now, but you will follow afterward.” 37 Peter said to him, “Lord, why can I not follow you now? I will lay down my life for you.” 38 Jesus answered, “Will you lay down your life for me? Truly, truly, I say to you, the rooster will not crow till you have denied me three times. 

I like Peter.

Peter is not afraid to ask. He's not afraid to say what he thinks. Even to God. 

I think that maybe that's why he was one of the disciples. Maybe he was chosen as one of the twelve because he's outspoken, bold and he'd have a go. He was keen and he was devoted to Jesus. 

Peter is quite direct. We see that in scripture time and again. Although we often see it when Peter has not quite got it right, but then we know how the story goes. We have the benefit of hindsight. I think, if we were in the same situation as Peter, we would of probably had the same thoughts as he did (although we may not of expressed them), and we'd of probably made the same mistakes. 

Peter made mistakes like we do. He often 'put his foot in it', or got the wrong end of the stick, but he kept going. He was determined to follow Jesus. 

Peter is the one who sinks when Jesus is walking on the water, Jesus even says to him once, "get behind me satan". Yet, is Peter put off? No! He keeps following Jesus! Eventhough he is well aware that he's messed up. He doesn't hide in shame, run away or give up. 

Peter keeps following Jesus. 

He is committed, and he knows that his mistakes do not prevent him from having a relationship with Jesus. 

This is the same for you and I, our mistakes do not prevent us from having a relationship with Jesus. We can keep going, keep following like Peter did. Without being constantly surrounded by fear or shame. We can think, 'oops, got that wrong, ok let's keep going'. 

Jesus chose Peter to be his disciple, and he knew what he was like. 

Jesus never asked him to leave when Peter made mistakes. Jesus pointed out Peter's errors but didn't banish or punish him. 

Jesus is the same with us. 

The best place for us to learn is at Jesus side. He will point out when we've got it wrong, but that shouldn't estrange us from him, in fact it should deepen our relationship. We are permitted to be as bold and daring as Peter, we are allowed to get out of the boat at times, and we are allowed to be direct in telling our thoughts to God. He doesn't mind, he will hear us. Maybe he'll correct us, but isn't that what we do in close relationships?

Peter was one of Jesus' closest friends, and he was allowed to speak his mind and mess up - so there's hope for all of us! 

So, let's get out there; be bold, have a go, speak your mind to God!