Reading: John chapter 18 verses 10-18&25-27
Ill:
• The Book of Heroic Failures, was written by Stephen Pile in 1979,
• It is a book written in celebration of human inadequacy in all its forms.
• My favourite story took part in 1978;
• During the fireman’s strike in England,
• The British army took over emergency fire-fighting.
• Drove the ‘Green Goddess’ rather than red fire engines.
• On January 14 the soldiers were called out by an elderly lady in South London;
• She wanted them to retrieve her cat who was stuck up a tree.
• The soldiers arrived with impressive haste,
• And they very cleverly and carefully rescued the cat.
• The lady was so grateful that she invited the squad of heroes in for tea.
• Later as they drove off making their fond farewells and enthusiastic waving of arms,
• They actually ran over the cat and killed it.
• Point: They could have been heroes but ended up as failures!
(3). The person.
• We often dwell on the negative side of this incident:
• And probably rightly so, because it was a shameful act.
• Ill: But every coin has two sides.
• This was both an act of cowardice, but it was also an act of courage!
(1) Remember Peter’s courage:
• Peter shows tremendous courage to put himself in this situation
• Remember as far as we know all the other disciples forsook Jesus & fled,
• Peter (and the secret disciple) refused to do so.
• Peter was willing to follow Jesus, even after he had been arrested,
• True, he failed;
• But he failed in a situation which none of the other disciples even dared to face!
• He failed, not because he was a coward, but because he was brave.
• It was his courage that took him into the courtyard;
• It was his courage which sadly ran out once he had got there!
(2). Remember Peter’s love.
• Peter may have acted unwisely and hastily but you cannot deny his devotion:
• Peter wanted to make sure Jesus did not face his accusers alone!
• Peter entered that courtyard determined to support his master;
• True, he failed;
• But he failed in unique circumstances,
• And remember his failure was out of character!
Ill:
• It was the real Peter who protested his loyalty in the upper room;
• It was the real Peter who drew his lonely sword in the moonlight of the garden;
• It was the real Peter who followed Jesus into the courtyard;
• Because he could not allow his Lord to go alone!
• I would suggest:
• It was not the real Peter who cracked on this occasion:
• This a Peter acting out of character,
Ill:
• Sometimes good people act out of character.
• When Abraham lied to Pharaoh about his wife, Sarah, he was acting out of character.
• Abraham was not a habitual liar. He was by and large a man of great integrity.
• But in that situation he blew it and blew it big.
• Remember that in the New Testament God does not call Abraham a liar.
• He calls him a man of faith.
• I would suggest:
• It was not the real Peter who cracked on this occasion:
• This a Peter acting out of character,
Ill:
• Remember that Peter was naturally a very courageous person.
• If you were a betting man and woman.
• Out of the 12 disciples I guess Peter would be the very last;
• That we would have thought would be the disciple to deny the Lord.
• Remember that just a few hours earlier when Jesus had told his disciples;
• That they would all forsake him. “Smite the Shepherd and the sheep will scatter.”
• Peter was quick to respond to that,
• “Even if I have to die with you, I will not disown you.”.
• Peter had every intention of being true to his Lord to the very end.
• No one would have ever expected him to fail the way he did;
Ill:
• None of us were surprised when in the Garden of Gethsemane;
• He impulsively pull out a sword and cut somebody’s ear.
• That is Peter in character.
• But none of us would have expected this big, burley fisherman;
• To back down when asked by a servant girl if he was one of Jesus’ disciples.
• Peter was probably considered the bravest man in the group.
• But this night he acts out of character.
• He is acting out of character because:
• He is physically tired & emotionally shattered by the sudden events of the night.
• And so another side of Peter’s character is temporarily revealed.
Ill:
• As you watch Peter, you see him gradually moving into the place of temptation and sin;
• And his actions parallel the description of the ungodly man mentioned Psalm 1 verse 1.
“Blessed is the man
who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked
or stand in the way of sinners
or sit in the seat of mockers”.
• First, Peter walked “in the counsel of the ungodly”
• When he followed Jesus and went into the high priest’s courtyard.
• Second: Peter “stood” with the enemy by the fire (John 18:16,18);
• Third: he “sat” with the enemy (Luke 22:55).
• By this time it was now too late to escape elsewhere;
• And so within a short time, he would deny his Lord three times.
(1). The denials (15-27)
(15) Simon Peter followed Jesus, and so did another disciple. Since that disciple was known to the high priest, he entered with Jesus into the court of the high priest, (16) but Peter stood outside at the door. So the other disciple, who was known to the high priest, went out and spoke to the servant girl who kept watch at the door, and brought Peter in. (17) The servant girl at the door said to Peter, “You also are not one of this man’s disciples, are you?” He said, “I am not.” (18) Now the servants and officers had made a charcoal fire, because it was cold, and they were standing and warming themselves. Peter also was with them, standing and warming himself.
• Jesus is taken into the courtyard of the High Priest.
• The two disciples of Jesus want to follow but need to keep a low profile.
• Association with Jesus could mean they too will also will be arrested & tried;
• So these disciples follow incognito (undercover);
• We would say they were; ‘Keeping their heads down’.
• They were trying to blend into their circumstances.
Verse 15:
• We are told that the unnamed disciple with Peter;
• Somehow had connections with the High Priest;
• And so this unknown disciple could gain entry inside.
• But because Peter didn’t have the right connections he had to wait outside.
• Soon this unknown disciple returns to the entrance of the courtyard;
• And persuaded the girl on duty to let Peter in.
• And so both of them at last enter the courtyard.
Question: Who was the unknown disciple?
Answer: There have been many speculations about who this other disciple was:
(a).
• Some have thought that he was simply some ‘unknown’ disciple,
• Whose name we can never know.
• As well as the twelve close disciples Jesus had a large band of other disciples;
• Ill: He sent out 72 of them in Luke chapter 10.
(b).
• Some have connected him with either Nicodemus or Joseph of Arimathaea,
• Who were secret followers of Jesus until after the cross,
• Both were both members of the Sanhedrin, & must both have known the High Priest well.
(c).
• The traditional view is that the unnamed disciple was John himself,
• But that view raises a question: How could John a fisherman from Galilee….
• Be known to an important official like the High Priest?
• Answer: Quote William Barcley:
Ill:
• “H. V. Morton tells us of visiting in the back streets of Jerusalem;
• A little building which was presently an Arab coffee house.
• In it were certain stones and arches which once had been part of a very early Christian church,
• Believed to have stood on the site of a house which belonged to Zebedee, John’s father.
• The family, so the Franciscans believe, were fish merchants in Galilee’
• With a branch office in Jerusalem;
• And supplied the household of Caiaphas the High Priest with salt fish,
• Which was why John had entry into the High Priest’s house”.
What ever speculation may or may not be true:
• The fact is Peter was brought into the courtyard of the High Priest’s house,
• And he gained entrance because of this middleman, this unnamed disciple.
• As they enter the courtroom the female servant girl who is in charge of the door;
• Throws out a question to Peter (vs 17): “You are not one of his disciples, are you?”
• This servant girl recognises Peter as one of the disciples of Jesus.
• Jesus was of course a public celebrity.
• And anyone who had encountered Jesus,
• Would also have encountered his disciples, especially, Peter, James & John.
• Notice: Her question is worded in such a way that a negative answer is expected.
• Thus making it easier for Peter to deny Jesus than to make a stand.
• A negative answer was expected by this servant girl;
• And a negative answer is what she got!
Verse 17b: “I am not”, said Peter firmly:
• For Peter, who was thinking on his feet – this was a small compromise;
• It seemed a small price to pay to enter the courtyard without and conflict.
• It was of course an unfortunate statement;
• Because Peter was now committed to telling lies.
• One small step in the direction of evil can often lead to many others.
• And sadly as we all know from experience;
• One small lie will often lead on to us telling a whole chain of bigger lies.
Verse 18:
“It was cold, and the servants and officials stood around a fire they had made to keep warm. Peter also was standing with them, warming himself”.
• On a cold night Peter does what is natural, he tries to stay warm;
• Trouble is he is not the only one with that mindset.
• Around the charcoal fire are gathered the servants and officials of the courtyard;
• All trying to stay warm.
• As Peter tries to blend into the background,
• And at the same time trying to find out what was happening to Jesus.
Verse 25: He is again challenged as to his loyalty with Jesus.
“As Simon Peter stood warming himself, he was asked,
“You are not one of his disciples, are you?”
He denied it, saying, “I am not.”
• Once again Peter is questioned about his relationship with Jesus.
• Once again the question is put in a way that expects a negative answer.
• And once again Peter having to think fast, takes the easy way out;
• He gave them a quick an unequivocal reply: ‘I am not.’
• This was his second denial of Jesus!
Verse 26: would see Peter deny Jesus for the third time.
“One of the high priest’s servants, a relative of the man whose ear Peter had cut off, challenged him, “Didn’t I see you with him in the olive grove?”
“Again Peter denied it”
• A relative of Malchus, whose ear Peter had cut off, earlier in the Garden of Gethsemane;
• Saw him and challenged him, ‘Didn’t I see you with him?’
• Note: This time an affirmative answer is expected to the question:
• Peter must inwardly be panicking as he looks into the face of this eye-witness;
• But once again he quickly responds in the negative and denies knowing Jesus.
Note:
• Those three denials must have shook Peter to his very core;
• Yet his worst moment is just about to happen (vs 27)
• “…at that moment a rooster began to crow.”
• Earlier on (John chapter 13 verse 38).
• Jesus had foreseen and predicted to Peter that he would behave like this.
• Jesus had told Peter would deny him three times before the cock crew.
• And as always the words of Jesus prove to be true!
Note:
• Although that expression ‘cock crow’ seems quite straight forward,
• There are actually two interpretations (divided opinions) as two what that means:
(1). The Romans had a certain military practice.
• The night was divided into four watches;
• 6 p.m. to 9 p.m., 9 p.m. to 12 midnight, 12 midnight to 3 a.m., and 3 a.m. to 6 a.m.
• After the third watch the guard was changed,
• And to mark the changing of the guard there was a trumpet call at 3 a.m.
• The word for that at trumpet call in Latin and in Greek;
• Both mean cockcrow.
• It may well be that Jesus said to Peter:
• “Before the trumpet sounds the cockcrow you will deny me three times.”
• Everyone in Jerusalem must have known that trumpet call at 3 a.m.
• When sounded through the city that night Peter remembered.
(2). It means exactly how it reads - a literal bird:
• The crowing of the cock was assurance to Peter,
• That even though He was bound and being harassed by the authorities.
• Assurance that Jesus was totally in control of the situation,
• By controlling one bird, Jesus affirmed His sovereignty.
Ill:
• Peter had seen Jesus exercise authority over the fish (Luke 5:1-11; Matt. 17:24-27),
• And the animals (Matt. 21:1-11);
• But now he recognized His authority over the birds.
• Note: The perfect timing of the cock crowing!
(2). The silver lining (vs 27b).
“…and at that moment a rooster began to crow”.
Ill:
• We get our proverb,
• "Every cloud has a silver lining,"
• From John Milton’s masque (dramatic entertainment) ’Comus’ (1634).
• ’Was I deceiv’d, or did a sable cloud/ Turn forth her silver lining on the night?’
• The proverb means that out of a negative situation;
• Something positive has also been produced.
• The very positive thing or situation is the "silver lining".
Note:
• Although the cockcrowing was Peter’s darkest moment;
• It would also offer him a ‘silver lining’ of hope!
• Luke tells us that Jesus turned and looked at Peter (Luke chapter 22 verse 61),
• And this look of love broke Peter’s heart.
• Peter had been a first hand witness of the sufferings of Christ,
• And by his own denials he added to those sufferings.
Question: Why a silver lining?
Answer:
• Symbolically remember that the crowing of the cock was an announcement:
• It announced the dawning of a new day!
• Peter had failed but with a new day came a new opportunity to repent and a new hope.
Ill:
Just contrast Peter and Judas:
• Peter wept over his sins and repented,
• While Judas admitted his sins but never really repented.
• Judas experienced remorse,
• Peter repentance.
• When Judas went out from the Upper Room, “it was night” (John 13:30);
• But when Peter went out to weep bitterly, there was “the dawning of a new day”.
• For Judas it was deliberate betrayal and therefore the end of his relationship with Jesus;
• For Peter it was a temporary mistake, a blip, a failing in his walk as a disciple;
• And as we will see in future weeks;
• Jesus would later correct that mistake in John chapter 21 and re-commission Peter.
Last hymn reminds us:
“He is able to keep you from falling
and to present you before his glorious presence without fault…”
Quote:
“He does not plead our innocence but shows the Father the wounds in his hands”
