The Rock That Broke

Title: The Rock that Broke

Specific purpose: failures can grow us

I accepted Christ many decades ago, and ever since, I have tried my best to love my neighbor as I love myself. Yet, there are times that I fail. That can happen to the best of us. It may be something we say or do that is stupid or not thoughtful or inconsiderate. I do not think Christians fail more than non-Christians do; I think unbelievers do stupid things too. The problem is when we Christians do stupid things; we can do incredible damage. There is no better example than the Apostle Peter. On the night, that night the Temple Guards arrested Jesus, Jesus needed His best friends to stand by Him. However, on that night, Peter, the Apostle that Jesus called a rock, “on this rock I will build my church”, Peter failed. Today, I am taking us back to that time and see what we can learn.

What was that night; it was the celebration of Passover dinner. Passover commemorated the “passing over” of the death of the first born of the Israelites when the Lord “smote the land of Egypt” on the eve of the Exodus.

Remember why Passover was so special, God commanded Moses to tell the Israelites to slaughter a lamb and mark their doorframes with its blood. In addition, God gave instructions for cooking and eating the lamb that night as well as how to make and cook their bread. For on that night, God would send the Angel of Death to bring about the tenth plague, in which he would smite all the firstborn in Egypt. However, when the angel saw the blood on the Israelites' doorframes, he would pass over their homes so that the plague should not enter (hence the name). This is part of the broader Exodus story in which the Pharaoh enslaved the Israelites to suppress them, and Pharaoh refused God's demand to let them go. God won that contest. Moses then led the Israelites out of Egypt and into the Wilderness. Then at Mount Sinai, Moses received the Law. One of the laws held that the people were annually to celebrate Passover with great joy. It was a festive time remembering the liberation from slavery, a happy time.

In the Upper Room the night Jesus was betrayed, the special Passover meal had been prepared. For the apostles, it was a night of celebration, prayers and traditional recitations. Jesus, unselfish person that He was, must have been torn. He wanted this last night with the apostles to be all that it should be and yet He knew what was to happen next.

John chapter 13 begins with these words, “1 Now before the festival of the Passover, Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart from this world and go to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end. 2 The devil had already decided that Judas son of Simon Iscariot would betray Jesus.” Neither Peter nor any of the apostles understood the seriousness of the time—Jesus would soon go to the cross. Only Jesus knew that.

So, what did Jesus do, He washed the apostles feet. Verses 5-9, “5 Then he [Jesus] poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to wipe them with a towel that was tied around him. 6 He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, ‘Lord, are you going to wash my feet?’ 7 Jesus answered, ‘You do not know now what I am doing, but later you will understand.’ 8 Peter said to him, ‘You will never wash my feet.’ Jesus answered, ‘Unless I wash you, you have no share with me.’ 9 Simon Peter said to him, ‘Lord, not only my feet but also my hands and my head!’” Peter is a bit comedian, and the other apostles probably laughed for Passover was a time of merriment and laughter remembering freedom from slavery.

Next, Jesus told His apostles that one of them would betray Him. John 13:21-26, “21 After saying this Jesus was troubled in spirit and declared, ‘Very truly, I tell you, one of you will betray me.’ 22 The disciples looked at one another, uncertain of whom he was speaking. 23 One of his disciples—the one whom Jesus loved—was reclining close to his heart; 24 Simon Peter therefore motioned to him to ask Jesus of whom he was speaking. 25 So while reclining next to Jesus, he asked him, ‘Lord, who is it?’ 26 Jesus answered, ‘It is the one to whom I give this piece of bread when I have dipped it in the dish.’ So, when he had dipped the piece of bread, he gave it to Judas son of Simon Iscariot.” Judas then left. The apostles assumed that Judas has some business elsewhere.