We continue our series with the Fall of Peter. We already saw that Peter overestimated himself, slept, and consequently didn’t pray. But today we will see that his heart condition becomes visible to others through his actions.
And behold, one of those with Jesus stretched out his hand and drew his sword, and smiting the bondman of the high priest took off his ear. (Matthew 26:51)
According to John 18, this “hostile disciple” was Peter. After Peter fails to pray, he now lacks the spiritual strength to endure what awaits him. Peter was always quick to act. This often self-confident man sleeps when he should be awake and strikes when he should be quiet. He is passive where he should have been active and is active where he should have been passive. Here we see how his so frequently positive spontaneity leads him to sin.
As soon as we no longer act in communion with the Lord and in dependence on Him, it leads very quickly, as with Peter, to fleshly zeal. Physically, Peter was still near the Lord, but his heart was no longer there. This is an essential lesson for our lives. It is also important where we are physically. It is even more important where our heart is.
From a human point of view, we could say that Peter was brave. But the Lord had previously told his disciples in the Sermon on the Mount to love their enemies. Here, we see that these words apparently were no longer “present” in Peter’s mind. He probably knew them, but the words did not affect him in this situation.
And couldn’t the Lord defend Himself? Wasn’t it He who silenced the storm, healed the sick, and brought the dead back to life? – Yes, He is the same, and of course, He could have destroyed his enemies with a word of His power! When He merely told them who He was, they fell backward to the ground! In addition, He could have called 12 legions of angels to help. But none of this was the Father’s will, because He had to suffer and die. Therefore, the Lord allowed Himself to be captured without using His power.
This speaks very much to our hearts, too. As soon as we no longer live in inner communion with the Lord, we must confess that His word is often no longer so present in our lives. We try to take things into our own hands and fight where we shouldn’t. The problem, then, is that we no longer have the Father’s will in mind but our own. Unfortunately, this kind of behaviour has already caused a lot of damage, not only for us but also for others!
Let us bring our hearts into line with the Word of God and pray every day. Then we will not lose sight of the Lord. And then we will trust in His power and learn to accept the will of the Father. This will surely be for our own blessing and for the blessing of others!
