A Stumble is not a Fall

Reading: Luke 22:54-62
Having arrested Him, they led Him away and brought Him to the house of the high priest; but Peter was following at a distance. After they had kindled a fire in the middle of the courtyard and had sat down together, Peter was sitting among them. And a servant-girl, seeing him as he sat in the firelight and looking intently at him, said, “This man was with Him too.” But he denied it, saying, “Woman, I do not know Him.” A little later, another saw him and said, “You are one of them too!” But Peter said, “Man, I am not!” After about an hour had passed, another man began to insist, saying, “Certainly this man also was with Him, for he is a Galilean too.” But Peter said, “Man, I do not know what you are talking about.” Immediately, while he was still speaking, a rooster crowed. The Lord turned and looked at Peter. And Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how He had told him, “Before a rooster crows today, you will deny Me three times.” And he went out and wept bitterly. [NASB1995®]

There is a saying that is the same as the title of our devotional for today. A stumble is not a fall. Today we read about Peter’s denial, and I would like us to consider some things concerning this.

You’re going to fail: When the Lord announced the difficult moments to come, Peter was the first to say that he would be faithful even if it meant imprisonment or death. A couple of hours later he was denying Jesus. Those who have believed in Christ have been delivered from guilt and have received forgiveness from our sin, yet the work of the Lord is still being done in our lives. At some point we will fail. If we think that there is no sin in us we are deceiving ourselves (1 John 1:8) You should know this: you are going to fail.

God knows you’re going to fail: Jesus told Peter what was going to happen, in detail. God knows that at some point you will fail. The Christian life is a life of struggle against sin, and you won’t be able to dodge all blows. We need a mediator, someone who intercedes for us. We need Jesus.

You’ll need to repent: Peter’s reaction to his sin was the same that we need to have: bitterness, pain, and repentance. When you fall, don’t try to get up on your own. Look to Jesus. Seek his forgiveness. It is the only way to overcome.

MEDITATE: Sometimes, like Peter, we think we can overcome sin in our own strength. We forget that it is part of our nature. The Gospel is God’s provision for this. We need to recognize our sinful nature and repent. We need Jesus.

Translation By: Emily Stader

Sebastián Winkler (169)

Sebastián Winkler lives in General Pinto, a small town in the interior of Argentina, and serves the Lord in the Baptist Church of his city as a teacher of Bible studies. He is a Professor of Literature, he likes music, reading and sharing the Bible with others.
He is married to Karina they have two daughters named Julia and Emilia.
He is the main author in his blog: engraciaysabiduria.com (in spanish)