Luke 22:54–62 (ESV)
Then they seized him and led him away, bringing him into the high priest’s house, and Peter was following at a distance. And when they had kindled a fire in the middle of the courtyard and sat down together, Peter sat down among them. Then a servant girl, seeing him as he sat in the light and looking closely at him, said, “This man also was with him.” But he denied it, saying, “Woman, I do not know him.” And a little later someone else saw him and said, “You also are one of them.” But Peter said, “Man, I am not.” And after an interval of about an hour still another insisted, saying, “Certainly this man also was with him, for he too is a Galilean.” But Peter said, “Man, I do not know what you are talking about.” And immediately, while he was still speaking, the rooster crowed. And the Lord turned and looked at Peter. And Peter remembered the saying of the Lord, how he had said to him, “Before the rooster crows today, you will deny me three times.” And he went out and wept bitterly.
All the other disciples skedaddled when the cops showed up, but Peter was following at a distance. He might have run too, but Jesus had challenged him to fulfill his claim, “Lord, I am ready to go with You, both to prison and to death.”
Of course, the reason he’s following at a distance, is that he doesn’t want to be identified. He wants to see what’s going on, but he didn’t want to be part of what’s going on. Now he’s in a courtyard with a lot of people and someone builds a campfire. Peter makes the tactical error of sitting near the fire. It’s no longer pitch black where he is.
Peter’s face hasn’t been on a wanted poster, but a lot of people have seen him because they’ve been following Jesus. In the light of the fire, a few folks recognize him. His plan to just blend in and keep an eye on things unravels.
But notice exactly what Peter does wrong here. Yes, there’s a failure of courage, but at the detailed level, Peter’s mistake is clinging to his plan. This is the classic Christian failing, one we’ve all experienced.
While it’s always wise to make a plan, we often think too much of them—and miss the Lord’s “clues.”
“No plan survives first contact with the enemy.” — Helmuth von Moltke the Elder
If Peter had just had the presence of mind to think about what was going on all around him, he would have recognized the spiritual tests involved and reacted accordingly.
Unfortunately, the urgency of responding to the accusations left him no time for introspection.
One of the great challenges we face is to discern God’s will and to make our plans conform. Thus, the most important thing we can do with prayer is to draw closer to God—to seek His face.
We need to focus on our personal relationship with the Lord. Ask Him to reveal Himself and His will to you. Ask God to speak—and commit yourself to listening.
Note: this is figurative; God “speaks” in many ways.
