denial

September 26 - Denying Jesus

Matthew 26:69-75 And again he denied it with an oath: “I do not know the man.” (Matthew 26:72 ESV)

Sometimes I stop and think about what Jesus must have felt concerning Peter and his other disciples. He knew what was going to happen to him. He knew how hey would all turn their backs on him when trouble began. Yet, still he chose them.

Have you ever denied Christ? Maybe not by what you said, but what about by what you did? Do you think Jesus knew you what you would do or say when he first chose you? I believe that he did.

The beauty of the finished work of grace that Jesus completed lies in the serene undeservedness of Christ's extended forgiveness. We do not deserve it. We could never deserve it. We will never deserve it. Our actions, attitudes, and ethics so often testify to our wretchedness. But Jesus loves us, chooses us, and saves us, even when he knows that at some point we have or will deny him.

Peter was perhaps his closest friend and denied him. Peter went on to do incredible things. We each have denied Jesus somehow sometime, but he chooses still to love us and use us to carry out his will in this life.