Perhaps one of the most surprising developments that occurred that evening was when Jesus predicted Peter’s denial (John 13:36). How many of us, I wonder, actually consider what we do, and in terms of service to the Lord. What I mean is, do we really understand whether what we do for Jesus actually comes from God or does it come from man? Certainly, the Pharisees believed what they did, all the ceremonial washings etc. served God, but Jesus said they denied God (Matthew 15:1-9; Mark 7:5-13), in that his word was set aside so they could serve him according to their traditions. Notice that they thought they served God, but they set aside serving him according to his word, so they could serve him according to what they thought was appropriate.
I believe it was in this context of wanting to serve Jesus that Peter would find himself denying the very one he sought to honor. I don’t mean to imply that we need to be so careful about how we serve the Lord that it must be done perfectly. Nevertheless, we do need to consider the source of our motives. Upon what does our service for the Lord founded? This is the key to knowing whether or not we serve Christ or men. For example, and in the context of this evening when Jesus spoke of his departure, namely that he would be crucified (John 13:33, 36), Jesus began speaking of it just after Peter’s great confession that he was the Messiah the Son of the living God (Matthew 16:13-16). It was “from that time forward…” (Matthew 16:21) that Jesus began to tell his disciples that he would suffer and die—be crucified by the Jewish leaders at Jerusalem. When Jesus began to reveal such thing, Peter took Jesus aside to tell him this couldn’t be true. In other words, Peter was basing his understanding of the Messiah, the Son of the Living God upon something other than God’s word. It was the traditions of men, and most Jews believe the Messiah would never die (John 12:34).
Notice Jesus’ reply: “Get behind Me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to Me; for you are not setting your mind on God’s interests, but man’s” (Matthew 16:23). In other words, Jesus was saying Peter, who had just proclaimed his faith in Jesus as the Messiah was now acting as Jesus’ enemy to keep him from performing his office as the Messiah. There could be no saving mankind without the crucifixion, yet Peter tried to get Jesus to perform his office in a manner that glorified men in the state they were in, instead of saving them out of the state they were in. In other words, Peter was acting like the tempter to sway Jesus into worshiping men:
And the Devil, leading Him up into a high mountain, showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. And the Devil said to Him, all this power I will give you, and the glory of them; for it has been delivered to me. And I give it to whomever I will. Therefore, if you will worship me, all shall be yours. (Luke 4:5-7)
This is the Messiah conquering the kingdoms of this world according to the ways of men, whereby men (the flesh) gain the glory, not God. In essence, believing he was serving Jesus by correcting him, Peter was, in fact, tempting Jesus to serve God in the flesh, not the spirit. Peter wasn’t a coward. He said he was ready to die with Jesus, and he meant every word he said (John 13:37). The problem was, he was willing to die with Jesus in the field of battle (cp. John 18:10-11), not follow him up the hill to the cross, so that very night he denied Jesus three times, hoping in doing so to serve him (John 13:38). Foundations are important (1Corinthians 3:10-15), and we need to be careful that what we believe about Christ is revealed in his word. So many simply assume what they do serves God, but it doesn’t. My daughter once told me her friend at church didn’t believe she could be a Christian and also be a Democrat! Now, I ask you: where is that found in God’s word?
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