Mar 14:28-29 | KingComments | STEP | The Lord warns His disciples of what will happen to them. He speaks of how the cross will test them. The striking down of the Shepherd here is not the judgment of God that will afflict Him. By the judgment of God that has come upon Him, the sheep have not been scattered, but rather gathered together and formed into one flock ( ). Here is the other aspect of the cross: His complete rejection as Messiah. When the disciples see this, they will fall away and flee. That will happen even before their Master is actually struck down. The Lord also points out His resurrection and the place of humble service that He will then take together with His disciples. He will go ahead of them to Galilee, the area where He has performed the greater part of His service. That is where He has begun, and there He will instruct His disciples as to the service they will begin when He is no longer with them. Peter does not agree with Him and promises to remain completely faithful to Him, no matter what happens. Even if everyone were to fall away, at least he would not. He is sincere in his statement, but his statement stems from self-confidence and a complete lack of self-knowledge. He thinks he will never deny the Lord. Others might, but he certainly wouldn’t. He does not know himself and thinks he is better than others. Sincerity is not enough to keep someone from falling. A man’s heart is so bad, and man himself so weak, that only the awareness of Divine grace can keep him from it. The Lord tells Peter unequivocally that he will deny Him even three times. And that denial will not be long in coming. He does not predict anything that Peter might simply have forgotten as the years go by. How sad it must have been for Him to notice this self-confidence in the best of His disciples. How little Peter had learned from Him about himself. Have I already learned more? Peter sticks to his statement and adds to it. He contradicts the Lord. Then the fall is inevitable. We can only be kept if we let ourselves be warned by the word of the Lord and not stubbornly hold on to our conception of our own loyalty to Him. By the way, Peter is not the only one who says of himself that he will never deny the Lord. The other disciples also say that they will not. It speaks on the one hand of their adherence to Him and on the other hand of not knowing the weakness of the flesh.

‏ Mark 14:28-29

Denial by Peter Foretold

The Lord warns His disciples of what will happen to them. He speaks of how the cross will test them. The striking down of the Shepherd here is not the judgment of God that will afflict Him. By the judgment of God that has come upon Him, the sheep have not been scattered, but rather gathered together and formed into one flock (Jn 10:16). Here is the other aspect of the cross: His complete rejection as Messiah. When the disciples see this, they will fall away and flee. That will happen even before their Master is actually struck down.

The Lord also points out His resurrection and the place of humble service that He will then take together with His disciples. He will go ahead of them to Galilee, the area where He has performed the greater part of His service. That is where He has begun, and there He will instruct His disciples as to the service they will begin when He is no longer with them.

Peter does not agree with Him and promises to remain completely faithful to Him, no matter what happens. Even if everyone were to fall away, at least he would not. He is sincere in his statement, but his statement stems from self-confidence and a complete lack of self-knowledge. He thinks he will never deny the Lord. Others might, but he certainly wouldn’t. He does not know himself and thinks he is better than others. Sincerity is not enough to keep someone from falling. A man’s heart is so bad, and man himself so weak, that only the awareness of Divine grace can keep him from it.

The Lord tells Peter unequivocally that he will deny Him even three times. And that denial will not be long in coming. He does not predict anything that Peter might simply have forgotten as the years go by. How sad it must have been for Him to notice this self-confidence in the best of His disciples. How little Peter had learned from Him about himself. Have I already learned more?

Peter sticks to his statement and adds to it. He contradicts the Lord. Then the fall is inevitable. We can only be kept if we let ourselves be warned by the word of the Lord and not stubbornly hold on to our conception of our own loyalty to Him. By the way, Peter is not the only one who says of himself that he will never deny the Lord. The other disciples also say that they will not. It speaks on the one hand of their adherence to Him and on the other hand of not knowing the weakness of the flesh.