Following at a Distance

Following at a Distance

Words of Faith 1-30-19

Dr. Jeffrey D. Hoy © 2019

Jeff.Hoy@faithfellowshipweb.com

Faith Fellowship Church - Melbourne, FL

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Luke 22:54-62

    Then seizing him, they led him away and took him into the house of the high priest. Peter followed at a distance. [55] But when they had kindled a fire in the middle of the courtyard and had sat down together, Peter sat down with them. [56] A servant girl saw him seated there in the firelight. She looked closely at him and said, "This man was with him."

    [57] But he denied it. "Woman, I don't know him," he said.

    [58] A little later someone else saw him and said, "You also are one of them."

    "Man, I am not!" Peter replied.

    [59] About an hour later another asserted, "Certainly this fellow was with him, for he is a Galilean."

    [60] Peter replied, "Man, I don't know what you're talking about!" Just as he was speaking, the rooster crowed. [61] The Lord turned and looked straight at Peter. Then Peter remembered the word the Lord had spoken to him: "Before the rooster crows today, you will disown me three times." [62] And he went outside and wept bitterly.

        As a Christian believer, there is little that could be more horrifying than the realization that one has actually denied Christ. It had to have been a startling moment when the rooster crowed, and Peter realized what had actually happened within the course of just a few hours. 

       Peter wept bitterly when that moment came, and he was suddenly forced to remember that though he had pledged to follow Jesus no matter what, even unto prison and death, now, he had just heard the words of denial come from his own mouth. 

       How did Peter get here in just a matter of hours?  If we look at the process of Peter's denial, we discover how even the strongest of believers can find themselves in a place of denial.  We will do that for a few days.

        Let's face it.  No Christ follower ever sets out to deny Christ. And yet, there are those who do so. The story of Peter teaches us that the even those with the best of intentions, the strongest of will, the greatest resolve, and the closest walk imaginable with the Lord, can fall away.  The account of Peter is a warning.  We have but to recall the news stories of recent years to realize that Christian leaders in the highest and most trusted of places can fall and deny Christ in their actions or their words, or both.

      But we can learn. We can be on guard.  Denial is by no means a foregone conclusion in the Christian life, but we would be foolish to think we cannot fall. If Peter could fall so far after walking so closely with the Lord, then surely we can fall.  Peter fell within a matter of four to six hours.  The sobering truth here is that any one of us could be in a state of denying Christ within four to six hours.

         Just what is at stake here?  Jesus said, "Whoever acknowledges me before men, I will also acknowledge him before my Father in heaven.  But whoever disowns (denies) me before men, I will disown (deny) him before my Father in heaven" (Matthew 10:32).

        Denying Christ by word or deed is not an unforgivable sin, Peter is proof of that, but it is undoubtedly a place of spiritual peril.  We have a great example here in Peter showing us that we can fall and even deny Him, and still be restored when there is genuine repentance.  But don't miss the serious nature of this place in our spiritual life.

         Let us examine how this happened. Peter made certain decisions that would lead him to the point of denial. It started just after the arrest when "Peter followed at a distance."

         There were two good choices here.  One was to go into fervent prayer drawing very near to the Father as Jesus had taught him. The other was to go with Jesus saying, "If you take Him, then you take me.  Where He goes, I go.  If the whip falls upon His back, it shall fall upon mine.  If you are going to pull out His beard, then you must pull out mine first."  Instead, Peter went a third way-- he followed at a distance.  

          We must also realize that Peter dying with Jesus at this particular time did not fit the plan of God. In the bigger picture, it was not time for Peter to be crucified.  Peter was destined to preach the great sermon at Pentecost, lead the Jerusalem Church and navigate the early years of the faith.  And if Peter had stood with Jesus, He was very capable of intervening on behalf of Peter.  In fact, Jesus had already intervened to prevent Peter from being taken into custody by healing the wounded servant Malchus.

          When the arrest came, Peter failed to go with Jesus.  A faith response from Peter might have included offering to die with Jesus, trusting that if Jesus did not desire this, He would intervene.  Instead, Peter "followed at a distance". This may well be the most significant error that we make as Christians-- choosing to follow, but at a distance.

          Following Jesus at a distance is a trap in any age, but this seems to be a common malady in modern Christian culture. There is a tendency today to follow Jesus, but not too closely.  We want to be part of the group, but not too closely identified.  We may want to get our names on the rolls just in case, but until we really have a problem or a crisis, we would prefer to keep our distance.

         Anonymous worship venues are popular these days.  The problem is that when Jesus really needs us, we are ripe for denial.  No refining has taken place and whatever we hoped we would gain from being in the crowd near Jesus is lost.  The truth is that when we follow Jesus distantly, we probably will not follow long.

         When we follow at a distance, we are not walking close to Him.  We are not standing to be counted.  We are not identified with Him.  We are not focused on Him or tuned into His voice.  We are easily distracted by the world. We are easily lost in the distance. We cannot hear His cry for our help or the cry of His heart. When we follow from a distance, we are vulnerable to the fear of ridicule and the embarrassment of identification.  We are susceptible to divide against others in the crowd.

           Don't misunderstand.  This would make a great "go to church more" sermon. We could preach at length about how "You should be at church a lot so that you will not be following at a distance."  But the truth is we can be at church all the time and still not be walking closely with Christ.  We can be immersed in the activity of the church and still be following at quite a distance. So we should not fool ourselves on that account.  Many of the great leaders who have denied Christ in their words or deeds have done so while deeply immersed in the work of the church.

          Following closely means walking closely, personally and daily with Jesus.  This is the first step in averting denial.

         Lord Jesus, forgive me the times that I have followed You at a distance.  Draw me near to You that I may walk closely with You.  Give me strength and courage to stand up and be counted even if at a great price.  I trust in You.  You are my rock and my fortress.  In Jesus' name.