“Put on the spot”
By Rev. Michael Stonhouse
Meditation – Tuesday, December 13, 2022
Luke 22:54-71 (Forward, p. 45) CEV p. 1094
Jesus is in one heck of a jam, and so too is Simon Peter. Jesus has been arrested and is now being tried for His life. A lot hinges on what He says or does. As soon as He was arrested He had been bound--though with ropes or with chains we don’t know—so His actions are somewhat limited—though Herod Antipas clearly wanted Him to perform a miracle anyway. So, it is basically up to what Jesus says. (However, one has to wonder whether that would have made any difference, for one gets the sense that His accusers already had their minds made up). Nevertheless, it is noteworthy to see what Jesus did say:
Firstly, He was asked point blank whether He was the Messiah, the Christ. Even though His audience clearly would not accept any claim from Jesus to be that person, there was nothing criminal about it—at least in Jewish eyes. With the Romans, however, it would have been a far different matter!
So, what does Jesus say? He says, in generally accepted apocalyptic language, “From now on, the Son of Man will be seated at the right side of God Almighty” (verse 69). That image of Him being glorified and seated with God is taken from taken from the prophet Daniel (Daniel 7:13). Indeed, within the context of Daniel, it was clearly a claim to be the Messiah.
So, no wonder, the Sanhedrin following up with the question, “Are you the Son of God? Some have taken the title, ‘Son of Man’ to merely a common title adopted by the kings of Israel, but that is not how His questioners seem to apply it. They are asking whether Jesus has a claim to deity, as well as a claim to Messiahship.
It is here that Luke’s rendering of Jesus’ response muddies the waters a bit. He renders Jesus’ reply as “You say that I am,” which greatly puzzles us because we are told that the Sanhedrin immediately declared Him guilty of having condemned Himself by His own words. Here we are inclined to take His words literally and so to miss something of the subtlety of Middle Eastern language. Here Mark’s rendition of Jesus’ reply is most helpful in clearing up our confusion. In his gospel, Jesus simply says, “I am’, which makes it abundantly clear what Jesus was getting at. And certainly, that is
how the Sanhedrin read it. It was enough to condemn Him, even though, in all probability, it wouldn’t have made any difference with His particular audience. By and large—with very few exceptions--their minds were already made-up.
So, Jesus had been ‘put on the spot’, but in a very real sense, so too was Peter. Some commentators have suggested that Peter should not have been there in the garden of the High Priest, that he should not have placed himself in such a vulnerable or difficult position. According to them, by warming himself at the campfire of his master’s enemies, he was putting himself in grave danger, physically to be sure, but spiritually as well. These commentators suggest that there is no harm in foreseeing and avoiding temptation or in being able to assess beforehand one’s own weaknesses or vulnerabilities and taking them into account when making decisions.
But then, this puts aside Peter’s obvious love for Jesus and his quite natural concern for Jesus’ welfare. And, indeed, there is something natural, if not a bit perverse, in how we humans are drawn to scenes of danger and intrigue. And so, Peter’s actions are really not that difficult to understand.
However, once singled out, whether by his accent (as being a Galilean) or by sight, Peter was indeed in grave danger, for it the leader is arrested, what is to stop the authorities from broadening the sweep of the net and taking in a few others as well? So, in reality, it is quite understandable, that in that particular moment, fearing for his own life, that Peter would deny even knowing his Lord. And, I don’t think that he is alone in this. I’m afraid that all of us, if we are honest with ourselves, would have to admit to denying our Lord in some time of stress or danger or pressure, often, I suspect, at times far less dangerous than Peter’s. The fortunate thing in our lives, as in Peter’s, is that we can always come back to our Lord, always be forgiven and restored. But, like him, we have to allow God to do this, rather than wallow in our shame and regret and remorse as did Judas. And, I think that it is rather noteworthy that Peter did not choose to go off by himself and sulk but instead choose to still with the company of his friends and fellow believers. That, too, is where we need to be when we have been put on the spot and stumbled or failed to honour Jesus properly. Amen.
Forward notes: “But Peter said, ‘Man, I do not know what you are talking about!” At that moment, while he was still speaking, the cock crowed. The
Lord turned and looked at Peter. Then Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how he had said to him, ‘Before the cock crows today, you will deny me three times.’ And he went out and wept bitterly” (verses 60-62).
“Jesus’s prophecy comes true as Peter sits around the fire in a courtyard while the mock trial begins. Tearful, Peter wonders how he could do such a thing. He loves this man. He left everything behind to follow him. Peter has seen the miracles and signs Jesus has done, and it comes to this. Personal fear leads him to betray his friend when he needs him most.
“In middle school, I was in Girl Scouts with a girl all my friends called weird. My mother encouraged me to be nice to her, so I was. I got to know her—and liked her. She was smart and funny. We enjoyed the same music.
“One day, I overheard a girl in our troop saying I was the weird girl’s friend. I quickly corrected her. While I didn’t cry over the betrayal, the thought of that conversation still makes my cheeks burn with shame.”
Moving Forward: “When has fear been your guide? When has love?