top of page

Jesus Predicts Peter’s Denial

​

John 13: 31-38

 

“When he was gone, Jesus said, “Now the Son of Man is glorified and God is glorified in him.  If God is glorified in him, God will glorify the Son in himself, and will glorify him at once.

 

“My children, I will be with you only a little longer. You will look for me, and just as I told the Jews, so I tell you now: Where I am going, you cannot come.

 

“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.  By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

 

Simon Peter asked him, “Lord, where are you going?”

 

Jesus replied, “Where I am going, you cannot follow now, but you will follow later.”

 

Peter asked, “Lord, why can’t I follow you now? I will lay down my life for you.”

 

Then Jesus answered, “Will you really lay down your life for me? Very truly I tell you, before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times!”

 

Peter’s First Denial

 

John 18:15-18

 

“Simon Peter and another disciple were following Jesus. Because this disciple was known to the high priest, he went with Jesus into the high priest’s courtyard, but Peter had to wait outside at the door. The other disciple, who was known to the high priest, came back, spoke to the servant girl on duty there and brought Peter in.

 

“You aren’t one of this man’s disciples too, are you?” she asked Peter.

 

He replied, “I am not.”

 

It was cold, and the servants and officials stood around a fire they had made to keep warm. Peter also was standing with them, warming himself.”

 

Peter’s Second and Third Denials

 

John 18:25-27

 

“Meanwhile, Simon Peter was still standing there warming himself. So they asked him, “You aren’t one of his disciples too, are you?”

 

He denied it, saying, “I am not.”

 

One of the high priest’s servants, a relative of the man whose ear Peter had cut off, challenged him, “Didn’t I see you with him in the garden?”  Again Peter denied it, and at that moment a rooster began to crow.

 

Jesus Reinstates Peter

 

John 21:5-19

 

“When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?”

 

“Yes, Lord,” he said, “you know that I love you.”

 

Jesus said, “Feed my lambs.”

 

Again Jesus said, “Simon son of John, do you love me?”

 

He answered, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.”

 

Jesus said, “Take care of my sheep.”

 

The third time he said to him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?”

 

Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, “Do you love me?” He said, “Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you.”

 

Jesus said, “Feed my sheep. 18 Very truly I tell you, when you were younger you dressed yourself and went where you wanted; but when you are old you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go.” 19 Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. Then he said to him, “Follow me!”

 

*******

 

I am doing something a bit different today and skipping forward a bit.  The reason for this is because the passage about Peter’s denials seems to go hand in hand with Judas’ betrayal at first.  However, when you look at the final outcome of their lives, Peter’s denials are in contrast to Judas’ betrayal.

 

In the previous section, Judas had already plotted to betray Jesus and had now just left to fulfill his plot.  Jesus, knowing that the time is short, has some parting things to say to his disciples.  There are 3 different topics here:

  1. “Now the Son of Man is glorified and God is glorified in him.  If God is glorified in him, God will glorify the Son in himself, and will glorify him at once.”

    • This is said to give them the assurance that what is about to happen to him is for the glory of God.

  2. “My children, I will be with you only a little longer. You will look for me, and just as I told the Jews, so I tell you now: Where I am going, you cannot come.”

    • This is said to assure them that they will not be following him unto death.

  3. “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.  By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

    • Jesus goes above and beyond the golden rule.We find the golden rule for the first time in Leviticus 19:18, “ as self.”Jesus affirmed this as the second most important commandment in Matthew 22:39 “And the second is like it: ‘ as self.’

    • Now Jesus is giving a new command.Not to just love your neighbor as yourself, but to love your fellow believers as Jesus has loved you.

    • In the last section, we learned that Judas was not rooted in Jesus.Judas was rooted in greed and in the politics of his sect.

    • Now, Jesus is commanding his disciples to love one another as he loved them.That is only possible if you are rooted in Jesus.

    • Now this is not a new suggestion, or a new idea, or a new possibility, or a new life-option, but a new commandment.

    • This commandment goes beyond the golden rule.This commandment demands that you love your fellow Christians MORE than you love yourself.

    • In John 13:1-17, we just learned an example of how Jesus loved his disciples – by being a servant to them. When we love others as Jesus love, we do the following:

      • Lay aside status.

        1. That means that we throw away notions of hierarchy.

      • Engage in practical deeds of helpfulness.

        1. That means that we look for things to do for others.

 

Now, curiosity gets the best of Peter and he blurts out:

 

“Lord, where are you going?”

 

Jesus replied, “Where I am going, you cannot follow now, but you will follow later.”

 

Jesus is way ahead of Peter.  He does not want Peter to follow him to martyrdom now because Peter will be instrumental in spreading the gospel.  But Jesus knows in advance what is going to happen to Peter and so he says, “You will follow later.”

 

(Impulsively), Peter asked, “Lord, why can’t I follow you now? I will lay down my life for you.”

 

Then Jesus answered, “Will you really lay down your life for me? Very truly I tell you, before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times!

 

So, Peter is going to disown Jesus 3 times in the next few hours.

 

“Simon Peter and another disciple were following Jesus. Because this disciple was known to the high priest, he went with Jesus into the high priest’s courtyard, but Peter had to wait outside at the door. The other disciple, who was known to the high priest, came back, spoke to the servant girl on duty there and brought Peter in.

 

“You aren’t one of this man’s disciples too, are you?” she asked Peter.

 

Now, Peter is being asked this by the very servant girl that the other disciple that already identified himself to the servant girl as one of Jesus’ disciples. 

 

How could Peter successfully deny this? 

 

Peter goes in and stands by a fire to warm himself along with a bunch of servants and officials. 

 

While Simon Peter was still standing there warming himself. They asked him, “You aren’t one of his disciples too, are you?”

 

Notice that they are asking Peter in the negative.  Perhaps Peter is just denying it to go along with their hopes.  That is, they are hoping that Peter is not one of Jesus’ disciples.  But they say also. 

 

“You aren’t one of his disciples too, are you?”

 

They already know that one of Jesus’ disciples is there, and that this disciple brought Peter in.

 

One of the high priest’s servants, a relative of the man whose ear Peter had cut off, challenged him, “Didn’t I see you with him in the garden?”

 

Now how could you get more obvious than that?  Here is a guy that saw Peter cut off the ear of his relative.  How could Peter deny that he is one of Jesus’ disciples?  But he does it again. 

 

And the rooster crows.

 

What was going through Peter’s mind?  Why is he denying Jesus when it is so obvious that he is one of Jesus’ disciples? 

 

Was it the pressure of the crowd at the moment?  

 

Was he swayed by the negativity of the people around him?

 

Was Peter now afraid for his life, after he just told Jesus that he would follow him to the death, even now?

 

Was it because of doubt?

 

Which is worse? Betrayal or Denial?  Isn’t denial of Jesus just as bad as betrayal?  What do you think?

 

Yet we find that there is a big difference between Judas and Peter.  Judas continued to be self-absorbed.  Judas rooted himself in his remorse and committed suicide.  Peter, on the other hand, continued to be rooted in Jesus, despite his denials, despite the fact that Jesus died on the cross, and he continued with the other disciples. 

 

Peter raced to the tomb when he found out that Jesus was not there.  Peter was there with the rest of the disciples when Jesus appeared to them in the locked room.  Peter was there when Jesus met them at the shore. 

 

That is where Jesus affirms Peter’s faith by asking him 3 times if Peter loved him.  Peter said that he loved Jesus 3 times.  Notice that Peter denied Jesus 3 times, and now he affirms that he loves Jesus three times.  Jesus gives peter these commands:

 

“Feed my lambs.”

 

“Take care of my sheep.”

 

“Feed my sheep.”

 

And…

 

“Follow me.”

 

And follow Jesus, Peter did. 

 

Peter delivered the sermon at Pentecost.

 

Peter led in the replacement of Judas.

 

Peter held people accountable for keeping their promises in the early church.

 

Peter healed 2 cripples.

 

Peter raised Tabitha from the dead.

 

2 times Peter was arraigned before the Sanhedrin and he directly defied them.

 

Peter was led out of jail by an angel.

 

Peter saw the vision about eating ceremonial unclean animals and applied this to contribute to the outreach to the Gentiles as well as to the nature of the new covenant.

 

Peter led an evangelistic outreach to Cesarea and the surrounding area.

 

Peter opposed requiring circumcision of the Gentiles.

 

According to Galatians, Peter went to Antioch and preached there.

 

Peter presided over the church in Antioch for seven years.

 

The book of Acts records that people stood in line where Peter would walk hoping that his shadow would fall on them and they would be healed.

 

Peter spent some time in Corinth, and possibly started the church there. 

 

Peter went to Rome, preached publicly, performed many miracles, and presided over the church there for several years. 

 

Death of Peter

 

“Margherita Guarducci, who led the research leading to the rediscovery of Peter's reputed tomb in its last stages (1963–1968), concludes Peter died on 13 October AD 64 during the festivities on the occasion of the "dies imperii" of Emperor Nero.  This took place three months after the disastrous fire that destroyed Rome for which the emperor (Nero) wished to blame the Christians. This "dies imperii" (regnal day anniversary) was an important one, exactly ten years after Nero ascended to the throne, and it was 'as usual' accompanied by much bloodshed. Traditionally, Roman authorities sentenced him to death by crucifixion. In accordance with the apocryphal Acts of Peter, he was crucified head down.”

bottom of page