Mark 14-15:47

by Monique

Wow…. The more and more I look into this passage the more my heart is changed and I become more and more thankful for the beauty of the sacrifice of God’s love for us, but on the other hand I know I will never grasp the true extent of the selfless sacrifice that Jesus made when he came to Earth as one of us, I don’t think anyone could truly grasp how it would have been to endure the agony, suffering, betrayal and loneliness and the mocking chants of the crowds. Sometimes I neglect to remember that Jesus was divine yes, but he was also human, he was perfectly human.

I wonder how he must’ve felt when he knew Peter would disown him, I bet Peter was shocked, he loved Jesus and he was deeply devoted to him (he definitely wasn’t just a fan). But when the time came for Peter to proclaim the name of Jesus and to declare his love for him to this woman, he failed, he denied it in a way that you couldn’t take as a misunderstanding but he clearly said “I don’t know what you are talking about” (14:68) Then the Rooster crowed as Jesus had spoken of earlier and our friend Peter broke down and wept. I wonder how Peter must have felt when he realised what he had done. To have so much determination to never let Jesus down and having been pre warned about it but to still deny him.

This raises up such a challenge in my life, my heart aches when I think of the many times I as a follower of Christ have denied him, when people have talked about me being religious I haven’t jumped up and said “ I am a follower of Christ” and continued to talk about my Jesus, I simply shrugged it off. So reading of the agony and suffering of Jesus on the cross I sit here and ponder about what it cost him so I could live. I think of the painful sacrifice he made for us, and I find it hard to wonder why I would ever not boast about my Jesus? Why I would not be excited to explain why I’m not simply religious, but a Follower of Christ, a follower of a divine human who loved us so deeply he gave his life on the Cross so we could be rescued, so the world could be rescued. For I know that although I deny him he will never relent, he will never give up on me, he is unconditional on all matters regarding the heart.

So I guess the challenge for myself and anyone else who’s the same is will we sacrifice popularity and what the world thinks of us “religious folks” and speak up when given the opportunity, speak of the Love God has for the people we encounter and try not to deny Gods voice but listen and respond in love as Jesus did? It seems a small sacrifice when I sit here and think about it and I suddenly realise it seems insane to not do it when compared to the sacrifice that was made for us the day the veil was torn.