The Bible says, ‘Peter remembered the word of the Lord…“Before the rooster crows, you will deny Me three times.” So Peter went out and wept bitterly’ (vv. 61-62 NKJV). What is it that saves us? Our good works? No, it’s our faith in Christ. ‘By grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast’ (Ephesians 2:8-9 KJV). Now you understand the words of Christ to Peter: ‘I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail’ (Luke 22:32 NKJV). When you have faith in Christ, you can bounce back. When it comes to God’s grace, there is no statute of limitations. Peter denied Jesus not once but repeatedly. Perhaps that’s your story too! This wasn’t a moment that Peter would be proud of but an experience he would grow stronger as a result of. When someone fails badly, we say that they ‘crash and burn’. And when something is burned, all that’s left is ashes. But we serve a God of restoration who gives ‘beauty for ashes’ (see Isaiah 61:3). If you had seen Peter swearing that he didn’t know the Lord, would you have picked him to be your church leader? God did. He made him the head of the New Testament church. We tell people, ‘Don’t get into messes’ and ‘Don’t sin’. And that’s good advice – God doesn’t want us sinning. But we should really say, ‘Don’t walk headfirst into sin when you know better. But when you fail, as you surely will, turn to God and He will restore you and use your failure to strengthen you.’
