JESUS AND PETER - The Gospel of Ten Thousand Chances

Have you ever felt like you failed God in the worst possible way, and that He has already given up on you? Like you are a total mess? I have felt that way.

The disciples went through the exact same thing. They had fled in terror when the Master was arrested. And Peter—who had sworn with absolute confidence that he would go with Jesus even unto death—ended up denying that he even knew Him.

Then Peter began to curse and swear: "I do not know this man of whom you speak!"

Mark 14:71

Can you imagine saying that about the Lord Jesus Himself? All the disciples—especially Peter—had hit rock bottom.

While the disciples were hiding in fear inside a locked room, several women who deeply loved Jesus went to the tomb to anoint His body with spices. They just couldn't let Him go. What a faithful kind of love and devotion! Nowhere do we read the disciples saying: "We fled the scene, we denied Him, and our souls ache. But at least let's go to the tomb to pay our respects."

When the women arrived and saw the massive stone rolled away and a young man dressed in white, they were filled with fear. But the angel reassured them:

And he said to them, "Do not be alarmed. You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has risen; He is not here. Look at the place where they laid Him."

Mark 16:6

Jesus has risen!

Our life in Christ rests completely upon this fact. The ultimate proof that He was God is that the grave could not hold Him. He paid the ransom price for our faults, and that is why He was able to conquer death. Everything is well between God and us because Jesus lives!

But the angel had one more personal message:

“Go, tell His disciples—and Peter...”

Mark 16:7

Let’s pause on this wonderful detail: "Tell the disciples and Peter." Why did the angel specifically name Peter? Why didn’t he simply say: "Tell the disciples"?

Jesus wanted to send a direct message straight to Peter's heart that said: "Peter, I am not done with you yet."

Praise be to the Lord! No matter how gravely we have failed, His love never fades. His faithfulness and mercy are eternal. How many tears of deep joy Peter must have shed when the women delivered this beautiful message to him!

What truly draws us to love God is not some cold mandate like "you have to love me by force"—it is His incomprehensible mercy!

Doesn't that sound wonderful? God loves fresh starts with us.

I firmly believe that what sustains us as children of God until the end of the road is made up of TEN THOUSAND CHANCES. It means saying over and over again with humility: "Lord, I failed You. I did something I knew wasn't right. I repent, and I will do my absolute best not to fail You that way again."

Perhaps, just like me, you grew up in rigid religious environments where you were taught that God was ready to strike you down at your very first misstep. No, it is not like that! We love Jesus because He first loved us. He has a covenant of love with us, a covenant of mercy, and His decision is not to throw us in the trash. With affection, He tells us: "Come on, get up. I'll dust you off. Hold My hand a little tighter now, and let's keep walking."

I think we are all Peter in one way or another. We have failed, we have made mistakes, we have stumbled many times.

If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

1 John 1:9

Take heart today! It is very possible that the enemy is using a false voice of "holiness" to whisper to your mind: "Look, God is holy, but you ruined it so badly that there's no hope for you." That is not the voice of the Holy Spirit; that is the voice of Satan, the great liar. The Lord is full of mercy!

Come on, shake it off, get up, and keep moving forward! Lift your hands, praise the Lord, and go right back to doing what He called you to do! Enough with the mourning. Jesus lives, loves you deeply, and wants to see you well!