'Watching by the Fire from Far Away' - Mark 14:53-54

[The soldiers and Temple guards who arrested Jesus, took him] to the high priest's home where the leading priests, the elders, and the teachers of religious law had gathered. Meanwhile, Peter followed him at a distance and went right into the high priest's courtyard. There he sat with the guards, warming himself by the fire.

—Mark 14:53-54 NLT

Key Thought​

Jesus was brought before the leaders of the Jewish people, but Peter — the leader of Jesus' followers — stayed at a cowardly distance sneaking around trying to watch the proceedings. While Jesus faced the cold ridicule of those in power, Jesus' self-proclaimed loyal follower warmed himself at a fire in the company of those put in charge of the Son of God's torture. While it all seems so despicable from the safety of our distance of two thousand years, if we are honest, most of us have done the same thing. When Jesus, his cause, or his Kingdom is maligned, we sometimes pull back from the discussion, hang back, and try to be unnoticeable.

Today's Prayer​

Father, give me wisdom to know how to stand up for your truth, your Son, and your will without alienating others. Also, dear Father, help me to never back down in my spoken faith because I am afraid. I want to be wise and courageous in my loyalty to your Son. In Jesus' name, I pray. Amen.

Related Scripture Readings​

• Mark 8:34-37
• Romans 1:16-17
• 2 Timothy 1:12

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[Rizakar]

Peter had cut off the ear of the soldier and had seen Jesus heal him and he had been rebuked and was right in the middle of finding out how really low he could go in denying Christ three times but fear and confusion and a false pride could cause anyone to do the same and I personally identify with the man completely and know he suffered from a broken heart in so many ways because when Christ was so kind to restore Peter you can clearly hear how he was suffering.

 

[Steven Bobb]

Peter had cut off the ear of the soldier and had seen Jesus heal him and he had been rebuked and was right in the middle of finding out how really low he could go in denying Christ three times but fear and confusion and a false pride could cause anyone to do the same and I personally identify with the man completely and know he suffered from a broken heart in so many ways because when Christ was so kind to restore Peter you can clearly hear how he was suffering.

I could identify with Peter in a few ways, one, how he blurts things out thinking something is a certain way, then finds himself in a fix;how he walked on the water until he looked at the waves, then began to sink:I guess we all share some traits with some of the apostles. The ones who vote for Democrats would be Judas because they hand us over to those who would pass laws against us, like labeling witnessing as hate speech, or blacklisting a baker who doesn't bake a cake for a gay wedding.Much like Judas betraying Jesus to his enemies.Similarities can be found in different situations and people many times.