"He who conceals his transgressions will not prosper, but he who confesses and forsakes them will find compassion." Proverbs 28:13 NASB

When we sin, it is like getting mud all over a new vehicle.  The more mud you get on that vehicle, the less you can see of the vehicle itself.  You can pretend there is no mud, or I suppose you could try to paint over the mud and attempt to make your vehicle look new again.  Of course, that is silly!  Who would do that?

Confession is like washing all the mud off and revealing the new vehicle underneath.  Confession is uncovering that which is hidden.  For years, I thought unconfessed sin was basically hiding that sin.  I now realize that all I was hiding was my true self, not the sin.  The sin was pretty obvious to most of those around me.  I don't mean they knew the exact sin, but the effects of the sin could be seen.

When the forgiveness of God cleanses one of all unrighteousness, righteousness is given as a free gift.  Paul said in Romans 5:17 the believer will reign in life through Christ because they have been given the gift of grace and righteousness in abundance!  This is the person that God wants the world to see.  When we sin, we begin to cover up what is true of us.  Confession is how God reveals the newness of who we are.  When a believer confesses his/her sin, their humility in Christ is revealed to all those around them.  Not only is the confessor blessed, so are those who hear the confession.

Father, don't allow me to hide my true self because of unconfessed sin.  Thank you for your refreshing grace.  Thank you for your limitless patience toward me as I grow into the person you have already made me through Christ!  Amen!

When Jesus told Peter that he would deny Him three times, Jesus saw where Peter's flesh would fail him.  However, Jesus looked past Peter's flesh and saw his heart.  He knew what was truly in Peter's heart despite the arrogant nature of Peter's flesh.  This was a life lesson orchestrated by God Himself for Peter's greater good.  You see, flesh can be arrogant and self-protecting.  These were a part of Peter's flesh that God wanted to remove, and remove He did!

When Peter realized that Jesus was on the beach, he jumped out of the boat and swam to shore.  I don't know what Peter was thinking, but he seemed to be in a hurry to see the one he had denied just days earlier.  As Peter sat around that fire and watched Jesus and listened to him, I'm sure there was a sense of humility in Peter's heart realizing just how far he had fallen from his prideful declaration, "Even if I have to die with you, I will not deny you!"

When Jesus finally asked Peter, "Do you love me more than these," I'm sure it was like having ice cold water thrown into your face.  This is where our English fails us a little.  The form of love that Jesus used in His question was agape love.  That is the highest form of love that can be expressed.  It is a sacrificial kind of love that puts the other person first.  It is unconditional.  When Paul describes love in 1 Corinthians 13, he is describing agape love.  When Peter heard this question, I believe his denial of Jesus was a huge elephant in the room for him.  In his mind, he had already proven that he could not love Jesus in this manner.  So, when Peter said, "Yes, Lord; you know that I love You," he was using a different word to express love.  He was using the word phileo.  This is a word that expresses brotherly love, or the love between two friends.  It is not as high of an expression of love as agape.

Jesus asked Peter this question a second time and Peter answered back the same way.  However, when Jesus asked Peter this question a third time, He used the word phileo instead of agape.  Verse 17 says that Peter was grieved because Jesus asked him the third time in this manner.  I think Peter wanted to answer Jesus back boldly as he would have in the past, "Yes, Lord; You know I agape You!"  Peter, though, has now come face to face with the frailty of his flesh.  He is learning not to trust his flesh as he seemed to do before.

Even though Jesus did not say in this passage that He loved Peter, His telling Peter to "tend My lambs," "shepherd My sheep," and "tend My sheep," communicated Jesus' love for Peter more than just saying the words.  It was an expression of trust and respect that went far beyond the expression of mere words.  Not only was Jesus demonstrating to Peter how much He understood and saw his heart, He was giving an opportunity to Peter to express his love in a tangible way, beyond just saying the words.

When we have experienced our greatest failures, God has not withdrawn His love for us; nor has He withdrawn His trust in our hearts.  He sees who we truly are because He made us new, He has given us new hearts.  When we are stubbornly walking according to our flesh, we are trusting in the programming left behind by the old man that is no longer there.  When we are walking in the spirit, we are trusting God's presence in our new inner man.  We too go through times of breaking where God, like an experienced surgeon, is carefully removing the old flesh ways that don't work.  Trust Him to restore what has been destroyed with something much better, His life!

"...And he went out and wept bitterly." Matthew 26:75b NASB

We are all familiar with this story of Peter and how he denied Jesus three times.  I think we normally attribute fear and self preservation to some of the main reasons for Peter's denial.  I'm not saying these internal motivations were not present, but I want to consider some other internal struggles I believe Peter had.

Peter was recognized as being the bolder disciple of the twelve.  He was the one who walked on the water (briefly) when Jesus bid him come.  Peter was the one who drew his sword in the garden.  Peter was the one who boldly proclaimed that he believed Jesus was the Christ.  In other words, fear was not a normal characteristic of Peter.  I don't believe fear was the biggest motivation for Peter's denial of Jesus.

Peter, along with the other disciples, believed the messiah was going to be the conquering hero to set the Jewish people free from the oppressive Romans.  They were looking for a messiah to make their earthly lives more comfortable.  Jesus never taught them that this was his purpose, but this is the case of tradition and culture being incorporated into truth.  When Peter drew his sword in the garden, I believe he expected Jesus to support his action.  When Jesus stopped any further bloodshed and willingly allowed himself to be taken, this probably devastated Peter.  All of a sudden, his false beliefs about the messiah and the truth of the moment clashed in his heart.

When he was confronted as to whether he was associated with this Jesus, he denied Jesus three times, just as Jesus said he would.  In some ways, at that moment he was being truthful with his answer.  He did not know this version of the man with whom he had spent the last three years.  Of course I still believe fear and self preservation were present also, but Peter was wrestling with something much deeper.  When he heard the rooster crow, he remembered that conversation with Jesus and that just further complicated the struggle within.

Peter came face to face with his need for a savior.  A man of vision and strength realized how frail he truly was.  We all must come to this same place in our own lives.  We must realize apart from Christ, we can do nothing.  We cannot love, forgive, serve, know peace and joy, show mercy, etc... without the abiding presence of Christ within us.  We will all go through times of brokenness where we too will come face to face with our humanity.  At those times, we might weep bitterly also.  These can be refreshing times if we don't get stuck in that moment.

Father, thank you for the times of brokenness in my life that remind me of who you truly are and who I am in you.

"There is a way which seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death." Proverbs 14:12 NASB

Life and death are huge themes throughout the Bible.  Death is the absence of life.  In this scripture, death is not referring to the body ceasing to function.  It is referring to the outcome of our thoughts, intentions, attitudes, and actions.  When God created man, He gave man life.  That life ceased when man decided to take his life in his own hands.  This proverb states this truth.  For Adam and Eve, eating the forbidden fruit seemed like the right thing to do, but, as we know, it was not!

There is a popular and prevalent belief among believers I believe leads to death; that is, death in our Christian walk.  It is the belief that now that Christ has saved me from my sins and has forgiven me, I should serve Him as thanks for that undeserved gift.  A part of that same idea is that God now expects us to live the Christian life for Him.  As popular as this belief may be, it is unbiblical.  Romans 6:23 says, "For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord."  This verse was written to believers.  When we are trying to live the Christian life our way, we are seeing flesh at its best.  Flesh cannot accomplish God's way.  There are two words that stand out in this Romans verse, "wages" and "gift."  Wages are given when something is earned; a gift is given by reasons only known by the giver.  A gift is not earned.

Are you trying to earn your salvation?  Most Baptist will give the Sunday School answer, "NO, of course I can't earn my salvation!"  But, when you work or serve as a believer because you have a sense that God will be disappointed in you if you don't, that is still trying to earn your salvation or at least prove it.  This Proverbs verse says that "our" way leads to death.  Solomon is not just talking about bad choices or wrong decisions, he is talking about any choice or decision we make that is based on "our" plan.

God has a way that leads to life.  His way is a way of trust and surrender.  Out of that trust and surrender will be a choice of obedience.  What will that lead to?  It will lead to you and me experiencing the most amazing life anyone could ever dream or imagine.  That life is simply to know "the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom He has sent." (John 17:3)

Thank you Father for your way that leads to life!

"For what is a man profited if he gains the whole world, and loses or forfeits himself?" Luke 9:25 NASB

I believe the three biggest achievements in this world are wealth, fame, and power.  History is replete with examples of men and women who attained one or all of these.  The common person who has not experienced wealth, fame, or power will hold out hope that they can get there eventually, even if their life is in shambles now.  However, there is instance after instance of people who have attained these platitudes and eventually ended their life.

If wealth, fame, or power is the ultimate achievements, why were these souls in despair?  I believe we are all born with an emptiness that only God can fill with His presence.  The natural course of anyone's life is to pursue the best the world has to offer in order to fill this emptiness.  God, however, is asking us to abandon the natural course and trust Him for life.  He can give us far more than we can ever dream of or hope for!

Father, thank you for your life.  I pray that I let go of all that hinders me from experiencing your life today.