Living Fearless

 Matt 26:35
Peter said unto him, Though I should die with thee, yet will I not deny thee.

Bold words from the mouth of Peter. I believe he meant it with all of his heart. That was Peter’s personality. He was not afraid to step out. He was the one who stepped out of the boat into the water when Jesus called out to Him. He was the one who drew out his sword and whacked off the ear of Malchus, a servant of the high priest. Impetuous, acting quickly and without thought or care of the consequences. Here he is again, in the heat of the moment, speaking out without really thinking. Jesus, who knows our hearts better than we do, looks at Peter with a heart of compassion and says, “Peter, before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me three times”. What a blow that must have been for Peter, but when the rubber hit the road, Peter gave in to his fears. Our humanity is so prone towards self-preservation. When the going gets tough, we take the road of least resistance. This proneness is made more evident without the help of the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit. We see a different Peter after Pentecost. Peter at Pentecost experienced the power of the Holy Spirit in His fullness.  (Then Peter, filled with the Holy Ghost…Acts 4:8)   Filled with the fire of God, Peter’s fear was gone as he spoke with boldness about Jesus. As newborn Christians, we have become a follower of Jesus, and the Holy Spirit is with us, guiding us into all truth. The Holy Spirit will lead us to a place of full surrender. To a place where we give everything to God and allow the Holy Spirit to remove the proneness to sin. Being filled with the Holy Spirit does not dehumanize us, but it does empower us to live victorious and fearless where we are not ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ. When we are tempted to fear, we can stand up to our adversary and truly say, "Though I should die, I will not forsake my God.”