I would never, ever suggest that I am anything but a true blue follower of Jesus Christ. I would never hesitate; if someone said, “you sound like a hick. I bet your one of those Jesus-following disciples,” I draw myself up straight, look them in the eye and say, “you betcha.”

It wouldn’t make a bit of difference if I was sitting next to armed commandos, hands on their weapons, ready to lash out at the first sign of Jesus-ness. It wouldn’t make a bit of difference if I knew that right through that doorway, Jesus was sitting. It wouldn’t make any difference at all to know that Jesus had been surrounded by soldiers when he was talking through that door. It wouldn’t make any difference to know that I had sliced the ear off the servant of the leader these soldiers were helping.

I would still stand up straight, look them in the eye….and do what Peter did.

So would most of you.

Peter’s big sin wasn’t denying Jesus to the soldiers. That makes sense. He didn’t after all, have the power of the Holy Spirit working in him.

Peter’s  big sin was denying Jesus…to Jesus.

He had told Jesus he was smarter than Jesus.

Peter had said, in essence, that he knew himself better than the smartest person who ever lived knew him, better than the person who could see into his heart knew him, better than the one who had created his passion and his work ethic and his fishing ability and had placed him in Galilee by a lake, to fish there until he walked by one day and said, “come with me.”

Peter’s big sin was believing that his courage was big enough to face anything.

And his tears? Realizing that he was wrong.