Peter was the man who said he would never desert Jesus. Yet, not only did Peter deny he knew Him, but he did it with a stream of profanities pouring from his mouth.
"And a maid saw him again, and began to say to them that stood by, This is one of them. And he denied it again. And a little after, they that stood by said again to Peter, Surely thou art one of them. . . . But he began to curse and to swear, saying, I know not this man of whom ye speak" (Mark 14:69-71).
If you had been standing near the fire listening to Peter, you may have thought, "Is this the man who was on the Mount of Transfiguration? The one who laid hands on the sick and they recovered? The one entrusted with the keys to the kingdom? Listen to what's coming out of his mouth! How could he walk so intimately with the Lord and then blow up like this, lying, cursing and denying Him? It's all over for Peter. He might as well go back to his fishing nets. He'll never be heard of again."
Had you run to the Lord exclaiming about Peter’s cursing, He would have answered, "Yes, Peter has failed Me but I know his heart. He's going to be on a hill in a few hours, weeping and coming back to Me. In fact, he is on his way to Pentecost — to a life of ministry for Me."
"If we believe not, yet he abideth faithful: he cannot deny himself" (2 Timothy 2:13). The actual Greek reading of this verse is: "If we are faithless, yet He remains faithful." It is true that Peter was terribly unfaithful but God remained faithful and His eternal purpose in Peter's life was not thwarted. Why? Because God cannot deny who He is.
No matter what you have been through this past year, God looks on your heart. If you have a broken and contrite spirit, He will be there for you. His eternal purpose for you will not be ruined because He will see it through!
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David Wilkerson (1931 – 2011)
Founder of Times Square Church in New York City with over 100 different languages spoken in the congregation. Wilkerson wrote many powerful books such as: The Vision and Cross and the Switchblade. His ministry was prophetic as God called him to be a watchman to the Church in North America. He gave clear messages on repentance to the Church.Wilkerson also founded Teen Challenge where there are hundreds of centres for Christ-centered drug recovery and addiction recovery. He also organized and spoke at pastors gatherings in many countries where he gave prophetic strong messages to encourage pastors and leaders.
Recommends these books by David Wilkerson:
The Vision and Beyond, Prophecies Fulfilled and Still to Come by David Wilkerson
Knowing God by Name: Names of God That Bring Hope and Healing by David Wilkerson
God's Plan to Protect His People in the Coming Depression by David Wilkerson
David Wilkerson is an American Christian evangelist, most well-known for his book The Cross and the Switchblade. He is also the founder of Times Square Church in New York, an interdenominational church.
Wilkerson is well-known for these early years of his ministry to young drug addicts and gang members in New York City in the 1950s and 1960s. He co-authored a book about his work with the New York drug addicts, The Cross and the Switchblade, which became a best-seller, selling over 50 million copies in over thirty languages since it was published in 1963. The book was included among the 100 most important Christian books of the 20th century.
For over four decades, Wilkerson's ministry has included preaching, teaching and writing. He has authored over 30 books.
David Wilkerson is the founder and president of World Challenge, Inc., a nonprofit organization incorporated on September 22, 1971. Reverend Wilkerson, the author of over thirty inspirational books, is perhaps best known for his early days of ministry to young drug addicts and gang members in Manhattan, the Bronx, and Brooklyn. His story is told in The Cross and the Switchblade, a book he co-authored which became a best-seller. (The story has been read by over 50 million people in some thirty languages and 150 countries since 1963. In 1969, a motion picture of the same title was released.)
For over four decades, Reverend Wilkerson's evangelistic ministry has included preaching, teaching and writing. Throughout that time a distinctive characteristic of his work has been his direct efforts to reach the neediest members of the population with help for both body and soul. Even now, the almost 70 year-old minister often goes out alone or sometimes with an assistant to walk through the streets of New York City, along Broadway and Eighth Avenue or down 42nd Street and nearby "Crack Alley" on 41st Street. His mission is always to seek out the lost, the disoriented, and the addicted , to tell them of the power of the risen Christ to set them free.
David Wilkerson, born in Hammond, Indiana on May 19, 1931, was married in 1953 to Gwen Carosso. The Wilkersons' two sons are ministers, and their two daughters are married to ministers. They have 11 grandchildren. The Wilkersons served small pastorates in Scottsdale and Philipsburg, Pennsylvania, until Reverend Wilkerson saw a photograph in Life magazine of several New York City teenagers charged with murder. Moved with compassion he was drawn to the city in February 1959. It was at that time he began his street ministry to what one writer called "desperate, bewildered, addicted, often violent youth.