Welcome to the Daily Deciple Podcast, where we seek daily to be with and to become like Jesus, our teacher. Welcome to the Together on Mission Podcasts Travis, and we're going to talk about a moment in the life of Peter. And really a moment in life of John too, but mainly Peter because there's a contrast. And of course, John, the author of the Gospel, is very into contrasts.
And here he kind of contrasts what John, what he did, and what Peter did on Resurrection Morning. And this story just really stood out to me this morning as I was reading the Gospel of John. And I think the title of the podcast is going to be Go Straight In. Just Go Straight In.
And what hit me this morning as I was reading the story is that there's an area in my life where I feel like I'm hesitating a bit, kind of pausing and observing instead of just risking and going straight in. And I was asking myself the question, the morning Travis, why are you hesitating? Like this is a moment, a thing, a relationship, an area, an issue that actually matters so much. So why hesitate in this moment that actually matters so much?
Why not just go straight in? And I was as I was reading the story this morning that just kind of hit me. And I felt like what Peter did was an example to me. And maybe an example to you, is there a moment, a relationship, an area in your life that matters a lot?
And are you perhaps hesitating? And why do we hesitate in moments that actually matter most? So great story. This is John Chapter 20 beginning in verse 3, Mary Magdalene encounters Jesus at the tomb.
She runs and she tells Peter and John and the other disciples. And so Peter and John start running to the tomb. And we pick up reading, the other disciple John outran Peter and reached the tomb first. He bent over and he looked in, but he did not go in.
And that hit me when I was reading that this morning. He got there first, he bent over, he looked in, but he did not go in. Then the text says, Simon Peter came along behind him and went straight into the tomb. He went straight in.
He didn't hesitate. He just went straight in. In a moment that mattered most, he just went straight in. John gets there first but he pauses, Peter gets there second, he goes straight in.
Right, one observe, so I'm going to observe. I'm going to observe. I'm going to play it, save. I'm going to pause.
I'm going to ask in too harsh of a way because when we're in graveyards and it's not yet light and there's an opening or the stone is rolled away, I don't think we're in the habit of just going into the tomb without thinking. But Peter did that. This was where his rabbi was buried. And it was a moment that mattered.
John observed, John paused, John thought, Peter steps right in. And I find this to be a very powerful moment as well because this is right on the heels of Peter failing and denying Jesus not once, not twice, but three times. Peter had just backed away, if you will. In fear he had just backed away and now resurrection morning he gets beat to the tomb but as soon as he gets there, he's not going to observe.
He's not going to play it safe. He's not going to hesitate. He goes right in. And I think this really has a way of speaking into our lives.
Maybe you're thinking about that conversation but you haven't picked up the phone or you haven't gone up to the person that you need to have that conversation with. Maybe you feel prompted to apologize but you've got to swallow your pride and you're rehearsing it in your head and instead of just taking action and fumbling through that apology that you and I don't want to give. Maybe you know that God is inviting you into something deeper but we're just circling around it and pausing and hesitating instead of stepping into it. Maybe there's something that needs to be done but it's risky.
It's costly. It could be misunderstood. So we're just pondering it, putting it off. Kind of like John, he got to the tomb first and he watched and he looked and he thought and he hesitated.
He gets there second but dives right in. Where are you hesitating? Where am I hesitating? In a moment, in a relationship, in an endeavor that really, really matters.
And of course we tell ourselves, right? How many John was telling himself, well I'm being wise. I'm being prudent. It's dark in there.
Let's give it a moment. We tell ourselves that we're being wise when we hesitate but often we're just justifying the fact that we're hesitating because we're scared or we're insecure or we're afraid of the consequences or whatever it might be. Because usually when we just go straight in, there is a cost. But are we willing to count that cost in order to live that way?
Because the way that Peter lives in this story is stirring. It's powerful. It's deep. It's vulnerable.
It's risky. It's edgy. It's the kind of living that produces breakthroughs in our lives and breakthroughs in our relationship. It's the kind of living that brings change into our world.
It's the kind of living that I think brings healing and revelation. And Peter shows us something I think incredibly powerful. Right? Well, I mean, first of all, going back to Peter's Blender the day before you don't need a clean track record to move forward.
It's not like you need to have all your ducks in a row. It's not like we need to know that we're going to do a good job. It's not that we have to feel all great about ourselves. We don't need clarity to take that next step.
We don't even need confidence. I'm not even sure that Sir Peter was confident to go all in. He just wanted to move toward Jesus. And I think part of what this story is saying is that to move toward Jesus, we do have to move toward the unknown.
To move toward Jesus, we have to move toward the conversation that we don't know we're ready to have. To move toward Jesus, we have to move toward that vulnerability and repenting when we really don't want to. To move toward Jesus, we have to move toward risking in order to say that or do that or play that or whatever it might be. And it might mean saying the thing that we've been avoiding.
Just say it honestly and say it humbly and just say it or taking that small step instead of waiting for the big one that we're all waiting for. You know, when everything lines up, just moving toward Jesus and not overthinking it or over spiritualizing it or blaming anybody else or waiting on someone else to do it. And I don't want to read too much into the story, but John gets there first. He stops.
He waits. Maybe for Peter, I'm not going into that tomb. I'm sure Peter will. You know, are we waiting on someone else to do what we're called to do?
I mean, we got there first. Let's just do it. Let's just say it. But even if we didn't get there first, let's follow in the footsteps of Peter instead of hesitating, instead of thinking, instead of overthinking, instead of waiting till we're fully confident instead of waiting till we know there's not going to be consequences, let's just go all in.
Let's step into it because understanding that we want the understanding, we want the healing that we want. The clarity that we want often is on the other side of just going straight into the tomb. So I think as daily disciples, well, I know what God's doing with me through this story this morning is Travis, don't stand there analyzing. Don't stand there observing.
Don't stand there judging. Don't stand there blaming. Don't stand there waiting for someone else to do it. Just go straight in.
Just go straight into that conversation, straight into that difficult situation, straight into that vulnerable repentance, straight into that, whatever that tomb might be. Let's stop hesitating and just go straight in and we'll talk soon. Thanks for listening to the Daily Decycle Podcast. We truly hope that you were encouraged by it today.
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