by Dan Nichols
The Restoration Herald - Jul 2026
Mark 8:27-29: The Assertion of Faith — Peter did not follow the crowd’s perception of Jesus. They viewed Jesus as one of the great prophets of Israel’s history. To be named alongside John and Elijah would have been a great honor. It would be like having your preacher listed with some of the well-known evangelists in the brotherhood, but Peter did not equate Jesus with the greats; he named Him as the greatest—The Christ. Jesus is the Promised One, fulfilling the prophecies of old, filling the roles of those anointed: prophet, priest, and king.
There were times when the apostles recognized the greatness of Jesus. Before this event, when Jesus calmed the raging sea, they proclaimed Him to be God’s Son (Matthew 14:33). They would have witnessed the cast-out demons declare that Jesus was the Christ (Luke 4:11). However, in the quietness of the moment, with no healing or other miracle to move a faith confession, Peter considered all he had seen and heard and asserted that Jesus is the Christ.
It is easy to look at Jesus for who He is when things are tough, when we need help, when we feel guilty. But in the calm moments, do we still assert a faith in Him being the Christ, to whom we will proudly proclaim allegiance?
Luke 22:31-34: The Assertion of Loyalty — Jesus told Peter his faith would be pushed to the limit. The devil had set his sights on Peter, but the Lord backed Peter with prayer. Notice that Jesus realized Peter’s faith would bend, but it would not break. We can face some moments that would crush our faith. Satan would love nothing better than to see a saint walk away, yet we have the Lord’s support as well (see Hebrews 7:25).
Peter responded with an assertion of loyalty. While such an assertion is good, it is not so here. Peter dismissed Jesus’s evaluation of him. He proclaimed that he was not like the other apostles; he would go with Jesus all the way, no matter the cost. It was not the first time Peter was so audacious (see Matthew 16:21-23). Jesus informed Peter that in less than twelve hours, Peter would deny Him three times.
Have we ever acted like Peter? We look at other Christians and think, “I would never do that, say those words, or react in that fashion.” Yet we have all faltered at times. Heed Jesus’s words of encouragement to Peter: your loyalty will return with repentance to the encouragement of others.
John 18:25-27: The Assertion of Denial — As Peter warmed himself before the charcoal fire, his faith and loyalty were again challenged. At the entry into the courtyard, he had denied being a follower of Jesus. Another individual by the fire is certain Peter is a disciple, which Peter denied again. The third person, whose relative Peter had left an impression on, was certain he had seen Peter with Jesus during the arrest. Peter rejected that story. Matthew shares how Peter colorfully asserted no affiliation with the Lord (26:74). Then, as Jesus pronounced, the rooster crowed.
It is easy when we are with brothers and sisters in Christ to assert our faith and loyalty to the Lord, but when we are out in the world of darkness, whether it be within the workplace, at a restaurant, in arenas of entertainment, or among family and friends who are not Christians, does the light of Christ begin to dim within us?
John 21:15-17: The Assertion of Love — We come to the seashore. During the forty days between resurrection and ascension, Peter had seen the Lord several times. It was after breakfast that Jesus pulled Peter aside and asked if he loved Him. Three times, Peter responded in the affirmative. The first two times Jesus used the word agapao, with Peter responding with another form of love, phileo. The third time, Jesus used Peter’s word, which Peter echoed back.
Agape is often touted as the greatest love, but would Jesus have asked Peter for a lesser love? Agape is a love of the will (a have to), while Peter responded and Jesus accepted phileo, a love of the heart (a want to). Peter did not want the Lord to think he was forced to love Him, but from the depths of his heart, he was moved with deep compassion for Him.
Jesus accepted Peter’s love and challenged him to nourish and take care of the Lord’s flock. Peter accepted this role and passed it on to the elders (see 1 Peter 5:1-3).
When Jesus first asked Peter about his love for Him, He prefaced it with “more than these?” Is it a comparison with the disciples, or was it about the joy of fishing? What about our love for the Lord? Do we love Him more than the things of the world? Does he have all your love?
Churches associated with the 19th-century Restoration Movement[1] are once again on the precipice of a doctrinal split. In some ways, the split is practically an accomplished fact. No one has intended to cause or participate in such a split, but it is happening nonetheless.
[1]This article addresses an issue primarily affecting what J. D. Murch (Christians Only) described as the center of the Restoration Movement, i.e., those congregations referring to themselves in general as Christian Churches and Churches of Christ.
Jesus gave us the beatitudes in his Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5:3-10). The keyword here is “attitudes.” What attitudes in this teaching from Christ can we employ in our marriages?
In our Sunday School class, we have recently been studying the book of Hebrews. The traditional view is that the recipients were Jewish Christians who lived somewhere in Palestine. No book of the New Testament would be more missed if it were absent from the canon than this epistle to the Hebrews. Every Bible student needs such a guide as this to help with their understanding of the Old and New Covenants.
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