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The Day After Jesus Died
by Mario Murillo

It’s the day after Jesus died. Peter screamed until he could scream no more. He fell off a cliff into the abyss of broken souls. The force of his crash could have moved the earth. Fragments lay around him—the hideous replacements of his former self. Shame replaced love. Fear drove away hope. He watched his destiny plunge into a black hole.

Then to survive, Peter became a robot. He went fishing. It’s what he was programmed to do. Peter went through the motions.  Avoiding feeling, suppressing emotion.

Now, the difference between Peter and Judas Iscariot is razor thin. The same fever of despair and regret burned in them both. It drove Judas to suicide. Why didn’t Peter kill himself?

Because Jesus prayed for him!

Nevertheless, Satan caged Peter in a lie. The same lie that tortures America right now: everything good is gone forever. And we are totally alone.

But Peter’s agony went beyond this. He found out he is a coward. Denying Jesus three times. The rooster still crows in his mind.

Not only that, but he found out he was a fool! Thinking he would save Jesus, he cut off the ear of the high priest’s servant, Malchus.

He fished all night and caught nothing. 

Now another memory tortures him. It’s the day he met Jesus. Jesus interrupted his entire life. He fished all night and caught nothing.  He had nothing to show for a brutal night out on the water.

Then the strange Teacher said, “Let your nets down again for a catch.”  Peter half-heartedly did as he was asked. Suddenly the catch is so enormous it terrifies him.  He begged Jesus to keep His distance, “I am a sinful man!” Peter cried. Instead of leaving, Jesus spoke the eternal words, “Follow Me and I will make you a fisher of men.”

But Peter is now convinced—after his failure and denial—it is too late. He believes his destiny is lost forever. 

If not for these two little words: “and Peter,” the whole world would have been different. 

Finally, it is dawn on Resurrection Sunday.  An angel is talking about Peter!  Mark 16:7 says, “But go, tell His disciples—and Peter—that Jesus is going before you into Galilee; there you will see Him, as He told to you.”

If not for these two little words: “and Peter,” the whole world would have been different. Think about it. The only pronoun the angel needed to use was “His disciples.”  After all he would not have said, “Tell His disciples, and John” or “and Matthew.”

And now Peter rises from the dead. Oh, the unmatched glory of another chance.

God knew Peter would disqualify himself if the invitation was “for disciples only.”

You can imagine Peter insisting, “Are you sure the angel said my name?”

“Yes, the exact words were, “Tell the disciples, and Peter.”

And now Peter rises from the dead. Oh, the unmatched glory of another chance.

This is Peter’s destiny. More than that, it is his identity and reason for living

But wait, there is much more.  Satan now has a new and terrifying enemy! The former coward is now the perfect weapon to shake the gates of hell.

 Peter is utterly transformed. He is now a devastating witness. On the day of Pentecost He roared the global invasion of the Holy Spirit. “This is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel!”

Two chapters later, the man who couldn’t admit he knew Jesus stands before the Sanhedrin and calls them murderers.

Because of Easter you can come back from the darkest failure. Because of Easter God will look over you to protect your destiny.

How mighty was Peter’s destiny? For that we look back to that night Jesus healed Malchus’ ear. Jesus knew Peter must not be sitting on death row on the day of Pentecost. Jesus reattached the ear, in order to protect Peter’s destiny.

If Easter will ever mean anything to you, it is this: Everything that we hope for rests on the Resurrection of Christ. And that same power can do something in you. Romans 8:11 says “The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you. And just as God raised Christ Jesus from the dead, he will give life to your mortal bodies by this same Spirit living within you.”

Because of Easter, you can come back from the darkest failure. Because of Easter, God will look over you to protect your destiny. And because of Easter, we are saved and alive forevermore.

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(This message was received from Mario’s Ministry and said it could be shared via Facebook and other means, but I want to specify …Copyright Mario Murillo Ministries)