Flawed and Chosen

This week while reading about the events leading up to the crucifixion as recorded in Matthew 26, something interesting caught my attention. Jesus told Peter that he would deny Him later. Peter passionately disagreed – ‘Even if I must die with you, I will not deny you!” And all the disciples said the same. What grabbed my heart was the fact that a bit later Jesus invited Peter to be part of his ‘prayer team’. His inner core group. Those who would stay awake and support Him while prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane. The same Peter who Christ knew would deny Him. Who does that?? Embrace a person who you know would fail you.

Flawed yet chosen. Isn’t it comforting to know that God is not disturbed by our current imperfections? He looks at our heart and sees what others can’t see. He choses whomever He wills for whatever task and needs to consult no one about us. He hand picks us for certain tasks. When we invite Him in, He walks into our mess – stays and walks us through the chaos. His loving hands help to refine and purify us. If we choose to stay on the ‘Potter’s wheel’, the result is a thing of beauty.

I’d love to think that Christ saw the heart of this man who would eventually be a battleship in His kingdom. He saw who Peter would become. He was not blind to his weaknesses and to the times he fell short of God’s standards. What leaves me in awe every time is the fact He loves us in spite of it all. Christ sees who we were designed to be in this fallen world. He can love us to wholeness if we give Him the room to do so.

As we reflect on how we were loved before we ‘were’, may this move us to a place of gratitude today. We were loved despite our fractured self – the one that misses the mark ever so often. The self that needs grace and mercy every moment. I pray this would provoke us to extend grace and mercy to those around who are less than perfect.

God clearly shows and proves His own love for us, by the fact that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Romans 5:8 [AMP]