From Denial to Doubt to Boldness
Before the death of Jesus Peter believed he could do anything for Jesus. Spoiler: He couldn’t. He could not even admit he knew Jesus. Three times. Denial. Then, when Jesus is risen from the dead, and has appeared to others, they do not believe the witnesses. Doubt. And in today’s first reading, Peter is not afraid of anything. Filled with the Holy Spirit. Boldness.
I have been told that according to Psychology, human beings have a tendency to go to dark places. We get a 99 on a test, we focus more on the one point we did not earn. We receive evaluations about what we have done in terms of a job, we look for the negative.
I suspect this is similar to what is happening in the gospel. The dark place is the death of Jesus. Even though witnesses tell the apostles they have seen Jesus, the testimony is not enough to bring them out of the dark place. And who can blame them? They witnessed the gruesome public education of Jesus, they saw it with their own eyes. They saw him die. They knew what they saw.
Enter the Holy Spirit. If we are inclined to go to dark places, the Holy Spirit brings us into the light. The Holy Spirit taps into the best we can be. The Holy Spirit pours out gifts and benefits that make all things better. Once filled with the Holy Spirit, Peter is finally able to die for Jesus. He heals, performs miracles, in the name of Jesus.
In today’s world, it is not always easy to believe in Jesus. It is not always easy to believe in the ultimate victory over sin and death. But we cannot deny the power of the witnesses. There are the witnesses we know in our midst whose lives have been changed by the risen Christ. And there is the cloud of witnesses in heaven.
Open your heart to the Holy Spirit and experience the boldness only the Spirit can give.
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