“Do Not Challenge Prophecy!”

“Do Not Challenge Prophecy!”(Mt.26:31-35).
Prior to his arrest, Jesus told his disciples, “This very night you will all fall away on account of me…” This was to be a fulfilment of the prophecy of Zechariah, “Strike the shepherd and the sheep will be scattered”(13:7b).
Pompous Peter replied, “Even if all fall away on account of you, I never will.” Jesus answered Peter, “This very night, before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times.”
In his pomposity, Peter declared, “Even if I have to die with you, I will never disown you.”
We often capitalise on Peter as if he was a worse disciple following the heels of Judas Iscariot. But was he? Maybe not! When Peter made the declaration above, the evangelist tells us, “And all the other disciples said the same.”
Jesus just told them that a prophecy was about to be fulfilled when he (the shepherd) will be arrested and they (the sheep) will scatter. It was meant to be so, and it had to be so!
By declaring their readiness to die, than to disown Jesus, they were like researchers who want to force a theory when the evidence is proving the contrary.
When the text says, “But Peter declared,” I couldn’t help but check out the meaning of “declare.” .
To declare is to “say something in a solemn and emphatic manner.” This is what the disciples did, and this is what we often do with all energy.
In the last stanza of the poem, “The Blind Men And The Elephant,” John G. Saxe writes:
“So, oft in theologic wars, the disputants, I ween,
tread on in utter ignorance, of what each other mean,
and prate about the elephant, not one of them has seen!”
Yes, in utter ignorance, the disciples were making a bold declaration about a prophecy they had not understood. In such ignorance, they thought it was possible by mere declaration to change a prophecy. Not at all!
While they were declaring their readiness to die with Jesus rather than disowning him, they didn’t reflect on his next words, ‘But after I have risen, I will go ahead of you into Galilee.”
We see here the danger of lifting a text out of its context, thus making it a pretext for prooftexting.
My friend, the death of Jesus was no reason for sorrow. He himself had said that a seed rots in the soil before it sprouts up as fresh plant to produce crop.
Prophecies have to be fulfilled accordingly – not as we want them to be, but as God has willed that it will become.
The Lord Jesus Christ remains the good shepherd. He is here gathering the scattered sheep and bringing them into the fold.
May the Holy Spirit help us to accept the words of the Lord and not to make declarations that contradict the prophecies of God.
Prayer: Holy Spirit, inspire us to discern and accept even the truth that does not please us. Amen!
Have a blessed day! Peace be with you!
Rev Babila Fochang.
08/05/2025.