Luke 12:8-9 8And I say to you, everyone who confesses me before people, the Son of Man also will acknowledge in the same way before the angels of God. 9But the one who denies me before people will be denied before the angels of God.
Jesus outlines two critical matters of confession in verses 8-12. The first one is related to him, and the second to the Holy Spirit. First, the pressures of the persecution implied in verses 4-7 could tempt someone to deny his or her faith in Jesus. Jesus connects one’s eternal destiny to the choices that person makes in this life. The keyword confess is repeated twice in verse 8, and its opposite of denial is repeated twice in verse 9. Confess (homologēsē) can also be translated as “acknowledge.” The word means more than simply agreeing in mind but also agreeing in word. It can mean speaking the same thing. Disciples should line up their words, thoughts, and deeds to the way of Jesus and then let others know through lifestyle and testimony of this decision.
Denying Jesus before people has serious consequences. To deny (root arneomai) can have a strong sense of repudiating or rejecting. It starts with disregard, moves to ignore, progresses to refusal, and gets really bad with disdain. Most Christians do not ever intend to reach the last point. Neither did Peter the night Jesus had his trial and Peter denied knowing him three times. Many pressures tempt us to deny Jesus. Shame is one of the greatest pressures. We are ashamed to be called Christian or to bear witness about Jesus because we fear rejection, ridicule, or even persecution.
Jesus indicates that confession and denial both have serious consequences. To be acknowledged before God’s angels is basically the same thing as referring to God himself. The one thing we want for sure is to experience Jesus’ response of “Well done, good and faithful servant” (Matthew 25:21). How we treat Jesus in this lifetime is how he will treat us in eternity. That thought is very challenging, especially when we face persecution or the temptation to compromise. The disciples were given a significant lesson, especially when they faced opposition from the religious leaders. They had to avoid the hypocrisy of the Pharisees and live with honesty, integrity, and faithfulness to the gospel.
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