Peter would have told the Moslem murdering hordes that he was a chocolate covered twinkie if it meant he would live to witness another day. To deny Christ means to deny the teachings and truth that is Christ.
God knows what is in store in this unholy war of demonic Islam and righteous belief in the one true God. When faced with certain death, to have given the Moslem hurderers the "ammunition" to kill a Christian would have been akin to committing suicide. Something God does not condone. It was not weakness the Jordanian displayed. It was guile and cunning in the face of death. His choice to live was Godly and allows him to live on, to witness in the most corrupt and blasphemous region on Earth.
He would have done what Peter did.
Then someone came and told them, "Look! The men you put in prison are standing in the temple and teaching the people!" So the commander of the temple guards went with his men to bring them back without force, because they were afraid of being stoned to death by the people.
When they brought them back, they made them stand before the Council, and the high priest began to question them. He said, "We gave you strict orders not to teach in his name, didn't we? Yet you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and are determined to bring this man's blood on us!"
But Peter and the apostles answered, "We must obey God rather than men. The God of our ancestors raised Jesus to life after you hung him on a tree and killed him. God has exalted to his right hand this very man as our Leader and Savior in order to give repentance and forgiveness of sins to Israel. We are witnesses of these things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who keep on obeying him."
When they heard this, they became furious and wanted to kill them. But a Pharisee named Gamaliel, a teacher of the law who was respected by all the people, stood up in the Council and ordered the men to be taken outside for a little while. Then he said to them, "Fellow Israelites, consider carefully what you propose to do to these men." . . .
After calling in the apostles and beating them, they ordered them to stop speaking in the name of Jesus and let them go. They left the Council, rejoicing to have been considered worthy to suffer dishonor for the sake of the Name. Every day in the temple and from house to house they kept teaching and proclaiming that Jesus is the Christ. (Acts 5:26-33,40ff.)