A Journey with Jesus: Trust
A Journey with Jesus • Sermon • Submitted
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· 4 views--A key characteristic of a disciple is trusting Jesus. In this text, Jesus prays that his faith will not fail. Even after the denial, Jesus wants Peter to strengthen his brothers.
Notes
Transcript
04/24/22
Dominant Thought: Returning to Jesus creates opportunities to strengthen others.
Objectives:
I want my listeners to recognize we are in a spiritual battle against evil.
I want my listeners to realize that Jesus offers a second chance and a mission.
I want my listeners to identify one way to strengthen others.
I remember attending camps where we would have relay races. One relay game we played was called “Izzy Dizzies.” People would take turns running across the field and pick up a baseball bat. They placed their forehead on the handle of the bat, then would spin around the bat a number of times and then run back to their team for the next person to go. After a few spins, people would stagger back and forth and many times fall to the ground.
It’s hard to see straight when you get turned around.
Maybe you’ve been driving and you think you know where you’re going. However, after a couple of missed turns, you realize you are lost. Then, you may even confess, I’m not sure where I went wrong. I got turned around.
Our thoughts can mislead us, too. You could walk out of here on a Sunday morning ready to conquer the world for Jesus. Then, it takes one person to say something like, “You don’t really believe that church stuff do you?” You may start to backtrack. You got turned around.
In Luke 22, Jesus engages Simon Peter, his lead apostle in an intimate conversation. It’s just four verses, but these verses open our eyes to what’s going on in God’s kingdom. Jesus warns Peter he’s going to get turned around. Listen to their conversation as Luke records it in Luke 22.31-34.
I hope to highlight Simon Peter’s story through so that we can find some common points of connection with Peter’s story and our story. So, if it’s okay, I want to look around Peter’s story for a while this morning.
First, Satan asks to sift the disciples. I think what scares me most about Peter’s story is what Jesus first says to Peter. He says, “Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift all of you (plural) as wheat” (Luke 22.31). Satan appears to be asking in a way that he will get what he wants. Some translations say, “Satan demanded” (ESV).
The role of Satan is perplexing and adds gravity to this story. This account sounds similar to Satan attack against Job (Job 1.7; 2.2).
Satan tempted Jesus in Luke 4. Luke calls him “the devil” in that account. At the end of that confrontation Luke records, “When the devil had finished all this tempting, he left him until an opportune time” (Luke 4.13). One of those opportune times appears to arrive at the beginning of Luke 22. Luke sets the scene and the table for the Passover Feast on Thursday evening of Holy Week we celebrated recently. Luke states, “Then Satan entered Judas, called Iscariot, one of the Twelve (Luke 22.3). With Judas in his sneaky care, the Satan moves on to sift the rest of the apostles.
Luke’s gospel highlights the spiritual battle followers of Christ encounter. In a parable about a sower and his seeds, Jesus identifies the seed as the word of God. Those along the path are the ones who hear, and then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts so that they may not believe and be saved” (Luke 8.11-12).
In Luke 10, seventy-two followers of Jesus return from a short-term mission trip with joy and said, “Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name. He [Jesus] replied, ‘I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven” (Luke 10.17-18).
And in Luke 22.31, Jesus tells Simon and the other disciples that Satan demanded to have them. Jesus warns all the disciples, then highlights Simon Peter. Simon was highlighted in Luke 5 as the apostle who left everything. He’s the one who confessed Jesus as “God’s Messiah/Anointed” in Luke 9.20. Satan may realize if he can go after those closest to Jesus, then he can thwart the mission of God.
Satan is real. He wants to divide and destroy the work of Christ. He is our enemy.
Peter would later write in 1 Peter 5.8.
Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.
The letter to the Ephesians reminds us that “our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms” (Ephesians 6.12)
Second, Jesus prays for Simon. As scary as the first part of this story of Satan’s sifting, the second part is exponentially encouraging. Jesus says to Peter, “but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail” (Luke 22.32). Where the entire group of disciples was in view in Luke 22.31, now Jesus focuses his attention and his prayers toward Simon Peter.
Jesus prays that Simon’s faith or trust may not fail. Some suggest what is in mind is that Simon’s faith will not disappear (I. Howard Marshall) or his will will not be “drained away to nothing” (J. Nolland, both ideas are in footnote 20 in Darrel Bock’s Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament, 2:1742).
Now, I know some powerful prayer warriors in this church family. I firmly believe in the power of prayer that I send an email out each week to about a dozen people to pray for me and my family and this preaching moment. But let’s be honest, what can be more encouraging that having Jesus pray for you.
Have you ever thought about Jesus praying for you? Have you ever thought what is Jesus doing in heaven right now? Most of us think that Jesus’ work is done. He died on the cross. He rose from the dead. He ascended to heaven. He’s at the right hand of the Father, waiting for the Father to say, “It’s time for your return.”
What is Jesus doing in heaven right now? The writer of Hebrews helps answer that question.
Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them.
Jesus saves us completely or to the uttermost. We are saved or justified. We are made right with God through Jesus Christ. We spend a great deal of time talking about what Christ has done in the past. This theme of intercession speaks to what Christ is doing now in the present. While we are saved by God’s grace, our faith still falters at times. Much like Peter, we need someone’s help so that our faith may not fail. Christ is praying for us much like he prayed for Peter and the other disciples in the gospels.
Listen to how the Apostle Paul describes the work of Christ in Romans 8.
Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies.
Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us.
Picture, the risen ascended Christ praying for you. What do you think Jesus is praying for you right now? Have you ever thought that King Jesus may be the best person to pray for you? Now the Holy Spirit also intercedes for us because we don’t know what to pray (Romans 8.26). Christ, the Son of God, also prays for us. I encourage you to take a moment and thank Jesus for His prayers for you.
Third, Jesus challenges Simon. The story of Peter is one of second chances. We all are in need of second chances. I love how Jesus challenges Peter, when you return, strengthen your brothers. Jesus didn’t say, after you fail, go away. You are worthless. You blew your chance. The story of the Bible is a patient God giving people multiple chances.
Jesus wants to use us even after we’ve messed up. Notice the condition, when you return...
After Jesus commands Simon Peter to strengthen his brothers, Simon Peter challenges Jesus by saying he’s ready to go to prison and death. Jesus states, “Peter, before the rooster crows today; you will deny three times that you know me.”
Read Luke 22.54-62.
Jesus proves true. Simon Peter denies three times that he knew Jesus. I wonder what that moment was like for Simon Peter in Luke 22.61, “The Lord turned and looked straight (looked in or intently) at Peter.” Peter remembered the words and went outside and wept bitterly. The key moment is the eyes of Christ and the words of Christ. With the sound of the rooster in the background, Peter’s memory was triggered/jogged and he remembered the words of Christ.
“The Puritans loved to reflect on: when we sin, the very heart of Christ is drawn out to us” (Dane Ortlund, Gentle and Lowly, p. 69).
I have a friend who as a young minister preached for a smaller church of about 15 people. Quickly, the church began to grow. From the outside everything looked great. However, on the inside this preacher was struggling with a high view of self. In his words, I had a high view of myself which led to a lower view of Jesus. During this time as he ministered, he struggled with a pornography addiction. Eventually, he was caught. He resigned from the church. His early prayers were angry prayers toward God. He thought God took this ministry away from him. He thought he would never return to full time ministry, never get married, and never get out of debt. He had racked up credit card debt.
Thankfully, God’s people extended grace and encouragement. Lots of prayers and he was strengthened by the brothers who poured into him. He remembers praying about 6-12 months after he left the ministry. He realized, “Jesus, you are enough—even if I never get out of debt, never return to ministry and never get married.” He realized that Jesus was enough. Months later, he met his future wife. He returned to Bible college and got out of debt.
He now serves as a preaching minister. He uses his story of addiction and recovery by God’s grace to strengthen and encourage others. In a phone call this week, he said, “I share my story about pornography addiction because I think that is what Paul means when he says, ‘I am not ashamed of the gospel for it is the power of God.’” God is bigger than our addictions, struggles and sins.
The way to survive the attacks of Satan are the prayers of Jesus and the encouragement of your brothers and sisters.
Peter’s path forward shows our path forward:
First, bitter weeping over sin (Luke 22.62).
Second, witness the empty tomb (Luke 24.12).
Third, submit to Jesus as the victorious king who ascended into heaven (Luke 24.51; Acts 1.9).
Fourth, joining brothers and sisters in prayer (Acts 1.14).
Fifth, the gift of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2.4).
Even though Jesus challenges Peter about failing, He holds out hope and gives him a command, “When you turn around strengthen your brothers.” I believe Jesus offers each person that same command, when you turn around strengthen your brothers. Peter’s circle of influence grew wider and wider as He continued Christ’s mission: group of 120 (Acts 1.15), crowd (3,000 baptized Acts 2.14, 41), number grew to 5,000 (Acts 4.4).
Jesus is bigger than our mistakes. If He can walk out of the tomb and ascend into heaven, then He can overpower anything the Satan wants to sift against us.
Maybe you’re in one of those sifting seasons. You feel the attacks of the evil one. Remember Christ prays for your faith to remain strong. Maybe you’ve faltered and you think God can’t use you or won’t use you. Remember the love and forgiveness of Jesus. He gives second chances. I encourage you to follow Peter’s path forward and use your story of God’s grace in your life to strengthen your brothers or sisters. Who is someone you could strengthen today by sharing your story?
DT: Returning to Jesus creates opportunities to strengthen others.