Having
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Text: Matthew 26:72.
“But again
he (Peter) denied with an oath, “I do not know the Man!”
What would you think of a preacher
who would curse and swear in front of a teenager girl? Well, Peter the apostle
did just that and denied the Lord Jesus Christ in the time of His greatest
need, in only a few hours Peter turned from a follower of Christ to cursing Christ.
You could say that Peter was unfit to be chosen or used of God, yet Jesus never
rejected him but gave him a second chance.
1. PETER
THE MAN WITH COURAGE.
We criticize Peter for taking his eyes off the Lord on the Sea of Galilee and
beginning to sink, but at least he got out of the boat! While the other
disciples stayed in fear. When they came to arrest Jesus, it was Peter who
pulled out his sword to defend Jesus and tried to take off one of their heads!
Peter
was not the first to fail God. Here are some other examples:
Moses.
The Bible says he was the
meekest among men (meekness is strength under control). But what did he
do? He lost control of his emotions and killed an Egyptian and later smote
the rock twice!
Abraham.
He is called the father of
faith, but he left Canaan and went into Egypt, and lied about Sarah his wife,
because he did not have enough faith that God would protect him.
David
A picture of purity/the apple
of God’s eye/a man after God’s own heart, but he committed adultery, and put to
death the innocent husband.
None of these failed in the
strength of the Lord, but when the going got tough they lost their faith and
trusted in themselves. Paul said in 2
Corinthians 12:10 “Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in
reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ's sake. For
when I am weak, then I am strong.” When I am weak, them am I strong! (For then I am depending on the Lord,
and not myself!).
Proverbs 16:18 says “Pride goes before destruction, and a proud spirit
before a fall.”
Note verse 33, “Peter answered and said to Him, “Even if all are made to stumble
because of You, I will never be made to stumble” Matthew 26:33. We can admire Peter’s
statement at first glance, but there is a difference between saying I can do
all things “through Christ,” or just I can do all
things! The proud and boastful will always fail in the end.
2. PETER
THE MAN THAT FAILED.
Even
when we fail, God is still in control. The
rooster crowing is a testimony that God was still in control, the Lord shut the
beaks of hundreds of roosters until the precise moment of the 3rd denial! Right now, Peter is at his worst,
lowest, failing and out of control, but the Lord says, “Peter, I am still in
control!”
2 Timothy 2:13 says, “If
we are faithless, He (God) remains faithful.” We often fail God, but He never fails us. That is why we sing “Great is
His Faithfulness!”
Great is thy faithfulness, O God
my Father;
there is no shadow of turning with thee;
thou changest not, thy compassions, they fail not;
as thou hast been thou forever will be.
there is no shadow of turning with thee;
thou changest not, thy compassions, they fail not;
as thou hast been thou forever will be.
Refrain:
Great is thy faithfulness! Great is thy faithfulness!
Morning by morning new mercies I see;
all I have needed thy hand hath provided;
great is thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me!
Pardon for sin and a peace that endureth
thy own dear presence to cheer and to guide;
strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow,
blessings all mine, with ten thousand beside! Refrain
Great is thy faithfulness! Great is thy faithfulness!
Morning by morning new mercies I see;
all I have needed thy hand hath provided;
great is thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me!
Pardon for sin and a peace that endureth
thy own dear presence to cheer and to guide;
strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow,
blessings all mine, with ten thousand beside! Refrain
We must remember that even
when we despair and feel out of control, God is still in control. He’s still
sovereign! When Romans 8:28
says “all things work together for
good,” that includes our failures!
3. PETER
THE MAN UNDER GOD.
You may feel like you have
blown it, and maybe you have! But no matter what you have done, God still has a
wonderful plan for your life. According to Luke
22, the moment Peter denied, he turned and saw the Lord, and their eyes
met! It was not a look of disappointment or anger it was a look of love!
God is not changing us so
He can love us, no, He loves us and therefore, He changes us. God does not love
us because we are worthy of love; we are worthy because He loves us! In other
words, “In this is love, not that we loved God,
but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our
sins” 1 John 4:10.
GOD LOVES YOU JUST AS YOU
ARE, BUT HE LOVES YOU TOO MUCH TO LEAVE YOU THAT WAY! “For He knows our
frame; He remembers that we are dust” Psalm 103:14. So He is moulding us day by day into His likeness.
Jesus already warned Peter,
note Luke 22:31-32, And the Lord said, “Simon, Simon!
Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat. But I
have prayed for you; that your faith should not fail; and when you have
returned to Me, strengthen your brethren.”
Are you glad that your
salvation does not depend upon YOU? If you have been born again, you are
forever changed. You are safe and secure in His Mighty Hands! The devil wanted
to sift Peter to condemn him,
but Jesus allowed the sifting in order to cleanse Peter. Jesus knew that Peter had to be worked on to
make him the man God could use.
CONCLUSION:
Jesus is not concentrating
on the faults and failings in our lives. He sees the man or woman He can use,
if you let Him use you. Maybe you have failed, who hasn’t? Or fallen? Get
back up just don’t fail to be saved!
Peter went on to become a
great man in God. We need God for our salvation, but just maybe He needs us for
something special to do for Him.
