Dr. Roger Parrott, Belhaven University Chapel Series

Followers of Jesus followed a pattern that we looked at in the first chapel.

It's pretty consistent as you look at those who were walking and talking and living with Jesus, what happened in their lives.

It started with that looking for meaning and purpose.

And then it went to be drawn to his beauty and his power and his teaching and trusting him.

And then finally they realized he was the Son of God and.

And were overwhelmed by the cross and the resurrection and then transformed.

And that pattern follows pretty succinctly with each of the disciples or those that followed Jesus.

And last week we looked at Matthew.

Now, Matthew really started at the very bottom.

Remember, Matthew the tax collector found a new identity in Christ.

He was the worst of the worst kind of people in that culture in that time.

And today we're going to look at Peter.

Now, Peter was way on up the stairs as he was grown in his following of Christ.

He was probably, you know, up there in path number six or so to see he was the Son of God.

Peter said that multiple times.

He was the last person, the last person if you picked out all the disciples.

He was the last person you would ever expect to fail.

The very last.

He was a leader among the disciples.

You know, if Peter was a student here today and he was enrolled here, he'd be like the model Christian.

He'd be all in for Jesus.

He'd be leading the Bible study.

He'd have the scripture tattoo.

He would have the Jesus shirts on all the time.

He'd be encouraging out front.

He'd be the one passing out the programs for RUF and FCA and any other worship event we had on campus.

He'd be the one who's really trying to make it all happen.

That was Peter.

But Peter failed horribly.

Peter failed horribly.

See, Peter was strong.

Peter was determined.

Peter was confident.

Peter knew the scripture.

He wanted to grow as a follower of Christ.

He was committed to it.

And there was nothing fake about him at all.

He was insightful.

He was a spokesperson.

He said, you are the Messiah.

He spoke for the disciples.

When Jesus asked, who do you say that I am?

He was always the spokesperson.

But he was missing one key element that made all the rest of it not matter.

And he failed horribly.

And today we're going to look at his story when failure is not final.

And it was not final for Peter.

Well, Peter, the bottom line is he had to reach the end of his confidence before he could become the leader God intended him to be.

You see, Peter's problem was not lack of devotion.

It was he trusted in his own spiritual strength too much.

And his failure shattered that self confidence that he was the strong spiritual disciple.

Jesus restored him.

The Holy Spirit empowered him.

And then Peter became an even stronger leader as we're going to see as we unravel this story.

But his confidence was no longer after the failure, centered in himself.

It was centered in Christ where it needed to be.

And it's amazing what happened when he failed.

Jesus didn't kick him out of the disciples.

I mean, he failed badly.

We're going to hear the story here in a minute.

He really failed.

And you'd think Jesus would say, well you know, you didn't pass the test, sorry, you're out.

He didn't at all.

Jesus wasn't even disappointed in Peter.

Jesus loved him and restored him.

But after Peter failed, he was a very, very different father follower of Christ.

And I think there's a lot for us to learn about being strong in our faith but trusting in Christ rather than our own confidence.

So let's look at the story of Peter.

Peter was locked in for Jesus.

He was locked.

He was a guy who put face first every single time.

He was the natural leader.

He was the one who spoke first.

He was brilliant.

Sometimes he was, he was impulsive, sometimes he was incorrect.

But he was never afraid to jump in with the answer.

And he was never afraid to be bold in his faith.

He was so bold.

Peter was the one who got out of the boat.

Do you remember when the disciples were out there fishing in the lake and a storm came up and they got scared to death and Jesus had been on the shore praying and all of a sudden they see Jesus come walking to them on the water.

Peter looks and he says, lord, if it's really you, tell me to come to you.

And Peter got out of the boat and started walking on the water to Jesus.

That's how strong his faith was.

Another part of the lesson in that don't take, don't forget this part because it deserves more attention than we have time.

But Peter was walking on the water as long as his eyes were fixed on on Jesus.

And then the scripture said he started to look around at the wind and the waves and he started to sink.

And when you are in trouble, keep your eyes on Jesus.

And Peter was the one who did that.

That's how strong he was in his faith.

Peter was bold in his faith, but Peter was self confident in his faith.

More than faith in what God was doing in him.

Peter felt he was the one Jesus could depend on because his faith was so strong.

I'm sure.

He said, jesus needs me.

He can't do this ministry without me.

But too dependent on his faith, in his strength rather than being a follower of God.

You see, there was no humility.

There was no real trust.

There was no realizing that all that God was doing in him was coming from God, not by his ability alone.

His faith came from God.

But Peter acted like his faith was a gift to God.

And there are a lot of Christians who live that way.

I'm doing so much good stuff for the Lord, man.

God couldn't make it without me.

Look at the impact I'm having.

And we forget that our faith comes from God.

It's not our gift to God.

God loves us no matter what.

Some Christians get caught in that trap of spiritual pride, of spiritual pride, where they think we are significant in how strong we are.

The significance is coming, though, in how dependent we are on Christ.

Peter's self confidence was so strong, he even corrected Jesus.

Have you seen this in the Bible?

He corrected Jesus.

Jesus explains to the disciples he's going to suffer and die.

And Peter says, lord, can I talk to you a minute?

Let's talk privately here.

You're not going to do that.

That's not going to happen.

We don't want that.

You have this wrong.

Peter said.

And Jesus responds really sharply.

He says, get away from me, Satan.

Get away from me.

So often we're tempted by the people closest to us.

You know that Peter believed deeply in Jesus, but Peter also believed deeply in Peter.

And he had learned to follow Jesus, but he had not learned to depend on Jesus totally.

Peter's greatest strength was his weakness as well.

You know, I think as a principle of life, it's a principle of work.

I'm that way.

I lead this institution.

I have a big picture perspective on things.

I move really fast.

I make fast decisions.

And those are my strengths, but they're also my weaknesses.

And so I purposely put people around me who are more detailed, who go slower, who ask deeper questions, because I need that to counterbalance my strengths, which can become my weaknesses.

And in our spiritual life, it can be the very same thing.

Our spiritual strength of Peter being strong in leadership is a great thing, but it also can be his weakness.

He was courageous and he was decisive and he was loyal.

He would take responsibility.

He knew the scripture, but he believed his spiritual strength is what Jesus really admired in him and why Jesus loved him.

And Jesus must be proud of him.

My strength is enough.

And Peter turned that relationship upside down from how it's supposed to be.

Some People are so sure in themselves spiritually that when God directs them or restricts them, they somehow feel like they've got to correct God.

Oh, God, you don't really realize what's going on here.

And I hear you saying, that's what I ought to do, but.

But really, that's not the best answer.

And we think in our own spiritual strength we know more.

That's the world Peter was living in as a follower of Jesus.

Well, Peter believed he would stay committed to Jesus no matter what.

There wasn't anything that could happen in his life that would keep him from being completely committed to Jesus.

So at the Last Supper, just before Jesus is going to be arrested, crucified, resurrected, at the Last Supper, Jesus tells the disciples that you're going to abandon me.

And Peter strongly objects.

I can imagine him pounding on the table saying, there is no way.

Peter doesn't simply say, I won't be unfaithful.

Peter's problem is he's built on comparison.

He's built on comparison.

And this is what he says.

He says, even if everyone else deserts you, I will never desert you.

My faith is stronger than everybody else's, so it's got to be good.

He went on to say, if I've got to die, Lord, I'll die.

I will never, ever fail you.

He was adamant, and Peter meant it.

He was sincere.

His problem wasn't hypocrisy.

His problem was self confidence and comparison.

That's where his problem was.

And Peter, excuse me.

Jesus knew Peter better than Peter knew himself.

This is what is so key in our relationship with God.

You know, once you understand that wherever you are in your walk with God, once you understand that God knows everything about you right now, there's nothing hidden from him.

That's when you can grow in Christ.

No matter where you are on the journey, if you're far away or you're close to God, either one.

When you realize he knows it all, when we understand that that's what opens the door to spiritual growth.

And Jesus knew how Peter would fail even before he called him.

When Peter was fishing and Jesus first went by the beach where they were and called him to be a disciple, he knew at that moment Peter would eventually fail and he called him anyway.

His name was Simon.

Peter called him Simon Peter because Peter meant the rock.

In other words, you're going to be so strong that I'm going to give you this nickname, Peter, because I can count on you.

Jesus knew all that at the beginning.

He knew all that at the beginning.

And look what the scripture says.

It says, peter, Let me tell you something.

This was at the Last Supper.

Let me tell you something.

Before the rooster crows tomorrow morning, you will deny me three times that you even know me.

And Peter can't imagine it.

He was insulted that God would think at this critical point he's going to run away, but Jesus already knew he would.

And then Jesus said something really, really important.

If I can get the next slide up here.

There we go.

Simon.

Simon.

Remember, he calls him Simon and Peter both.

Simon.

Simon.

Satan has asked to sift each of you like wheat.

But I pleaded in prayer for you, Simon, that your face should not fail.

So that when you have repented and.

And return to me again, strengthen your brothers.

Not if you repented, but when you have repented.

He knew he'd come back.

You know what it means to sift wheat in those days?

That means you take a bunch of wheat, you cut it down with the stalks and the whole thing, and you put it on this big kind of tarp thing and then you just beat the daylights out of it.

I mean, you beat it so hard, and you beat it until the grain falls out, and then you pick up what's left and you violently shake it.

So when the scripture says, satan has asked me to sift each of you like wheat, in other words, satan has asked me to rock your world so hard to see if you can stand up.

And sometimes that's what happens to us.

We get rocked that hard.

Well, Jesus said, when you come back, when you come back, use your failure to strengthen others.

What's going to happen to you is what you're going to be able to use to help others so they won't fail.

Peter's failure surprised Peter.

It never surprised Jesus.

Even before Peter failed, Jesus had already had a future ministry planned out for Peter.

He just knew he needed humility and he needed dependence if he was finally going to become Peter.

That Jesus had seen from the beginning, the one he knew he could be.

So Peter's failure then became massive, and it was public, and it was terrible.

Peter declared he would fight for Jesus.

And in the Garden of Gethsemane, he did.

You know, they came to arrest Jesus.

So what's Peter do?

He grabs a sword and he cuts off the ear of one of the soldiers.

Well, he didn't mean to cut off his ear.

He meant to split right down the middle of his head.

He missed and he hit the ear instead.

And Jesus reaches down, picks up the ear, puts it back on and heals it.

Peter he'd been taught turn the other cheek didn't catch too well.

He pulled out the sword.

He was going to fight for Jesus.

That's classic Peter, to defend Jesus no matter what.

He was so spiritually self confident, he gave up complete dependence on Christ to come through that moment.

Peter didn't lack commitment or courage or love.

He lacked an understanding of his own weakness and how much he needed to depend on God rather than expecting God to depend on him.

Well, Peter failed.

At the very point he thought he was the strongest, Jesus was arrested.

Peter followed along, back behind.

You know, he didn't want to get arrested too, so it wasn't too close, but he was close enough he could see him.

They had this mock trial and he's there in this little courtyard and this servant girl first of all says to him, aren't you one of those guys who are with him?

Jesus says, I don't even know him.

A few hours later that was the same Peter who a few hours earlier had said, I'll die for you.

And now a little servant girl who's the least powerful person in that whole society says, don't you know him?

And he says, aren't you one of them?

And he says, I don't even know him.

Well, a little bit later, Peter was around a small group and they kind of recognized him.

And they said, weren't you there with him when he was arrested?

He said, I don't even know the man.

I don't know who you're talking about.

I don't even know him.

And then a little bit later, somebody kind of noticed his accent, the Galilean accent, and recognized him real clearly from the garden of Gethsemane.

And he said, you are one of them.

And Peter said, a curse on me if I'm lying.

I do not know the man.

And immediately a rooster crowed.

Immediately.

And here's the most painful detail of the entire story.

At that moment, the Lord turned and looked at Peter.

Can you imagine?

Jesus looks at us too when we fail.

He looks us square in the eyes when we fail.

And those eyes still say, I love you.

Well, Peter could have spent the rest of his life with the label failure, coward, unfaithful.

But Jesus was not finished with Peter.

So Jesus was after that crucified three days.

He rose from the grave.

He was resurrected.

And remark in the Book of Mark, he records the most remarkable message that was given at the empty tomb.

Now, at the empty tomb, the women went there and the angel was there telling them what happened.

And here's what the angel said.

Now go and tell his disciples, including Peter, that Jesus is not going to.

Jesus is going ahead of you to Galilee.

You will see him there, just as he told you before he died.

Wow.

Peter, on purpose by the angel, was invited back in.

After that failure, which was miserable and public and humiliating, the great spiritual leader completely, completely fell.

And the first word is to invite him back in.

Before Peter ever found his way back to Jesus, Jesus was already making sure that Peter knew he was wanted.

And God's grace always takes the initiative, especially when we fail.

Well, grace does not mean our failures do not matter.

They do matter.

But grace means our failures do not have to be final.

A few days later, Peter and some of the disciples were fishing.

Now, I'm sure these guys were under horrible stress at this point.

They really didn't understand what was going on.

And so they did.

What you do when you're under stress, you go to kind of your core thing.

They were fishermen, so let's go fishing, because that's what we understand, that's what we can kind of control.

They were fishing, and Jesus meets them on the shore.

And breakfast is cooking.

Jesus has a fire going.

It's a charcoal fire, which is an interesting detail in the story because it was a charcoal fire around which the little servant girl first said, aren't you one of his?

And he denied him.

And now when you fail, there are senses of a sight or smell or something that can trigger that memory.

And Jesus around that fire asked Peter three questions you read to them earlier today.

Three questions.

Simon, son of John, do you love me?

Peter said, of course I do.

He said, feed my lambs.

He asked him again, do you love me?

Jesus said, Peter said, of course I do.

And he said, feed my sheep.

Gave him responsibility.

First was, feed my lambs priority.

Second responsibility, Feed my sheep.

And then he asked him a third time.

And Peter was hurt.

I kind of told you twice.

Do you love me?

Peter said, of course I do, Lord.

He said, feed my lambs.

In other words, follow me.

Three denials, three questions, three affirmations, same invitation to follow me.

Peter's failure was not final.

It was an invitation to a new level of ministry.

Jesus did not ignore Peter's failure.

He restored Peter through it.

Jesus restored Peter not only to relationship, but right back to leadership.

You know, Jesus could have said, well, Peter, I forgive you, and we're okay, but you need to take a back seat for a while.

You need to kind of get stronger.

And when you do, we'll see about giving you some Responsibility.

He didn't do that at all.

He said, feed my lambs.

He was just not forgiven.

He was restored to the leadership position he was in before, but now there was one huge difference.

Peter was still Peter, but now he was humble.

And he knew how much he had to depend on God even when he felt strong in his faith.

Jesus didn't erase Peter's personality.

He was still bold.

He was still decisive.

He was still outspoken, always ready to lead, willing to take risks.

That was Peter.

But the source of his confidence had completely changed.

Before the failure, Peter's posture often sounded like, I can handle this, whatever it is, I'll fight for you, Lord.

I can handle this.

And afterwards, Peter increasingly points away from himself and toward Christ.

And we see that in his preaching in the Book of Acts.

Well, humility is strength that knows where its strength comes from.

Peter did not become weaker.

He became humbler.

And humility is not weakness.

Humility is what opens the door to spiritual significance.

In the Book of Acts, which happened about maybe six weeks later, after Jesus was crucified, five weeks, six weeks, something like that, the Book of Acts opens.

There are 120 people gathered together.

And who stands up to lead?

Peter, the same guy who failed just a little over a month ago, he stands up to lead.

Judas is gone.

The apostles need to determine what to do next, and Peter takes the initiative.

Peter provides biblical direction, and Peter leads them forward.

His leadership ability is still there, even after he failed.

But now there's something very different that's about to happen.

The Holy Spirit comes and changes everything.

You see, Jesus told the disciples, I must go so that the Holy Spirit can come, the third person of the Trinity, and live among you and live in you.

And in Acts chapter two, the crowds gather and Peter preaches.

And the contrast between I don't know him and Peter preaching the risen Christ is absolutely night and day.

And look at this scripture, what he said, Peter said, God raised Jesus from the dead, and we are all witnesses to this.

Now he's exalted to the place of the highest honor in heaven, at God's right hand.

And the Father, as he has promised, gave the Holy Spirit to pour out upon us, just as you see and hear today.

And that day there were 3,000 people baptized and the church was born.

The voice that had said just a few weeks before, I don't know him, became the voice God used to start Christianity.

Jesus left it in the hands of a person who failed miserably because he knew who Peter could be when he was dependent on God.

And humble.

This is a follower's restoration.

This is a follower's transformation.

This is a follower living in connection with the Holy Spirit.

Now, the older Peter later in his life writes like a man who had learned dependence the hard way.

Peter knew something about pride.

He'd been there.

It hurt.

And so he wrote this.

And it really ought to be a memory verse for every follower of Christ who feels strong in their faith.

This is what Peter wrote in first Peter, God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.

So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and at the right time, he will lift you up in his honor.

That's Peter telling the story of what happened to Peter.

Peter, right there, boy.

He knew what it meant for Satan to sift somebody like wheat.

He knew what it meant to collapse under pressure.

He knew what it meant to be restored.

Have you ever had a big failure?

You can be redeemed and restored.

Do you feel like maybe you can't even try to be close to follower of God because you just had too many failures?

Jesus says, you're welcome.

Come in.

Maybe you haven't failed yet, and I hope you haven't.

Take Peter's life as a warning sign.

You could.

If Peter can fail, anybody can fail in their faith.

So let me give you some quick takeaways from Peter's story.

First is listen.

Being strong is not the same thing as being spiritually mature.

God is not asking you to prove how strong you are, but to learn how dependent on him you need to be.

That's the priority.

We're most vulnerable when we believe we cannot fail.

You see the moment you think, that could never be me, what happened to Peter is the moment you most need humility and caution.

And so take those signals and be prepared.

Thirdly, failure can teach us what success never could be.

Sometimes God uses failure.

Sometimes God uses failure to teach you what you never could have learned if it was all going well.

Peter became a very different person because of his failure.

And I think when you look at the path of Peter's life, he could not have gotten there almost without the failure.

And then the fourth takeaway, our failure does not have to become our identity.

What you did may be part of your story, but it's not what has to define you or who you become.

Failure is not important.

Unimportant.

Failure is important.

It's not unimportant, but there's something more important than that.

Failure does not have to be final.

And we see that in the life of Peter.

Peter's failure was real.

Peter's tears were real.

His heartbreak was real.

His repentance was real.

His grace was real.

His restoration was real.

And the ministry that followed was real.

Peter had spent three years learning to follow Jesus, but he still had one enormous lesson to learn about where to trust.

And it's really our verse of the year.

I'm sure it's a verse Peter knew well and could quote.

Not by power, but by.

Nor by might, but by the spirit of the Lord Almighty.

We don't follow Christ through our power or our might or our grit or our determination.

That's what Peter was trying to do.

We do it by dependence on the Lord Almighty.

Peter had to reach the end of his confidence in Peter before he could discover what God could do.

Through a Peter completely dependent on Christ.

What a transformation.

What a change.

Now your failure may reveal that you're weaker than you thought you were.

And if it does, that's good.

That's a good thing.

It can also be a place where you can finally discover how strong Christ is.

And that's an even better thing when you discover that.

And it can be a place where he opens the door for all the best he has for you.

And that's the very best thing.

And how do you get there?

Because you know Christ loves you.

And it's what our benediction verse says, and let's pray it together.

No eye is seen, no ear is heard, no mind has conceived, but God has prepared for those who love love.

Kim.

God bless.

Have a good day.