How To Recover From Failure

In the life of the child of God, failure need never be final. You should never really be defeated by failure. The truth is, you can be the victor over life’s failure rather than its victims. Because as a believer in Jesus Christ, victory is your spiritual birth-right. Now we live in a day that we hear over and over again; that everybody loves a winner. As I go through life, I’ve discovered that more than loving a winner, people basically love to see that person who has risen up from the ashes like a phoenix; stronger, wiser, and better. Nowhere is more aptly portrayed than in the life of Simon Peter. Peter, in Luke chapter 22, fails the Lord miserably. The Lord had sat at the table that night with His disciples and said unto them that one you will betray me and another one of you will deny me. Because of me, all the rest of you will become frighten, afraid, and run for cover. And it was Peter, and you know that Peter was no different from many of us; Peter had a problem that he oftentimes put his mouth in motion before he ever put his mind in gear. And Peter blurted out, “No, Lord! I can’t speak for these other fellas. I don’t know what they’re going to do! But I’ll NEVER deny you. Fact about it; I’m ready to go to prison with you. I’m ready to even DIE with you.” And Jesus simply says to Peter, “Peter be quiet. Peter Shut up. I hear what you’re saying but I already know what you’re going to do.” And literally he says, “Before the roster crows you shall deny me three times.” Have you ever wondered what happened to Peter? This fellow how had followed the Lord so close. Who was not simply a disciple but was a part of that inner circle of disciples. What caused Peter to fail? What caused Peter to fail so miserably as it relates to Jesus? Now you will remember when you look at Luke chapter 22; Peter had been well warned. Jesus had told him, you know, before the roster crows you are going to deny me three times. Peter stands up and boastfully says, “No Lord, I’ll never deny you. I’m ready to go to prison with you. I’m ready…to die with you.” That was Peter talking when he was in close fellowship with the Lord Jesus. That was Peter at one of his better moments. That was Peter at his high moment. He was at the table with Jesus when he boasts about, “No Lord, I’m ready to go to prison with you. I’m ready to die with you. I will NEVER deny you.” That was Peter talking when he was in close fellowship with the Lord Jesus; at one of his better moments; at one of his high moments. And all of us know what it is to have one of those high moments; those better moments; those moments when we are in close fellowship with the Lord and we tend to stand up and boast in our faith. But we also know, like Peter, what it is to have those other moments; those moments when we don’t stand so tall. Those moments when we say things and we act differently then we did when we were in close fellowship with the Lord. So the question is: what leads to Peter’s denial of the Lord? What caused Peter to overdose on self-confidence? Peter promised more than the other disciples but he performed the least that night. What happened to Peter? Let me give you a few suggestions. First of all, it begins with a disconnected prayer life. You may remember that earlier in the chapter that when Jesus got to Gethsemane, He took in with Him into that garden Peter, James, and John. He goes and He prays and He rises from prayer and He goes and He finds the disciples asleep; Peter, James, and John asleep. But when you read the Gospel, Jesus doesn’t address James and John as it relates to their slumber: He says, “Peter,” He singles him out. He says, “Could you not watch with me but for one hour?” (Mark 14:37) Leaves, goes prays a second time, comes back and finds them asleep again. Awakes them and He goes and prays for a third time and for a third time He comes back and finds them asleep. And He says, “Rise, let us be on our way, my betrayer is at hand.” If you do the right thing at the right time you won’t be guilty of doing the wrong thing in the wrong place. Because as Jesus is on His way out of that garden, He is met by this mob-crowd being lead by Judas. Judas betrays Him with a kiss. And as those guards lay hold on Jesus to arrest Him; Peter gets caught up in the excitement of the moment, pulls out his knife and slashes off a fellow’s ear. And Jesus says. “Peter, put up your sword. For he who lives by the sword shall die by the sword. Peter, put up your knife. If you had prayed! When it was prayer time, you wouldn’t be acting like this now. Peter, I didn’t ask you to pray all night – just one hour. And if you had prayed that one-hour with me you would understand what is going on. If you had prayed when I asked you. Peter, you’d understand that My Father has this thing all figured out! He intends for me to die at Calvary but you’re trying to get me killed in a midnight brawl! Put up your knife Peter! As Pastor Graham said on last Sunday, if you do the right thing at the right time; you’ll never do the wrong thing in the wrong place. Peter failed first of all because of his prayer-less-ness. And I need to remind you that none of us are any stronger than our prayer life. AMEN. Then the Bible says that they arrest Jesus and they lead Him off towards the Judgment Hall. And Luke says in verse 54 that Peter followed but he followed afar off. He failed not only because of his ‘prayer-less-ness’ but he failed secondly because he became a distant disciple. He followed but he followed afar off. He stayed close enough to see what was going to happen but at the same time he stayed far enough behind that he would not be identified with Jesus because as far as Peter was concerned following Jesus was now a lost cause and there was no reason to further be identified with the man, He’s already been arrested. He’s in trouble, there is no reason for me to get in trouble; and so he became a distant disciple.