NOBODY BUT JESUS
“Commitment Issues”
John 18:15-18; 25-27
All of us have at least one. All of us have at least one sound that we really hate to hear. For some it’s the sound of the dentist drilling inside your mouth---for others it may be the sound of screeching tires on pavement. For me it’s when someone drags their fingernails across a chalkboard. But is not always the sound that really bothers us. Sometimes it’s the memories that go with it. If you have ever been in a car accident you know what happens to your body when you hear screeching tires. You clench up. You still react physically because you know something bad is about to happen
Peter heard the rooster crow. Any other time it would be a signal to get up and start your day. For many years farmers used them like an alarm clock. It was the sound of a new beginning; a fresh start. But not for Peter. I figure that every time Peter heard a rooster crow, it probably reminded him of the day he denied Jesus.
You see, we know Peter-we know what his personality was like for several reasons. We know Peter because he stepped out of the boat. We know Peter because he drew his sword and cut off the soldier’s ear. We know Peter because we probably all have at least one friend like him. They are a good friend when things are going well but things get tough--- and suddenly they are nowhere to be found. When Peter walked on the water we sometimes forget to mention that Peter didn’t believe in Jesus at first. Peter says Lord if that is you... if that’s really you... Stand there while I come out on the water. Jesus basically says “come on.” And Peter does. And then he sinks. And he sinks because he has doubts. He doubts Jesus and he doubted himself.
Now here’s a theological question for you. Did Jesus know how all of this was going to turn out? Did Jesus know Peter was going to sink that day? Did Jesus know Peter would deny him? I believe he did. Because from the very beginning Jesus is trying to create something new in Peter. Jesus knew Peter would sink; he knew Peter would deny that he even knew him. And Jesus still allowed these things to happen. Jesus knew Peter would fail but he also knew something else.
Our failures are not final. Jesus looked at Peter and saw his future, not his failures.
I think that many of us can actually identify with Peter. We can relate to him.
• Because we act before we think.
• We speak before we think.
• We trust ourselves before we trust someone else.
• We speak up but for all the wrong reasons.
We relate to Peter because we really, really, really want to be like Jesus but when it comes down to the bottom line---when it comes down to making that commitment, we deny him, we sink; we have more words than we have actions. Commitment is a difficult thing for many people-men and women alike. We talk about our commitment; we even make plans, maybe even set some goals but when it comes time to pull the trigger, to cross the line, to step up to the plate, we sing.
Up to this point, Peter had been walking with Jesus for close to three years. He followed him everywhere. Peter was there when Jesus changed the water to wine, when Jesus challenged him to step out onto the water and when Jesus called Lazarus out of the grave. The Bible tells us that one time; this was after the resurrection that seven of the disciples were together and they went out the boat. They fished all night but caught nothing. The next morning after they had fished all night, Jesus saw them out on the lake and he called out to them ….hey guys didn’t you catch anything? Don’t you love that? Someone always has to point it out.
He says, throw your net out on the right side of the boat and you’ll find some. So they did and sure enough they caught so many in the net; they were unable to haul them all in. The Bible says they were all large fish-there were so many they counted them---fisherman do that----there were 153 fish. Peter saw some powerful miracles during his time with Jesus. He saw all of these miracles but yet when it came right down to it, when this young girl said to him, aren’t you the one I saw with Jesus. He said to her, I am not. He was asked in fact two more times. Each time he gave the same response. Not me. I don’t know him.
For three years walking with Jesus, hearing his teachings, seeing the difference Jesus made in one life after another what Peter must have felt on the day Jesus was crucified must have been more than difficult. His hope was snatched away. Their plans were torn apart. Suddenly everything must have seemed out of control. If words could somehow sum up what Peter and the other felt that day, it might sound something like this.
• We lost.
• We gave up our families.
• And now you’re gone.
• It feels like we lost.
Chapter 18:10. The scripture tells us that Peter fought for Jesus. Peter cut off the ear of a man named Malchus. Then in verse 15 Peter, along with the other disciples then followed Jesus. Knowing that the Jews felt that one man should die for the people; still they followed him. Knowing that there was a real possibility that Jesus could be killed they still stood with him.
Verse 17. the servant girl who was keeping watch when they arrived at the door... She recognized him as having been with Jesus. Jesus said, no, not me. You’ve got the wrong guy.
You see we struggle with commitment on a daily basis. We have good intentions but when it comes down to signing on the dotted line we get cold feet. There is a thing called buyer’s remorse. Perhaps you have experienced it before. You weigh all the pros and cons in making a decision, usually a major decision and then you finally go for it. After perhaps weeks or months of trying to m suddenly, now you regret your decision. It is said that the reason many people have buyer’s remorse is directly related to the cost. The higher the cost the bigger the remorse can be. I read this week that the average homebuyer looks for 10 weeks before making a purchase. After viewing hundreds of homes on the Internet and see hundreds of homes on the Internet and seeing at least 40 in person, many still have buyer’s remorse.
The more you are involved-the more remorse you can have. The more money you spend, the more regret you can experience. The bigger the commitment the more it weighs on our conscience.
There are two things I would say about that related to our commitment to Christ.
1. We should give heavy consideration to any major commitment we make in life. These commitments should never be made without great thought. In financial decisions, credit cards have gotten plenty of people in trouble because frankly it’s just too easy to plop down your Visa card or your Discover card. Then a month later you get a bill and you discover just how much money you owe.
2. In the same way, when we are contemplating making a commitment to Christ, we should never make it casually. There is a prayer we commonly referred to as the sinner’s prayer. The person praying the prayer usually says something like this:
God I know that I am a sinner and I ask for your forgiveness. I believe that you died for my sins. Today I trust and follow you as my Lord and Savior. I give my life to you. In Jesus name. Amen.
There have been thousands of people who have prayed that prayer and have been saved. But as far as regret is concerned I have said this before and will say again that I have never known anyone, not one person who gave their life to Christ and then had regret.
But here’s the thing---it is not those words in the sinner’s prayer that will save you. Someone could repeat that prayer without making any commitment whatsoever in their heart. The power is not in those words; the power is actually in 2 places.
(1) There is power in the blood of Jesus Christ to save us. Only through the blood. (2) There is power in the commitment we are making when we make it from the heart. When it is genuine. When we mean it. The Bible says that “the LORD does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart." This is what it takes to be saved…the blood of Jesus and a heart that is penitent, a heart that is filled with remorse. God cannot save us if our heart is stubborn, if our heart is cold. More than anything about us, He looks at our heart. When we pray, He looks at our heart. What is our motive for the things we ask for? When we read His word, he works on the heart to soften it, to cleanse it to make us more like Him. More than anything about us, Jesus looks at our heart.
(1) You see, Jesus is the only one who can take care of our sin problem. From the time of our birth all of us have had a sin problem. The Bible says that we were born with a sinful nature. David said, “Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me.” As a result we need a Savior. You see all of us need a Savior because all of us are sinners. Everyone needs salvation because we have all sinned. Romans 3:10-12, and 23. The Bible says, “No one is righteous—not even one. No one is truly wise; no one is seeking God. All have turned away; all have become useless. No one does good, not a single one.” ... For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. Could that actually be more clear???
Then the Bible tells us that (2) The price (or consequence) of sin is death. Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord. (3) So Jesus Christ died for our sins. He paid the price for our death. Romans 5:8 But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners.
(4) Salvation is ours if we will confess we are sinners and declare that we believe. Romans 10:9-10, and 13 If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by confessing with your mouth that you are saved ... For “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
Doubt and fear; especially the fear of failure can be very difficult to deal with. It was for Peter. It is for me and I am sure it is for you as well. We wonder if people will laugh at us. We wonder if people we believe we have truly changed. Or will they just continue to dig up our past. Probably they will. They may doubt your decision. They may even condemn you for making it. But this is what God says.
Listen…So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus. 2 And because you belong to him, the power[a] of the life-giving Spirit has freed you[b]from the power of sin that leads to death.
