From Ordinary to Extraordinary
The Transformation Began in Amazement…
at what Jesus taught and gave to people – both healing and forgiveness
Amazement Led to Obedience…
even when Simon didn’t think it would make a difference
Obedience Grew Into Faith…
that moved Simon to get out of the boat and walk on water – for a ways
Faith Became Conviction…
that Jesus was the Messiah and the son of God – even though Simon didn’t understand about the cross of Jesus to come
Conviction Hardened Into Pride
He refused to wash dirty feet and then tried to one up Jesus and the others by offering his head and his hands. It wasn’t about washing feet but service and love.
Simon Peter’s Really Bad Night
In the next few hours we see Simon Peter’s pride lead him into some foolish statements and ultimately he came crashing down in personal tragedy. Do you remember the old saying that, “pride comes before the fall”. It’s certainly true with Simon Peter. In one night – 10 to 12 hours – the wheels came off and we end up with Simon weeping in the dark night while Jesus looks across the courtyard at him in deep sorrow. What happened? Where did Simon Peter go wrong? Why did such a promising rookie lose it so badly?
On the most important night of his life—on the most important night in history—Peter, "the Rock," sat alone in a dark corner weeping. This wasn’t common place for him. He was a strong self-reliant fisherman. He was bold! He was courageous! And now, he was completely undone. The Rock had been shattered.
Every great man or woman of God can point to a time of breaking in his or her life where a time of conflict, a time of pressure, or a time of decision transformed them from an ordinary piece of coal into a precious diamond, that is pliable in the master’s hand.
Simon’s Really Bad Night became the pivotal moment in his life.
Let’s see what happened.
Simon Peter was Proud
Matthew 26:31-34
33 Peter said, “Everyone else may stumble in their faith because of you, but I will not.”
31 Jesus told his followers, “Tonight you will all stumble in your faith on account of me, because it is written in the Scriptures:
‘I will kill the shepherd, and the sheep will scatter.’ Zechariah 13:7
32 But after I rise from the dead, I will go ahead of you into Galilee.”
33 Peter said, “Everyone else may stumble in their faith because of you, but I will not.”
34 Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, tonight before the rooster crows you will say three times that you don’t know
35 But Peter said, “I will never say that I don’t know you! I will even die with you!” And all the other followers said the same thing.
Bold Statements
Peter made some bold statements. He declared that he will not fall away, even if all would fall away, and that he would rather die with Jesus than deny Him.
Note that Jesus was addressing the disciples as a group. He predicted "All of you will fall away," but Peter substituted the word “all” for the pronoun "everyone else": "Even if EVERYONE ELSE fall away on account of you, I never will."
Peter included not just the apostles, but other disciples and the whole wide world. After this bold statement he was confronted by Jesus’ prediction that he would deny Him three times. That produces a still bolder declaration…
Simon Peter was Proud
Matthew 26:31-34
35 But Peter said, “I will never say that I don’t know you! I will even die with you!” And all the other followers said the same thing.
We see here two different negative single syllables-one is NEVER, the other is NOT- to stress his undying devotion to Jesus. Simon Peter is saying No, Never, I will not let this happen in as strong a language as he could find.
Do you recognize the pattern? Do you see the problem?
Simon Peter’s second reply is a relapse into his old carnal self, that first appeared he rebuked Jesus at the first mention of His suffering and death in Jerusalem: "This shall never (No Not) happen to you!" (Matt 16:22) when Jesus had to say, “Get behind me, Satan” to Simon.
Peter was a loyal man, but he was too proud, too cocky, and way too self-confident.
J. Oswald Sander said, "Pride is like an onion: You take off one skin and you come to another, then another still and all the while it makes you cry."
I once heard a minister say to his congregation, “you can trust me I’ll never fall into temptation…” What a foolish thing to say.
During a Pastor’s meeting, an old pastor stood up to testify to his faith.
Yet his testimony surprised a number of people. The pastor stood up and looked at the group and said, “I am a lay pastor of a small, not-growing church. I am not ordained. I am not seminary trained. I was asked to leave both Bible colleges I attended. I am divorced and remarried. On any given day I am capable of being a jerk with my wife and family. I am terminally insecure, which causes me to compensate with bouts of arrogance. At times people irritate me, and I hide from them. I am impulsive, which causes me to say things I shouldn’t and make promises I cannot keep. I am inconsistent.
My walk with Christ is a stuttering, stumbling, bumbling attempt to follow Him. At times His presence is so real I can’t stop the tears, and then, without warning, I can’t find Him. Some days my faith is strong, impenetrable, and immovable—and some days my faith is weak, pathetic, helpless, knocked about like a paper cup floating on the ocean in the middle of a hurricane.
I have been a Christian for 45 years. I am familiar with the vocabulary of faith, and I am often asked to give advice about matters of faith. But I am still a mess. I am light-years away from being able to say with Paul, “Copy me.” I am 56 years old and still struggling—a flawed, clumsy, unstable follower of Jesus. A bona fide failer.”
Which pastor do you want to follow and trust? The truth is that we are all broken and unfinished. Our own strength is never enough. We must learn to humbly lean on God. Simon had yet to learn this critical lesson as he proudly – even arrogantly – proclaimed his spiritual might and the strength of his soul – it was not enough for Simon was to be tested.
Simon Peter was Tested
Luke 22:31-34
31 “Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to test all of you as a farmer sifts his wheat. 32 I have prayed that you will not lose your faith! Help your brothers be stronger when you come back to me.”
31 “Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to test all of you as a farmer sifts his wheat. 32 I have prayed that you will not lose your faith! Help your brothers be stronger when you come back to me.”
33 But Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, I am ready to go with you to prison and even to die with you!”
34 But Jesus said, “Peter, before the rooster crows this day, you will say three times that you don’t know me.”
Temptation is Satan’s test of our love for God
The words temptation and test share the same root word in Greek. One is a noun and the other is a verb. A temptation is a test of one’s dependence on God; an opportunity to turn to Him or an occasion to turn from Him.
About a century ago, Charles H. Brent said, "Only he who flings himself upward when the pull comes to drag him down, can hope to break the force of temptation."
Jesus used two prepositions to describe two ways believers respond when they are tempted.
Some will Fall Away
Luke 8:13
13 The seed that fell on rock is like those who hear God’s teaching and accept it gladly, but they don’t allow the teaching to go deep into their lives. They believe for a while, but when trouble comes, they give up.
In Luke 8:13 Jesus talked about “falling away” when tempted.
In what we call the parable of the sower, Jesus described the ones who fall away as seed that fell on the rock. They received the word with joy when they hear it, but they have no root. They believe for a while, but in the time of testing they fall away (Luke 8:13). They fall away because the rising sun scorched the plants (Mark 4:4-7) that had no moisture (Lk 8:6) and not much soil (Matt 13:5-6). In fact, Jesus had praised the disciples for remaining through with him, thus far.
ἀößóôçìé [aphistemi /af•is•tay•mee/] v. From 575 and 2476; TDNT 1:512; TDNTA 88; GK 923; 15 occurrences; AV translates as “depart” 10 times, “draw away” once, “fall away” once, “refrain” once, “withdraw self” once, and “depart from” once. 1 to make stand off, cause to withdraw, to remove. 1A to excite to revolt. 2 to stand off, to stand aloof. 2A to go away, to depart from anyone. 2B to desert, withdraw from one. 2C to fall away, become faithless. 2D to shun, flee from. 2E to cease to vex one. 2F to withdraw one’s self from, to fall away. 2G to keep one’s self from, absent one’s self from.
Some will Stay Through
Luke 22:28-29
28 “You have stayed with me through my struggles. 29 Just as my Father has given me a kingdom, I also give you a kingdom
In Luke 22:28 Jesus spoke encouragingly of his disciples faith and devotion. He talked about how they stayed through the troubles.
äéáìÝíù [diameno /dee•am•en•o/] v. From 1223 and 3306; GK 1373; Five occurrences; AV translates as “continue” three times, and “remain” twice. 1 to stay permanently, remain permanently, continue.
None of us are born mentally, emotionally, or spiritually strong. If we will stay through with Jesus we must remain with Him.
It is our prayer to God allows us to counter, combat, and contain the weak flesh, the spineless body, and the fallen nature.
Simon Peter was Broken
Luke 22:54-62
54 They arrested Jesus, and led him away, and brought him into the house of the high priest. Peter followed far behind them. 55 After the soldiers started a fire in the middle of the courtyard and sat together, Peter sat with them. 56 A servant girl saw Peter sitting there in the firelight, and looking closely at him, she said, “This man was also with him.”
57 But Peter said this was not true; he said, “Woman, I don’t know him.”
58 A short time later, another person saw Peter and said, “You are also one of them.”
But Peter said, “Man, I am not!”
59 About an hour later, another man insisted, “Certainly this man was with him, because he is from Galilee, too.”
60 But Peter said, “Man, I don’t know what you are talking about!”
At once, while Peter was still speaking, a rooster crowed. 61 Then the Lord turned and looked straight at Peter. And Peter remembered what the Lord had said: “Before the rooster crows this day, you will say three times that you don’t know me.” 62 Then Peter went outside and cried painfully.
Not simply broken – shattered!
When you lean on your own strength – you break. It’s the way it works.
Contrast Simon’s preparation for trial with Jesus
Simon grabbed a sword while Jesus got on his knees and prayed. Simon failed when Jesus stayed through. The critical factor was and is prayer.
Jesus invited the disciples to stay through with him in the garden praying – and they all fell asleep – three times. Do you see the significance of this failure for the disciples? It’s pretty clear isn’t it?
Jesus is our model for prayer.
• He prayed early in the morning (Mark 1:35);
• he prayed till evening (Mark 6:46, Matt 14:23);
• he prayed at night (Luke 6:12-13),
• and overnight (Luke 6:12-13).
• He withdrew to the wilderness to pray when his fame attracted great multitudes (Luke 5:15-16),
• and often ascended a mountain for prayer, where he secluded himself till evening from the crowds (Mark 6:46, Matt 14:23).
• He even spent his night in prayer there, especially before picking the twelve apostles (Luke 6:12-13),
• and manifested His glory on a mountain, again in prayer (Luke 9:28).
Gethsemane was just His last uninterrupted private prayer session with the Father.
He prayed to the Father when he was sorrowful and troubled (v 37), but the gulf grew to the point that His soul was overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death (v 38). Luke 22:44 said Jesus he suffered agonia or agnoy the last time, and that his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground (Luke 22:44). Heb 5:7 wrote that Jesus offered up prayers and petitions with loud cries and tears to the One who could save him from death.
Jesus did not ask the disciples to pray for Him, but to pray with and like Him. His prayer was a spiritual battle and a cosmic struggle. He asked, "My Father, if it is possible..." (v 39) before He submitted, "My Father, if it is not possible...." He began with by deliberating, "Yet not as I will, but as you will," and ended by declaring, "May your will be done."
Our battle to remain in Jesus is not one of the flesh but of the spirit. It is not a matter of will power but of prayer power. Did you pray when you are discouraged? Depressed? Defeated or deserted? Did you pray faithfully when you have problems with others? When you dissatisfied with yourself? When the world is about to cave in, and when things are beyond your control?
You’ve heard of Jesus Beatitudes. Have you heard of Satan’s beatitudes? They go like this:
Satan’s Beatitudes
Blessed are they who are too tired and busy to go to church on Sunday, for they are my best workers.
Blessed are they who are bored with the minister’s mannerisms and mistakes, for they get nothing out of the sermon.
Blessed is the church member who expects to be invited to his own church for he is part of the problem instead of the solution.
Blessed are they who gossip for they cause strife and divisions that please me.
Blessed are they who are easily offended, for they soon get angry and quit.
Blessed are they who do not give their offerings to carry on God’s work, for they are my best helpers.
Blessed is he who professes to love God but hates his brother and sister, for he shall be with me forever.
Blessed are the troublemakers, for they shall be called the children of the devil.
Blessed who have no time to pray for he will be easy prey.
Sifted like Wheat
Jesus spoke of Satan’s request to sift his disciples like wheat. The sifting is not a bad thing. It is good. God uses this sifting to separate the chaff from the grain – in us.
I don’t think you can really, really ever be a servant of God until and unless you are broken before him. There is a sifting and a purification of our souls that is absolutely necessary.
Some of you are being sifted right now. Friends, if you are being sifted by Satan now, I want you to remember these things:
1. Satan asks for you by name – it’s very personal.
2. Our God is stronger than Satan – “He that is in us is greater than he that is in the world.”
3. You will stay through as long as you stay close! – pray!
Let’s close with prayer this morning.
