When God Calls Your Name: Peter Series

When God Calls Your Name… Twice: Simon Peter

Scott Bayles, pastor

Blooming Grove Christian Church: 8/28/2016

For the last several of weeks, we’ve been talking about how you might respond if God called your name—not just once, but twice. As I mentioned before, God calls plenty of people in the Bible often by name, but I’ve only found seven times where God calls out someone’s name twice in a row—Abraham, Abraham! Jacob, Jacob! Moses, Moses!

Each time that God calls someone by name twice, he follows it with something profound and potentially life-changing. He called Moses to tell him that he sees the suffering in our world, and he wants us to do something about it. He called Samuel to demonstrate just how important it is to listen to God’s voice. He called Martha to remind her to slow down and spend time at the feet of Jesus.

The sixth person that Jesus calls by name twice is Simon Peter.

Impetuous and headstrong, Peter is easily one of the most relatable and likeable people we meet in the gospels. When Jesus entered Peter’s life, this plain fisherman became a new person with new goals and new priorities. He did not become a perfect person, however. Rather, Peter’s story is riddled with mistakes and missteps. I think that’s why we like him so much. But there was one blunder in Peter’s life that almost ruined him; one failure from which he almost didn’t recover. Thankfully, Jesus saw it coming and offered Peter some compassionate counsel.

The story we’re going to look at is from Luke 22, so if you have a Bible or an app on your phone, turn to that passage. The Last Supper made for a solemn evening. Emotions ran high as Jesus washed the disciples’ feet, began the tradition of communion, and revealed that there was a traitor in their midst.

When Jesus predicts his betrayal, the disciples start asking each other who could possibly betray Jesus—a discussion that evolves into a childish argument over who among them is the greatest! Peter must have been the loudest of the bunch, because it’s on the heels of this argument that Jesus singles Simon Peter out and calls his name twice! He says:

“Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift all of you as wheat. But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers.” But he replied, “Lord, I am ready to go with you to prison and to death.” Jesus answered, “I tell you, Peter, before the rooster crows today, you will deny three times that you know me.” (Luke 22:31-34 NLT)

In response to the apostle’s arrogance, Jesus issues a sober warning about Satan. Satan wanted to crush Simon Peter and the others like grains of wheat. Ever since the garden of Eden Satan has always stood opposed to God’s people.

People's beliefs concerning Satan range from the silly to the abstract—from a little red guy with horns who sits on your shoulder urging you to sin, to an expression used to describe the personification of evil. The Bible, however, gives us a clear portrait of who Satan is and how he affects our lives. Put simply, the Bible defines Satan as an angelic being who fell from his position in heaven due to sin and is now completely opposed to God, doing all in his power to thwart God's purposes and tempt God’s people.

Twice in Scripture, Satan is referred to as “the tempter” (Matthew 4:3; 1 Thessalonians 3:5) and that’s his goal. He acts in a way that is subtle and seductive to tempt us step by step away from God and toward a life of sin and self-indulgence.

I heard a story once about this woman who comes home and shows her husband the expensive dress she just bought. When her husband gets upset about how much she spent, she jokes, “The devil made me buy it.” The husband says, “You should have said get thee behind me, Satan!” The woman replied, “I did and he said it looked as from the back as it does from the front!”

We might laugh, but that’s what Satan does. Satan makes sin look sexy. He makes it attractive, appealing, and appetizing. Back in the Garden of Eden, he made that single piece of fruit look like the most delicious, desirable delicacy on the planet. And he does the same thing with the sin hanging in front of you.

The devil doesn’t say, “I’m going to tempt you to become an alcoholic.” No, the devil says, “My doesn’t that drink look delicious—the color, the shimmer of the ice, the warm tingling feeling as you drink, the little umbrella or cherry stuck in the top?”

The devil doesn’t say, “I’m going to lead you into an affair that will destroy your marriage.” No, the devil says, “Isn’t she an attractive woman? Isn’t he charming and thoughtful? Wouldn’t you like to spend a little more time with that person?”