Latest / Bible Study with Pr. Daniel Batarseh | Verse by Verse Series | Maranatha Bible Church - Chicago / 3 Truths About Temptation | Mark 14:66-72 | Pastor Daniel Batarseh (Gospel of Mark Bible Study Series)

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3 Truths About Temptation | Mark 14:66-72 | Pastor Daniel Batarseh (Gospel of Mark Bible Study Series) · Bible Study with Pr. Daniel Batarseh | Verse by Verse Series | Maranatha Bible Church - Chicago

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  I do invite you to the Gospel of Mark, chapter 16, Excuse me,
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  chapter 14, beginning in verse 66.
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  Just place your hand there. We're not going to read just
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  yet. Mark 1466.
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  Before we read this passage, I want to briefly address, well,
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  maybe weighing heavy on some hearts this afternoon.
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  Some of you may have heard the recent news of a prominent
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  American evangelical preacher who recently admitted to an
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  inappropriate relationship with a woman who is not his wife.
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  And it is always gut wrenching to learn of a well respected
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  minister who sins in a manner that disqualifies them from
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  ministry. And the heartbreak goes beyond
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  the fact that such people cannot serve in a certain capacity,
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  doesn't it? We have to keep in mind the
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  testimony of the Gospel, the spouses, the children, the local
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  church, fellow ministers, close friends, and the broader
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  Christian community that is impacted by such a fall.
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  And this should lead us to pray not only for those who sin
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  grievously as leaders, but also for those who are feeling the
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  effects of that sin. And as I was exploring some
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  articles and engaging with some individuals about this incident,
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  you know, you just want to know as many details as possible, not
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  to satisfy curiosity, but just so that there are more answers
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  than questions, I stumbled upon another fallen pastor's comments
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  about the situation. Now, I've heard of this
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  individual when I first became a believer.
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  And I remember, though I didn't follow his ministry, hearing
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  about how he succumbed to sexual immorality around the time when
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  his church was experiencing explosive growth and his
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  influence was broadening out nationally.
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  It was a sad, it was a sad thing to hear.
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  But he was reflecting upon the aftermath of his own fallen in
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  his comments, and especially with the recent news that
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  shocked thousands. He had said something that I
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  believe is helpful for us to hear.
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  And it'll be very sobering. He said the following.
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  You are capable of falling in a way that seems unthinkable to
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  you right now. Meditate on that.
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  You and I are capable, not destined, but capable of falling
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  in a way that is unthinkable to you right now.
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  That sat with me for a few days, and it didn't take very long for
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  a variety of biblical examples and illustrations to surface and
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  confirm a very powerful statement.
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  And I know I asked you to turn with me to Mark 14, but for a
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  moment, let's go to 1st Kings because I want to just show you
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  what you may think is a predictable example, but it's
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  nonetheless instructive for us. In First Kings 11, verse four, I
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  want you to see specific detail noting Solomon's fall, his
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  greatest fall. In First Kings 11, verse 4.
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  It says here, for when Solomon was old, his wives turned away
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  his heart after other gods, and his heart was not wholly true to
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  the Lord his God, as was the heart of David his father.
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  I want you to notice the first few words of this verse.
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  For when Solomon was old, Solomon was old when he
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  experienced his greatest downfall.
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  And we often assume that it is only the young who are ensnared
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  by lust. That is not the case.
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  What this reminds us is that all temptation, including sexual
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  temptation, arises in every season of life.
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  And this also tells us that age does not promise wisdom.
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  Experience in life does not guarantee prudence or
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  discretion. It should, but it's not
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  automatic For when Solomon was old, and this is no less true
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  for those who have accomplished great things for God like
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  Solomon did. There is a tendency for those
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  who have glorified the Lord in remarkable ways to let their
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  guard down after some time and to not be convinced, as they
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  once were, of their dependence on the Lord to sustain them,
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  empower them, guide them, shield them.
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  For some reason, a strange deception persuades servants of
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  God, especially after great feats of obedience.
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  So I want to let you know that victories and testimonies of the
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  past do not prepare you for temptations that await tomorrow.
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  There is only one thing, at least a main thing, that will
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  equip you to be ready for unforeseen allurements and
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  enticements the days ahead. One thing, one thing.
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  Daily devotion to the Lord Jesus Christ.
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  I want you to look back at this verse with me first.
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  Kings 11/4, The word heart appears not once, not twice,
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  three times. Look at it again from when
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  Solomon was old. His wife's turned away his heart
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  after other gods, and his heart was not wholly true to the Lord
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  his God, as was the heart of David, his father.
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  Do you think that's coincidence? That's not coincidence, that's
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  strategic. What is the Holy Spirit trying
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  to convey? That downfalls begin in the
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  heart? Before there is any external
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  humiliation, there is unchallenged internal
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  deterioration. Before there is any public
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  scandal, Know this for certain. There is always significant
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  private neglect. So as long as we know how to
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  guard our hearts, we will know Christ's honoring character for
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  the long haul. We will.
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  Longevity is possible. It's possible to be old and be
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  vibrant and holy and consistent. And I don't bring all this up
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  because it brings me pleasure. And I'm not bringing this up to
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  you because I feel like venting. I bring this up to you because I
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  want you to recognize God's Providence with me.
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  Because in our study of Mark, we have now arrived to a text that
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  examines the lowest point of another disciple's life, and
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  that is Peter the Apostle. What we're going to read in a
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  moment here is Peter, in a sense, doing something that he
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  thought he would never do, falling in an unthinkable way.
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  So let's read from Mark 1466 down to the end of this chapter
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  together before we zoom in. And as Peter was below in the
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  courtyard, one of the servant girls of the high priest came.
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  And seeing Peter warming himself, she looked at him and
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  said, You also were with the Nazarene Jesus.
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  But he denied it, saying, I neither know nor understand what
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  you mean. And he went out into the
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  gateway, and the rooster crowed, and the servant girl saw him,
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  and began again to say to the bystanders, This man is one of
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  them. But again he denied it.
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  And after a little while the bystanders again said to Peter,
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  certainly you are one of them, for you are a Galilean.
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  But he began to invoke a curse on himself and to swear, I do
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  not know this man of whom you speak.
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  And immediately the rooster crowed a second time, and Peter
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  remembered how Jesus had said to him before.
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  The rooster crows twice. You will deny me three times.
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  And he broke down and wept. There's so many things, so many
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  ways of approaching this text. But there's a clear theme, is
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  there not temptation? And even with that theme, there
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  are so many points to draw out from Peter's example.
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  But for the sake of time, I'm going to talk about 3 things I
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  want to look with you at 3 Truths about Temptation from
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  Peter's denial. Our brother prayed so
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  beautifully, but I want us to pray again before we come to
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  this text. We do trust You, Lord Jesus,
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  that You have something to say to us through Your Word.
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  So by Your Spirit, guide us every step of the way.
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  Lord, empower our hearts, our minds, empower this voice so
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  that Your word would not just be explained the way it should, but
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  delivered in a way that glorifies You and benefits Your
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  people. We look to You trusting that we
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  will leave here refreshed, equipped, ready to endure and
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  bring glory to Your name in Jesus name, Amen. 3 truths about
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  temptation drawn from Peter's denial and the first one is
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  found in the 1st 2 verses of our main text.
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  Temptation is ever present. Temptation is ever present.
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  The the impression that we get from Peter's posture before
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  these waves of temptation ambushed him is that he was
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  unsuspecting. Look again here what Mark tells
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  us, it tells us that Peter in verse 66 was below in the
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  courtyard, one of the servants, girl, the high priest came and
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  seeing Peter warming himself. So he's cold and significantly
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  he's physically cold, not realizing that spiritually he's
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  also cold, but he's warming himself.
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  And Matthew actually tells us what is preoccupying Peter from
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  within. So you don't have to turn there,
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  but let me read this to you from Matthew 26, verse 58.
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  And Peter was following him at a distance as far as the courtyard
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  of the high priest. And going inside, he sat with
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  the guards to see the end. The end of what?
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  The end of the matter of Christ. So Peter has a mixture of things
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  going on. He's afraid, He's actually
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  petrified, but he also is curious, and he wants to know
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  what's going to happen to his master.
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  And so he's really here busy trying to blend in so that
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  nobody identifies him as a disciple, but also wanting to
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  see what's going to happen to the rabbi, my rabbi, my Lord the
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  Christ. And as he is doing this, this is
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  the portrait that we have of him.
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  A Peter seems to look innocent, but actually this is concerning
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  not only because he planted himself in a very compromising
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  crowd, but also because he heard something Jesus told them about
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  this very night. And it's strange how he is
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  acting this way in light of what he was told by Jesus.
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  Go back to Mark 14, verse 30. Earlier that evening, Jesus
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  predicted something, says here, Mark 1430.
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  And Jesus said to him, truly, I tell you this very night before
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  the rooster crows twice, you will deny me three times, pause.
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  I want you to put yourself in Peter's shoes now, and I want
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  you to imagine Jesus Christ looking at you in the eye and
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  telling you this night, before this night is over, you're going
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  to deny me three times. Jesus never lies.
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  He never exaggerates. He's always right.
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  How would you respond to that declaration?
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  What would you do throughout that evening?
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  How would you posture yourself? The obvious answer, you're going
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  to pray. You're going to pray a lot that
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  Peter pray. He failed to pray.
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  And more than just pray. I'm sure you would be on high
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  alert, extremely cautious, deeply discerning.
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  And the impression that we get of Peter is that he's none of
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  those things. He's cold, he's anxious, he's
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  scared, he's curious, but he is not mindful of what Jesus warned
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  him about. And though the warning is unique
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  to Peter, it carries universal application.
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  Temptation is ever present. Temptation is not courteous,
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  it's not considerate, it's not compassionate.
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  It doesn't. It doesn't concern and take any
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  regard of your surroundings, it doesn't care about your
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  circumstances, It's not sensitive to your feelings.
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  Temptation intrudes on your thoughts even amidst other
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  distractions, and it certainly does not care about your
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  spiritual condition. It's invasive, it's rude, it's
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  surprising. Hey, some of you, as I'm
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  preaching right now, may be tempted in one way or another.
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  It's very possible Peter was many things, but he was not
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  aware of his vulnerability. And many of you know that I am
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  personally passionate about the doctrine of the fear of the
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  Lord. And the reason for that is
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  because, one, I made an impact on my life, but because there's
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  also so many instructions regarding it and rewards
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  attached to it. And if you're a person here who
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  believes that the fear of the Lord is relevant, which it is
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  for you and I as Christians, then this verse that I'm going
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  to bring to you, I believe is one of the most important
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  understandings of the fear of the Lord, at least in
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  experiencing it for all that it has to offer.
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  Turn with me to Proverbs 23 and look at what the Holy Spirit
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  says in verse 17. The Spirit says, let not your
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  heart envy sinners, but continue in the fear of the Lord. 3 very
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  important words all the day. Do you know what this teaches
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  me? It's possible to walk in the
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  fear of the Lord sometimes. It's possible to be inconsistent
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  in how you perceive God. So what does the Holy Spirit
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  say? Fear the Lord.
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  OK, good. No, no, no.
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  Fear the Lord all the day. What does that look like
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  practically? Here's what it looks like
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  practically. It looks like you being aware of
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  God and being in awe of God beyond a 2 hour service on a
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  Sunday. So when you're home alone, be
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  aware of God and be in awe of God.
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  When you go out with your friends to the heart of the
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  city, be aware of God. Be in awe of God.
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  When you go to work and you know that you're going to be
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  surrounded by godless people, be aware of God.
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  Be in awe of God when you're in your living room with your
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  family looking for something to kind of watch together.
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  Be aware of God. Be in awe of God.
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  When you're on your phone and you have a specific kind of
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  screen that doesn't allow others to see what you're texting or
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  browsing, be aware of God. Be an of God.
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  When you're texting somebody, be aware of God.
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  Be an of God. Fear the Lord all the day.
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  And there are many blessings that will flow from that frame
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  of mind if you so choose to adopt it.
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  And one of them is mentioned in the very next verse.
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  Look at it. Surely there is a future and
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  your hope will not be cut off. Do you want a bright future?
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  Who doesn't? Who doesn't want a bright
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  future? There's something very wrong if
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  you don't want a bright future. Well, if you want a bright
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  future, then you must choose to fear the Lord all the day, every
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  day. And if temptation is ever
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  present, then may our awareness and awe of God be the same
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  again. I mentioned how there's so many
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  points about temptation that we can draw out from this.
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  One of them that I didn't include is how temptation is
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  persistent. But let me mention it here.
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  Do you see the pattern? Do you see that how after Peter
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  denied Christ the first time, temptation was not satisfied?
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  Came again. And it came again.
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  And notice what happens to Peter's denials.
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  They get more intense by the time you come to the third
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  denial. He what verse 71, he began to
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  invoke a curse on himself and to swear.
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  And we kind of have our a preconceived notion of how Peter
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  denied Jesus. But notice how he denies him in
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  verse 71. I do not know this man of whom
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  you speak. Not only does he say I'm not
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  associated with him, he's like, I don't even know who's Jesus,
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  who Jesus of Nazareth. I don't know who you're talking
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  about. So temptation is, listen,
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  temptation is not a sin. What you do with temptation
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  determines if it's a sin or if it's a victory.
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  But temptation is persistent and it's not satisfied and you just
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  slipping here and there. Temptation wants you dead.
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  It wants to kill your testimony. It wants to kill your marriage.
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  It wants to kill your relationship with your children.
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  It wants to kill your finances. It wants to kill your body.
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  It wants to absolutely crush you to find powder.
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  So the antidote, at least one of them to guarding your heart from
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  surprising temptations that just spring up in your mind all of a
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  sudden and there's nothing even around you that would stimulate
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  such thoughts or ideas, is to walk in the fear of the Lord,
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  which can be simply summarized as an awareness of God all but
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  just more than that, in awe of God, Temptation is ever present.
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  The second thing we learned from this in verse 68 is that
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  temptation is conquerable. Look at verse 68.
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  But he denied it, saying, I neither know nor understand what
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  you mean. And he went out into the
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  gateway, and the rooster crowed. Now listen, temptation may catch
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  you off guard. It may be unsuspecting, but
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  there are things that we can do to minimize its frequency and
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  its intensity. And we learned last week that
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  how when Peter chose to follow Jesus, he did so in a very
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  tricky manner. He did so at a distance, which
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  led him to stand with guards and those who opposed Christ and not
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  just stand. What did he end up doing?
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  He sat with them. He got comfortable with them.
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  And so as much as this was not the best place for him to be, we
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  concluded that you have to also remember He chose to be there.
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  You're familiar with the flesh enough to understand that in
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  order to overcome temptation, you have to avoid compromising
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  conversations, seducing situations, any opportunity for
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  the flesh to flare up. We have been given the
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  responsibility to be very aware of what we are doing, cautiously
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  or even accidentally that might position us to be weak.
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  Peter was not in the right place yet.
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  We also know that despite your efforts to try to exterminate
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  any external influences, it does not completely delete the
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  possibility of temptation harassing you.
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  Stick a man on an island with no computer, no iPhones, no people,
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  he'll still no temptation. Why?
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  Because this flesh, this is heart.
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  And that may make you feel hopeless, but it shouldn't.
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  It shouldn't because there is a promise that God has given us.
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  And I rate this promise as probably one of the greatest in
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  all of Scripture. This is one of those that I I
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  would encourage you to actually memorize.
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  It's not a difficult verse, but does it really help?
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  Is it useful to wield as you are facing temptation of any kind?
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  It's what Paul said in First Corinthians 10/13.
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  And he says so gloriously, no temptation has overtaken you.
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  That is not common to man. God is faithful and He will not
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  let you be tempted beyond your own ability, but with the
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  temptation He will what provide a way of escape that you may be
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  able to endure it. I'm tempted to just memorize
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  that with you right now and call it a day today.
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  Look at this verse again. You understand its implications.
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  No temptation has overtaken. That is not common to man 1st,
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  no matter how extreme or unique your situation may be, we are
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  not allowed to ever excuse ourselves to give into it as
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  though nobody else ever experienced it.
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  No matter again, how personal. Maybe it's not unique.
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  Others have also experienced something similar.
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  But with that also, God promises each of us to never allow
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  temptation to become unbearable. Think about that.
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  There is not one temptation that can overtake you, and you come
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  out of it saying, I had no choice, not one.
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  No matter the nature of it, no matter how fierce it is, there
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  is not one single temptation. No matter how powerfully binding
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  it is, no matter how much we have given into into it, the
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  nature of the allurement and in God's grace promises us that it
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  might be, it might be intense, but it never overcomes.
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  There's not a single temptation that any of us cannot overcome.
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  That shouldn't make you sad. That should make you happy.
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  If you're not happy yet, this will make you happy.
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  With every temptation, big or small, God always provides an
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  exit. Not what He says, but with the
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  temptation, He will also provide the way of escape.
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  That way of escape may look different in every case, but one
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  thing is for certain, He makes a way for us to be able to resist
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  it. So there's no excuses.
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  So now we're humbled, but we're also excited.
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  Why? Because He He promises that in
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  His goodness, there's not one temptation that will swallow
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  you. Now you're able to resist it.
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  Why? Because He provides a path out.
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  I bring this up to you to not just remind you a promise, but
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  to actually show you how. In the verse that we read in
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  Mark 14, the Lord provided Peter a way out.
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  Go back to Mark 1468. Maybe you missed it.
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  But he denied it, saying I neither know nor understand what
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  you mean. And he went out into the gateway
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  and the rooster crowed. Now do you remember what Jesus
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  told Peter about the rooster crowing?
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  How many times with the rooster crowed before Peter denied him?
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  Three times? Twice.
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  Mark tells us though, as we just read, that the rooster crowed
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  once after Peter initially denied Jesus.
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  The rooster was going to crow a second time and Jesus
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  fulfillment is going to be realized.
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  But we see here that the rooster crowed once and I am fully
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  convinced that it was a gracious alarm for Peter to escape while
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  he could. It was supposed to awaken his
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  conscience. It was supposed to remind him
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  early on. It was supposed to trigger him
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  and cause him to remember what Christ had told him.
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  All if only Peter heard the first crow.
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  And in the same way that the Lord uses a crow to awaken
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  Peter, at least attempt He implements many things to get
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  our attention before we enter or we continue in sin.
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  Can I tell you one of the ways He does it?
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  You're experiencing it right now.
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  God's warnings listen. They can be through Roosters and
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  they can be through preachers. They don't guarantee that a
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  person would escape though. Do you know why?
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  Because the Bible told us that He will provide the way of
• 28:13
  escape. Doesn't say He'll force you into
• 28:14
  it. God provided it in His
• 28:18
  Providence. With that rooster crowing once,
• 28:21
  Peter wasn't listening. Are you listening?
• 28:25
  Are you listening? God's warnings and His grace
• 28:32
  come our way often to try to get us to run, to cancel, to change
• 28:43
  before it gets worse, or before you even begin that dreadful
• 28:46
  journey. I don't even think this is the
• 28:51
  only way that God provided Peter a way of escape.
• 28:55
  Turn with me to John. Let's see how John includes a
• 28:58
  detail that no other gospel account provides in John 1815.
• 29:03
  This is actually really interesting detail of this story
• 29:08
  story. It says in John 1815, Simon
• 29:18
  Peter followed Jesus and so did another disciple.
• 29:23
  Since that disciple was known to the high priest, he entered with
• 29:26
  Jesus into the courtyard of the high priest.
• 29:30
  But Peter stood outside at the door.
• 29:34
  So the other disciple who was known to the high priest went
• 29:37
  out and spoke to the servant girl who kept watch at the door
• 29:40
  and brought Peter in. There are no random inclusions
• 29:43
  in the Bible, no random details. And So what some make of this
• 29:47
  text is that they essentially applaud Peter.
• 29:51
  Yes, fearful, but he was able to muster up the courage to at
• 29:54
  least follow Jesus. Yeah, at a distance, but he was
• 29:56
  still following Jesus. And he comes to this point now
• 29:59
  where him and what most believe to be John.
• 30:03
  They arrive at the courtyard. John, we're not told how has
• 30:06
  this relationship with the high priest.
• 30:07
  And so he has a relationship with the servants of the high
• 30:09
  priest. So he was given, he was given
• 30:11
  access. He was given a pass.
• 30:15
  He walks in and he realizes quickly, oh, Peter, Peter
• 30:17
  doesn't have the same access that I do.
• 30:19
  So he goes to the servant girl at the door and convinces her
• 30:21
  for him to get entrance. And why do they applaud Peter?
• 30:26
  Because you find Peter here standing outside waiting at the
• 30:30
  door. He, yes, he's fearful, but he he
• 30:33
  still wants to find out what's happening to Christ.
• 30:37
  And he was persistent even with obstacles.
• 30:41
  Others would differ, others see it differently, and the reason
• 30:46
  why is because what awaited Peter on the other side of that
• 30:48
  door was not in his favor, especially because he was not
• 30:53
  equipped spiritually to enter into such environment.
• 30:59
  What happened right after Peter walked through that door?
• 31:02
  Look at the next verse, John 1817.
• 31:04
  The servant girl at the door said to Peter, You also are not
• 31:08
  one of this man's disciples, are you?
• 31:10
  He said I am not. It makes you wonder.
• 31:17
  You might disagree. That's OK, if Peter not being
• 31:21
  able to enter the door at first was a providential grace, one
• 31:29
  that should have encouraged him to reconsider his choice and to
• 31:32
  walk away from a dangerous scenario.
• 31:36
  And sometimes one of the ways in which God provides a way of
• 31:39
  escape is to redirect us providentially.
• 31:43
  Delays, detours, dead ends, some sort of obstacle that would give
• 31:47
  you the chance to pause and reflect.
• 31:51
  Asking yourself, is what I'm about to do a court in
• 31:54
  accordance to God's word? Is my conscience really clear on
• 32:00
  this matter? I wish I can give you real life
• 32:06
  scenarios because there are so many real life scenarios and
• 32:10
  you've probably seen them and you've probably sat across a
• 32:13
  table with others and as they explain their scenario, their
• 32:18
  situation, you both identify how even God in his invisible hand
• 32:24
  has made it a little bit difficult for that person before
• 32:27
  they made a tragic mistake. And what do they do?
• 32:31
  Like Peter, they chose not to listen.
• 32:38
  They chose to ignore it. The Lord is merciful even as
• 32:44
  we're being drawn from temptation to cause you to, to
• 32:48
  stop in one way or another. And to think, am I about to do
• 32:51
  something that I'm going to regret?
• 32:56
  Temptation is conquerable. That's, that's good.
• 32:58
  That's a good thing. That's a wonderful thing.
• 33:03
  Let me give you the final point about temptation.
• 33:05
  In our study today, we learned that temptation is ever present.
• 33:08
  Temptation is conquerable. Lastly, temptation must lead us
• 33:12
  to Christ. Let's read the rest of these
• 33:15
  verses from 69. And the servant girl saw him and
• 33:18
  began to say to the bystanders, This man is one of them.
• 33:22
  But again he denied it. And after a little while the
• 33:24
  bystanders again said to Peter, Certainly you are one of them,
• 33:27
  for you are a Galilean. But he began to invoke a curse
• 33:30
  on himself and to swear, I do not know this man of whom you
• 33:33
  speak. And immediately the rooster
• 33:35
  crowed a second time, and Peter remembered how Jesus had said to
• 33:42
  him before. The rooster crows twice, you
• 33:45
  will deny me three times. And he broke down and wept in
• 33:50
  the moment of temptation. You and I must remember Jesus.
• 33:55
  You must recall God's promises. You have to believe that He
• 34:00
  never sets you up to fail, but has provided every means
• 34:04
  possible to prevail. And one of the things that has
• 34:11
  helped me in this area, and I share it with you and hopefully
• 34:15
  it'll help you early on in my Christian walk.
• 34:20
  By the grace of God, he's helped me to see rejection of any kind
• 34:25
  of temptation as an act of worship.
• 34:29
  That has helped me tremendously. So that whatever the enticement
• 34:36
  may be, it might be a selfish opportunity or a cheap
• 34:40
  sensation. I look at that temptation as it
• 34:44
  enters my mind, as it begins to pull on my senses.
• 34:47
  And I say, Lord, I'm choosing to say no to this temptation
• 34:51
  because I love you more than this.
• 34:55
  And if I'm called the living sacrifice, then here I am as a
• 34:58
  living sacrifice. I love you more than what this
• 35:01
  will do for me, what this will make me feel like, what this
• 35:03
  will do for my future. See it as an act of worship.
• 35:08
  See your no as a fragrance before the throne.
• 35:15
  And that's why the greatest secret to overcoming
• 35:19
  illegitimate loves is to possess a stronger love for a greater
• 35:26
  God. That's the greatest secret.
• 35:29
  Not saying that if you succumb to temptation that you don't
• 35:31
  love God. In fact, that's the point that I
• 35:33
  want to bring up. What if you fail to resist
• 35:36
  temptation? What if you ignore the way of
• 35:41
  escape and give in? The charge is no different.
• 35:45
  Remember Christ? Look at what happens to Peter
• 35:49
  again, verse 72. And Peter remembered how Jesus
• 35:53
  had said to him. Peter remembered when he
• 35:56
  fulfilled the prediction of a severe sin.
• 36:00
  It is good that we call the words of Christ, but it's also
• 36:04
  good that it brought him to sorrow.
• 36:08
  Don't feel bad for Peter as he's crying his eyes out.
• 36:13
  Sin leads to agony, sin leads to pain, sin leads to shame, sin
• 36:19
  leads to regret. And that is all good as long as
• 36:23
  it leads you to repentance. You know where we should feel
• 36:28
  bad for Peter is if he denied Christ and it didn't disturb
• 36:31
  him. But you know what would have
• 36:36
  been better for Peter is if he remembered more than just
• 36:41
  Christ's warning. Look how specific the Bible is.
• 36:43
  What did Peter remember? You remember when Jesus told him
• 36:45
  before the rooster crows twice, You will deny me three times.
• 36:48
  But that's not all that Jesus said.
• 36:52
  That's not all that Jesus told him.
• 36:55
  Jesus added certain things. So let me remind you in Luke 22,
• 37:00
  we're wrapping this up very soon.
• 37:04
  Luke 22, verse 31. I want you to see it with your
• 37:06
  own eyes. A promise if you would.
• 37:14
  Luke 2231 Simon Simon. Behold, Satan demanded to have
• 37:18
  you, that he might sift you like wheat.
• 37:21
  But I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail.
• 37:26
  And when you have turned again, strengthen your brothers.
• 37:33
  So the Lord didn't just reveal Peter's massive failure.
• 37:37
  He also spoke of the possibility of Him to turn back and be
• 37:41
  restored. Do you see that?
• 37:44
  And when you have turned again, and if you have given it to
• 37:51
  temptation, you must remember the same.
• 37:57
  He waits for you to turn back. Luke also adds another detail to
• 38:04
  the story. Yes, it was the second time the
• 38:07
  rooster crowing that alarmed him and brought him to that warning
• 38:14
  earlier that night. But look, look down at Luke 22.
• 38:17
  Look at verse 61. If you're there, something else
• 38:20
  happens. And the Lord turned and looked
• 38:24
  at Peter. Peter, remember the saying of
• 38:29
  the Lord, how he had said to him before the rooster crows today
• 38:32
  you will deny me three times. So what did Peter experience?
• 38:37
  He experienced something with his ears, but he also
• 38:39
  experienced something with his eyes.
• 38:41
  I don't know what the scene looked like exactly, but I'm
• 38:44
  sure it was tense. I'm sure it was somewhat loud.
• 38:48
  I'm sure it was busy. But in the midst of all that, as
• 38:52
  Jesus is on trial, as they're organizing themselves, Peter is
• 38:56
  there having a separate conversation.
• 38:58
  He denies Jesus three times. The rooster crows, and at some
• 39:02
  point he looks over Jesus, turns, and with laser beam
• 39:06
  focus, plants them on Peter. Peter sees it, and it crushes
• 39:11
  him. I remember when this verse was
• 39:16
  first opened to me and I sat back and I thought to myself,
• 39:20
  what did Peter see in those eyes?
• 39:28
  What did it mean that Jesus turned?
• 39:30
  And what are we to make of that? Well, I think one thing that
• 39:32
  we're supposed to take from that is that Jesus was aware.
• 39:36
  Jesus was aware of Peter's temptation and Jesus was aware
• 39:40
  of Peter giving into that temptation.
• 39:42
  That's no different for us, that when we are wrestling with
• 39:45
  temptation and when we are living in sin, Jesus sees it.
• 39:52
  He sees it. Nobody else may see it.
• 39:55
  Jesus sees it. But it's more than just Jesus
• 39:58
  being aware. I believe when you look at the
• 40:02
  context, you realize that what Peter saw in those eyes was
• 40:06
  something that melted him because there was compassion
• 40:11
  oozing out of those eyes saying, how did you come to that
• 40:17
  conclusion? Well, keep in mind that Jesus is
• 40:20
  about to do what he came to do. In the world and for the world,
• 40:24
  die, for humanity, sin, this is it.
• 40:27
  We're reaching the climax of that, right?
• 40:29
  He's about to be nailed to a tree, buried, and he's about to
• 40:32
  conquer the grave through his resurrection.
• 40:34
  Nothing can interfere or interrupt that.
• 40:38
  Peter sees Jesus, he's so overcome by a mixture of
• 40:44
  feelings and he takes off and he weeps.
• 40:46
  And you don't see Peter and Jesus sharing any interaction
• 40:51
  until the resurrection. And I've been sharing what I'm
• 40:55
  about to share with you. I've been sharing this on more
• 40:56
  than one occasion lately and I hope it helps you.
• 41:01
  Revisiting it over and over for me has definitely helped me.
• 41:05
  So again, the last interaction that we have between Peter and
• 41:08
  Jesus before Jesus goes into that tomb and defeats death, is
• 41:13
  this. What's the next time that these
• 41:16
  two interact? It's in Luke.
• 41:19
  Go to Luke 24 as we conclude and look at verse 13, Luke 2413.
• 41:32
  That very day two of them were going to a village named Emmaus,
• 41:35
  about 7 miles from Jerusalem. We know the story very well.
• 41:39
  This is when Jesus comes to those two and He gives them the
• 41:42
  greatest Old Testament Bible study that we'll never know
• 41:45
  about, and he restores their faith and he opens their eyes to
• 41:53
  realize that he is indeed alive. But it's those few words that
• 41:55
  move me. The first three, that very day.
• 41:59
  What very day? Well, the context tells us that
• 42:01
  it was the very day of his resurrection.
• 42:04
  So on the first day of his resurrection where he appeared
• 42:06
  in a span of 40 days, explaining the things of the Kingdom of God
• 42:09
  to his disciples on the first day he appears, yes, to these
• 42:12
  two, but not just to these two. After these two opened their
• 42:17
  eyes at least were granted that miracle.
• 42:20
  Luke 2433, something happens and they rose that same hour and
• 42:24
  returned to Jerusalem and they found the 11 and those who are
• 42:28
  with them gathered together saying the Lord has risen indeed
• 42:31
  and has appeared to Simon. So it wasn't just the Bible
• 42:38
  study through the Old Testament that's concealed to us.
• 42:42
  Somehow these two experienced Christ on the first day of Jesus
• 42:46
  resurrection. We're informed that Jesus also
• 42:50
  met with Simon, who's Simon Peter.
• 42:59
  What do you think Jesus did when he appeared to Simon?
• 43:01
  Do you think he scolded him? Do you think he slapped him
• 43:04
  behind the head? What do you think he did?
• 43:09
  Well, when you consider Jesus interacting with Peter in John
• 43:12
  21, where that is Peter's public restoration, you know what
• 43:19
  Christ's heart was? It was to restore him.
• 43:25
  It was to reassure him. It was to comfort him.
• 43:30
  It was to heal him with his love.
• 43:33
  You know what I find so amazing? We're told that he appeared to
• 43:37
  Simon on that very day, but we're told nothing about it.
• 43:42
  It was intimate. It was private.
• 43:49
  This is the heart of Christ. On the first day of his
• 43:52
  resurrection, He made it a priority to restore Peter.
• 43:57
  That's his heart. You know how we might forgive
• 44:03
  people and restore people? We might, if we were in Jesus
• 44:07
  shoes, wait till the end of the 40 days.
• 44:09
  Let Peter simmer in that guilt a little bit longer.
• 44:14
  Jesus doesn't do that. Shortly after that stone was
• 44:19
  rolled away from the tomb, he saw it as a joyful duty to find
• 44:25
  Peter at the right time and to have a one-on-one conversation
• 44:29
  with him. Do you believe that about Jesus
• 44:33
  when you fall into temptation that he's waiting to wash your
• 44:35
  feet? He is.
• 44:46
  Even if you're a pastor that has done wonderful things for the
• 44:52
  Lord over decades and have failed majorly, Jesus waits.
• 44:58
  He doesn't want a minute to go by before you come, broken and
• 45:03
  shambles Even so that He can restore you.
• 45:09
  Jesus waits regardless of the nature of your sin.
• 45:12
  How embarrassing, no matter what kind of relationships you
• 45:15
  shattered through it. I'm not here to give you some
• 45:19
  practical counseling advice of what to do from a human to human
• 45:22
  standpoint when it comes to sin. I'm here to just focus on Jesus
• 45:25
  Christ and your walk with Him. Jesus Christ is eager to heal
• 45:31
  you and restore you. Temptation is ever present, so
• 45:38
  may our awareness of God and our all of Him be the same.
• 45:43
  Temptation is conquerable. I refuse to give into the
• 45:47
  popular opinion that we're just all going to struggle for the
• 45:51
  rest of our lives. So live in sin and just wait
• 45:53
  till you get to heaven. Will we be tempted?
• 45:55
  Absolutely. Can we know victory over sin?
• 45:58
  Yes, that's the gospel. I'm in that camp.
• 46:02
  Why am I in that camp? Because that's what the Bible
• 46:04
  says. So what we're not going to talk
• 46:07
  about week after week is, oh, you're in sin, it's OK.
• 46:10
  Just live and said no, it's not OK.
• 46:14
  God's not happy with that. And he provided the means and
• 46:17
  the spiritual blessings and riches for us to know victory,
• 46:19
  to be able to say no to temptation.
• 46:21
  Sinless perfectionism, also an error.
• 46:25
  You got a crowd of people who believe every time you sin, you
• 46:27
  lose your salvation. What kind of salvation is that?
• 46:29
  No, no, I'm trying to tell you that you can know joy and
• 46:33
  victory. You can know things that have
• 46:35
  once clutched you and kept you in bondage, and Christ can
• 46:38
  actually set you feet free. It's not theoretical.
• 46:40
  This is reality. It can happen.
• 46:42
  So no matter what the bondage is, I don't care how many years,
• 46:45
  I don't care how generational it is.
• 46:46
  Christ can redeem you, He can set you free.
• 46:49
  That's the power of the gospel. Thankful there's Amens here.
• 46:55
  Praise God if you say there's some people that look at you
• 46:57
  like you're an alien. Lastly, temptation must lead us
• 47:04
  to Christ. While you're in it, while you
• 47:06
  feel like it's rising up to your neck, you, you remember Jesus.
• 47:10
  You, you cry out to him. And as I heard from a faithful
• 47:14
  professor in seminary, learn to take your temptation and make it
• 47:17
  into a conversation with God. And even as you fall, remember
• 47:26
  Jesus. He's waiting for you.
• 47:29
  Maybe you're in sin right now as I'm talking.
• 47:32
  If you're overcome with shame and embarrassment to the degree
• 47:36
  that you don't want to show yourself to church or before the
• 47:40
  Lord, you're not hearing this message right.
• 47:43
  You're supposed to be drawn to Him.
• 47:48
  He is just as eager to wash you as He did when He initially
• 47:51
  bathed you in His salvation. Do you believe that?
• 47:57
  Oh, I hope you do. Let's pray.
• 48:14
  Lord, we know that there are so many other things that could be
• 48:16
  said. Perhaps there are still
• 48:17
  questions in people's minds. But Lord, we trust that what was
• 48:21
  shared has accomplished the goal of realizing that temptation is
• 48:27
  something that we all wrestle with.
• 48:32
  But you've given us answers to be stronger with it, to be
• 48:38
  joyful about it, because you have given us what we need to to
• 48:44
  be victorious. And Lord, in your grace, you've
• 48:46
  even reserved joy in our failure, not to live in that
• 48:50
  failure, but to know that there is hope.
• 48:53
  There's hope for broken marriages here.
• 48:58
  There's hope for a way we're children who have disgraced more
• 49:02
  than just their family name, but the name of Christ.
• 49:08
  There's hope for those who are addicted.
• 49:13
  There's hope in you. Thank you, Lord, that you don't
• 49:17
  give up on us. And Lord, though there are
• 49:20
  consequences to sin, people lose ministries, maybe even respect.
• 49:31
  Your ways are not our ways, and your thoughts are not our
• 49:33
  thoughts. You're much more compassionate
• 49:38
  and forgiving than we are. Help us believe that.
• 49:43
  So Lord, like Peter, we sit here and we melt in your mercy.
• 49:49
  And Lord, if this message served as a rooster crow, as a
• 49:53
  providential nudge for anybody who might be enduring something,
• 50:00
  may they heed and may they answer.
• 50:06
  Lord, we trust you today. We trust that this was what You
• 50:08
  wanted to say on this Lord's Day, and we give you thanks for
• 50:12
  it. May we leave here with our
• 50:14
  hearts more convinced of your love, more convinced that you
• 50:18
  have prepared us for a journey that can no true victory.
• 50:26
  Your word was spoken, it was received.
• 50:28
  But Lord, the power for these things to be made real can only
• 50:32
  come from You. So we ask that you would do that
• 50:35
  because only you can. In Jesus name we pray.
• 50:38
  Amen. Let's stand.