How the Strong Can Backslide! — Carter Conlon

Transcript

Is one of the Times Square Church pulpit series. It was recorded in the sanctuary of Times Square Church in Manhattan, New York City. Other tapes are available by writing World Challenge, P .O. Box 260, Lindale, Texas, 75771 or calling 903 -963 -8626.

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Christ’s Strength Rather Than Self-Confidence

We love you, Lord. We love you, Lord. Thank you for loving us, for coming and dying for us and giving us life. I'm going to share with you tonight the secret, but it's not a secret. It's a plainly told truth all the way through the scriptures from Genesis to Revelation, but you have to have a certain type of a heart to be able to see it.

For those who have confidence in themselves, there's very little in the scripture that really speaks to the heart about the true nature of the manifested presence of Jesus Christ in a life that gives us a testimony of perfect soundness before God and before men.

It is God's desire to make you and I perfectly whole and entire, to walk in an abundance that can only be found in Jesus Christ. I thank God with all of my heart tonight. If I have found one truth in my life as a Christian, I thank God for this truth, that the strength that I possess, the hope, the victory, the joy, everything that I have is not of me.

Nothing is of me. I found the truth as a living experience, the truth that Paul expounds upon when he says, in me dwells no good thing. And folks, there's got to come in each of us a knowledge of that, and until that knowledge becomes part of our practical experience at times, we will never know what it's like to walk in the victory that God has for us on this side of eternity.

It will always be an elusive, almost like an intangible victory that we read in the scriptures, we hear somebody testify about it, but it seems it's always outside of our grasp. Now that may be your experience tonight, but if you let the Holy Ghost open your heart and open your ears, God's going to speak a truth, it's a plain truth, it's in your word, you're going to see it very, very clearly.

And I pray that God give you the grace to lay hold of it. I pray God give us all the grace to lay hold of it, from this day forward until Christ comes. That we can stand in our generation with a perfect soundness, not of ourselves, but of Christ who dwells within us.

And we can stand before heaven, not boasting in any righteousness of our own, not boasting in any strength that we have, but we're boasting in the strength of Christ that rests upon us and in us. I thank God for the knowledge that everything I have comes from Christ.

Not just knowledge, but it's an experience that God graciously has given to me. And some of you are on the road to finding that experience. I'm going to show you tonight why strong men or strong women backslide.

I'm going to show you how it happens. I'm going to show you the roots of why it happens. And I'm going to show you how God has a... It's all in the plan of God. If you are strong in yourself tonight, hear me clearly, you're going to backslide.

If you have come into this house and you're among those that say, I am strong, God's spirit is upon me, I'll not fail him, I'll not forsake him, etc., etc., etc., you can be almost sure you're going to backslide one day soon.

If you have a heart for the Lord, God's going to bring you through a process of understanding that true strength does not come from the natural man. You and I do not possess the wisdom, we do not possess the strength to walk this walk that God has called us to walk to represent the kingdom of Jesus Christ here among men.

We do not possess the strength. Our natural minds can't comprehend it. Our natural bodies cannot walk in it. Our natural zeal cannot long endure it. It has to come from Christ and from Christ alone. Now, Father, I ask tonight in Jesus' name, Lord, you are bringing us into our inheritance.

I thank you for this with all of my heart. God, we will never be able to stand in our own strength. We can't stand now and we certainly would never stand in the future. Lord, you are bringing us into the inheritance that was purchased for us on Calvary by Jesus Christ, the living Son of the living God.

Father, I thank you, Lord. I thank you that you love us so much that you will even let us fail. You love us so much that you will show us our glaring inconsistencies and our weaknesses. That we would turn from looking in the mirror.

We would turn from looking at ourselves. We would turn from our lists of accomplishments and turn to the only one that can take us through in victory through this life and through into eternity. Jesus, thank you tonight that you're going to manifest your glory.

Thank you, Holy Spirit, that you're going to enable me to bring this truth in a manner that every person in this house can understand it. I ask you, Lord, to take these few loaves and fishes and multiply them and feed the thousands that you've gathered tonight to hear this word.

Father, thank you for what you're going to do. Lord, I rest entirely dependent upon you. Holy Spirit, if you don't come, what I preach is just a dead letter. No one would understand it. You have to come and make it real to the hearts of the people that are here.

God, help us to look beyond men tonight. Help us to look beyond anybody speaking, Lord. Any ministry. And to look to you, Jesus, the author and finisher of our salvation. God in heaven, do an eternal work in many lives tonight.

Father, I ask you to set people free. Free in Christ Jesus. And I ask it in your precious name. Amen. Now, Acts chapter 3, beginning at verse 11. I'm going to have to move quickly, so you're going to have to have a finger maybe in the index of your Bible.

Peter’s Perfect Soundness Comes From Jesus

Well, actually, I'm going to be in the Gospels most of the time. And as the lame man which was healed held Peter and John, verse 11, Acts 3, all the people ran together unto them in the porch that is called Solomon's, greatly wondering.

And when Peter saw it, he answered unto the people, You men of Israel, why marvel ye at this? Why do you look so earnestly on us as though by our own power or holiness we had made this man to walk? The God of Abraham and of Isaac and of Jacob, the God of our fathers, has glorified his son Jesus, whom you delivered up and denied in the presence of Pilate when he was determined to let him go.

But you denied the Holy One and the just and desired a murderer to be granted unto you and killed the Prince of life, whom God has raised from the dead, whereof we are witnesses. And his name, through faith in his name, has made this man strong, whom you see and know.

Yea, the faith which is by him has given him this perfect soundness in the presence of you all. Now, when we look at Peter in this portion of Scripture, we envision a man of seemingly unshakable strength.

Peter the Apostle boldly challenging the unbelief of a crowd which he knew to be capable of murder. You think of the same man just a few days before, running in fear, cowering, hiding, even denying the Lord Jesus Christ.

But now he's standing, and the same crowd that murdered Christ, he no longer is afraid of them. He is boldly challenging them, he is telling them, you denied the Holy One, and you desired a murderer. In other words, he is saying, you killed him.

God raised him from the dead, and through faith in him, you see this man standing perfectly sound in the presence of you all. He is challenging their unbelief, and placing an accusation of denying God right at their doorstep.

A human vessel, Peter, through which the power of God had just healed a man who was lame from his birth. Can you imagine that? A man born lame at the gate of the temple. In Acts chapter 3, looking upon Peter and John, expecting to receive something from them.

And what he was received was a wholeness that he had never had all of his life. I can imagine how many for so long had looked up to Peter. I'm sure Peter was the type of personality that people just simply naturally looked up to him.

Before you came to Christ, now some of you may have been like that in this world. You may have that kind of a personality that when you walk into a room, everybody just simply automatically looks to you.

When there's a decision to be made, it's as if you're the first one to jump in with an idea. Now you may not be that type, but certainly you do know some people who are like that. Even if you're saved tonight, and you are working in some kind of a business environment, you for sure know somebody who's like that, just like Peter.

First one in, strong personality, strong ideas, a very natural leader. Not necessarily always leading in the good direction, but nevertheless a natural leader. Go to the book of John with me, chapter 1, just following along on this particular thought.

Peter’s Natural Leadership and Prophetic Calling

Now, John chapter 1 verse 40, we're introduced to Andrew, Simon Peter's brother. And it says, one of the two which heard John speak and followed him was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother. And now this is, he first findeth his own brother Simon, verse 41, and said unto him, We have found the Messiah, which is being interpreted the Christ.

And he brought him to Jesus, and when Jesus beheld him, he said, Thou art Simon, the son of Jonah, thou shalt be called Cephas, which is by interpretation a stone. So the very first thing that Andrew did, when he found Jesus, and believed him to be the Messiah, is run to get his brother Simon Peter.

I believe that Andrew looked up to his brother. I believe that he admired his brother's strength. Peter was a natural leader. We'll see that as we go on throughout the scriptures. He had, in Andrew's mind, at least anyway, Andrew's thinking, Oh, Peter has got to be part of this.

I see a kingdom coming. We have found the Messiah, and surely Jesus needs a man like Peter. And so Andrew runs to get Peter. Peter comes, and immediately, meeting this man, makes an incredible pronouncement upon him.

He said, You are Simon, the son of Jonah, and you will be called Cephas, which is by interpretation a stone. In other words, Christ was saying, Peter, you are a rock. You are solid. There's going to be a solidness about you that is not going to be shakable.

I'm going to do something with you. I'm going to build on you. Can you hear Andrew's thoughts? I knew it. I knew it. The Messiah recognizes a leader when he sees one. My brother is a leader. But little did Andrew realize the true meaning of what Christ was saying.

Christ didn't say, You are a rock, to Peter. He said, Thou shalt be called Cephas. Your name is Peter, but you shall be called. He was speaking prophetically. He was not speaking about something that Peter was at that particular time.

Not now, he says, but later. But I believe very few caught that at that moment. It is obvious that Peter was physically strong. In John chapter 21 and verse 11, after Jesus was risen from the dead, and they were on another one of their futile fishing expeditions, when Christ told them where to cast the net one more time.

They did in obedience. And John 21 11 says that Simon Peter went up and drew the net to land full of great fishes. In other words, when God gives you a fish, it's not a minnow. God gives a good size fish.

This net was full of great fishes. In other words, these were whoppers. Nobody had to exaggerate when they were talking about the size of the fish they caught that day. 153, and yet for all, there was so many, yet was not the net broken.

So we see the fish being in the net. Everybody is standing back and just admiring this great miracle of God one more time. Yet Simon Peter, always the first one in to the work, heads out and all by himself pulls in 153.

Let's assume they were four pounders. That's not a very big fish, really, a four pound fish. And he's pulling them in, and he has at least 600 pounds of fish in that net. And all by himself, he pulls it into the shore.

He was a very strong man, a very strong and a very determined man. Peter appeared throughout his life, especially his early ministry with Christ, to have a quickness to respond to truth as it confronted him.

Again in Luke chapter 5 and verse 8, another fishing expedition, when the nets are cast out on the side of the boat, they had fished all a long time and caught nothing, and yet in obedience to Christ, they cast out the nets.

They brought in a great multitude of fishes. They were astounded at the size of the catch. And Luke chapter 5 verse 8 says, when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus' knees saying, Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.

We don't see anybody else doing this at this particular time. He was physically strong, and yet there was a natural passion within him that when confronted with any kind of a truth, he didn't understand what it was, but he knew it was beyond him.

And he fell to his knees and he cried out, Oh, depart from me, I am a sinful man. And that type of a person oftentimes is quick to respond to the word, will be esteemed and looked upon to be a leader.

Lastly, Peter had an impassioned love for Jesus Christ. He had an impassioned love. That was, I suppose, the earmark of his life. I believe that's what enabled him, that's what enabled Christ to say about him, You're going to be a rock.

Not because you're perfect, and not because there are not some things that I have to show you and allow you to go through to show your inconsistency and your inability to walk with me, but you have an impassioned heart for me.

And because of that impassioned heart that was in Peter, Jesus was able to say, You're going to one day be a rock. You're going to be a stone in my house, an unmovable place. In Matthew chapter 14, when the disciples were on the water in the midst of the storm and Christ appeared walking on the water to them, where everybody else, thinking it was a spirit, was sitting back in the boat, horrified, full of fear, not knowing what to do.

It was this heart and this man, Peter, that caused him to rise up. And he cried out over the waves and the wind, Lord, if it be thou, bid me to come to thee on the water. If it's you, God, I want to come.

He so had an impassioned love and an impassioned heart for Jesus Christ. And so looking at Peter, we see a man who was first to the work at hand. He was first, oftentimes, to his knees. And he was first to places that were seemingly impossible to other men.

A leader. You couple this aspect of Peter's nature with the promises of God for his life. Jesus said in Matthew chapter 16, you know it well and I know it. Verses 18 and 19, he said, Thou art Peter and upon this rock I will build my church and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.

And then he said to Peter, I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven. Whatsoever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven and whatsoever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. Now, can you just picture for a moment the other disciples?

As Jesus is saying these things to Peter. Here's a man. I'm sure some of the others felt small in comparison to this man because it seemed to be that Christ was saying such magnanimous things about him that he was not necessarily saying about others.

They saw the strength of this man. They saw the passion of this man. They saw his willingness to do and to go places maybe that some others of them might have been hesitant to go and to do. They heard the words of Jesus and I'm sure that Peter was reaching out and laying hold of every promise that God, the son of God was making to him and in their minds perhaps, some may have been thinking, surely this is the man that one day is going to lead.

He's going to be a great, great leader in the church and they were looking at all of the physical aspects and the physical characteristics of this natural man saying, these must be the things that are necessary to become a great leader in the kingdom of God.

And I think that many of the other men probably felt very insignificant. Maybe John who was a lot younger and a lot weaker. Maybe John who didn't have the courage at that moment to get up and walk on the water.

All he could do was lean his head on the breast of Jesus at the last supper wondering what his place was going to be in the kingdom of God. I wonder how many felt paled in comparison to the zeal of this man, the strength of this man, the courage of this man.

I wonder how many felt so small in his comparison. It appears looking at Peter that there were the makings of an unstoppable leader. From time to time in the church of Jesus Christ over the centuries and I suppose over the years and perhaps even today, men and women rise up.

They have a lot of the same characteristics that are displayed in the life of Peter. And it appears to many of us when we look at them, God, certainly this, we look at just like Samuel looked at the firstborn son Eliab of Jesse and says, surely the Lord's anointed is before me.

And we see such natural strength and such natural zeal and esteem them to be such wonderful leaders. And we look at all the characteristics that they possess and then we, sad to say, look at ourselves and say, oh God, I wonder if I will ever amount to much in your kingdom.

I don't, I'm, he's so strong and I'm so weak. He's so dedicated and I'm so wishy-washy. He's so impassioned and I, I seem to have a hard time making up my mind of times which way to go and how even deeply to get involved.

But in Peter, there was resident something which the Lord would have to reveal and to deal a death blow in order that he might become the man that God had destined him to be. Folks, it is a great and a tragic mistake when we get our eyes on men.

It is a tragic mistake. If I can put anything across to you tonight other than what the Lord is going to have me speak on, get your eyes off of men. Get your eyes on the Lord Jesus Christ. Men will fail you.

There is nobody who has a natural strength and zeal that will take them through and be the leader that God wants them to be in their own strength. And I'll show you this in a moment. Because if our eyes are on men, when those that we esteem to be strong fail, then the tendency of many Christians who see themselves as weak is to think, what hope is there then for me?

If Peter can't make it, then what is going to happen to me? He's so strong, he's so full of zeal, so impassioned for God. All these promises that were spoken about him, all the things that were said, and I'm sure it went like a shockwave through the followers of Jesus Christ, the things that Christ had said to this man.

If he fails, then what hope is there for me? I couldn't get out of the boat. I could never have pulled those fish into the shore. I couldn't fall to my knees because I couldn't make up my mind about what was wrong and what was right.

If he falls, if he fails, then what hope is there for me? But folks, I want to show you something tonight. It was this natural strength and passion in Peter that would have to be dealt with if he was ever to become the man that Jesus destined him to be.

The scripture says in 1 Corinthians 2 and verse 14, The natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God. They are foolishness to him, and neither can he know them because they are spiritually discerned.

How Pride Begins the Downward Spiral

Now go with me to the book of Mark chapter 14. I'm going to show you how the Lord, the stage was set for the decline of this natural man. Oh folks, thank God. Thank God that the natural man has to die in order that the spiritual man might be born.

Thank God that the old things have to pass away so that all things can become new. Thank God. Aren't you thankful tonight that Jesus Christ doesn't save us and say, okay, with all your natural abilities and all your natural talents, your natural zeal, your natural strength, go for it.

And I hope you make the finish line. Fighting against a host of hell, demonic forces we can't understand, fighting against powers and principalities that come against us, fighting, like Paul said, fighting's within, fears within even.

Fighting against our own weaknesses and our own inconsistencies and somehow trying to make it through and fall over the finish line at the end into the kingdom of God. Thank God this is not what God asks of us.

I want to show you how this strong man backslid. Now, I realize that this was the days prior to his receiving the Holy Ghost. But I want to tell you something. It may have been in the scripture the day prior to his receiving the Holy Spirit, but the procedure is exactly the same.

I have seen men go the same way that Peter went and for the very same reasons. Mark chapter 14, verse 27. We see the stage being set for Peter's fall. Jesus said something. And Jesus said unto them, all ye shall be offended because of me this night.

In other words, you're all going to be afraid. Something's going to happen. He said, you're all going to run. For it is written, I will smite the shepherd and the sheep shall be scattered. But after that I am risen, I will go before you into Galilee.

But Peter said unto him, although all shall be offended, yet will not I. Here's stage number one to a strong man backsliding. Boasting of his dedication. And in his heart, estimating his own loyalty to be greater than all those around him.

He was speaking of Andrew, James, John, Philip, Thomas. All the other disciples were in that room with him. And he was saying he was standing up before Christ, the Son of God, who had just told him something about himself.

But he was unwilling to hear it. Jesus was telling him, you are weak just like every other man in this room is weak. And Peter stood up and said, no. Though all, and when he said all, he's referring to everybody who was in the room.

He was elevating himself above all that were around him. Pride goes before a fall and a haughty spirit comes before destruction. He was manifesting the very same heart that Jesus condemned in his parable about prayer.

When he said the Pharisee came into the house of God. And he said, oh Lord, thank you that I am not like other men are. Thank you God. I fast, I tithe, I'm so holy, I'm so pure, I'm so dedicated to you.

I'm not even like this publican in the back of the church who's just smoothing his breasts. But oh God, though others forsake you, I shall not forsake you. That is always and ever always will be step one to backsliding.

Always. If we ever allow a root of pride to get into our hearts. And we begin looking to the left and looking to the right. And saying, thank God I'm stronger than you and I'm stronger than you and I'm stronger than you.

And others around us perhaps fall into sin and something gets into the heart. And say, oh, I would never do that. Oh, sir, you'll never find me in a place like that. You'll never find me speaking like that.

No, sir, though all may fall, I will not fall. Folks, that is the beginning of backsliding. That is self-confidence at its highest level. Esteeming the flesh and losing the sense of our littleness in the sight of God.

Losing the understanding that Jesus was saying, you will all because you are all the same. That's why Isaiah could say, all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. That's why when he was lifted up into the presence of God, he says, woe unto me, I am undone.

In other words, everything I thought I was, everything I thought I had, everything I thought I had achieved is gone. Because now my eyes have seen the Lord. I've seen the Holy One of Israel. Hallelujah.

He said, I dwell in the midst of a people with unclean lips. I have unclean lips and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips. Now, I want you to watch with me the downward spiral from this point.

Prayerlessness and Dependence on the Flesh

The moment that the heart gets proud, the moment we begin to trust in ourselves. Really, he was not trusting in Christ, but he was trusting in himself. Watch the downward spiral from here. You see, trusting in self is the root of losing a sense of dependence upon God.

The next scene that we go to from Peter standing up and making this bold declaration. Now, as a leader, unfortunately, he led everybody else to make the same declaration. Jesus said, no, Peter, before this night is out, you're going to deny me three times.

But he spake the more vehemently. No, sir. No, sir. No, sir. If I should die with you, I will not deny you. And it says, likewise, also said they all. He was a leader, but he was misled at that particular point.

And in his misleading, he was drawing everybody in with him. Yes, yes, we will not. We agree with Peter. Isn't it incredible? They had a choice. They either agreed with Christ or they agreed with Peter.

When you look at that particular moment, they chose to agree with Peter and not with Christ. Who had taught them for three years. They knew he was the son of God. He's the Messiah. You've come from God.

Jesus himself made that. Not Jesus, but Peter himself made that declaration. You're the Christ, the son of the living God. Jesus says, you're all going to fail me. No, no. Yes, you will, Peter. No, I won't.

And the rest are drawn in. No, we won't either. And then you see the end result of trusting in self. Mark 14, verse 34. Jesus said to them, my soul is exceeding sorrowful unto death. Terry here and watch.

He was telling them, pray. We are going into a battle that you are not going to understand unless it is given to you of God. You are going into a place that flesh can't go. And he went forward a little and fell on the ground and prayed that if it were possible, this hour might pass from him.

And he said, Abba, father, all things are possible unto thee. Take away this cup from me, nevertheless, not what I will, but what thou wilt. And he cometh and findeth them sleeping and said to Peter, Simon, sleepest thou?

Could you not watch one hour? They said, watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit truly is ready. In other words, you, you, you, you do have a genuine desire, but the flesh is weak. And again, he went away and prayed and spake the same words.

And when he returned, he found them asleep again for their eyes were heavy and they didn't know what to answer him. Peter, although clearly warned his self-dependency, kept him unaware of the urgency of his own need.

The very first thing that you will find happening to a man or woman that begins to trust in themselves is they will begin to find themselves less and less and less and less and less in the closet of prayer.

Because the closet of prayer is a place of dependency. It's a place where we go to get our daily bread. We go to get our strength. That's what he said. Give us this day our daily bread. We go to get our protection from evil.

Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. It is a place of bowing down before God saying, Lord, I am, Lord, I don't, I don't know how to live this Christian life. I don't know how to face the enemies that I'm going to face tomorrow.

But you do because you're already there. Though God give me your mind, Holy Spirit, give me your strength. Grant to me a desire to walk with you in spirit and in truth. For Lord, I know in these things you are promised that I am going to have all the protection that I need.

This it is it is inevitable that if a man or woman begins to trust in themselves, they will be drawn away from prayer. How can you pray? How can you ask God for things? How can you stand before him in a position of dependency if you're trusting in yourself?

And so when Jesus is saying to Peter, pray, watch and pray, you have a willing heart, but your flesh is weak. He can't pray because he's trusting in himself. He has made a declaration. I will not fail you.

But God, the son of God, now has to bring him to a place of understanding that you are all weak. There's not one strong among you, no matter what your testimony or confession might be in yourself and of yourself.

You don't have the strength to fight this warfare.

This is the end of side one. You may now turn the table, the garden, even with a very clear instruction of Christ.

They're unable to pray and a deep slumber comes upon them. If you find that's happening to you in your prayer life, cry out to the Lord. Ask God, please help me. Forgive me, Lord, for trusting in myself.

Forgive me, God, for the boasting that wants to get into my heart. And sometimes it comes to those who have walked the longest with the Lord. I remember one night I met a man coming out of a church service.

And I asked him, I said, did you enjoy the service tonight? And he looked at me and there was such an arrogance in this man's face. He said, I've been in the way, son, 40 years. And I said, well, yeah, but did you enjoy the service?

And he said, he looked at me again, said, I've been in the way 40 years. And I thought, man, that is certainly the truth. You have been in the way for 40 years. Peter gets himself in a place of spiritual slumber.

He's not praying anymore. He's not praying because he's lost a sense of his dependency on God. He's trusting that because for three and a half years, three years rather, this thing has worked out fairly well, that it's going to go on this way forever.

He's trusting in his natural zeal. He's trusting in his natural strength. He's out of the prayer closet. He's not seeking God for strength. Then all of a sudden, he wakes up. And John, if you'll go with me to John chapter 18.

Fighting Spiritual Battles in Natural Strength

He wakes up in the middle of an incredible battle that he is powerless to understand. He has not been seeking God. He wakes up out of a slumber in John chapter 18, beginning at verse 7. And when he wakes up, a horrific battle has gathered around him.

People have come with sticks and spears and torches. An angry mob, a murderous mob has gathered around. Verse 7, Jesus is speaking to them. Then asked he them again, Whom seek ye? And they said, Jesus of Nazareth.

And Jesus answered, I have told you that I am he. If therefore you seek me, let these go their way, that the saying might be fulfilled which he spake of them which thou gavest me, none have I lost. Then Peter again, Simon Peter, having a sword, drew it and smote the high priest's servant and cut off his right ear.

The servant's name was Malchus. Then said Jesus to Peter, Put thy sword into thy sheath. The cup which my father has given me, shall I not drink it? Then the band and the captain and the officers of the Jews took Jesus and bound him.

Here's Peter waking from his slumber, finding himself in a battle he didn't understand and that he didn't know how to fight. What did the apostle Paul say? The weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the tearing down of strongholds and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God.

Bringing into captivity everything to the obedience of Christ. He talks about casting down imaginations. His natural strength, his natural zeal, his natural passions, his natural brave declaration have all failed him here.

They've all failed him. You can just see Peter rising up. He has been told of Christ before he went into a spiritual slumber, put on a sword because the scripture had to be fulfilled about him. Never taking the time to ask what scripture or why, he just grabs a sword and puts it on.

He's asleep in the garden. While he's been sleeping, a huge battle has gathered around him. The conflict really you could say of ages has gathered around him. Peter wakes up and he's now in a conflict that the natural man cannot fight.

And folks, that's what happens to people who backslide. They end up in a conflict that the natural man cannot fight. They take out their own sword and they start hacking at this and hacking at that. I'll just do this and I'll do that and I'll do this a little better and they start trying to fight in the flesh a battle that cannot be won in the flesh.

It can only be won in the spirit. But he is cut off from God. He's cut off from the source of his strength so he doesn't understand how to fight this battle. You can see the confusion when Jesus has put your sword away.

Peter is standing there thinking to himself, well, he told me to put on a sword. What in the world do you put on a sword for if you don't use the sword? He watches Jesus pick up the servant's ear and put it back on the side of his head and completely heal him.