Wednesday, August 10, 2022 PM

Sunnyside Baptist Church

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Reading in Luke chapter 22 verses 31 through 46.

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Let's begin with a word of prayer. Father I thank you so much for this day that you have made, the way that you have provided for us, the way that you keep your promises, the love that you have shown to us, proving your goodness in all aspects of your character by giving to us your son

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Jesus Christ. We thank you that it's in his name that we can gather because of his shed blood and his resurrection from the dead, his reigning from your right hand, and his gift of the

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Holy Spirit that we can gather today, this evening, in unity and in hope we may lay hold of your truth.

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We ask that you would nourish us tonight, that you would help us to pray as we pray for one another and the needs that are the burdens upon our hearts.

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We are to be anxious for nothing but to give everything to you in prayer. Lord, I pray that you would help us to do that tonight.

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Let me pray these things in Jesus' name. Amen. Okay, Luke chapter 22 verses 31 through 46.

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And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, indeed

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Satan has asked for you that he may sift you as wheat, that I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail, and when you have returned to me, strengthen your brethren.

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But he said to him, Lord, I am ready to go with you both to prison and to death.

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Then he said, I tell you, Peter, the rooster shall not crow this day before you will deny three times that you know me.

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And he said to them, when I sent you without money bag, knapsack, and sandals, did you lack anything?

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So they said, nothing. Then he said to them, but now he who has a money bag, let him take it, and likewise a knapsack.

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And he who has no sword, let him sell his garment and buy one. For I say to you that this which is written must still be accomplished in me.

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And he was numbered with the transgressors, for the things concerning me have an end.

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So they said, Lord, look, here are two swords. And he said to them, it is enough.

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Coming out he went to the Mount of Olives, as he was accustomed, and his disciples also followed him.

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When he came to the place, he said to them, pray that you may not enter into temptation.

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And he was withdrawn from them about a stone's throw. And he knelt down and prayed, saying,

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Father, if it is your will, take this cup away from me. Nevertheless, not my will but yours be done.

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Then an angel appeared to him from heaven, strengthening him. And being in agony, he prayed more earnestly.

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And his sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground. When he rose up from prayer and had come to his disciples, he found them sleeping from sorrow.

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Then he said to them, why do you sleep? Rise and pray, lest you enter into temptation.

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So we're looking at some 11th hour discipleship. This is what occurs just after the

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Lord's Supper. Jesus has told his disciples that one of them will betray him.

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This has caused great concern. He has been telling them for a while, as they've been heading for Jerusalem, that he's going there to be betrayed, to be turned over to his enemies, and to suffer and die and be raised the third day.

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He's been telling them this, and he's just finished talking about his death in light of the

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Passover. And he begins to instruct them about position, about his promises, about his provision, and about prayer.

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And each one of these aspects of discipleship here at the 11th hour, here at the very cusp of his arrest and trial and crucifixion, each one of these is packaged for his disciples, for his apostles, in such a way that they must consider it in light of the cross.

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They must consider it in light of his suffering. And so we've already thought about the matter of position, we've already talked about that portion, in how

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Jesus speaks to his disciples about what is the position of authority and honor, and what is a higher position in his kingdom in light of the cross.

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And it all comes down to the fact the Son of Man, which is the highest title of all, the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.

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And so in like manner, those who would have authority and position in his kingdom, they too must humble themselves, they too must be lowly in the exercise of their authority and their stewardship that they are given.

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And now we come to promises from Christ, verses 31 to 34.

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This is a well -known exchange between Jesus and Peter. And I want us to think about what it is that Peter is resistant against, what he what he avers versus what

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Christ says. Think about these verses again. And the

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Lord said, Simon, Simon, indeed Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat.

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But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail. And when you have returned to me, strengthen your brethren.

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But he said to him, Lord I am ready to go with you both to prison and to death. Then he said,

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I tell you Peter, the rooster shall not crow this day before you will deny three times that you know me.

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He singles Simon Peter out and informs him of what is about to happen.

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We can see the burden that Christ has for his dear apostle, disciple,

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Simon Peter. We don't know how often Peter's outbursts and jumping to the front of the pack caused

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Jesus to smile. As is common in a group, everybody has their own way of expressing themselves and gelling, and Peter was the one who talked the most.

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Some people just have to think out loud, get it straight out in the open.

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And the Lord loves him, and we can see that he loves him by the way he addresses him, the way that he speaks his name twice, the way that he warns him, the way that he consoles him.

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We should note that, first of all, we should note the sovereignty of Christ, the sovereignty of God in this passage.

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It begins with this information that Satan has asked for Simon Peter.

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Well, who did Satan ask? He had to ask

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God, didn't he? When we think about the background to the book of Job, we're in the sufferings of Job.

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Job never found out about the conversation that happened in the heavens in the throne room of God.

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He never found out what happened, but that Satan had asked for Job to sift him.

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And here, Satan has to ask God as well for Peter, for Simon Peter.

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This shows us that although very often

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Satan is treated as omnipresent and omniscient, Satan is treated as all -powerful and often personally involved with several million people all at once.

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That's not the description that we get in the scriptures. We see that Satan is under the authority of God.

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Now we don't have detailed understanding of how it is and why it is that God delays the final judgment of Satan.

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But we do know that every time Satan has to ask permission from God to do something and God gives him permission to do it, he puts limits on what

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Satan can and can't do, who he can mess with and who he can't, and at the end of it, though Satan does according to his nature,

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God arranges for it to turn out for the good of his own name, for his own glory, for his own people.

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And it's that kind of sovereignty that the Bible talks about time and again. It isn't the caricature of sovereignty, which is fatalism, or the caricature of sovereignty, which is

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God playing marionettes, wherein God is controlling the all the little facets of everybody so that nobody has any kind of free agency whatsoever.

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That's a very small view of the sovereignty of God. But in this we see the the largeness of it.

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Satan still has to ask that he may sift Simon as wheat.

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You get the idea of Simon just being a lump of grain and his whole life getting turned upside down.

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See that Jesus says that Peter's going to return to him. He says, when you have returned to me, strengthen your brethren.

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So Jesus knows what's going to happen. He knows what's going to happen. And we remember the conversation that Jesus had with Peter in the

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Gospel of John. Do you love me? Do you love me? Do you love me? Feed my sheep.

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Feed my sheep. Feed my lambs. And this is, of course, exactly what happened.

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Jesus said it here. It's exactly what came to pass. Notice also he says,

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I tell you, Peter, the rooster shall not crow this day before you will deny three times that you know me. And lo and behold, the rooster closest to the scene of Peter denying

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Christ, and probably a whole bunch of other roosters, because it was the time of the day, they did not crow, just as Jesus said.

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And Peter denied his Lord three times before it happened. Now this kind of specificity in the promises of Christ, as he's prophesying and saying this is exactly what's going to happen, and lo and behold it does, just reminds us of the sovereignty of God in this situation.

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It is important to consider that against the backdrop of what Peter actually did, why did

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Peter deny Christ? What was the situation? Fear.

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He was in the enemy camp. He was in the enemy camp. He was afraid.

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He was concerned for his own safety. He was concerned about his own freedom.

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And so when challenged about him knowing Jesus of Nazareth or not, he lied to save his own skin.

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He denied Christ three times. Now if upon reflection

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Peter had trusted in the sovereignty of God and the strength of God and the promises of God, then he would not have feared man, he would have feared the

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Lord instead. The contrast here is very ironic.

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But Peter himself insisted that he was brave, that he was courageous, right?

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Do you see what he says? Lord I am ready to go with you both to prison and to death. Well that didn't really pan out, did it?

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Now we see Peter in the garden with one of the two swords that we read about a little bit later on, taking a swing at a man in the crowd, probably aiming to chop the man's head off and then or coming straight down on top of the man's head, which is probably more likely, and missing or the man dodged or whatever.

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He's spoiling for a fight, he's ready for a fight, but is he ready to confess Christ before men?

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Is he ready to confess that indeed he is the follower of Jesus of Nazareth and indeed he is the

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Christ, the Son of the Living God? As he said so profoundly, so clearly, when

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Jesus says, but who do you say that I am? And Peter confessed and Jesus said, this has been revealed to you from the

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Father, and this is a gift from God that he has given you this faith to believe in me. But this faith is being tested now, and I want us to consider the comparison very, very briefly.

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On the one hand, Jesus says, Peter, Satan has asked for you that you would be sifted like wheat.

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Here's the other scenario. Peter says, no, I'm going to go with you even to prison and death.

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So Peter is saying, this is my preferred scenario, this is what

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I am willing to do. He's unwilling to be sifted, unwilling to be tested.

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I don't know anybody who would prefer to be sifted. I don't know of anyone who would prefer that their faith be tested, that they be put through the wringer, that they would have their lives turned upside down, that they would have difficult days and dark nights and have to question things and be put through a very difficult time.

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I don't know anybody who would prefer that, okay. It's much more, it's much more nice to think about,

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I'm gonna be strong in my faith and I'll confront the trials and, you know, my faith will be intact rather than I'm gonna be all over the place, okay.

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Peter does not want to be sifted. However, Jesus says this, and I think this is the probably the most wonderful part of this passage.

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Jesus says, but I have prayed for you, but I have prayed for you that your faith should not fail.

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Isn't that amazing? We know from a variety of scriptures that Jesus, in the role of high priest, our high priest, is indeed at the right hand of the

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Father, interceding for us. Yes, he is our advocate.

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Yes, he is our righteousness before God. Yes, he is the the mediator.

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Yes, he is King of Kings and Lord of Lords, the Son of Man who is reigning. But remember this as well, that Jesus Christ is praying for us.

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He prays for his people. He's a good shepherd. He is a good shepherd, and of all that the

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Father gives him, he will not lose one. He intercedes for his flock.

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He prays for people. He loves his bride. He prays for us.

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He prayed for Peter. Now, if you think of this, when we think about the way that our preservation is described in the scriptures, it's all about God.

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It's all about what God does and who he is. Jesus is not going to lose one.

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We are in his hand, and his hand is in the Father's hand. He will not lose one.

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Satan sifting Peter's faith. Peter does not come out of that intact.

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His faith does not succeed. His faith most certainly fails, and it's done and over with, except that Jesus prays for him.

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It's God who has us. It's Christ who has us.

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And so Jesus says, but I prayed for you. So think about the worst case scenario really for a

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Christian is what? Being put through the ringer and denying Christ. Isn't that like the worst case scenario?

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Peter goes through that, but you see, his faith ultimately does not fail because Jesus prays for him.

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Jesus prays for him. Every time we go in prayer to God, when we're going through the ringer, when we're being sifted, remember that we have somebody else praying for us.

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We have our own Savior and Lord praying for us. Our high priest is interceding for us.

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That our faith would not fail. Yes, and his, of course, his representation of us is based on him being one of us, but the best of us.

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So we see that he prays for us, and then he says, when you have returned to me.

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Now again, that's because of Jesus's prayers. The fact that Peter comes back, the fact that Peter returns to the

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Lord and does not continue denying or hiding in shame is because of the grace of God.

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And notice, when you have returned to me, strengthen your brethren. You think of John Mark often as one who turned aside, gave up too hard, went back, and Paul did not think too much of John Mark after that for a long time.

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But then later on, we of course read, please send John Mark to me because he is useful for the ministry.

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So obviously there had been a restoration, a turnaround there that we don't know the details of.

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But prior to that, we have example of Peter. Peter, if it really about performance and rank and position and status and credentials and so on,

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Peter should never have been in a position of leadership in the church after that. You're done, you're gone.

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But Jesus says, when you have returned to me, you strengthen your brethren. This, of course, is another observation that we make in the pattern of Christ, that he went through suffering to glory as the

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Son of Man, as our head. And very often, to make us fit for service in his kingdom, he will put us through the ringer, he will put us through the sifter.

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We will suffer, he will pray for us, he will strengthen us, and then he will use us to be a blessing to others.

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So this is an encouraging eleventh -hour discipleship, even though things are going to get really, really tough.

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It's put in perspective when we consider the ministry of Christ. Okay, any thoughts or comments about this passage?

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When you have returned to me, yeah, instead of converted,