WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:06.980 Have you ever been guilty of the kind of overconfidence that actually blinds you to your own weakness? 00:00:08.679 --> 00:00:09.939 I know I have. 00:00:11.279 --> 00:00:18.600 You know, it's the kind of self-assurance that will lead you to reject sincere counsel 00:00:18.600 --> 00:00:25.060 from someone who can spot your deficiencies, but you're unwilling to acknowledge. 00:00:25.740 --> 00:00:26.480 You ever been there? 00:00:26.480 --> 00:00:30.579 I have more often probably than I would be willing to admit. 00:00:31.760 --> 00:00:33.359 Julie and I have been watching this show. 00:00:34.159 --> 00:00:35.859 It's produced by the History Channel. 00:00:36.039 --> 00:00:36.740 It's called Alone. 00:00:37.159 --> 00:00:38.020 Anybody seen that? 00:00:38.359 --> 00:00:38.859 Seen Alone? 00:00:39.420 --> 00:00:41.219 Here's basically the premise of the show. 00:00:41.740 --> 00:00:44.980 They take 10 survival experts. 00:00:45.659 --> 00:00:47.159 They go to a remote area. 00:00:47.320 --> 00:00:53.679 I think most recently where we've been watching, they've been in British Columbia up in Canada. 00:00:53.679 --> 00:01:01.259 Canada, and they drop these 10 contestants off by themselves in the remotest possible places 00:01:01.259 --> 00:01:03.439 with very few supplies. 00:01:03.560 --> 00:01:05.579 In fact, they're only allowed to take 10 things with them. 00:01:05.700 --> 00:01:09.760 Some of them are guaranteed, and they have to video themselves in the process of doing this thing. 00:01:10.000 --> 00:01:10.799 And here's the point. 00:01:11.760 --> 00:01:13.000 Go as long as you can. 00:01:13.000 --> 00:01:20.719 And the one who stays out there the longest without giving in wins half a million dollars, I think, is the prize. 00:01:21.140 --> 00:01:24.260 Now, the most anyone has ever done is 100 days. 00:01:24.960 --> 00:01:28.120 The shortest anyone has ever done is just a few hours. 00:01:28.379 --> 00:01:31.039 Like within the first day, they've already tapped out. 00:01:31.420 --> 00:01:33.500 It's really interesting to watch them do this. 00:01:33.500 --> 00:01:39.900 Because inevitably, in every season, there is a handful of contestants, and they all have a tremendous amount of skill. 00:01:40.000 --> 00:01:41.040 There is no doubting that. 00:01:41.540 --> 00:01:48.340 But there's always a handful of contestants that in the beginning are so confident in themselves 00:01:48.340 --> 00:01:54.340 that it's almost as if they don't expect this to really be as hard as it's been for others. 00:01:55.439 --> 00:01:57.920 They blind themselves to their own weaknesses. 00:01:57.920 --> 00:02:04.900 They convince themselves that the dynamic of being absolutely alone is not going to faze them. 00:02:05.180 --> 00:02:09.740 Or that they can handle the big grizzly bears in the wild better than most people. 00:02:10.080 --> 00:02:10.860 They're not afraid. 00:02:11.000 --> 00:02:11.879 Or whatever it is. 00:02:12.000 --> 00:02:19.360 And they have just this air about them, this overconfidence, this pride, that blinds them to their weaknesses. 00:02:19.680 --> 00:02:24.199 And inevitably, the people who go into the show like that, they don't make it very long. 00:02:24.680 --> 00:02:26.960 They may make it two or three weeks into it. 00:02:26.960 --> 00:02:29.840 But ultimately, they fall off. 00:02:30.040 --> 00:02:34.240 And they do it embarrassingly, making lots of excuses along the way. 00:02:34.360 --> 00:02:38.700 Because the things that they said they would be confident in doing at the very beginning 00:02:38.700 --> 00:02:42.379 are actually the things that they were the weakest in, that they failed in, in the process. 00:02:43.180 --> 00:02:48.460 So the ones who do the best on the show are not the ones who deny their weaknesses. 00:02:49.100 --> 00:02:52.340 They're actually the ones who acknowledge what weaknesses they have. 00:02:52.340 --> 00:02:56.719 They see these are the things that I anticipate are going to be a problem for me. 00:02:56.939 --> 00:02:58.439 And they acknowledge them. 00:02:58.599 --> 00:03:03.140 And then they do their best to persevere despite those weaknesses. 00:03:03.480 --> 00:03:03.699 Okay? 00:03:04.159 --> 00:03:09.360 There's a little bit of that happening here in this section of verses that we just read. 00:03:09.360 --> 00:03:20.100 It exposes a self-assurance in the disciples that quite dramatically sets up their inevitable failure. 00:03:20.099 --> 00:03:27.099 And the focus here is on Jesus' announcement that all of them will soon forsake him. 00:03:27.699 --> 00:03:38.519 And rather than receive the Lord's words and accept them and pray for strength and for grace in temptation, 00:03:38.520 --> 00:03:46.340 instead of doing that, they automatically, overconfidently dismiss the entire idea. 00:03:46.580 --> 00:03:47.520 Now, can you imagine? 00:03:49.160 --> 00:03:53.520 Jesus, the one whom you have professed at this point, is the Messiah. 00:03:53.680 --> 00:03:55.160 He's the one that's going to rule the world. 00:03:56.040 --> 00:03:57.379 You've seen what he can do. 00:03:57.620 --> 00:03:58.640 You've heard his teaching. 00:03:59.060 --> 00:04:01.920 You've seen him foretell things and immediately fulfill them. 00:04:02.120 --> 00:04:03.680 You've seen everything that he can do. 00:04:03.900 --> 00:04:06.900 Now he comes to you and he says, you're going to fail me. 00:04:06.900 --> 00:04:08.939 You're going to fail me. 00:04:09.280 --> 00:04:13.400 Can you imagine your first response being, you're wrong? 00:04:14.620 --> 00:04:17.139 That's exactly what their response is. 00:04:17.699 --> 00:04:22.579 They look at the Lord Jesus and essentially say, no, you're wrong. 00:04:23.160 --> 00:04:24.740 How could I ever fail you? 00:04:25.560 --> 00:04:29.720 How could I ever forsake you or fall away? 00:04:31.000 --> 00:04:32.540 There's a spiritual pride. 00:04:32.540 --> 00:04:38.300 Ultimately, it led them to deny the truth of the Bible. 00:04:39.200 --> 00:04:42.780 They reject Jesus's words, their Lord. 00:04:43.640 --> 00:04:47.320 And then in the process of all of that, they miss a really amazing promise. 00:04:48.700 --> 00:04:53.600 And in this way, they are the prototypical followers of Jesus. 00:04:53.600 --> 00:05:01.740 There's a lot about them that we can both relate to and that we can learn from. 00:05:02.700 --> 00:05:11.520 And what we find happening in the end is that the Son of Man goes as it has been written of him. 00:05:12.640 --> 00:05:14.379 And so do his disciples. 00:05:16.140 --> 00:05:18.560 And so there's three headings that I think will help guide us along. 00:05:18.660 --> 00:05:20.300 These headings are not original to me. 00:05:20.300 --> 00:05:22.720 I think they're original to Alistair Begg. 00:05:22.960 --> 00:05:25.040 They may not even be original to him, to be honest. 00:05:25.400 --> 00:05:27.920 But why improve on something that's adequate, okay? 00:05:28.040 --> 00:05:29.420 There's the three headings I'll give you. 00:05:30.000 --> 00:05:33.080 A prediction, a promise, and a protest. 00:05:33.560 --> 00:05:36.120 A prediction, a promise, and a protest. 00:05:36.460 --> 00:05:38.280 Let's look at the prediction in verse 26. 00:05:39.639 --> 00:05:42.240 When they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives. 00:05:42.420 --> 00:05:47.100 And Jesus said to them, you will all fall away. 00:05:47.100 --> 00:05:52.700 So the narrative picks up here after this monumental Passover meal. 00:05:53.280 --> 00:05:56.160 Jesus has instituted the Lord's Supper. 00:05:56.980 --> 00:05:58.480 It's late at night now. 00:05:58.640 --> 00:06:03.460 Remember, the supper would have gone up until midnight, perhaps. 00:06:03.660 --> 00:06:05.080 So this is the middle of the night. 00:06:06.060 --> 00:06:09.320 Eleven disciples are with Jesus at this moment. 00:06:10.100 --> 00:06:14.379 John tells us that Jesus had already dismissed Judas in the middle of the meal. 00:06:14.379 --> 00:06:18.100 Well, he has gone to do what it is that he had planned to do. 00:06:18.300 --> 00:06:22.259 So it's just Jesus and the eleven remaining disciples now. 00:06:22.779 --> 00:06:26.399 In the middle of the night, they're headed to the Mount of Olives. 00:06:27.219 --> 00:06:30.540 And it's hard to know exactly when this conversation takes place. 00:06:30.800 --> 00:06:35.600 When you lay all four Gospels beside each other and try to examine this particular event, 00:06:35.600 --> 00:06:42.540 it's kind of hard to determine whether Jesus has this conversation at the conclusion of the meal in the upper room, 00:06:42.680 --> 00:06:50.520 or is he saying these things as they are walking to the Mount of Olives on their way to the Garden of Gethsemane. 00:06:51.820 --> 00:06:57.500 But either way, we find Jesus making really another astonishing revelation. 00:06:57.500 --> 00:07:02.139 During the meal, he says, one of you will betray me. 00:07:03.019 --> 00:07:07.120 Now he's going to say, all of you will forsake me. 00:07:08.420 --> 00:07:10.540 But what is it that Jesus actually means? 00:07:10.639 --> 00:07:14.540 When he says, all of you are going to fall away, you will all fall away. 00:07:14.600 --> 00:07:15.759 What does he mean by that? 00:07:16.360 --> 00:07:19.100 And I think there's an important distinction that we need to make here 00:07:19.100 --> 00:07:26.420 between Judas' betrayal and the falling away of the other disciples. 00:07:27.360 --> 00:07:30.060 And here's really the significance of what Judas did. 00:07:31.160 --> 00:07:39.900 Judas' betrayal was a willful act of rebellion against the person and work of Jesus. 00:07:40.980 --> 00:07:41.840 Do you understand that? 00:07:42.740 --> 00:07:47.960 Judas' betrayal is a willful act of rebellion against who Jesus said he was 00:07:47.959 --> 00:07:51.359 and what he claimed to be and what he came to do. 00:07:52.359 --> 00:07:57.919 So at some point along the way, Judas has come to the conclusion that Jesus is not the Messiah. 00:07:58.099 --> 00:08:00.139 He is not who he says he is. 00:08:00.459 --> 00:08:04.299 Therefore, he cannot do what he claims to be able to do. 00:08:04.859 --> 00:08:14.019 And he consciously rejects Jesus in unbelief and instead pursues otherworldly things. 00:08:14.019 --> 00:08:19.039 And in his particular circumstance, it seems to have been wealth was really his distraction. 00:08:19.779 --> 00:08:23.500 And he betrays the Lord for 30 pieces of silver. 00:08:24.419 --> 00:08:29.579 That's not the same as what Jesus is now saying these other disciples will do. 00:08:30.419 --> 00:08:36.960 In fact, the language that Jesus used in the Greek tense here is actually in a future passive tense. 00:08:36.960 --> 00:08:47.920 Suggesting that the falling away would be a fearful lapse in faith rather than an egregious act of rebellion. 00:08:48.660 --> 00:08:57.780 So theirs would be a failure in commitment to Christ rather than a willful rejection of Christ. 00:08:58.120 --> 00:08:59.480 Do you see the distinction there? 00:08:59.980 --> 00:09:04.980 Maybe sometimes we would wonder, well, what really makes Judas any different than the rest of the disciples? 00:09:04.980 --> 00:09:07.100 And that's really the distinction. 00:09:07.539 --> 00:09:09.740 Judas is saying Jesus is not who he says he is. 00:09:10.019 --> 00:09:15.080 He cannot do what he claims to be able to do or what we need for him to do. 00:09:15.420 --> 00:09:17.279 Therefore, he betrays Jesus. 00:09:17.680 --> 00:09:19.019 That's not what the others are doing. 00:09:19.399 --> 00:09:27.480 They're having a fearful lapse of faith in a moment when they are severely tested in faith. 00:09:27.740 --> 00:09:30.740 Severely tested in their commitment to the Lord. 00:09:32.060 --> 00:09:33.460 James Edwards says this. 00:09:33.460 --> 00:09:35.379 I found this so helpful this week. 00:09:36.379 --> 00:09:44.340 Jesus warns the disciples to guard against the kind of sinfulness of which most of us are most guilty. 00:09:46.139 --> 00:09:52.460 Sins of weakness and irresoluteness rather than sins of intention. 00:09:53.800 --> 00:10:00.460 We do not plan on sinning, but neither do we hold the fort when we ought to. 00:10:00.460 --> 00:10:06.860 This is an area that we can certainly relate to these disciples, isn't it? 00:10:08.620 --> 00:10:15.620 A true disciple of Christ will never reject Jesus and his gospel in the way that Judas did. 00:10:16.379 --> 00:10:18.580 A true disciple would never do that. 00:10:19.879 --> 00:10:28.820 Neither is it likely that many of our sins will be conscious acts of rebellion against God's moral law. 00:10:28.820 --> 00:10:30.980 1 John chapter 3 makes that clear. 00:10:31.280 --> 00:10:34.860 That those who know Christ do not make a practice of sinning. 00:10:35.100 --> 00:10:37.480 That's not to say we never make a conscious act. 00:10:37.700 --> 00:10:40.460 It's to say that that's not the characteristic of our life. 00:10:40.660 --> 00:10:43.800 Especially as it relates to the person and work of Christ. 00:10:43.799 --> 00:10:57.120 Our failures generally are related to a lack of resolute faith in God's plan and commitment to God's purposes. 00:10:57.120 --> 00:10:57.340 Jesus. 00:10:59.460 --> 00:11:02.639 So think about it in the context of what's going on with these disciples. 00:11:04.120 --> 00:11:08.519 Eventually, when Jesus is arrested, the disciples flee. 00:11:10.179 --> 00:11:12.759 Not because they doubt who Jesus is. 00:11:13.639 --> 00:11:21.340 But because they fear what will happen to them if they remain firmly and unashamedly committed to him. 00:11:21.340 --> 00:11:26.440 So when the soldiers, along with Judas and the servants of the high priest, 00:11:26.500 --> 00:11:28.879 when they come to get Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane, 00:11:29.060 --> 00:11:31.560 and ultimately all of the disciples run away, 00:11:31.759 --> 00:11:35.460 they're not doing that because they've suddenly decided Jesus isn't the Messiah, 00:11:35.759 --> 00:11:39.000 and Jesus can't forgive my sin, and Jesus isn't going to rule the world. 00:11:39.360 --> 00:11:40.360 That's not why they're running. 00:11:40.660 --> 00:11:44.660 They're running because in that moment, not a conscious act of rebellion, 00:11:44.920 --> 00:11:47.400 but an irresolute lapse in faith. 00:11:47.399 --> 00:11:49.740 They're saying, I'm worried for my life. 00:11:49.899 --> 00:11:51.360 I'm fearful for my life. 00:11:51.500 --> 00:11:56.199 I'm in this moment choosing to save my life rather than to stand by the side of my Savior. 00:11:56.779 --> 00:11:57.579 Do you see the difference? 00:11:58.299 --> 00:12:02.759 How often are the sins that we commit not necessarily sins of commission, 00:12:03.059 --> 00:12:08.539 where we have a moral evil that we willingly choose in rejection of God's law. 00:12:08.959 --> 00:12:11.519 That's not typically the sins that we falter in. 00:12:11.919 --> 00:12:14.679 Our sins are typically sins of omission, 00:12:14.679 --> 00:12:20.500 where God has said, believe me, trust me, follow me, obey me, 00:12:20.539 --> 00:12:25.120 and instead of moving forward in faith despite the circumstances around us, 00:12:25.219 --> 00:12:26.839 we falter in our faith, 00:12:27.239 --> 00:12:32.239 and we choose rather our own path than the path that the Lord has decided, 00:12:32.319 --> 00:12:35.459 or instead of trusting the Lord, we rely on other means, 00:12:35.539 --> 00:12:38.879 and we neglect prayer, and we neglect other things in our lives. 00:12:39.219 --> 00:12:41.000 In the same way as these disciples, 00:12:41.000 --> 00:12:44.440 we often fear what will happen to us 00:12:44.440 --> 00:12:48.659 if we unashamedly remain committed to Christ. 00:12:50.259 --> 00:12:55.799 What will happen to me if I remain unashamedly committed to Christ in my home? 00:12:57.000 --> 00:13:01.059 What will I do when my kids really don't like the decisions that I'm making 00:13:01.059 --> 00:13:03.120 because they're based on what God wants for us 00:13:03.120 --> 00:13:06.519 and not exactly what they want to do or what they want for their life? 00:13:06.519 --> 00:13:12.899 Will I remain resolutely steadfast, committed as a disciple of Christ in leading my home? 00:13:14.500 --> 00:13:18.179 What will I do in those moments when, in the context of my work, 00:13:18.259 --> 00:13:22.980 I am presented with an ethical decision on whether or not I'm going to stand up for what's right 00:13:22.980 --> 00:13:24.960 because God said it's right, 00:13:24.960 --> 00:13:28.419 or will I falter into the background, 00:13:28.659 --> 00:13:33.439 hopefully no one paying much attention to the decision that I make? 00:13:33.440 --> 00:13:36.660 What about in relation to our communities? 00:13:37.760 --> 00:13:42.780 What about this issue that ultimately will fall to perhaps the hands of the voters 00:13:42.780 --> 00:13:45.840 in regards to the right to life for the unborn? 00:13:47.440 --> 00:13:51.340 Will we remain resolutely committed to the truth of God? 00:13:52.220 --> 00:13:55.460 Will we remain faithful in commitment to Him 00:13:55.460 --> 00:14:00.080 even when the cost is steep? 00:14:00.080 --> 00:14:07.080 Do you remember what Jesus said was a part of His call to discipleship in chapter 8? 00:14:08.540 --> 00:14:11.560 Whoever will save his life will lose it. 00:14:12.920 --> 00:14:17.860 But whoever will lose his life for my sake and the gospel will find it. 00:14:19.620 --> 00:14:23.800 For what good is it if you gain the whole world, but you lose your soul? 00:14:23.799 --> 00:14:27.539 Well, this is consistent teaching. 00:14:28.359 --> 00:14:31.439 Now the disciples are actually being faced with a decision. 00:14:32.599 --> 00:14:33.679 Really, they're going to have to determine. 00:14:33.779 --> 00:14:34.539 They're going to have to show, 00:14:35.319 --> 00:14:37.139 am I serious about following Christ? 00:14:37.459 --> 00:14:38.279 And they all failed. 00:14:39.319 --> 00:14:43.199 Just like there are many times where we all fail as well. 00:14:44.439 --> 00:14:45.399 Verse 27, 00:14:45.959 --> 00:14:46.579 Jesus says, 00:14:46.580 --> 00:14:56.700 Notice that Jesus' statement is not based on His frustration with them. 00:14:57.360 --> 00:15:01.080 This is not an assumption on His part that because they had failed before, 00:15:01.700 --> 00:15:04.320 they're undoubtedly going to fail again. 00:15:05.400 --> 00:15:09.300 He speaks of their failure rather as a fulfilling of Scripture. 00:15:09.299 --> 00:15:14.539 As a reality that's based on the truth of God's Word, 00:15:15.099 --> 00:15:18.199 not on His expectation that they're just terrible men, 00:15:18.279 --> 00:15:21.479 therefore they probably are going to forsake me in this moment. 00:15:23.219 --> 00:15:28.099 He names and quotes Zechariah 13, 7. 00:15:28.679 --> 00:15:31.879 So He points them directly to the prophecy of the Old Testament that says, 00:15:33.139 --> 00:15:36.979 I will strike the shepherd and the sheep will be scattered. 00:15:36.980 --> 00:15:43.220 So Jesus' purpose here is not to reveal their future to them, 00:15:43.779 --> 00:15:50.480 but to assert that even their abandonment was a part of God's plan 00:15:50.480 --> 00:15:53.399 to provide salvation for sinners. 00:15:54.259 --> 00:15:54.899 Do you see that? 00:15:56.019 --> 00:15:57.879 You say, why is He even mentioning this to them? 00:15:58.080 --> 00:16:00.519 Like how many other times have they failed along the way 00:16:00.519 --> 00:16:02.340 and He didn't bother to tell them beforehand? 00:16:02.340 --> 00:16:07.340 Why now is Jesus bothering to tell them beforehand 00:16:07.340 --> 00:16:09.460 why that they're going to fail? 00:16:09.720 --> 00:16:12.780 And the answer to that is to point them back to Him. 00:16:14.280 --> 00:16:15.920 He quotes Zechariah and He says, 00:16:16.200 --> 00:16:17.460 this is what the Scripture says. 00:16:17.800 --> 00:16:20.300 The shepherd's going to be stricken 00:16:20.300 --> 00:16:21.580 and then the sheep are going to scatter. 00:16:22.360 --> 00:16:22.960 That's you. 00:16:23.100 --> 00:16:25.660 He wasn't saying that so that they would just know 00:16:25.660 --> 00:16:26.860 what their future is 00:16:26.860 --> 00:16:30.180 or so that they could really feel really, really guilty, 00:16:30.179 --> 00:16:32.599 even more guilty perhaps because they say that they're not. 00:16:32.859 --> 00:16:34.599 That's not why Jesus is saying this. 00:16:34.779 --> 00:16:37.559 He's saying this so they will look back to Him and say, 00:16:37.839 --> 00:16:39.159 no, He really is Messiah. 00:16:39.359 --> 00:16:40.579 He really is the Savior. 00:16:40.699 --> 00:16:42.559 He even said what I would do 00:16:42.559 --> 00:16:44.179 was the fulfillment of the Scripture. 00:16:44.519 --> 00:16:45.819 This wasn't about them. 00:16:46.299 --> 00:16:48.259 This was about Him. 00:16:50.139 --> 00:16:52.079 Was God pleased by their falling away? 00:16:52.299 --> 00:16:53.099 Of course not. 00:16:53.919 --> 00:16:55.740 Was God pleased to use it 00:16:55.740 --> 00:16:58.679 to display His love and grace through Jesus? 00:16:58.679 --> 00:17:00.859 Yes, absolutely He was. 00:17:01.559 --> 00:17:03.620 And He was so pleased to use it 00:17:03.620 --> 00:17:05.399 that He proclaimed through Zechariah 00:17:05.399 --> 00:17:06.599 hundreds of years before 00:17:06.599 --> 00:17:09.440 that it's exactly what would happen. 00:17:10.659 --> 00:17:12.819 But they push against the Scripture here. 00:17:13.500 --> 00:17:14.419 I don't think they do it, 00:17:14.539 --> 00:17:16.279 but they're not recognizing that's what they're doing, 00:17:16.419 --> 00:17:17.319 but that's what they do. 00:17:17.460 --> 00:17:20.059 And they say, no, we would never do that. 00:17:23.000 --> 00:17:24.759 You know, there's another dynamic of this 00:17:24.759 --> 00:17:26.419 in the Scripture that speaks to us. 00:17:26.420 --> 00:17:29.700 Zechariah wasn't writing about you and me. 00:17:29.759 --> 00:17:31.500 He was writing about those 11 disciples. 00:17:31.600 --> 00:17:32.539 That's what Jesus said. 00:17:33.620 --> 00:17:35.400 But do you know that the Bible also says 00:17:35.400 --> 00:17:37.779 that each of us have sin, 00:17:38.279 --> 00:17:40.600 and each of us will continue in sin, 00:17:40.900 --> 00:17:43.980 not in the bondage of it in regards to judgment, 00:17:44.320 --> 00:17:46.960 but we will struggle with the presence of sin in our lives 00:17:46.960 --> 00:17:49.380 until the day that we reach heaven, 00:17:49.720 --> 00:17:51.440 and all sin is then banished, 00:17:51.660 --> 00:17:53.480 and we are made new in the resurrection. 00:17:53.480 --> 00:17:55.599 The Scripture says that. 00:17:57.200 --> 00:17:58.700 Why does it tell us that? 00:17:59.779 --> 00:18:03.279 Is it just to remind us over and over how bad we are? 00:18:04.099 --> 00:18:04.599 No. 00:18:05.460 --> 00:18:09.420 It's to remind us over and over how good He is, 00:18:10.759 --> 00:18:12.759 that He is the only one 00:18:12.759 --> 00:18:14.960 that could perfectly fulfill this law. 00:18:15.660 --> 00:18:19.059 He is the only one that we could possibly look to for salvation. 00:18:19.059 --> 00:18:23.279 He is the only one that we could possibly go to for forgiveness, 00:18:23.599 --> 00:18:25.779 and He provides it to us in abundance. 00:18:26.419 --> 00:18:27.599 This wasn't about them. 00:18:28.559 --> 00:18:30.799 This was about Jesus. 00:18:31.919 --> 00:18:33.159 It's another reminder. 00:18:34.399 --> 00:18:35.159 All of the Bible, 00:18:35.899 --> 00:18:36.819 all of history, 00:18:37.339 --> 00:18:40.440 tells the story of God's redemption of His people, 00:18:41.679 --> 00:18:43.359 namely through the crucifixion 00:18:43.359 --> 00:18:46.419 and resurrection of His perfect Son, 00:18:47.039 --> 00:18:47.299 Jesus. 00:18:49.179 --> 00:18:50.819 Notice who's striking the shepherd. 00:18:51.859 --> 00:18:52.659 God is. 00:18:53.459 --> 00:18:54.919 I will strike the shepherd, 00:18:55.699 --> 00:18:56.379 God says. 00:18:57.379 --> 00:18:59.339 It was always His plan to do this. 00:19:00.339 --> 00:19:02.119 Is that not Jesus' purpose 00:19:02.119 --> 00:19:03.699 in drawing their minds to it again? 00:19:04.699 --> 00:19:05.919 It wasn't about them. 00:19:07.000 --> 00:19:08.099 It's about Him. 00:19:09.159 --> 00:19:10.079 Isaiah 53 00:19:10.079 --> 00:19:12.699 was the will of the Lord to crush Him. 00:19:13.359 --> 00:19:14.859 He has put Him to grief. 00:19:16.199 --> 00:19:17.859 If you're doing your Romans readings 00:19:17.859 --> 00:19:19.799 ahead of Lakeside Connect next week, 00:19:19.819 --> 00:19:21.799 you will have read Romans chapter 8 00:19:21.799 --> 00:19:22.479 when Paul says, 00:19:22.679 --> 00:19:23.839 what shall we say to these things? 00:19:23.919 --> 00:19:25.179 If God is for us, 00:19:25.199 --> 00:19:26.159 who can be against us? 00:19:26.459 --> 00:19:28.639 He who did not spare His own Son, 00:19:29.719 --> 00:19:32.199 but gave Him up for us all. 00:19:33.299 --> 00:19:34.479 It was His plan. 00:19:35.279 --> 00:19:36.219 That's the point. 00:19:37.799 --> 00:19:40.379 It was the plan of God for Jesus to die for our sins. 00:19:40.439 --> 00:19:41.179 It always was. 00:19:41.179 --> 00:19:43.000 And as a part of that process, 00:19:43.359 --> 00:19:45.019 His disciples would fearfully, 00:19:45.359 --> 00:19:46.219 but temporarily, 00:19:46.839 --> 00:19:47.259 scatter. 00:19:48.819 --> 00:19:50.059 His revelation to them 00:19:50.059 --> 00:19:51.719 was meant to show them once again 00:19:51.719 --> 00:19:53.719 the reality of who He was 00:19:53.719 --> 00:19:55.559 and what He had come to do. 00:19:56.199 --> 00:19:57.000 Well, that's the prediction. 00:19:57.359 --> 00:19:59.319 Let's look next at the promise. 00:20:00.019 --> 00:20:01.299 Would you look with me at verse 28? 00:20:01.299 --> 00:20:05.680 After I am raised up, 00:20:06.200 --> 00:20:09.359 I will go before you to Galilee. 00:20:11.460 --> 00:20:12.859 Of all of these verses, 00:20:13.460 --> 00:20:15.980 this is the most significant one. 00:20:17.299 --> 00:20:18.680 After I am raised up, 00:20:18.940 --> 00:20:21.480 I will go before you to Galilee. 00:20:22.039 --> 00:20:23.720 This is the most significant statement 00:20:23.720 --> 00:20:24.859 that Jesus makes here, 00:20:24.859 --> 00:20:26.399 and it's the statement 00:20:26.399 --> 00:20:28.179 that they all missed. 00:20:29.479 --> 00:20:31.839 Every one of them missed it. 00:20:32.779 --> 00:20:35.299 So intent on defending themselves. 00:20:35.459 --> 00:20:37.479 They've made a statement about them 00:20:37.479 --> 00:20:39.659 rather than about Him. 00:20:39.819 --> 00:20:42.240 And so intent on defending themselves, 00:20:42.979 --> 00:20:45.599 they didn't comprehend the magnitude of this. 00:20:45.599 --> 00:20:49.899 And it's this dynamic of the disciples 00:20:49.899 --> 00:20:52.439 that makes this verse almost invisible 00:20:52.439 --> 00:20:53.879 even to us as the readers. 00:20:54.480 --> 00:20:55.199 Here's what I mean. 00:20:56.000 --> 00:20:57.659 When I read through this section of verses 00:20:57.659 --> 00:20:58.279 a while ago, 00:20:59.299 --> 00:21:00.799 how many of you were impacted 00:21:00.799 --> 00:21:03.279 by the significance of verse 28? 00:21:04.779 --> 00:21:05.899 I will rise again, 00:21:06.500 --> 00:21:08.779 and I will go before you to Galilee. 00:21:09.639 --> 00:21:10.839 If you're like me, 00:21:11.240 --> 00:21:12.599 you didn't even notice it. 00:21:12.599 --> 00:21:14.659 Because on one hand, 00:21:14.740 --> 00:21:16.879 you've got this unbelievable revelation 00:21:16.879 --> 00:21:18.899 that all of His closest disciples 00:21:18.899 --> 00:21:19.879 are gonna forsake Him. 00:21:20.019 --> 00:21:21.139 And we sit back and we think, 00:21:21.279 --> 00:21:22.359 how could they even do that? 00:21:22.539 --> 00:21:24.459 After everything that they've said and seen, 00:21:24.699 --> 00:21:25.719 after everything they've heard, 00:21:25.879 --> 00:21:28.619 how could they possibly leave Him? 00:21:28.779 --> 00:21:31.139 And we forget that we do the same thing. 00:21:31.719 --> 00:21:32.639 We do the same thing. 00:21:32.740 --> 00:21:33.519 But we look at this, 00:21:33.539 --> 00:21:34.759 and we see the drama of it, 00:21:34.759 --> 00:21:35.819 and we think, wow. 00:21:35.980 --> 00:21:37.480 And then we see how Peter 00:21:37.480 --> 00:21:40.379 is so emphatically going against Jesus again 00:21:40.379 --> 00:21:41.039 in this moment. 00:21:41.039 --> 00:21:43.259 And we get so distracted by these other things 00:21:43.259 --> 00:21:44.299 that even we miss 00:21:44.299 --> 00:21:47.019 this short little statement in verse 28 00:21:47.019 --> 00:21:49.740 that brings us all the hope in the world. 00:21:50.619 --> 00:21:52.399 And they completely missed it. 00:21:54.619 --> 00:21:57.019 It's another way that we can relate to these men. 00:21:58.759 --> 00:22:00.940 Have you ever been so overwhelmed 00:22:00.940 --> 00:22:03.059 by the reality of your circumstance 00:22:03.059 --> 00:22:05.039 that you failed to recognize 00:22:05.559 --> 00:22:06.960 the promises of God 00:22:06.960 --> 00:22:10.579 meant to get you through that circumstance? 00:22:11.039 --> 00:22:14.359 Isn't that one of our massive failures? 00:22:16.039 --> 00:22:17.859 It's not always that we doubt God. 00:22:18.460 --> 00:22:20.220 It's that we don't listen to Him 00:22:20.220 --> 00:22:22.279 when He gives us reasons not to doubt. 00:22:23.319 --> 00:22:24.940 When He gives us hope 00:22:24.940 --> 00:22:27.279 and promises and assurance, 00:22:27.579 --> 00:22:30.220 and we just let it go by unnoticed. 00:22:31.299 --> 00:22:33.339 It's no wonder that so many of us 00:22:33.339 --> 00:22:36.460 can tend to wallow in defeat and discouragement. 00:22:36.460 --> 00:22:40.299 If we would but take our eyes off of our circumstance 00:22:40.299 --> 00:22:43.220 and fix them on Jesus and His promises, 00:22:43.579 --> 00:22:46.200 we would undoubtedly live with joy 00:22:46.200 --> 00:22:50.319 amid the heartaches and the failures. 00:22:51.019 --> 00:22:52.640 And look at the promise itself. 00:22:52.940 --> 00:22:53.740 It's twofold. 00:22:55.360 --> 00:22:57.720 First, He promises He would rise from the dead. 00:22:57.720 --> 00:23:01.620 Now, this has been their problem up to this point, hasn't it? 00:23:02.880 --> 00:23:05.440 Every time Jesus mentions His suffering 00:23:05.440 --> 00:23:07.500 and His death to the disciples in Mark's gospel, 00:23:07.720 --> 00:23:08.460 every time, 00:23:08.960 --> 00:23:11.600 He also mentions His resurrection, 00:23:12.220 --> 00:23:13.259 and every time, 00:23:13.799 --> 00:23:14.940 they completely miss it. 00:23:16.039 --> 00:23:16.680 Do you know why? 00:23:17.720 --> 00:23:20.720 Because they're so focused on what they didn't like 00:23:20.720 --> 00:23:22.160 about Jesus' death 00:23:22.160 --> 00:23:25.120 that they totally missed the promise of His life, 00:23:25.800 --> 00:23:26.700 of His resurrection. 00:23:28.220 --> 00:23:30.340 Is that not exactly how we live? 00:23:31.259 --> 00:23:33.140 So caught up in the circumstances 00:23:33.140 --> 00:23:34.600 that God brings us in, 00:23:34.779 --> 00:23:37.640 so frustrated that He would allow us to deal with this, 00:23:37.720 --> 00:23:40.040 or so frustrated that things aren't going the way 00:23:40.040 --> 00:23:41.220 that we want them to go. 00:23:41.440 --> 00:23:43.740 That's where the disciples were with Jesus on that. 00:23:44.720 --> 00:23:47.160 They didn't want Jesus to have to do that. 00:23:47.240 --> 00:23:48.519 They wanted to skip that part. 00:23:48.759 --> 00:23:50.620 They just wanted to get to the new heavens 00:23:50.620 --> 00:23:51.279 and the new earth. 00:23:51.279 --> 00:23:52.980 And how often do we go through life? 00:23:53.099 --> 00:23:54.399 This is not how I planned. 00:23:54.579 --> 00:23:55.879 This is not what I wanted. 00:23:56.059 --> 00:23:57.899 I don't know why God is doing this. 00:23:58.039 --> 00:23:59.200 And in the process of that, 00:23:59.319 --> 00:24:02.059 we completely miss the promises that He gives 00:24:02.059 --> 00:24:04.099 to carry us through those moments 00:24:04.099 --> 00:24:05.720 in His goodness and in His grace. 00:24:06.660 --> 00:24:08.019 And here He's telling them, 00:24:08.819 --> 00:24:09.779 yes, I'm going to die, 00:24:09.839 --> 00:24:10.639 but I'm going to raise. 00:24:10.859 --> 00:24:11.599 I'm going to raise. 00:24:11.879 --> 00:24:13.420 I'm going to come back to life. 00:24:13.859 --> 00:24:15.000 I'm not going to stay dead. 00:24:15.200 --> 00:24:16.480 And they totally miss it. 00:24:18.619 --> 00:24:19.720 The second part, 00:24:20.000 --> 00:24:21.220 first part's resurrection. 00:24:21.279 --> 00:24:24.160 Second part is restoration. 00:24:25.680 --> 00:24:26.200 Restoration. 00:24:27.160 --> 00:24:28.359 That's just so helpful. 00:24:29.740 --> 00:24:32.220 Not only would Jesus rise from the dead, 00:24:32.839 --> 00:24:35.039 but He would fellowship with them 00:24:35.039 --> 00:24:38.180 in spite of their failure. 00:24:40.180 --> 00:24:42.500 Do you see the significance in this promise? 00:24:43.000 --> 00:24:44.240 He never tells Judas, 00:24:44.740 --> 00:24:47.000 go do what you're going to do quickly. 00:24:47.740 --> 00:24:49.000 And when it's finished, 00:24:49.319 --> 00:24:50.920 I'm going to meet you in Jerusalem 00:24:50.920 --> 00:24:52.059 and we're going to work it out. 00:24:52.259 --> 00:24:53.619 He never says that to Judas 00:24:53.619 --> 00:24:57.119 because Judas' failure was different than these men. 00:24:58.319 --> 00:24:59.819 But what is it that He tells them? 00:25:01.240 --> 00:25:02.619 You're all going to fall away. 00:25:03.380 --> 00:25:04.799 Every one of you are going to fail me. 00:25:04.799 --> 00:25:07.579 But I'm going to rise up 00:25:07.579 --> 00:25:09.379 and I'm going to meet you. 00:25:10.379 --> 00:25:11.500 Go to Galilee. 00:25:12.039 --> 00:25:13.159 I'm going to be there. 00:25:13.779 --> 00:25:15.279 We're going to fellowship again. 00:25:16.379 --> 00:25:18.399 We're going to be together again. 00:25:19.220 --> 00:25:21.019 This is a promise of restoration. 00:25:21.559 --> 00:25:22.279 Now can you imagine 00:25:22.279 --> 00:25:24.099 had these men just listened to the promise? 00:25:24.099 --> 00:25:27.879 They could have in that moment recognized, 00:25:28.059 --> 00:25:29.819 yes, I do have weakness. 00:25:31.599 --> 00:25:33.939 Yes, I probably will fail Him. 00:25:34.419 --> 00:25:35.459 He said it is so. 00:25:37.099 --> 00:25:38.659 But He's going to meet me after. 00:25:40.159 --> 00:25:41.759 And He's going to be with me after. 00:25:43.119 --> 00:25:44.740 And He's going to forgive me after. 00:25:46.679 --> 00:25:47.339 Now listen, 00:25:48.000 --> 00:25:50.439 how many times will you go through your Christian life 00:25:50.439 --> 00:25:53.259 and fail the Lord in the same way that these men did? 00:25:53.259 --> 00:25:56.900 Sometimes in ways that no one will see. 00:25:57.640 --> 00:25:59.579 Maybe internal ways in your own mind 00:25:59.579 --> 00:26:00.480 and in your own heart. 00:26:01.500 --> 00:26:04.299 Maybe sometimes in dramatic ways that everybody sees 00:26:04.299 --> 00:26:05.700 and it's just utterly embarrassing 00:26:05.700 --> 00:26:06.799 or whatever it may be. 00:26:08.559 --> 00:26:10.019 If you belong to Christ, 00:26:10.660 --> 00:26:11.879 He will always meet you. 00:26:13.039 --> 00:26:14.619 He will always meet you. 00:26:16.420 --> 00:26:18.200 He will always forgive you. 00:26:19.839 --> 00:26:22.559 He will always restore you. 00:26:23.259 --> 00:26:25.119 Do you realize 00:26:25.119 --> 00:26:29.039 that's the gospel as it moves on from our conversion? 00:26:30.079 --> 00:26:34.440 That the same Jesus that enters into our brokenness to save us 00:26:34.440 --> 00:26:37.680 remains with us in that brokenness 00:26:37.680 --> 00:26:39.319 to sanctify us 00:26:39.319 --> 00:26:41.279 and to continue in that forgiveness 00:26:41.279 --> 00:26:43.440 and to continue in that grace 00:26:43.440 --> 00:26:44.579 and in that love. 00:26:44.579 --> 00:26:46.660 If they would have only listened. 00:26:46.660 --> 00:26:50.200 Are you hearing Jesus here? 00:26:51.840 --> 00:26:53.240 He will meet you. 00:26:54.100 --> 00:26:56.700 He will restore you. 00:26:56.700 --> 00:27:02.900 The disciples never did grasp this. 00:27:03.840 --> 00:27:05.920 Not until after Jesus rose from the dead. 00:27:07.539 --> 00:27:09.140 But would you flip over just a, 00:27:09.279 --> 00:27:11.580 maybe it's just a page in your Bible to chapter 16. 00:27:12.920 --> 00:27:14.559 Just a spoiler alert here. 00:27:15.380 --> 00:27:16.740 Jesus does rise from the dead. 00:27:16.740 --> 00:27:20.900 And I want you to see what happens at the tomb. 00:27:22.099 --> 00:27:23.240 Verse number six. 00:27:24.859 --> 00:27:27.339 This is the angel that has appeared to 00:27:27.339 --> 00:27:30.160 Mary and the other women at the tomb. 00:27:30.660 --> 00:27:31.759 And he said to them, 00:27:32.279 --> 00:27:33.240 Do not be alarmed. 00:27:34.240 --> 00:27:35.859 You seek Jesus of Nazareth, 00:27:35.960 --> 00:27:36.640 who was crucified. 00:27:37.559 --> 00:27:38.480 He has risen. 00:27:39.480 --> 00:27:40.200 He's not here. 00:27:41.740 --> 00:27:43.660 See the place where they laid him. 00:27:43.660 --> 00:27:46.400 And then look what the angel says. 00:27:46.900 --> 00:27:49.680 But go tell his disciples and Peter. 00:27:49.880 --> 00:27:51.040 I think that's significant. 00:27:51.460 --> 00:27:54.300 Peter speaks up in a dramatic way here. 00:27:54.560 --> 00:27:56.019 The angel speaks up to Peter 00:27:56.019 --> 00:27:57.380 in a dramatic way at the tomb. 00:27:57.880 --> 00:27:59.660 Go and tell the disciples and Peter 00:27:59.660 --> 00:28:02.680 that he is going before you to Galilee. 00:28:03.060 --> 00:28:03.960 And look at the last phrase. 00:28:05.000 --> 00:28:08.640 You'll see him just as he told you. 00:28:10.100 --> 00:28:11.640 This was Jesus' promise. 00:28:11.640 --> 00:28:13.040 And on the moment, 00:28:13.140 --> 00:28:14.500 the morning of his resurrection, 00:28:14.820 --> 00:28:16.120 he fulfills the promise. 00:28:16.240 --> 00:28:17.400 He did rise from the dead. 00:28:17.680 --> 00:28:19.340 And then he sends words to the disciples. 00:28:19.759 --> 00:28:20.440 Go to Galilee. 00:28:20.480 --> 00:28:21.320 I'm going to see you there. 00:28:22.040 --> 00:28:23.620 And we're going to talk about this there. 00:28:24.000 --> 00:28:26.960 And we're going to get through it together there. 00:28:27.560 --> 00:28:29.000 Do you see what Jesus is doing now? 00:28:29.060 --> 00:28:30.020 Back in chapter 14. 00:28:31.780 --> 00:28:32.880 He wasn't mad at them. 00:28:33.780 --> 00:28:35.920 He's not picking up a fight with them. 00:28:37.720 --> 00:28:38.860 His words here, 00:28:39.140 --> 00:28:41.220 even his words of revelation of their failure, 00:28:41.640 --> 00:28:44.000 are there to assure them. 00:28:46.720 --> 00:28:48.960 It's to show them that his abandonment 00:28:48.960 --> 00:28:50.940 was necessary to fulfill the scripture. 00:28:51.620 --> 00:28:54.020 And knowing their inevitable distress 00:28:54.020 --> 00:28:55.120 because of that, 00:28:55.980 --> 00:28:57.600 here's these amazing promises 00:28:57.600 --> 00:28:59.800 of resurrection and restoration. 00:29:00.540 --> 00:29:01.520 Let me say one more thing 00:29:01.520 --> 00:29:02.259 and we're going to move on. 00:29:02.259 --> 00:29:05.140 Jesus is not a brow-beating, 00:29:05.500 --> 00:29:06.839 iron-fisted Lord. 00:29:09.000 --> 00:29:11.140 He is a compassionate, 00:29:11.799 --> 00:29:13.420 caring, 00:29:15.339 --> 00:29:16.079 sympathetic, 00:29:17.740 --> 00:29:19.759 assuring Lord. 00:29:19.759 --> 00:29:22.700 Matthew 11. 00:29:22.700 --> 00:29:24.799 Come to me, he says. 00:29:25.720 --> 00:29:27.960 All who labor and are heavy laden, 00:29:28.079 --> 00:29:29.259 I will give you rest. 00:29:30.400 --> 00:29:31.700 Take my yoke. 00:29:32.240 --> 00:29:33.039 Learn from me. 00:29:33.379 --> 00:29:36.119 I'm gentle and lowly in heart. 00:29:36.619 --> 00:29:38.839 And you will find rest for your souls. 00:29:39.559 --> 00:29:40.980 For my yoke is easy 00:29:40.980 --> 00:29:44.360 and my burden is light. 00:29:45.880 --> 00:29:47.759 Jesus isn't giving them a hard time. 00:29:48.240 --> 00:29:49.599 He's giving them hope. 00:29:50.400 --> 00:29:51.680 He's assuring them. 00:29:52.539 --> 00:29:53.380 But they missed it. 00:29:54.339 --> 00:29:55.299 Don't miss it. 00:29:56.059 --> 00:29:56.799 Don't miss it. 00:29:56.799 --> 00:29:57.799 Don't miss it. 00:29:58.440 --> 00:29:59.399 Thirdly and finally, 00:29:59.799 --> 00:30:01.099 we see a protest. 00:30:02.480 --> 00:30:03.200 Verse 29, 00:30:04.440 --> 00:30:05.399 Peter said to him, 00:30:06.700 --> 00:30:08.180 even though they all fall away, 00:30:09.079 --> 00:30:10.099 I will not. 00:30:12.399 --> 00:30:13.659 It's not a surprise to us 00:30:13.659 --> 00:30:15.399 that Peter is the one to speak up, is it? 00:30:15.779 --> 00:30:17.419 He's always the one to speak up. 00:30:18.759 --> 00:30:20.119 But in case we're tempted 00:30:20.119 --> 00:30:22.480 to come down so hard on him, 00:30:23.299 --> 00:30:25.519 let's acknowledge why he's saying this. 00:30:26.799 --> 00:30:28.919 He's saying this first 00:30:28.919 --> 00:30:30.759 because he loves Jesus. 00:30:32.819 --> 00:30:34.399 And he's committed to Jesus. 00:30:36.639 --> 00:30:38.859 He's not trying to mask something here. 00:30:39.240 --> 00:30:40.599 This is coming from a place 00:30:40.599 --> 00:30:42.519 where he doesn't want to think about 00:30:42.519 --> 00:30:43.819 betraying the Lord 00:30:43.819 --> 00:30:45.099 or falling away from the Lord. 00:30:45.139 --> 00:30:47.139 He wants to remain committed to the Lord. 00:30:47.279 --> 00:30:49.700 That's where this is sourced first. 00:30:50.539 --> 00:30:51.019 And remember, 00:30:52.000 --> 00:30:53.799 Jesus had just told them 00:30:53.799 --> 00:30:55.279 that someone among them 00:30:55.279 --> 00:30:56.460 was going to betray him. 00:30:57.519 --> 00:30:58.059 And Peter, 00:30:58.379 --> 00:30:59.579 the loyalist, 00:31:00.159 --> 00:31:03.019 is surely disgusted by that notion. 00:31:03.460 --> 00:31:04.200 He's probably 00:31:04.200 --> 00:31:06.359 hypersensitive 00:31:06.359 --> 00:31:08.919 to any kind of thought of betrayal 00:31:08.919 --> 00:31:10.059 or forsaking 00:31:10.059 --> 00:31:11.559 that any of them would have. 00:31:11.740 --> 00:31:12.639 His earnest desire, 00:31:12.759 --> 00:31:13.359 truly believe, 00:31:13.440 --> 00:31:14.259 his earnest desire 00:31:14.259 --> 00:31:15.079 is to love 00:31:15.079 --> 00:31:16.079 and to be faithful to 00:31:16.079 --> 00:31:17.000 and to please Jesus. 00:31:17.480 --> 00:31:20.000 But Peter was also foolishly arrogant here 00:31:20.000 --> 00:31:23.339 because he rebukes Jesus 00:31:23.339 --> 00:31:24.440 again. 00:31:24.440 --> 00:31:26.759 He did it in chapter 8 too. 00:31:28.340 --> 00:31:29.480 He rebukes Jesus. 00:31:30.039 --> 00:31:30.920 And then he takes it 00:31:30.920 --> 00:31:32.200 even further than that. 00:31:32.400 --> 00:31:33.660 And he diminishes 00:31:33.660 --> 00:31:35.980 the love that others had 00:31:35.980 --> 00:31:37.120 for Jesus. 00:31:37.759 --> 00:31:38.420 Do you see that? 00:31:39.600 --> 00:31:40.640 In his words, 00:31:40.759 --> 00:31:42.480 there is a hint of expectation 00:31:42.480 --> 00:31:44.100 that the other 10 00:31:44.100 --> 00:31:46.660 might indeed forsake the Lord. 00:31:46.660 --> 00:31:48.860 But an act for him 00:31:48.860 --> 00:31:50.180 would just be impossible 00:31:50.180 --> 00:31:51.140 to think of. 00:31:51.560 --> 00:31:52.440 He's too committed 00:31:52.440 --> 00:31:52.920 to the Lord. 00:31:53.320 --> 00:31:53.680 Jesus, 00:31:54.120 --> 00:31:55.920 though they all do that, 00:31:56.100 --> 00:31:57.360 I would never 00:31:57.360 --> 00:31:59.240 do that. 00:31:59.240 --> 00:32:00.980 boy, 00:32:01.039 --> 00:32:02.099 it sounds a lot like us, 00:32:02.120 --> 00:32:02.579 doesn't it? 00:32:05.539 --> 00:32:06.099 You know, 00:32:06.339 --> 00:32:08.000 for a group of people 00:32:08.000 --> 00:32:09.140 that follow a Lord 00:32:09.140 --> 00:32:11.740 who is so forgiving 00:32:11.740 --> 00:32:13.240 and gracious 00:32:13.240 --> 00:32:14.220 and merciful 00:32:14.220 --> 00:32:14.839 and kind, 00:32:15.779 --> 00:32:16.859 we can be a group, 00:32:17.140 --> 00:32:18.299 speaking as Christians 00:32:18.299 --> 00:32:18.819 as a whole, 00:32:19.120 --> 00:32:20.099 we can be a group 00:32:20.099 --> 00:32:20.920 that is just 00:32:20.920 --> 00:32:22.880 unbelievably judgmental. 00:32:22.880 --> 00:32:26.740 And we look to others 00:32:26.740 --> 00:32:28.040 and assume their sin. 00:32:29.160 --> 00:32:30.560 Or we would highlight 00:32:30.560 --> 00:32:31.280 their sin. 00:32:31.540 --> 00:32:32.640 I would never 00:32:32.640 --> 00:32:33.400 go that far. 00:32:33.900 --> 00:32:35.100 I would never 00:32:35.100 --> 00:32:35.820 do that thing. 00:32:36.400 --> 00:32:37.560 I would never 00:32:37.560 --> 00:32:38.960 fall in that way. 00:32:39.060 --> 00:32:39.560 And we would 00:32:39.560 --> 00:32:41.080 castigate others 00:32:41.080 --> 00:32:42.900 while trying to 00:32:42.900 --> 00:32:44.140 pump ourselves up 00:32:44.140 --> 00:32:45.720 before others. 00:32:47.880 --> 00:32:48.940 Don't we do that? 00:32:48.980 --> 00:32:49.520 Is that what Peter 00:32:49.520 --> 00:32:50.200 is doing here? 00:32:51.420 --> 00:32:51.940 Lord, 00:32:52.040 --> 00:32:52.660 they'll all do it. 00:32:52.660 --> 00:32:53.519 I won't do it. 00:32:54.480 --> 00:32:54.900 Which, 00:32:55.000 --> 00:32:55.360 by the way, 00:32:55.420 --> 00:32:56.320 this is an attitude 00:32:56.320 --> 00:32:57.080 that Peter, 00:32:58.279 --> 00:32:59.500 that Jesus corrected 00:32:59.500 --> 00:33:01.300 in Peter later. 00:33:02.480 --> 00:33:02.920 Do you remember 00:33:02.920 --> 00:33:04.180 the story in John 21? 00:33:04.840 --> 00:33:05.420 This is while 00:33:05.420 --> 00:33:06.220 they finally get 00:33:06.220 --> 00:33:06.820 to Galilee. 00:33:07.019 --> 00:33:07.920 Jesus has risen. 00:33:08.580 --> 00:33:09.720 They are fishing 00:33:09.720 --> 00:33:12.380 and they fish all night 00:33:12.380 --> 00:33:13.660 and they catch nothing 00:33:13.660 --> 00:33:14.860 and Jesus is on the shore. 00:33:14.960 --> 00:33:15.560 They don't realize 00:33:15.560 --> 00:33:16.500 that it's him, 00:33:16.580 --> 00:33:17.220 but he's on the shore 00:33:17.220 --> 00:33:17.640 and he says, 00:33:17.940 --> 00:33:18.420 have you tried 00:33:18.420 --> 00:33:18.980 the other side 00:33:18.980 --> 00:33:19.400 of the boat? 00:33:19.960 --> 00:33:20.680 I was fishing 00:33:20.680 --> 00:33:21.600 a couple weeks ago 00:33:21.599 --> 00:33:24.219 when we were on vacation 00:33:24.219 --> 00:33:25.240 on Emerald Isle. 00:33:25.359 --> 00:33:25.799 We were doing 00:33:25.799 --> 00:33:26.599 red drum fishing 00:33:26.599 --> 00:33:27.619 and that morning 00:33:27.619 --> 00:33:28.539 was just super slow 00:33:28.539 --> 00:33:29.159 and Andy and I 00:33:29.159 --> 00:33:29.619 were texting 00:33:29.619 --> 00:33:30.519 and he had asked me 00:33:30.519 --> 00:33:31.179 if we caught anything. 00:33:31.259 --> 00:33:31.919 We hadn't caught anything. 00:33:32.019 --> 00:33:32.339 He said, 00:33:32.419 --> 00:33:32.980 you tried the other 00:33:32.980 --> 00:33:33.539 side of the boat. 00:33:35.599 --> 00:33:36.079 You know, 00:33:36.779 --> 00:33:37.799 we could have done that 00:33:37.799 --> 00:33:38.199 and it wouldn't have 00:33:38.199 --> 00:33:38.779 made a difference. 00:33:40.039 --> 00:33:40.859 So can you imagine 00:33:40.859 --> 00:33:41.819 they're on the boat. 00:33:41.879 --> 00:33:42.379 They've been out there 00:33:42.379 --> 00:33:42.639 all night. 00:33:42.679 --> 00:33:43.079 They're tired 00:33:43.079 --> 00:33:43.959 and Jesus says, 00:33:44.019 --> 00:33:44.319 they don't know 00:33:44.319 --> 00:33:44.659 it's Jesus, 00:33:44.779 --> 00:33:45.319 but he says, 00:33:45.419 --> 00:33:46.079 throw it on the other 00:33:46.079 --> 00:33:46.699 side of the boat 00:33:46.699 --> 00:33:47.259 and they throw it 00:33:47.259 --> 00:33:47.799 on the other side 00:33:47.799 --> 00:33:48.139 of the boat 00:33:48.139 --> 00:33:49.599 and they bring in 00:33:49.599 --> 00:33:50.379 the catch of their lives 00:33:50.379 --> 00:33:52.480 and they bring it in 00:33:52.480 --> 00:33:52.959 and there's Jesus 00:33:52.959 --> 00:33:53.480 and he's already got 00:33:53.480 --> 00:33:54.500 breakfast ready for them 00:33:54.500 --> 00:33:55.339 and you remember 00:33:55.339 --> 00:33:56.039 how it goes. 00:33:56.659 --> 00:33:57.679 There's the pile of fish 00:33:57.679 --> 00:33:58.379 on the beach 00:33:58.379 --> 00:33:59.719 or perhaps in the boat 00:33:59.719 --> 00:34:00.500 wherever it was 00:34:00.500 --> 00:34:01.599 and then the disciples 00:34:01.599 --> 00:34:02.679 are there quietly. 00:34:03.759 --> 00:34:04.719 They're all ashamed 00:34:04.719 --> 00:34:05.519 over what they've done. 00:34:05.980 --> 00:34:06.839 Every one of them are. 00:34:07.839 --> 00:34:08.440 They don't know 00:34:08.440 --> 00:34:09.000 how to react. 00:34:09.279 --> 00:34:09.480 They don't know 00:34:09.480 --> 00:34:10.440 how to respond to Jesus 00:34:10.440 --> 00:34:11.360 and here's Jesus. 00:34:11.539 --> 00:34:12.259 He's cooking for them 00:34:12.259 --> 00:34:13.059 and he's showing 00:34:13.059 --> 00:34:14.059 such love to them 00:34:14.059 --> 00:34:15.519 and remember what he asked Peter. 00:34:15.519 --> 00:34:18.800 Peter or Simon, 00:34:19.420 --> 00:34:20.300 son of Jonah, 00:34:21.219 --> 00:34:23.280 do you love me 00:34:23.280 --> 00:34:24.039 more than these? 00:34:26.360 --> 00:34:27.559 Now I've heard people say 00:34:27.559 --> 00:34:28.619 that this had to have 00:34:28.619 --> 00:34:30.619 been a notion 00:34:30.619 --> 00:34:31.840 towards the fish 00:34:31.840 --> 00:34:32.619 that he had just caught 00:34:32.619 --> 00:34:34.679 as if Peter had quit 00:34:34.679 --> 00:34:35.659 on Jesus altogether 00:34:35.659 --> 00:34:36.300 and had gone back 00:34:36.300 --> 00:34:37.000 to a former life 00:34:37.000 --> 00:34:37.519 and maybe there's 00:34:37.519 --> 00:34:38.119 some truth in that 00:34:38.119 --> 00:34:38.920 but I don't think 00:34:38.920 --> 00:34:40.000 Jesus is looking over 00:34:40.000 --> 00:34:40.440 at the fish 00:34:40.440 --> 00:34:40.719 and saying, 00:34:40.880 --> 00:34:41.000 Peter, 00:34:41.079 --> 00:34:41.539 do you love me 00:34:41.539 --> 00:34:42.380 more than you love fishing? 00:34:43.079 --> 00:34:43.800 He already knows 00:34:43.800 --> 00:34:45.720 that Peter has demonstrated 00:34:45.720 --> 00:34:46.780 that plenty of times before. 00:34:47.860 --> 00:34:48.240 No, 00:34:48.400 --> 00:34:48.740 here's what, 00:34:48.840 --> 00:34:49.660 he's referring back 00:34:49.660 --> 00:34:50.620 to Peter's statement here. 00:34:51.660 --> 00:34:52.640 He's looking at the rest 00:34:52.640 --> 00:34:53.320 of the disciples 00:34:53.320 --> 00:34:54.600 and he's saying, 00:34:54.720 --> 00:34:54.860 Peter, 00:34:54.940 --> 00:34:55.700 do you really love me 00:34:55.700 --> 00:34:56.240 more than them? 00:34:56.519 --> 00:34:57.740 Because that's what you said. 00:34:59.200 --> 00:34:59.940 Do you love me 00:34:59.940 --> 00:35:00.360 more than them? 00:35:00.539 --> 00:35:01.380 Do you see the arrogance 00:35:01.380 --> 00:35:02.860 that Jesus corrects 00:35:02.860 --> 00:35:03.920 firmly, 00:35:04.519 --> 00:35:05.080 lovingly? 00:35:05.360 --> 00:35:06.280 He corrects it 00:35:06.280 --> 00:35:06.920 in Peter there. 00:35:07.220 --> 00:35:07.680 We're guilty 00:35:07.680 --> 00:35:08.640 of that same arrogance. 00:35:10.100 --> 00:35:11.120 Look at verse 30. 00:35:11.880 --> 00:35:13.240 How is it that Jesus responds? 00:35:13.239 --> 00:35:13.899 Jesus said, 00:35:13.979 --> 00:35:14.859 truly I tell you, 00:35:14.939 --> 00:35:15.119 Peter, 00:35:15.319 --> 00:35:16.379 this very night 00:35:16.379 --> 00:35:17.879 before the rooster crows twice, 00:35:17.959 --> 00:35:18.859 you will deny me 00:35:18.859 --> 00:35:20.339 three times. 00:35:22.119 --> 00:35:22.859 In other words, 00:35:22.939 --> 00:35:23.159 Peter, 00:35:23.239 --> 00:35:23.899 it's not that you're 00:35:23.899 --> 00:35:24.639 going to fall away, 00:35:24.819 --> 00:35:25.619 you're going to outright 00:35:25.619 --> 00:35:26.500 deny me 00:35:26.500 --> 00:35:28.259 on three different occasions. 00:35:28.559 --> 00:35:29.000 Tonight, 00:35:29.959 --> 00:35:30.719 everybody else 00:35:30.719 --> 00:35:31.719 is just going to run away. 00:35:32.000 --> 00:35:32.599 You're actually going 00:35:32.599 --> 00:35:33.099 to tell people 00:35:33.099 --> 00:35:33.939 you don't know me. 00:35:35.000 --> 00:35:35.859 You're going to invoke 00:35:35.859 --> 00:35:36.899 a curse on yourself 00:35:36.899 --> 00:35:37.599 in the process 00:35:37.599 --> 00:35:38.939 of doing that to others. 00:35:39.419 --> 00:35:40.239 That's how far 00:35:40.239 --> 00:35:40.799 you're going to go, 00:35:40.919 --> 00:35:41.119 Peter. 00:35:41.719 --> 00:35:42.079 Peter, 00:35:43.239 --> 00:35:44.219 look at verse 31. 00:35:45.399 --> 00:35:46.500 But he said emphatically, 00:35:47.079 --> 00:35:48.299 if I must die 00:35:48.299 --> 00:35:49.859 with you, 00:35:50.039 --> 00:35:51.259 I will not deny you. 00:35:52.159 --> 00:35:52.939 And they all said 00:35:52.939 --> 00:35:53.439 the same. 00:35:57.039 --> 00:35:58.299 Declares his loyalty 00:35:58.299 --> 00:35:58.839 to Jesus 00:35:58.839 --> 00:35:59.699 even to death. 00:36:00.119 --> 00:36:00.799 And it's not that 00:36:00.799 --> 00:36:01.719 Peter didn't mean it. 00:36:01.959 --> 00:36:02.599 I think he did. 00:36:04.199 --> 00:36:05.459 He truly believed 00:36:05.459 --> 00:36:06.659 he was willing 00:36:06.659 --> 00:36:07.579 to follow Christ 00:36:07.579 --> 00:36:08.519 to the point of death. 00:36:08.519 --> 00:36:09.279 The problem 00:36:09.279 --> 00:36:10.519 wasn't in his passion. 00:36:10.859 --> 00:36:11.559 The problem 00:36:11.559 --> 00:36:12.699 was in his pride. 00:36:13.239 --> 00:36:15.799 He knew better 00:36:15.799 --> 00:36:16.779 than to doubt 00:36:16.779 --> 00:36:17.899 Jesus' words. 00:36:18.299 --> 00:36:19.339 But in his pride, 00:36:19.659 --> 00:36:20.539 he sinned greatly 00:36:20.539 --> 00:36:21.379 against the Lord. 00:36:21.759 --> 00:36:22.899 And don't miss the fact 00:36:22.899 --> 00:36:23.759 that the rest of them 00:36:23.759 --> 00:36:24.459 affirmed it. 00:36:25.359 --> 00:36:25.899 Yeah, Jesus, 00:36:26.119 --> 00:36:27.000 we agree with Peter. 00:36:27.159 --> 00:36:28.199 We would never do that. 00:36:28.399 --> 00:36:29.219 We will follow you 00:36:29.219 --> 00:36:29.819 to the death. 00:36:30.219 --> 00:36:31.339 And within a couple of hours, 00:36:31.619 --> 00:36:32.639 every single one of them 00:36:32.639 --> 00:36:33.799 have fallen away. 00:36:34.619 --> 00:36:35.359 The truth is 00:36:35.359 --> 00:36:36.279 that each one of us 00:36:36.279 --> 00:36:36.899 is capable 00:36:36.899 --> 00:36:37.479 of committing 00:36:37.479 --> 00:36:39.279 the most egregious sins. 00:36:39.280 --> 00:36:41.580 we have to avoid 00:36:41.580 --> 00:36:42.280 the pride 00:36:42.280 --> 00:36:43.860 that fools us 00:36:43.860 --> 00:36:44.420 into thinking 00:36:44.420 --> 00:36:45.120 we are safer 00:36:45.120 --> 00:36:45.760 than others. 00:36:47.120 --> 00:36:48.300 Because we're really not. 00:36:49.740 --> 00:36:50.860 Remember what Solomon 00:36:50.860 --> 00:36:52.700 said in Proverbs 16? 00:36:53.700 --> 00:36:54.760 Pride goes before 00:36:54.760 --> 00:36:55.420 destruction 00:36:55.420 --> 00:36:57.660 and a haughty spirit 00:36:57.660 --> 00:36:58.480 before a fall. 00:37:00.700 --> 00:37:01.900 Remember Paul's words 00:37:01.900 --> 00:37:03.160 in 1 Corinthians 10, 00:37:03.159 --> 00:37:03.579 12. 00:37:03.699 --> 00:37:05.099 This was in the context 00:37:05.099 --> 00:37:07.119 of discipline 00:37:07.119 --> 00:37:08.879 and restoring 00:37:08.879 --> 00:37:09.839 other believers 00:37:09.839 --> 00:37:10.619 in the process 00:37:10.619 --> 00:37:11.319 of their sin. 00:37:11.420 --> 00:37:11.759 He says, 00:37:12.099 --> 00:37:12.859 therefore let anyone 00:37:12.859 --> 00:37:14.519 who thinks that he stands 00:37:14.519 --> 00:37:15.699 take heed 00:37:15.699 --> 00:37:17.119 lest he fall. 00:37:18.159 --> 00:37:18.739 In other words, 00:37:19.079 --> 00:37:19.980 you're just as capable 00:37:19.980 --> 00:37:21.359 of the same sins 00:37:21.359 --> 00:37:22.219 as Israel was 00:37:22.219 --> 00:37:22.980 in the Old Testament, 00:37:23.139 --> 00:37:23.619 Paul says. 00:37:23.759 --> 00:37:24.879 And you're just as capable 00:37:24.879 --> 00:37:26.000 of committing the sins 00:37:26.000 --> 00:37:27.619 that others in the church 00:37:27.619 --> 00:37:28.819 have committed as well. 00:37:29.159 --> 00:37:30.460 Don't think too much 00:37:30.460 --> 00:37:31.159 of yourself. 00:37:31.159 --> 00:37:33.519 you'll surely fall. 00:37:34.599 --> 00:37:35.579 But it brings up 00:37:35.579 --> 00:37:36.519 an important question. 00:37:37.699 --> 00:37:38.819 What should Peter 00:37:38.819 --> 00:37:39.319 have done? 00:37:42.440 --> 00:37:43.420 Should he have just 00:37:43.420 --> 00:37:44.279 listened to the Lord 00:37:44.279 --> 00:37:45.199 and then just 00:37:45.199 --> 00:37:48.239 allowed himself 00:37:48.239 --> 00:37:49.699 carelessly to sin? 00:37:51.599 --> 00:37:52.659 Well, that doesn't seem 00:37:52.659 --> 00:37:53.460 like it would be right. 00:37:54.379 --> 00:37:55.339 Of course not. 00:37:57.159 --> 00:37:58.259 It's neither right 00:37:58.259 --> 00:37:59.679 to deny our capacity 00:37:59.679 --> 00:38:00.519 to sin 00:38:00.519 --> 00:38:01.920 nor is it right 00:38:01.920 --> 00:38:03.019 to give ourselves 00:38:03.019 --> 00:38:04.119 over to it. 00:38:06.179 --> 00:38:07.059 I don't want to get 00:38:07.059 --> 00:38:07.719 too far ahead. 00:38:07.820 --> 00:38:08.360 We're going to get there 00:38:08.360 --> 00:38:08.880 next week. 00:38:09.000 --> 00:38:10.079 But Jesus actually 00:38:10.079 --> 00:38:11.000 answers this 00:38:11.000 --> 00:38:12.420 in the very next section. 00:38:12.639 --> 00:38:13.780 Look at verse 38. 00:38:16.460 --> 00:38:17.639 Watch and pray 00:38:17.639 --> 00:38:19.619 that you may not 00:38:19.619 --> 00:38:20.960 enter into temptation. 00:38:21.679 --> 00:38:22.759 The spirit indeed 00:38:22.759 --> 00:38:23.320 is willing 00:38:23.320 --> 00:38:25.000 but the flesh 00:38:25.000 --> 00:38:25.559 is weak. 00:38:25.759 --> 00:38:25.980 Do you know 00:38:25.980 --> 00:38:26.420 what's going on 00:38:26.420 --> 00:38:26.840 with Peter? 00:38:27.000 --> 00:38:28.139 He has a willing spirit 00:38:28.139 --> 00:38:29.039 but he's not 00:38:29.039 --> 00:38:30.079 recognizing the weakness 00:38:30.079 --> 00:38:30.960 of his flesh. 00:38:31.900 --> 00:38:32.519 You know what our only 00:38:32.519 --> 00:38:33.659 course of action is? 00:38:34.059 --> 00:38:35.480 Our only course of action 00:38:35.480 --> 00:38:36.699 is to acknowledge 00:38:36.699 --> 00:38:37.460 the reality 00:38:37.460 --> 00:38:38.379 of our sinfulness 00:38:38.379 --> 00:38:40.480 and continue in prayer 00:38:40.480 --> 00:38:41.879 for God's grace 00:38:41.879 --> 00:38:43.219 and God's strength 00:38:43.219 --> 00:38:44.519 to avoid sin 00:38:44.519 --> 00:38:45.839 and his mercy 00:38:45.839 --> 00:38:47.059 when we don't 00:38:47.059 --> 00:38:47.739 avoid sin. 00:38:48.480 --> 00:38:49.359 That's our only 00:38:49.359 --> 00:38:50.139 course of action. 00:38:50.679 --> 00:38:52.039 The word tells us 00:38:52.039 --> 00:38:53.039 we will sin. 00:38:53.039 --> 00:38:55.000 So stay faithful 00:38:55.000 --> 00:38:55.579 to prayer. 00:38:56.960 --> 00:38:57.980 Engage in prayer 00:38:57.980 --> 00:38:59.039 for God's help 00:38:59.039 --> 00:39:00.340 for God's grace 00:39:00.340 --> 00:39:02.380 and then for God's 00:39:02.380 --> 00:39:03.159 mercy. 00:39:04.539 --> 00:39:05.559 Because we all know 00:39:05.559 --> 00:39:06.519 that we will sin 00:39:06.519 --> 00:39:07.980 though we don't know 00:39:07.980 --> 00:39:08.880 the when and how 00:39:08.880 --> 00:39:10.639 but we can't give 00:39:10.639 --> 00:39:11.420 into it. 00:39:13.239 --> 00:39:14.420 Now I'll close this way. 00:39:14.519 --> 00:39:15.539 Sinclair Ferguson said 00:39:15.539 --> 00:39:16.920 the marvel of all of this 00:39:16.920 --> 00:39:18.360 is that Jesus 00:39:18.360 --> 00:39:19.719 did not love Peter 00:39:19.719 --> 00:39:20.779 any less. 00:39:20.780 --> 00:39:22.900 He didn't love Peter 00:39:22.900 --> 00:39:23.420 any less. 00:39:23.880 --> 00:39:24.720 Isn't that amazing? 00:39:25.080 --> 00:39:25.860 Because if somebody 00:39:25.860 --> 00:39:26.820 does me the way 00:39:26.820 --> 00:39:27.920 that Peter does Jesus 00:39:27.920 --> 00:39:28.540 I'm not going to 00:39:28.540 --> 00:39:29.280 love them at all. 00:39:29.600 --> 00:39:30.540 And here's Jesus 00:39:30.540 --> 00:39:31.980 the perfect one 00:39:31.980 --> 00:39:33.280 who is forsaken 00:39:33.280 --> 00:39:33.940 by the one 00:39:33.940 --> 00:39:34.740 who claims that he 00:39:34.740 --> 00:39:35.580 would go all the way 00:39:35.580 --> 00:39:36.680 to the cross with him 00:39:36.680 --> 00:39:37.980 and then not only 00:39:37.980 --> 00:39:38.740 does he not 00:39:38.740 --> 00:39:40.000 does he continue 00:39:40.000 --> 00:39:40.519 to love him 00:39:40.519 --> 00:39:41.519 but he loves him 00:39:41.519 --> 00:39:42.500 just the same. 00:39:43.260 --> 00:39:43.680 He loves him 00:39:43.680 --> 00:39:45.040 just the same. 00:39:45.240 --> 00:39:47.019 He's so full of love. 00:39:47.440 --> 00:39:48.320 He's so abundant 00:39:48.320 --> 00:39:49.420 in patience. 00:39:49.420 --> 00:39:51.300 He won't tolerate 00:39:51.300 --> 00:39:51.800 our sin 00:39:51.800 --> 00:39:52.900 but neither will he 00:39:52.900 --> 00:39:54.180 refuse to forgive us 00:39:54.180 --> 00:39:55.360 when we seek his mercy. 00:39:55.920 --> 00:39:57.340 Remember 1 John 2. 00:39:58.099 --> 00:39:59.119 My little children 00:39:59.119 --> 00:39:59.920 John writes 00:39:59.920 --> 00:40:01.000 I am writing 00:40:01.000 --> 00:40:01.980 these things to you 00:40:01.980 --> 00:40:03.500 so that you will not sin 00:40:03.500 --> 00:40:05.420 but if anyone 00:40:05.420 --> 00:40:06.460 does sin 00:40:06.460 --> 00:40:08.460 we have an advocate 00:40:08.460 --> 00:40:09.440 with the Father 00:40:09.440 --> 00:40:10.940 Jesus Christ 00:40:10.940 --> 00:40:11.880 the righteous. 00:40:12.920 --> 00:40:14.180 He's the propitiation 00:40:14.180 --> 00:40:14.980 for our sins 00:40:14.980 --> 00:40:16.280 and not for ours only 00:40:16.280 --> 00:40:17.119 but the sins 00:40:17.119 --> 00:40:17.900 of the whole world 00:40:17.900 --> 00:40:18.980 and by this 00:40:18.980 --> 00:40:19.559 we know that 00:40:19.559 --> 00:40:20.019 we have come 00:40:20.019 --> 00:40:20.579 to know him 00:40:20.579 --> 00:40:21.760 if we keep 00:40:21.760 --> 00:40:22.619 his commandments. 00:40:23.180 --> 00:40:23.780 In other words 00:40:23.780 --> 00:40:25.539 strive to do right 00:40:25.539 --> 00:40:26.619 realize you're 00:40:26.619 --> 00:40:27.420 going to mess up 00:40:27.420 --> 00:40:28.860 but strive to do right 00:40:28.860 --> 00:40:30.380 and when you do sin 00:40:30.380 --> 00:40:31.660 remember Jesus 00:40:31.660 --> 00:40:32.480 is a loving 00:40:32.480 --> 00:40:33.500 forgiving Savior. 00:40:33.900 --> 00:40:34.720 You do not fall 00:40:34.720 --> 00:40:35.780 out of love with him. 00:40:36.160 --> 00:40:36.740 He continues 00:40:36.740 --> 00:40:37.519 to love you 00:40:37.519 --> 00:40:39.340 and he will meet you. 00:40:39.800 --> 00:40:40.780 He will meet you 00:40:40.780 --> 00:40:41.440 in Galilee. 00:40:42.380 --> 00:40:43.340 It reminds me 00:40:43.340 --> 00:40:43.860 of that song 00:40:43.860 --> 00:40:44.960 we sing so often 00:40:44.960 --> 00:40:46.059 he'll not let 00:40:46.059 --> 00:40:47.260 my soul be lost 00:40:47.260 --> 00:40:48.460 his promises 00:40:48.460 --> 00:40:49.500 shall last 00:40:49.500 --> 00:40:50.920 bought by him 00:40:50.920 --> 00:40:51.980 at such a cost 00:40:51.980 --> 00:40:54.019 he will hold 00:40:54.019 --> 00:40:55.159 me fast. 00:40:56.199 --> 00:40:57.059 So what do we do 00:40:57.059 --> 00:40:57.539 with this? 00:40:58.519 --> 00:40:59.220 Well perhaps 00:40:59.220 --> 00:41:01.059 perhaps what you need 00:41:01.059 --> 00:41:01.820 to do this morning 00:41:01.820 --> 00:41:02.940 is just solidify 00:41:02.940 --> 00:41:03.840 your resolve. 00:41:06.860 --> 00:41:07.340 Remain 00:41:07.340 --> 00:41:09.380 steadfastly faithful 00:41:09.380 --> 00:41:10.480 and committed 00:41:10.480 --> 00:41:11.059 to the Lord 00:41:11.059 --> 00:41:11.760 and his ways. 00:41:11.760 --> 00:41:15.880 Maybe you need 00:41:15.880 --> 00:41:16.880 to get your eyes 00:41:16.880 --> 00:41:18.080 adjusted. 00:41:19.520 --> 00:41:20.440 Adjusted in the sense 00:41:20.440 --> 00:41:21.000 where I'm not going 00:41:21.000 --> 00:41:22.020 to make every circumstance 00:41:22.020 --> 00:41:23.220 in life about me. 00:41:23.600 --> 00:41:24.400 I'm not just going 00:41:24.400 --> 00:41:25.160 to focus on 00:41:25.160 --> 00:41:25.880 what's happening 00:41:25.880 --> 00:41:26.420 to me. 00:41:26.760 --> 00:41:27.380 I'm going to fix 00:41:27.380 --> 00:41:28.280 my eyes on Jesus 00:41:28.280 --> 00:41:29.160 and his promises. 00:41:29.980 --> 00:41:30.720 I'm not going to deny 00:41:30.720 --> 00:41:31.820 the reality of hardship 00:41:31.820 --> 00:41:32.680 but I'm going to let 00:41:32.680 --> 00:41:33.540 Jesus carry me 00:41:33.540 --> 00:41:34.280 through the hardship. 00:41:35.180 --> 00:41:36.180 Look to his promises. 00:41:39.760 --> 00:41:40.460 Maybe you have 00:41:40.460 --> 00:41:41.060 some pride 00:41:41.060 --> 00:41:41.660 like me 00:41:41.659 --> 00:41:42.579 that you need 00:41:42.579 --> 00:41:43.139 to abandon. 00:41:45.879 --> 00:41:47.039 Not think so much 00:41:47.039 --> 00:41:47.639 of yourself 00:41:47.639 --> 00:41:50.219 and be vigilant. 00:41:52.019 --> 00:41:52.519 Sober 00:41:52.519 --> 00:41:54.980 for your adversary 00:41:54.980 --> 00:41:55.599 the devil 00:41:55.599 --> 00:41:56.420 walks about 00:41:56.420 --> 00:41:58.179 like a roaring lion 00:41:58.179 --> 00:41:59.659 seeking whom 00:41:59.659 --> 00:42:00.539 he may devour. 00:42:01.259 --> 00:42:01.559 Do you know 00:42:01.559 --> 00:42:02.339 who wrote that? 00:42:03.559 --> 00:42:04.039 Peter. 00:42:05.519 --> 00:42:06.379 You know why 00:42:06.379 --> 00:42:07.259 Peter wrote that? 00:42:08.159 --> 00:42:08.980 Because Jesus 00:42:08.980 --> 00:42:09.539 told him 00:42:09.539 --> 00:42:10.199 in the context 00:42:10.199 --> 00:42:11.119 of this conversation 00:42:11.119 --> 00:42:12.199 Luke tells us this 00:42:12.199 --> 00:42:14.219 Satan has demanded 00:42:14.219 --> 00:42:15.219 to sift you 00:42:15.219 --> 00:42:16.000 as wheat Peter 00:42:16.000 --> 00:42:17.900 but I prayed for you 00:42:17.900 --> 00:42:19.359 and after you 00:42:19.359 --> 00:42:20.519 are returned 00:42:20.519 --> 00:42:21.460 I want you to 00:42:21.460 --> 00:42:21.980 strengthen all 00:42:21.980 --> 00:42:22.619 the other men. 00:42:23.880 --> 00:42:24.619 Peter missed it. 00:42:25.440 --> 00:42:26.000 He didn't listen 00:42:26.000 --> 00:42:27.099 to Jesus' words 00:42:27.099 --> 00:42:28.159 and he failed. 00:42:29.639 --> 00:42:30.599 But what Jesus 00:42:30.599 --> 00:42:31.400 said was true. 00:42:32.259 --> 00:42:33.179 He did pray for him 00:42:33.179 --> 00:42:34.880 as he prays for us. 00:42:35.539 --> 00:42:36.739 He forgave him. 00:42:37.619 --> 00:42:38.380 Peter was used 00:42:38.380 --> 00:42:38.860 tremendously 00:42:38.860 --> 00:42:39.800 in the lives 00:42:39.800 --> 00:42:40.579 of those other men. 00:42:41.700 --> 00:42:42.240 And later on 00:42:42.240 --> 00:42:42.780 in his life 00:42:42.780 --> 00:42:44.039 he pens a letter 00:42:44.039 --> 00:42:44.920 to other Christians 00:42:44.920 --> 00:42:45.800 who are struggling 00:42:45.800 --> 00:42:47.539 and he says 00:42:47.539 --> 00:42:48.440 be sober. 00:42:49.240 --> 00:42:49.960 Be vigilant. 00:42:51.059 --> 00:42:51.720 The devil 00:42:51.720 --> 00:42:52.619 is after you. 00:42:54.099 --> 00:42:55.160 So stay faithful. 00:42:56.480 --> 00:42:57.500 Don't think too much 00:42:57.500 --> 00:42:58.039 of yourself. 00:42:58.119 --> 00:42:59.000 That's what I did. 00:43:00.000 --> 00:43:00.940 Can you imagine 00:43:00.940 --> 00:43:01.440 Mark 00:43:01.440 --> 00:43:03.460 taking this gospel 00:43:03.460 --> 00:43:04.099 to the people 00:43:04.099 --> 00:43:04.599 in Rome 00:43:04.599 --> 00:43:06.480 who had requested 00:43:06.480 --> 00:43:07.480 for it apparently. 00:43:09.119 --> 00:43:10.139 He was a companion 00:43:10.139 --> 00:43:10.639 of Peter 00:43:10.639 --> 00:43:11.320 and he's writing 00:43:11.320 --> 00:43:12.360 for the most part 00:43:12.360 --> 00:43:13.159 Peter's account 00:43:13.159 --> 00:43:14.159 of all of these things 00:43:14.159 --> 00:43:14.599 and then 00:43:14.599 --> 00:43:15.920 maybe as he hands 00:43:15.920 --> 00:43:16.360 this over 00:43:16.360 --> 00:43:17.019 maybe perhaps 00:43:17.019 --> 00:43:17.659 as he reads it 00:43:17.659 --> 00:43:18.179 to the church 00:43:18.179 --> 00:43:18.539 in Rome 00:43:18.539 --> 00:43:19.220 or wherever he may 00:43:19.220 --> 00:43:19.480 have been 00:43:19.480 --> 00:43:20.400 at that particular 00:43:20.400 --> 00:43:20.800 moment 00:43:20.800 --> 00:43:21.440 when he gets 00:43:21.440 --> 00:43:21.940 to a passage 00:43:21.940 --> 00:43:22.440 like this 00:43:22.440 --> 00:43:22.940 he remembers 00:43:22.940 --> 00:43:23.480 the fact 00:43:23.480 --> 00:43:24.179 that it was 00:43:24.179 --> 00:43:25.519 also John Mark 00:43:25.519 --> 00:43:26.519 who in the midst 00:43:26.519 --> 00:43:27.159 of ministry 00:43:27.159 --> 00:43:28.220 got scared. 00:43:28.559 --> 00:43:28.880 He didn't have 00:43:28.880 --> 00:43:29.480 the resolute 00:43:29.480 --> 00:43:30.019 faithfulness 00:43:30.019 --> 00:43:30.539 that he should have 00:43:30.539 --> 00:43:30.760 had 00:43:30.760 --> 00:43:31.380 and he leaves 00:43:31.380 --> 00:43:32.199 Paul and Barnabas 00:43:32.199 --> 00:43:32.619 and he goes 00:43:32.619 --> 00:43:33.039 back home 00:43:33.039 --> 00:43:33.460 to mom 00:43:33.460 --> 00:43:36.759 but then Peter 00:43:36.759 --> 00:43:38.699 comes to Mark 00:43:38.699 --> 00:43:40.719 and he takes him 00:43:40.719 --> 00:43:42.000 as a mentor 00:43:42.000 --> 00:43:44.500 and then it's Mark 00:43:44.500 --> 00:43:45.339 who God uses 00:43:45.339 --> 00:43:47.179 to produce this gospel 00:43:47.179 --> 00:43:48.000 for us today. 00:43:49.279 --> 00:43:50.039 Do you see the reminders 00:43:50.039 --> 00:43:50.819 of all of this? 00:43:51.059 --> 00:43:51.819 We all fail. 00:43:52.279 --> 00:43:53.299 We're going to fail 00:43:53.299 --> 00:43:56.619 but Jesus is loving 00:43:56.619 --> 00:43:58.480 and he's faithful 00:43:58.480 --> 00:44:00.480 and he's forgiving 00:44:00.480 --> 00:44:02.400 and he's kind. 00:44:02.400 --> 00:44:02.440 He's kind.