Who is Peter?
Download MP3Our scripture reading this morning comes from the gospel of Mark chapter 14 verses 53 through 50 through 72. Should be in your worship guide, or you can turn there in your bible as well. So hear these words from Mark 14. And they led Jesus to the high priest, And all the chief priests and the elders and the scribes came together. And Peter had followed him at a distance, right into the courtyard of the high priest, and he was sitting with the guards and warming himself at the fire.
Speaker 1:Now the chief priests and the whole council were seeking testimony against Jesus to put him to death, but they found none. For many bore false witness against him, but their testimony did not agree. And some stood up and bore false witness against him, saying, we heard him say, I will destroy the temple that is made with hands, and in 3 days I will build another not made with hands. Yet even about this, their testimony did not agree. And the high priest stood up in the midst and asked Jesus, Have you no answer to make?
Speaker 1:What is it that these men testify against you? But he remained silent and made no answer. Again, the high priest asked him, are you the Christ, the son of the blessed? And Jesus said, I am, and you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of power and coming with the clouds of heaven. And the high priest tore his garments and said, what further witness do we need?
Speaker 1:You have heard this blasphemy. What is your decision? And they all condemned him as deserving death. And some began to spit on him and to cover his face and to strike him, saying to him, prophesy. And the guards received him with blows.
Speaker 1:And as Peter was below in the garden, one of the servant girls of the high priest came, and seeing Peter warming himself, she looked at him and said, you also are with the Nazarene, Jesus. But he denied it, saying, I neither know nor understand what you mean. And he went out into the gateway, and the rooster crowed. And the servant girl saw him and began again to say to the bystanders, this man is one of them. But again, he denied it.
Speaker 1:And after a little while, the bystanders again said to Peter, certainly, you are one of them, for you are a Galilean. But he began to invert a coat a curse on himself and to swear, I do not know this man of whom you speak. And immediately, the rooster crowed a second time. And Peter remembered how Jesus had said to him, before the rooster crows twice, you will deny me 3 times. And he broke down and wept.
Speaker 1:This is the word of the Lord.
Speaker 2:Let's pray together. Lord, I thank you for gathering us this morning. Lord, you have gathered your church this morning in all of history at this time for your redemptive purposes, Lord, to pay attention to what your word says. And so I pray that you would meet with us now, Lord. I pray that the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart would be pleasing in your sight, oh, Lord, my rock and my redeemer.
Speaker 2:In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, I pray. Amen. If I were to ask you, who are you? How would you respond? If I were to ask you to fill in the blank, I am blank, what would you say?
Speaker 2:How we answered this question affects how we live our lives. It determines whether we wake up with a sense of meaning and purpose, or if we struggle to get out of bed. Perhaps you'd respond with how you spend your days. I'm a doctor, a teacher, an entrepreneur, stay at home mom or dad, Or maybe by an important relationship, I'm a husband, a wife, a good friend, a father, a mother, a son or daughter. Some might even respond with how God looks at you.
Speaker 2:I'm a sinner saved by grace, beloved child of the king. How would you answer that question after you fail at something? Perhaps more than any of these other descriptors, failure can have the unique power to define us. And unfortunately, in today's world of parenting blogs, Internet experts and seemingly perfect social media influencers, we don't even have to do something wrong to feel like a failure. Failure can simply be thrust upon you.
Speaker 2:It's easy to wake up each day and feel like you're not good enough. Not a good enough parents or friends, employee, child, or student. It's easy to wake up and feel like you're not good enough Christian. You start running through that list of I should have prayed more, I should have read my Bible more, I should have shared my faith more. And these are daily battles.
Speaker 2:These are daily battles that many of us, all of us even, will wrestle with. But what about when you really mess up? What about when that important relationship ends and it's your fault? What happens when the business closes because of your poor financial decisions? What happens when you're caught cheating on a test, when you don't get into that college or program, or you simply fail to accomplish that goal that you've devoted so much time and resources towards.
Speaker 2:In those moments, failure can feel final, failure can feel defining. Where you're asking yourself, how am I ever gonna come back from this? Our passage today continues the night before Jesus is crucified. It's Thursday of Holy Week. And last week, Joel and Cole showed how Judas betrayed Jesus in the garden.
Speaker 2:And today, we'll see how right after he's betrayed, he's gonna be led to the high priest's home where he'll have his first trial. It's another Mark and sandwich. Mark uses this literary technique where he'll feature 2 stories that seem like they're they're they aren't related, but in fact, they help interpret the other. The passage begins with Peter. It shifts to Jesus on trial and then it's going to return to Peter.
Speaker 2:And the fundamental thread that unites this sandwich is the question, who are you? At first glance, it seems like there's only one trial happening. However, Jesus's trial begins another trial for Peter and the bystanders. Three points are gonna guide us through these verses. The first point is Jesus on trial.
Speaker 2:We're gonna see how Jesus is questioned, and he will courageously confess who he is, and he will take another step towards the cross. That'll lead to the second point, Peter on trial, where Peter will be questioned and he will deny who he is, and he'll run away like a coward. And then our third point, we're gonna see how Peter is restored. We're gonna look at the end of Peter's story. So if you have your Bibles, we are, we're gonna, we're gonna take some time and look at, at the Gospel of Luke and the Gospel of John as well.
Speaker 2:So if you have your Bibles and wanna save your place in Luke chapter 22 and John chapter 21, that'll be helpful. I'll, I'll let you know when we're heading there, but Luke chapter 22 and John chapter 21. I've titled this sermon, Who is Peter? Because after Peter denies Jesus, Mark's only gonna mention him one more time in the rest of the gospel. And that that mention is really indirectly.
Speaker 2:And this makes sense. We understand that Mark's gospel is likely derived from Peter's testimony. And, and it would make sense. Peter wanted the gospel to be all about Jesus and not about Peter. However, if we stop here and don't consider the rest of Peter's story, I believe that we miss a beautiful picture of how Jesus sticks with, restores, and uses failures for his glory.
Speaker 2:Therefore, I think it's important that we look at how his story ends, because his mess up wasn't final. Instead, Jesus met Peter in the throes of his shame to speak a better word of love and grace. And my prayer for you is that wherever you are this morning, that you too will receive Jesus's better word of love and grace. Your failures aren't final. That's not who you are.
Speaker 2:There's hope, grace, and love available to you today. So, let's begin with our first point, Jesus on trial. Look with me at verse 53. We see that Jesus has brought to the high priest. This would have been Caiaphas, Caiaphas home And in this home, all the chief priests, all the elders, all the scribes are gathered.
Speaker 2:And this whole council was called the Sanhedrin. It was composed of 70 members and it was the highest judicial body in Israel. And they begin this trial, they put Jesus on the witness stand, and the whole council we read sought testimony against Jesus, bore false witness against Jesus, and condemned Jesus as deserving of death. And Jesus faces all of these opponents alone. Mark doesn't record a single person defending Jesus.
Speaker 2:And for much of the trial Jesus remained silent. He stays quiet until the high priest asks, are you the Christ, the son of the blessed? And at this Jesus speaks up, he responds, positively and fully I am. And you will see the son of man seated at the right hand of power and coming with the clouds of heaven. It's one of the most clear self descriptions of Jesus throughout, throughout Mark.
Speaker 2:There's this other literary technique that he used called the mark in secret where you'll often read that Jesus, people will ask, who are you? And Jesus will be telling his disciples, Hey, don't tell them. Don't tell them. Don't tell them. But then here, it's as if he just erupts.
Speaker 2:I am. He goes straight to Daniel 7, which describes the son of man descending from heaven on a glory cloud to judge the world. In referencing Daniel, what Jesus is doing is he's saying, I'm not just this rebellious revolutionary come to take down Rome. No, I am the son of man. I'm God himself, the divine judge who rules the universe and will one day judge the world.
Speaker 2:The sun, the Sanhedrin, this judicial body of Israel, they would have known who the son of man is. And so as they lead Jesus through this crooked trial, Jesus looks them in the face and he says, that's me. And at that, this trial turns into a riot. The high priest tears his clothes and accuses Jesus of blasphemy. But the irony is that he's just committed blasphemy.
Speaker 2:The eternal God is standing before them claiming clearly who he is and they deny him. The judge of the universe is being judged unjustly by the world. The sinless savior is sitting in the place of sinners. The Sanhedrin think that they have authority, but when Jesus tells them who he is, he says, next time, next time you see me, the roles are gonna be reversed. I will be the judge, and I will judge you.
Speaker 2:And at that, they began mocking, spitting, and beating him. And in unison, they condemned Jesus deserving of death. Jesus on trial, it reveals the paradox, this upside down nature of the gospel. The sinless savior had to be judged to save wicked sinners. Sinful man could only be made at one with God by a perfect sacrifice.
Speaker 2:And as the Apostle Paul would say, for our sake, he made him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf so that we could become the righteousness of God in him. Jesus could have called down a legion of angels to rescue him from this angry mob, but he remained silent and walked into this rigged trial because he was on a mission to save sinners. Because he loved you. He took another step towards the cross for you to be your substitute, to pay for your sins. Jesus, the son of man, the eternal judge was judged in your place so that at the final judgment, you would be declared innocent.
Speaker 2:This trial, it serves as a foil to the trial of Peter. Again, filled with irony, Jesus the innocent one declaring who he is, condemned to death while Peter is gonna deny who he is and he's gonna escape free. Peter, who had just cut off a man's ear to try and protect Jesus, followed from a distance. Instead of jumping in to defend Jesus, Peter was lurking in the shadows. Peter follows the crowd into the courtyard and he's warming himself by a charcoal fire.
Speaker 2:He doesn't know it yet, but he's about to put on be put on trial himself. Except his trial is not gonna be, again, by an angry mob of religious leaders, but by a little servant girl. And he will deny Jesus 3 times before the rooster crows twice. Look with me at verses 66 through 72. We're also gonna look at Luke chapter 22 verse 61 and verses 31 through 32, if you want to also, save your place there.
Speaker 2:So the servant girl looked at Peter and said, you also were with the Nazarene Jesus. And in that moment, Peter denies that he knows Jesus 3 times, twice to the little girl and once to the crowd, and at that, he becomes undone. He unravels. Look with me at Luke 22 verse 61. Luke gives us a haunting detail that none of the other gospel writers provide us.
Speaker 2:He says, and this is, as, as Peter is, denying Jesus says, But Peter said, man, I don't, I do not know what you're talking about. And immediately while he was still speaking, the rooster crowed. And the Lord turned and looked at Peter. And Peter remembered. Peter suddenly remembered how this very same night, just hours before, Jesus had told him that this would happen.
Speaker 2:Jeff preached on this several weeks ago. Peter was given a clear warning, but instead of taking it to heart, he thought, I'll die before I deny you, Jesus. Until the Lord looked him in the eyes. What do you think was going through Peter's mind in that moment? Put yourself in his shoes.
Speaker 2:You've just done what he did. What do you think was going through his mind? Peter had left everything to follow Jesus. He'd accomplished and witnessed some incredible things. He stepped out of the boat and walked on water.
Speaker 2:Jesus renamed him the Rock. Peter in Greek means petros. It literally means rock, whereby Christ would build his church. He was the 1st disciple to identify Jesus as the Messiah. Peter literally saw the divine glory of Jesus as Jesus was transfigured on the mountain.
Speaker 2:And, he had just done the very thing that he promised he would never do. I have to imagine that Peter is filled with a whole lot of shame, a whole lot of guilt, pain, embarrassment. What do you think was going through Jesus's mind in that moment? Whatever stirs in your heart, I want you to listen to that because that that tells us a whole lot about how we think about God. I think Jesus' eyes were filled with love and compassion.
Speaker 2:Sorrow, certainly, but not judgment and condemnation. Jesus came to live, die, and rise for people just like Peter. I think Jesus' eyes were filled with tears of grace saying, Peter, this won't be the end of you. If you only knew what I'm gonna do, how I'm gonna use you for my glory. And Peter hit rock bottom.
Speaker 2:He couldn't be strong and pick himself up. He couldn't turn a new leaf and persevere through the pain. In that moment of desperation, his only hope, Peter's only hope was that Jesus wouldn't let him go. And Jesus wouldn't let him go. You see, earlier in Luke 22 in verses 31 through 33, This is right before Jesus told Peter that he would deny him.
Speaker 2:Jesus gave Peter a warning and a promise. Verse 31 in Luke chapter 22 says, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan demanded to have you that he might sift you like wheat. But I have prayed for you, that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned again, strengthen your brothers. Despite the warnings, I really don't I I really don't believe Peter thought he'd fail.
Speaker 2:He had cast out demons. He wouldn't fall prey to Satan, till he did. Until Satan attacked him that night in the court courtyard and his belief failed. Peter, who prided himself on his strength, proved no match for Satan. And without Jesus, he would have been ground to dust.
Speaker 2:But Peter's faith didn't fail because Jesus prayed for him. If you grew up in the church, the phrase, I'm praying for you, I've prayed for you. It almost can become just common courtesy, right? It's a polite response when someone shares something really hard or has a need. We say it, Yeah, I'm gonna pray for you, but do we actually pray for him?
Speaker 2:And because of this, I think we're at risk of missing what Jesus just said. Jesus actually prayed for Peter. He didn't just say it as a nicety, but the son of man was on his knees pleading that Peter's faith wouldn't fail. In saying this, Jesus is using priestly language. And, this is what I mean.
Speaker 2:In the sacrificial system, the priest job was to serve as an intermediary, a go between between God and his people. The priest would pray for and offer sacrifice on behalf of the people to keep a sinful people in right relationship with the Holy God. And when the priest died, they would install a new one and this would go on year after year, generation after generation. But after the resurrection, when Jesus ascended to the right hand of the father, he established a priesthood that would never end. The author of Hebrews in chapter 7 verse 25, it says, Jesus holds his priesthood permanently because he continues forever.
Speaker 2:Consequently, because of this, he is able to say to the other uttermost those who draw near to God through him. Catch this, since he lives, since he always lives to make intercession for them. Have you ever wondered what Jesus is doing right now? He is holding the universe together by the word of his power, by his authority and He's praying for His people. Peter is bold.
Speaker 2:Peter was strong, but the only reason that Peter's faith didn't fail was because the object of Peter's faith held him fast. Peter prided himself on his strength, but the only reason in that moment of temptation that Peter's faith didn't fail was because the object of Peter's faith, it held him fast and he holds you fast too. Jesus promises to hold you fast. This doesn't mean that there's not going to be dark nights. Jesus knows our frame.
Speaker 2:He's able to sympathize with our weakness. He was tempted just as we are yet without sin. He knows the suffering, temptation and sin in your life. But he prays for you that when the swells come, you won't shipwreck your faith. It's what it means to be kept by the Lord.
Speaker 2:We read it in our opening scripture, Psalm 121 talks about how the Lord is our keeper. To be kept by Jesus is one of the great comforts of being in Christ. It means you're hidden in Jesus. It means you're safe and secure like the most valuable possession you own. It means that there's nothing that can separate you from his love and he lives eternally to make intercession for you, to advocate for you, and to hear and perfect your prayers as you pray them to the Father.
Speaker 2:If there's a clear lesson to learn from Peter, it's your faith will never survive if it depends on your strength. Your faith will never survive if it depends on you. We persevere by trusting and depending on Jesus to hold us and to keep us. It's one of my favorite hymns says, when I fear my faith will fail, Christ will hold me fast. When the tempter would prevail, He will hold me fast.
Speaker 2:I could never keep my hold through life's fearful path for my love is often cold. He must hold me fast. That night, Peter was confronted with how very weak he was and how much he needed to depend on Jesus for strength. He wasn't strong. He wasn't superior to others.
Speaker 2:He wasn't above denying the Lord he loved in front of a servant girl. But Jesus anticipated this day. He knew it would come and He knew that it would be a painful lesson for Peter to teach him about the life of faith. If we stop here with Mark, the verdict for Peter seems clear, right? He's a weak, deserting failure.
Speaker 2:But Peter's failure wasn't final, and Jesus refused to let it define who he is. He would soon meet him in his grief and shame to restore him. So now we're going to take a detour from Mark, and we're going to go to John chapter 21. So if you have your Bibles and you want to turn there, we're going to be looking at the first at verses 1 through 19. For the sake of time, I'm not going to read the text.
Speaker 2:I'll do my best to paraphrase. In the gospel of John, chapter 21, John tells us that a week or so after the resurrection, after Jesus has risen, Peter and the other disciples returned to the Sea of Tiberias to fish. In the wake of their lives being turned upside down, it probably felt good to do something familiar. We're told that they fished all of night and they caught nothing until a man appeared on the shore and told them to cast their nets onto the right side of the boat. They do so, and almost instantly, their nets are so full that they can't actually haul it into the boat.
Speaker 2:It's almost deja vu to the first time Jesus called Peter and the first disciples. And Jesus is going to meet with Peter again, and he's going to commission him again. Once they notice that the man on the shore is actually Jesus, Peter throws himself out of the boat into the water, and he swims to shore, and Jesus has prepared breakfast and a charcoal fire for Peter. Sound familiar? The word charcoal fire is only used twice in the Bible.
Speaker 2:First, when Peter denies Jesus, and then when Jesus meets with Peter again. Someone else lit the original charcoal fire, but this one Jesus has prepared. Jesus and Peter's eyes must meet again. John tells us that after breakfast, Jesus looked at Peter and asked the same question three times, Do you love me? And Peter responds each time, Lord, you know I love you.
Speaker 2:But each time Jesus asks, Do you love me? It seems to cut Peter a little bit deeper, not in a shameful way, but in a healing way. And after the 3rd time, you can sense Peter starting to become uneasy. He's getting uncomfortable and he responds, Lord, you know everything. You know that I love you.
Speaker 2:And it's after that that Jesus restores him and sends him out on mission. He says, Peter, feed my sheep. Follow me. You see, Peter had witnessed Jesus heal and forgive countless people, but he needed to be healed himself. He had the right theology up here, but he needed that knowledge of God's love to travel from his head to his heart.
Speaker 2:Jesus asked Peter 3 times, do you love me? To let him affirm his love for Jesus. 3 times. Jesus asked 3 times, do you love me? To carefully remove 3 times the shame, 3 times the guilt, 3 times the embarrassment that was filled, filling Peter's heart.
Speaker 2:And in doing so, he sets Peter free. He sets him free and he sends him out and Peter will live up to his name, the rock. He will build Christ's church. And by the power of the spirit, Peter became a humble, encouraging, suffering, and persevering disciple of Christ. And more than anything, he became a bold ambassador of the gospel of forgiveness for miserable failures.
Speaker 2:If you look back at Luke 22 verse 32, I love how Jesus says, and he says, And when you have turned again, strengthen your brothers. Notice, Jesus doesn't say if you have turned again, but when you have turned again. It was always a certainty. It was always clear that Peter's perseverance never rested on his own power, but on the unbreakable power of Christ. From this point forward, Peter's life would still be filled with painful reminders of that night.
Speaker 2:He would wake every morning to roosters crowing. He would warm himself by charcoal fires. He would run-in to little servant girls about the city. The difference now is that Peter knows he's weak. Peter knows deep in his soul that he can't rely on his own strength.
Speaker 2:Ultimately, Peter's self assurance, that was the root of his denial. He had to learn in a painful way that even his faith was a gift, given and kept by his savior, Lord Jesus. But when Jesus met him in his pain, and spoke that better word of love and grace, those painful reminders were forever transformed into memorials of grace. No longer reminders of shame, but defiant reminders of the God who keeps his people. There's a lot we can learn from the testimony of Peter.
Speaker 2:His story should, should encourage us, should motivate us to take an audit of our own hearts, to weed out those areas of pride and self assurance. His story also invites us to reflect on questions like, how do you think Jesus looks at you? How does, how do you think Jesus looks at you, especially when you really mess up, when it's your fault? Where are you trusting in your own strength instead of trusting Jesus? What are your charcoal fires growing roosters?
Speaker 2:What are those visceral reminders of when you blew it? However you answer these questions, whatever comes to mind, allow the Holy Spirit to untangle the knots in your soul and receive right now, friends, receive right now the healing balm of the gospel that is available for everyone who is in Christ. Receive these promises. Jesus is strong for you when you are weak. Jesus promises to hold your life when you can't hold it together.
Speaker 2:Jesus comes to you when you are afraid. Jesus isn't disappointed in your doubt. He meets you in your doubt. Jesus pursues you when you wander. When you send, Jesus promises to come to you with conviction and forgiveness.
Speaker 2:When you deny him, Jesus promises to never deny you. Jesus does not wait for you to come to him. He comes to you. Jesus never grows tired of you. He never gets frustrated with you.
Speaker 2:He never gives up on you. He will hold you fast. So as we close, I return to the question I began with. Who are you? If Jesus is who he says he is, the son of man, the judge, then you are no longer defined by what you have done left undone or think of yourself.
Speaker 2:You are defined by what he has accomplished for you through his perfect life, atoning death, victorious resurrection, and ascension to the father. You are a beloved child of God, and as a child of God, he will never leave you nor forsake you. He will never let you go. You're his forever. Who is Peter?
Speaker 2:Peter is a saved sinner whose massive failure did not ultimately define him. Instead, Jesus settled Peter's account with the father and washed him clean as a free gift of his love. For Peter, God's gaze is full of love, grace and forgiveness. And for everyone who trusts in Christ, he looks at you the same. Your failures aren't final.
Speaker 2:Trust in Christ and not yourself. And look to the cross, where great sinners see a great savior. Amen? And this leads us to this table. This table, the Lord's table is prepared for sinners, not achievers.
Speaker 2:This is not a meal for those who merit it. The prerequisite to receive this bread and this wine is need. To all who say I got this, Jesus says, no, look again, don't trust in what you do, trust in what I do. I paid for you, I will never let you go. In this meal, Jesus promises to meet with us, just as he did Peter, to affirm that he is for us and through the Holy Spirit to apply that healing balm of the gospel that our needy souls need and to strengthen us for the mission He has given us to make disciples of the world.
Speaker 2:So on the night that He was betrayed, Jesus took bread, after giving thanks He broke it and He said, this bread is my body given for you. In the same way, he took the cup after blessing it. He said, this cup is the new covenant in my blood poured out for the forgiveness of many. Apostle Paul would later say that as often you eat of this bread and drink of this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes again, and church, he will come again. This meal is for all baptized believers.
Speaker 2:I want to encourage you to take a moment to examine your hearts. This is a time for us to, to to do that self audit, to weed out that pride and self assurance. And then when you're ready to come forward and receive the healing balm of the gospel. Here's how we're gonna take this morning. We'll begin with the balcony and as you come forward, you're gonna tear off a piece of the bread and you're gonna dip it into the wine, this is non alcoholic wine.
Speaker 2:And you're gonna hear the words, this is the body of Christ given for you, the blood of Christ shed for you, and you'll return to your seats. Let me pray, and then our communion servers can come forward. Father, I pray that You would meet with us right now. Lord, would You untangle the knots in our soul? Restore us.
Speaker 2:Remind us that you gaze upon us with love, forgiveness, and grace. Meet with us now. In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.
