In this episode of The Sound of Faith, host Sharon Knotts delves into the poignant biblical narrative of Peter as he navigates his denials of Jesus and finds redemption through divine forgiveness. We explore the depths of agape love, a self-sacrificing devotion introduced in the New Testament, distinguishing it from the world’s understanding of love. Through Peter’s relatable journey, we find the encouragement needed to accept forgiveness and move forward in our own spiritual lives.
00:25:00 Aftermath and Redemption: Peter’s Conversion
SPEAKER 01 :
Greetings, friends and new listeners, and welcome to The Sound of Faith. I’m Sharon Knotts, thanking you for tuning in today because we know that faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God. Today’s message is one we can all relate to, Lovest Thou Me? This is the question Jesus asked Peter three times after Peter’s three denials of him at his trial before Pilate and his subsequent abandonment of his calling to preach the gospel and go back to his old life of fishing. Have you ever failed the Lord? I know I have. But Peter’s relatable and teachable experiences encouraged me to receive forgiveness and go forward. And you can too in this poignant message, lovest thou me. You may be seated this morning. We’re actually going to talk about that amazing love in a moment. Amen. Because the love that God has for us and that he’s called us to have for him is a love that was given a new word to define it. A word that had not been used in the Greek language in any secular writings is the word agape. And it was not used until it was used in the New Testament. Because it’s a love that is so self-sacrificing. And that is something the world does not know how to do. Amen? It’s a foreign thing, a concept in the world, and that’s why it wasn’t used. There was many words, there are many Greek words for love. In the English, we kind of just, you know, put them all together and say love. And it’s not really fair because you don’t love ice cream the same way you love your husband or your wife, even though you say you love both of those. Amen? Where the Greek is more definitive, and we’ll see that in a moment. Now, last week, I ministered on another one of the principles or laws of the kingdom that I had preached on for five Sundays in 2013. And last week, I went ahead and did another one of those, and that was the law of greatness. The law of greatness. And we read John’s account of the Last Supper. How many remember? And we went on to read what happened after they ate. We read about Jesus washing the disciples’ feet. And how that Jesus had to take that occasion and give them one final lesson on servanthood. And humility, amen, because really the law of servanthood is a synonym for the law of greatness. Now it may sound like an oxymoron to you, but we read all those verses and we found out if you want to be first, you’ve got to be last. If you want to be chief, you’ve got to be servant. So the law of servanthood is really synonymous with the law of greatness because servanthood is what determines whether or not a person will be great in God’s kingdom. which is opposite from the world. And we learn how that when Jesus finished, he said, you know, it was like everyone was sitting there with their mouth hanging open. He says, do you know what I’ve done to you? Do you know why I’ve done this? I’ve done this to be an example to you. Now you call me Lord and Master, and you should. I am your Lord and Master, but I, your Lord and Master, have washed your feet. Don’t you think you ought to wash one another’s feet? Or in other words, don’t you think you ought to serve one another? And now in the course of that dinner, he also dropped the bombshell on them. And he told them, one of you is going to betray me. And let’s take that story up in Matthew the 26th chapter. And let’s read that account for ourselves. Matthew 26 and verse 20. Now when the evening was come, he sat down with the twelve. And as they did eat, he said, Verily I say unto you, that one of you shall betray me. And they were exceeding sorrowful, and they began every one of them to say unto him, Lord, is it I? Notice how they addressed him, Lord, is it I? And he answered and said, he that dippeth his hand with me in the dish, the same shall betray me. The son of man goeth as it is written of him, but woe unto them, that man by whom the son of man is betrayed, it had been good for that man if he had not been born. Then Judas, which betrayed him, answered and said, Master, Is it I? He said unto him, Thou hast said. Or when he said, Thou hast said, that’s the same way as saying, Yes, it’s you. Amen? But notice here that the disciples, they had addressed Jesus as Lord. Lord, is it I? Lord, is it I? Lord, is it I? Each one of them began to ask. But when Judas finally spoke, he said, Master. Yes. And I told you last week what master meant in Hebrew. It’s from the Greek word rabba, which means great. So it means great one because teachers were to them, to the Jewish peoples, the way of their thinking, to be a teacher is the highest calling there is. So they called them great ones. Amen? But you see, Lord is personal surrender. When you say, Lord, you’re saying, I surrender myself to you, all that I am, all that I have. And Judas could not say that because he had not surrendered his sin of covetousness. Judas had a covetous heart. And we know this if we would have read earlier in John, the 12th chapter. Remember when Mary anointed Jesus’ feet and she poured out the precious oil from the alabaster box that was worth lots of money? And Judas said, hmm, that could have been used to give to the poor. And Jesus rebuked him and said… You leave her alone. What she’s done, she’s done for my burial. But the writer tells us, goes on to explain, that it was not that Judas cared about the poor. But because he held the bag. What bag? He was the treasurer for Jesus and the disciples. He was in charge of their money. Whatever gifts and money they got because he had people supporting him. And so Judas was… I mean, look how Jesus does. He allowed Judas, the one who had the problem with the covetous heart, he allowed him to be the treasurer. That’s like saying, Judas, I’m putting my trust in you. Because sometimes, sometimes when you do that to a person, and you know it’s actually their weak place, but you say, I’m going to give you this job, you’re saying, you know what? I have faith in you. You’re going to rise to the occasion. And that… so inspires and encourages that person that you would have faith in them that they get strong. They actually say, well, I’m going to do the best job I can. And they do. They rise. And so that’s one way for them to overcome what would have been ordinarily a weak place for them. So Jesus entrusted Judas with a bag of money. He was the treasurer. And the Bible says he didn’t care about the poor, but he cared about holding the bag. Because he thought, well, if she would take that money and say, here, give this to the poor, it’s going to go in the bag. And obviously, he was a thief. And in fact, the Bible says he was a thief. We read in another place that it says that he was a thief. That meant that he helped himself to that money in that bag. How many knew that before? He pilfered off the top of that what he wanted. If someone gave him a $20 bill to go in the treasury to support Jesus and the disciples, well, he probably took $5 for himself. Amen? So we see that he had a covetous heart, and that is why he could not say, Lord. But he said, master. And so Jesus said, you have said, or in other words, yes, you know it’s you. And of course we know that other places said, whatever you’re going to do, go and do quickly. And you know what Judas did? He got up and left. Amen. Because he had already made prearrangements with the chief priest that he would betray Jesus. That was already arranged. And that’s why Jesus said, then go do what you’re going to do. Now let’s drop down to verse 30. They finished the meal. They’ve already had their feet washed, which we learned last week. And when they had sung a hymn, they went into the Mount of Olives. The Mount of Olives overlooks the Garden of Gethsemane. Then saith Jesus unto them, All ye shall be offended because of me this night. For it is written, I will smite the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock shall be scattered abroad. But after I am risen again, I will go before you into Galilee. And Peter answered and said unto him, Though all men shall be offended because of thee, yet will I never be offended. And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto you, that this night before the cock crows, thou shalt deny me thrice. And Peter said unto him, Though I should die with thee, yet will I not deny thee. And likewise also said all the disciples. So now Jesus is trying to get them ready for what’s about to happen. And he says, Once I am betrayed by Judas, that’s when everything is going to just blow wide open. And all men, everyone, including you guys, will be offended in me. And the word offend means to stumble, to fall. Amen? But Peter said, not me. No, I will never stumble. I will never fall. If everybody’s offended and leaves you, I won’t. And Jesus said, Peter, before the cock crows, you’re going to deny me three times tonight. And if you read the other gospels, that’s why it’s good to read all four of them, but I’ll just tell you what Mark said. But he spake the more vehemently, I will not. I mean, he rose up and was like, no, it’s not going to happen. And in John it says, and I will lay down my life for thy sake. Now, Luke is the only one who tells us what happens next. And so let’s turn now to Luke, the 22nd chapter. And he’s the only one that gives this little story, and it’s so very valuable. I’m so glad that he wrote this. Luke 22 and verse 31. And the Lord said, Simon, Simon… Notice he did not say Peter. And notice that he doubled the name. And I told you before that when you double the name, it’s being emphatic. Amen? It’s intensifying what he’s about to say. Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desire to have you, that he may sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for thee that thy faith fail not. And when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren. And he said unto him, Lord, I am ready to go with thee both into prison and to death. And he said, I tell you, Peter, the cock shall not crow this day before that thou shalt thrice or three times deny that thou even knowest me. So we see here that Jesus told him, he said, Simon, Simon, Satan has desired to have thee. And this word desired is very strong in the Greek. It means to ask for. It’s even stronger. It means to demand. Now think about this. What would give Satan the audacity to The nerve to think that he could go to God and demand to test Peter. That’s an interesting thought, isn’t it? Amen? Now I must tell you that it still includes the idea of an inferior petitioning a superior. Lest you get the mind or the thought that Satan can order God around. It’s not, that’s not the picture. So do not go there. Satan cannot do that. But something gave him the boldness, the nerve to come to God and demand, you’ve got to let me test Peter. Amen? That’s exactly what’s happening here. And he says he wants to sift you as wheat is sifted. Now think in your mind a sieve or a sieve, however you want to say it correctly. At this moment, I guess I’ll say sieve is probably correct. And what it is is it’s got a mesh bottom in it, and you put things in there and you shake it, and the finer, smaller particles fall through, and the bigger, larger ones don’t. Think in your mind of the gold rush and the gold diggers, and they would scoop up that pan full of gold. dirt for all they knew, and they would go over and they’d begin to shake it. And if there was any gold in there, the gold would stay in the pan. So they were looking for gold, and they wanted to get rid of all the junk, all the dirt, and all the other stuff. Amen? And he said, Satan wants to sift you. The word sift means, as a metaphor, I just told you what it means literally, but as a metaphor, it means to scrutinize closely. scrutinize closely, looking for details. Amen? So we have a picture now of what can go on in the spiritual realm that God uses the devil. God uses the devil, not the other way around, but God uses the devil, the accuser of the brethren, to test our faith and our motives. Amen? And so that’s what is going on here. But all the difference that intercession can make, and all the difference when the intercession is by your high priest. The Lord Jesus, when he goes to praying for you in your time of your trial and your time of your test, I don’t see him doing the same thing for Judas. Amen? But he knew that Peter had a good heart. Peter was a good man, but he had pride that needed to go. He had self-boasted, I will never leave you. I will never deny you. I will never fall. I will never stumble. And when Satan heard that, that gave him the boldness to run to God and say, did you hear what Peter said? And even when the Lord corrected him, he still came back and said, not me. All these other guys might, but I won’t. And the devil said to God, you got to let me test him and find out what his motives really are. And God said, basically, all right, I’m going to let you test him. Because God knew that though Peter would do what Jesus said, that he was going to come out of it a better Peter. He was going to come out of it a better Peter. Because Jesus said, when you are converted, and that word converted is very powerful. It means to turn yourself around and become a different person. Amen. He said when you are converted, then you are going to be in an excellent position to strengthen your brethren. Amen? And so Jesus said when. He didn’t say if. It’s a prophecy. It’s prophetic. You will fail. But you will be converted. Amen? And so… Satan had succeeded with Judas. He succeeded with him. Amen? Because he took the opportunity through Judas’ covetous heart. He knew that Judas had a covetous heart. He knew that Judas loved money. And so he formed that idea in his mind to betray Jesus for the 30 pieces of silver. And he probably told Judas, you know Jesus has gotten out of all the other plots. All the other times they tried to take him beforehand or kill him, he always gets out. He’s Jesus. They can’t take him. So you’ll get the money. You’ll get the money and Jesus will do something and it’ll all fall apart and you’ll get the money. Satan succeeded with Judas because he never got rid of his sin of covetousness. Because little sins don’t stay little. They’re stepping stones to bigger things. Amen? And because he never got the victory over covetousness and greed, it allowed him then to fall into the worst sin of all. He betrayed the Son of God. And Jesus said, woe unto that man who does this. It would be better for him if he had never been born. Amen? But Judas had a… I mean, excuse me, Peter had a good heart, but he had a lot of self and a lot of pride, and he boasted in himself. Amen? And so… Just like God gave permission to Satan to try Job, and God gave him permission, amen? He gave him permission more than one time, but he said, you cannot take his life. Why did God do that? Because he knew that in the end, Job would come forth as pure gold. In fact, Job said, though God slay me, because he didn’t know maybe he was going to die next. He had lost all his kids. He had lost all his cattle. He lost everything. How did he know that he wasn’t going to die with those terrible bulls that afflicted his body? But he said, though God slay me, yet I’ll trust him. I shall then come forth as pure gold. And so that’s why God allowed Peter to be sifted, to show Peter himself. He had to see for himself his own weaknesses and his own motives. And this was necessary because God had big plans for Peter. He had plans that Peter was going to be a great leader. in the body of Christ after his ascension. But Peter was not ready for that right now. Amen? Now, although Peter did fail Jesus, and we won’t read it, but you know the story how that when they took Jesus into the house of the high priest to try him. And you know how that during that time, Peter hung on the outside and was following what was going on. And you know that three times somebody said, Oh, I know who you are. You’re a Galilean. You’re with that Jesus. Oh no, I don’t even know him. And three times, oh yeah, your speech is betraying you. You are a Galilean and you’re with that Jesus group. No, not me. I don’t know what you’re talking about. And the third time, the Bible says he cursed. It doesn’t mean that he used profanity. It doesn’t mean he said blinkety blank. It means he said, may curses come down on me if I know that man. Because that is what they used to say in that time. Amen. May the gods curse me if I did this or if I do that. And that’s what he said. May curses come on me if I know him. So did he fail? Yes, he did. He failed Jesus. He denied him three times. But let me tell you this. Even though Peter failed. His faith did not fail. And there is a significant difference. Amen? See, unlike Judas, Peter did not give up and throw in the towel and go hang himself. The Bible says he went out and he wept bitterly. He heard that sound. Do not tell me to do it again. He heard that sound and it pierced his heart. It broke his heart. It broke him. Have you ever wept? Have you ever wept bitterly? How many know? You feel like your insides are being wrenched out of you when you weep bitterly. And that’s what happened to Peter. And you know what? That’s what God wanted. Because the scripture says in Psalm 51, A contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise. But he’s nigh unto them that have a broken heart, and he saves those who have a contrite spirit. That’s what Peter needed, and that’s what God wanted out of Peter. Amen? And so when we fail our test, we’ve got to submit to the remedial action of the Holy Spirit. And when he breaks your heart, go and cry bitterly. Go and weep. Get it all out and repent. Amen? Allow the Holy Spirit to convict you, bring you to repentance, because when you get through that… You come to conversion. And you’ll get up and you’ll dry your tears and you will be a different person. You will have more humility and at the same time you will have greater zeal. You will want to do more for the Lord. And you will forget the things that lie behind. And you’ll say, I’m going to press on. Amen? Because you will understand that you couldn’t have done it. You wouldn’t have come out without God. And then guess what? you get to take the test over. See, in God’s classroom, if you fail the test, you get to take it over. You don’t get to do that in high school. You don’t get to do that in college. You fail the test, that’s it. D, F, there it goes. It gets figured in with all your other grades, and if you had a nice point average, high point average GPA, it comes down. You don’t get to take it over. It is what it is. But in God’s classroom, you get to take the test over. Hallelujah! So when people fail God, see what happens then is the devil beats them up, beats them up, and then they just give up. Amen? And sometimes they give up to the point that they backslide. They actually backslide over the fact that they failed God. Amen? They allow that to drive them away from the Lord. And you know another reason why I believe that Peter failed, the obvious one is his self-boasting. Because the Bible says pride goes before destruction and a haughty spirit before a fall. But don’t you remember that when they were in Gethsemane and Jesus was praying, he took Peter, James, and John to go close to him, with him, apart from the others. And three times he said, pray with me. Watch with me. Can’t you pray with me one hour? Three times, in all three times, he came and found them sleeping. So you see, Peter failed three times. He did not take heed to Jesus’ warnings to watch and pray. Amen? And he denied the Lord three times. So that is what happened, the rest of what happened at the Last Supper. Now let’s go find out what happened at the last breakfast. Let’s turn to John, the 21st chapter. This is the last breakfast, and this is post-resurrection. Jesus has been crucified, buried, come out of the tomb. Amen? And the disciples were supposed to be the ones to go forth now and preach the gospel. When he was ascending up on high, he said to them, Go ye into all the world and preach the gospel to all nations, teaching them whatsoever things I have commanded you. And lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age. That’s Matthew the 28th chapter. In Mark 16, he said, he told him, this is what we call the Great Commission, as you know. And he told him, go forth and preach the gospel to every creature. Amen? To every creature, baptizing them in my name, baptizing them and making disciples of them. Go into all the world. This was the last thing that he had told them when they saw him going up in the clouds. And this was their commission. This is what he had trained them for three and a half years to do. Now the mantle of preaching and teaching and discipling had fallen on them. But what happened? Amen, what an inspiring and relatable word for us all. Lovest thou me. Peter had great zeal and passion for the Lord, but he also had a tendency for self-boasting. And Satan, recognizing this potentially fatal flaw, demanded to put Peter to the test. But oh, the difference the intercession of our high priest, Jesus Christ, can make in our time of testing. It’s true, Peter failed the Lord three times. Yet his faith did not fail because unlike Judas, he did not hang himself. But discouraged, he quit the ministry and went back to fishing, and six other disciples joined him. The gospel was at a crisis. If these hand-picked men, who had been personally trained by Jesus, quit, who would take up the baton to preach the gospel? Jesus had to handle this situation quickly and personally, and he showed up on the Galilee where they had gone back to their old profession. They were guilty, caught red-handed, deserting their calling to be fishers of men. Addressing the ringleader, Peter, Jesus asked him three times, “‘Lovest thou me?’ But the Greek words for love that Jesus used revealed the true conditions of Peter’s heart and forced him to make a fresh start to fulfill his ministry. Lovest Thou Me is available on CD for a love gift of $10 or more for the radio ministry. Request SK-176. Mail to Sound of Faith, P.O. Box 1744, Baltimore, Maryland, 21203. Or order online at soundoffaith.org, where it is also available on MP3. But to order by mail, send a minimum love gift of $10 to P.O. Box 1744, Baltimore, Maryland, 21203. And request SK176. Until next time, this is Sharon Knott saying, Maranatha.
