Mt. Carmel Church | take a look at the story of Peter
How’s everybody doing this morning? Right? Welcome to the roads. My name is Chad, my wife dawn of the pastors here, and it’s so exciting to be with you today, this worship with you and hang out with you. Talk about God. Sing to him. Wasn’t worship great this morning. I was guys just do a fantastic job. So thankful for them. Today we’re on our series called your story more than a post, Mt. Carmel Church so I want to take a moment. I just want us to pray and just get our hearts set for what God wants to speak to his father. I just thank you. We need you in every aspect of our life. Load out and want to do anything without you. I look to you. You are the one that gives life. You’re the one who speaks into our hearts, so holy spirit, I just invite you to bring life to the word today.
Bring application to it that we will hear what you’re saying above all else. Thank you lord for the power that you will confirm this word with signs following. In Jesus’ name. Amen. Amen. If you will have your bibles this morning and get your sermon notes out of your worship guide, a youversion Bible App. Let’s open up our bibles to John Chapter one, John One. We’re just happy about the Bible. Mt. Carmel Church Excited about what God’s speaking to us. That’s what that shouts about. John Chapter One, your story more than a post today. You know, we talked about rayhab where we’ve talked about legion. Today we’re going to talk about and take a look at the story of Peter, the story of Peter. Let me ask you this. Have you ever been introduced to someone, been introduced to someone and you knew right from the jump that there was something a little bit special about this person.
You know, you met them for the very first time and you’re like, Mt. Carmel Church, there’s something more to this. Maybe it’s a business person you met for the first time. Maybe it’s a friend you met for the first time. I remember the first time I met my wife. See we were. Yeah. Oh, that’s good. That’s good. Thank you. Keep it coming. Keep it coming. So anyway, we, I remember my boss came to me at work, I was working in Evansville and he came to me and he said, hey, I got this, I got this girl you need to meet. And I’m like, no, I’m not meeting any girls right now. I mean I’m just, uh, I’m trying to get my life right with God. And the girls had been my downfall.
Let me just correct. They were not my downfall. Me with girls was my downfall. So it wasn’t their fault, it was mine. But anyway, I didn’t know what to do with him. So, uh, so I was like, okay, that’s a long story that I’m not going to take the time to explain. It’s not their fault, it’s mine. You Mt. Carmel Church that old adage, it’s not you, it’s me will, it really was me. So anyway, he said, you gotta meet this girl. Mt. Carmel Church I’m like, no, no, I’m not, I’m just, I’m trying to get my life straightened out. And so I didn’t want to meet her and he just kept saying, hey, you need to meet her. So anyway, he finally let me go and quit. And then he came to me one day at work and he said, hey, he played walleyball at this club, volleyball is volleyball inside of a racquetball court.
And he said, hey, we’re playing tonight and that’s where she played. And so he kept trying to get me to come and he said, listen, tonight, you know, we’re at the last stages of the, of the season and, and so I need you tonight. We’re short. Somebody who’s not playing and not short like height, but short, like a person not going to be there. And he said, hey, I need you. Could you come? He said, forget about the girl, just come and play. And I’m like, it’s not about the girl. He said, yeah, just, just strictly about playing. So I said, okay, I’ll come. So I came and played and we played against her team and I saw her and I’m like, Mt. Carmel Church maybe it’s not so bad. So I remember thinking when I saw her there something a little more than just meets the eye and it’s a long story and I don’t want to get into all the details of it, but that, that moment I saw her and met her and I’m like, okay, I’ll come back, I’ll play again. When do you need another sub? You know, do you need to get a spot on your team? But the point is we met that day, February 18th, 1997. Thank you. Keep them coming. Keep them coming. My points are going through the roof right now.
Well the problem is points reset everyday. Mt. Carmel Church I need all of them. I need all of them. You know, you know what I’m talking about men, we like to carry them forward for like months at a time. You remember three months ago. I sit now. Sorry. Reset every day. So anyway, it’s like Jesus mercies are new every morning. That’s points are new every morning. So we met that day, February 10th. I had no idea that a year and 10 days later we will be married and our life. Twenty one years later, Mt. Carmel Church 20 years we’ve been married, has been through a lot of ups and downs, you know, some days better than others, but through it all, we are closer today than we were at that moment that we were introduced. When we were introduced. That moment was not the zenith. That was the beginning and that’s what I want our relationship with God as much the same way. So many people make their zenith moment when they’re introduced to Jesus, when that’s just the beginning.
See, our relationship with God is not about the introduction. It’s about the journey afterwards. The introduction is awesome. I loved meeting her. That was great, but I had no idea what was going to play out at that moment. Neither do we. When we started a relationship with God, and this is why we’ve got to get in tune with the relationship with him. So this is what our, our relationship is kind of similar to marriage were Christians, followers of Jesus called the bride of Christ. Jesus has called the bridegroom, Mt. Carmel Church so we’re married to Jesus. So those of you that have been married, understand that marriage is a journey. So three parts to a story that I’m going to give you today, I want you to remember these three parts of your story with Jesus involves an introduction. It involves a journey and involves an indeed. So we’re going to look at that from Peter standpoint and see how that relates to to us.
Let’s go to John Chapter one. Look in verse 35 and again, the next day, John stood with two of his disciples and looking at Jesus as he walked, he said, behold the lamb of God. This is John The baptist, right? So behold the lamb of God. Then two disciples, Mt. Carmel Church these are disciples of John’s heard him speak, and they followed Jesus. Then Jesus turned and seeing them following said to them, what do you seek? And they said to him, rabbi, which is to say, when translated, teacher, where are you staying? He said to them, come and see. They came and saw where he was staying and remained with him that day. Now it was about the 10th hour, one of the two who heard John Speak and followed him was Andrew Simon Peter’s brother. He first found his own brother, Simon and said to him, notice it was first he found his brother.
He went to him. First we have found the Messiah, which is translated the Christ, and he brought him to Jesus. Stopped right there and underline that he brought him to Jesus. When and how were you introduced to Jesus? Can you go back a moment? Mt. Carmel Church If you’re born again, if you’re not a follower of Jesus yet today, maybe the day that you’re introduced to him, but when were you introduced to. Geez, how were you introduced to ge? Sometimes when I’m interacting with people and they tell me they’re Christians, I like to ask them, well, tell me about your born again. Experience. Tell me about when you were saying. Because then you want to know what their life was like sometimes. Well, I don’t know. I’ve just always gone to church. I didn’t ask. What if you started going to church? I said, tell me about when you got born again.
Tell me about your relationship with Jesus now. Relationship with a building. Tell me about your relationship with a man. He said that when he brought him to Jesus, anybody thankful for someone who brought you to Jesus this morning? Maybe you can go to a specific person. Maybe you were raised in church your whole life will. You need to thank God that your parents brought you to Jesus when you came out of the womb. That’s a great, great story. Mt. Carmel Church Some people think they’ve got to run off and rebel and do all this before they have a good testimony. If your parents brought you home from the hospital and brought you to church and you stayed in church and state in a relationship with Jesus your whole life, that’s an incredible testimony. Don’t be ashamed of what God’s done in your life, but who brought you to Jesus?
I just think we need to be thankful for that. Look what he says. He goes on, brought him to Jesus. Now when Jesus looked at him, he said, you are Simon the son of Jonah. You shall be called CFUS, which is translated as stone, and I said, your name is Simon. I like the word Simon. There means to listen, to hear one that obeys the war. The word cfus is the aromatic word. So Peter is the Greek word for surfaces, the Aramaic word, and it just means a rock or stone. So this, Mt. Carmel Church notice the interaction. I liked the interaction. Jesus sees Peter for the first time and he and he goes up and says, you are Simon, son of Jonah. You shall be called cfus by this. I like seeing humor in the Bible. It’s like someone coming up to me and say, hi, you or Chad, son of David, you shall be called Reggie.
It’s like, man, my name’s Chad. I mean, I just. You imagine the look on Simon’s face with this guy meets him for the first time since high your assignments on them. Jonah check. You got that right? You shall be called CFUS. Excuse me. My name’s Simon. You should be called cfus dude. My mom called me Simon. I’m Simon you. I don’t know how that interaction went in his head, but here’s what I like about the word shall be called. I had to study this out a little bit. Mt. Carmel Church The word shall be called is a Greek word Kaleo, which means it can mean to call out like to say something like you. It even means to preach or declare, but there’s another layer of the definition that I thought it was applicable. This he said, you shall be called shall be called. The word literally means an invitation to receive hospitality. It’s an invitation, so we look at it in this context. I believe Jesus says, you are Simon Right now. This is who you are. This is what you’re known as. This is how you know yourself, but you shall be invited to be surface. In other words, you shall be invited to be called. In other words, whenever you’re introduced to Jesus, be ready because he’s going to start calling you some things that you don’t see in yourself yet.
He’s going to start calling you some things that don’t look like they apply. He’s going to start calling you a rock when you feel like you’re everything. Butter rock. He’s going to start calling you faithful. When you know you are unfaithful. He’s gonna. Start calling you righteous. When you feel sinful, he’s going to start calling you brave. When you’re full of fear, he’s going to start calling you strong. When you feel weak, is anybody getting what I’m saying today that whenever you’re introduced to Jesus, he will start calling you something that you say, I’m not. I’m not seafirst. I’m Simon. He said, yeah, but you shall be called. Will you receive the invitation? This was something that God’s popular for in Romans four, 17. He says, this God who gives life to the dead and calls those things which do not exist as though they did. Mt. Carmel Church God can call you something you’re not seeing at this point. He’s inviting you to accept what he sees over what you see. Here’s an important part of your journey with God. When you’re introduced in the introduction part of God, you’ve got to learn to shift, to start believing what you see in yourself and start believing what he sees in you. Will you keep calling yourself Simon or will you have the guts to call yourself surface?
Well, I could never be safe. It’s I could never be a rock. Jesus is inviting you to call yourself what he sees you as stead of going by what everyone else sees. You look what he what he goes on to say in enrollments for a team, so how do we become that? Mt. Carmel Church How do we become what he sees? He says who contrary to hope and hope, belief so that he became the father of many nations according to what was spoken,
so shall your descendants be. He became the father of many nations is talking about Abraham became according to what was spoken became according to what was spoken, Abraham became according to what God spoke to him in our lives. We have to learn to become what God says we are. Instead of what we say we are or what everybody else says we are, we will become. What spoken over us, this is why you got to be careful speaking over your kids. This is why you got to be careful speaking of yourself. It is not humble to insulate yourself every day. It’s not humble to constantly say what you are not. That’s not humility. Humility is agreeing with God, saying what he says about you saying, Hey, I don’t feel like it, but today I’m the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus. I feel like I’m just weak. I feel like I can’t go on, but I just thank you lord. Let the weak say I am strong. Mt. Carmel Church Let the weak say I’m strong. Why you will become according to what is spoken,
so this is what happens in the introduction. When you first meet Jesus, he’s going to blow your mind because he’s going to start saying things over you that don’t make sense. You’re like, that’s not who I am. I’ve always been this way. He said, I know, but I’m calling something out of you that you don’t even know. There. He was saying to Simon, I see a rock on the inside of you. You don’t seem yet, but I’m going to show you that it’s there. This is the introduction part, Mt. Carmel Church so once we’ve got the introduction, now we got to do the next step is the journey. Let’s go to luke. Chapter Five.
Being introduced to Jesus is not the pinnacle. It’s not the end, it’s just the beginning. I see too many times people getting into a tough situation because they make their moment that they get introduced to Jesus the top part of their life. When it’s just the beginning point. You know when people argue and fuss over salvation and and once saved, always saved is I think it’s one of the most meaningless debates in the Kingdom of God because what is our really debate over? Mt. Carmel Church Our debate is over at an event or a moment when we should be pushing relationship. I got married in March 28th, 1998, but that has nothing to do with my relationship today.
Our relationship today has to do with what I do every day. So journey, so that getting into a relationship with Jesus is about the moment that I start something not in something. So here’s the journey. So now he got introduced to Jesus on that day, and Jesus tried to give him a name, a new name. Look at chapter five verse one. Now let’s start the journey. So it was from the multitude pressed about him to hear the word of God that he stood by the lake of Ganassi Ritz. This is Jesus and to he saw two boats standing by the lake, but the fishermen had gone from them and were washing their nets. Then he got into one of the boats, which was Simon’s. Here’s our boy, Simon again, Mt. Carmel Church and he asked him to put out a little bit from the land and he sat down and he taught the multitudes from the boat.
And when he had stopped speaking, he said to Simon, here’s what he said, check this out. Launch out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch. Simon answered and said to him, master, we have toiled all night and caught nothing. Nevertheless at your word, I will let down the net. Now we’ve got to realize this. When Jesus comes into our life, we got to be ready because he starts calling us something that we don’t think we are. He starts saying some things over is that we don’t see in ourselves, Mt. Carmel Church but look at the next thing he does in our journey. We have to be ready for this moment when he looks at you and says, launch out into the deep. There’s going to be times in our journey with God where he’s going to ask you and I to launch outlook with the word launch means I give it to you.
There in your notes means to leave the shore for a point in the direction of open water to launch. Leave the shore. Leave the comfort zone. Leave where I’m familiar. I need you to launch out into the deep. I need you to go for it. I need you to go into unknown territory. I need you to go out away from where you’re comfortable and familiar. I want you to launch out our journey with Jesus requires us at some point to launch out beyond what we’re comfortable notice. Launch out doesn’t mean that Jesus made the boat go out there. Peter had to be willing to launch out context context because this could just be a story in the Bible and this we applied. Context is they had fished all night. This fishing is done at night because you fish with nets so the fish can’t see the nets. You don’t fish during the daytime, they fished all night, caught nothing, so they’re cleaning up their nets and now Jesus in the daylight broad daylight says, launch out into the deep and put down your nets for a catch. Notice he didn’t say, put down your nets and we’ll see what happens. He said, Mt. Carmel Church put down your nets for a catch.
So now in that moment, here’s the journey with God, logic versus the word of God. Am I going to do what God tells me to do or am I going to do what I think makes sense? In your journey with God, part of your story will be growing past these moments. When God asks you to do something that makes zero sense to your mind and you still obey him. If we will not get past that, we will never launch. If we are not willing to launch, Mt. Carmel Church we will not get the results God wants to bring into our life. We want the supernatural catch, but we’re not always willing to have supernatural obedience.
You know what I mean by supernatural beaters? That means it goes beyond natural thinking, so I’ve got to do something that doesn’t make sense to receive something that’s not gonna. Make sense? We want to receive the things that don’t make sense, but we only want to obey to the borders of our logic and reason. I’m not saying you, but other people. You see what he asked them to do. Launch out into the deep for a catch. In that moment, Peter had to look at him. Go, dude, I know you tried to call me [inaudible]. My name’s Simon. Now you’re asking me to go fishing in broad daylight and we’ve already been out there knocking you. You’ve lost your marbles. In that moment is a crossroads. It’s a crossroads moment for Peter. He had to decide, notice what he says. Nevertheless at your word, at your word. So the question in our journey, we got to realize, are we going to do things at God’s word? Are we going to do them based on our logic? Are we going to do them based on what we understand? We going to do it based on what he says. Mt. Carmel Church That’s a crucial part of launching outlook where he goes on to say, if you get the next part, and when they had done this,
they caught a great number of fish and their net was breaking, so they signaled to their partners on the other boat to come and help them and they came and filled both boats so that they began to sing. Now look at verse six. Nevertheless, or and when they had done this and when they had done this and when they had done this and when they had, when they had done what at, when they had launched out, and when they cast the nets into the sea, after they’d done that, look what happens? They caught a great number of fish. It was only after they did what God asked him to do, that they saw the results that God promised them. We will not get the God results if we don’t get our obedience in front of it. It wasn’t that they went out there and they saw a bunch of fish and thought, Huh, I’ll throw some nets over them. Mt. Carmel Church It says they through the nets into the water and then the fish showed up
in our journey with God. God’s going to ask you to do some things. He tells us that we walk by faith and not by sight. He said, this is how we’re supposed to do. He’s going to ask us to go beyond logic and reason and believed for something that you don’t see. Act on something that God says. Go and forgive them. Go to them and apologize. Will you? I don’t know what it’s gonna do. I don’t know what it’s going to play out. I know what’s going to happen with that. Mt. Carmel Church I didn’t ask you to figure out how it’s gonna play out. I asked you to obey me.
I’m asking you to leave that job and take this other job. Yeah, but I don’t know. I don’t. I’m not sure how that’s gonna play out. I don’t know what the ripple effect will be. Careful wanting to know every single step before you take the first one. In our journey with God, we’ve got to be willing to take the first step and not know what the seventh one is going to be like. It’s one of our biggest downfalls is that we have trouble embracing the journey because we want to know the end from the beginning. He’s the only one who gets to know that, Mt. Carmel Church
so now they, after they had done this, they got to do it. Faith without works is dead. Look at verse eight then Simon, when Simon Peter saw it, he saw the great fish. He saw the great catch. He fell down at Jesus’ knees and saying, depart from me, for I’m a sinful man. Oh Lord. For he and older with him were astonished at the catch of fish for which they had taken notes. What happened? He had a moment of awareness. When he says, depart from me from a, from a sinful man, when we come into contact with Jesus, here’s something that I think in our journey is very important, but we have an awareness of who we are without him. If we compare ourselves with amongst other people, we will not have a huge desire and need to give our lives to Jesus, but when we compare ourselves to him, we see our lack. If we compare ourselves amongst our friends will go, I’m not as bad as them. I don’t do what they do. I don’t go out and party. I mean I don’t drink, so I mean I or I’m not good. Those people, I’m a good husband. I, Mt. Carmel Church you know, I go to work and I,
I don’t cheat on my wife. I’m a good wife. I do this or that. Mt. Carmel Church As long as we compare ourselves with other people will always look at ourselves a little higher than what we really are.
But Peters, when he saw Jesus, he said, I’m comparing myself to that man and I do not measure up. Get away from me. I’m a sinful man. It’s not to say that I’m beating myself up, is to realize my need for him and this is what we have to have in our journey with Jesus. Don’t compare yourself among yourself. It’s not wise. Keep comparing yourself with Jesus. It will keep you on your knees and it will keep you humble before God. It will keep you hungering after God. As long as you look at other coworkers and see what they’re doing, you’re like, Mt. Carmel Church, I’m better than them than you will begin to push your Bible aside. Push your prayer life aside because you’re living on your own mortality and your own worth. At some point we got to get back to realizing without Jesus, we are no better than anybody else and we’ve got to have him each and every day.
This was the thing that Peter came to depart from me because he saw himself in comparison to Jesus. Take a glimpse of that today. It’s not to beat you down. It’s so that Jesus can lift you up. Look on the last verses in verse 10, and so also were James and John, the sons of Zebedee who were partners with Simon and Jesus said to Simon, do not be afraid from now on, you will catch men. So when they had brought their boats to land, they forsook all and followed him. So Mt. Carmel Church here’s part of our journey, part of our journey. Notice what it says when they got to this place, they forsook all and followed him. That word followed means to have someone else determining your direction and the movement in your life. So right now we ask ourselves, who’s determining my direction and my movement in my life?
Who’s determining what I’m gonna do for a living? Where I go today? Is it me or is it got to be a follower of Jesus means he determines the direction and movement. What decisions am I going to make? What relationships am I going to get into? Who’s determining my direction? Is money determining my direction in my movement? Whoever will pay me the most, that’s where I’m going to go. Don’t let money be the one that determines it. Is this person, is this girl, Mt. Carmel Church is this guy? Are they determined my direction or my kids determine my direction? Let God be the one who determined sure, direction in your movement, so what it means to follow him, but look what happens with that. They forsook all and followed him. I think this way in my own life, we have trouble truly following. If we’re not willing to forsake some things,
they forsook all and followed him. Too many times we try and follow, but we’re not willing to forsake. In other words, not willing to leave some things behind the greatest challenge in your life. Christianity, I believe is not the things that you don’t have. It’s the things that you’re not willing to give up. I’ll say it again. Your biggest hindrance in your Christianity is not the things that aren’t available to you. The things that you do not have. The biggest issue or challenge in your Christianity is what you are not willing to walk away from, to pursue everything he has for you. Things in your life that you say, ah, I’ll forsake everything, but that I got to keep that. I mean, that’s just my, that’s my thing. That one thing you said, well, you know, I got all these other things. It’s just this one thing I’m keeping for mine. It’s just one little thing that I do. It’s not missed. Not Hurting anybody. It’s just my own little thing. That one thing you never know could be the thing that’s keeping you from where God wants you to be in your life. Part of our journey, part of our journey. So now let’s look at the. I’m going to give you the ups and downs of, of Peter’s journey.
Peter’s journey had some ups and downs. I told you in our marriage relationship, Mt. Carmel Church we’ve had ups and downs. We’ve had better days than others. We’ve had times where we’re, um, you know, she wasn’t always perfect. Those are rare moments, rare moments. But we’ve had a few. And Peter’s walk with Jesus was filled with ups and downs. Let me just give you a few. I’ll give you three of the first one. Peter had vip access. That’s an up don’t. VIP access was. He was one of the internal three. You’re the 12 disciples, but you notice in the Bible that Peter, James, and John always got in on some inner circle things. He was like VIP access. Peter was, you know, you got to go into the House with the synagogue ruler. His daughter was healed. You know the. See, he got amount transfiguration. Got to see Jesus in his, in his holy glory than and then he got to go garden of Gethsemane.
He, they, he took the disciples to pray and then he took Peter, James, and John Little bit further you. He had inner circle access. That’s an up a second one. Let’s see. He also had was what was the other thing that he had peter liked when he said, you’re the Christ as a pretty big moment when you said you’re the Christ, the son of the living God. Jesus said, hey, flesh and blood hadn’t revealed this to you, but my father in I say, you are Peter on this rock. I’ll build my church. Peter said, yes sir. Yeah, that’s me. That’s an moment, right? That’s what that moment. But I think his biggest up moment has to be when he walked on water, you ever been around those people, Mt. Carmel Church you know, there’s no matter what story you tell, they’re always going to take it up a notch.
Like you said, you know, I just had surgery and I got 15 stitches, you know, right in here. Oh yeah. Let me just show you this right here. I got 35 right across the back of my, you know. Are you telling me, you know, I hit, I, uh, I did this good. I had this reason. Oh yeah, yeah. That’s great. That’s great. You don’t remember one time when I had that, but now this is what I’m doing. It’s like always taken up a notch. I can just imagine peter at a table at a party and everybody’s trying to tell their stories. He just lay him back because he’s got the ace in the hole. They’re going around telling all the things they’ve done, things they’ve accomplished. He’s like, Mt. Carmel Church that’s good. That’s good. Just to him. Well, I’ve walked on water. How are you going to compete with that? It’s his goto story. Every time. No matter what you say, water,
two people, me and Jesus, so you said some great ups, you’re going to have some ups in your journey with God, but Peter’s also had some downs, had some downs. There’s gonna be a couple of downs he got referred to as Satan. That’s not as brightest moment was right after he said, you’re the Christ and Jesus looks at him and he was trying to rebuke Jesus for Sandy’s going to go the cross. He looks at Peter and says, get behind me Satan. Not One of those you will write down in your journal today. Jesus called me Satan. I. That’s not one of them. Not One of those days. You’re going to see on your facebook timeline. Come up a year later, one year ago today, and I want to see that second one. You know he cut off a guy’s ear. You’re all in these moments. You see that. Have you ever had this in your life where you thought you were right on point with something and you ended up being on the wrong side of something?
Have you ever thought you had the right perspective? Only to find out you had the wrong perspective. This will peter’s life is like, yo, he’s Bam. Bam. You don’t. You’re not going to get crucified. Boom. Get behind me saying, Ooh man. I thought it was right and I ended up being wrong. Oh, you going to take Jesus, wham. Cut off that. Here. Let’s go. What you got? Come at me. I’ve cut ya know. Just imagining how it rolled out. Jesus. Instead of looking at him going, yeah, that’s my boy. Come on, Peter. He picks up the ear, looked around, and scolds. Peter heals the man’s ear. It says, you’re not operating according to my heart. Allow this to happen. Have you ever messed up something that Jesus had to come along and fix? I don’t know about you, but have you ever said or done something that it took Jesus to clean up your mess.
I’m talking to myself. This is why we’ve got to realize that we’re going to have some downs in our life. Let me, let me give you the biggest down. The biggest down probably for Peter was when he bailed on Jesus. Jesus predicted that you’re going to deny me three times, and Peter said, Nah, not me, not me. All of these guys will probably do it. Especially that one right over there. He looks a little shifty, but I’m telling you right now, I will not deny you. I’m your boy. I’m innercircle VIP. Access me. James and John were with you to the end. We’ll ride to the end.
You said no before the rooster crows. You’re going to deny me three times. It’s like, no, Jesus. I’d rather die with you. You don’t have. People are tough in a group setting. Looking around. Yeah, we’ll all die with it. Yeah, we’ll do it. And then he actually does deny him. You know, maybe no story in the Bible says that when the rooster crowed that Peter remembered what Jesus said and he wept bitterly. What I’m going to ask you, have you ever had one of those things that you did and you thought this was the end of your story? Because when that happened, Peter could have chucked it. All Judas did. Judas chucked it all and went and hung himself.
I am convinced that the same voice was speaking into Peter’s ear, telling him, you’ve ruined it. Now go hang yourself. Ended all you’ve betrayed Jesus. You acted like you didn’t even know him. You’re cussing and swearing. Colon things down. You don’t even know him. Is that the end of your story? Is that going to be you’re in. How many of you you’re thinking of something that’s happened in your life, your big bail, your big moment that you failed miserably may be you’re in the midst of a down right now. Maybe you’re in the midst of a time where you’re just totally dropped the ball and is that going to be the end of your story? I want to show you a story of someone here who went through ups and downs and we saw God turned some things around. Go ahead and cue the video and let them check this out.
Hi, my name is sonny being men and this is my story. So my freshman year of college I started partying a lot and I ended up meeting this one guy at a party. We were kind of on and off for about two months after that of talking and not talking, and about five months later down the road, he threw those five months. He had constantly flip switches, will, you’d be perfectly fine with me one night and then a second later he would start screaming and yelling at me and calling me names and night it got really bad because he thought I had cheated on him, which I had not. He pushed me off of his bed and kicked me off of his bed and grabbed me and threw me across the room and basically kicked me outside of his house at one or 2:00 in the morning through this whole period of us dating prior before is breaking up.
I lost my walk with God. I did not go to church. I was drinking way too much. I was not doing things that I should be doing at all. He kept trying to contact me and I contacted him and I ended up getting a screaming fight with my parents. Um, and they took my phone away. So I went to contact him. I had got my phone back a few weeks later and he had messaged me and he said he was coming to my house that night and so I didn’t let them in my house that night, but we did talk and I ended up agreeing to get back with him. It did not get better. After a couple of weeks he went right back to what he was doing with me. Uh, it just got 100 times worse and one night I had went to a party and I went to my grandma’s after and I let him in my grandma’s house and I told him I didn’t want to do a certain thing and he ended up forcing me to have sex with him.
A couple days after that we went and filed a rape charges against him. And then I tried killing myself a couple of days after that with some pills. I was laying in my apartment and I had the pills in my hand ready. I ended up not doing that obviously, but um, that was really difficult for me knowing that I was going through something so hard that was pushing me to want to kill myself and I read plenty of books on domestic violence. One especially that really helps me. It was all these stories of women that have been through domestic violence and stuff like I had gone through and it had scriptures and with it and I think that’s what really helped me was seeing that other women were going through it and how God could turn their life around. Even after they pushed all their family and friends away and had lost their job and just everything. It’s not an easy road, but it’s God can definitely get you out of anything and everything
on. I don’t know. We could probably all relate to Sydney story times in our life where we had ups and downs that you were introduced to Jesus and you were close and everything was tight. You know, he was your boy. You were together, but then something happened and you start drifting off and our journey with Jesus is going to be filled with all kinds of ups and down. It doesn’t have to be that we fall away from God. It doesn’t to be that we do those things,
but I’m just speaking to those that I think maybe this might apply to you because this was Peter’s story. Peter. Someone was introduced to Jesus, was inner circle. Witness all the miracles of Jesus firsthand. Eye witness walked on water and still said he didn’t even know who Jesus was,
but I want you to see something that Jesus had prepared for Simon and Luke 22, verse 31 you just predicted or getting you. He’s predicting that Simon would deny him three times a verse 31, and the Lord said, Simon Simon, indeed Satan has asked for you that he may sift you as sweet, but I have prayed for you that your faith should not fail. And when you have returned to me, strengthened the breadth and what does it mean? Sift you like wheat. They used to, when they would harvest wheat, they would take these, these grids and they would begin to shake violently all of the the, the harvest and get the grain to come out. They try and separate the grain from it and so they he would do this sifting and so this is what’s happening. Sometimes the enemy wants to come into our life and through circumstances or our thoughts or whatever, just shake you up and his whole purpose is to get to separate you from your relationship with God. He wants to get you to walk away from what’s you to give up on, but look what happened. Jesus said, but I’ve prayed for you, Mt. Carmel Church Peter, that your faith would not fail. We didn’t know the difference between falling and failing.
There’s times you’re going to fall, but that doesn’t mean you’ve failed. If you think you’re going to get into a relationship with Jesus and a journey with Jesus and never fall, you are kidding yourself. The Bible says, the righteous man falls seven times, but he gets up again. He gets up again. You’re going to fall. It doesn’t mean that you can just go into seeing and whatever. I’m not talking about giving excuse for saying, I’m just saying there’s gonna be times where it’s not going to be your best day. There’s going to be some downs. What we do in the downs determines our relationship with God, not what we do in the ups. Anybody can handle ups. It’s who could get in the down moments and get up. Again. Let’s say this is not my ending. This is not the end of my story. It’s not my brightest moment. It’s not my most proud moment getting called Satan Bundle Messiah, Mt. Carmel Church but I’m going to continue to write my story because he says, when you were, when you return, I want you to strengthen so my, my encouragement to you and your story is maybe you’re on a down right now. Maybe you’re not feeling like really close to God. Doesn’t mean you’re not saved. You just. You’re not feeling it right now.
Keep holding on to his unchanging hand. Maybe you’re in a situation where you’ve bailed. You’re just, you’ve given up, you’ve quit. He’s asking you. He’s praying for. Is it encouraging to know that Jesus is praying for us, that when we’re weak, his prayers are still going saying, hey, I believe you. You’re going to return. I believe you are the rock that I’m going to build this churchill. I know everybody else calls you Simon. Thanks for flaky. Thanks. You got temper Tantrum, but I believe you are a rock. Mt. Carmel Church There’s a rock on the inside of you. Will you received the invitation to be called what I call you?
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