Pastor Wayne Cordeiro
April 23, 2006 - W0617

Peter was known as an impetuous person; he had a habit of putting his foot in his mouth. Remember when Jesus foretold His impending death on the cross, Peter rebuked the Lord for saying such a thing at which point Jesus said to Peter, “…Get thee behind me, Satan.” (Mk. 8:33). Peter was spontaneous and emotional and often spoke without thinking. How many of us can identify with Peter? I can. Think about times when you’ve said or done something in haste and afterward thinking how stupid that was! And Peter did that more than once. The Bible says in John 18:10 that when Jesus was captured in the Garden of Gethsemane to be taken to the cross, Peter was so emotionally moved that he acted spontaneously and whipped out his sword to cut off the ear of an officer. Again Jesus rebuked Peter and said, “…Put your sword away! Shall I not drink the cup the Father has given me?”   

I looked at what Peter did here, and I began to liken him to a rhinoceros. A herd of rhinos is known as a “crash” much like a herd of dogs is known as a “pack”. Rhinos, however can run up to 30 miles an hour, but can only see 30 feet in front of them. Hence, we can understand why a herd of rhinos is called a crash.

So, it was with Peter and is probably the same with many of us. We sometimes become so tired of our faith that we start to run from it at 30 miles an hour and often cannot see what’s in front of us. Then we begin to jump to premature conclusions, become impulsive, and make unwise decisions just like Peter did.

It was after the resurrection that Peter seemed frustrated with his faith because things didn’t work out the way he expected. After all, Jesus was supposed to deliver them from the Romans. Now though Peter knew Jesus was resurrected, for some reason he says he is going fishing. In essence, he went back to his life before following Jesus. “Peter said to them, ‘I am going fishing.’ They said to him, ‘We will also come with you.’ They went out and got into the boat; and that night they caught nothing. But when the day was not breaking, Jesus stood on the beach; yet the disciples did not know that it was Jesus.” (Jn. 21:3-4).

Reread the first two sentences: “Peter said to them, ‘I am going fishing.’ They said to him, ‘We will also come with you.’” Peter’s friends were ready to follow in his footsteps. In other words, we should never underestimate our influence upon others whether or not it is positive or negative. When others know we are Christians, people will watch how we live our lives, what we say, what insights we give, and how we work through problems. And even though we may not say a thing, our actions will influence those around us.

A story is told about Yonggi Cho, a great pastor in Korea. He felt so depressed and defeated that he told a friend he wanted to jump over a cliff. His friend replied to him, “Go ahead and a thousand will follow you”. Once you become an ambassador for Christ, never underestimate the influence your faith has on those at your workplace, school, or home.  

Like Peter, there will be times when we will become frustrated in our faith and wonder if it makes any difference. Those feelings may entice us to turn back to life before we became a Christian. That is called backsliding which can be defined as the distance between God and us that stretches little by little until that distance seems to be normal. And the devil uses that to draws us so far from God that it doesn’t feel like a big deal anymore.

So how can we become aware before that happens? Let’s read about how Peter responds to his Appointment with God. These next three points will give us practical instructions to help us when we begin to backslide and become frustrated with our faith. The first step is to…

1.     get close to god.

“Therefore that disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, ‘It is the Lord.’ So when Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put his outer garment on (for he was stripped for work), and threw himself into the sea”. (Jn. 21:7)

Peter immediately dove into the water and swam to meet Jesus. In other words, get close to God. The Bible says, “…apart from Me, you can do nothing” (Jn. 15:5). So, when we sense a distance from God, do whatever it takes to get close to Him. Our faith is like a piece of burning coal when removed from the fire begins to cool. You see, the enemy will try to lure us away from the Lord using anything and everything to cool our faith.

There may be times when we become frustrated and we’ll have a tendency to stay away from church or bible study. In fact, we will want to stay away from Christians altogether. You see, God can read your thoughts, but the devil can’t. However, being the strategic military expert that he is, he will go after our soul. He cannot read our minds, but he can read the sermon notes and hear the messages we receive in church. So, he will give us all the excuses in an attempt to keep us away from worship. Yet that’s exactly when we must double our efforts to attend church because when we sense this is happening we most definitely have an appointment with God and need to hear His direction.

So, remember Peter’s example and instruction when you sense a distance and become frustrated with your faith -- dive in and do everything you can to get close to Him. “But as for me, the nearness of God is my good….”  (Ps. 73:28)

The second example Peter gives us is when he swam to Jesus who was on the shore cooking some fish over a fire. Jesus said something quite interesting to Peter. He asked Peter, “Do you love me?”  Not, “Why have you betrayed me?” because if you recall, before the crucifixion Peter denied knowing Jesus three times. So why did Jesus ask Peter that question? The Lord knows that when our faith is wavering, one of the best things we can do is to…   

2.     confess your love for god.

“So when they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, ‘Simon, son of John, do you love Me more than these?’ He said to Him, ‘Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Tend My lambs.” (Jn. 21:15)

Jesus was probably referring to the fish when he asked Peter, “Do you love Me more than these?” The same is true for us if He asked us do we love Him more than our dreams or our temporal goals. Peter confesses his love for Jesus. And that is exactly what we must do when we start feeling a separation in our relationship with God.

Another concept to grasp is that our love for God must be openly spoken as a declaration of our faith. This outward declaration of faith and love heals our thoughts, our health, and our attitudes. Confession of our faith and love for God comes through our heartfelt words of prayer and song during worship. Then watch wholeness and healing take place. And even if you don’t feel like it, worship Him and proclaim your faith anyway. You’re not being a hypocrite. It is hypocrisy is when we believe God is worthy of our praise and affection, yet we do not declare it. Worship God based on what He has done and not what you have done. 

Begin to speak your love for God in the midst of worship. Confess truths not feelings, then your feelings will begin to get in line with those truths. The Bible says the truth will set you free -- not feelings. So, the best way to right your heart with God is to confess your love for Him. Don’t be afraid or ashamed to worship and to show your love for Him because if we hide our faith, the devil will bombard us with temptations. “Therefore everyone who confesses Me before men, I will also confess him before My Father who is in heaven. But whoever denies Me before men, I will also deny him before My Father who is in heaven.” (Mt, 10:32-33).  In other words, what we do in this lifetime has eternal effects. And when we identify with the Lord, we have a spiritual connection “Let the redeemed of the Lord say so…” (Ps. 107:2)

So the moment you sense distance from Him, do everything you can to get close to God. Another point that will help you when your faith is waning is to confess your love for God. And finally, the third point Peter examples for us that will help us stay on track is to…

3.     get involved with god.

Peter may have been immature and made mistakes, but he took action. And, that is what we need to do. ‘Tend my sheep’-- means to take action. “He said to him the third time, ‘Simon, son of John, do you love Me?’ Peter was grieved because He said to him the third time, ‘Do you love Me?’ And he said to Him, ‘Lord, You know all things; You know that I love You.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Tend My sheep’” (Jn. 21:17)

This is very important to remember:

·        A LIFE OF FAITH IS BUILT ON ACTION.

·        A LIFE OF FEAR IS BUILT ON AVOIDANCE OF ACTION.

“Even so faith, if it has no works, is dead, being by itself. But someone may well say, ‘You have faith and I have works; show me your faith without the works, and I will show my faith by my works.’” (Jas. 2:17-18)

Yes, faith is much more practical than we realize. It’s simply hearing what God is saying and obeying His instruction. How can we do that? Let me share one of the most important things I do in my life: I’ll take a day and come before Lord and ask Him to look at every area of my life, perspective, attitude, marriage, health, etc. and I’ll sit and listen. Then I’ll write down things I sense God is saying I need to improve, change, or continue. Then I ponder them for a while. Then I make those things I know are from God my goals and I take action.  “…I will show my faith by my works”.

So faith works in tandem with action. In fact, the Bible says: “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock…But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.” (Mt. 7:24-27)

So one of the best things we can do over this next season is to scan our life to see if we have been avoiding some things God has asked us to take care of. Write them down, ponder them, and take the action. Then when the storms come and your faith starts to flag, you’ll have the strength to apply these three principles Peter did when he was frustrated with his faith:

·        Get close to God.

·        Confess your Love for God.

·        Someone who will get involved with God.

DISCUSSION ITEMS

1.      Have you been frustrated with your faith to the point of going back to your old lifestyle? What were the results of that decision?

2.      Are there some alarms warning you that you are becoming distant with God? What can you do now to close that separation?

3.      Do you have an ‘appointment with God’ right now? How are you answering His call?

4.      How are you identifying with God and declaring that faith publicly?

5.      Make a list of things you feel God is speaking to you about. Ponder them for a while and begin to take action on those things you are certain God is asking you to do. Write those goals down and ways you will begin to accomplish them. Then pursue it with all your heart.

6.      Are you living a ‘life of faith’ or a ‘life of fear’? How do you know this?

7.      What is the most important point you learned from today’s lesson that impacted you and how will you begin to apply that in your life this week?

Mahalo to faithful volunteer writer, Debbie Chang who perseveres at staying close to God confidently declaring her faith in our Lord and Savior!