Closing in on the Cross of Jesus Christ

Part 7: God's Help for His Stumbling Saints

The Gospel of Matthew

Matthew 26:69-75; Mark 14:53-54; Luke 22:59-62; Acts 4:5-12

Sermon by Rick Crandall

(Prepared April 24, 2023)

BACKGROUND:

*Today in Matthew 26, we are less than 12 hours away from Jesus dying on the cross for our sins. The Lord has been on trial before some horribly corrupt Jewish rulers. They broke all of their legal rules about giving Jesus a proper trial. But no charge worthy of death could be found until the high priest required Jesus to testify under oath whether or not He was the Christ. Of course, the Lord rightly said yes. But those elite rulers refused to believe. They rejected Jesus with bitter hatred, and they charged the Lord with the high crime of blasphemy.

*God's Word tells us about this in Matthew 26:62-68:

62. And the high priest arose and said to Him, "Do You answer nothing? What is it that these men testify against You?''

63. But Jesus kept silent. And the high priest answered and said to Him, "I adjure You by the living God that You tell us if You are the Christ, the Son of God.''

64. Jesus said to him, "It is as you said. Nevertheless, I say to you, hereafter you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Power, and coming on the clouds of heaven.''

65. Then the high priest tore his clothes, saying, "He has spoken blasphemy! What further need do we have of witnesses? Look, now you have heard His blasphemy!

66. What do you think?'' They answered and said, "He is deserving of death.''

67. Then they spat in His face and beat Him; and others struck Him with the palms of their hands,

68. saying, "Prophesy to us, Christ! Who is the one who struck You?''

*Today God's Word turns the focus to the Apostle Peter and his denial of Christ. We will see one of God's finest servants at his worst. But in order to see the whole picture, we will have to look at some other Scriptures too. Let's get started by reading Matthew 26:69-75, and as we read, please think about God's guidance for His stumbling saints.

MESSAGE:

*Do you ever stumble in your walk with the Lord? Oh yes, we do. I have to tell you that I've skinned my knees many times. And if you think you never stumble, you are probably stumbling over your pride and self-righteousness right now.

*In Psalm 143:1-2 King David said, "Hear my prayer, O LORD, Give ear to my supplications! In Your faithfulness answer me, And in Your righteousness. Do not enter into judgment with Your servant, For in Your sight no one living is righteous."

-James 3:1-2 says, "My brethren, let not many of you become teachers, knowing that we shall receive a stricter judgment. For we all stumble in many things."

-And in 1 John 1:8 the Apostle said, "If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us." Thank God that in vs. 9 John went on to say, "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."

*Christians: It takes time for us to learn how to walk as babies, and it takes a lifetime for us to learn how to walk with the Lord, so sometimes we are going to stumble. But God's Word shows His stumbling saints what to do.

1. FIRST: REMEMBER THE WAYS THAT WE CAN STUMBLE.

[1] ONE WAY IS BY GETTING OVERCONFIDENT IN OURSELVES.

*That's what happened to Peter when the disciples were headed to the Garden of Gethsemane with Jesus. On the way, the Lord Jesus tried to warn them about stumbling. Verses 30-33 above say:

30. And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.

31. Then Jesus said to them, "All of you will be made to stumble because of Me this night, for it is written: 'I will strike the Shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.'

32. But after I have been raised, I will go before you to Galilee.''

33. Peter answered and said to Him, "Even if all are made to stumble because of You, I will never be made to stumble.''

*The Lord tried to tell them that they were going to stumble. That's what "be offended" in the KJV means. It's the idea of being tripped, or trapped, or lured into sin. But Peter told Jesus, "Even if all are made to stumble because of You, I will never be made to stumble.'' And Peter wasn't the only disciple to get overconfident. Mark 14:31 tells us that all of the other disciples did too. So remember that we can stumble by getting overconfident in ourselves.

[2] WE CAN ALSO STUMBLE BY NOT PRAYING LIKE WE SHOULD.

*This was one of the biggest mistakes Peter, James, and John made on that awful night. To see this problem, we have to go back a couple of hours to the Garden of Gethsemane. Please listen to Matthew 26:37-45:

37. And He took with Him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and He began to be sorrowful and deeply distressed.

38. Then He said to them, "My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death. Stay here and watch with Me.''

39. He went a little farther and fell on His face, and prayed, saying, "O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will.''

40. Then He came to the disciples and found them asleep, and said to Peter, "What, could you not watch with Me one hour?

41. Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.''

42. He went away again a second time and prayed, saying, "O My Father, if this cup cannot pass away from Me unless I drink it, Your will be done.''

43. And He came and found them asleep again, for their eyes were heavy.

44. So He left them, went away again, and prayed the third time, saying the same words.

45. Then He came to His disciples and said to them, "Are you still sleeping and resting? Behold, the hour is at hand, and the Son of Man is being betrayed into the hands of sinners."

*The problem was that the disciples couldn't wake up enough to pray. And we tend to have the same problem. There are many great needs, and many great possibilities, so we need to pray!

*And the disciples got it right after Jesus rose again from the dead and ascended back into Heaven. Acts 1:13-14 says:

13. And when they had entered, they went up into the upper room where they were staying: Peter, James, John, and Andrew; Philip and Thomas; Bartholomew and Matthew; James the son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot; and Judas the son of James.

14. These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication, with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with His brothers.

*Sam Shoemaker got it right too. Sam strongly believed in prayer. During the early to mid-1900s, Sam was an Episcopal minister in New York City. Whenever he met someone who did not believe in God, Sam suggested they do a 30-Day Prayer Experiment.

*Sam would tell them, "Don't pay any attention to whether you believe or not. Just pray every day for 30 days that God will meet you at the point of your greatest need, -- and see what happens to you."

*From Pastor Shoemaker's prayer experiment, hundreds of people were transformed from hard skeptics into committed Christians. Why? Because prayer works! God answers prayer! But we can stumble by not praying like we should. (1)

[3] WE CAN ALSO STUMBLE BY NOT FOLLOWING JESUS AS CLOSELY AS WE SHOULD.

*Peter made this big mistake as the soldiers and police were leading Jesus away. The Holy Spirit led Mark to include this detail in Mark 14:53-54. There God's Word says:

53. And they led Jesus away to the high priest; and with him were assembled all the chief priests, the elders, and the scribes.

54. But Peter followed Him at a distance, right into the courtyard of the high priest. And he sat with the servants and warmed himself at the fire.

*Peter followed Jesus at a distance. And we can't be too hard on Peter, because he was in the kind of danger I have never faced. But many Christians today do face the kind of danger Peter was in, and some day, we may face it too, so we need to get as close to the Lord as we possibly can.

*But there are many other things that can tempt us to drift away from Jesus Christ. Many times it's just a matter of focus and priority. And it's easy to get distracted from the things of the Lord. We tend to stumble when we follow the Lord from too far away. That's what happened to Peter.

[4] BUT WE CAN ALSO STUMBLE BY DENYING THAT WE ARE THE LORD'S FOLLOWERS.

*That was Peter's biggest stumble in today's Scripture. Please listen to it again in vs. 69-74:

69. Now Peter sat outside in the courtyard. And a servant girl came to him, saying, "You also were with Jesus of Galilee.''

70. But he denied it before them all, saying, "I do not know what you are saying.''

71. And when he had gone out to the gateway, another girl saw him and said to those who were there, "This fellow also was with Jesus of Nazareth.''

72. But again he denied with an oath, "I do not know the Man!''

73. And after a while those who stood by came to him and said to Peter, "Surely you also are one of them, because your speech betrays you.''

74. Then he began to curse and swear, saying, "I do not know the Man!'' And immediately a rooster crowed.

*The other Gospels give us more details, but all tell us that Peter denied the Lord 3 times, just as Jesus said His disciple would. Peter's stumbling block here was dishonesty, and that is a huge problem in our society. How can we really trust each other if we are not honest with each other?

*And we must be open and honest about our Christian testimony. We must not keep silent about our Savior! But even Peter did. When he was first asked about Jesus, Peter pleaded ignorance in vs. 70, and replied, "I do not know what you are saying.'' Then in vs. 72 Peter denied with an oath, "I do not know the Man!'' And in vs. 74 Peter began to curse and swear, saying, "I do not know the Man!''

*Well, we may think that we've never denied the Lord. But don't we deny Jesus by keeping silent when we ought to be speaking up? And the hard question for us today is this: "Is there anything in our lives that says: 'I do not know Jesus Christ.'"? Those are some of our potential stumbling blocks.

2. SO REMEMBER THE WAYS THAT WE CAN STUMBLE. BUT ALSO REMEMBER THAT THE LORD SEES US.

*Do you care about how people see you? Usually we do, don't we? And that's okay up to a point. God wants us to live our best lives as followers of Jesus Christ. As the Lord said in Matthew 5:16, "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven."

*But the most important thing is how the Lord sees our lives. This was a huge part of the story on the night that Peter denied Jesus. Verses 74-75 here tell us that Peter "began to curse and swear, saying, "I do not know the Man!'' And immediately a rooster crowed. And Peter remembered the word of Jesus who had said to him, 'Before the rooster crows, you will deny Me three times.' Then he went out and wept bitterly."

*The Holy Spirit did not lead Matthew to mention Jesus seeing Peter, but Luke 22:59-62 says:

59. Then after about an hour had passed, another confidently affirmed, saying, "Surely this fellow also was with Him, for he is a Galilean.''

60. But Peter said, "Man, I do not know what you are saying!'' And immediately, while he was still speaking, the rooster crowed.

61. And the Lord turned and looked at Peter. And Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how He had said to him, "Before the rooster crows, you will deny Me three times.''

62. Then Peter went out and wept bitterly.

*When the Lord turned and looked at Peter, he realized that Jesus saw him. And we need to remember that the Lord sees us too, and not just on the outside. God sees into the deepest parts of our hearts. Many Scriptures confirm this truth.

*For example, when the Lord chose David to be king, the prophet Samuel only knew that the new king was going to be one of Jesse's 8 sons, and Samuel invited them to a sacrifice. But the prophet did not know that young David was off taking care of the sheep. Samuel assumed that one of the sons at the sacrifice would be the new king, and he started with Eliab, the oldest.

*1 Samuel 16:6-7 tells us, "So it was, when they came, that he looked at Eliab and said, 'Surely the LORD'S anointed is before Him.' But the LORD said to Samuel, 'Do not look at his appearance or at the height of his stature, because I have refused him. For the LORD does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.'''

*God looks at our hearts, and He sees us all. Proverbs 5:21 says, "The ways of man are before the eyes of the Lord, and He ponders all his paths." Hebrews 4:13 says, "There is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account."

*God sees into our hearts. King David knew this, and in Psalm 69:5-6 David prayed, "O God, You know my foolishness; And my sins are not hidden from You. Let not those who wait for You, O Lord GOD of hosts, be ashamed because of me; Let not those who seek You be confounded because of me, O God of Israel." The Lord sees us completely, even into our minds. Remembering this truth can help us in two important ways.

[1] ONE WAY IS THAT IT CAN HELP US BE ASHAMED.

*When Peter realized that Jesus saw him, he remembered that Jesus had said: "Before the rooster crows, you will deny Me three times." Then Peter went out and wept bitterly, because he was very ashamed. There are times when God's people need to be ashamed. And the more we remember that the Lord sees us, the more we will be careful about stumbling.

[2] BUT REMEMBERING GOD SEES US CAN ALSO HELP US BE ASSURED.

*It can give us the kind of assurance that the LORD gave to Moses when He appeared to him in the burning bush. In Exodus 3:6-8 God said, "I am the God of your father the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.'' And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look upon God. And the LORD said: "I have surely seen the oppression of My people who are in Egypt, and have heard their cry because of their taskmasters, for I know their sorrows. So I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up from that land to a good and large land, to a land flowing with milk and honey. . ."

*Remembering that Jesus sees us can help us be ashamed when necessary, but it can also help us be assured.

3. SO REMEMBER THAT THE LORD SEES US. AND REMEMBER THAT JESUS WILL STEER US IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION.

*In today's Scripture we have seen one of God's finest servants at his worst. But Peter found out that failure isn't final. How did he do it? How did Peter bounce back? The answer in short is Jesus!

[1] YOU SEE, PETER HAD ALREADY HEARD SOME REASSURING WORDS FROM THE LORD.

*It happened in Luke's Gospel just before Jesus told Peter how he was going to utterly fail the Lord that night. The agonies of the cross were still ahead, but Jesus was already looking forward to His resurrection. And He gave a special word of encouragement to Peter.

*In Luke 22:31-32, "The Lord said, 'Simon, Simon! Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren.'''

*Peter heard some more reassuring words on the first glorious Easter morning when Jesus rose again from the dead. Peter was singled out by the angel at the empty tomb. Mark 16:5-7 tells us that when the women entered the empty tomb:

5. . . They saw a young man clothed in a long white robe sitting on the right side; and they were alarmed.

6. But he said to them, "Do not be alarmed. You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He is risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid Him.

7. But go and tell His disciples AND PETER that He is going before you into Galilee; there you will see Him, as He said to you.''

*How did Peter bounce back? He heard some reassuring words from God. And Christians, so will we!

[2] BUT PETER ALSO HEARD SOME CHALLENGING WORDS FROM GOD.

*It happened on the shore of the Sea of Galilee after Jesus rose again from the dead. In John 21 Peter dove into the water to race to Jesus as fast as he could. Then he heard the challenging words of the Lord's three questions: "Do you love me?" "Do you love me?" "Do you love me?"

*How did Peter bounce back? He heard some challenging words from the Lord. And Church, so will we.

[3] BUT PETER ALSO RECEIVED THE HOLY SPIRIT OF GOD.

*That was in Acts 2, as the Holy Spirit came with the sound of a mighty rushing wind. And Peter never denied the Lord again. In fact, when Peter was hauled before the same men who crucified Christ, Peter boldly spoke the truth about Jesus.

*Acts 4:5-12 says:

5. And it came to pass, on the next day, that their rulers, elders, and scribes,

6. as well as Annas the high priest, Caiaphas, John, and Alexander, and as many as were of the family of the high priest, were gathered together at Jerusalem.

7. And when they had set them (i.e. Peter and John) in the midst, they asked, "By what power or by what name have you done this?''

8. Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, "Rulers of the people and elders of Israel:

9. If we this day are judged for a good deed done to the helpless man, by what means he has been made well,

10. let it be known to you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead, by Him this man stands here before you whole.

11. This is the 'stone which was rejected by you builders, which has become the chief cornerstone.'

12. Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.''

*How did Peter bounce back? He received the Holy Spirit of God. And Christians, so have we!

CONCLUSION:

*But sometimes, just like Peter, we will stumble too. There's no doubt about it. We can, and we do. So the Lord wants us to learn some important lessons from Peter's awful stumble: Remember the ways that we can stumble. Remember that the Lord sees us. And remember that the Lord will steer us in the right direction. God will help us when we stumble! -- Thank the Lord!

*But if Jesus Christ isn't your Lord and Savior, please know that Jesus died on the cross for your sins too. And our risen Lord will give you an everlasting home in Heaven, if you will receive Him today. Put your trust in Jesus! Call on the Lord to save you now, as we go back to God in prayer.

Closing in on the Cross of Jesus Christ - Part 7: God's Help for His Stumbling Saints