A Look At Peter

Intro

Have you ever felt like someone has given up on you? There are so many things that could attribute to the feeling. Maybe you have a friendship that you realize has kind of drifted apart and you didn’t notice until recently. Maybe you were passed up on a promotion and can’t understand why that would happen. Maybe you woke up one morning and realized you really don’t know the person next to you anymore, and every time you try to fix it, it is met with resistance.

whenever you have that feeling, what is the first thing you do? You try to figure out what you did wrong to cause it. Did I forget an important date? Have I been too focused on my job or my hobby? How did we get to this situation.

Maybe you are all to aware of what you got you here. That mistake you made or that conversation you had is still lingering. Maybe you’ve made the effort to make amends, but i the back of your mind you always wonder if it is going to have lasting effects.

It gets really tough when you start to wonder if God has given up on you. Last week we talked about how each of us is called to serve in some capacity because in light of everything God has done for us, it is the least we give back. But the idea of serving is really tough if you think God is upset with you. For some reason you can be all too aware of the times you have let God down, and the list of disqualifications just start to mount up. Even if you once knew what God was calling you to, you begin to believe that you have made too many mistakes to be of any real value to Him.

This morning we are going to look at someone who was in the same boat. As we dive into the letters of Peter over summer, we are going to start off looking at one of the most prominent of the 12 apostles, Simon Peter.

For context, we are really don’t know much about Peter. We know he was a fisherman with his dad, his brother, and the sons of Zebedee James and John. We know he was married and that is about it.

However, Jesus had some pretty big plans for the first disciple he called.

Matthew 16:13–20 NLT

When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” “Well,” they replied, “some say John the Baptist, some say Elijah, and others say Jeremiah or one of the other prophets.” Then he asked them, “But who do you say I am?” Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” Jesus replied, “You are blessed, Simon son of John, because my Father in heaven has revealed this to you. You did not learn this from any human being. Now I say to you that you are Peter (which means ‘rock’), and upon this rock I will build my church, and all the powers of hell will not conquer it. And I will give you the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven. Whatever you forbid on earth will be forbidden in heaven, and whatever you permit on earth will be permitted in heaven.” Then he sternly warned the disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Messiah.

Simon Becomes Peter

now as it is with much of Jesus’ words, there are some layers to what Jesus just said. First and foremost, the rock on which the church is built is not just Simon Peter. The rock is Jesus Himself, and the truth that He is the Messiah, Savior of the world. This is the unchanging truth that still saves lives today. It is this unchanging truth that the powers hell will try to put out and never will. It is the teachings of Jesus that are the solid foundation of the church and our lives, and the storms of life will never be able to shake.

However, Simon is given the name Peter, which means rock. Jesus is letting Peter know that he is going to be a key piece in the church that Jesus is starting. Not a small calling. You’re the man Peter.

After Jesus declares this over him, Peter proceeds to prove to Jesus that He made the right choice, right? WRONG!

Look what happens immdediately following:

Matthew 16:20–23 NLT

Then he sternly warned the disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Messiah. From then on Jesus began to tell his disciples plainly that it was necessary for him to go to Jerusalem, and that he would suffer many terrible things at the hands of the elders, the leading priests, and the teachers of religious law. He would be killed, but on the third day he would be raised from the dead. But Peter took him aside and began to reprimand him for saying such things. “Heaven forbid, Lord,” he said. “This will never happen to you!” Jesus turned to Peter and said, “Get away from me, Satan! You are a dangerous trap to me. You are seeing things merely from a human point of view, not from God’s.”

Peter makes a few mistakes

not a great start. Peter, with the the best of intentions and without a doubt his heart in the right place, says the wrong thing and gets corrected. You can almost hear the murmuring behind Peter. “Really? This guy?”

Then when the pressure is on, Peter starts to become unglued. In the garden while Jesus is praying, Peter keeps falling asleep. When the guards come to arrest Jesus, Peter pulls a sword and cuts off the ear of the high priest’s servant. Then in the temple courtyard. Peter denies even knowing who Jesus was on three separate occasions. Really? This is the guy that is going to lead the church? Forget Peter questioning it, everyone is starting to question it at this point.

I’m sure you can relate. I know I can! How could I ever be used by God if I keep this up?

Which brings us to the story in John 21. For the sake of time, I will give you a little context and jump to the part I want to focus on. In chapter 20, Jesus has appeared to the disciples hiding in the room. He tells them that as the Father has sent Jesus, so Jesus is sending them. In chapter 21, we read that Peter and 6 other disciples have gone out fishing. Why? Even though they’ve been sent, even though Jesus has told them what to do, they still feel lost, especially Peter. So, he goes back to what he knows: fishing.

They’ve been out all night and haven’t caught anything. You gotta feel for Peter. First, he kind of drops the ball with the whole, building the church disciple thing. Now the one thing he was supposed to be good at, he can’t even do.

When it rains it pours. When you feel like you’ve missed God’s calling, it quickly begins to feel like you can’t do anything right.

Jesus appears and tells the men to throw their nets over the other side of the boat. They do, and catch so many fish the boat begins to sink. They head into shore, and have breakfast with Jesus, and this brings us to v. 15

John 21:15–17 NLT

After breakfast Jesus asked Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?” “Yes, Lord,” Peter replied, “you know I love you.” “Then feed my lambs,” Jesus told him. Jesus repeated the question: “Simon son of John, do you love me?” “Yes, Lord,” Peter said, “you know I love you.” “Then take care of my sheep,” Jesus said. A third time he asked him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” Peter was hurt that Jesus asked the question a third time. He said, “Lord, you know everything. You know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Then feed my sheep.

Do you love me?

Now there are so many ways you could unpack this conversation and there are so many layer we could spend a lot of time unpacking this. But the one thing that everyone agrees on is this is Peter being re-established as the guy. This is where Simon once again becomes Peter, and after this we do not see Simon used again.

But if this was the interview, what you would expect are questions like, “Simon are you sorry for denying me? Are you going to do it again?” Right. Let’s go over all the mistakes you made and make sure you understand that you do not do it again. Let make sure the lessons have really been learned before you get your role back.

But Jesus doesn’t do that. “Do you love me?” Why is it that Jesus simply asks Simon this question? Yes he asked it three times but why that particular question? Because not too long ago, Jesus taught the disciples that if they loved Him, they would keep His commands. If you love Jesus, you will love a life in light of that love. Scripture teaches that love covers over a multitude of sins. Simon knows that Jesus loves him, He just displayed His immense love for the world on the cross. But does Peter love Jesus? If he does, then that is all he needs to be the man Jesus calls him to be.

Peter does just that. For the first half of Acts, you read story after story of Peter becoming a pillar in the early church. It is his leadership that helps the church grow rapidly, miracles happen, and the gospel is opened to the Gentiles. All because he answered the most important question of all: Do you love me?

the good news is that it is all you need too! Do you love Jesus? He loves you, the Scripture talk about endlessly how unfailing the love of God is! Jesus proved His love by dying on the cross to take away your sin so you could have life and life to the full. The question isn’t whether Jesus loves you, it is whether or not you love Jesus?

This doesn’t just apply to your faith. If you want to be the best parent you can be, ask yourself, do you love your kids? Then let your love for your kids fuel your desire to be a good mom or dad. Do you want to be a better husband or wife? Ask yourself, do you love your spouse? Then left your love be the reason for being all you can be for them.

Here is a super practical way to put this into practice. Everyday, identify one thing you love about the person you are interacting with. Not just in your head, but vocalize it. God, I love your patience for me when I mess up. Kids, I love your wild imagination and how you see the world. Honey, I love how you encourage me to keep my priorities straight. Whatever it is, identify and vocalize. The more you do that, the more your love for that person will grow. The more you love someone, the more you want to be the person that loves them the way they deserve to be loved.

The reason this is so important is that it becomes easy to forget why you love someone. If I were to ask anyone if they loved their kids, it is almost a reflex to say, “Yes” or “Of course I do.” But if I press it and ask why, that answer maybe not be so quick. What happens, especially with our spouse, is the things that you once loved about them can become the very thing that annoys you about them. What was once, “I love how spontaneous you are!” becomes, “I hate quickly our plans change! Can’t we come up with a plan and stick to it?” What was once, “I love how ridiculous and fun loving you are,” becomes, “Why can’t you just grow up!?” The thing you once loved becomes the very thing that makes your frustrated.

If you want love to grow, you need identify and vocalize! If your life become fueled by love, you quickly become someone who can make a big difference. It’s how Jesus did it, why can’t you?

Let’s Pray

Discussion Questions

1. What stood out from today’s message?

2. What are some things you believed held you back from following God’s call in your life?

3. How can the question, “Do you love me?” make a difference in yours or someone else’s life?