Stumbling Blocks to Jesus

Text:

1. Context

a. Jesus asks, “Who do men say that I am?” (v13)

b. Answers from Disciples (v14)

c. Answer from Peter, a great answer! (v16)

i. A high point for Peter!

ii. Jesus blesses Peter

d. Jesus tells His disciples what laid before Him in Jerusalem (v21)

i. Suffering instead of an earthly king?

ii. Peter’s answer. (v22) I don’t want this to happen. “God forbid it!”

1. You can empathize with Peter. He would have spent a few years with Jesus by this time.

2. All of the disciples had a love for Jesus and would not have wanted to see Him die

e. Peter’s Spiritual High Ends!

i. How often do our greatest failures follow our greatest successes?

ii. Jesus rebukes Peter (v23)

iii. Get behind me Satan?

1. Satan was using even Peter to try to stop the work of Jesus!

a. Satan will use those who are the closest to us against us!

2. Can we do the same as Peter? Can we be a stumbling block to the work of Jesus?

a. Yes and no!

i. We can’t stop Jesus from suffering and dying as Peter wanted to, but we can throw a stumbling block before His work that is being done today!

b. How can we do this?

i. BY DOING NOTHING

1. Song 648 in “Praise the Lord” “The World’s Bible”

2. What if our hands, feet, and tongues that Jesus uses to do His work do not do anything?

a. The lost will not be saved by the word

b. The saved will not be encouraged

3. We need to see the importance of our part in the Lord’s work

a. How many lost people do you know that you have done nothing to try to bring to the Lord?

ii. BY FOCUSING ON OUR OWN INTERESTS INSTEAD OF GODS

1. This is what led to the rebuke Peter received! ().

a. Peter wanted HIS will to be done instead of God’s!

b. How guilty of this are we?

i. Just look at what we spend our time doing!

c. Are we guilty of choking the word out of our lives at times? ()

i. We are at times too busy with the cares of the world instead of the cares of God.

d. “The World’s Bible”: v3

iii. BY BEING A BAD EXAMPLE

1. We can lead others away from becoming a Christian by our hypocrisy!

a. Most give this as an excuse for not going to church

b. If we claim to be Christians, people will look at Jesus the way they look at us!

c. “The World’s Bible”: What if the type is crooked? What if the print is blurred?

2. We can cause our brethren to sin by our example!

a.

i. “the rest of the Jews,” “even Barnabas”

ii. Hypocrisy is dangerous, especially when we are looked up to by other Christians

1. If the babes in Christ see those who they view as “mature” doing something, they will think it is ok to do!

iii.

1. Throwing a stumbling block before Jesus’ disciples is not a good thing to do!

iv.

1. Sin is a big deal in what it does to us and to others. We need to take radical action to get rid of it!

iv. BY NOT GIVING OURSELVES FULLY TO THE LORD

1.

a. We need to follow Jesus, denying our selves!

2.

a. The reasonable thing for us to do for the Lord since we have received such mercy is to give ourselves fully to Him.

3. We will be rewarded for our works in this life. Our focus as the Lord’s people needs to be on His will and not ours.

a. “Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. 22 "Many will say to Me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?' 23 "And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; DEPART FROM ME, YOU WHO PRACTICE LAWLESSNESS.'

i. If we are being a stumbling block to the Lord, will this be said of us?