Witness Protection Program Luke 22
Witness Protection Program Luke 22:31
I am quite sure that all of you have seen some movie or news broadcast of a person who has decided to turn states evidence. That means that the person turns against those he or she once ran with in order to save themselves. This happened pretty frequently while I was living on the East coast, for some nine years or so. For a while there every night I would turn on the news and some mob guy had been killed. This went on for a while until the government was able to get some of the criminals to turn states evidence and enter into the witness protection program. The witness protection program would change their name, relocate them out of their old environment and provide a source of protection more powerful than the one that would be coming against them. And as long as the individual abided by the rules, testified to the truth, and lived a life completely different form the old one he stayed under the protection of the program. It should be evident by now that the protection is conditional. Everyone under the sound of my voice probably thinks and is self-assured that they have it going on as far as it goes with the things of God.
And the Lord said Simon, Simon
Why did Jesus go back to the old name of Simon instead of Peter? Let me use my spiritual imagination and say that Jesus wanted to imply that Peter would act in accord to his old nature. When we were in the world they had some names for use other than our Christian names
Satan has desired to have you –
Why does Satan show up at this particular time?
Why does Satan want Peter and the decuples?
Satan has desired to have you – Look at this closely, desired is in the past tense. This means that Satan has asked for permission and has received it form God to test the disciples . The same as he did for Job. The significance for us here once we get to a certain level of yielding to the will of God in our spiritual growth ,the attack and the testing is coming. Look at Job and how he worshiped God. Satan wants Peter and the disciples because of the decision that they have made to follow after the Lord is that he has also asked for permission to To be tested the same way as Job.
Sift you as wheat – To sift as wheat means to throw the wheat into the air so the chaff bows away. What is the chaff is a Christian’s make up. Picture this the sum of everything that you are is there on the threshing floor before God and God allows you to be put to the testing. That is actually allow trouble and trials to come you way. If like when you are toss about if more blows away that that which was left then what were you made of in the first place. As in the introduction of this message when it comes time to testify and you have nothing to say then why do you deserve the protection of the government of for that matter in the spiritual sense the protection of Jesus.
Heb 7:25