Untitled Sermon

This morning we are picking back up in the Gospel of Mark.

If you are new to MCF, it would be good for you to know that we practice a form of preaching called “Expository Preaching”. What that means is we believe the Bible is best taught by taking books of the Bible and then studying them from beginning to end, chapter by chapter, verse by verse, in order to understand what they mean in our lives today.

Currently we are working our way through the Gospel of Mark. A gospel that was written primarily to teach us who Jesus is, what he came to do, and what it means to follow him.

With that said, as we come back to our study today, we find ourselves back in chapter 14. You may recall this chapter introduces us to the final moments leading up to the betrayal, arrest, and trial of Jesus.

Last week we witnessed the final meal Jesus would have with his disciples, a meal often referred to as “The Last Supper”. It was at this meal Jesus identified the one who would betray him, a man named Judas Iscariot. It was also at this meal where Jesus symbolically foretold his plan of salvation. A plan that would involve his body broken and his blood spilt for our sins.

And now, with the clock ticking down, we are just moments away from Jesus’s arrest as Jesus and his disciples make their way out of the city. Mark writes, “And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.” (ESV)

Mark says, as they close out the passover meal, they begin the short journey across the Kidron Valley to the Mount of Olives, where Jesus will spend his final moments of freedom praying in the Garden of Gethsemane.

But as they journey towards the garden, Jesus has one final proclamation or prediction to make, a prophecy so to speak. A prophecy concerning the future behavior and loyalty of his remaining 11 disciples. And as were going to see in a few moments, it’s a prophecy that’s going to ignite some emotion in the disciples and create some tension between Jesus and his disciples.

So, that’s where we are as we come back to our study today. However, before we get into the passage, I want to begin by giving us some framework for what we are about to read.

However, before we get to the prophecy and the disciples response to the prophecy, I want to begin by giving us some framework for what we are about to read. So in order to do that, and help us get our minds and hearts engaged, I want to begin by asking you a few key questions.

But before they get to the garden, Jesus has one final prediction to make, a prophecy so to speak. A prophecy concerning the future loyalty of his remaining 11 disciples. Listen to what Mark tells us:

Question 1- Have you ever had somebody you cared for, without good cause or reason, question your commitment or loyalty to them?

For example, maybe you were dating someone or maybe you’re married, and you’ve been faithful in the relationship, but out of no where they accused you of cheating on them.

Or maybe after years of faithful service and commitment to your workplace, your boss, out of no where questions your loyalty to the company.

Or maybe after years of friendship, out of no where, and for no good reason, a close friend questions your love and concern for them.

I think we’ve probably all experienced something like that. We’ve all been in a situation where from our perspective, our commitment or loyalty was unjustly questioned.

So, let me ask you this, when that happened, how did it make you feel? What emotions did it stir in you?

You probably were offended, right? Maybe even hurt. I mean, after all, you’ve done, after the hours you’ve spent, after the investment you’ve made, after everything you’ve given, how could he, how could she, how could they question your commitment and loyalty.

Have you ever experienced emotions like that?

Question 2 - Have you ever made a promise or commitment to someone? I think we probably all have, right?

For example, if you’re married or you’ve ever been married, when you stood at the altar, and you looked into the eyes of your future spouse, you made some promises. You promised to never leave them or forsake them. You promised to take care of them. You promised to love them no matter what. You promised you’d stay with them until death do you part. You made some promises.

Maybe in your workplace, when you were hired, you made some promises to your employer. You promised to always be on time. You promised to give 100% to the job. You promised a certain level of commitment.

Maybe you’ve made some promises in other relationships. You made promises to a family member, a friend, or a co-worker. You promised you’d never drink again. You promised you’d never lie again. You promised you’d never betray them. You promised you’d always be there. You promised you’d always have their back, no matter what. Again, I think we can all relate with that.

The truth is, at some point in time, and in a multitude of situations, we’ve all made promises.

So, let me ask you this. When it comes to your promises, have you always been true to your word? In other words, have you kept all your promises?

Unless I miss my guess, I’m going to say, probably not. In fact, I’m willing to bet, that despite our good intentions, despite our strong convictions, despite our emphatic commitments, we’ve all failed in keeping some of our promises.

One more question:

Question 3 - In those situations where you failed to keep your promise(s), how did those affected by your failure respond?

For example, how did your spouse respond when you didn’t keep your marriage promises? Were they hurt? Did it drive a wedge in your relationship? Did it cause some friction? Did it bring shame? Did they forgive you? Or, did it maybe even result in a separation or divorce?

In your workplace? How did your boss respond when you were consistently late? How did he/she respond when your job performance didn’t meet promised expectations? Did he/she get angry? Did you get written up? Did your hours get cut? Did you possibly even lose your job?

What about other relationships? How did your kids respond when you failed in your promises as a parent? How did your co-workers respond when you failed to come through on that project? How did your close friend respond when you unintentionally or maybe even intentionally stabbed them in the back? How did your failure to keep your promises affect those relationships?

Again, unless I miss my guess, I’m going to say your failure to keep some of your promises has caused some relational friction. It’s caused some distrust. It’s caused some hard feelings. It’s led to some hard conversations. It’s had some consequences.

Because the truth is, unkept promises often bring tension, separation, and in some cases, maybe even loss. The loss of a friendship. The loss of a marriage. The loss of a job. The loss of respect. The loss of trust. And the list goes on.

Now, at this point, some of you might be thinking, “Ok pastor, where are you going with this? This is kind of depressing. Why bring this up?”

I bring it up for three reasons:

First, like it or not, this is the reality of human relationships. The reality is, despite all our good intentions, despite all our best efforts, at the end of the day, we’re going to make promises and we’re going to break promises. And and as a result, people are going to get hurt. Trust will be lost. And in the end, relationships are going to be challenged, weakened, and in some cases, destroyed.

For example, as a Christ follower, you’ve promised to turn from sin and forsake you’re old life. You’ve promised to make Jesus Lord of your life in every way. Lord over your home. Lord over your finances. Lord over your work. Lord over your kids. And the list goes on. Bottom line, as a Christ follower you’ve made some substantial promises to Jesus.

But the reality is, just like all your other relationships, there are going to be promises you’ve made to Jesus that you don’t keep. There are going to be moments when your good intentions fail. Situations where you spiritually don’t come through for Jesus.

And as a result, there are going to be moments when your relationship with Jesus will be challenged, weakened, or maybe even threatened.

Because just like any relationship, while Jesus will always remain faithful, we will not.

Second, I bring this up because as we come back to , that’s exactly where the disciples find themselves in our passage today. As they find themselves in a situation where their loyalty to Jesus is brought into question, as a prediction of future broken promise is made, and as Jesus responds to this broken promise.

Because as we’re going to see in a moment, the disciples loyalty is about to be brought into question, as a result, promises are going to be made to Jesus that will eventually be broken, and how broken promises are going to be addressed

Realities that will bring their commitment and loyalty to Jesus into question.

Realities that will put them on the offensive.

Realities that will put them on the offensive.

Realities that will affect their future relationship with Jesus.

Third, I bring this up because, just like the disciples, at some point we’re going to find ourselves in a situation where our loyalty to Jesus is in question. Where promises we’ve made to him are broken. Moments when our relationship with Jesus may be challenged, weakened, or potentially destroyed.

Realities they need to be aware of if they’re going to make a commitment to following Jesus. And the fact of the matter is, if they need this lesson, then so do we.

That being the case, it would probably good to know how Jesus responds when promises to him are broken.

So, here’s what I want to do this morning. First, we’re going to read through the passage. And second, I want to give you two realities concerning broken promises and Jesus. So, let’s get started as we come back to , beginning in verse 27. Mark writes:

So, let’s get started as we come back to , beginning in verse 27. Mark writes:

Listen to what Mark says as he recounts this conversation:

“27 And Jesus said to them, “You will all fall away, for it is written, ‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered.’ 28 But after I am raised up, I will go before you to Galilee.”29 Peter said to him, “Even though they all fall away, I will not.” 30 And Jesus said to him, “Truly, I tell you, this very night, before the rooster crows twice, you will deny me three times.” 31 But he said emphatically, “If I must die with you, I will not deny you.” And they all said the same.”

“And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives. 27 And Jesus said to them, “You will all fall away, for it is written, ‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered.’ 28 But after I am raised up, I will go before you to Galilee.” 29 Peter said to him, “Even though they all fall away, I will not.” 30 And Jesus said to him, “Truly, I tell you, this very night, before the rooster crows twice, you will deny me three times.” 31 But he said emphatically, “If I must die with you, I will not deny you.” And they all said the same.” (ESV)

Mark says as Jesus and the disciples make their way to the garden, Jesus makes a startling prediction. Jesus says, “All of you are going to betray me. All of you are going to fall away.”

Here’s the first observation I want to make concerning our relationship with Jesus.

Following Jesus doesn’t mean we won’t fail Jesus.

Mark writes, “And Jesus said to them, “You will fall away...” (ESV)

Mark says as Jesus and the disciples make their way to the garden, Jesus questions the loyalty of his disciples as he makes a startling prediction. Jesus says, “All of you are going to betray me. All of you are going to fall away.”

Now, again, if you’re loyalty has ever been questioned, you can imagine that the disciples probably saw this as a confusing and offensive statement.

Confusing because why would Jesus question their loyalty to him. What would lead Jesus to believe that they would be capable of betraying him. Up to this point, they’d been nothing but loyal and obedient to him. Why would Jesus say something like that.

Offensive because how could Jesus even imply this. I mean after everything they’d given up. Everything they’d done. They’d left their jobs. They’d left their families. They’d forsaken everything to follow him. How could Jesus even suggest that they would do something so despicable.

In fact, we know it offended them because listen to how Peter responds to Jesus’s prediction. In verse 29 Mark writes, “ “Peter said to him, “Even though they all fall away, I will not.” 30 And Jesus said to him, “Truly, I tell you, this very night, before the rooster crows twice, you will deny me three times.” 31 But he said emphatically, “If I must die with you, I will not deny you.” And they all said the same.”

First,

Peter says, “Jesus, you’re wrong. Listen, I can’t speak for the other guys, but I would never deny you. I can’t believe you’d even say that. In fact Jesus, if push came shove, I’d die for you!”

Couple things I want to note about that statement.

Peter is offended. Peter is put off by Jesus’s prediction.

So, how does Jesus respond? Jesus says, “No Peter, you’re wrong. In fact, not only will you deny me once, not only will you deny me twice, but before the night is over Peter, you’ll do it three times. Peter, out of everybody you’re going to be the most disloyal.”

So, what’s going on here, and what does this all mean? Here’s the first reality I want to give you concerning broken promises and Jesus.

Following Jesus doesn’t mean you’ll never fail Jesus.

Jesus says, “You will all fall away...” (ESV)

To be honest, this is critical for every Christian to understand if you’re going to follow Jesus. It’s important that all of us understand that at some point and under certain circumstances, you will fall away. Meaning, you will break some promises we’ve made to Jesus. Here’s what I mean by that.

Some Christians and even some non-Christians seem to have this idea that following Jesus means you have to live a perfect life. That following Jesus means you can never make a mistake. That you can never have a slip up. Never say a bad word. Never make a bad decision. Never have a bad day. And that’s simply not true.

The truth is, at some point in your walk with Jesus, you’re going to stumble. At some point, you’re going to fall. At some point, promises you’ve made to Jesus are going to be broken. None of us are perfect and none of us will ever bat a 1000 on this side of heaven. Following Jesus doesn’t mean you’ll never fail Jesus.

The apostle Paul himself struggled with this reality. Concerning his struggle with sin he writes, “For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate.” (ESV)

Paul says, “Sometimes I find myself doing something I know is wrong and I hate it.” I think we can all relate with that, right? The truth is, we all have moments of weakness when temptation gets the best of us.

For example, I know a lot of Christian men who struggle with pornography. Men who hate what it does to them, hate what it’s doing to their marriage, know they should avoid it, but in a moment of weakness, they give themselves to it. And then afterwards hate what they’ve done.

That’s what Paul is talking about. “For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate.” (ESV)

The bottom line is this, “There are going to be moments in our walk with Jesus where we drop the ball. Where in a moment of weakness we mess up and give into sin.”

Now, I want to be careful when I say that, because some could take that to mean that we have a free pass with sin. That since we’re human, since we’re not perfect, that God understands our sin.

And unfortunately I hear Christians say that from time to time. In the midst of their sin or desire to sin they say things like, “God understands. God knows I’m not going to be perfect. God knows I’m not going to keep all my promises to Him. Thank God for his grace. Thank God for confession. Thank God that I can sin all week and get right on Sunday.” But the Apostle Paul warns us against such thinking. In he writes:

“What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? 2 By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it?” (ESV)

Paul says, “Yeah, I struggle with doing what I shouldn’t do, but does that mean I should continue in it and be ok with it and say, ‘Well, God understands.’?” By no means he says! Why would you do that. How could a person who has given their life to Jesus still want to live in sin!

How could they keep engaging in sexual immorality?

How could they keep engaging in sexual immorality? How could they keep getting trashed on the weekends? How could they continue to live contrary to God’s Word. That’s what Paul is saying.

How could they keep getting trashed on the weekends?

How could they continue to live contrary to God’s Word.

That’s what Paul is saying here.

So, please hear me, I’m not advocating that you go out and sin because God will forgive you. That’s not how faith works. And if you think that, and your’e living that way, then you’re living dangerously. Listen to what the writer of Hebrews says about this, “For if we go on sinning deliberately after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, 27 but a fearful expectation of judgment, and a fury of fire that will consume the adversaries.” (ESV)

The writer of Hebrews says, “God doesn’t look kindly on people who say they know him Sunday, but live like the devil Monday-Saturday. You my friend are living in a dangerous way.” So, let’s be clear, I’m not advocating sinful living because God understands.

However, there are going to be moments when we do sin. Moments when we are trying to live for Jesus but in a moment of temptation or weakness we allow or engage in sinful activity. That’s going to happen.

And that’s what I’m talking about. And that’s what’s going on in this passage. And we know that based on what Jesus says. Because when Jesus says you will all fall away, he uses a specific Greek word to explain the kind of fall that’s going to take place.

So, at this point you might be thinking, “Ok pastor, I kind of get what you’re saying, but I’m also confused. First you say we’re going to sin, that’s just the way it is, and then you say we should avoid sinning and at all costs. So which is it?”

I would say the difference boils down to two types of sin, what you might call intentional and unintentional sin.

Intentional sin is sin we knowingly engage in.

So, let’s start with unintentional sin, and to do that let’s look a little closer at our passage. When Jesus says you will all fall away, he uses a specific Greek word for fall.

The Greek word is “skandalizo”. The word literally means “to cause someone to experience anger or shock because of what has been said or done.” In other words, it’s a falling that comes as a result of a shocking, disturbing, or unexpected circumstance. It’s something you didn’t see coming or weren’t prepared to deal with. It caught you off guard.

Let me explain it like this, because I think we’ll all understand this scenario. Let’s say you’re in a public place and somebody goes on a shooting spree. The truth is, in that moment, most people would fall away. In other words, when the shooting starts, they would run and take cover or runaway quickly from the situation. That’s true, right? Most would.

So, when Jesus says, “You will all fall away”, what He’s implying is that something is about to happen that is going to take the disciples off guard. Something that is going to shake their faith. Something that is going to rock their good intentions. And in that moment, they’re going to falter. In that moment, they’re going to do something they didn’t intend on doing. Unintentionally, they’re going to go back on their promise to never deny Jesus.

And we know that based on what Jesus says next. He says, ““You will all fall away, for it is written, ‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered.’ (ESV)

In this context, the shepherd is Jesus and the sheep are the disciples. And Jesus says, “Something is about to happen to me that will cause all of you to scatter, to fall away.” Now, we’ll get more into what Jesus means by that statement in a moment, but it’s that statement that causes Peter to respond and say, “Nope, not me. I’m not going to be scattered!”

Because it’s in that moment that Peter says, “Nope, not me. I’m not going to be scattered!”

And really you can’t blame Peter for saying that, because in the moment, he really means it.

Think of lit like this. When public shootings are reported, I’ve often heard people say, “Well, I can promise you this, if I would have been there I would have tackled the guy and taken him out.” You’ve heard people say that, right?

And while that’s valiant, the truth is, until you’re in a situation like that, you don’t know what you’d do? I mean you’d like to think you’d be the brave one. You’d like to think you’d be the one being interviewed on the news saying, “Yeah when everybody was running away from the gun fire, I was running towards it.”

But the truth is, in a situation like that, your promise and your good intentions might go right out the window. In fact you might be the first one to run the other way, and run the fastest.

So, in the case of the disciples, while Peter says, “I would never do that!”, Jesus says, “Peter, you don’t know what your going to do in the situation I’m referring to, but I do. The truth is Peter, while you have good intentions, while you really mean what you say, a situation is coming when you’re going to deny me not once, not twice, but three times.”

And the fact is, if we read ahead in the passage, we’d learn that Jesus was right. In just a few hours, when the guards show up to arrest Jesus, the disciples are going to split. And by the end of the night, Peter isn’t going to emphatically deny his association with Jesus, not once, not twice, but three times. After Jesus is arrested, listen to how Mark describes his denial:

Mark 14:66–72 ESV

And as Peter was below in the courtyard, one of the servant girls of the high priest came, and seeing Peter warming himself, she looked at him and said, “You also were with the Nazarene, Jesus.” But he denied it, saying, “I neither know nor understand what you mean.” And he went out into the gateway and the rooster crowed. And the servant girl saw him and began again to say to the bystanders, “This man is one of them.” But again he denied it. And after a little while the bystanders again said to Peter, “Certainly you are one of them, for you are a Galilean.” But he began to invoke a curse on himself and to swear, “I do not know this man of whom you speak.” And immediately the rooster crowed a second time. And Peter remembered how Jesus had said to him, “Before the rooster crows twice, you will deny me three times.” And he broke down and wept.

Mark 14:66-72

In a situation Peter promised he’d stand strong, Peter lost courage. Peter broke his promise to Jesus.

First, it means unintentional sin is going to happen.

So, what’s this mean for us? It simply means this, like it or not, there are going to be moments in our walk with Jesus where we don’t intend to break a promise, but we will. Moments where we will sin against our Lord.

Inevitably we will unintentionally do something that dishonors Jesus.

So, a good question might be, “Why do our good intentions sometimes fall through? Why do we falter in certain situations?” Well, outside of us not being perfect, I would say it happens for a couple of reasons.

For some Christians, it’s because like the disciples, in a moment of trial or temptation, we lose courage.

This happens a lot

Second, Jesus predicts how and why this falling away will take place. He does this by quoting a passage from . In the prophet writes, “Awake, O sword, against my shepherd, against the man who stands next to me,” declares the Lord of hosts. “Strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered;” (ESV)

For example, this happens to a lot of Christians in their work environment as they find themselves in less than godly situations. Situations where they intend on standing up for their faith. Situations where they intend to not go with the crowd. Situations where they don’t intend to go to the bar. They don’t intend to use that language. But when the moment comes, and the pressure is on, they falter. So that’s one possibility.

For other Christians it happens because they’re unguarded. In other words, they walk through life not considering the spiritual danger that surrounds them. And as a result, they put themselves in situations that take them off guard and expose them to unneeded circumstances and temptation in their life.

However, as I said earlier, that doesn’t give us license to live how we want. Because while we may have moments where we falter, what we can’t do is be ok with or seek out such moments. We can’t use our fallen state as an excuse for intentional sin.

So, let’s talk about intentional sin for a moment. Intentional sin

For example, When it comes to movies, I’m going to say that most American Christians fail to screen the movies they watch or even consider the rating of the movies they watch. They just rent the movie or go to theatre and hope for the best.

And as they’re watching the movie a graphic sex scene takes place. As they’re watching the movie the F-Word is used 150 times. As they’re watching the movie nudity is displayed. And for an hour and a half to two hours they fill their mind with crap and expose themselves to sinful, immoral, and ungodly desires. And then they wonder why they struggle with pornography. They wonder why they struggle with cussing. They wonder why they struggle with immoral thoughts.

And as they’re watching the movie, low and behold, a graphic sex scene comes across the screen. Whoops, didn’t see that coming.

As they’re watching the movie the F-Word is used 150 times. Uh, didn’t realize there was that much language in this movie.

As they’re watching the movie nudity is displayed. Yikes, didn’t know there was full frontal nudity in this movie.

And for an hour and a half to two hours they fill their mind with crap and expose themselves to sinful, immoral, and ungodly behavior.

And then they wonder why they struggle with pornography.

They wonder why they struggle with cussing.

They wonder why they struggle with immoral thoughts.

That darn devil, he just won’t leave me alone. Could it be, it’s not the devils fault, it’s your fault. That the reason you struggle is because you’re living unguarded. You’re living not considering the spiritual consequences of walking into a movie unguarded.

So, what do we do? How do we avoid losing courage. How do we avoid living unguarded? A couple suggestions.

First, when it comes to sin, we should never say never.

Remember what Peter said when Jesus warned him? Peter said, “Jesus, I would never do that.”

You see, one of the mistakes we could make as Christians is to think that we’re above certain sin. To think that if we were put in a certain situation we wouldn’t cave. So we say things like:

“I would never cheat on my spouse.”

“I would never look at pornography.”

“I would never use that kind of language.”

“I would never lie”.

“I would never treat somebody like that”

And the list goes on. And you know what, maybe you never would. And I hope you don’t. But here’s the problem with saying something like that. When you say something like that two things happen.

First, in that moment you place a bullseye on your back. In other words, you’ve now invited the enemy to take shots at you. And when I say enemy, I’m talking about Satan.

How do I know that? Because it’s what happened to Peter. Listen to the details the gospel writer Luke gives us concerning this same conversation. In Luke’s Gospel Jesus says to Peter, “31 “Simon, Simon, behold, Satan demanded to have you, that he might sift you like wheat, 32 but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned again, strengthen your brothers.” 33 Peter said to him, “Lord, I am ready to go with you both to prison and to death.” 34 Jesus said, “I tell you, Peter, the rooster will not crow this day, until you deny three times that you know me.” (ESV)

Two things I want you to notice. First, notice the warning Jesus gives Peter. He says, “Peter, Satan wants to take you out. He’s looking for an opportunity too undo you. And so Peter, I’m praying for you. I’m praying that your faith won’t fail.”

So, how does Peter responds? Well, let’s start with what he doesn’t say. What he doesn’t say is, “Oh Lord, thank you. Thank you for praying for me. Thank you for the warning. Thank you for interceding on my behalf. If it weren’t for you Jesus, I might have been in big trouble.”

He doesn’t say that. Instead he says, “Lord what do you mean. I’m ready to go to prison or die for you. So, no worries. I appreciate the concern, but I’m good.”

Peter is arrogant and ungaurded. And as a result, Satan now knows how to take Peter down. Peter just opened the door. Peter arrogantly proclaimed, “I’m above that. I would never do that!”. And the enemy smiled and said, “We’ll see”.

You see, when we say “I’d never”, not only are we minimizing the power of the enemy, we are empowering the enemy to take us out. We are inviting him to test us. To prove us wrong. And in that moment we move from relying on God to relying on ourselves.

Number 2, when we say, “I’d never”, we move from God’s strength to our own strength.

When Jesus said, “I’m praying for you”, Peter should have gotten a clue. He should have recognized he needed the Lord’s help. He should have put his trust in what Jesus was providing him. But instead, he relied on his own ability and best intentions. And in the end, he failed Jesus. Because instead of relying on Jesus as the source of strength, he relied on his own strength.

And to be honest, that’s the problem for a lot of Christians. Instead of relying on God’s power to help us, we go into situations arrogantly proclaiming we’re above it and we got it. And that’s exactly what the enemy wants us to do.

So, what do we do? How should we respond? Paul tells us. He writes,“So I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at hand. 22 For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being, 23 but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. 24 Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? 25 Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!” (ESV)

“So I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at hand. 22 For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being, 23 but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. 24 Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? 25 Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!” (ESV)

Paul says, The answer is Jesus. He’s the only one who can deliver me from this body of death. He’s the only one who has the power to help me overcome temptation. The only one with the power to deliver me from evil. The only one with the ability to hold me steady when the enemy tries to shake me. Yes Jesus, pray for me. Yes Jesus, I need your help!

Second, not only should we never say never, we need to live life guarded not unguarded. In other words, if you’re going to follow Jesus, you need to recognize there is an enemy out there trying to take you out. You need to be aware that he is looking for any and every opportunity to destroy you. And so a good rule of thumb would be, along with not putting a target on your back, don’t give the enemy the ammo to shoot at you.

Jesus puts it like this, “Behold, I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves, so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves.” (ESV)

Jesus says live life smart. Be wise, be strategic, do everything and anything you can to maintain your purity and avoid temptation.

So, how about this, maybe instead of just going to any and every movie, you should take some time to screen the movie. To make sure you’re not walking into a spiritual buzz saw. To make sure you’re not getting ready to walk in front of a bullet that the enemy is firing at you.

Let me give you a personal example of something Denise and I do. A couple nights ago Denise and I were looking for a movie to watch. So we saw this movie advertised called “The Heat”. A comedy starring Sandra Bullock and Mellisa McCarthy. And to be honest, it looked really funny.

But we noticed it was “R”, so instead of just watching it, we screened it first. We went to IMDB.com, clicked on the parents advisory, and this is what we discovered concerning the language in the movie.

Sex & Nudity - moderate: When busting into a guy's apartment whom previously meeting in the movie, you see posters in his apartment. One of the naked back and butt of a woman and another showing a woman's chest, her shirt is partially open but no nudity is shown in this one. Sandra Bullock is shown in a bra in one scene. A woman kisses a man in an almost-suffocating way in a bar. Prostitutes are shown wearing very skimpy clothing in a scene. Mild to graphic sexual references and jokes.

Profanity - Severe: Many, many uses of the F-word at least 120+ and its derivatives, multiple uses of 'shit', as well as other language that most surely will offend some. Foul language and swearing is heard literally from the first minute to the last minute in this movie, it is constant and unrelenting and mostly from the character of agent Mullins, (Melissa McCarthy). One use of cunt which was used by a woman in the background, and she said 'kiss my cunt, you twat'. (Only in Extended/Unrated Version) Agent Mullins is a member of an extremely dysfunctional family, virtually all with very foul mouths. When the two agents visit agent Mullins' family home, they are met with anger, bitterness and foul language because in the recent past she had arrested her own brother. He had since been released.

Now, let me ask you something, as a Christian, as somebody who wants to honor God, as somebody who wants to avoid evil, as somebody who wants to avoid temptation. Do you think watching that movie would be a good idea? Probably not. Actually, no probably about it. How about not.

Jesus says, “be wise as serpents and innocent as doves.”

The bottom line is this, if you want to avoid being caught off guard by sin, live smart, live wise, live with the understanding that there is a real enemy out there who wants to take you out.

Now at this point some of you might be thinking, “Well, that’s just great. Thanks a lot Pastor Brad. You’ve done a great job of making me feel like a great big spiritual loser. Yup, I’m guilty of losing courage. I don’t stand up for Jesus like I should. I give into the peer pressure. Happens quite often.

Yup, I’m guilty of living unguarded, I don’t screen movies like you do. I actually watched “The Heat” movie last night. Yup, I’m a spiritual loser. Thanks for pointing that out!”

Listen, my goal isn’t to make you feel like a spiritual loser. In fact, my goal is to help you see that you’re not a spiritual loser. To help you see, that like most Christians, you’ve made some mistakes. You’ve made some poor choices. To help you see that you’re no different than most Christians who are serious about living for Jesus.

To help you see, like most Christians, you’ve done exactly what Jesus said you’d do. You’ve had moments when you’ve fallen away. Moments you lost courage. Moments you lived unguarded.

And guess what, Jesus expected it. He saw it coming. He knew it would happen. Because remember, following Jesus doesn’t mean you’ll never fail Jesus.

Now you might be thinking, “Yeah pastor, but I failed Jesus. I’ve messed up. And you’re telling me it’s normal. You’re telling me not to worry about it. Shouldn’t I feel bad pastor. Shouldn’t I do something about it?”

Yes you should. And this leads us to what Jesus says next. Because after telling the disciples they would fall away, listen to what he says next.

And that’s what makes what Jesus says next so amazing. Because after telling the disciples they would fall away, listen to what he says next.

28 “But after I am raised up, I will go before you to Galilee.” (ESV)

It would be easy to read this and miss what Jesus has just said. Because while our failure has been predicted, in this one statement Jesus predicts our victory. A victory that will come through our faith in him. Because while following Jesus doesn’t mean we’ll never fail him:

And guess what

2. Following Jesus also means Jesus will never fail you.

Notice again what Jesus says. He says, “But...” Gotta love those buts! “But after I am raised up...”

In other words, “After you’ve failed me, I’m not going to fail you. Because after I’ve rose from the dead and conquered the grave. After I’ve paid the price and dealt with your sin. After I’ve provided a way for you to be forgiven… I’m going to be waiting for you. I’m not going to forsake you.”

What Jesus is saying is, “Yeah boys, you’re going to totally drop the ball. You’re going to fall away. You’re going to feel like the biggest spiritual losers. But I’m going to provide a way for you to be restored. I’m going to provide a way for you to make things right. And not only that, I’m going to be waiting for you in Galilee.”

You might say, “What’s the significance of Galilee?” Galilee is where they first met Jesus. It’s where he first called them to follow him. It’s where they first called him Lord. So Jesus says, “Guys, even though you’ve failed me, I won’t fail you. In fact, I invite you to come back to me. Come back to that place we first met. I’ll be waiting. Because I’m still calling you to follow me, and you can still call me Lord.

Isn’t that amazing? That even though we’ve failed him, he doesn’t fail us. He invites us back into relationship with Him.

So, a good question might be, “What do we need to do in order to follow him again? How do we move from failure to follow once again? How do we get to Galilee? How do we get back to that place of right relationship after we’ve failed him?

As we close, I’d like to offer a couple of suggestions.

First, I would encourage you to quit living in condemnation. The truth is, when it comes to your failures, the enemy wants you to believe it’s hopeless for you. He wants you to live in self pity. He wants you to believe you’re to far gone to be saved. He wants you to believe what you’ve done is to horrible to be forgiven. He wants you to believe your a spiritual loser. He wants you to believe the journey back to Galilee is impossible.

It’s exactly what he convinced Judas of. We talked a little bit about Judas last week. Judas Iscariot was the disciple who betrayed Jesus. The disciples who led the soldiers right to Jesus. The disciple who betrayed Jesus with a kiss.

And while we don’t know all that was going on in the mind and heart of Judas, what we do know is in the end, he was sorry for what he’d done. But unfortunately, the enemy convinced him there was no coming back for him. He bought into the lie that the road back to Galilee wasn’t for him. Listen to what the Gospel writer Matthew tells us about his response to his failure.

“Then when Judas, his betrayer, saw that Jesus was condemned, he changed his mind and brought back the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and the elders, 4 saying, “I have sinned by betraying innocent blood.” They said, “What is that to us? See to it yourself.” 5 And throwing down the pieces of silver into the temple, he departed, and he went and hanged himself.” (ESV)

Judas committed suicide. Judas allowed the enemy to convince him that Jesus couldn’t forgive him. That he was a spiritual loser.

And that’s exactly what the enemy wants you to do. He wants you to embrace condemnation. He wants you to believe God can’t forgive you. He wants you to believe the road back to Galilee isn’t for you. He wants you to commit spiritual suicide.

One more suggestion:

Instead of listening to the voice of condemnation, start responding to the Holy Spirit’s conviction.

You see in the midst of our failure, there’s another voice. A voice calling us to repent. A voice that invites us back into fellowship with Jesus. It’s the voice that Peter listened to as he responded to conviction.

Because following his betrayal a couple of things happened.

First, Peter felt great sorrow for his failure. The gospel writer Matthew puts it like this:

Matthew 26:75 ESV

And Peter remembered the saying of Jesus, “Before the rooster crows, you will deny me three times.” And he went out and wept bitterly.

In his moment of failure, Peter felt great remorse. So he wept bitterly.

,

“Strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered;

So, what does this mean? Well, it’s rather theological, so I’ll do my best to explain it.

But unlike Judah, Peter didn’t go out and hang himself. He didn’t lose faith. So, what did he do?

What we have to understand is in its context, is an OT prophecy of promised redemption. A redemption that will come as God allows a foreign oppressor or enemy to strike down rebellious Israel, and as as a result, the people of Israel will be scattered. In other words, they will run for their lives.

Why would God do this? God does this and did this to cleanse the nation of sin and provide redemption for those who turn back to Him. Because it will be through the striking that sin is atoned for, and through the scattering that some of the people of Israel turn from their sins and once again set their eyes upon the Lord.

Well, we don’t have time to go into all the details this morning, but in the end, after Jesus had been raised from the dead, Peter found his way back to Galilee. In fact, he went back to what he was doing when he first met Jesus. He went back to fishing. And while Peter had failed in his promise, Jesus kept his promise. Listen to what the Gospel writer John tells us:

Because it will be through the scattering that the people of Israel turn from their sins and once again set their eyes upon the Lord.

Because it will be through the scattering that the people of Israel turn from their sins and once again set their eyes upon the Lord.

So, by quoting this passage, Jesus is declaring God’s soon coming redemptive action. A redemption that will come as the shepherd, who is Jesus, is struck down in order to deal with sin. And as scattered sheep, his disciples, return back to Him.

“Just as day was breaking, Jesus stood on the shore; yet the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. 5 Jesus said to them, “Children, do you have any fish?”They answered him, “No.” 6 He said to them, “Cast the net on the right side of the boat, and you will find some.” So they cast it, and now they were not able to haul it in, because of the quantity of fish. 7 That disciple whom Jesus loved therefore said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” When Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put on his outer garment, for he was stripped for work, and threw himself into the sea.” (ESV)

Now, the reason it’s so important we understand this, is because this tells us why the disciples will fall away. It’s not because they don’t believe in Jesus. It’s not because they don’t have faith. It’s because in a moment of weakness, they temporarily lose courage. And what I want you to notice is, Jesus already knows this is going to happen.

So, what’s this saying. What it’s saying is,

John says as they were fishing, Jesus stood on the shore waiting for them. And after recognizing it was Jesus, and before the boat heads back to shore, Peter strips down to his skivvies, jumps in the water, and starts swimming towards Jesus. Peter is ready to make things right. He’s not going to let another second go by.

And apparently, Peter doesn’t appreciate the prediction. Offended by the insinuation, Peter basically says, “Well, I can’t speak for the other 10, but I can tell you not me Jesus. In fact, Jesus, if I have to die following you, I’m committed to doing that.”

But apparently Jesus isn’t impressed by Peter’s verbal commitment, because Jesus goes on to say, “Is that right, Peter? Because I hate to tell you this, but before the night ends, you will deny me three times.”

Now, before start digging into this passage, and to help us get our hearts and minds engaged with this passage, I want to begin by giving us some framework for what we just read. And to do that I want to begin by asking you a few key questions.

But again, Peter’s not going to back down. Peter reiterates his stance and emphatically says, “Jesus I would never deny you. Even if it costs me my life, I won’t deny you.” And Mark says, they all agreed and said the same.

For example, maybe you were dating someone and they accused you of cheating on them. Or maybe

-31Mark says, as Jesus and his disciples are walking towards the garden, Jesus makes a startling prediction. Jesus says, “All of you are going to betray me. All of you are going to fall away.”

=

Mark says, as Jesus and his disciples are walking towards the garden, Jesus makes a startling prediction. Jesus says, “All of you are going to betray me. All of you are going to fall away.”

Let me ask you something, “Have you ever had somebody you cared about question your loyalty? SomethingTo be honest, this would have been an offensive statement to the disciples. And as we’re going to see in a moment from their reaction, it did offend them.

28 But after I am raised up, I will go before you to Galilee.”29 Peter said to him, “Even though they all fall away, I will not.” 30 And Jesus said to him, “Truly, I tell you, this very night, before the rooster crows twice, you will deny me three times.” 31 But he said emphatically, “If I must die with you, I will not deny you.” And they all said the same.”

And once on shore, Peter comes face to face with the one he denied and Jesus invites them to sit down and eat with him. And its in that moment that Jesus and Peter address his failure. Listen to what John tells us:

(ESV)

The Reality of Following Jesus

“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.” He said to him, “Feed my lambs.” 16 He said to him a second time, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.” He said to him, “Tend my sheep.” 17 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 everything; you know that I love you.” Jesus said to him, “Feed my sheep. (ESV)

Following Jesus doesn’t mean we won’t fail Jesus.

“27 And Jesus said to them, “You will all fall away, for it is written, ‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered.’ (ESV)

Jesus knows we’re not going to bat a 1000.

Even though we’ll fail, Jesus provides a path to forgiveness.

28 “But after I am raised up...” a (ESV)

Forgiveness comes through

John says, after eating, Jesus asks Peter three times if he loves him. Let me ask you something, “Do you think that’s a coincidence? Do you think it’s a coincidence that Peter denied Jesus three times and now Jesus asks Peter three times if he loves him?

“...I will go before you to Galilee.” (ESV)

So how does Peter respond? After the first time Jesus asks, Peter says, “Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.” Jesus then asks again, “Peter, do you love me?” And Peter once again answers, “Lord; you know that I love you.”

And then Jesus asks a third time, and now Peter gets it. Listen again to what John tells us, “Peter was grieved because he said to him the third time, ‘Do you love me?’”

And Peter says, “Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.” In other words, “Jesus, I know my actions haven’t said it. I know in recent days I’ve failed you. But Lord you know I’m committed to you. You know I’m sorry for what I’ve done. Lord, you know everything. You know that I love you.”

So, how does does Jesus respond? Listen to what he says:

For example, as a Christ follower, you’ve promised to turn from sin and forsake you’re old life. You’ve promised to make Jesus Lord of your life in every way. Lord over your home. Lord over your finances. Lord over your work. Lord over your kids. And the list goes on. Bottom line, as a Christ follower you’ve made some substantial promises to Jesus.

18 Truly, truly, I say to you, when you were young, you used to dress yourself and walk wherever you wanted, but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and another will dress you and carry you where you do not want to go.” 19 (This he said to show by what kind of death he was to glorify God.) And after saying this he said to him, “Follow me.” (ESV)

But the reality is, just like all your other relationships, there are going to be promises you’ve made to Jesus that you don’t keep. There are going to be moments when your good intentions fail. Situations where you spiritually don’t come through for Jesus.

In this moment Jesus makes a new prediction about Peter. Jesus basically says, “Peter, I know you love me. You had a moment of weakness. A moment you lost courage. And I know you’re sorry, because someday you are going to die for me. Someday you’re going to be asked to deny me again, but this time you won’t. This time you’ll stand strong for me. Someday you will crucified for me.”

And then Jesus spoke again the words he first spoke to Peter three years previous. He said, “Follow me”. In other words, “Peter, I forgive you. You’ve been restored. Follow me.

And the fact of the matter is, that’s exactly what Peter did. And from that point on he followed Jesus. From that point on he lived in the victory of the cross and the forgiveness that Jesus provides those who repent. And at the end of his life, when push came to shove, when he was given the choice to deny or die, Peter made a different choice. He choose death as he was crucified upside down for his faith in Jesus.

Here’s what this means for you and I. Like Peter, we can find forgiveness for our failure. Like Peter, we can follow Jesus once again. Because like Peter, Jesus wants to restore us into right relationship with him.

(ESV)

And as a result, there are going to be moments when your relationship with Jesus will be challenged, weakened, or maybe even threatened.

And then Jesus spoke again the words he first spoke to Peter three years previous. He said, “Follow me”. In other words, “Peter, I forgive you, now let’s go.

And the fact of the matter is, Peter

He waits for us in Galilee. He waits for us to come back to that place he first called us. A place of grace. A place of repentance. A place where he forgives our failure and invites us to follow once again.

Let’s Pray