Get A Little Closer

I. Welcome

A. Grateful to the Lord and our Senior Pastor for another to connect with you. B. I want to take a moment to celebrate my brothers and your campus pastors. A group of extremely gifted humble brothers, hearts to serve and committed to you.

II. Lets take a look at Luke 22:54-62

A. And Peter followed at a distance

B. Let’s talk about “Getting A Little Closer”

C. I understand that the for some “Getting A Little Closer” is uncomfortable. Some people prefer the distance and others hate it. There’s the Ojays kind of distance…my body here with you but mind is on the other side of town. There’s social distance but the kind of distance…when someone you’re beyond close breaks your heart and leaves you wondering if you can trust again.

D. This statement is hard to process. To really appreciate distance…you have have to understand how close they were.

Peter and Jesus were more than friends. Jesus calls those who do the will of the father…his mother, brother and sister,

He tells them to refer to God as Father…and calls them friends because he tells them His father’s. It may be normal to us but they couldn’t even say God’s name and referring to God as father was unthinkable.

And the prediction of Peter’s denial takes place during a Passover meal. Passover celebrates how God delivered his people from the bondage of Egypt. They put blood on their door post and spared the life of everyone covered by the blood of the lamb spread over their homes. Jesus represents the true Lamb of God. “So close” that as Jesus serves communion, one o fhis disciples is learning on his chest while Jesus explains he’s preparing to pay for sin in full. It doesn’t get any closer…Jesus told Peter when I leave…I’m going to build my church on you…gave him a new name. “So close” His government name is Simon but Jesus calls him “Rock.” They were just good friend, they were family, business partners, CMB…Am i my borthers keeper....Nino BrownNew Jack City closee

BUT APPARENTLY THIS WASN’T CLOSE ENOUGH

Communion. Close was mission critical. So much so that Paul continues the communion tradition and says to a church that looks pretty close and very gifted that many of you are weak and sick and number alseep. Failing to reverence Christ’s sacrifice, holding onto forgiveness and being close was so important that people in the church suffered physical sickness and earth. So the members of the Corinthian church need to examine themselves…makes sure there wasn’t anything keeping them from getting close

LIFE IS BETTER WHEN WE’RE CLOSER.

Life is too short not to get closer. Even as I say it…I understand how hard this is. Some of you are already closer…but I’m saying get a little closer. How close?

What does it even mean to get close to Jesus. Well John the one Jesus loved…says how can you say you love God who you can’t see. We are the body of Christ…the way we excute closeness to Jesus is by getting closer to one another.

Like think of it this week each of us has healing power in us but were not close enough to access it. Close enough to become busyness partners. The key to your business really taking off…isn’t in more cash but getting a little closer. Praying for husband or good wife but too busy to get closer to see the person literally sitting next to you.

Think about this…James 5:14 if getting too close can make can us sick…then if we get a little closer can also heal.

III. We can a little closer by loving beyond our limits, landmarks and loses. We can’t get a little closer Jesus without getting closer to each other…package deal.

A. Peter followed at distance. A young woman says “this man was one of Jesus’ followers!”

Peter denies it and syas I don’t even know him. This is shocking because the word know not only implies factual knowledge…like age, height but also experiential knowledge.

This proclamation is clearly false but there is an element the ironically proves true. Peter essential refuses to follow Jesus any further. Jesus predicts the denial, Peter told Jesus I will die before I do that and then does it. It clearly shows that there’s not Jesus a limit with what he’s willing to experience with Jesus but there’s a limit to his understanding of himself.

Story: Whenever there’s limit…God has to help love beyond it. He’s calling you…you act like you don’t hear him. He doesn’t let you off the hook, he will stretch you until you’re willing. All of us have limits…areas in our lives that we can’t pass, we either deny it’s there or…for example for years or as long as I can remember, I battled with shame. Don’t even ask where it comes from. Like any perceived failure triggers it. something small but something big... Making mistakes or being confronted about a wrong…and I’m inwardly embarrassed or have to do some emotinal gynastics. It hate the feeling so much that I will avoid it all cost. If I sensed that you tell what I’m feeling…I would deny and hide behind a smile. Now on one hand it’s good becasue it’s help me to excel academically but on the other hand it bad because it limits growth. Too many of us only try things that we know we can get great remarks…while getter ready…I had trigger this would have register as big on my scale....and I noticed that afterwards, I didn’t feel the shame. I’m telling you 100% sure that I would be stop dead in my tracks and I was like what just happened. Ok let me tell the denial didn’t stop Jesus…it exposed a place where he and Peter weren’t close enough. I don’t know him…whereve you don’t know that Lord…God has to stretch you. See I can relate to Peter because to know Jesus in this way would reqire some painful experience. WE dont’ mind knowing Jesus when up til a point but ...

Illustration: Anyone who ever been pregnant or been around a pregnant knows about this…this is call Cocoa Butter. If you read the description…it says softens and stretch marks. When a pregant hits a certain limit, it becomes inflexible, becomes a little less elastic but there’s something in the lotion that helps skin to stretch and helps minimize stretch marks. You’ve been ducking God…denying him. There’s a place he wants to take you and your response. So what you’re going through to stretch you and get you a little closer.

B. Landmarks

Peter denies a 2nd time

He’s one of them…Galilean…man I am not.

Galilee is special place. Spiritual speaking it’s an important landmark. A landmark is an object or feature of a landscape or town that is easily seen and recognized from a distance, especially one that enables omeone to establish their location. This issue with being from Galilee wasn’t just about own…but it assocated it him Jesus.Jesus was born in Nazareth but lived in Galilee for 30 yrs.

Galilee was north of Judea. Most of the people who lived were not full Jews. Galilee was fertile. It’s the sight of Jesus first miracle…turning water into wine. Jesus picked team from among a rough bunch of brothers from Galilee. They didn’t go to bible school…they

Peter died being Galilean but the reason they called…Jesus is the landmark. When you come to Jesus, Jesus becomes bigger than where you’re from....or been through.

Jesus chose his family from Galilee by design…because no matter what everyone else thinks about your Galilee…the moment you make Jesus your landmark…Galilee becomes a special place.

When you love beyond your landmarks...You are from Jesus…that