Surviving the Sifting - Luke 22:31-32

Introduction

I recently saw something on social media that stirred up theological thought within me. Someone asked a question why would God kill His own Son for our sins instead of just killing satan? As I pondered of course, any Christian could answer that in a number of ways. We could talk about the will of God, that God would give His best - His one and His only. We could talk about Jesus being the propitiation for our sins and wrong doings that while we were sinners He’d die for us. But while these are right and target answers - none of them would quite answer why God would not just kill satan. Certainly, Jesus who taught the disciples to pray deliver us from evil and lead us not into temptation would just very simply take the tempter away..

This question my brothers and my sisters of the existence of satan and evil in the world has become the reality of so many. That we’d rather live a life void of evil, void of testing of any kind, void of temptation, void of trials. But such questions lead to more questions. If there were no evil how would we freely choose Jesus as our Savior. There would seemingly be no choice as there would be no option of wrong. How then would we bring God glory if we never went through anything, never suffered any temptation? You see when we go through the fire and don’t come out smelling like smoke God gets the glory. When you’ve gone through a pandemic as we have such as has not been seen in nearly 100 years, and you come out in your right mind God gets the glory!

In other words we must ponder the question when we simply want God to just off satan, how would I bring Him any glory and show His power in the earth if there were no satan or temptation to do wrong?

God allows evil to exist in the world in which we live because He wants to bring Himself glory to show the world that I will keep you in the midst of evil if you want to be kept! I hear the church of old in my ear when they use to say “oh to be kept by Jesus!” And some of you can testify today, He has kept me!

Body

So far in this Luke 22 text, it opens with a plot to kill Jesus of which the Bible says satan entered into Judas and Judas became the candidate who would betray the Lord of Glory. Luke moves to the Lord’s supper which is the setting in which Jesus reveals someone who Luke has already revealed will betray Him. He gives a lesson on greatness, that He who is greatest among you must serve. And now He turns his attention to Simon Peter. predicting that Peter will deny Him. In Matthew and Luke’s Gospel their accounts are almost identical to one another. But Luke tells the story to include satan’s part in Peter’s denial. Because if you’re going to deny the man Christ Jesus who you walked with and talked with surely it had to be satan at work in you.

He says Simon, Simon, behold, Satan desires to have you that he may sift you as wheat. Yes, this is the same Simon who Jesus gave a pat on the back to when He asked His disciples who do men say that I the son of man am? He got the answer right - thou art the Christ, Son of the living God. The same Peter who healed by the power of God, saved souls through the power of God. Letting us know it doesn’t matter how spiritual you are, how saved you are, everybody will be sifted.

Simon, Simon, behold, Satan desires to have you that he may sift you as wheat. Two things you’ve got to know about the text the first is when Luke writes “to have you” it is plural. Satan just doesn’t want Simon Peter, he wants all of the disciples. And he doesn’t just want the 12 he wants you and I today. Nobody is exempt from satan’s sifting. The pastor is not exempt, the deacons are not exempt, the trustees are not exempt, the ushers are not exempt, the choir is not exempt, the musicians are not exempt, you, you, you, and you. Nobody is exempt!

The second thing to know about the text is the original language of this text says “satan has obtained you by asking.” What the original language says is that number 1 before satan could bother you he had to ask God for permission. Just as in when God had a conversation with satan in the Old Testament Job Chapter 1 verse 7, have you considered my servant Job? Number 2 what the text tells us is that satan’s request to mess with you has already been approved by God. Number 3 there is nothing you can do to stop it.

He desires to have you the text says so that he may sift you as wheat. In other words not only does he want to have your mind, your will, he wants to completely break you down from the inside out. The connotation here is likened unto the sifting of wheat. In the Bible days, technology has far advanced now, but in Bible days when it was harvest time wheat would be harvested and cut. The wheat would then be held up and the wind would carry away the chaff. The chaff was the part of the wheat that was good for nothing. The wind would carry the chaff away and keep that which was useful. But the indication of the text is not that the chaff would blow away. The indication of the text is that everything would be gone at satan’s sifting. That the disciples would be separated individually and collectively and there would be nothing left of them.

And if you’re still wondering why God didn’t get rid of satan… Jesus was sifted, Simon Peter will be sifted, satan desires to sift the other disciples… you and I can’t be left out. We’ll be sifted just as Jesus was, just as Simon Peter was, just as the other disciples were. But the same God that brought Jesus up Golgotha’s hill, up from the cross at Calvary, into the borrowed man’s tomb and up from the grave is the same God that will be with you. And every time He brings you through sifting, He gets the glory!

You won’t be blown away, shredded to pieces during the sifting. Why? Because God says I have prayed for you. I could only preach two verses of this text because when I got to the “I have prayed for you” my soul got happy. Aren’t you glad this morning that God is praying for you? I can survive the sifting because Jesus survived the sifting. Romans 8:34 let me know that since Jesus survived the sifting… He’s now seated in in heavenly places on the right hand of the father making intercession for us. But just up a little in Romans 8:26, it said likewise the spirit is helping my infirmities when I don’t know what to pray for as I ought. The spirit is making intercession on my behalf with groanings that cannot be uttered.

Jesus is not praying that I won’t be tested. He is not praying that I’d be free from trouble. He’s not praying that my life will be free from difficulty or temptation. But He’s praying that my faith won’t fail. In other words He’s praying that my anchor holds… but not only holds - He’s making sure it grips the solid rock which is Jesus. So that when the storms of life are raging, I know I’ll have an anchor. When the enemy is trying to tear me up left and right, I’ll know I have a hiding place. The Bible says in Isaiah 26:3 that the Lord will keep us in perfect peace who’s mind is stayed on Thee because He trusteth in thee.

If you’re going to survive sifting season you’ve got to learn to trust Him. You’ve got to learn to lean on Him. Don’t be caught between two opinions. Trust in the Lord with all of your heart and lean not to your own understanding in all of your was acknowledge Him and He will direct your path. (Proverbs 3:5)

He’ll direct your path in temptation. He’ll direct your path in a pandemic. Won’t God do it. Can I get a witness? Won’t God do it? Now unto Him that is able to keep you from falling! He won’t let you fall! He won’t let you stumble!

Judas allowed Satan to tear Him apart bringing him to his death after he gave Jesus up for 30 pieces of silver. So what Jesus was telling Peter is you won’t be like Judas! And that’s good news. Because Peter did exactly what Jesus said He’d do. Before the rooster crows, you will deny me three times. But when Jesus lets you know He’s praying for you it means you might fall down. But you’ll get back up. Whatever you do survive the sifting. Don’t you stay down! But get back up again!

I speak over you, you will survive the sifting. You’ve got to survive it. Because once you have been restored from that thing that got you down - you’ve got to go help somebody else either not fall victim to what you did or you’ve got to help them get up as you got up! If I can help somebody as I pass along. If I can cheer somebody with a word or a song… if I can show somebody that their traveling long… I’m gonna change the words - than my sifting will not be in vain.

You haven’t been sifted for nothing. You’ve been sifted to give God some glory and you’ve been sifted to help somebody else get up! Tell somebody don’t stay down, get back up! I’m surviving the sifting. It hurt sometimes but I keep on surviving it. It gets rough sometimes but I keep on surviving it because greater is He that is in me than he that is in the world! Every time I will bounce back because I’ve got a friend and an anchor who’s got my back!

Close

You know the analogy Luke uses in his reference to being sifted as wheat… Wheat can only be sifted to remove the chaff during the harvest time. This lets me know that since Jesus is praying for me that my faith won’t fail, I can have a Romans 8:28 experience in my life and this sifting that the enemy meant for evil will turn around for my good because all things work together… And the harvest that comes from the sifting means that God will allow the chaff - the part of the wheat that is good for nothing to be removed and keep the good stuff for me to use for His glory! God won’t remove satan. But He will keep you during the temptation of satan that in your being kept, He will receive the glory!