Luke 22:31-36
31 And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath
desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat:
32 But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not:
and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren.
33 And he said unto him, Lord, I am ready to go with
thee, both into prison, and to death.
34 And he said, I tell thee, Peter, the cock shall not
crow this day, before that thou shalt thrice deny that thou knowest me.
35 And he said unto them, When I sent you without purse,
and scrip, and shoes, lacked ye any thing? And they said, Nothing.
36 Then said he unto them, But now, he that hath a purse,
let him take it, and likewise his scrip: and he that hath no sword, let him
sell his garment, and buy one.
SIFT - To put (flour, for example) through a sieve or
other straining device in order to separate the fine from the coarse particles.
To apply by scattering with or as if with a sieve. To examine and sort
carefully.
I remember when I was a young boy, I would watch my grandmother
preparing to bake bread (the best bread I’ve ever eaten) she would use an old
hand operated flour sifter. It was a simple little contraption that consisted
of a tin can with a handle on the outside, a screen in the bottom on the
inside, and a crank that turned a wire against that screen. Flour wasn’t as
fine as it is now back then, and it always needed sifting to get rid of the
lumps. The fine particles that made it through were used in the baking process
but there were always some rock-hard pieces left over that were useless and
were thrown away.
Likewise, our lives are placed through a sifter. Every day
of our lives, as believers, the crank is turned, and the coarse parts of our
sinful, fleshly nature are revealed so that these character flaws can be
discarded.
Satan’s desire is to destroy those that love Jesus! He is
ever standing before the Father in heaven pointing his fingers of accusation
against the Child of God, trying to prove that he has legal right to their
immortal soul.
Friends, we need to be alert, because the devil knows how to
sift us. He knows what strings to pull to fire up our anger. He knows what
financial pressure will do to our blood pressure. He knows how to trigger our
impatience. He knows how to “get under our skin” and get us frustrated.
"…for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which
accused them before our God day and night." – Revelation 12:10
Jesus’ warning to Peter is the same to you and me today.
Satan is trying to sift you, to destroy all that you are and to break your
spirit, your heart, your family, and your faith in God.
Every time there is a problem with your kids, Satan is
sifting. Every time you can’t pay a bill even though you work hard and are
financially responsible and trying do your best to keep up – Satan is sifting. Every
time you get angry for any reason – Satan is sifting. Every time you have a
temptation to do wrong – Satan is sifting. The sifting process never stops, and
it is very uncomfortable.
It’s never pleasant to realize that there is still some
impatience within us, to see that there are lumps of anger that still exist, or
that we have a lumpy, weak faith in God. But we have an Advocate with our
Father!
"My little children, these
things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an
advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:" – 1 John 2:1
"But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not:
and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren." – Luke 22:32
Jesus is not just a defense lawyer who stands in our defense,
He holds the title deed to our soul and our life. If we belong to Him and Satan
can’t touch us without the permission of my owner.
What has Jesus done for me in order that He can stand in my
defense? He is our Propitiation (our Sin-offering) - I John 2:2, “And he is the
propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the
whole world.”
He is our Redemption - 1 Corinthians 1:30, “But of him are
ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and
sanctification, and redemption.”
He is our Righteous Judge - 2 Tim 4:8, “Henceforth there is
laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge,
shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love
his appearing.”
He is our Righteous Servant - Isaiah 53:11, “He shall see of
the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my
righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.”
He is our Righteousness & Sanctification -1 Corinthians
1:30, “But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom,
and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption:”
He is our Witness - Rev 1:5, “And from Jesus Christ, who is
the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the
kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his
own blood.”
Friends, I don’t know about you, but I’m so glad that Jesus
is on my side in the battle for my soul. Though Satan tries to sift us and to
destroy us, he can never accomplish his mission because of Jesus Christ. The
same command that Jesus gave to Peter is for us also.
Summarizing: Peter, when you make it through the sifter and
Satan has done his worst, you are going to come out on top. Your faith will be
tested, tried and even found weak but you are going to make it through
victoriously. Not because of your own power or ability, but because Jesus is
making intercession for you and Satan cannot go further than I will allow him
to. Then, Peter, go and strengthen your fellow disciples because many of them
aren’t as strong as you. Their faith will be weak also, they are going to run
in fear, denying their knowledge of me and they are going to emerge from the
events of my death on the cross with disillusioned hearts, doubts over the
reality of my power, and doubts over their own actions. Peter, your name may
mean “rock”, but your name doesn’t matter. What matters is that you are founded
upon a rock.
Psalms 40:2, "He brought me up also out of an horrible
pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my
goings."
Zechariah 4:6, " Not by might, nor by power, but by my
spirit, saith the LORD of hosts."
Friends, you can’t overcome Satan on your own, but by the
power of the Holy Ghost and through the Blood of the Lamb you can, and you will
overcome. Your victory over the sifting process will become a great part of
your testimony. You will be much stronger for having faced the process. Then
you will be able to help your fellowman as they face that same sifting process
to build their faith and let them know that they will make it too because of
Jesus Christ.
Peter made a mistake. Don’t you make it too! "And he
said unto him, Lord, I am ready to go with thee, both into prison, and to
death. And he said, I tell thee, Peter, the cock shall not crow this day,
before that thou shalt thrice deny that thou knowest me." – Luke 22:33-34
Peter was already being sifted while Jesus was cautioning
and encouraging him. Satan had already begun to work on Peter’s heart, mind and
attitude. Peter’s pride in his own spirituality and in his physical strength
was his downfall. The devil had already stoked the fire of pride in Peter’s
mind and it had already caused a stubborn, and self-reliant attitude within
him.
Brothers and sisters, please realize that you have no power
to fight the devil on your own. You are never going to be such a spiritual
giant that you can overcome satanic attacks on your own. It’s still by the
Spirit of the Lord that you will overcome and win any battle or come through
the sifting process in victory.
All of us are being sifted, each of us has our weak points, and
you can be certain that the devil knows what they are. He is trying to break
you right now even while you read this message. Don’t let him win. Keep your
faith in Jesus.
Jesus already knows that you are going to fail in some of
the tests that come your way. He already knows that you are not strong enough
to resist the sifting process, otherwise He would not have to pray and
intercede for us. Jesus knew Peter was going to deny Him, He knew Peter would
fail, and He knows you and I just as well.
But Jesus also knows that the Father in Heaven will hear
Jesus’ prayer and He will never fail us.
"And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall
never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which
gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my
Father’s hand. I and my Father are one." – John 10:28-20
Jesus will never fail you. He will bring you out victoriously.
Jesus didn’t die on the Cross to purchase your salvation just to turn around
and allow the devil to steal your eternal life. Stay close to Jesus, make your
heart a heart after God even as David did and God will see you through.
When the sifting process is pressing down hard, and the
grating away at your character is painful and it seems that you just can’t
stand it any longer, just look up to Jesus and remember His promises to you.
"And we know that all things work together for good to
them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose." –
Romans 8:28
"Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make
your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall:
For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting
kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ." – 2 Peter 1:10-11
What a great promise! You shall win. You can’t lose! Heaven
is waiting, your mansion is built, and God has established your way and
designed an eternal life for you. One day the sifting process will end. Satan
will have done his worst but my Advocate, the Lord Jesus Christ, my God will
win this battle for me. I have nothing to fear.
When it seems that you can’t go another mile, that your
efforts for the work of Christ are in vain, and that you are going down for the
last time, LOOK UP! Your redemption draws near and Jesus is coming to take us
away!
Amen Amen
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