The Cross Offers Hope In Times Of Failure
"Then Jesus told them, 'This very night you will all fall away on account of me, for it is written: I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.’" (Matthew 26:31)The one holiday that Christians can celebrate everyday is Easter. In spite of the trials that Christians face, we have hope every day of the year because of what happened at Easter.
No one understood the hope that the Cross offers more than the Apostle Peter. He was one of Christ’s most trusted disciples and often served as spokesman for the group. Yet, when Christ told his disciples that they would scatter like sheep at the first sign of trouble, Peter defiantly declared, "Even if all fall away on account of you, I never will." (Matthew 26:33)
We know that’s not what happened. The Bible records that Jesus told Peter, "I tell you the truth,…this very night, before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times." (Matthew 26:34)
Peter stayed true to form because as he again staked his claim of loyalty to Jesus, "Even if I have to die with you, I will never disown you…" (Matthew 26:35)
Peter turned his back on Christ just as Jesus had predicted. "To Peter’s credit," as Herschel Hobbs points out, "it should be noted that all of the eleven joined in and said the same thing. Peter had plenty of company—and they all meant it at the time. But they were to learn that not merely physical but moral and spiritual courage is necessary to be true to Jesus."
All four Gospels tell of Peter’s denials. They make no effort to excuse his failure. In fact, even Peter, when he remembered what Jesus had told him, "…wept bitterly." Peter was already repenting for his sin.
Peter truly loved Jesus and Jesus knew his heart. After his resurrection, Jesus made a special appearance to reassure him. Genuine repentance always brings divine forgiveness.
It’s hard to condemn Peter when we look at how we own up to the fact that we have denied Jesus, too. Herschel Hobbs asks, "How often do we move from professing loyalty and making efforts to follow Jesus to doing things that deny him? How often do we deny Jesus by the way we live, speak, or remain silent? Sometimes Christians go to extremes to disassociate themselves from Jesus…Perhaps we all need to join with Peter in bitter tears of repentance."
The hope of Christian faith is played out in Peter’s life. You see, after Jesus forgave Peter, he also commissioned him to "feed my sheep". (John 21:15-19) Isn’t it interesting that in these verses, it was Jesus who asked Peter three times if he loved him and told him three times to feed his sheep? I don’t think that was an accident.
The Bible tells us that Peter, in just a little more than seven weeks after he denied his Lord, preached one of the greatest sermons ever. Some of those present to hear that sermon were probably responsible for Jesus’ death. This time, Peter did not back down. With the courage and conviction that he had once promised, he said, "Therefore let the entire house of Israel know with certainty that God has made him both Lord and Messiah, this Jesus whom you crucified." (Acts 2:36)
Yes, Peter denied Jesus. But his story teaches us that failure does not have to be final and carry lifelong damage with it. Peter wept bitterly and Jesus later told him, "But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers." (Luke 22:32)
Peter stood tall in the early church and certainly has done his part to strengthen fellow Christians. He also kept his promise to die with Jesus. He, too, was crucified. However, because he had denied Jesus, he did not feel worthy enough to be crucified upright, so he was crucified head down, at his own request.
Five Words the World Might Use To Describe A Christian
“Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!” (Isaiah 5:20)We live in a world of moral relativism, a world that does not believe in absolute truths. What’s the difference? Moral relativism believes that man can determine what is true and untrue; what is right or wrong. As Ernest Hemingway said, “What is moral is what you feel good after; what is immoral is what you feel bad after.” But absolute truths, as taught by the Bible, believe that God and not man is the lawmaker. As the Bible says, “Who commits sin also commits lawlessness, and sin is lawlessness.” (1 John 3:4)
Most Christians don’t agree with the concept of political correctness; and expressions like “live and let live” and “to each his own” are not consistent with the truths espoused in the Bible. What all this means is that confrontation is inevitable. Unfortunately, it usually resorts in some pretty ugly name-calling. Here are a few I’ve read in the newspaper over the last couple of weeks.
1. The world often refers to us as religious. But we are not religious. The Apostle Paul made that distinction when he visited Athens in Acts 17. “Men of Athens,” he said. “I perceive that in all things you are very religious; for as I was passing through and considering the objects of your worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: To the Unknown God. Therefore, the one whom you worship without knowing, him I proclaim to you: God, who made the world and everything in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands.”
2. Then there are some who will call us self-righteous. They have yet to understand that while we see, and call, sin for what it is, most of us know that we must view it in the context of the sin in our own lives. That’s why Jesus said to those who were about to stone the adulterous woman, “He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first.” (John 8:7)
3. Just recently, I read a newspaper column, written by a pastor, who suggested that the Church’s reaction to Mel Gibson’s hit movie, The Passion of the Christ, was deplorable. “I love God,” he said, “but I have serious issues with an institution that promotes division, stands in support of wars, and hinders authentic spirituality by forcing everyone to look, act and believe the same thing…Religious fanatics are impervious to learning new things.”
4. How often have we heard visitors to our church comment about the hypocrisy that they see? “Your church is full of hypocrites,” I once heard a friend of mine say. “Yes, I replied. We’re very much like the rest of the world. We, too, have our share of sinners who have yet to accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior.” Ironically, Jesus didn’t care very much for hypocrites either. When the very mention of their name came up, he quoted the Prophet Isaiah saying, “These people draw near to me with their mouth, and honor me with their lips, but their heart is far from me, and in vain they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.” (Matthew 15:8-9)
5. Finally, the latest word I’ve heard associated with Christians is homophobe. In other words, because we believe that homosexuality is a sin, it is assumed that we hate homosexuals. Frankly, we have no one to blame other than ourselves. In our zeal to condemn the sinner, some of us have stepped over the line and condemned the sinner, too. Moreover, we have been more silent about what is wrong within our church than we have when it comes to what is wrong in the world.
Religious, self-righteous, fanatic, hypocrite, homophobe: Jesus said, “You will be hated by all for my name’s sake. But he who endures to the end shall be saved.” (Mark 13:13) Boy was he ever right about that. Thank God he knows me as a Saint.
Faith: The Site of Things Not Yet Seen
"For the Lamb…will lead them to springs of living water." (Revelation 7:17)Fanny Crosby wrote over 8,000 hymns during her lifetime, many of which still appear in today’s hymnals. Hymns like Blessed Assurance, All the Way My Savior Leads Me, To God Be the Glory, Pass Me Not, O Gentle Savior, Safe in the Arms of Jesus, He Hideth My Soul, and Praise Him, Praise Him continue to draw souls to God for both salvation and comfort.
No hymn writer has ever had a clearer vision of Jesus than Fanny Crosby even though she never saw life as it passed right before her own eyes. You see, Fanny Crosby was blinded by an eye infection when she was only six-weeks old. Yet she never allowed her disability to become a handicap. In fact, when she was only eight-years old, she wrote:
Oh, what a happy child I am,
Although I cannot see!
I am resolved that in this world
Contented I will be!
How many blessings I enjoy
That other people don’t!
So weep or sigh because I’m blind
I cannot and I won’t.
I once had a boss who told me that the only difference between an opportunity and a problem is perspective. Fanny Crosby’s story brings life to those words.
The Bible teaches us that "…in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose." (Romans 8:28) But somehow when handicaps and disabilities come our way, we view them as a problem instead of an opportunity.
Jesus taught his disciples that a disability doesn’t have to become a handicap. In fact, the Bible records that Jesus once met a man who was also blind from birth. Jesus’ disciples were puzzled about why infirmities come our way questioned the Master as to why this particular man went blind. Listen to Jesus’ answer: "…this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life." (John 9:3)
Fanny Crosby’s life reminds all of us who allow sickness, disability or some other weakness to get us down that hope is never lost for the Christian who is willing to reach out in faith and trust Christ. She may have never seen a sunrise or a rainbow, but she knew the one who made it all happen. And her faith reassured her that the day would come when He would restore her sight. That’s why she wrote:
When my life is ended and I cross the swelling tide,
When the bright and glorious morning I shall see,
I shall know my Redeemer when I reach the other side,
And His smile will be the first to welcome me.
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