HEROES & VILLAINS:
Peter: A Hero Makes a Mistake
Luke 22
JUDAS BETRAYAL vs. 1-6
Judas held a secret meeting with the two groups that had to be involved if
Jesus was to be arrested. The chief priests & the officers of the temple guard.
The arrest of Jesus began with unfair, unjust practices and continued on that
track until he died. The arrest involved the betrayal by a friend, a friend
possessed by Satan. Satan took advantage of Judas’s wickedness and used him
as a tool against Jesus. Judas made himself available to be controlled and
manipulated by Satan.
Application: Judas is a warning for all believers to guard their hearts and minds
vigorously and not give way to Satan’s schemes and strategies.
PETER’S SELF CONFIDENCE vs. 31-34
Impetuous, brash, self-confident Peter did not get the picture. He vowed his
faithfulness until death. He was confident he could do it. Jesus brought Peter
back to reality quickly. You will not be faithful as you promise, Jesus told him.
Today you will deny me three times.
Observation: God’s plan sometimes allows the powers of darkness to win a
victory over God’s people, but the victory is always short-lived.
JESUS PRAYS vs. 39-46
Prayer was not a small thing for Jesus. It was a time of anguish as he sought
God’s will for his life. He became so emotionally involved that he perspired
profusely, dropping from his skin as if each drop of sweat were as a drop of
blood. Theologian Herschel Hobbs put it like this, “With a physician’s touch
Luke says that his ‘sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the
ground.’ He broke out into a bloody sweat which became clotted blood.”
Application: Just like us, Jesus faced a difficult decision and suffered emotional
distress while he tried to make it. Prayer was a way of life for Jesus; make
prayer your way of life.
I DO NOT KNOW HIM vs. 54-62
Peter joined the crowd around a comfortable campfire. A slave girl quickly
noticed him and then another passerby noticed Peter, and one more time
another face in the crowd spoke up, recognizing the Galilean accent. Each time
Peter offered a denial, “I don’t know what you are talking about.” Three times
he had denied any knowledge of Jesus. He now belonged to the crowd and to
the devil. Satan had sifted him and found him wanting.
A rooster’s crow made Peter realize what he had done. Reinforcement came in
one glance from Jesus. Jesus’ words stabbed their way into Peter’s memory:
“Before the rooster crows today, you will deny me three times.” The brashly
self-confident man disappeared. Now he distanced himself from the crowd.
Outside by himself, he wept bitter tears. Grief overwhelmed him. The grief was
as deep as Judas’ later proved to be, but the response and actions would be
quite different. Guilt led Judas to suicide. It led Peter to Pentecost.
Observation: The strongest disciple of Jesus can fall prey to Satan’s
temptation and deny Him, but such denial brings bitter sorrow and guilt.
CONCLUSION: Defeat Is Not Final
In Luke 22, Satan tried to take charge of Judas, Jesus, Peter, and the other
disciples. He succeeded with Judas. He succeeded for a brief moment with
Peter. He controlled the Jewish religious leaders, because God had granted him
his hour of darkness. But Satan never succeeded with Jesus. Jesus prayed his
way through the moments of temptation and the moments of wanting to do
his own will rather than the Father’s. He yielded his life to follow the Father’s
will even if that meant going through the pain and mockery of an unjust trial
and being crucified. Through it all Jesus revealed the glory of God and showed
that as the Son of God he would become the judge of the universe.
Life Application: Jesus’ example stands before you as you face the unfair
situations of life. Will you give in, as Judas and even Peter did? Or will you resist
the devil, pray your way through temptation, and endure the world’s injustice
to testify to God’s goodness?
HEROES LET JESUS LEAD THE WAY