I don't know if the rumors were true. I don't know if she ever was pregnant, or if she had an abortion. But I know that what I did and what I said was wrong. I denied the power of Christ with my words. I was so proud of myself for "taking a stand" and now, when I look back on what I said, I am so ashamed of the fact that I said that to her.
If the rumors were true, she certainly needed a Christian friend to talk to openly and honestly - and I wasn't that.
We believe the radical Gospel that Jesus loves sinners. We believe that Jesus forgives whores and murderers and that Jesus welcomes them into heaven before us. And with all of those beliefs tucked away in my heart, I told her the exact opposite. I told her that her sins were too great to be forgiven. I told her that she was going to hell.
----
Peter was so sure of himself. Cocky and foolish. Proud and stubborn. When Jesus says that he will betray three times, Peter immediately denies this possibility.
A pastor friend once said that he only faced temptation in three circumstances.
1.) When he is at the bottom - when he is depressed and things in his life are going poorly
2.) When he is at the top - when everything is going well and everyone likes him
3.) the times in the middle.
Well, the temptation to deny Jesus is here - it is present. Certainly at least once someone asked you where you go on Thursdays and you said, "to the movies" or perhaps you've never told your parents about Pilgrims ... well, each of us face different temptations and handle things in a different way. Sometimes we are ashamed of our faith, or the way that our family practices their faith. I was often embarrassed of the fact that no one in my family drank. I didn't see alcohol until I was a teenager - but with my friends I would always say that of course I had tried beer.
--
----
As we continue our discussion on Evangelism, let's talk about the brutal reality that, like Peter, we deny Christ sometimes. I don't know how often we openly deny Christ, I hope that we never find ourselves with so little faith that we deny God's existence or we turn our back completely on our faith, but our actions and our words often paint a picture that says that we believe something different than what we say we believe.
--
Peter was so sure of himself. Cocky and foolish. Proud and stubborn. When Jesus says that he will betray three times, Peter immediately denies this possibility.
A pastor friend once said that he only faced temptation in three circumstances.
1.) When he is at the bottom - when he is depressed and things in his life are going poorly
2.) When he is at the top - when everything is going well and everyone likes him
3.) the times in the middle.
Well, the temptation to deny Jesus is here - it is present. Certainly at least once someone asked you where you go on Thursdays and you said, "to the movies" or perhaps you've never told your parents about Pilgrims ... well, each of us face different temptations and handle things in a different way. Sometimes we are ashamed of our faith, or the way that our family practices their faith. I was often embarrassed of the fact that no one in my family drank. I didn't see alcohol until I was a teenager - but with my friends I would always say that of course I had tried beer.
Today's scripture finds us in the courtyard as Jesus is being tried. Rumors fly between the men and the servant girls whisper - but Peter needs to be close to Jesus. He stands in the courtyard hoping to see his Lord one more time. But this is a dangerous place to be. If your Lord can be put to death, certainly you can be put to death as well.
----
The first is a servant girl. A child perhaps. She says simply that she had seen Peter with this Jesus that was being tried inside.
Have you ever noticed how many horror movies are about creepy children? Children can be terrifying. This young girl could never beat up Peter, but her words could have condemned him to death.
Peter's denial is swift and thoughtless.
He really doesn't have a choice, does he? He just says the first thing that comes to mind.
Have you ever noticed how many horror movies are about creepy children? Children can be terrifying. This young girl could never beat up Peter, but her words could have condemned him to death.
Peter's denial is swift and thoughtless.
He really doesn't have a choice, does he? He just says the first thing that comes to mind.
----
I served a small church for a short time as a student pastor. I was out walking around our village rather late in the evening. I walked by one house that I knew well and saw that all of the lights were still on. I had been to this house many times in my short time. Most of the people who lived in the house had been in jail at one time or another, the three or four young children were left to take care of themselves (the number of children living with their father changed often depending on the weekly court decisions.)
Some of the teenagers who lived there were sitting on the front porch and invited me in to help. The adults of the house had left several hours ago and left a 14 year old girl in charge of all of the children. There wasn't any control, and I came in and sat all of the children down to do their summer school homework. In between diaper changes and loads of laundry, all four of the summer school students got their math homework done and the 8 and 10 year-olds got ready for bed and I sang them a goodnight song. I was feeling like quite an accomplished Mr. Mom as I finished the dishes and cleaned up the house with the older teenagers.
When I heard the roar of vehicles, I looked up to see that it was 1 in the morning. The father came in first, with two guns hung on either shoulder and a gun in each hand. His girlfriend followed with a whole suitcase full of guns. And I joke about guns some time and I joke about the idea that Americans are gun crazy and my family has a few guns so maybe even we are crazy - but I had never seen anything like this before in my life. There were all kinds of guns. Big guns, little guns, automatic guns.
Everyone excitedly explained that the girlfriend's father had been arrested and they went to his house to get the guns and money before the police got there to search. They woke up the 8 year old and the 10 year old so that they could see all of the guns. It was one in the morning and the whole house was awake. The guns were laid out like a breakfast buffet on the table.
And I left. I didn't know what to do and I was scared that someone would get shot and I didn't know what to do so I left. Well, thankfully the police made it there before I had a chance to call them and the situation was dealt with. But, you know, I had about a million things that I wanted to say to the adults of that house. I wanted to talk to them about paying attention to their kids, about helping them with their studies, about not having dozens of guns sitting around ... a million things - but I didn't say anything. I should have picked up the children and left with them. I should have called the cops immediately. But I just froze. I did the first thing that came to mind, and I showed who I really was. I showed that I was selfish and was looking out for myself above everyone else.
Sometimes our silence betrays what we believe. Sometimes our fear catches in our throats and we can't say anything that we want to. I left six children in a dangerous situation because I was afraid that I would get hurt. Because I was afraid to speak up. I went with my first response and it was wrong.
And the young girl says that Peter was one of Jesus' followers and he immediately says, "No, not me."
[extinguish one candle]
The second time a servant girl accuses him of being one of Jesus disciples, he gives an oath.
I had promised in writing that while I was an exchange student in Russia that I wouldn't drink alcohol. Well, of course, I was living in Russia and I drank vodka with my friends. I only drank a few times and never too much. But I knew that it was wrong, I knew that I had given my word and signed my name, and I chose to do that.
Later, when I was telling me sister about my first time drinking, I gave all the excuses. It's a funny story, and someday I might tell it - but I'll just say that there was a lot of pressure for me to drink. I was telling my sister and I said, "so it wasn't even really my fault" and my sister got so angry with me. Now, by this time she was a seasoned drinker and she wasn't angry that I drank. She told me, "Michael, take responsibility. You chose to drink. No one held you down. This was your decision."
She was right. I signed a promise that I wouldn't drink during the program and I broke that promise and I needed to admit that.
And the second time a servant girl's gossip got him in trouble, Peter said, "I swear to you, I do not know that man."
[extinguish another candle]
---
I have this friend who loves making jokes. He says that every time he got caught sinning he would just say, "I'm not sinning, I'm building my testimony."
This is the challenge of believing in a Gospel of grace. We are not moralists who believe that by being good we will be saved - we believe that God really forgives our sins - no matter how many of them there are or when. But the challenge is, how do we not look like "them." I have the freedom in Christ to drink alcohol, but as soon as I drink too much and start slurring my words, I'm clearly sinning against God and others and I'm hurting my testimony.
Pastor Volodya and I decided that we needed to go where the people were. Volodya came to me and said that we needed to go to a bar and talk to people. That we couldn't hide inside the walls of this student center - that we had to be with students. So we went to a bar - and the first bar we visited, I kid you not, we walked in and the whole bar said, "Michael!" I'd never been to that bar before in my life, but a whole group of my friends was there and a whole table of my students from the university. I worked the room, going from table to table greeting my friends and talking with them. Volodya didn't want to go to any more bars with me after that.
If you're really good, God won't love you any more than God loves you if you're really bad. As Christians, we choose to live holy lives because we celebrate God's great love. We choose to work for a more holy society because we want others to see our God.
And Peter is brought with the final accusation - that he even sounds like Jesus. That he talks the same way.
And I can't get the image of the woman caught in adultery out of my head. The men who trapped her having sex. The man she was having sex with who wasn't dragged forward to be stoned. The crowd gathered around waiting for their chance to throw stones and condemn the whore to death.
Peter is trapped. He shrugged off the first accusation without thinking, the second gave him pause, but he had to - right? But this third accusation - it's serious.
Everything Jesus has said. he heard every word. His feet are covered with the feet of the rabbi Jesus from walking behind him. He watched Jesus heal and feed and raise people from the dead. He listened to every one of Jesus' sermons and he had late night conversations with Jesus and he spoke just like Jesus.
---
Living in Christ, it changes us. It changes us radically and not everyone will like those changes.
When you stood up against the power of the former regime, you made whole countries tremble. You followed God's leading on your lives and you stood up for your dignity and the dignity of your nation - and this made a ton of people super uncomfortable. I'm so proud of you.
Living in Christ, it changes you. The next time you stand up against a bully, you will see how unpopular that is - but you will see how very right it is. When you quote the words of Jesus about topics like money, greed, and power - well, you'll make some enemies really fast and you'll get a lot of strange words.
---
And so Peter does the only thing that he can, he tries his best not to sound like Jesus. He uses every Russian swear word he knows and says vile filthy things like the fisherman that he was would have said. And he saves his life by denying Christ. When we make others uncomfortable because Christ has changed us, sometimes we are tempted to go back, to do things the way we used to do it. To deny Christ.
---
And I can't get the image out of my head of the woman caught in sin. Lying on the ground, wrapped in a sheet - crying, terrified, facing death. And Jesus stands between her and the mob. He bends down, and he writes in the sand.
And Jesus asks that whoever is without sin can throw the first stone - and one by one those men they go away. But, and this is the part that we miss -
who was the one who was without sin?
Who was the one who could have thrown that first stone?
Jesus.
Jesus should have thrown the first stone at that woman. He was sinless and blameless and a dirty naked whore was brought to his feet - and he had every right to put her to death for her sins.
--
But Jesus doesn't.
We always read the story of Peter's denial with such shame and guilt. Peter felt awful for denying Jesus.
--
Two men betrayed Jesus that night. Peter and Judas both betrayed Jesus.
--
Judas chose his own path, chose to hold on to his guilt and shame and killed himself. Peter chose to turn back to Jesus. Peter chose to reverse his denial.
--
because this is part of our testimony. Man, I messed up - but thank God, Jesus forgives me. I'm not perfect, I'm just forgiven. This is exactly what we believe. This is how scandalous the Gospel is. Jesus should have thrown the first stone, but he didn't. Peter probably should have felt so guilty that he killed himself like Judas - but Jesus came for him and restored his life. We should have been the ones on that cross - we deserve to die for our sins. But we don't. we live eternally with Christ because of Christ's sacrifice. This is the scandal of the Good News. We deserve hell and punishment and torture - and Christ takes all of that away and give us eternal life.
You each have a stone tonight. This is for every sin, every denial, every wrong. bring it up here to the table and place it around the cross. Be reminded of the Great News that we share. This day, this week, we remember what Christ went through for us - because of his great love for us.
I served a small church for a short time as a student pastor. I was out walking around our village rather late in the evening. I walked by one house that I knew well and saw that all of the lights were still on. I had been to this house many times in my short time. Most of the people who lived in the house had been in jail at one time or another, the three or four young children were left to take care of themselves (the number of children living with their father changed often depending on the weekly court decisions.)
Some of the teenagers who lived there were sitting on the front porch and invited me in to help. The adults of the house had left several hours ago and left a 14 year old girl in charge of all of the children. There wasn't any control, and I came in and sat all of the children down to do their summer school homework. In between diaper changes and loads of laundry, all four of the summer school students got their math homework done and the 8 and 10 year-olds got ready for bed and I sang them a goodnight song. I was feeling like quite an accomplished Mr. Mom as I finished the dishes and cleaned up the house with the older teenagers.
When I heard the roar of vehicles, I looked up to see that it was 1 in the morning. The father came in first, with two guns hung on either shoulder and a gun in each hand. His girlfriend followed with a whole suitcase full of guns. And I joke about guns some time and I joke about the idea that Americans are gun crazy and my family has a few guns so maybe even we are crazy - but I had never seen anything like this before in my life. There were all kinds of guns. Big guns, little guns, automatic guns.
Everyone excitedly explained that the girlfriend's father had been arrested and they went to his house to get the guns and money before the police got there to search. They woke up the 8 year old and the 10 year old so that they could see all of the guns. It was one in the morning and the whole house was awake. The guns were laid out like a breakfast buffet on the table.
And I left. I didn't know what to do and I was scared that someone would get shot and I didn't know what to do so I left. Well, thankfully the police made it there before I had a chance to call them and the situation was dealt with. But, you know, I had about a million things that I wanted to say to the adults of that house. I wanted to talk to them about paying attention to their kids, about helping them with their studies, about not having dozens of guns sitting around ... a million things - but I didn't say anything. I should have picked up the children and left with them. I should have called the cops immediately. But I just froze. I did the first thing that came to mind, and I showed who I really was. I showed that I was selfish and was looking out for myself above everyone else.
Sometimes our silence betrays what we believe. Sometimes our fear catches in our throats and we can't say anything that we want to. I left six children in a dangerous situation because I was afraid that I would get hurt. Because I was afraid to speak up. I went with my first response and it was wrong.
And the young girl says that Peter was one of Jesus' followers and he immediately says, "No, not me."
[extinguish one candle]
The second time a servant girl accuses him of being one of Jesus disciples, he gives an oath.
I had promised in writing that while I was an exchange student in Russia that I wouldn't drink alcohol. Well, of course, I was living in Russia and I drank vodka with my friends. I only drank a few times and never too much. But I knew that it was wrong, I knew that I had given my word and signed my name, and I chose to do that.
Later, when I was telling me sister about my first time drinking, I gave all the excuses. It's a funny story, and someday I might tell it - but I'll just say that there was a lot of pressure for me to drink. I was telling my sister and I said, "so it wasn't even really my fault" and my sister got so angry with me. Now, by this time she was a seasoned drinker and she wasn't angry that I drank. She told me, "Michael, take responsibility. You chose to drink. No one held you down. This was your decision."
She was right. I signed a promise that I wouldn't drink during the program and I broke that promise and I needed to admit that.
And the second time a servant girl's gossip got him in trouble, Peter said, "I swear to you, I do not know that man."
[extinguish another candle]
---
I have this friend who loves making jokes. He says that every time he got caught sinning he would just say, "I'm not sinning, I'm building my testimony."
This is the challenge of believing in a Gospel of grace. We are not moralists who believe that by being good we will be saved - we believe that God really forgives our sins - no matter how many of them there are or when. But the challenge is, how do we not look like "them." I have the freedom in Christ to drink alcohol, but as soon as I drink too much and start slurring my words, I'm clearly sinning against God and others and I'm hurting my testimony.
Pastor Volodya and I decided that we needed to go where the people were. Volodya came to me and said that we needed to go to a bar and talk to people. That we couldn't hide inside the walls of this student center - that we had to be with students. So we went to a bar - and the first bar we visited, I kid you not, we walked in and the whole bar said, "Michael!" I'd never been to that bar before in my life, but a whole group of my friends was there and a whole table of my students from the university. I worked the room, going from table to table greeting my friends and talking with them. Volodya didn't want to go to any more bars with me after that.
If you're really good, God won't love you any more than God loves you if you're really bad. As Christians, we choose to live holy lives because we celebrate God's great love. We choose to work for a more holy society because we want others to see our God.
And Peter is brought with the final accusation - that he even sounds like Jesus. That he talks the same way.
And I can't get the image of the woman caught in adultery out of my head. The men who trapped her having sex. The man she was having sex with who wasn't dragged forward to be stoned. The crowd gathered around waiting for their chance to throw stones and condemn the whore to death.
Peter is trapped. He shrugged off the first accusation without thinking, the second gave him pause, but he had to - right? But this third accusation - it's serious.
Everything Jesus has said. he heard every word. His feet are covered with the feet of the rabbi Jesus from walking behind him. He watched Jesus heal and feed and raise people from the dead. He listened to every one of Jesus' sermons and he had late night conversations with Jesus and he spoke just like Jesus.
---
Living in Christ, it changes us. It changes us radically and not everyone will like those changes.
When you stood up against the power of the former regime, you made whole countries tremble. You followed God's leading on your lives and you stood up for your dignity and the dignity of your nation - and this made a ton of people super uncomfortable. I'm so proud of you.
Living in Christ, it changes you. The next time you stand up against a bully, you will see how unpopular that is - but you will see how very right it is. When you quote the words of Jesus about topics like money, greed, and power - well, you'll make some enemies really fast and you'll get a lot of strange words.
---
And so Peter does the only thing that he can, he tries his best not to sound like Jesus. He uses every Russian swear word he knows and says vile filthy things like the fisherman that he was would have said. And he saves his life by denying Christ. When we make others uncomfortable because Christ has changed us, sometimes we are tempted to go back, to do things the way we used to do it. To deny Christ.
---
And I can't get the image out of my head of the woman caught in sin. Lying on the ground, wrapped in a sheet - crying, terrified, facing death. And Jesus stands between her and the mob. He bends down, and he writes in the sand.
And Jesus asks that whoever is without sin can throw the first stone - and one by one those men they go away. But, and this is the part that we miss -
who was the one who was without sin?
Who was the one who could have thrown that first stone?
Jesus.
Jesus should have thrown the first stone at that woman. He was sinless and blameless and a dirty naked whore was brought to his feet - and he had every right to put her to death for her sins.
--
But Jesus doesn't.
We always read the story of Peter's denial with such shame and guilt. Peter felt awful for denying Jesus.
--
Two men betrayed Jesus that night. Peter and Judas both betrayed Jesus.
--
Judas chose his own path, chose to hold on to his guilt and shame and killed himself. Peter chose to turn back to Jesus. Peter chose to reverse his denial.
--
because this is part of our testimony. Man, I messed up - but thank God, Jesus forgives me. I'm not perfect, I'm just forgiven. This is exactly what we believe. This is how scandalous the Gospel is. Jesus should have thrown the first stone, but he didn't. Peter probably should have felt so guilty that he killed himself like Judas - but Jesus came for him and restored his life. We should have been the ones on that cross - we deserve to die for our sins. But we don't. we live eternally with Christ because of Christ's sacrifice. This is the scandal of the Good News. We deserve hell and punishment and torture - and Christ takes all of that away and give us eternal life.
You each have a stone tonight. This is for every sin, every denial, every wrong. bring it up here to the table and place it around the cross. Be reminded of the Great News that we share. This day, this week, we remember what Christ went through for us - because of his great love for us.
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