#164 F Bomb #4: Failure
F-BOMB 4: FAILURE
PASTOR CHERYL THOMAS
321-3 denials 2 campfires 1 person
I love when we do series. They become landmarks. Today we are on failure.
Failure the state or condition of not meeting a desirable or intended objective.
The omission of expected or required action
The action or state of not functioning
Failure- defeat, collapse, foundering, fiasco, debacle, catastrophe, disaster; dead loss, snafu, clinker, dud, no-go, loser, underachiever, dead loss, dud, write-off, busted flush, dereliction, insufficiency, deficiency, dearth, breakdown, malfunction; crash.
Michael Jordan, maybe the greatest basketball player of all time, was cut from his varsity team at Laney High School in Wilmington NC.
In the NBA, Jordan missed more than 9,000 shots and lost over 300 games.
Twenty-six times he was entrusted to take the last shot and win the game…but missed.
But when asked about failure in his famous Nike commercial, Jordan said, “I have failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.”
The opposite of success isn’t failure. http://www.peterstark.com/failure-opposite-success/
Winston Churchill says it best, “Success is stumbling from failure to failure with no loss of enthusiasm.”
Some sagely advice on failure…
You tried your best and you failed miserably. The lesson is never try.’ Homer Simpson
• If at first you don’t succeed, blame someone else and seek counselling.
• If at first you don’t succeed, destroy all evidence that you tried- pic hanging- mud, sand, paint (karl no idea of my fiasco)
• If at first you don’t succeed, redefine success. (remember throwing ball up in air to bat Wow I am the best hitter in the world… keeps striking out… Wow I am the best pitcher in the world).
So Failure… how to deal with respond?
A Research from psychologist from the 1930’s, Saul Rosenzweig said that we respond to the negativity of failure in three typical ways:
• Extrapunitive: Some people are prone to unfairly blaming others.
• Impunitive: Others either deny that failure has occurred or they deny their own role in it.
• Intropunitive: Others judge themselves too harshly and imagine failures where none exist.
http://www.chipscholz.com
When we have failed, especially when we have failed those we love the most, our mind becomes a swirl of emotions–
Embarrassment . . . Anger . . . Fear . . . Shame . . . Despair.
And if we have hurt someone deeply, we want to know if they still love us or have we blown everything?
Will they ever forgive me? Can I ever forgive myself?
However want you to understand this today:
Failure is an event, not a person.” – Zig Ziglar
Failure is a universal experience
The historian Froude wrote, “The worth of a man must be measured by his life, not by his failure under a singular and peculiar trial.
• Failure doesn’t mean you have blown everything. It means you have some hard lessons to learn.
• It doesn’t mean you are a permanent loser. It means you aren’t as smart as you thought you were.
Today I want to look at a familiar and famous biblical character Peter.
• He went from having a God moment “thou are the Christ” to Get the behind me Satan
• From the transfiguration to lets build a shrine
• From walking on water to sinking
And one can’t forget Peter’s most devastating failure; the denial of Christ, not once but three times.
There are really two parts to Peter’s story-his three-fold denial the night Jesus was arrested and how Christ forgave and restored him.
The first part depends wholly on Peter, the second wholly on Jesus.
1. Peter was responsible for his own failure.
2. As we discover in the story how Christ took the responsibility for restoring Peter:
WE find parts of the story within the 4 gospel but lets begin in Luke chapter 22. – What was happening that night… what was the scene?
They have eaten, broke bread, shared wine then it begins… the evening goes sideways, as soon as Jesus turns a corner to share some last thoughts.
philosophy of leadership… wash their feet.
a dispute breaking out among the friends about which among them is the greatest…(its not a stretch to think Peter may have been the instigator)
I can’t imagine what is going through Jesus head as he observes these guys and ponders… Father we are leaving it up to these guys…
Then Jesus says to peter, “Simon, Simon Satan has asked to sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail. And when you return (convert) strengthen your brothers.”
Peter says, Lord I am ready to go to prison with you and to death…Jesus says you will deny my thrice before the rooster crows.
Lets look at what happened… Imagine you are Peter.
Verse 54- 61 “Then seizing Jesus the led him away and took him to the house of the high priest. Peter followed at a distance. But when they kindled a fire in the middle of the courtyard and sat down, Peter sat down with them. A servant girl saw him seated there in the firelight. She looked at him closely and said, ‘this man was with him.’ But he denied it— Woman I don’t know him… A little later someone else say him and said , you also are one of them. ‘Man I am not’ Peter replied. About one hour later another asserted, ‘Certainly this fellow was with him for he is a Galilean.’ Peter replied I don’t know what you’re talking about.” (some gospels version say with curses)
Just as he was speaking the rooster crowed. The Lord turned and looked straight at Peter.” And although there were no words… communication was taking place.
Eyes often speak louder and clearer than words…
What was the look on Jesus’ face?
Was it an “I told you so” look?
Was it an “I’m disappointed” look?
Was it, “you’re just a failure” look?
Or was it I have prayed for you Peter…
Now the bible doesn’t tell us where or what Peter did immediately following. The last thing we are told is that after Jesus looked at him, Peter remembered the words Jesus has spoken and he wept bitterly. – like one grieving- mourning, heart rending, almost pathetic.
We can only imagine that Peter was in turmoil replaying that awful moment over again and over again asking:
Peter’s denial separated him from the other disciples; perhaps not physically because we know that he was with others when the women came back to tell the disciples that Jesus had risen.
But emotionally/ psychologically I am sure he felt separated.
No doubt he wondered to himself many times-“What am I now? Am I a traitor or am I a disciple?”
Wherever or whatever he must have felt and humiliated, isolated and incarcerated by that moment.
But Jesus takes responsibility for Peters Restoration; he calls for him, he convenes with him, he confronts him, and he commissions him.
I. He Calls for Him.
Mark 16:17 “When the women arrived at the tomb early on Sunday to anoint his body, but the stone is rolled away, the women are alarmed as they saw a young man who said, you are looking for Jesus the Nazarene… He has risen! He is not here… Go, tell his disciples and Peter. ”
The risen Christ sends for him! He doesn’t write Peter off as a permanent failure. He doesn’t put him in the “Biggest Loser” category.
Jesus calls for him specifically.
2. He Convenes with Him
Jesus made a special appearance to Peter sometime on Easter Sunday. We don’t know where or when precisely nor do we know how long the meeting lasted, or even what was said.
But twice the New Testament mentions that the meeting took place:
In Luke 24:34 It was the two guys on the road to Emmaus, they found their way back to Jerusalem to the other eleven, and busted in, “It is true! The Lord has risen and has appeared to Simon”
And in 1 Corinthians 15:4-5 the scripture says, “He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve”
I am especially encouraged that Jesus met with Peter before he met with the rest of the disciples.
Jesus not only sends for Peter. He goes to meet him before he meets with the others.
What did Jesus say?
What did Peter say?
I imagine Jesus said… peace to you… Shalom…
What amazing grace. There is No indication of public humiliation.
Christ comes after Peter and doesn’t wait for him to make the first move.
3. He Confronts Him – in John 21—This is one of the most inspiring portions of scripture in the account of Jesus…
I think it is safe to say that what ever happened in that first meeting Peter had with Jesus the relationship must have experienced some restoration – John say when he recognized it was Jesus on the shore he cloaked himself… jumped out of the boat and swam to shore…
However Jesus must confront/challenge Peter on a few issues
Confront- it is a face to face so as to deal with something difficult but necessary, something that cannot be avoided if Peter is to go forward.
So what is it Jesus that is necessary for Peter to continue and fulfill his destiny?
What is it that Jesus needs to finish with Peter… My guess is three things
i) the fear of man- do you love me more than these?
ii) his conversion-Remember in Luke 22:31- after you are converted… Something had and is transpiring in Peter’s life…CONVERSION—e/pe/stra/fo—Speaks of turning both transitive an intransitive…transitive (to turn to cause to turn), intransitive (to turn oneself)
iii) his love- Jesus questions Peter about his love…
No passage that fails to express the English meaning from the original language more than this one. In the Greek, the language of the New Testament, there are different words that are translated “love.”
Agape is the kind of love that is perfect and pure; selfless and active. Agape is looking out for the interest of the one being loved, putting them ahead of self. (see John 13:35; 15:9-13; Rom. 5:8.)
There is also a lesser kind of love that would describe the affection that we might have for a friend. That word is (phileo). It is described as “to be a friend to (fond of [an individual or an object]), that is, have affection for (denoting personal attachment, as a matter of sentiment or feeling).”2
It is vital to the understanding of this passage to keep these two Greek words in mind while noting their meaning and usage in this passage.
Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of John, do you love (agape) Me more than these?” He said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I love (phileo) You.” [How could Peter say, unequivocally, I love (agape) you, after he had so miserably failed him?] He said to him, “Tend My lambs.” (16) He said to him again a second time, “Simon, son of John, do you love (agape) Me? He said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I love (phileo) You.” He said to him, “Shepherd My sheep.” (17) He said to him the third time, “Simon, son of John, do you love (phileo) Me?” [notice that the Lord changed the word from agape to phileo] Peter was grieved because He said to him the third time, “Do you love (phileo) Me?” And he said to Him, “Lord, You know all things; You know that I love (phileo) You.” Jesus said to him, “Tend My sheep. [Peter was “grieved” not because Jesus asked him a third time, but because Jesus lowered the standard.]
• Three times he denies— three times his love is question
• Two campfires one where Peter denies Christ another coals where he affirm his friendship with Christ
Before fear and isolation enveloped Peter…Before the crucifixion Peter would have boldly said, “Lord, how could you ask such a thing? Of course I love (agape) you!”
But his actions showed how miserably he failed to agape the Lord. He even denied friendship (phileo) with the Lord! Now he is truly “grieved” (lupeo) as he comes face-to-face with the Lord and what he has done.
Peter’s “grief” was much more than just dismay or disappointment that the Lord asked him three times, “do you love Me.” Grieved (??pe´? – lupeo¯) is a word that literally means to be “distressed.” It also means to “be in heaviness; sorrowful; to be made sorry.”1 Lupeo is sometimes translated “exceeding sorry” or “very sorry” (Matt. 17:23; 18:21; 26:22); or being “in heaviness” (1 Pet. 1:6).
Consider what Christ doesn’t do. He doesn’t try to make Peter feel guilty. He doesn’t humiliate publicly. He doesn’t ask him, “Are you sorry for what you did?” He doesn’t make him promise to do better. He just asks one question: “Do you love me?”
Once we have hurt someone we love, it is hard to look them in the face and it is harder still to be questioned about our true commitment.
“How could you have done that? What were you thinking? Do you even love me at all?” But the questions must be asked and the answers must be given for the sake of the relationship.
Did Christ’s strategy of restoration work? Did the painful surgery produce the desired healing? Yes. Peter never denied Christ again.
4. He Commissions Him
tend my lambs
shepherd my sheep
tend my sheep
(STRENGTHEN YOUR BROTHERS)
Early church tradition says that Peter was crucified upside down in Rome because he said that he was not worthy to be crucified in the same manner as his Lord.
Verse 18- “Truly, truly, I say to you, when you were younger, you used to gird yourself and walk wherever you wished; but when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands and someone else will gird you, and bring you where you do not wish to go.” (19) Now this He said, signifying by what kind of death he would glorify God.
It is extraordinary that Jesus skips the details for the rest of Peter’s life and he fast forwards to how he will die… but Jesus says that your life will glorify God…
Jesus ends the confrontation with…Now lets try this again… follow Me (John 21:18-19).
Although he failed in the past, in the end he will glorify God in his death.
What does Christ do with failure? He redeems it!
And just a few days later, on the Day of Pentecost, fully restored, he stood in the temple courts and preached a mighty gospel sermon to the very men who had crucified the Lord (Acts 2:14-40). Three thousand people were saved that day.
God is able to forget our past. He throws failures into the depths of the sea and puts up a sign on the shore which reads, ‘No fishing.’ (Erwin Lutzer).
Peter remains a figure of surpassing interest to us. We can’t get enough of him. We know him well because we see him every morning when we look in the mirror. We love Peter because we can see ourselves in his story.
In fact, his story is our story.
I love Peter because I can see myself in his story.
“Giving up is the only sure way to fail.” – Gena Showalter
“Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising each time we fall.” – Oliver Goldsmith… fall seven times, stand up eight (proverbs 24:16)
Just Remember Romans 8:32-39
33 Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. 34 Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. 35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36 As it is written:
“For your sake we face death all day long;
we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”[a]
37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life(zoe), neither angels nor demons,[b] neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
• He does not lay any charge- he has justified us
• He does not condemn- he intercedes for us… I have prayed for you
• He does not forsake us- he live in us
• He will never stop loving you.
Romans 8:28 “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.”
Translation – “God is moving all of heaven to work on your behalf. Rejoice! God is coming to your rescue!”
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