Would you turn with me to John
chapter 13? I believe that while we're doing
this, it would be better to start the Bible study at 930 instead
of 945, and that way there won't be that difficult period of transition
between 1015 and 1030. So beginning next week, we're
going to start Bible study at 930 and we'll be finished with
it by somewhere around 10. Tonight, we're going to observe
the Lord's Table together. And I'm going to bring a message
entitled, What is Man? From that question, what is man
that thou art mindful of him? And do you know how we answer
that question will demonstrate what we believe about everything
else? What is man? How you view man
will tell what you and I believe regarding God and what the meaning
of life is and what our purpose is and what salvation is. What is man? That's going to be our subject
for tonight and I believe it's going I believe every message
I preach, when I preach, I believe it's important, but I believe
this is a very important message. John chapter 13, I want to begin
reading in verse 33. I've entitled this message, A
Needful Fall. a needful fall. When can a fall ever be needful? Well, I hope we'll understand
the answer to that question by the end of this message. Beginning
in verse 33. Little children, yet a little
while I'm with you. You should seek me, and as I
said unto the Jews, whether I go You cannot come. So now I say
to you. A new commandment I give unto
you. That you love one another as I have loved you, that you
love also one another. By this shall all men know you
are my disciples, if you have love one to another. Simon Peter said unto him, Lord,
whither goest thou? Jesus answered him, Whether I
go, thou canst not follow me now, but thou shalt follow me
afterwards. Peter said unto him, Lord, why cannot I follow thee now?
I will lay down my life for thy sake. Jesus answered him. Wilt thou lay down thy life for
my sake? Truly, truly. Verily, verily. Amen, amen. I say unto thee, the cock shall
not crow till thou hast denied me. Three times. A needful fall. Simon Peter. Two names, you know,
several times in the scripture, God changed somebody's name.
I think of Jacob. His name means heel. It was changed
to Israel, a prince with God. Saul of Tarsus. He thought he
was a big shot. He thought he was somebody. And
God changed his name to Paul. That means little. Greatest man,
I believe, as far as me, well, none surpassed Paul. But yet,
what's his name? Little. Insignificant. Nothing. Simon. An impetuous, Inconsistent man. His name is changed to Peter,
a little rock. Peter, Simon Peter. And I believe Simon Peter's names
represent the two natures of a believer. Simon, sinful Simon,
impetuous Simon, weak Simon, inconsistent Simon. Peter, That's
the new man. Upon this rock, this confession
of me, I'll build my church. That's what the Lord said. Simon,
Peter. And I don't have any doubt that
both men are speaking. Simon, the old man, and Peter,
the new man. When Peter says, I will lay down
my life for thy sake. He meant it from the very depths
of his heart. Both Simon and Peter are speaking. You see, a believer is not understood
by an unbeliever. A believer is two different men
funneled into one person. That's the best way I know how
to explain it. I realize I am old Todd. just as simple as I
ever was. And I'm new taught, a new man
in Christ Jesus. But I've funneled into one man
and I can't see the mark difference, but I know they're both there.
Simon Peter. Simon Peter speaks as the new
man I will lay down my life for thy sake. He loved the Lord Jesus
Christ, and he would lay down his life for Christ. As a matter
of fact, he ended up doing that. And Simon the old man, speaking
in presumption and pride, I will lay down my life for thy sake. They're both speaking. Now look
at verse 36. Simon Peter said unto him, Lord,
whither goest thou? Jesus answered him, Whither I
go, thou canst not follow me now, but thou shalt follow me
afterwards. You see, Peter couldn't follow
the Lord to the cross because the Lord suffered and died alone. He did what he did by himself
without any creature aid. He by himself purged us. of our sins. He said, you can't
follow me in this. You can't help out here. I'm
doing this by myself, but you will follow me afterwards. And Peter ended up dying for
Christ. Look in John chapter 21. Verse 18. The Lord says to Peter. Verily, verily, I say unto you
when you were young, You girded yourself and walked wherever
you wanted to, but when thou shalt be old, thou shalt stretch
forth thy hands, and another shall gird thee, and carry thee,
whether thou wouldst not. This spake he, signifying by
what death he should glorify God. Now, tradition has it that
Peter was crucified upside down because he didn't feel himself
worthy. to be crucified in the same manner
as his Lord. He did, in fact, follow the Lord
in death. He was a faithful martyr of the
Lord Jesus Christ, and he loved his master. Oh, how he loved
him. Back to our text in John chapter
13. The Lord says, you can't follow me now, but you shall
follow me afterwards. And indeed, he did. Verse 37,
Peter said unto him, Lord, Why cannot I follow thee now? I will
lay down my life for thy sake. Now, when Peter said this, he
meant it from the very depths of his heart. I am willing to
die for your sake. In Luke chapter 22, verse 33,
he said, Lord, I am ready to go with thee. Both to prison
and to death. Now I admire this. And I hope
I have the same attitude. I hope I have the same desire
in my heart if I'm a believer, I do. What loyalty he shows to his
master. What passion. Lord, I'm willing
to go to prison with you. I just want to be where you are.
I'm willing to die with you. Here's what the grace of Christ
does to a man. It makes a man count his life
as not dear to himself that he might follow the Lord Jesus Christ.
That's what grace does to a man. It makes a man, by the grace
of God, it makes a woman, by the grace of God, willing to
do whatever it takes to follow Christ, even if that means I'm
to die. I love what one martyr said.
He said to die for Christ. He said this is they tied him
to a stake ready to be burnt alive for the Lord Jesus Christ. He said to die for Christ is
an honor. I do not deserve. And every believer feels that.
Now, you know that apart from the grace of God, you chicken
out. You know that. You know that apart from the
Lord keeping you, you'll deny Christ just like Peter did. You
have enough understanding of yourself to know that that's
the case. If the Lord takes His hand off you, you'll be the biggest
coward ever. I'll be the biggest coward ever
if the Lord takes His hand off. We realize that. But we also
find in our heart a willingness, a real willingness. If the Lord
allowed me to die for Him, that would be such a glorious honor
that I just don't deserve. Every believer has that in their
heart. I want to follow Christ wherever He leads me. I want
to follow Him even if it means to die for Him. Every believer
truly in their heart of hearts feels that way regarding the
Lord Jesus Christ. Peter, the new man speaking,
I will lay down my life for thy sake. He truly loved his master,
his Redeemer. This is Peter speaking. But you
know who else is speaking here? Simon, the old man. The weakness and sinfulness of
his flesh is apparent. Turn back to Matthew's account
of this, Matthew chapter 26. Matthew chapter 26, beginning
in verse 31. Then saith Jesus unto them, all
ye shall be offended because of me this night, every one of
you. He looked at all 12 of those disciples and he said, every
one of you are going to hit the road, you're going to you're
going to Be scared, you're not going to stand with me, you're
all going to run, every one of you. He said that to every one
of them. For it's written, it's already been determined, I will
smite the shepherd and the sheep of the flock shall be scattered
abroad. But after I'm risen again, I will go before you into Galilee. Now, Peter answered and said
unto them, Though all, and he's not just talking about all men
generally, he's talking about the other 11. Actually, he's
talking about it. Though all these fellas shall
be offended because of thee, yet will I never be offended. I can see Thomas chickening out.
I can even see John denying you. I can see that out of those fellas,
but not me. But I'm going to stand firm. I will not And don't you know
that he meant it from the very depths of his being. He believed
what he was saying. I will not deny you. Verse 34,
Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee that this night before
the cock crow thou shalt deny me three times. Peter said unto
him, Though I should die with thee, yet shall I not deny thee. And likewise also said all the
disciples. They all felt that way. The wise man said in Proverbs
chapter 16 verse 18, pride goeth before destruction and a haughty
spirit before the fall. And what a high opinion Peter
demonstrates of himself. I will lay down my life for thy
sake. Now you can write this down as
certain. Anything that begins with an
I will is doomed for failure. Anything that begins with an
I will is sinful. It's the essence of sin. I will. How should I speak? If you will,
this will take place. If you will, I will If you're
willing to enable me to be this way, I'll be this way. But saying
I will, Peter is a poster child for pride goes before destruction
and a haughty spirit before the fall. If Peter's attitude were
right, he would have known that without God's grace, he would
be the first one to deny his master. Isn't that so? When Paul said, I'm the chief
of sinners, was it mock humility or did Paul really mean it? Knowing
I'm the chief of sinners, and this is the attitude every believer
ought to have toward themselves, knowing that I'm the chief of
sinners. If the Lord leads me to myself,
I will be the one to deny the Lord Jesus Christ. Now, Peter,
He did need to fall, didn't he? He did need to fall. Look in
Luke 22, 31. Let's look at Luke's account
of this event. Luke 22, verse 31, And the Lord
said, Simon, Simon. You know, I can. Since the love
that was in our Lord's voice when he said this. He loved Simon. Simon, Simon, behold, Satan had
desired to have you. that he may sift you as wheat. That is literally Satan has asked
for permission to sift you as wheat. You know Satan can't make
a move without God's permission. Remember this about the devil.
He's God's devil on God's chain and he can't move an inch without
God's permission. He couldn't touch Peter unless
God gave him permission to do it. And he wanted to say regarding
Peter, remember Satan is the accuser of the brethren. He wanted
to show that Peter is nothing but a weak, sinful, hypocritical
man with no strength. He wanted to expose Peter. So
he says, Lord, let me, let me get at it. I'll show you. I'll
show you how weak and how sinful he is. Give me permission to
sit him as weak, to turn him inside out. And I'll show you
what a weak man this man is whom you call Peter the Rock. I'll
show you. And you know what? Permission
was granted. He did indeed sift Peter as wheat. Through the influence of Satan,
Peter would soon be denying that he even knew the Lord Jesus Christ. With Christ looking at him, he'd
deny he even knew him. He'd do so with cursing and swearing
to make sure everybody knew, I'm not a follower of the Lord
Jesus Christ. I don't follow him. Satan indeed sifted him
as wheat. Now look what he says. Simon,
Simon, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you
as wheat. But I have prayed for thee, that
thy faith fail not. And when thou art converted from
this ridiculous, proud attitude you have, When you're converted,
when you're turned, when I turn you, strengthen your brethren. Now, I want us to notice what
our Lord said to Peter. He said, I pray for you. I pray
for you. The intercession of the Lord
Jesus Christ. If he prays for you, everything's
fine, isn't it? You know, when the Lord said,
Father, Forgive them. You know what? The Lord forgave
everybody He prayed for. Peter, I prayed for you. But notice He didn't say, Peter,
I prayed for you that you don't fall. If He would have prayed
for Peter that he wouldn't fall, you know what? Peter wouldn't
have fallen. You see, whatever the Lord asked for, He gives.
He's the Son of God. He didn't say, Peter, I prayed
for you that you don't fall. He said, Peter, I prayed for
you that your faith fail not. And when you're turned from this
ridiculous, proud attitude that you have, this self-sufficient
attitude, I will, anything that begins with an I will, you can
just write it down. It's wrong. It's doomed for failure.
When you're converted, you strengthen your brethren. Now, by God's
grace, he was brought to his lowest point through this fall. You know what happened. He was
made to see how weak and sinful he was. But you know, even when
he was weeping bitterly, and I guarantee you when he was weeping
bitterly, he didn't believe he was saved. I guarantee you didn't. How could a Christian do something
like this? How can a true follower of Christ do something like this?
He felt like he had denied Christ and it was all over for him.
I understand him feeling that way. Have you ever felt that
way? Felt like he sent away the day of grace? Felt like there
was just nothing? You've had it. I guarantee you
Peter felt this way. He was left with nothing. Now let me try to share an experience
with you that I had. I believe it's taught me something
about faith. I've told you this before, but I'm going to tell
it again. If you've already heard it, bear with me. About 20, 21 years ago, I was on chemotherapy. And I
decided to play doctor and start changing some of my own medications
and so on. I took it upon myself to change
this and change that. I didn't like what this was doing.
I didn't like what that was doing. And so I started, you know, doing
all that kind of stuff. And I went into a state of depression. Didn't know what caused it. But
up to this point in my life, I don't have a lot of, I've had
a lot of sickness. But other than that, I've not
really had any trials. I don't feel like I've had a lot of trials
in my life. But to me, this is the worst
thing I've ever gone through. Could see nothing. Had no hope
that things were ever going to be better. I was in the blackness
of despair. Didn't even know if I believed
God existed. Sure didn't know whether or not
I was a Christian. And I was getting up preaching like this.
I mean, I would get up and preach with all this darkness over me.
And it was so miserable. And I felt so alone and forsaken. And I couldn't find anything
in myself that gave me any hope. And you know what? At that time,
I knew beyond the shadow of a doubt that the only hope that I had
was if Christ died for me. I couldn't come up with faith
even. I was all alone. The only hope that I could be
saved is if Jesus Christ did everything for me. And you know what? I had no doubt
that that is the purest my faith has ever been. I had zero things
in myself to hope in. The only hope I had was that
Christ took my place, and that Christ took my sin upon Him,
and He did it all. And if that wasn't the case with
me, I could not be saved. You know, it hadn't changed anything.
That's still the truth. But I believe at that time, every
prop was taken out. Blackness of despair. Couldn't
see any reason in myself why I'd be saved. Well, Peter was
brought there. He went out and he wept. Oh,
he wept so bitterly. Look in Luke 22, verse 54. Then they took him and they led
him And they brought him into the high priest's house, and
Peter followed afar off. And when they had kindled a fire
in the midst of the hall, as he sat by the fire in earnest,
well, verse 55, he sat down together, Peter sat down among them, but
a certain maid beheld him, as he sat by the fire, and earnestly
looked upon him and said, This man was also with him. And he
denied him, saying, Woman, I know him not. And after a little while,
another saw him and said, Thou art also of them. And Peter said,
Man, I am not. And about the space of an hour
after another confidently affirmed saying of the truth, This man,
this fellow also was with him, for he is a Galilean. And Peter
said, Man, I know not what thou sayest. And immediately while
he yet spake, the cock grew, and the Lord turned and looked
upon Peter. He didn't say anything. He just
looked upon Peter. What do you reckon Peter was
thinking about when the Lord looked at him? He remembered the Lord's
words. Peter was afraid for himself.
He was afraid. He was a traitor to Christ. How
much he felt when the Lord looked at him. I guarantee you, he remembered
the words of our Lord. Whosoever denies me before men,
him will I deny before my heavenly Father. And I guarantee you,
he thought it's over for me. He thought of that saying, if
we deny him, He'll also deny us. And I feel sure that Peter
felt like he was reprobated. He felt like that there was no
hope for him, that he'd send away any hope of salvation. He
thought it was over for him. But you know, that's really a
very stupid thought. You see, if I can send away salvation,
it's not by grace. If I can send away salvation,
it's not by grace. And that would also mean there's
something I need to do to keep my salvation, and that would
deny grace too. That's really foolish, but I feel certain.
As Peter went bitterly, he felt it was all over for him, and
it was just a matter of time before he would be in hell. He
felt like he'd compromised the truth. He'd compromised his stand
for the gospel. He'd failed to confess Christ
before men, and he felt like it was over for him. I wonder
what all went through Peter's mind when he knew Christ was
nailed to the cross and he'd been a coward. And he was still
too cowardly to be there. Oh, what must have went through
his mind when the Lord lay in the grave for three days? And
I'm sure Peter just forgot about all the stuff the Lord said about
being raised from the dead. Peter didn't know. Oh, he was
just in despair. Now turn with me to Mark chapter
16. Mark chapter 16. Verse one. And when the Sabbath was passed.
Mary Magdalene and Mary, the mother of James and Salome bought
sweet spices that they might come and anoint him. And very
early in the morning. The first day of the week, they
came unto the sepulcher, Sunday morning, just like this is, at
the rising of the sun. And they said among themselves,
Who shall roll us away the stone from the door of the sepulcher?
And when they looked, they saw that the stone was rolled away,
for it was very great. And entering into the sepulcher,
they saw a young man sitting on the right side, clothed in
a long white garment, and they were affrighted. And he saith
unto them, Be not affrighted, You see, Jesus of Nazareth, which
was crucified, he's risen. He's not here. Behold, the place
where they laid him. But go your way. Tell his disciples. And Peter. You see, if he wouldn't have
said as and Peter, Peter would have assumed he's not one of
the disciples. You can just write that down. He didn't mean me. But the Lord in His mercy says,
you go tell my disciples that I'm risen from the dead. And
make sure you tell Peter. Why Peter? Because he felt like he wasn't
one of the disciples. Why did he tell Peter? I mean, Peter did deny him. Why
did he tell Peter? I mean, look what Peter did.
Why did he do that? Because Peter was somebody that Jesus Christ
loved. And Peter was somebody that the
Lord Jesus Christ died for and put away their sins. He couldn't deny Peter. Peter's sins were paid for. That's
why I couldn't deny Peter. Is that a reason enough? Is it? Sure is. Now turn back to our
text in John chapter 13. Peter said unto him, Lord, verse
37, Why cannot I follow thee now? I will lay down my life
for thy sake. Now, remember, this is the new
man speaking. Peter meant it. And this is also
the old man speaking in pride and self-sufficiency. And I love
the way the Lord answers him. Verse 38, Jesus answered him, Wilt thou lay down thy life for
my sake? Verily, verily, I say unto you,
the cock shall not crow till thou hast denied me three times."
Now remember, these chapter divisions are purely man-made. They were inserted there by the
translators. They were never supposed to be
here. I'm thankful for chapter divisions and verses, makes stuff
easier to find. But it's purely man-made. Now let's read verse 38 and John
chapter 14, verse 1 together. Jesus answered him, wilt thou
lay down thy life for my sake? Verily, verily, I say unto thee,
the cock shall not crow till thou hast denied me. three times,
let not your heart be troubled. How can that be? You're going to deny me three
times? Let not your heart be troubled? How can that be? Because, Peter, salvation Acceptance
with God doesn't come to you because of your courage, and
it's not withheld from you because of your cowardice. It has nothing
to do with you, good or bad. It's for Christ's sake. Ephesians
4, verse 32 says, Be ye kind, tenderhearted, forgiving one
another, Even as God, for Christ's sake, has forgiven you. Is that enough of a reason? Does
anything else need to be said? You see, salvation is in Christ. Ephesians chapter 1, verse 6
says, He hath made us accepted in the Beloved. Now, think of
that. He hath made us accepted. He hath made us accepted in the
Beloved. Now, I want to ask you a question,
and I realize a goat will take this and hang himself with it,
but I can't do anything about the goats, so I'm not even worried
about the goats. I'm preaching to the sheep. Was Peter any less accepted in
the Beloved when he was denying Christ than he was when he was
dying for Christ? Was he any more accepted when
he was dying for Christ? Now, you know the answer to that
question. My acceptance is in the Beloved. In the Beloved accepted
am I, without reference to the best things about me, without
reference to the worst things about me. I'm accepted in the
Lord Jesus Christ. And so the Lord could say to
Peter, only the Lord could say this, You know, I love the way
the Lord speaks. Truly, He spake as no other man.
He spake as one having authority, not like the scribes. He said,
Peter, you're going to deny me three times. Let not your heart
be troubled. Trouble? No trouble. Because
in Christ, I am accepted. Turn to John 21. The Lord could
not deny Peter. It'd be for him to deny himself.
Now, John 21. Verse 15. This is after the resurrection
of the Lord, the Lord's already appeared to Peter. Verse 15, so when they had died.
Jesus said to Simon Peter, Simon. Son of Jonah. Do you love me
more than these? Now he doesn't mean, I don't
believe, do you love me more than Thomas and John and that
bunch. The Lord wasn't asking that. He was saying, do you love
me more than these fishing boats, these nets, your old way of life? Now remember, Peter is the one
who said in John chapter 20 after the resurrection of Christ, even
after the Lord had appeared to him and said, I'm going fishing.
And I don't believe he was going fishing like you or I go fishing
for enjoyment. He said, I'm going back. I'm going to forget this
apostle stuff. I'm going to be a fisherman. I'm going back to
being a fisherman. And the Lord appeared to him
again. See, Peter was just, he's just like you are, just like
I am. Weak, sinful man. And the Lord appeared to him
again. And he asked this question, Simon, Peter, do you love me
more than these? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord,
thou knowest that I love thee. Anybody else may question it,
and I can understand why they would. As a matter of fact, I
am certain that some of the other disciples were thinking, how
do you reckon he's going to answer this after what he did? You can
just bet they were thinking that. But Peter said, you know. that I love you. He saith unto
him, feed my lambs. Verse 16, he saith unto him the
second time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? He saith unto him, yea, Lord,
you know that I love you. He said, feed my sheep. He saith
unto him the third time. And most people think that the
reason the Lord asked this three times is because Peter denied
him three times. And I love what he asked it. He didn't say, Peter,
do you promise to never do this again? He didn't say, Peter, are you
sorry? He didn't say anything like that.
He said, Peter, do you love my person? Do you love me? Do you love my holiness? Do you love my wisdom? Do you
love my grace? Do you love my righteousness?
Do you love my sovereignty? Do you love my compassion? Everything about me. Do you love
my person? And Peter appealed to the omniscience
of Christ. You know all things. And you know that I love thee. Jesus saith unto him, Feed my
sheep. Can you see where this fall was
a needful fall? And the Lord said, when you're
converted, strengthen your brethren. Peter
could strengthen them now like he couldn't before this. Now,
I'm not, obviously, I'm not suggesting or implying in any way, well,
it'd be good for me if I fell into sin. No it wouldn't. No
it wouldn't. I'm not saying anything like
that. You know that. But we see where this was a mercy
of our Lord. to Peter. Let's pray together.