I'm a Failure

Everyone has failed at something in their lives.We do not like to admit that we have failed in some way. To admit failure is to admit weakness. We do not like to admit weakness because it means that we are flawed in some way. What we need to understand is we are flawed and apart from the grace of God there is nothing we can do about it.

I want to share the story of someone in the bible whose character was full of failures and yet Christ changed him by the power of the Holy Spirit. Through the power of the Holy Spirit he became a mighty spiritual warrior.I want to share with you the story of Peter.

Peter was a man of absolute surrender. When Christ told Peter to launch his boat into the deep waters and let down his net, Peter never protested. Although they had been fishing all night and had not caught anything, Peter responded "At thy word, I will let down the net."When Jesus said "Come follow me." Peter left his boats, his family, and his hometown without question.

Peter was a man of spiritual insight. When Christ asked "Whom do you say I am?" Peter replied " Thou art the Christ, the Son of the Living God." Jesus made Peter aware that this great revelation had not be revealed to him by flesh and blood but by His Father in Heaven.

So how could someone who was so obedient and with such great spiritual insight fail? The answer is simple; Peter was also a man of self will. When Christ revealed to His disciples that He was going to suffer greatly at the hands of the Jewish religious leaders Peter said "Be it far from thee, Lord; this shall not be unto thee." Christ immediately rebuked Peter. "Get thee behind me Satan; for thou savorest not the things of God, but those that be of man."This was Peter in his self will, Peter trusting in his own wisdom. Peter had left his boats and his home but not his old self.He was allowing self to come between him and his Lord.

We may be the most earnest, godly believer, but we still struggle with the flesh. We struggle with living the self-life. When we fail we become utterly ashamed of our actions and fall broken before God.

In Matthew 26:29-35 we see Peter make a bold proclamation.Jesus reveals to the disciples that they will flee from Him when He is arrested. Peter proclaims "Though all will be offended because of you, I will never be offended. Jesus tells Peter that before the rooster crows in the morning hour, Peter would deny Him three times. Peter again proclaims "Though I would die, I will not deny you." We all make rash proclamations in our lives without thinking of the consequences of our words. We must never speak rashly of our faith without understanding our need for God's strength to accomplish what we speak of.

The story continues in Matthew 26:36-40. We see the reason for Peter's failure. They go to the garden of Gethsemene where Jesus asks Peter, James and John to watch while He goes a little further to pray. The disciples fall asleep while Jesus prays. Jesus reminds them of the importance of prayer, watching and being prepared. It is so they do not enter into temptation.

When Jesus is arrested the disciples flee. They were not ready for what occurs. Peter and the other disciples failed to pray. They failed to prepare. We must understand that we do not wait until we are in the middle of a crisis to pray but pray for strength to face any crisis that may come our way.

We see Peters failure in Matthew 26:58, 69-75. Peter follows Jesus at a distance. Many of us want to follow Jesus at a distance in order that we might not be easily associated with Him. Once in the courtyard, Peter faces great temptation. When confronted with his relationship with Christ, Peter, the one who said; "Thou art the Christ, the Son of the Living God," said "I do not know the man." He takes it a step further with the third denial. He began to curse and swear; "I know not the man." We are told in Luke 223:61 that the cock crowed and Jesus looked into the face of Peter. Peter remembered Jesus' words and went out and wept bitterly.Sin is betrayal. When we rebel, we sin against God.

Peter had followed Christ for three years. he was a part of the inner circle.How could he commit this great act ofdenial? Peter was overconfident;"I will not deny you." Peter was SELF CONFIDENT.Peter was prayerless. When he should have been vigilant, he was negiligent. We all fail spiritually when we forget the most important part of our spiritual walk and that is our relationship with Christ.

Now we see Peter's repentance. He wept bitterly over his denial. He wept because in his heart the Lord was gone. He wept because his hope was gone. We can only imagine the depths of humiliation and despair Peter sank into. When we fail, we run from God. We cannot face Him. We have no desire to look upon His disappointed face and admit our sin. Like Adam and Eve we hide from Him. The good news is the Lord seeks us out.

John 21:14-17 tells us of Jeuus' third appearence to the disciples after His ressurection. Peter must have been ashamed to face his master. He had denied his Lord in the face of opposition. He had turned from his Lord for fear of what man might do. Now Peter is given a second chance.

Jesus asks Peter " Do you love me?' Peter replies "you know I do Lord." Jeus replies; "Then feed my sheep." Jeus forgave Peter and entrusted him with His flock. Now Peter was prepared for deliverance from self.

Peter became a great preacher, a great leader in the church and an obedient and faithful servant of God. We all fail spiritually. The key to recovery is to admit our failures and sincerely seek forgivenss from God. Look to His mercy and you will receive it. May God Bless You.