Luke 22:31-38
A friend of mine tells me from time to time they struggle to believe. They will typically say, “Faith is a gift; one either has it or they don’t“. Is faith a gift? Or, is it a choice? Perhaps both?
Simon, Simon, behold Satan has demanded permission to sift you like wheat….
Imagine what your response would have been if Jesus locked eyes with you and said, “The devil’s intentions are to separate you and I, but I have prayed for you that your faith not fail you.” What would your response be?
Peter’s response was defensive as if Jesus had wrongly accused him of deficient trust or lack of loyalty; “No way Lord, I know myself well enough and I would go to jail or even die with You before I would abandon you.”
We know how this story develops, Peter did not know himself as well as he had thought. So…, did Jesus grant some limited satanic access to Peter as God had done with Job? At what point was this prayer of Jesus answered?……
But I have prayed for you (Peter) that your faith may not fail.
Three times Peter was given the opportunity to stand fast in his identification with Jesus. Three times he cratered. No doubt Satan assumed his victory as Peter fled, overcome by the events in and around him. Imagine the horror as he watched His closest friend, the Son of God being mocked and beaten. Imagine his guilt, knowing that by his inaction he was a conspirator to this worst of all nightmares. At some point Peter also had to get used to living with himself, which may have been quite painful given that he was a very different man than he had supposed.
As out of control as Peter’s life may have seemed to him, I believe that in the unseen eternal dimension, Jesus’ prayers were being answered at the same time Satan was prematurely celebrating the sifting he was attempting. Through this painful ordeal Peter was being emptied of the delusions he had entertained about himself so that he might be filled with the life of God and receive a new and enduring identity in Christ. (By all means read Henri Nouwen’s entry in Blue Book.)
I am inclined to agree with my friend that faith, particularly as it relates to our initial salvation is a pure gift. I believe that the faith that is growing in us as followers of Christ (in our ongoing salvation) is that same gift but now invites and requires our participation. As life happens, and events unfold, we can be sure that behind the scene there is an enemy who desires to sift and separate us from God, or at least create that illusion and at the same time a Savior who is interceding for us who will not loose a single one that God has given Him. And in those moments where it seems that all hope is gone, where we have proven our faithlessness to ourselves and to the world, we can have confidence that Jesus’ prayer will be answered and that ultimately his faith which he has given us will grow if only we will persevere. (Check out Romans 5:1-3 and James 1:2-4)
Random suggestion: Check out Eric Bibb. His CD Diamond Days has this precious thread of persevering faith woven all through it. Genre; Acoustic Blues. He nails it in every way.
Father, that you are present and faithful at all times and circumstances is a wonderful yet difficult truth to grasp. If and when trials or attacks come our way, may our response be increasingly influenced by the reality that we are yours. Help us in our participation, in the midst of our emotions and errant thoughts, to make our declarations of your goodness. And after our seasons of disorientation help us grasp that we have always been secure in you. An may our lives, like Peter, become nourishment for your lambs. Amen.