Trust – Luke 22:31-38

               Simon, Simon, behold Satan has demanded permission to sift you like wheat….

Imagine what your response would be 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 you say?

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.” 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 crimes – the crucifixion of God’s Son.

                                  But I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail.

Peter’s greatest challenge became living with himself – a very different man than he had supposed. However, while Peter was feeling damned and Satan was celebrating, Jesus’ prayer were being answered. Jesus had used Satan’s attack to help empty Peter of self-delusion. Until Peter could recognize his need he could not be filled with the life of God. Until he saw who he was not, he could not become who God intended him to be. In the process of following Jesus, we are not only saved from hell but equipped for life with new identities, in Christ.

A friend of mine tells me of his struggle to believe. He says, “Faith is a gift. One either has it or they don’t”. I agree that faith, as it relates to our initial salvation, is a pure gift. However, from that point on, we must act upon that gift. We must live by faith. Faith becomes that denari we can either bury or invest.

As with Peter, Satan desires to sift us, separating us from God. At the very least, he wants to create that illusion. However, we have a savior who is interceding for us, and a shepherd who will not loose a single lamb. In those moments where it appears we have been sifted – where we have proven our faithlessness to ourselves and to the world, we can have confidence that Jesus’ prayer will be answered. The faith he has given us will grow if only we will persevere. (Check out Romans 5:1-3 and James 1:2-4)

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. Teach us to invest wisely, especially in the presence of our errant thoughts and  emotions. With liberated hearts, may we declare your goodness. After our seasons of disorientation, help us grasp that we have always been secure in you. And may our lives, like Peter, become nourishment for your lambs. Amen.

 

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