SAVING OUR LIFE

"Peter answered and said unto Him, Though all men shall be offended because of Thee, yet will I never be offended.  Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, That this night, before the cock crow, thou shalt deny Me thrice.  Peter said unto Him, Though I should die with Thee, yet will I not deny Thee.  Likewise also said all the disciples." (Matthew 26:33-35).

 

Each of us is willing to give our best resolution to the Lord at the beginning of our spiritual journey.  We make many promises to Him at the start, when our faith is new, and our experience is limited.  Like Peter, we may even pledge our lives in service for Him.  While such sentiments are well meaning, they come from a place of ignorance.  We just don’t know what discipleship is going to cost us yet.  These words and promises come very easily to "all the disciples" at first.   We simply do not understand as young Christians that this is a process, and that we are growing into spiritual maturity step by step.  We cannot run before we learn to walk, and we cannot handle strong meat until we are weaned from milk.  Being "born again" infers that we start out as babies, and that we must grow up from there.

 

"Then cometh Jesus with them unto a place called Gethsemane, and saith unto the disciples, Sit ye here, while I go and pray yonder.  And he took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and began to be sorrowful and very heavy.  Then saith he unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death: tarry ye here, and watch with me.  And he went a little further, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt." (Matthew 26:36-39).

 

Jesus, knowing the Passion that lay before Him, asked His Father if it were possible for Him to accomplish God’s will without having to suffer the anguish of the cross.  Yet, at the same time, Jesus was willing to set aside His own will for that of the Father's.

 

We, as Christians, are often confronted with choices that are very difficult for us.  They may involve some personal sacrifice, or loss on our part; they may involve some humiliation, or even some physical pain or discomfort.  Our flesh may urge us to avoid any such difficulties or to look for other ways to fulfill God's will without having to suffer; but, in the end, it is a matter of submitting our will to that of the Father's.  This is never easy for the flesh, but always possible in the Spirit.

 

"And He cometh unto the disciples, and findeth them asleep, and saith unto Peter, What, could ye not watch with Me one hour?  Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak." (Matthew 26:40, 41).

 

When Jesus returned from praying, He found the disciples sleeping.  Peter, who had said that he would die for his Lord, could not watch one hour with Him in prayer!  Our spirit is most always willing to do the right things, but it is our flesh that is weak.  This is why Jesus emphasized the need to pray: so that we not enter into temptation.  We must not only pray, but we must also watch.  We are admonished to be circumspect - looking all around us.  Our arch-enemy is very subtle and sneaky.  He will use any means to redirect us from God's will.  We must be wise as serpents, but harmless as doves.  We are living on a spiritual battlefield, and must therefore be as vigilant as a warrior in hostile territory. 

 

"And while He yet spake, lo, Judas, one of the twelve, came, and with him a great multitude with swords and staves, from the chief priests and elders of the people.  Now he that betrayed Him gave them a sign, saying, whomsoever I shall kiss, that same is He: hold Him fast.  And forthwith he came to Jesus, and said, Hail, Master; and kissed Him.  And Jesus said unto him, Friend, wherefore art thou come? Then came they, and laid hands on Jesus, and took Him.  But all this was done, that the scriptures of the prophets might be fulfilled.  Then all the disciples forsook him, and fled."  (Matthew 26:47-50, 56)

 

Where the rubber meets the road - that's where our faith is really proven.  "All the disciples" promised that they would die for their Lord, yet "all the disciples" forsook Jesus, and ran away when their skin was threatened.  Oh, how protective we are of our life!  It is the one thing that stands between us and serving the Lord completely.  It is not our best intentions that God is after - we all have the best intentions.  He knows that our flesh is weak.  It is we who seem to always be surprised by this.  We need the strength of the Holy Spirit working in our inner man to actually do God's will.  "That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit." (Romans 8:4).

 

In Matthew 16, we find Jesus posing an interesting question to His disciples.  "When Jesus came into the coasts of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, saying, Whom do men say that I the Son of man am?  And they said, Some say that Thou art John the Baptist: some, Elias; and others, Jeremias, or one of the prophets." (Matthew 16:13, 14).

 

There are certainly many who would consider Jesus to be a great prophet or teacher.  They understand that He is an important historical figure, and they may place Him on a slightly higher plain than Mohammad or Confucius but, still, they consider Him to have been only a man.  Based on their belief, they may study the Bible, attend church services, and even hope to inherit eternal life.  They would consider themselves to be Christians.  Yet, something vital is missing in their understanding of Christ, and Who He is: something that is fundamental to their spiritual journey and ultimate salvation.

 

"He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am?  And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.  And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but My Father which is in heaven...Then charged He His disciples that they should tell no man that He was Jesus the Christ." (Matthew 16:15-17, 20).

 

It is completely irrelevant what others believe about who Jesus is.  Though others may tell us Who Christ is, it is the Father in heaven that must reveal Christ to our spirit, and to our understanding.  Flesh and blood will profit us nothing.  It is all about what you believe and whether or not you have really gotten it or not.  This is why Jesus was so intent on knowing what His disciples believed about Who He was.  He wanted to know that they understood that He was not just a prophet and a teacher, but that He was the Christ, the Anointed, and the Son of the Living God.  He was not conceived of flesh and blood, but He was sent straight from the Father to accomplish God's perfect plan for the redemption of mankind.  He was the second Adam, come to make right and restore all that the first Adam had lost.

 

"From that time forth began Jesus to shew unto His disciples, how that He must go unto Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised again the third day.  Then Peter took Him, and began to rebuke Him, saying, Be it far from Thee, Lord: this shall not be unto Thee.  But He turned, and said unto Peter, Get thee behind Me, Satan: thou art an offence unto Me: for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but those that be of men.  Then said Jesus unto His disciples, If any man will come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.  For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for My sake shall find it.  For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?  For the Son of man shall come in the glory of His Father with His angels; and then He shall reward every man according to his works.  Verily I say unto you, There be some standing here, which shall not taste of death, till they see the Son of man coming in His kingdom." (Matthew 16:21-28).

 

Even with the revelation of Who Jesus really is, it is difficult for us to grasp, let alone embrace, the concept of the suffering of Christ.  Peter himself, who got an A+ for his declaration earlier, now flunked out by trying to talk Jesus out of His Passion.  He just didn't understand.  All Peter knew was how to preserve his flesh, and that of those he loved.  He loved His Lord, and didn't want any harm to come to Him.  He wanted only to save Him from suffering.  Jesus, on the other hand, recognized this as simply one more well engineered attempt by Satan to divert Him from the course that God had set for Him.  There was so much at stake.  The one sacrifice that was to atone for the sins of the whole world and usher in the mercy and salvation of God, and the disciples just couldn't see it.  This is why, in the end, they all forsook Jesus, and fled. 

 

My wife and I recently watched the movie “A Hidden Life” and were both greatly moved by the true story that it depicted.  It was a true story about Franz Jägerstätter, an Austrian farmer, who was called up to serve in Hitler’s army in 1943.  He believed the war and the Fuhrer were evil and he became a conscientious objector.  He refused to fight or to swear his allegiance to Hitler, and was therefore imprisoned by the Nazis. 

 

Austria had been “annexed” by Germany in 1938, just before the beginning of WWII.  Most Austrians were willing to throw their hat in with Hitler and were willing to support him.  Franz Jägerstätter was not one of those.  This did not make him popular with the people of his village where he lived with his wife and three little girls.  Even before he was called up for military service, the townsfolk had begun to shun him and his family.  They believed his resistance would trouble their town, and they considered him unpatriotic and traitorous to what they considered a right cause.

 

When Franz went to his priest for guidance and support, he, too, advised him to consider the consequences to his family if he resisted.  He told Franz that his conviction would not do anyone any good. 

 

An even worse blow came when his mother and even his wife questioned the effect his resolve would have on them.  It was truly heart breaking to contemplate the impact that one man’s decision to follow his conscience would have on so many others.  It was also horrifying to consider how many people would choose to do what was safe rather than what was morally right.  His wife and mother finally came around and supported him, but it was a difficult journey for them without him.

 

Franz Jägerstätter was ultimately called up and soon after cast in prison because he wouldn’t swear his allegiance to Hitler.  He suffered many things while in prison and was eventually convicted and sentenced to death.  He was beheaded in Berlin in 1943.

 

Oh, how we need a revelation of Jesus Christ, and of the work that He has given us to finish.  Satan will do his best to confuse and redirect us from the purpose that God has for us, but we must watch and pray that we enter not into temptation.  Our spirit indeed is willing, but our flesh is weak!

 

"For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not." (Romans 7:18).

 

“For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure.” (Philippians 2:13). 

 

"My flesh and my heart faileth: but God is the strength of my heart, and my portion for ever." (Psalm 73:26).