Comeback Faith

Welcome to this later in the program and tell you how you got grand moments were first here's the message come back face your Bibles and turn to John chapter 21. If you need a do over analyze them.

This message is for you if you need a second chance or another chance. This message is for you. You can rebound. You can recover. You can be restored because what I want you here today is that is never too late for a new beginning. Never too late for a new beginning. So don't stare at the past. Live your life looking through the rearview mirror. That's dangerous.

It's okay to glance at your rearview mirror know what's going on to your side are behind you, but don't try to drive your car looking for your rearview mirror your disaster waiting to happen. Look for the big screen. The windshield is a lot bigger and hopefully a lot better going forward.

So we learn from the past, but we don't live in the past, we may look at the past we glance at the past, but weekdays at our future and our future is in Christ, verse four, chapter 21 says, just as day was breaking the dawning of a new day, Jesus stood on the shore. Yet the disciples did not know that it was Jesus, and Jesus said to them, children do you have any fish and they answered him no and he said to them, cast them out on the right side of the boat and you will find some.

So they casted and now they were not able to haul it in because of the quantity of that disciple whom Jesus love, therefore said to Peter, John says to Peter, it is the Lord when Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord.

He put on his outer garment for you strip down the fish and he threw himself into the sea.

Just like impetuous Simon Peter.

Now he's swimming as fast as he can on the Sea of Galilee to get Jesus.

This is after the resurrection.

After Peter's colossal collapse but now he's on his way to Jesus. He throws himself into the sea and the other disciples came in the boat, dragging the net full of fish, for they were not far from the land that about 100 yards all when I got on on the land they saw a charcoal fire and played. Note that in your Bibles. You may want to circle a charcoal fire that significant in place with fish laid out on it and bread and Jesus said to them, bring some of the fish that you just call Simon Peter went aboard and hauled the net ashore. This is a miracle full of large fish, 153 of them and although there were none there.

There were so many the net was not torn. The fishermen were always repairing their net but it was not torn and Jesus said, come and have breakfast. Imagine sitting by the shore of the Sea of Galilee. One of the best places on earth and having breakfast with Jesus now. None of the disciples dared ask him who are you, they knew it was the Lord Jesus came and took the bread and gave it to them and so with the fish and this was now the third time that Jesus was revealed in the disciples after he was raised from the dead, you know the background of this value just in case you $need to refresh your memory, it was Simon Peter, who said, though everyone else dessert you know everyone else may deny you, not me, Lord, I will hang with you to the very end. I will go to prison and jail even to death for you, but not long after that while Jesus was under arrest facing death trial at trial and execution.

Peter drew close but not close enough to the side of Christ denied the Lord. He said I never knew him. It was a shameful, despicable and public failure.

Peter was an apostate. That's a bad word apostate and what it means one who denies the faith one denies the faith, and not only did Simon Peter denied the faith, but he denied Jesus himself, his world implodes. If anyone ever needed a second chance. Another opportunity it was Simon Peter because he failed so terribly, and he felt he could never come back. So Simon Peter goes back to Galilee.

Jesus told the disciples after the resurrection to wait the coming of the Holy Spirit Simon Peter. They were all still in a fog, not knowing exactly what was going to happen next. Was this real, what we have seen is this true and I knew it was true.

And yet it was hard to believe and and Simon Peter is thinking to himself, even if it is true is never to be the same for me.

God could never use me again. I am a failure and why was he such a failure to some of the reasons the cause of this daily because the reasons that Simon Peter failed on the same reasons that we fail and we do think whether it's a simple choice or bad behavior of some kind a denial refusal to stand up for Christ.

We will in the face of pressure. Why would we deny the Lord well. One is pride and presumption. We all have this commonality we we all deal with with pride and presumption in one of Peter's problem was that he overestimated his own ability. He was way over confident, though, all the rest of these may deny you, not me on the big fishermen on the tough guy and he was all about himself. He was way self-sufficient. Peter didn't know himself. Of course the Lord knew him and the Lord predicted he would fail. Jesus told him at the Last Supper before the rooster crows, you will deny me three times. No, no, imagine that this is no, not me, yes you, Simon Peter, you will deny me three times so Peter may have been surprised at his weakness, but not Jesus, in deference to this good man Simon Peter. He did love the Lord. He confessed the Lord. He was truly a believer but he was prepared personally unprepared for the challenge that he would face at the cross how dark the darkness would be how terrible the temptations would be so his self-confidence setting for his sin.

The Scripture tells us in first Corinthians chapter 10 verse 12 let him who stands take heed lest he fall. Pride comes before one of fall and it is our pride, our arrogance, the thinking that I'm all that that sets us up for huge failure and spiritual.

Following potential for evil is in everyone we are capable you are capable of any spiritual failure is true we are all vulnerable to temptation. The potential for evil is in all of us coiled like a snake ready to strike. And if we neglect spiritual discipline. If we live in self-confidence, rather than in faith, then we are in danger of defeat. All of us. Peter boasted that he would never deny Christ and you would think that courage would be the primary character of Simon Peter in many ways it was but Oswald Chambers, a great devotional writer said this on on guarded strength is double weakness. We say that again because I want you to think about and on guarded strength is a double weakness. Most of us know watch our back on our weakness.

If you understand where you are weak you would be a fool to put yourself in a position where your weakness would bill you in so most often, we may we may focus on our weaknesses but but Chambers is saying I believe is true not just your weakness, but currently guard your spring because it's our strengths that can turn to self-sufficiency, and pride in our lives. So guard your strengths as well.

As your weaknesses. It is in our weakness that we are made strong in the power of Christ. But not only pride and presumption will cause our fall but prayerless to assess what happened.

Peter prayerless's were told in Mark chapter 14 and verse 37 that Jesus told them to pray, and yet in the garden of Gethsemane where Pete Jesus was pouring out his blood in preparation for the cross, Jesus agonized the disciples slept just a few feet away. It was there pride in Peter's pride that produced prayerless because after all, why pray, if you can do it yourself.

Jesus taught us to pray in the model prayer. Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil and so prayer is for petition asking and receiving what we need from God and we should pray always petitioning God for what we need and yet we are also to pray for protection every day that when we face fires of temptation. Then when we face failure, we come face-to-face with the enemy that we would be prepared because we have pray. I know this window stronger than our prayer lives is pride that causes us to neglect the place of prayer is self-sufficiency and self deception and self dependent but it is rare that produces the power of in our lives to face any foe that we might your listening to PowerPoint with Jack Graham and today's message come back. Faith. When you set aside daily time to connect with God to give you the ability to live a happy life and fulfill his plans for you in the coming year and we'd like to help me walk even more closely at the Lord in the year had by sending you pastor grams 180 day devotional moments in the word.

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When Jesus was arrested. The disciples ran but Peter he fall according to the Scripture. Luke 22 verse 54 he followed at a distance that he got close but not close enough. He got close enough to be around the very crowd that was crucifying Christ team. He began because he was self-confidence to confident to get a little closer to trouble a little closer to the trouble he didn't go all the way and they get close to Jesus.

He got himself by the fires of the enemy and he is warming his hands and a charcoal fire by the enemies of Christ. While Jesus is on trial for his life.

That phrase Luke 2254.

He followed at a distance.

Reminds me to say that following Jesus means getting as close to him as we can. Not just following at a distance. Too many Christians are part-time believers, casual observers, but I want to challenge you when you come to worship the Lord Jesus Christ, don't show up late and leave early like you're a spectator in a theater. We are here to worship the Lord Jesus from the very beginning when we are singing we are praying and we are praising God and we are giving with serving God with our our worship. It is important to show up early and then don't leave early. I mean well to show up early and leave late instead of showing up late and leave in early why because we all want to be just part-time casual observers in the body of Christ.

We want to be all in. We will follow at a distance. Too many know I'm I'm in. But you know I'm not one of those Jesus freaks. I'm not one of those fanatics. I'm just gonna follow Jesus at a distance and when you do that you set yourself up for failure because you find yourself more in the world and in the king of God.

That's what happened to Peter. He found himself out here with the enemies of Christ and surety bail Bible says a companion of fools will be destroyed, and Simon Peter therefore found himself with the wrong people at the wrong place at the wrong time and he went down he went down and he went down. He fell hard. Scripture says when Peter send by denying the Lord. He wept bitterly.

What he lose he lost his testimony as an opportunity for him to stand for Christ. We lost that opportunity. In fact when he's denying price even in front of a little girl against her profane and and to swear and to deliver almost none. That doesn't necessarily mean that he was cursing what it means was he was saying things like I swear by God. I don't know this man that's denying Christ and he's broken by sin when were broken by our sin is one of two things we can do it we can quit. That's what Simon wanted to do.

Originally went when it says here in John 21 and verse three Simon Peter said to them, I'm going fishing. This wasn't a recreational trip this was that I got to get out of town to take a break. I'm going fishing means I'm going back tomorrow. Life only thing I know how to do. I'm obviously not a very good Christian. I'm not a very good disciple of Jesus. So I go back and do what I know I'm to go back to my old life tomorrow way to mild have Jesus would let them quit won't let you quit either. That's why on that day when Simon Peter and the others are out fishing all night betting catch a thing. Peter can even succeed at fishing anymore.

That stranger on the shore that man on the shore called to the disciples and said hey boys caught anything but about adding insult to injury. Now throw your net on the other side of the boat flashback all the way back to the beginning Jesus first call Simon Peter and the others and said come follow me cast your net and the date they saw the tremendous miracle on the Sea of Galilee and Jesus said come on Simon Peter come and follow me, will change the world.

I make you fishers of men flashback the catch all these fish again and John close to the Lord Jesus said is the Lord and Simon Peter jumps all in.

He wants to get to Jesus as fast as he can – what forgiveness will do for you.

If you believe you can be forgiven if you believe your life can breathe again live again.

If you believe there's hope for you. You'll get to Jesus as fast as possible. That's what Simon Peter did when he got to the shore. There is Jesus by a warm fire, a charcoal fire. Nothing is in the Bible by accident and here John, especially notes that it was a charcoal fire. The same word that he used in John 18 to describe the charcoal fire where Peter denied the Lord. Now, another fire is lit, the fire of forgiveness and restoration. Jesus is cooking breakfast. Can you imagine that the risen Christ. He's got fish on the grill on and there's brand hot warm bread is anything better than that. He's got a little fish sandwich is making the one where he got the bread we we know where you got the fish plenty of fish around the Sea of Galilee. The bread I don't know. Did he bring it from Jerusalem. Maybe, just maybe, he made the print I mean make the bread. Remember when Jesus was tempted and the devil said turn the stones into bread and Jesus said, no, I'll not turn those rocks in the bread is not my time.

That's not what I come to do.

He said no to the temptation of Satan. But maybe now he looked around, saw some rocks and said red in his own time in his own terms.

He turned the bread are the stones into bread, whatever. There they are, and that's when Simon Peter looks at Jesus once again & and Jesus forgives him. Now he confronts them with this sin, he asked him three times, Simon, do you love me do you love the really love, and of course you know what that's about as obvious three times, Simon Peter had denied Jesus. Now Jesus gives him three opportunities to confess and each time Simon Peter said, Lord, you know I love I love and then he said, Lord, you know all things you know if I love you are not now we see the humility and the transparency he's come face-to-face with the reality that he can't do this on his own. His failure is too great. But Jesus is providing him an opportunity to recover to rebound to come back to you what you know about Jesus. Jesus knows the worst about you and me. He does Simon Peter says, Lord, you know you know whether I love your not Jesus knows the worst about you, and limiting something else. He knows he knows the best about you. Jesus refused to mistake the moment for the man he knew the power, the potential Simon Peter. If Simon Peter could just get his life harness when the power of God that he can change the world and Jesus is shaping his man. He's he's taking the rock and strengthening him. Simon Peter's coming back is no longer boasting about how much you love, you don't boast about how much you love Jesus I mean is good to say ologies don't boast about that. If you boast about the love of Christ boast about how much he loves you. Not how much you love him with the love of Christ that compels us is his love for us. It is his forgiveness and his grace and his mercy when we needed the most. And I'm telling you, if you have failed and we all fail. But maybe you're sitting in the middle of a failure right now. Maybe you're in a time in your life where you are down and nearly out. You want quit. You want to run away. Maybe in your thinking about going back to your old life go back to my old friends go back to the old clubs go back to the old junk because you fail so much you think I just can't will guess what you can't do it, but the power of Christ will restore you and redeem you and renew you that it is because of his cross and the resurrection. The power of Jesus Christ that we can be forgiven and renewed and restored, and Jesus gave him a job to do.

He said piedmont she served me.

You see is the love of Christ changes everything. What motivates us to share the love of Jesus without Jesus said to Simon Peter, do you love me, he didn't say be allowed to preach the love to lead you love to serve the love.

I know because if you love listening to PowerPoint can cram in today's message come back, looking ahead to a new year can fill you with expectation. They can also fill you with desperation if things get worse. But if the world gets crazier. But if you don't have the strength to face what comes your way. It's their spending daily time in God's word that we find the strength, peace and hope. We need and we want to help you do that by sending you pastor friends 180 day devotional moments in the word moments in the word is our special Thanksgiving gift this month so called requester copy today: 800-795-4627 that's 1-800-795-4627 can also text the word PowerPoint 313-1316 PowerPoint 313131.

And don't forget to visit RAM.org shop store online or sign up for Dr. Graham's free daily email our website again is Jack Graham.Esther what is your PowerPoint. One of the major reasons people don't practice a comeback. Faith is they can't let go of their sin and really take hold of God's grace.

When we fail.

And yes, we all fail. We tend to look at our sin from our own perspective on our own failure and sometimes we allow our sin to own us or define us or control us. That's what Simon Peter did and in a flash. In a moment.

He denied the Lord. He did it three times. He denied Christ in a moment of great need.

And it was a massive epic failure in Peter war that failure like a chain, but Jesus always refuses to mistake the moment for the man he knew the absolute worst about Peter. He saw everything he knew what Peter had done, but he also knew who Peter could become by God's grace. And that's how crises you he sees you, not for what you are, but who you are and him and what you can become because of him.

This is your true identity. You're not defined by your past you not defined by your sin, your defined by who you are in Christ and becoming the person he made you to be by his grace. So if you're carrying around a mistake like a chain the day.

If you're wearing your sin around your neck. Ask God not only to forgive you but to deliver you from that sin and then you can begin to live a comeback faith you can come back from whatever failure you have faced in your life and you can trust in Christ and receive a brand-new life and a brand-new calling in Jesus and that is today's power. Remember we PowerPoint will send you Graham 180 day moments.

Call 1800-795-4671 795467 also text the word PowerPoint 3131 PowerPoint join Dr. Graham next time as he brings a message about to have a mountain moving next to him on PowerPoint PowerPoint with Jack Graham is sponsored by PowerPoint ministries