1 00:00:00,000 –> 00:00:01,800 And I’d be grateful if you’d open your Bibles 2 00:00:01,800 –> 00:00:05,360 at Luke’s Gospel, chapter 22, verse 46, 3 00:00:06,280 –> 00:00:09,080 where Jesus has a question that I want all of us 4 00:00:09,080 –> 00:00:11,080 to face together today. 5 00:00:12,420 –> 00:00:15,000 So course, it’s a very dangerous question 6 00:00:15,000 –> 00:00:16,840 for a preacher to speak on, 7 00:00:16,840 –> 00:00:19,799 especially on a warm Sunday morning. 8 00:00:21,760 –> 00:00:23,459 Why are you sleeping? 9 00:00:26,299 –> 00:00:27,840 Not the Sunday to doze off. 10 00:00:28,820 –> 00:00:31,780 It’s actually one of the most important questions 11 00:00:31,780 –> 00:00:33,419 in the whole of the New Testament 12 00:00:33,419 –> 00:00:36,220 because it relates to the fundamental battle 13 00:00:36,220 –> 00:00:39,939 that every one of us face with the power of temptation. 14 00:00:40,959 –> 00:00:42,880 And that’s our subject this morning. 15 00:00:42,880 –> 00:00:46,000 If you open your Bible at Luke, chapter 22, 16 00:00:46,000 –> 00:00:49,080 you’ll see there that the scene is the Garden of Gethsemane. 17 00:00:49,959 –> 00:00:51,160 Familiar to many of us, 18 00:00:51,160 –> 00:00:54,240 Jesus has just shared the Last Supper with the disciples, 19 00:00:54,240 –> 00:00:56,060 Judas has quit, 20 00:00:56,880 –> 00:01:00,619 and so the 11 are now left with Jesus. 21 00:01:00,619 –> 00:01:05,300 And Jesus is entering now into his passion. 22 00:01:06,559 –> 00:01:08,419 He goes into the Garden of Gethsemane. 23 00:01:08,419 –> 00:01:11,919 Karl Barth said that in Gethsemane, 24 00:01:11,919 –> 00:01:16,360 Christ is presented with the bill. 25 00:01:16,360 –> 00:01:19,360 In other words, it was in the Garden of Gethsemane 26 00:01:19,360 –> 00:01:23,800 that Jesus really faced up to the full cost 27 00:01:23,800 –> 00:01:28,339 of what it would mean to become your redeemer and mine, 28 00:01:29,459 –> 00:01:32,519 and facing the full cost and the great trauma 29 00:01:32,519 –> 00:01:35,519 of all that will be involved over these next hours, 30 00:01:35,519 –> 00:01:39,800 Jesus comes to this garden and his strategy is to pray. 31 00:01:40,760 –> 00:01:44,500 But before he begins, he says to his disciples, verse 40, 32 00:01:44,500 –> 00:01:49,500 pray that you will not fall into temptation. 33 00:01:49,739 –> 00:01:52,639 Now Jesus is not asking them to pray for him. 34 00:01:52,639 –> 00:01:55,680 He’s not saying, now look I need your support. 35 00:01:55,680 –> 00:01:57,519 No, he’s telling them that they need 36 00:01:57,519 –> 00:02:00,019 to pray for themselves. 37 00:02:01,500 –> 00:02:03,260 He’s saying to them, look, I’m about to face 38 00:02:03,260 –> 00:02:05,580 the greatest trauma of my life 39 00:02:05,580 –> 00:02:06,900 and so here’s what I’m gonna do, 40 00:02:06,900 –> 00:02:09,699 I’m gonna go over the other side of this garden here 41 00:02:09,699 –> 00:02:13,059 and I’m going to pray, but you folks need to realize 42 00:02:13,059 –> 00:02:15,539 that you are also about to face the greatest trial 43 00:02:15,539 –> 00:02:18,699 of your lives and so you need to pray as well. 44 00:02:18,699 –> 00:02:23,699 So pray that you will not fall into temptation. 45 00:02:26,199 –> 00:02:28,919 So Jesus goes, as Stone’s throw Luke tells us, 46 00:02:28,919 –> 00:02:30,639 the other side of the garden 47 00:02:30,639 –> 00:02:32,300 and I want you to see the contrast, 48 00:02:32,300 –> 00:02:33,880 picture it with me if you would. 49 00:02:33,880 –> 00:02:36,679 On the one side of the garden here is Jesus 50 00:02:36,679 –> 00:02:39,919 and he’s praying with such intensity 51 00:02:40,880 –> 00:02:44,360 that Luke says that the sweat pouring off him 52 00:02:44,360 –> 00:02:46,619 would have been in globlets such as 53 00:02:46,619 –> 00:02:49,720 you would have blood coming off a person’s face 54 00:02:49,720 –> 00:02:51,080 if they had been cut. 55 00:02:51,080 –> 00:02:53,000 That was the intensity of the sweat 56 00:02:53,000 –> 00:02:56,300 that was so profuse as Jesus agonized 57 00:02:56,300 –> 00:02:58,759 in this intensity of prayer. 58 00:02:58,759 –> 00:03:00,179 That’s one side of the garden. 59 00:03:00,179 –> 00:03:02,380 But on the other side of the garden 60 00:03:02,380 –> 00:03:04,800 the disciples have fallen asleep. 61 00:03:06,259 –> 00:03:08,220 After sometime Jesus comes back, 62 00:03:08,220 –> 00:03:10,919 he wakes them up and he asked them this question. 63 00:03:12,000 –> 00:03:13,139 Why are you sleeping? 64 00:03:13,960 –> 00:03:16,479 He says to them, get up and pray 65 00:03:16,479 –> 00:03:20,800 so that you will not fall into temptation. 66 00:03:22,380 –> 00:03:23,639 That’s our subject this morning 67 00:03:23,639 –> 00:03:25,880 and I want to speak with the Lord’s help 68 00:03:25,880 –> 00:03:29,600 as directly and practically as I can 69 00:03:29,600 –> 00:03:32,940 about the subject that every one of us faces 70 00:03:32,940 –> 00:03:36,080 in different ways throughout our entire Christian life. 71 00:03:37,559 –> 00:03:42,860 What does it mean to fall into temptation? 72 00:03:43,720 –> 00:03:48,220 Or more literally translating the words Jesus used, 73 00:03:48,220 –> 00:03:51,279 to enter into temptation. 74 00:03:52,919 –> 00:03:54,860 Now nobody has written on this subject 75 00:03:54,860 –> 00:03:58,820 with greater depth or insight than John Owen. 76 00:03:58,820 –> 00:04:03,500 John Owen was a 17th century writer and pastor. 77 00:04:03,500 –> 00:04:06,600 He produced an entire book on 78 00:04:06,600 –> 00:04:09,279 what it means to enter into temptation 79 00:04:09,279 –> 00:04:12,580 and it is still regarded as the greatest writing 80 00:04:12,600 –> 00:04:15,679 in Christian history on this subject. 81 00:04:15,679 –> 00:04:17,059 Owen says this, 82 00:04:18,279 –> 00:04:21,519 that when Jesus speaks about falling into temptation, 83 00:04:21,519 –> 00:04:23,720 entering into temptation, 84 00:04:23,720 –> 00:04:26,899 something more is intended 85 00:04:26,899 –> 00:04:30,059 than the ordinary work of Satan 86 00:04:30,059 –> 00:04:33,179 and the ordinary work of our own lusts 87 00:04:33,179 –> 00:04:35,980 which will be sure to tempt us every day. 88 00:04:36,940 –> 00:04:41,279 And he goes on to identify two distinctive features 89 00:04:41,359 –> 00:04:44,380 of entering into temptation. 90 00:04:44,380 –> 00:04:49,220 The first he says is that Satan be more earnest 91 00:04:49,220 –> 00:04:54,220 than ordinary in his solicitations to sin. 92 00:04:55,140 –> 00:04:56,459 In other words, he says, 93 00:04:56,459 –> 00:04:58,640 temptation is there for us every day, 94 00:04:59,519 –> 00:05:04,519 but there will be some occasions when Satan ratchets it up, 95 00:05:04,579 –> 00:05:09,040 when he targets you with a particular assault 96 00:05:09,040 –> 00:05:10,959 that you need to be ready to deal with. 97 00:05:11,799 –> 00:05:15,279 Secondly, he says, when this happens the heart 98 00:05:15,279 –> 00:05:20,279 becomes so far entangled as to be put to dispute, 99 00:05:22,239 –> 00:05:24,279 to argue in its own defense, 100 00:05:24,279 –> 00:05:28,160 and yet not to be wholly able to eject 101 00:05:28,160 –> 00:05:30,260 or cast out the poison. 102 00:05:31,339 –> 00:05:32,799 In other words, he’s saying that 103 00:05:32,799 –> 00:05:34,559 throughout the ordinary course of your life, 104 00:05:34,559 –> 00:05:36,299 you may find that there are many temptations 105 00:05:36,359 –> 00:05:39,040 that come by you and you’re able to brush them off 106 00:05:39,040 –> 00:05:40,779 in the ordinary course of things 107 00:05:40,779 –> 00:05:42,940 without too much difficulty. 108 00:05:42,940 –> 00:05:45,880 But you will find sometimes in your life 109 00:05:45,880 –> 00:05:50,619 when a particular temptation will gain vigor within you, 110 00:05:50,619 –> 00:05:52,600 you will find yourself divided 111 00:05:52,600 –> 00:05:55,119 in a way that you are not normally divided, 112 00:05:55,119 –> 00:05:58,260 you will find that part of you wants to reject this, 113 00:05:58,260 –> 00:06:00,859 but that despite that, you are unable 114 00:06:00,859 –> 00:06:03,320 to wholly separate yourself from it, 115 00:06:03,320 –> 00:06:04,820 you can’t get free from it. 116 00:06:05,640 –> 00:06:07,079 Owen puts it this way. 117 00:06:07,079 –> 00:06:10,019 Every temptation has its hour, 118 00:06:11,160 –> 00:06:14,799 a season, when it comes to a head. 119 00:06:15,820 –> 00:06:17,220 It’s a very helpful picture. 120 00:06:18,440 –> 00:06:21,200 Now imagine a salesman knocks at your door, 121 00:06:21,200 –> 00:06:24,239 you open the door, he tells you what he’s selling, 122 00:06:24,239 –> 00:06:26,239 and at that point it’s really not terribly difficult 123 00:06:26,239 –> 00:06:27,839 for you to say, I’m sorry, I’m not interested, 124 00:06:27,839 –> 00:06:30,299 go and try to sell it to the person next door. 125 00:06:31,320 –> 00:06:33,059 But suppose you invite him in, 126 00:06:34,040 –> 00:06:35,779 and he sits down in your living room 127 00:06:35,779 –> 00:06:37,059 and he makes his presentation, 128 00:06:37,059 –> 00:06:38,820 he shows you what the product is, 129 00:06:38,820 –> 00:06:40,880 he talks to you about how much you need this, 130 00:06:40,880 –> 00:06:43,239 how much better your life will be if you have it, 131 00:06:43,239 –> 00:06:46,059 and your mind and your heart begin to become engaged. 132 00:06:46,059 –> 00:06:49,519 You say, oh no, there’s something in what he’s saying. 133 00:06:49,519 –> 00:06:51,519 And as your mind and your heart become engaged, 134 00:06:51,519 –> 00:06:55,000 it is now harder for you to say no. 135 00:06:56,059 –> 00:06:59,640 Now this is what it means to enter into temptation. 136 00:06:59,640 –> 00:07:01,779 You become engaged with it, 137 00:07:01,779 –> 00:07:03,299 you become connected with it, 138 00:07:03,299 –> 00:07:05,459 you’re not in the position where you’re able to easily 139 00:07:05,459 –> 00:07:08,459 or quickly brush it off as at other times. 140 00:07:08,459 –> 00:07:11,399 It is no longer outside of you knocking at your door, 141 00:07:11,399 –> 00:07:12,779 it is inside of you, 142 00:07:12,779 –> 00:07:16,399 and it is dividing and pulling your heart. 143 00:07:18,839 –> 00:07:20,540 Now this of course is what the Lord Jesus 144 00:07:20,540 –> 00:07:21,720 was referring to surely, 145 00:07:21,720 –> 00:07:23,640 when he taught us to pray, 146 00:07:23,640 –> 00:07:27,239 lead us not into temptation. 147 00:07:27,279 –> 00:07:30,359 That prayer does not mean let us never be tempted, 148 00:07:30,359 –> 00:07:32,260 because obviously every Christian in this life 149 00:07:32,260 –> 00:07:34,079 is tempted throughout the course 150 00:07:34,079 –> 00:07:35,640 of our Christian experience, 151 00:07:35,640 –> 00:07:37,459 we all know that that’s how it is. 152 00:07:38,519 –> 00:07:40,760 What the prayer is saying is, 153 00:07:40,760 –> 00:07:42,980 do not bring me to a position 154 00:07:42,980 –> 00:07:47,980 where temptation gains power within me and over me, 155 00:07:48,700 –> 00:07:52,380 but rather deliver me from such evil. 156 00:07:53,880 –> 00:07:56,179 Now it seems to me that it is very important therefore 157 00:07:56,239 –> 00:08:00,040 for us to understand how temptation works. 158 00:08:01,160 –> 00:08:03,059 And if there’s one thing to grasp here it would be 159 00:08:03,059 –> 00:08:06,540 that temptation grows in power 160 00:08:06,540 –> 00:08:11,540 as it builds a position within your life. 161 00:08:12,100 –> 00:08:14,779 Now you see this pattern in sports, 162 00:08:14,779 –> 00:08:17,859 you see it in warfare, you see it in business, 163 00:08:17,859 –> 00:08:20,140 let me try and describe it so that we’ll be able 164 00:08:20,140 –> 00:08:23,059 to think of how it happens together. 165 00:08:23,059 –> 00:08:24,260 Think about baseball. 166 00:08:25,220 –> 00:08:29,179 The pitcher is on the mound, it’s a beautiful day, 167 00:08:29,179 –> 00:08:32,599 the arm is flowing freely and he’s striking everybody out. 168 00:08:35,419 –> 00:08:37,520 Then he throws a weak pitch 169 00:08:37,520 –> 00:08:40,940 and suddenly he has the first man on base. 170 00:08:40,940 –> 00:08:43,140 Well nothing very much to worry about there. 171 00:08:44,419 –> 00:08:45,780 But when the next man comes in, 172 00:08:45,780 –> 00:08:47,539 one of the fielders makes an error. 173 00:08:48,500 –> 00:08:50,000 And now there are two. 174 00:08:51,000 –> 00:08:53,039 The next man comes in and the pitcher 175 00:08:53,039 –> 00:08:56,559 throws a couple of balls and suddenly, 176 00:08:56,559 –> 00:08:57,739 the game has changed. 177 00:08:57,739 –> 00:08:59,619 Now the pitcher is under pressure. 178 00:08:59,619 –> 00:09:00,460 Why? 179 00:09:00,460 –> 00:09:04,419 Because the batting team has built a position 180 00:09:04,419 –> 00:09:06,320 that is against him. 181 00:09:06,320 –> 00:09:09,239 Suddenly the whole day has changed in a few moments 182 00:09:09,239 –> 00:09:12,580 from this free flowing arm and striking everybody out, 183 00:09:12,580 –> 00:09:15,479 now the pitcher’s the man under pressure. 184 00:09:16,419 –> 00:09:19,739 The same in warfare. 185 00:09:19,739 –> 00:09:22,960 You read the history of great battles. 186 00:09:22,960 –> 00:09:26,400 You will find how much was decided and even determined 187 00:09:26,400 –> 00:09:30,479 by where generals positioned their troops. 188 00:09:30,479 –> 00:09:33,219 How to capture the high ground. 189 00:09:33,219 –> 00:09:36,880 When to send off a unit to take the flank. 190 00:09:36,880 –> 00:09:40,960 When to develop a pincer movement to divide the enemy. 191 00:09:41,780 –> 00:09:46,840 The art of warfare is for the general to develop 192 00:09:46,840 –> 00:09:49,719 a position from which is troops 193 00:09:49,719 –> 00:09:52,239 can bear down on the enemy. 194 00:09:52,239 –> 00:09:54,099 There are many examples in history 195 00:09:54,099 –> 00:09:56,219 of where smaller and weaker armies 196 00:09:56,219 –> 00:09:59,039 have overcome larger and greater opposition 197 00:09:59,039 –> 00:10:03,359 simply because they have built an effective position 198 00:10:03,359 –> 00:10:06,580 before they launched the assault, 199 00:10:06,580 –> 00:10:09,159 and it’s the same in business. 200 00:10:09,159 –> 00:10:11,179 So, many of us in this congregation 201 00:10:11,179 –> 00:10:12,599 know every day of our lives 202 00:10:12,599 –> 00:10:15,559 that business is sometimes like warfare 203 00:10:15,559 –> 00:10:17,559 continued by other means, 204 00:10:17,559 –> 00:10:20,760 and it’s all about companies building a position, isn’t it? 205 00:10:20,760 –> 00:10:23,539 Building a position in the market, 206 00:10:23,539 –> 00:10:25,340 and as that position is developed, 207 00:10:25,340 –> 00:10:26,960 it exerts certain pressures, 208 00:10:26,960 –> 00:10:28,960 it creates certain dynamics 209 00:10:28,960 –> 00:10:30,640 that affect everyone else around. 210 00:10:32,380 –> 00:10:34,659 Now on the night that Jesus was betrayed, 211 00:10:34,659 –> 00:10:38,219 Satan was building a position. 212 00:10:39,640 –> 00:10:44,640 He was about to unleash his entire arsenal against Jesus, 213 00:10:46,500 –> 00:10:49,539 and this assault was going to be directed 214 00:10:49,539 –> 00:10:51,640 against the disciples too. 215 00:10:52,919 –> 00:10:54,419 Remember earlier in the evening, 216 00:10:54,419 –> 00:10:56,299 if you look back to verse 31, 217 00:10:56,299 –> 00:10:57,280 Jesus said to Peter, 218 00:10:57,280 –> 00:11:02,280 “‘Simon, Satan has asked to sift you like wheat.’” 219 00:11:05,940 –> 00:11:08,380 Peter, there’s going to be a greatest assault 220 00:11:08,479 –> 00:11:11,460 launched against you, it’s imminent. 221 00:11:12,979 –> 00:11:14,840 The enemy has targeted you. 222 00:11:16,280 –> 00:11:18,780 Your own heart is going to be divided. 223 00:11:19,979 –> 00:11:21,719 So now here is what you need to do. 224 00:11:22,619 –> 00:11:26,140 You need to watch and to pray. 225 00:11:27,979 –> 00:11:29,580 But when Jesus returns, 226 00:11:29,580 –> 00:11:32,219 he finds that Peter and the other disciples are asleep, 227 00:11:32,219 –> 00:11:33,059 and he says, 228 00:11:33,059 –> 00:11:34,299 “‘Why are you sleeping? 229 00:11:35,739 –> 00:11:37,640 Don’t you feel your need to prepare 230 00:11:37,700 –> 00:11:39,739 for what’s going to happen? 231 00:11:39,739 –> 00:11:43,539 Don’t you see the position that is building? 232 00:11:43,539 –> 00:11:44,859 Have you no discernment 233 00:11:44,859 –> 00:11:47,320 of what’s going on around you right now?” 234 00:11:51,059 –> 00:11:55,039 It’s very interesting that in the book of Ephesians, 235 00:11:55,039 –> 00:11:58,419 where Paul talks about the Christian’s armor, 236 00:11:58,419 –> 00:12:00,700 you remember that famous passage in Ephesians, 237 00:12:00,700 –> 00:12:01,539 in chapter 6, 238 00:12:01,539 –> 00:12:05,159 “‘We need to put on the full armor of God’? 239 00:12:06,000 –> 00:12:07,739 There’s one little phrase 240 00:12:07,739 –> 00:12:10,359 in there that I think is very, very often missed, 241 00:12:10,359 –> 00:12:14,200 and it’s the reason that we need to put on the armor. 242 00:12:15,320 –> 00:12:18,020 Remember how Paul puts it, 243 00:12:18,020 –> 00:12:19,960 “‘You need,’ he says in Ephesians 6, 244 00:12:19,960 –> 00:12:22,799 to put on the full armor of God 245 00:12:22,799 –> 00:12:27,799 so that when the Day of Evil comes, 246 00:12:29,479 –> 00:12:31,219 you may be able to stand.’” 247 00:12:32,440 –> 00:12:33,859 Now you see what he’s saying? 248 00:12:33,900 –> 00:12:37,359 Not every day is the day of evil in your life. 249 00:12:37,359 –> 00:12:40,500 Not every day is the day when Satan ratchets it up. 250 00:12:40,500 –> 00:12:43,140 Not every day is the day of intense conflict, 251 00:12:43,140 –> 00:12:45,739 but boy, you need to have the full armor of God on 252 00:12:45,739 –> 00:12:47,340 because that day’s coming for you, 253 00:12:47,340 –> 00:12:48,700 that day’s coming for me. 254 00:12:48,700 –> 00:12:51,159 And you don’t know when it’s coming. 255 00:12:51,159 –> 00:12:52,760 That’s why you need to be ready. 256 00:12:53,719 –> 00:12:56,820 So that when the enemy launches 257 00:12:56,820 –> 00:12:58,419 in whatever form this takes, 258 00:12:58,419 –> 00:13:01,739 a particular attack upon you, 259 00:13:01,739 –> 00:13:04,619 when the circumstances of the position of your life 260 00:13:04,619 –> 00:13:06,580 are such that it seems that everything 261 00:13:06,580 –> 00:13:07,979 is bearing down upon you. 262 00:13:07,979 –> 00:13:10,479 When your evil day comes, 263 00:13:10,479 –> 00:13:13,239 then you will be able to stand. 264 00:13:15,299 –> 00:13:17,440 Now when’s the evil day gonna come for you? 265 00:13:20,020 –> 00:13:20,859 You don’t know. 266 00:13:24,679 –> 00:13:26,380 And that’s why we need to be ready. 267 00:13:26,419 –> 00:13:27,820 I wanna suggest to you 268 00:13:29,619 –> 00:13:34,619 seven seasons when we are especially vulnerable 269 00:13:35,619 –> 00:13:37,280 to temptation. 270 00:13:38,400 –> 00:13:40,479 It’s important to have an awareness of this. 271 00:13:40,479 –> 00:13:42,599 This is not a random list. 272 00:13:42,599 –> 00:13:45,440 All of these come directly out of the story 273 00:13:45,440 –> 00:13:47,400 that we’re looking at in the New Testament. 274 00:13:48,479 –> 00:13:49,919 And I think you’ll agree with me 275 00:13:49,919 –> 00:13:51,320 as we look through them 276 00:13:51,320 –> 00:13:54,419 that all of them were directly one and the same. 277 00:13:54,539 –> 00:13:57,440 But all of them were directly what the disciples 278 00:13:57,440 –> 00:13:59,280 were experiencing at this time 279 00:13:59,280 –> 00:14:01,140 and we experienced them also. 280 00:14:02,559 –> 00:14:07,559 Seven seasons when you and I will be especially vulnerable 281 00:14:11,179 –> 00:14:13,140 to particular temptation. 282 00:14:14,440 –> 00:14:15,359 Here’s the first. 283 00:14:16,719 –> 00:14:19,539 When you’re tired, when you’re tired. 284 00:14:20,659 –> 00:14:23,419 Most obviously, the disciples were tired in the garden 285 00:14:23,419 –> 00:14:24,580 which is why they fell asleep. 286 00:14:24,580 –> 00:14:27,820 It was late at night and not only had they gone late 287 00:14:27,820 –> 00:14:29,719 into the night after this very full meal 288 00:14:29,719 –> 00:14:31,859 that they had eaten with the Passover 289 00:14:31,859 –> 00:14:34,260 but the whole week had been exhausting. 290 00:14:34,260 –> 00:14:38,179 They had walked 100 miles from Galilee to Jerusalem. 291 00:14:38,179 –> 00:14:40,580 Then they had after the entrance into Jerusalem 292 00:14:40,580 –> 00:14:43,099 with all the cheering of the crowd spent an entire week 293 00:14:43,099 –> 00:14:46,419 engaged in exhausting ministry in the temple. 294 00:14:46,419 –> 00:14:49,299 Questions, answers, disputes to resolve, 295 00:14:49,299 –> 00:14:53,020 difficulties, questions and this whole business 296 00:14:53,260 –> 00:14:55,320 of ministry had been utterly exhausting 297 00:14:55,320 –> 00:14:58,280 and so these men were just plain tired. 298 00:15:00,059 –> 00:15:04,559 I gotta tell you, when I’m tired 299 00:15:05,679 –> 00:15:07,580 I don’t see things so clearly. 300 00:15:09,760 –> 00:15:13,280 When I’m tired I’m less careful about what I say. 301 00:15:15,119 –> 00:15:17,859 When I’m tired, I’m less patient, 302 00:15:18,780 –> 00:15:23,440 I’m more irritable and I burn on a shorter fuse. 303 00:15:25,619 –> 00:15:30,619 When I am tired, I am more vulnerable to temptation, period. 304 00:15:33,539 –> 00:15:34,940 And that’s true of you, too. 305 00:15:36,940 –> 00:15:38,419 So as we go through these seven, 306 00:15:38,419 –> 00:15:39,919 you might like to be checking them off 307 00:15:39,919 –> 00:15:42,340 and see how many describe your situation right now. 308 00:15:42,340 –> 00:15:43,640 Are you tired? 309 00:15:44,280 –> 00:15:48,179 Watch and pray. 310 00:15:49,239 –> 00:15:53,640 You are more vulnerable than at other times. 311 00:15:55,599 –> 00:15:59,260 Second, when you’re discouraged. 312 00:15:59,260 –> 00:16:02,000 Now, again, think of what was happening 313 00:16:02,000 –> 00:16:03,119 for these disciples. 314 00:16:03,119 –> 00:16:06,200 Peter had made it very clear that he did not want Jesus 315 00:16:06,200 –> 00:16:09,119 to go to the cross and he was not getting his way. 316 00:16:09,119 –> 00:16:12,080 Jesus had just made it clear over the supper 317 00:16:12,140 –> 00:16:13,919 for this very night that the time was coming 318 00:16:13,919 –> 00:16:15,419 when they would see him no longer. 319 00:16:15,419 –> 00:16:17,099 He talked about his departure. 320 00:16:17,099 –> 00:16:19,780 He said the time of your grief is coming. 321 00:16:21,159 –> 00:16:22,520 And suddenly it looks to Peter 322 00:16:22,520 –> 00:16:24,380 like everything that he’s dreamed for, 323 00:16:24,380 –> 00:16:26,460 the future of the disciples and Jesus, 324 00:16:26,460 –> 00:16:28,320 is not going to be as he had hoped 325 00:16:28,320 –> 00:16:30,080 and the center of his entire world 326 00:16:30,080 –> 00:16:31,599 is going to be taken away. 327 00:16:31,599 –> 00:16:33,799 And when things don’t go as you hoped 328 00:16:33,799 –> 00:16:35,099 in any sphere of life, 329 00:16:36,640 –> 00:16:38,260 when you’re discouraged, 330 00:16:39,260 –> 00:16:42,500 you become more vulnerable to temptation. 331 00:16:44,780 –> 00:16:46,780 So is there some big area of disappointment 332 00:16:46,780 –> 00:16:47,859 in your life right now? 333 00:16:47,859 –> 00:16:49,059 Be very careful. 334 00:16:49,059 –> 00:16:51,840 Watch and pray. 335 00:16:53,739 –> 00:16:58,599 Third, when a friend has failed. 336 00:17:00,059 –> 00:17:01,619 The disciples had become good friends 337 00:17:01,619 –> 00:17:06,380 over three years of ministry and partnership together 338 00:17:06,380 –> 00:17:08,219 and one of them had just walked out. 339 00:17:09,099 –> 00:17:11,319 Judas had made his wretched choice 340 00:17:11,319 –> 00:17:14,140 and had left the supper just moments earlier. 341 00:17:14,140 –> 00:17:19,140 Never underestimate the effects of a bad choice 342 00:17:19,579 –> 00:17:22,160 made by a friend in your own life. 343 00:17:23,579 –> 00:17:27,859 See, your friend engages in some deception. 344 00:17:27,859 –> 00:17:29,140 Here’s what’ll happen. 345 00:17:29,140 –> 00:17:30,880 It gets into your mind. 346 00:17:32,219 –> 00:17:34,579 You begin to say, even unconsciously, 347 00:17:34,579 –> 00:17:36,500 you know, if he did that, if she did that, 348 00:17:36,500 –> 00:17:37,359 why shouldn’t I? 349 00:17:39,199 –> 00:17:42,739 Paul speaks about two men later in the New Testament, 350 00:17:42,739 –> 00:17:45,780 Hymenaeus and Alexander. 351 00:17:45,780 –> 00:17:48,000 They’re only remembered for one thing. 352 00:17:48,000 –> 00:17:52,680 Hymenaeus and Alexander made shipwreck off the faith, 353 00:17:52,680 –> 00:17:55,359 Paul says, two men who abandoned the faith. 354 00:17:57,319 –> 00:17:58,699 Now, here’s the significant thing. 355 00:17:58,699 –> 00:18:02,500 When Hymenaeus and Alexander abandoned the faith, 356 00:18:03,479 –> 00:18:06,400 they took a whole group of other people with them. 357 00:18:08,979 –> 00:18:10,140 It’s the same principle. 358 00:18:11,699 –> 00:18:14,660 You will be vulnerable at times when a friend 359 00:18:14,660 –> 00:18:17,319 or a loved one makes a wretched choice. 360 00:18:19,359 –> 00:18:23,359 Something of it will attach itself to you 361 00:18:23,359 –> 00:18:26,000 and it will put you in a position 362 00:18:26,000 –> 00:18:28,339 of your own particular battle. 363 00:18:28,339 –> 00:18:30,180 You need to be aware of that. 364 00:18:30,180 –> 00:18:33,300 Watch and pray. 365 00:18:34,760 –> 00:18:36,739 Remember in Galatians, the apostle Paul says, 366 00:18:36,739 –> 00:18:41,339 Galatians 6 one, if someone is caught in a sin, 367 00:18:41,339 –> 00:18:44,619 then you who are spiritual should restore him gently. 368 00:18:44,619 –> 00:18:46,939 But remember what he says next. 369 00:18:46,939 –> 00:18:49,900 But watch yourselves 370 00:18:51,140 –> 00:18:54,420 so that you may also may not be tempted. 371 00:18:54,420 –> 00:18:56,719 See you come close to a situation 372 00:18:56,719 –> 00:18:58,540 where someone has blown it big time. 373 00:18:58,540 –> 00:19:00,239 You need to watch your own walk. 374 00:19:01,500 –> 00:19:04,140 It’s a time of special vulnerability. 375 00:19:04,140 –> 00:19:05,479 So let me ask the question, 376 00:19:06,939 –> 00:19:09,699 is there a friend or a loved one in your life 377 00:19:09,699 –> 00:19:11,280 who has failed? 378 00:19:13,660 –> 00:19:14,500 Watch. 379 00:19:15,439 –> 00:19:16,619 Watch yourself. 380 00:19:18,040 –> 00:19:18,880 And pray. 381 00:19:20,979 –> 00:19:22,339 Here’s the fourth. 382 00:19:23,500 –> 00:19:24,760 When there’s conflict. 383 00:19:26,180 –> 00:19:27,939 Remember that that very evening, 384 00:19:27,939 –> 00:19:32,119 Luke tells us that a dispute arose among the disciples 385 00:19:32,119 –> 00:19:33,680 as to which of them was the greatest. 386 00:19:33,680 –> 00:19:36,619 That’s verse 24 of this chapter. 387 00:19:36,660 –> 00:19:39,520 There had been some real tension between the disciples 388 00:19:39,520 –> 00:19:43,239 and people were concerned about their positions. 389 00:19:43,239 –> 00:19:45,560 There was tension over this whole matter. 390 00:19:47,199 –> 00:19:48,819 Now, be very careful 391 00:19:49,979 –> 00:19:53,880 about what happens in your soul 392 00:19:53,880 –> 00:19:58,319 whenever there is conflict near you, or around you. 393 00:19:59,520 –> 00:20:02,819 Very simply, when there is conflict, there will be anger. 394 00:20:02,819 –> 00:20:05,719 It’s impossible not to get angry when there’s conflict. 395 00:20:06,979 –> 00:20:10,479 And when you become angry, and it may be for good reason, 396 00:20:10,479 –> 00:20:13,099 I mean, your anger may be entirely righteous, 397 00:20:13,979 –> 00:20:16,420 but when you become angry, when you become worked up 398 00:20:16,420 –> 00:20:18,880 about some area of disagreement or conflict, 399 00:20:18,880 –> 00:20:22,219 whatever that may be, when that happens within you, 400 00:20:24,339 –> 00:20:25,500 you are in a position 401 00:20:25,500 –> 00:20:29,079 of special vulnerability to temptation. 402 00:20:31,060 –> 00:20:33,140 Remember, the Apostle Paul puts it this way. 403 00:20:33,140 –> 00:20:37,640 In your anger, do not sin. 404 00:20:38,979 –> 00:20:43,640 And then he says, do not let the devil get a foothold, 405 00:20:45,380 –> 00:20:48,699 because even if it’s right for you to be angry, 406 00:20:48,699 –> 00:20:53,300 the anger becomes an opening into which the enemy 407 00:20:53,300 –> 00:20:55,900 will seek to launch a particular attack. 408 00:20:55,900 –> 00:20:58,400 And therefore, you need to watch and pray. 409 00:20:59,000 –> 00:21:03,500 So is there any area of conflict that is near to you 410 00:21:05,180 –> 00:21:06,300 or around you? 411 00:21:07,920 –> 00:21:12,800 Watch and pray, and especially as you begin to feel 412 00:21:12,800 –> 00:21:17,800 yourself stirred, realize that this is the very place 413 00:21:18,439 –> 00:21:23,439 where the enemy wants to build a position in your life. 414 00:21:23,760 –> 00:21:24,760 in your life. 415 00:21:28,160 –> 00:21:33,079 Then fifthly, when you’re engaged in something significant. 416 00:21:33,079 –> 00:21:35,560 And obviously again, this arises directly from the story 417 00:21:35,560 –> 00:21:37,800 in the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus is preparing 418 00:21:37,800 –> 00:21:41,319 to lay down his life for the salvation of the world. 419 00:21:41,319 –> 00:21:44,439 God’s plan for the ages now reaches its zenith 420 00:21:45,400 –> 00:21:48,199 and the disciples are sharing this moment with Jesus 421 00:21:48,199 –> 00:21:51,260 and Christ says to them, now you watch 422 00:21:51,260 –> 00:21:56,099 and you pray that you do not enter into temptation. 423 00:21:57,359 –> 00:22:00,619 So when God opens a door for you to engage 424 00:22:00,619 –> 00:22:03,939 in something significant for his kingdom, be very careful. 425 00:22:05,420 –> 00:22:10,420 Put bluntly, Satan will not squander his limited resources 426 00:22:11,660 –> 00:22:13,560 on ineffective Christians. 427 00:22:14,900 –> 00:22:19,900 He will not waste his attention on moribund churches. 428 00:22:22,260 –> 00:22:24,219 But let a church catch a vision 429 00:22:24,219 –> 00:22:25,500 for reaching the lost 430 00:22:25,500 –> 00:22:27,839 and harvesting the fields that are white. 431 00:22:29,660 –> 00:22:32,900 Let a Christian believer get a sense of call 432 00:22:32,900 –> 00:22:35,099 into some area of ministry 433 00:22:35,099 –> 00:22:38,819 in which he or she will give himself or herself, 434 00:22:38,819 –> 00:22:41,420 and you can be sure that before long 435 00:22:41,420 –> 00:22:44,040 the enemy’s attention will be drawn. 436 00:22:47,079 –> 00:22:48,619 So let me ask you the question. 437 00:22:49,459 –> 00:22:53,380 Are you engaged in anything significant for God’s kingdom? 438 00:22:55,439 –> 00:22:59,780 Watch and pray. 439 00:23:04,040 –> 00:23:07,880 Sixthly, when you’re confident. 440 00:23:09,219 –> 00:23:12,260 Now again remember that Peter had said to Jesus 441 00:23:12,260 –> 00:23:14,500 just a short time earlier around the table, 442 00:23:14,500 –> 00:23:16,800 Luke recorded in verse 33, 443 00:23:16,839 –> 00:23:21,800 Lord I’m ready to go with you to prison or to death. 444 00:23:21,800 –> 00:23:24,219 Matthew records that Peter also said 445 00:23:24,219 –> 00:23:27,560 if I have to die with you I will never disown you 446 00:23:27,560 –> 00:23:30,020 and all the other disciples said the same. 447 00:23:30,020 –> 00:23:32,439 It was a moment of supreme confidence. 448 00:23:34,040 –> 00:23:36,640 Peter had big ideas of what he could accomplish. 449 00:23:36,640 –> 00:23:38,040 That’s a dangerous moment. 450 00:23:40,439 –> 00:23:42,079 Peter felt that he had the potential 451 00:23:42,079 –> 00:23:45,579 to be a great Christian leader, that’s a dangerous moment. 452 00:23:46,959 –> 00:23:51,400 You’re never more vulnerable to temptation 453 00:23:51,400 –> 00:23:54,739 than at the time when you feel most confident. 454 00:23:58,000 –> 00:24:00,300 That’s why the Apostle Paul says in 1 Corinthians 455 00:24:00,300 –> 00:24:05,300 let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he should fall. 456 00:24:10,880 –> 00:24:12,880 Have you grown in confidence recently? 457 00:24:12,920 –> 00:24:14,880 Be very careful, watch, and pray. 458 00:24:22,920 –> 00:24:25,739 Seventh and to me this has been the most surprising 459 00:24:25,739 –> 00:24:27,839 as I’ve reflected on the scriptures, 460 00:24:29,400 –> 00:24:33,119 when you are walking closely with Jesus. 461 00:24:34,060 –> 00:24:37,319 I say that I find that surprising at first 462 00:24:37,319 –> 00:24:41,160 but because we have this idea that if I’m walking 463 00:24:41,599 –> 00:24:43,719 closely with Jesus that I’ll somehow be beyond 464 00:24:43,719 –> 00:24:45,260 the range of temptation. 465 00:24:48,719 –> 00:24:51,400 But in actual fact the opposite is the case. 466 00:24:51,400 –> 00:24:53,880 Remember these disciples had just come from sharing 467 00:24:53,880 –> 00:24:56,760 the intimacy of the Last Supper with Jesus, 468 00:24:56,760 –> 00:25:00,979 it’s a very short distance from the table to the garden 469 00:25:03,239 –> 00:25:05,800 and it’s easy to get the idea that if you’re just walking 470 00:25:05,800 –> 00:25:08,040 closely with Jesus then of course you will not enter 471 00:25:08,099 –> 00:25:11,359 into temptation, that somehow the experience of temptation 472 00:25:11,359 –> 00:25:13,599 which is so ugly on the one hand, 473 00:25:13,599 –> 00:25:15,819 and the experience of walking with Jesus 474 00:25:15,819 –> 00:25:17,400 which is so beautiful on the other hand, 475 00:25:17,400 –> 00:25:19,520 that these things are mutually exclusive, 476 00:25:19,520 –> 00:25:22,260 no precisely the opposite is the case. 477 00:25:23,800 –> 00:25:28,380 You walk with Jesus Satan will have his eye on you. 478 00:25:30,119 –> 00:25:33,880 You get a vision for pursuing a holy life, 479 00:25:33,880 –> 00:25:38,880 your battle with temptation will intensify. 480 00:25:41,560 –> 00:25:44,619 So do you have a desire to walk closely with Jesus? 481 00:25:45,739 –> 00:25:48,819 Watch and pray. 482 00:25:52,040 –> 00:25:54,020 Now that’s the struggle. 483 00:25:54,020 –> 00:25:57,280 Seven seasons when you need to be especially alert 484 00:25:57,280 –> 00:25:58,959 to what is going on within you 485 00:25:58,959 –> 00:26:00,800 and what is going on around you, 486 00:26:00,800 –> 00:26:03,319 when you’re tired, when you’re discouraged, 487 00:26:03,319 –> 00:26:06,280 when a friend has failed, when there’s conflict, 488 00:26:06,280 –> 00:26:08,599 when you’re engaged in something significant, 489 00:26:08,599 –> 00:26:10,400 when you’ve become confident 490 00:26:10,400 –> 00:26:13,719 and when you are walking closely with Jesus. 491 00:26:13,719 –> 00:26:17,239 These are the times from this story 492 00:26:17,239 –> 00:26:19,199 when Jesus says to the disciples, 493 00:26:19,199 –> 00:26:21,040 there is this great danger 494 00:26:21,040 –> 00:26:24,400 that you will enter into temptation. 495 00:26:25,680 –> 00:26:27,000 Now, that’s the struggle. 496 00:26:27,000 –> 00:26:30,319 Let’s look secondly at the strategy. 497 00:26:30,319 –> 00:26:34,599 Luke emphasizes the word of Jesus about prayer. 498 00:26:34,599 –> 00:26:38,319 If you look at the parallel verses in Matthew and Mark, 499 00:26:38,319 –> 00:26:40,199 you see the Jesus said two things. 500 00:26:40,199 –> 00:26:43,479 He said, watch and pray 501 00:26:43,479 –> 00:26:45,839 that you will not fall into temptation. 502 00:26:45,839 –> 00:26:50,839 That’s Matthew 26, 41 and Mark 14, 38. 503 00:26:51,119 –> 00:26:55,219 Watch and pray, the double-pronged strategy 504 00:26:55,219 –> 00:26:57,319 that Jesus commends 505 00:26:57,319 –> 00:27:02,319 so that you will not fall into temptation. 506 00:27:03,300 –> 00:27:05,520 And what does it mean to watch and pray? 507 00:27:07,060 –> 00:27:08,020 First watch. 508 00:27:09,839 –> 00:27:13,719 Watching means that you become a student of your own soul, 509 00:27:15,040 –> 00:27:17,040 that you develop an awareness 510 00:27:17,040 –> 00:27:20,560 of what is going on within you and around you, 511 00:27:21,760 –> 00:27:24,699 that you become sensitive to reading 512 00:27:24,699 –> 00:27:27,560 the movements and the moments and the moods 513 00:27:27,560 –> 00:27:29,099 of your own soul, 514 00:27:30,219 –> 00:27:31,979 that you therefore become skilled 515 00:27:31,979 –> 00:27:35,300 in discerning the times when you are most vulnerable. 516 00:27:36,540 –> 00:27:37,939 This, of course, has always been 517 00:27:37,939 –> 00:27:39,719 the practice of spirituality. 518 00:27:39,719 –> 00:27:41,579 You’ll find it in the Old Testament 519 00:27:41,579 –> 00:27:44,020 where the Psalmists asked questions like 520 00:27:44,020 –> 00:27:48,099 why are you cast down, oh, my soul? 521 00:27:49,180 –> 00:27:50,800 Why does he ask that question? 522 00:27:50,800 –> 00:27:53,140 Because he’s watching his soul. 523 00:27:53,219 –> 00:27:55,239 He’s trying to discern the movements, 524 00:27:55,239 –> 00:27:56,979 the moods of his own soul, 525 00:27:56,979 –> 00:27:59,760 the changes that he’s seeing in his inner life 526 00:27:59,760 –> 00:28:02,599 so that he’s going to be able to address 527 00:28:02,599 –> 00:28:05,060 the pressures that are coming upon him. 528 00:28:07,219 –> 00:28:09,500 Now, what are you to look for 529 00:28:09,500 –> 00:28:12,339 in terms of the changes within your own soul? 530 00:28:15,300 –> 00:28:16,880 When we hear the word temptation, 531 00:28:16,880 –> 00:28:20,979 I think many think immediately about money, 532 00:28:20,979 –> 00:28:22,939 sex, and power 533 00:28:23,760 –> 00:28:25,319 and there’s good reason for that 534 00:28:25,319 –> 00:28:27,680 because of course so many temptations 535 00:28:27,680 –> 00:28:30,380 come back to one of these three sources. 536 00:28:31,880 –> 00:28:35,000 But when Jesus, in the garden of Gethsemane, 537 00:28:35,000 –> 00:28:37,479 told the disciples that they were to watch and pray, 538 00:28:37,479 –> 00:28:40,439 I don’t think that he primarily had in mind 539 00:28:40,439 –> 00:28:42,319 issues of money, sex, or power. 540 00:28:42,319 –> 00:28:44,880 They were not particularly on the horizon. 541 00:28:46,520 –> 00:28:48,459 What is it that they were to watch for? 542 00:28:51,119 –> 00:28:52,920 Now, let’s follow the sory 543 00:28:52,920 –> 00:28:54,839 and I think it will become very clear. 544 00:28:57,040 –> 00:29:00,060 The chief priests arrive in the garden with Judas. 545 00:29:01,199 –> 00:29:04,680 And when they step forward to arrest Jesus, 546 00:29:04,680 –> 00:29:06,000 you remember what happened, 547 00:29:06,000 –> 00:29:09,439 Peter’s pent up frustration and anger 548 00:29:09,439 –> 00:29:10,760 that’s been building, you see, 549 00:29:10,760 –> 00:29:12,239 Satan’s has been building a position 550 00:29:12,239 –> 00:29:13,800 in his life for some time, 551 00:29:13,800 –> 00:29:17,760 and it’s all been building up and now it explodes. 552 00:29:19,439 –> 00:29:21,920 And he grabs his double-handed sword 553 00:29:21,920 –> 00:29:25,040 and he strikes out at this man by the name of Malcus, 554 00:29:26,280 –> 00:29:27,420 cuts off his ear. 555 00:29:29,760 –> 00:29:32,180 And Jesus immediately says put that sword away, 556 00:29:32,180 –> 00:29:33,619 that’s enough. 557 00:29:33,619 –> 00:29:34,680 None of that here. 558 00:29:36,839 –> 00:29:38,979 With grace and compassion, he reaches out 559 00:29:38,979 –> 00:29:43,199 and he touches the man’s ear and brings healing. 560 00:29:45,280 –> 00:29:47,319 Now, right there, you have the difference 561 00:29:47,319 –> 00:29:51,260 between the man who prays and the man who does not. 562 00:29:52,900 –> 00:29:56,579 When the time of conflict came, 563 00:29:56,579 –> 00:29:59,839 the man who was sleeping instead of praying 564 00:30:02,000 –> 00:30:05,640 gave vent to such anger and frustration 565 00:30:07,699 –> 00:30:10,140 that it led him to violence and destruction. 566 00:30:13,079 –> 00:30:16,859 The man who had prayed was able to come 567 00:30:16,859 –> 00:30:19,880 into the same conflict and to bring healing 568 00:30:20,780 –> 00:30:23,040 and grace from a heavenly Father. 569 00:30:24,420 –> 00:30:25,959 All the difference in the world. 570 00:30:27,579 –> 00:30:29,439 Peter’s consumed with anger. 571 00:30:31,060 –> 00:30:32,599 Jesus is filled with love. 572 00:30:34,400 –> 00:30:36,479 Peter enters into temptation. 573 00:30:36,479 –> 00:30:38,319 Christ triumphs over it. 574 00:30:39,760 –> 00:30:41,000 Now you see, what’s gonna happen 575 00:30:41,000 –> 00:30:43,540 when you face the evil day? 576 00:30:44,540 –> 00:30:48,680 Watch for Satan building a position of anger 577 00:30:48,680 –> 00:30:52,739 and frustration in you that’s building up to a head 578 00:30:52,739 –> 00:30:55,800 and is going to lead you to fall into temptation. 579 00:30:55,800 –> 00:30:57,300 You have to deal with that now. 580 00:31:02,479 –> 00:31:07,380 Simon, Satan has desired to sift you like wheat 581 00:31:07,380 –> 00:31:10,780 and that sifting was in the first instance 582 00:31:11,359 –> 00:31:14,699 a sifting of his love. 583 00:31:17,380 –> 00:31:21,640 Satan wants to kill any root of love in you 584 00:31:24,239 –> 00:31:26,140 and he’s building a position to do it. 585 00:31:28,819 –> 00:31:29,660 So watch. 586 00:31:32,380 –> 00:31:33,719 Follow the story further. 587 00:31:33,719 –> 00:31:35,719 Peter goes on into the courtyard 588 00:31:37,339 –> 00:31:39,739 and he’s challenged by a lady 589 00:31:39,760 –> 00:31:41,459 who is standing in the courtyard 590 00:31:41,459 –> 00:31:42,439 who says to him, 591 00:31:42,439 –> 00:31:43,260 no, you’re excellent. 592 00:31:43,260 –> 00:31:44,599 You’re a Galilean, aren’t you? 593 00:31:44,599 –> 00:31:46,819 One of his disciples and Peter denies 594 00:31:46,819 –> 00:31:48,540 that he ever knew Jesus. 595 00:31:48,540 –> 00:31:49,359 Asked again, 596 00:31:49,359 –> 00:31:50,819 he curses and blasphemes, 597 00:31:50,819 –> 00:31:51,660 I never knew him. 598 00:31:51,660 –> 00:31:53,260 I don’t know anything about him. 599 00:31:54,280 –> 00:31:55,579 Now what’s happening here? 600 00:31:58,099 –> 00:31:59,959 This is a sifting of faith, isn’t it? 601 00:32:02,380 –> 00:32:04,479 Peter never wanted the cross to happen 602 00:32:04,479 –> 00:32:05,459 and now the very thing 603 00:32:05,459 –> 00:32:07,060 that he had always dreaded 604 00:32:07,060 –> 00:32:08,459 is taking place 605 00:32:08,459 –> 00:32:09,819 and he’s saying to himself, 606 00:32:09,819 –> 00:32:12,619 what’s the point in confessing faith 607 00:32:12,619 –> 00:32:14,459 in a Messiah who would allow a thing 608 00:32:14,459 –> 00:32:16,040 like this, there’s no point. 609 00:32:21,680 –> 00:32:22,800 And this is a man who’s been 610 00:32:22,800 –> 00:32:25,540 in full-time ministry for three years. 611 00:32:29,479 –> 00:32:31,660 I’d tell you that some of the saddest cases 612 00:32:31,660 –> 00:32:34,459 of abandoning Jesus that I have ever known 613 00:32:36,079 –> 00:32:37,660 have been people who at one time 614 00:32:37,660 –> 00:32:39,920 were up to their eyeballs in the work 615 00:32:39,920 –> 00:32:41,680 of the church or mission. 616 00:32:43,439 –> 00:32:45,939 They’re folks who served as missionaries overseas, 617 00:32:45,939 –> 00:32:48,439 pastors in churches, board members, 618 00:32:48,439 –> 00:32:51,060 people who were bright lights and shooting stars 619 00:32:51,060 –> 00:32:52,920 during their college years bringing people 620 00:32:52,920 –> 00:32:54,439 to faith in Jesus. 621 00:32:54,439 –> 00:32:56,540 Folks who made a huge investment 622 00:32:56,540 –> 00:32:58,920 of their life in launching ministry. 623 00:33:01,260 –> 00:33:03,219 But now have little or nothing 624 00:33:03,219 –> 00:33:04,920 to do with the cause of Christ. 625 00:33:05,920 –> 00:33:08,260 What happened? 626 00:33:08,260 –> 00:33:09,900 There are a thousand stories. 627 00:33:10,819 –> 00:33:13,560 They experienced some discouragement, 628 00:33:13,560 –> 00:33:17,000 some conflict, something perhaps within family life, 629 00:33:17,000 –> 00:33:19,280 something within the sphere of their ministry, 630 00:33:19,280 –> 00:33:21,079 some great disappointment, 631 00:33:21,079 –> 00:33:23,479 something that did not happen the way that they wanted. 632 00:33:23,479 –> 00:33:24,680 It was all cumulative 633 00:33:24,680 –> 00:33:26,760 and at some point something snapped. 634 00:33:28,260 –> 00:33:30,719 And now five years later you say, 635 00:33:30,719 –> 00:33:33,599 where does he worship these days? 636 00:33:34,160 –> 00:33:36,760 And the answer is, you know, 637 00:33:36,760 –> 00:33:38,359 I don’t think he goes any place. 638 00:33:43,479 –> 00:33:48,479 Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift you like wheat 639 00:33:51,160 –> 00:33:53,599 and he’s out to destroy your love 640 00:33:56,739 –> 00:33:58,800 and he’s out to destroy your faith. 641 00:33:58,800 –> 00:33:59,619 No. 642 00:34:03,479 –> 00:34:05,339 And He’ll use your frustration and your anger 643 00:34:05,339 –> 00:34:07,439 for the first, and he’ll use your disappointment 644 00:34:07,439 –> 00:34:10,179 and the thing you cannot understand for the second. 645 00:34:13,639 –> 00:34:14,479 Now watch, 646 00:34:17,280 –> 00:34:19,000 because if you can’t see that’s what’s happening, 647 00:34:19,000 –> 00:34:20,719 you’re gonna fall into temptation. 648 00:34:23,399 –> 00:34:24,520 Get your eyes open. 649 00:34:25,899 –> 00:34:27,600 Why are you sleeping? 650 00:34:27,600 –> 00:34:28,540 Don’t you see it? 651 00:34:29,459 –> 00:34:32,959 Follow the story further. 652 00:34:35,600 –> 00:34:38,939 The evening ended with the cock crowing 653 00:34:41,580 –> 00:34:43,500 and Luke tells us that at the very moment 654 00:34:43,500 –> 00:34:45,800 when the cock crowed, Jesus was being led 655 00:34:45,800 –> 00:34:48,219 across the courtyard and Peter was there 656 00:34:48,219 –> 00:34:50,199 and he had just denied the Lord Jesus. 657 00:34:50,199 –> 00:34:53,080 An extraordinary coincidence of these three events 658 00:34:53,080 –> 00:34:54,439 in the sovereignty of God. 659 00:34:54,439 –> 00:34:56,659 And Jesus being led from the courtyard, 660 00:34:57,000 –> 00:34:58,840 bloodied and bruised already, 661 00:34:58,840 –> 00:35:01,479 Luke straight into the eyes of Peter. 662 00:35:06,120 –> 00:35:10,860 The Lord turned and looked straight at Peter, verse 61 663 00:35:10,860 –> 00:35:13,419 and then we are told, Peter went outside 664 00:35:13,419 –> 00:35:16,379 and he wept bitterly. 665 00:35:19,320 –> 00:35:23,800 And at that moment, Peter felt that everything was lost. 666 00:35:24,520 –> 00:35:27,899 That he could never be forgiven. 667 00:35:30,479 –> 00:35:33,139 That Jesus would never want to know him again 668 00:35:36,120 –> 00:35:37,520 and maybe you’ve been there. 669 00:35:40,580 –> 00:35:44,260 Maybe you’re there today because Satan wants to stiff 670 00:35:44,260 –> 00:35:45,959 not only your love and your faith 671 00:35:45,959 –> 00:35:47,540 but he wants to sift your hope. 672 00:35:49,959 –> 00:35:51,840 He wants to bring you to the place 673 00:35:51,840 –> 00:35:55,060 where you would say there is no future 674 00:35:55,060 –> 00:35:59,540 for someone like me after what I have done. 675 00:36:04,040 –> 00:36:06,040 Now, that’s what the enemy is out to do. 676 00:36:09,879 –> 00:36:11,879 That’s what you and I have to watch for. 677 00:36:14,040 –> 00:36:16,959 Wants to destroy faith, hope and love. 678 00:36:16,959 –> 00:36:19,439 He may choose many, many different paths 679 00:36:19,439 –> 00:36:21,360 and disguises to do this 680 00:36:21,360 –> 00:36:23,919 but that is the objective, that is where he’s headed, 681 00:36:23,919 –> 00:36:27,199 that is his goal for your life, so watch. 682 00:36:31,439 –> 00:36:33,800 And maybe you can see evidence of that activity 683 00:36:33,800 –> 00:36:36,479 building a position within you right now. 684 00:36:40,379 –> 00:36:43,719 Jesus says, watch, but not just watch. 685 00:36:43,719 –> 00:36:46,879 Watch and pray. 686 00:36:46,879 –> 00:36:50,280 Now, it’s very important to keep these two things together. 687 00:36:50,280 –> 00:36:54,399 Watch, and pray, these are not alternatives, 688 00:36:54,399 –> 00:36:55,479 they’re partners. 689 00:36:57,100 –> 00:37:02,100 Watching without praying would be like getting a diagnosis 690 00:37:02,100 –> 00:37:03,820 and no prescription. 691 00:37:03,820 –> 00:37:05,860 You go to the doctor, gives you a diagnosis, 692 00:37:05,860 –> 00:37:09,439 doesn’t give you anything to take for it, not much use. 693 00:37:09,439 –> 00:37:14,060 A diagnosis without a prescription won’t help you much. 694 00:37:15,040 –> 00:37:17,479 Watching without praying will tell you the problem, 695 00:37:17,479 –> 00:37:20,379 but it won’t take you any further forward with the answer. 696 00:37:22,439 –> 00:37:25,120 Now what about praying without watching? 697 00:37:25,120 –> 00:37:26,639 You see there are some people, very naive, 698 00:37:26,639 –> 00:37:30,419 they pray a great deal but it is closed 699 00:37:30,419 –> 00:37:33,600 in terms of their vision to what’s really going on. 700 00:37:33,600 –> 00:37:35,260 What about praying without watching? 701 00:37:35,260 –> 00:37:40,120 Praying without watching would be like being in a pharmacy 702 00:37:40,120 –> 00:37:41,739 with no diagnosis. 703 00:37:42,639 –> 00:37:47,060 Some pill in this pharmacy will heal your condition. 704 00:37:48,260 –> 00:37:50,939 Some medicine in this pharmacy will help you. 705 00:37:50,939 –> 00:37:53,860 It’s on the shelf but you don’t know which one to ask for 706 00:37:53,860 –> 00:37:56,040 because you don’t know what’s wrong with you. 707 00:37:57,600 –> 00:37:59,820 So you see you separate watching and prayer. 708 00:37:59,820 –> 00:38:01,939 The one without the other is never any use 709 00:38:01,939 –> 00:38:03,659 in either direction. 710 00:38:04,580 –> 00:38:07,239 Watching without praying it’s like a diagnosis 711 00:38:07,239 –> 00:38:08,600 without a prescription. 712 00:38:08,600 –> 00:38:10,699 Praying without watching it’s like having 713 00:38:10,699 –> 00:38:12,520 all prescriptions available 714 00:38:12,520 –> 00:38:14,959 but not knowing which one to ask for. 715 00:38:18,399 –> 00:38:20,560 Watch and pray. 716 00:38:23,399 –> 00:38:25,360 Pray about what you see when you watch. 717 00:38:26,459 –> 00:38:29,919 Pray about the moods and the movements of your own soul. 718 00:38:29,919 –> 00:38:34,179 Pray, tell the Lord about the anger and the frustration 719 00:38:34,179 –> 00:38:35,840 that is building within you. 720 00:38:35,860 –> 00:38:40,860 Tell Him where you see Satan creating a position. 721 00:38:42,399 –> 00:38:44,280 Tell Him about the disappointment 722 00:38:44,280 –> 00:38:45,959 that you do not understand. 723 00:38:47,560 –> 00:38:48,899 Say to Him that you’re sick fed up 724 00:38:48,899 –> 00:38:50,360 with the way this person is behaving. 725 00:38:50,360 –> 00:38:51,340 Say you’re really angry 726 00:38:51,340 –> 00:38:53,280 about what she has said or whatever. 727 00:38:56,860 –> 00:38:59,639 But then, make your prayer positive. 728 00:39:01,800 –> 00:39:03,840 See, pray it positively. 729 00:39:03,840 –> 00:39:05,159 Don’t say, you know, 730 00:39:05,659 –> 00:39:07,879 praying about your temptations can actually 731 00:39:07,879 –> 00:39:10,139 make you worse if all that you do 732 00:39:10,139 –> 00:39:12,840 is simply run them through your mind. 733 00:39:13,919 –> 00:39:16,199 And this is especially true in the areas 734 00:39:16,199 –> 00:39:20,679 of worry, conflict and lust. 735 00:39:20,679 –> 00:39:21,760 If all you do when you pray 736 00:39:21,760 –> 00:39:25,120 is merely rehearse these difficulties. 737 00:39:25,120 –> 00:39:28,719 To reflect on and on about the dynamics of the conflict. 738 00:39:28,719 –> 00:39:31,120 To reflect on and on about the possibilities of worry 739 00:39:31,120 –> 00:39:34,159 or the intrusions of lust or whatever. 740 00:39:34,159 –> 00:39:36,080 What happens is that the more you think 741 00:39:36,080 –> 00:39:37,919 about these things the more they multiply 742 00:39:37,919 –> 00:39:40,179 within your mind, it doesn’t do you any good. 743 00:39:42,139 –> 00:39:44,320 This is why talking about these things 744 00:39:44,320 –> 00:39:46,760 too much becomes counter-productive. 745 00:39:48,760 –> 00:39:50,479 That is why thinking about these things 746 00:39:50,479 –> 00:39:52,760 even in prayer becomes unhelpful. 747 00:39:54,979 –> 00:39:59,159 So pray positively, you’re coming up against these things, 748 00:39:59,159 –> 00:40:00,399 you’ve told them to the Lord, 749 00:40:00,479 –> 00:40:01,620 now here’s how to pray, 750 00:40:01,620 –> 00:40:04,860 Lord, increase my faith. 751 00:40:04,860 –> 00:40:07,860 That’s what you need, that’s the underlying issue here. 752 00:40:09,399 –> 00:40:11,840 Lord, enlarge my capacity to love 753 00:40:11,840 –> 00:40:13,679 this person I’m so frustrated with, 754 00:40:13,679 –> 00:40:16,020 please give me love for him, 755 00:40:16,020 –> 00:40:17,879 please give me love for her. 756 00:40:17,879 –> 00:40:18,760 That’s the issue. 757 00:40:22,320 –> 00:40:24,280 Lord, please renew my hope. 758 00:40:25,219 –> 00:40:26,899 I’m seeing things closing in here, 759 00:40:26,899 –> 00:40:28,800 I have a sense of darkness coming around, 760 00:40:29,120 –> 00:40:31,659 I can’t see how this is going to pan out. 761 00:40:31,659 –> 00:40:36,179 Renew my hope, for otherwise I will die in despair. 762 00:40:39,540 –> 00:40:42,959 So there’s the struggle and the strategy. 763 00:40:44,560 –> 00:40:49,320 And here lastly and very briefly, Jesus’ promise, 764 00:40:49,320 –> 00:40:53,879 Mark 14 in verse 38, when Jesus says, 765 00:40:53,879 –> 00:40:56,479 watch and pray he continues like this, 766 00:40:56,560 –> 00:41:00,560 watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. 767 00:41:04,060 –> 00:41:05,260 And I want to end on this note 768 00:41:05,260 –> 00:41:06,939 that the strategy is sufficient. 769 00:41:08,379 –> 00:41:10,719 It was Peter who said later in the New Testament 770 00:41:10,719 –> 00:41:14,580 that God knows how to deliver the godly out of temptation. 771 00:41:16,139 –> 00:41:21,139 Paul put it this way, that no temptation has overtaken you, 772 00:41:21,820 –> 00:41:25,020 he says to the church in Corinth and to us 773 00:41:25,020 –> 00:41:27,639 except what is common to other people. 774 00:41:27,639 –> 00:41:29,780 And God is faithful and he will make a way 775 00:41:29,780 –> 00:41:32,300 for you to stand up under it. 776 00:41:34,939 –> 00:41:37,580 The marvelous thing is that the testing and tempting 777 00:41:37,580 –> 00:41:41,020 that Satan uses for your destruction 778 00:41:42,899 –> 00:41:47,459 is overturned in the life of a believer by Almighty God 779 00:41:47,459 –> 00:41:49,939 to use it for your growth and your advance. 780 00:41:51,419 –> 00:41:54,179 There must be nothing so frustrating for Satan 781 00:41:54,219 –> 00:41:57,020 as the fact that he constantly overplays his hand. 782 00:41:58,419 –> 00:41:59,899 And never did you see that more clearly 783 00:41:59,899 –> 00:42:01,439 than in the Cross where he unleashes 784 00:42:01,439 –> 00:42:03,219 his whole arsenal as it were 785 00:42:04,580 –> 00:42:06,840 and in his attempt to destroy the Christ 786 00:42:06,840 –> 00:42:10,739 finds that he actually plays his part 787 00:42:10,739 –> 00:42:13,320 in the advance of the purpose of God. 788 00:42:18,459 –> 00:42:20,500 Now what he intends for your destruction 789 00:42:20,500 –> 00:42:22,159 God can use for your good. 790 00:42:25,179 –> 00:42:28,459 What he intends to sift your faith, hope, and love 791 00:42:28,459 –> 00:42:31,020 can be the very thing which in God’s providence 792 00:42:31,020 –> 00:42:33,939 strengthens your faith, hope, and love. 793 00:42:36,439 –> 00:42:39,580 One of the church fathers put it this way. 794 00:42:41,219 –> 00:42:46,219 Christ became like us that he might be tempted. 795 00:42:47,520 –> 00:42:52,020 We are tempted that we might become like Christ. 796 00:42:52,020 –> 00:42:53,100 Isn’t that beautiful? 797 00:42:54,320 –> 00:42:58,500 Christ became like us that he might be tempted. 798 00:42:59,659 –> 00:43:04,340 We are tempted that we might become like Christ. 799 00:43:05,780 –> 00:43:07,739 John Owen has a marvelous picture here. 800 00:43:07,739 –> 00:43:10,879 He says temptation is like a knife. 801 00:43:12,280 –> 00:43:15,479 He says it may be used either to cut the meat 802 00:43:15,479 –> 00:43:17,459 or to cut your throat. 803 00:43:17,459 –> 00:43:18,399 That’s pretty vivid, isn’t it? 804 00:43:18,399 –> 00:43:20,959 I mean they wrote that way in the 17th century. 805 00:43:20,959 –> 00:43:22,739 Kind of keeps the congregation awake. 806 00:43:22,780 –> 00:43:24,860 Temptation is like a knife, he says. 807 00:43:24,860 –> 00:43:26,120 You can use it to cut the meat 808 00:43:26,120 –> 00:43:28,340 or you can use it to cut a throat. 809 00:43:29,699 –> 00:43:30,979 But it can be used either way. 810 00:43:30,979 –> 00:43:32,739 You see, it’s a double-edged thing. 811 00:43:35,360 –> 00:43:37,300 Owen says it may be a man’s food 812 00:43:37,300 –> 00:43:38,540 or it may be a man’s poison. 813 00:43:38,540 –> 00:43:39,899 It may be his destruction 814 00:43:39,899 –> 00:43:42,239 or it may be his exercise. 815 00:43:44,820 –> 00:43:47,419 Temptation is truly a double-edged sword. 816 00:43:49,020 –> 00:43:52,219 It was the undoing of Judas, 817 00:43:52,300 –> 00:43:53,979 but it was the making of Peter. 818 00:43:55,639 –> 00:43:57,379 Jesus tells us that there are some people 819 00:43:57,379 –> 00:44:00,459 who receive the word and their response is very enthusiastic. 820 00:44:00,459 –> 00:44:02,939 They spring up like a plant growing quickly 821 00:44:02,939 –> 00:44:04,659 and then when temptation comes, 822 00:44:04,659 –> 00:44:06,100 they wither, and that’s the end of it. 823 00:44:06,100 –> 00:44:07,979 You never see them around the name 824 00:44:07,979 –> 00:44:10,199 or the cause of Christ again. 825 00:44:10,199 –> 00:44:11,360 It’s what happened to Judas. 826 00:44:11,360 –> 00:44:12,679 It’s what happened to Demuts. 827 00:44:12,679 –> 00:44:14,719 It’s happened to many many others since. 828 00:44:16,860 –> 00:44:18,760 Oh yes, temptation can cut the throat. 829 00:44:19,620 –> 00:44:22,800 But at the end of the New Testament, 830 00:44:22,800 –> 00:44:24,500 it is significantly Peter. 831 00:44:25,879 –> 00:44:28,760 Who speaks about how God uses our trials 832 00:44:28,760 –> 00:44:32,000 to prove that your faith is genuine. 833 00:44:33,300 –> 00:44:35,100 And that this will result in praise 834 00:44:35,100 –> 00:44:37,840 and glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. 835 00:44:40,340 –> 00:44:41,620 It’s a double-edged knife. 836 00:44:45,120 –> 00:44:48,399 God will use the times of trial and testing in your life 837 00:44:48,439 –> 00:44:50,820 to show up what you really are. 838 00:44:51,919 –> 00:44:54,060 And you know, the time of your greatest tempting 839 00:44:54,060 –> 00:44:57,520 and testing may just prove to be your finest hour. 840 00:45:00,760 –> 00:45:02,919 Maybe you’re saying right now in this last moment, 841 00:45:02,919 –> 00:45:04,199 hey, well, that’s all very well 842 00:45:04,199 –> 00:45:06,719 for a person who triumphs over temptation. 843 00:45:08,060 –> 00:45:09,239 But I failed. 844 00:45:11,399 –> 00:45:12,360 So did Peter. 845 00:45:14,439 –> 00:45:16,419 And falling into temptation 846 00:45:16,419 –> 00:45:20,020 may need not be the end of your usefulness to Jesus. 847 00:45:22,139 –> 00:45:26,219 You see, Jesus prayed for Peter 848 00:45:26,219 –> 00:45:28,840 when Peter failed to pray for himself. 849 00:45:29,919 –> 00:45:31,739 Jesus was watching for Peter 850 00:45:31,739 –> 00:45:34,000 when Peter wasn’t watching for himself. 851 00:45:35,419 –> 00:45:40,179 Simon, he said, Satan has asked to sift you as wheat, 852 00:45:40,179 –> 00:45:45,000 but I have prayed for you. 853 00:45:46,699 –> 00:45:49,000 You have a Savior who prays for you. 854 00:45:50,860 –> 00:45:53,159 You have a Savior who died for you. 855 00:45:54,959 –> 00:45:58,199 That’s what makes it possible to be restored. 856 00:45:58,199 –> 00:46:01,080 I have prayed for you, says Jesus, 857 00:46:01,080 –> 00:46:02,899 and Jesus gets what he wants. 858 00:46:04,219 –> 00:46:07,139 And so this man who became so frustrated 859 00:46:07,139 –> 00:46:10,280 and so angry in the garden, 860 00:46:12,060 –> 00:46:15,120 this man who became so disappointed and frustrated 861 00:46:15,120 –> 00:46:17,540 with the way things were going in the courtyard, 862 00:46:19,959 –> 00:46:22,120 this man who went out and wept bitterly 863 00:46:22,120 –> 00:46:24,719 because he thought there was no future for him 864 00:46:26,199 –> 00:46:28,679 on the night that Jesus was betrayed 865 00:46:30,699 –> 00:46:35,500 was forgiven by Christ and restored by Christ 866 00:46:37,100 –> 00:46:39,100 and he became useful to Christ. 867 00:46:41,239 –> 00:46:43,000 And what Christ did for Peter, 868 00:46:43,840 –> 00:46:45,939 he can do for you. 869 00:46:47,360 –> 00:46:49,000 So let’s pray together, shall we? 870 00:46:54,340 –> 00:46:57,080 Father, we are all touched deeply by this subject 871 00:46:57,080 –> 00:47:01,679 and therefore bow with purpose before you now. 872 00:47:05,840 –> 00:47:08,939 We feel that we need your prayers. 873 00:47:09,620 –> 00:47:13,620 We feel that we need your forgiveness. 874 00:47:17,100 –> 00:47:19,760 We feel that we need your restoration. 875 00:47:23,139 –> 00:47:25,139 Many of us are saying that we would not choose 876 00:47:25,139 –> 00:47:27,659 ourselves to be of any future use to you 877 00:47:27,659 –> 00:47:30,300 but we thank you that you may graciously 878 00:47:30,300 –> 00:47:32,379 lay your hand again upon us. 879 00:47:33,860 –> 00:47:35,459 And we pray that it would be so. 880 00:47:39,860 –> 00:47:43,560 Lord, grant that the other edge of the knife 881 00:47:43,560 –> 00:47:46,719 may cut right now, that by your sovereign spirit 882 00:47:48,000 –> 00:47:50,959 you will overcome the work of the enemy 883 00:47:50,959 –> 00:47:53,659 seeking to sift and destroy faith 884 00:47:55,080 –> 00:47:56,860 and hope and love. 885 00:47:58,280 –> 00:48:02,860 And rather create it anew within my heart. 886 00:48:02,860 –> 00:48:06,360 Now, oh Lord, I pray. 887 00:48:09,879 –> 00:48:14,879 And then as one who gratefully receives your grace, 888 00:48:15,360 –> 00:48:17,080 forgiveness and restoration. 889 00:48:17,080 –> 00:48:21,959 Lord, hear my prayer and make me one who watches 890 00:48:23,699 –> 00:48:25,219 and prays 891 00:48:28,699 –> 00:48:31,699 that in your grace I may not enter into temptation, 892 00:48:34,239 –> 00:48:36,639 but rather pursue the path that reflects 893 00:48:36,679 –> 00:48:38,979 the image of the Lord Jesus Christ 894 00:48:38,979 –> 00:48:41,899 who endured such unspeakable things 895 00:48:45,780 –> 00:48:47,699 and yet walked with triumph through them. 896 00:48:50,179 –> 00:48:53,360 May his grace cover us and may his spirit fill us 897 00:48:55,179 –> 00:48:56,979 as we go out into another week 898 00:48:56,979 –> 00:48:59,419 where not one of us knows what we will face, 899 00:49:01,479 –> 00:49:04,320 but every one of us may know 900 00:49:05,239 –> 00:49:07,639 that your presence will be with us 901 00:49:08,959 –> 00:49:13,300 and for this we give you our thanks and our praise, 902 00:49:14,919 –> 00:49:16,800 in Jesus’ name, amen.