The Whole Message

It was June 18, 1815, the Battle of Waterloo. The French were led by Napoleon. The English, under the command of Wellington. To get information back to the people of England, there were relay stations to send messages on the status of the battle.  One of those signal stations was on the tower of Winchester Cathedral. Late in the day it flashed the signal: "WELLINGTON DEFEATED…" Just at that moment one of those sudden English fog clouds made it impossible to read the rest of the message. The news of defeat quickly spread throughout the city. Soon, the whole countryside was devastated that their country had lost the war.

Then, a few hours later, the fog lifted, and the rest of the message could be read. "WELLINGTON DEFEATED THE ENEMY!" Sorrow was turned into joy. Defeat was turned into victory!

What a difference hearing the whole message!

What if you were a follower of Jesus and found yourself looking up at Him on the cross. You watch Him die. In your mind, the message is clear: the dream is over. The promise has failed. We’re no better off than before He came. It was a good run but it’s done.

Then, comes more of the message. John 20:1-9 Now on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene came early to the tomb, while it was still dark, and saw the stone already taken away from the tomb. So she ran and came to Simon Peter and to the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and said to them, "They have taken away the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid Him." So Peter and the other disciple went forth, and they were going to the tomb. The two were running together; and the other disciple ran ahead faster than Peter and came to the tomb first; and stooping and looking in, he saw the linen wrappings lying there; but he did not go in. And so Simon Peter also came, following him, and entered the tomb; and he saw the linen wrappings lying there, and the face-cloth which had been on His head, not lying with the linen wrappings, but rolled up in a place by itself. So the other disciple who had first come to the tomb then also entered, and he saw and believed. For as yet they did not understand the Scripture, that He must rise again from the dead. 

Hearing gave them greater details but, they still didn’t understand what it meant that Jesus had risen from the dead.

When we just hear, we can withhold judgment. Maybe it’s true or maybe not.

Mark 16:9-11 Now after He had risen early on the first day of the week, He first appeared to Mary Magdalene, from whom He had cast out seven demons. She went and reported to those who had been with Him, while they were mourning and weeping. When they heard that He was alive and had been seen by her, they refused to believe it. 

Mar 16:12-13 After that, He appeared in a different form to two of them while they were walking along on their way to the country. They went away and reported it to the others, but they did not believe them either. 

The difference between these two men and the rest, they had experienced the truth of Jesus had risen. The others could doubt but experiencing was undeniable.

Luke 24:13-16 And behold, two of them were going that very day to a village named Emmaus, which was about seven miles from Jerusalem. And they were talking with each other about all these things which had taken place. While they were talking and discussing, Jesus Himself approached and began traveling with them. But their eyes were prevented from recognizing Him. 

Luke 24:21-24 But we were hoping that it was He who was going to redeem Israel. Indeed, besides all this, it is the third day since these things happened. But also some women among us amazed us. When they were at the tomb early in the morning, and did not find His body, they came, saying that they had also seen a vision of angels who said that He was alive. Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just exactly as the women also had said; but they did not see Him. 

Luke 24:27-33 Then beginning with Moses and with all the prophets, He explained to them the things concerning Himself in all the Scriptures. And they approached the village where they were going, and He acted as though He were going farther. But they urged Him, saying, "Stay with us, for it is getting toward evening, and the day is now nearly over." So He went in to stay with them. When He had reclined at the table with them, He took the bread and blessed it, and breaking it, He began giving it to them. Then their eyes were opened and they recognized Him; and He vanished from their sight. They said to one another, "Were not our hearts burning within us while He was speaking to us on the road, while He was explaining the Scriptures to us?" And they got up that very hour and returned to Jerusalem

What a difference between experiencing the Risen Lord as opposed to just hearing He had risen!

In fact, let’s go back before all this happened and look at the before and after of the disciples. Jesus had warned them what was to come concerning His death:

Matt 26:31 Then Jesus said to them, "You will all fall away because of Me this night, for it is written, 'I WILL STRIKE DOWN THE SHEPHERD, AND THE SHEEP OF THE FLOCK SHALL BE SCATTERED.' 

So, what happened? Matt 26:55-56 At that time Jesus said to the crowds, "Have you come out with swords and clubs to arrest Me as you would against a robber? Every day I used to sit in the temple teaching and you did not seize Me. But all this has taken place to fulfill the Scriptures of the prophets.” Then all the disciples left Him and fled. 

Even with knowing something about what was going on, they still left Him and fled.

That same night after the Last Supper, John 16:31-32 Jesus answered them, "Do you now believe? Behold, an hour is coming, and has already come, for you to be scattered, each to his own home, and to leave Me alone…

Peter’s response: Luke 22:33-34 But he said to Him, "Lord, with You I am ready to go both to prison and to death!" And He said, "I say to you, Peter, the rooster will not crow today until you have denied three times that you know Me." 

How’d Peter come through? John 18:15-27 Simon Peter was following Jesus, and so was another disciple. Now that disciple was known to the high priest, and entered with Jesus into the court of the high priest, but Peter was standing at the door outside. So the other disciple, who was known to the high priest, went out and spoke to the doorkeeper, and brought Peter in. Then the slave-girl who kept the door *said to Peter, "You are not also one of this man's disciples, are you?" He *said, "I am not." Now the slaves and the officers were standing there, having made a charcoal fire, for it was cold and they were warming themselves; and Peter was also with them, standing and warming himself…So they said to him, "You are not also one of His disciples, are you?" He denied it, and said, "I am not." One of the slaves of the high priest, being a relative of the one whose ear Peter cut off, said, "Did I not see you in the garden with Him?" Peter then denied it again, and immediately a rooster crowed. 

So, disciples who walked and lived with Jesus all that time, when the moment came, couldn’t stand with Him at His death. Even after hearing of the resurrection: John 20:19 So when it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and when the doors were shut where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in their midst and *said to them, "Peace be with you." 

Even with information, they were reluctant to believe He had risen.

John 20:24-29 But Thomas, one of the twelve, called Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples were saying to him, "We have seen the Lord!" But he said to them, "Unless I see in His hands the imprint of the nails, and put my finger into the place of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe." After eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came, the doors having been shut, and stood in their midst and said, "Peace be with you." Then He said to Thomas, "Reach here with your finger, and see My hands; and reach here your hand and put it into My side; and do not be unbelieving, but believing." Thomas answered and said to Him, "My Lord and my God!" Jesus said to him, "Because you have seen Me, have you believed? Blessed are they who did not see, and yet believed." 

Hearing about the Resurrection didn’t convince them Jesus was alive until they experienced Him alive. Somehow the truth of His resurrection had to be transferred to them, not just by knowledge but more so, through experience.

Eph 1:18-20 I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe. These are in accordance with the working of the strength of His might which He brought about in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, 

Did Paul mean to say that some Children of God may not experience all that God promised? That Believers might settle for less than all He gives them? That some may not be fully enlightened, some will not realize the hope of His calling or the riches of all He has planned, or the surpassing greatness of His power flowing through them? Yes. It’s the difference between hearing it’s true and experiencing it’s true.

Jesus, as soon as He explained He must die and be resurrected, told them of another promise. That the plan isn’t fulfilled by each event. All are tied together.

Acts 1:5, 8 John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now." 8 but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth." 

Power would come. Power for what? Belief and function. John 16:8 And He, when He comes, will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment. Convict means to convince. The Holy Spirit is the convincing arm of the Trinity to help us believe. And also, the empowering arm. He is the power flowing through us to act.

How will that power come?

John 14:16-17 "I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you and will be in you. 

John 14:26 But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you. 

John 16:13 But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come. 

So, the source of God that will convince the Disciples of the truth and transform them into people who can powerfully live and communicate the Gospel is the Holy Spirit. So, what happened?

Acts 2:1-8 When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. And suddenly there came from heaven a noise like a violent rushing wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. And there appeared to them tongues as of fire distributing themselves, and they rested on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit was giving them utterance. 5 Now there were Jews living in Jerusalem, devout men from every nation under heaven. And when this sound occurred, the crowd came together, and were bewildered because each one of them was hearing them speak in his own language. They were amazed and astonished, saying, "Why, are not all these who are speaking Galileans? And how is it that we each hear them in our own language to which we were born? 

Then Peter spoke to the gathered crowd: Acts 2:23 this Man, delivered over by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God, you nailed to a cross by the hands of godless men and put Him to death. 

Shortly after that, Acts 4:8-10 Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, "Rulers and elders of the people, if we are on trial today for a benefit done to a sick man, as to how this man has been made well, let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead—by this name this man stands here before you in good health.  

Is this the same Peter? The man who denied the Lord and ran and hid? Who at first only marveled at the empty tomb but didn’t believe? Yes and no. He had the same physical characteristics but his body now was the home of the Spirit of God. The Holy Spirit was taking control and infusing him with the power of a transformed life with boldness to share the message of the Gospel.

This happened to the whole group, Acts 4:31 And when they had prayed, the place where they had gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak the word of God with boldness. 

Being filled, they now had power to speak boldly. Acts 4:33 And with great power the apostles were giving testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and abundant grace was upon them all. 

Something happened to convince these men and women of the truth of the Resurrection, transformed them into new people and empowered them to act with boldness. These people were no longer the same.

Can there be a moment for us that takes what we’ve heard and convinces us it is true? A moment that transforms us and empowers us as well?

We know from Scripture that Eph 1:13-14 In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation—having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is given as a pledge of our inheritance, with a view to the redemption of God's own possession, to the praise of His glory. 

The identifying mark of us as Christians is the presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives. The security of our relationship with the Father is the seal of the Spirit. He is our guarantee of all God has promised. But He also is the power of the life.

Eph 3:16-17 that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inner man, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; and that you, being rooted and grounded in love, 

Salvation is confirmed with the presence of the Spirit. He seals us the Lord’s possession. But there is a reality we may not experience. Dwelling means being at home, or given the right to live there.

We say to our guests: make yourself at home. We want them to feel as comfortable at our house as they do in their own homes. We place no restrictions on them. They have full run of the whole house.

We must give the Holy Spirit the same honor in our homes, our lives. We remove any restrictions to God’s work by embracing the presence and power of the Spirit. Our bodies may be flabby and weak but when the Spirit empowers us, we become strong and energized to live and act according to who we are as believers.

Interesting story: Mar 8:22-25 And they came to Bethsaida. And they brought a blind man to Jesus and implored Him to touch him. Taking the blind man by the hand, He brought him out of the village; and after spitting on his eyes and laying His hands on him, He asked him, "Do you see anything?" And he looked up and said, "I see men, for I see them like trees, walking around." Then again He laid His hands on his eyes; and he looked intently and was restored, and began to see everything clearly. 

Nothing Jesus did was without purpose. He didn’t need a do-over for this man because His first attempt failed. He needed to teach a lesson the disciples would later experience.

Right after that: Mar 8:27-29 Jesus went out, along with His disciples, to the villages of Caesarea Philippi; and on the way He questioned His disciples, saying to them, "Who do people say that I am?" They told Him, saying, "John the Baptist; and others say Elijah; but others, one of the prophets." And He continued by questioning them, "But who do you say that I am?" Peter answered and said to Him, "You are the Christ." 

Which was true but didn’t affect how they were going to react to what followed.

From Caesarea Philippi, they began the long journey back to Jerusalem.  Where the Cross and Resurrection were scheduled. But all of this had limited meaning to the disciples. It didn’t fit into what they were expecting or wanting. That’s why they were devastated. They only had part of the message. The resurrection cleared some of that up when they saw the power of God in bringing Jesus back alive, but the experience of Pentecost would complete the picture when they experienced that same power in their lives.

Same for us. If we stop anywhere along the way and not allow the Lord to fulfill the promise in us, we struggle with the truth. If at the cross, we have limited understanding of what God did. We see forgiveness, payment of sins and reconciliation. In the Resurrection we see the power of that life and the picture of the new life He made possible. Then, on Pentecost, we experience the power to live and share that life.

The Resurrection gave them the message to share: 1Cor 15:3-4 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures.

The Indwelling of the Spirit of God gave them the power to live and share that message.

The Gospels don’t explain the resurrection; the resurrection explains the Gospels. The Book of Acts demonstrates the power of the Gospel for living that life that the rest of the NT tells us is possible.

The Spirit of God indwelling the lives of the people of God gives the power to share the message of the Death and the Resurrection, and the power to live that message.

TAKEAWAYS:

1. Salvation is not us entering into God but God entering into us.
2. We are not saved by believing facts but by opening our lives to the truth of God to dwell in us.
3. God’s objective is to do in us far more than we could ever think or imagine is possible.
4. Our job is to open the door and let Him in.

 

 

 

When We Cause Our Own Problems

Matt 14:22-32 Immediately He made the disciples get into the boat and go ahead of Him to the other side, while He sent the crowds away. After He had sent the crowds away, He went up on the mountain by Himself to pray; and when it was evening, He was there alone. But the boat was already a long distance from the land, battered by the waves; for the wind was contrary. And in the fourth watch of the night He came to them, walking on the sea. When the disciples saw Him walking on the sea, they were terrified, and said, "It is a ghost!" And they cried out in fear. But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, "Take courage, it is I; do not be afraid." Peter said to Him, "Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water." And He said, "Come!" And Peter got out of the boat, and walked on the water and came toward Jesus. But seeing the wind, he became frightened, and beginning to sink, he cried out, "Lord, save me!" Immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and took hold of him, and said to him, "You of little faith, why did you doubt?" When they got into the boat, the wind stopped. 

There is no parallel in life for needing to walking on water. I’ve never found a situation where walking on water would have been a necessary skill. Maybe if I’d been on the Titanic that could have been useful. But it’s not something we should ever expect to be asked to do or feel we need to do. I can hear Johnnie telling Kit that the battery has run down, so get out of the boat and push. Maybe we can get it running again. But other than that, not very useful.

So, why would this story be included in Scripture? Perhaps, to fulfill Paul’s statement: 1Cor 10:6 Now these things happened as examples for us, so that we would not crave evil things as they also craved. 

That means there are some things in Scripture that are there so we can learn what not to do as well as what we can do, some things to embrace, some to avoid. This story would seem to fit into that unique category of experiences we should learn from, but never expect to need to do.

Most stories are to help us with situations we might face, like:

•   Being asked to do the impossible or what seems impossible.
• Being asked to remain faithful when the stakes are high.
• Being asked to hang on when we don’t understand what’s going on.

Each of these is a category of the kinds of things we might need to do, but not by reliving the exact story. It’s almost certain none of us will ever face a fiery furnace, spend the night with hungry lions or wait fifteen years to understand a couple of visions, but we will face things like these and when we do we are going to need insight for how to do so. Now, walking on water is a rare category. We will never need to do that.

So, why is this story in the Bible?

The other stories are about success in trusting the Lord. This is a story about failure.

In the other stories, there are lessons we can transfer to our own situations, making them useful in other applications – transferable truths. Nothing transfers here except learning from our mistakes. Peter’s experience shows us what happens when we cause our own problems.

First of all, let’s get into the moment. It was an ordinary thing for the disciples to get in a boat and travel across the Sea of Galilee, which isn’t a sea but a large lake. It is 13 miles long and 8 miles across. Its total surface area is twice the size of Lake Conroe. And since it is oblong, you can see the shoreline from almost anywhere around the lake.

But the water is deep, on average 84 feet, going down to 141 feet at its deepest point. That depth, along with the influence of strong wind currents coming down from the mountains surrounding it, can cause quick and furious storms to develop. It is easy to get caught and tossed about by these storms and suddenly be in a dangerous situation. You’ll remember this had happened before with the disciples when Jesus was asleep in the boat with them.

So, you could say, according to the typical way storms happened on the sea, there was nothing extraordinary about the circumstances of being caught in turbulent water. What made it extraordinary was, Jesus walking on the water to join the men in the boat.

Now, when comparing Matthew’s account of this story with the other accounts (both Mark and John record this event), nobody but Matthew mentions Peter getting out of the boat. That would seem to indicate this wasn’t as big a deal to the other disciples as it was to Matthew. They probably wrote it off as typical Peter. Matthew saw it differently.

Most commentaries say the book of Mark was Peter’s story. Mark was a teenager during the time of Jesus and didn’t have sufficient details to write a gospel account, so Peter took him under wing and told Mark his story. Undoubtedly, the part where Peter sank in the water was an embarrassment and Peter left it out when he was telling Mark. Then, in the book of John, it could be John didn’t see it as important to him. But Matthew did.

Matthew thought it a moment to remember. Peter saw it as a failure to forget. See, most of us would rather not have our mistakes make public. We’d rather keep our embarrassing moments private.

How would this be an embarrassment to Peter? Go back into the story. Jesus didn’t call Peter out of the boat to walk on the water to Him, Peter asked permission to come out there and Jesus said come.

Matt 14:28-30 Peter said to Him, "Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water." And He said, "Come!" And Peter got out of the boat, and walked on the water and came toward Jesus. But seeing the wind, he became frightened, and beginning to sink, he cried out, "Lord, save me!" 

Now, give Peter credit for getting out of the boat and walking on the water. That took courage. But then, he got distracted by the storm and began to sink. I can hear him screaming like a little girl. That’s probably how it sounded to Peter when he thought back on the moment, or maybe when he read Matthew’s account.

But since this story is about failure and not success, we can’t really find positive things to say about Peter trying to walk on water, so, why did God preserve this part of the story? To show us even disciples fail. To show us failure isn’t final. To make failure a moment for growth. To teach us a simple lesson that if we step out where we don’t belong, even thinking we’re doing the right thing, we will inevitably begin to sink. But the redeeming truth is: regardless of the cause, whenever we begin to sink, we can call out to Jesus.

That makes the story more about Jesus responding to his children’s mistakes than Peter’s boldness to try the impossible.

I’ve read many comments on this passage, wanting to make Peter a hero by his courage to try, his willingness to trust, his faith being greater than the rest of the men who stayed in the boat and never tried, his desire to go out to Jesus. All of them want to make Peter superior to the others, the super spiritual one. What he actually demonstrated was how, even in the failures we cause ourselves, the Lord takes care of even His misguided ones.

We need this story because, in most of the other stories of Jesus helping meet the needs of people, the condition of the lives Jesus touches, the circumstances that brought people to Him for healing or deliverance, were beyond their fault. They didn’t create their need. In this story, Peter created his own problem. And Jesus let him do it.

Peter didn’t need to walk on water. It wasn’t a skill he needed to develop or an ability he needed to learn. It served no purpose other than to set up his failure. Can you imagine what would have happened had he succeeded? It would have inflated an ego already pressing the envelope of arrogance that regularly had to be taken down. Peter had a problem with pride and Jesus needed to expose it.

Pride prevents growth. It leaves us stagnated. Pride gives us a superior sense of accomplishment. We believe we have arrived. We’re done with learning, listening, and opening ourselves to areas in which we need to change. We are above any challenge.

So, the purpose was for Peter to fail.

I can hear some reject this, saying, “Oh, Jesus would never set up circumstances for us to fail.” Really? So, we only learn from when things go right? Does a person learn more from their mistakes or successes?

Michael Jordan said once that he didn’t learn as much by making a basket as he did when he missed.

Bill Cosby said if a child never had a cold, how could he learn how to blow his nose?

Andre Crouch sang, “If I never had a problem, I’d never know God could solve them.”

There are some lessons we’ll never learn unless we’re given the opportunity to fail.

I once worked with a pastor who demanded I not fail. He said it reflected poorly on him. Not unless he set up the failure or caused it. I told him I couldn’t operate in a creative role if I’m not allowed to fail. I’m not choosing to fail. I’m not even planning to fail. But if I do, failing doesn’t make me a failure. It helps make me better.

• Failure gets our attention.
• Failure humbles us and makes us teachable.
• Failure opens our eyes to what we’d shut them from.
• Failure helps overcome our fears.
• Failure makes us try harder.
• Failure gives us things to avoid the next time.
• Failure provides a reality check.
• Failure teaches us there is no “one and done” or “three strikes and we’re out.”
• Failure is usually the result of a moment’s action, not a lifetime crisis.
• Failure reveals something about us that needs changing.

Now, we’re back to Peter. Peter’s failure showed him what he needed to change.

UCLA basketball coach, John Wooden once said, "Failure isn't fatal, but failure to change might be.”

God will allow me to fail if that exposes an area in my life that I have yet to surrender. How many times had Jesus taught on humility? And yet, Peter never got the message. Peter needed a visual to learn the truth of Prov 16:18 Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before stumbling. We can tell someone what the problem is, but unless they experience it for themselves, they will struggle to accept what we say.

In a book about the Titanic sinking: “The ship was not destroyed by an iceberg alone, it was also destroyed by a state of mind, an unseen force that [would] ultimately lead to its downfall . . . arrogance.” “Even God Himself could not sink this ship.”

The old definition of crazy: doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different outcome each time. If we keep doing the same thing the same way, we’ll keep getting the same results every time. We need something to break the routine.

John Gardner says, “One of the reasons mature people stop learning is that they become less and less willing to risk failure.” Most people want to be absolutely certain that everything will be okay — before they risk. But there are no such guarantees in life; so most people are stuck with old behavior and old results. Understand why Jesus would set up opportunities for failure?

Henry Ford: “The only real mistake is the one from which we learn nothing.”

So, what did Peter learn? I’m going to fail whenever I focus on myself rather than on the Lord. Pride is self-worship – an inflated sense of our own importance. Had he had a cell phone, he’d have taken a selfie as soon as he got on the water.

Sinking showed Peter that in a moment of high risk that requires faith and courage, the most important person in the room is Jesus. It also showed him that even if Jesus says, “Come,” you can still sink if you take your eyes off Him. And it reminded him of the purpose of faith: Faith doesn’t make us capable; it makes us able to trust the capability of Jesus.

Then, finally, it showed him when you start to sink, the sooner you cry out to Jesus the sooner He will lift you up out of the water. Did Peter go under? Doesn’t sound like it. "Lord, save me!" Immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and took hold of him.

When we try to do things with more faith in ourselves than in Him, it shouldn’t surprise us when we fail.

Even when we begin in faith, we can suddenly switch to flesh by getting distracted by our circumstances.

But seeing the wind, he became frightened, and beginning to sink, he cried out, "Lord, save me!" Immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and took hold of him, and said to him, "You of little faith, why did you doubt?" 

Peter had faith. It was just misplaced. It was faith in his own abilities. How do you correct that? By giving him the opportunity to use his misplaced faith to see what happens.

Realize, Peter didn’t get out of the boat expecting to fail. He expected to walk. But when he began to sink, he did the right thing – he transferred his faith in himself over to the One who could save Him.

I doubt Peter ever tried walking on water again. But I’m sure he did try other things that produced equal results. What he learned in failing, though, was the faithfulness of the Lord covers us even when we cause our own problems. That’s a pretty good lesson.

Little eagle watched his mom and dad soar off the nest then up high into the sky. He longed for the day he could do the same. Every morning he’d ask them, “Is this the day I can fly?” They’d say, “Not today but soon.” He grew impatient and one morning, after his parents left, he decided he’d try. He stood on the edge of the nest, spread his little, immature wings and lunged into the clear air. But he wasn’t ready and spiraled to the ground. The landing took the wind out of him. While he lay there trying to get his bearings a group of turkeys came by and asked him what he was doing. He told them what had happened and they said, “Since there’s no way to get you back into the nest, you’ll just have to join us and become a turkey instead.”

He ate what turkeys ate, walked like turkeys walked, slept where turkeys slept. He even tried to gobble like turkeys do. He lived a turkey life.

Then, one day he saw his parents high in the sky. He felt the same urges as before. He spread his wings and began to run around. But the turkey’s discouraged him and said, “Turkey’s don’t soar. They stay on the ground and scratch out their purpose in life.”

A few months later, he was near a mountain ledge and saw his parents again. The urge overwhelmed him and he spread his wings and lunged off the cliff. This time, his wings held the air of the currents and he sailed up into the heavens.  He went higher and higher until he disappeared into the intake of a 737.

From the ground, one turkey watching said, “Eagles may soar, but turkeys don't get sucked into jet engines.” But neither do turkeys experience what eagles were made to do.

God would never give us abilities we don’t need, to do things He never expects us to do, just to satisfy our selfish desires. He takes us step by step, infusing us with power to do what He calls us to do. Had Peter successfully walked on water, he could have undermined the whole mission of spreading the gospel through an arrogance inappropriate to a godly man seeking the honor of the Lord. He would have credited himself for the work God did through him. Not a position Jesus would have wanted him to take.

What can this story teach us? We all have areas in our lives that need to change. Areas where we’ve not surrendered to the Lord. Our pride stands in the way. For the Lord to show us that, He may have to expose us to embarrassment. Embarrassment can be a good teaching emotion when it causes us to never want to repeat what caused the problem in the first place.

Do you think Peter ever tried this again? No. Once was enough. Did he learn the lesson? Not completely. A short time later he would boast of how he would never deny the Lord, but he did. Then Jesus had to lift him up from drowning one more time.

TAKEAWAYS:

1. Failure isn’t the problem, not learning from the failure is.
2. When God needs to challenge us to change, He’ll use whatever tactic works best.
3. Our preference is He not use moments that hurt or embarrass us.
4. But unless He gets our attention, we will remain as we are, and if how we are is more dependent on ourselves than Him, He must make us uncomfortable enough to change.

When We Don't Understand What's Going On

 Florence Chadwick was the first woman to swim the English Channel. In 1952, she decided to swim from Catalina Island to the California coast, about 26 miles. No woman had ever done that before.

It was very foggy when she started her swim. To keep her safe, she was shadowed by a small boat, just in case she had any problems. After 15 hours in the water, she looked up at her mother in the boat and said, “Mama, I can’t make it; I can’t go any further.”

Her mother encouraged her to keep going, but after swimming for another 55 minutes, she gave up and got in the boat. When she did, she found that she was only half a mile from the coastline. When asked later why she quit so close to her goal, she said, “It was because I couldn’t see anything. If I could’ve just seen the coastline, I know I would have made it.”

Seeing the end of a difficult journey can often make it easier to finish the trip. Knowing how much longer we have to hang on can help us not lose our grip. Seeing the finish line can help us complete the race. But not knowing makes time slow down and the end get further away instead of closer.

Thus far in the book of Daniel, Daniel has been the man with great insight and understanding. He’s had moments with the Lord that bordered on the miraculous. He is distinguished and faithful, an interpreter of dreams as God gives him insight and is able to discern great mysteries. You would never expect him to get all out of sorts when he has a couple of visions and doesn’t know what they mean.

Let’s go back a few years before the incident with the lion’s den to when Belshazzar was king of Babylon.

Dan 7:1  In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon Daniel saw a dream and visions in his mind as he lay on his bed; then he wrote the dream down and related the following summary of it. 

The first year of Belshazzar was 553 B.C. In this vision Daniel saw four beasts coming in sequence, one after the other. We know they are: Babylon, Persia, Greece and Rome, the same as Nebuchadnezzar saw. But they were presented differently to Daniel than to Nebuchadnezzar. Where Nebuchadnezzar saw a great statue of four different materials: gold, silver, bronze and iron, Daniel saw four beasts. So, he didn’t make the connection.

Then, he saw the throne room of Heaven.

Dan 7:9-10 I kept looking Until thrones were set up, And the Ancient of Days took His seat; His vesture was like white snow And the hair of His head like pure wool. His throne was ablaze with flames, Its wheels were a burning fire. A river of fire was flowing And coming out from before Him; Thousands upon thousands were attending Him, And myriads upon myriads were standing before Him; The court sat, And the books were opened. 

And as the dream went on, he saw Jesus.

Dan 7:13-14 I kept looking in the night visions, And behold, with the clouds of heaven One like a Son of Man was coming, And He came up to the Ancient of Days And was presented before Him. And to Him was given dominion, Glory and a kingdom, That all the peoples, nations and men of every language Might serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion Which will not pass away; And His kingdom is one Which will not be destroyed. 

I don’t know about you but seeing what Daniel saw would be exciting beyond anything we could imagine. But realize, Daniel didn’t know about Jesus or what God had planned. He had no idea God would so love the world that He would send His only begotten Son.

Dan 7:15-16 As for me, Daniel, my spirit was distressed within me, and the visions in my mind kept alarming me. I approached one of those who were standing by and began asking him the exact meaning of all this. So he told me and made known to me the interpretation of these things: These great beasts, which are four in number, are four kings who will arise from the earth. But the saints of the Highest One will receive the kingdom and possess the kingdom forever, for all ages to come.' 

Why would this be confusing to someone like Daniel? Because there was no concept for how God would present the Messiah to the world and how that would translate into a kingdom possessed by His people. In fact, the word Messiah is only found in the Book of Daniel in the OT. The same word is used other places but it is translated Anointed. Here, we’re given a concept and term totally unknown at this time.

Remember, God gave glimpses of truth along the way. Nobody saw the whole picture. Isaiah saw the suffering servant. David saw the crucifixion. But now, Daniel is seeing Jesus’ reign. But there is no running context for understanding.

Prophecy with no context often leads to wild speculation and confusing scenarios.

A prophet describes things he doesn’t understand with words that don’t always make sense. He is describing the indescribable. With images that represent things in the future or things in Heaven that we have no concept of, the prophet must try to explain those images by comparing them to things that don’t compare.

Read the Book of Revelation and tell me you understand all the symbols John uses. Read the Book of Ezekiel and tell me you understand all the images he presents.

If we’ve never seen a lion and someone says, “Oh, it’s like a big cat,” our image of lion would never be as powerful and massive as a lion really is. Our comparison wouldn’t compare.

A prophet sees spiritual sights that require spiritual insight to understand. And yet when we read prophetic scripture with natural eyes, trying to connect those words with things we’re familiar with, much of it just doesn’t fit. We have no point of reference without the rest of the Bible to help explain what we’ve read.

But even whatever Scripture Daniel had, there was little there that would help him. Much of the prophetic writings were works in progress. Isaiah was completed but Jeremiah was still being written during this time and Ezekiel didn’t start writing until now. You can understand Daniel’s frustration. He has no natural resources to use to understand what he’s seeing.

Then, Dan 8:1 In the third year of the reign of Belshazzar the king a vision appeared to me, Daniel, subsequent to the one which appeared to me previously. 

Another dream comes a couple of years later in 551 B.C. This one about a ram, a goat and a small horn. How on earth do you make sense out of that?

Now, when we put known history into Daniel’s vision, we understand Persia is the ram and Greece is the goat. The vision is telling of Persia’s downfall and what would happen in the final days of Greece being divided up and parceled out to four leaders. One of those leaders would be Antiochus Epiphanes who would desecrate the temple in Jerusalem by sacrificing a pig on the altar. It would bring the Maccabees into the story to remove Greece and restore the Temple in 167 B.C.

But we’re reading backwards. Hindsight is always 20/20. It’s much easier to see God looking backward rather than forward. Put yourself in Daniel’s place where you don’t know any of these specifics, other than what you learned in interpreting Nebuchadnezzar’s dream that certain nations would come one after another to rule the world. Now, through these visions, you have more details but no insight into how it all fits together. You’d be frustrated, too.

So, God responds to Daniel’s frustration:

Dan 8:15-17 When I, Daniel, had seen the vision, I sought to understand it; and behold, standing before me was one who looked like a man. And I heard the voice of a man between the banks of Ulai, and he called out and said, "Gabriel, give this man an understanding of the vision." So he came near to where I was standing, and when he came I was frightened and fell on my face; but he said to me, "Son of man, understand that the vision pertains to the time of the end." 

Dan 8:26-27 “The vision of the evenings and mornings Which has been told is true; But keep the vision secret, For it pertains to many days in the future." Then I, Daniel, was exhausted and sick for days. Then I got up again and carried on the king's business; but I was astounded at the vision, and there was none to explain it. 

Daniel had been stuck with information but no explanation. It’s like the switchback roads on the way to the Garden of the Gods in Colorado. We know there is a destination out there but the way to it is so disorienting, we think we’ll never arrive. And then we read the sign: Yes, you can; a million others have. So, we just keep going.

What did Daniel do? He kept going. He got up and carried on the king’s business. We can’t stop living just because we don’t understand what’s going on.

Ever get stuck in the switchbacks of your mind? Our thoughts are going one way, then they suddenly go another way. Been there? Of course. We get information all the time with no explanation of what it means. Without explanation, we’re left to our own imaginations.

One of our men was passing around a text with a video. In the text he said: Please pray for Tommy. He’s been in a bad wreck. Immediately we started asking questions: How bad was it? Was Paula with him? Is he okay? Was she hurt? Are they in the hospital? Then we noticed the video.

Video

We have a hard time when we don’t understand what’s going on. We raise questions that cause more confusion than clarity. It can be a dangerous time. Speculation can overwhelm us.

In that zone between information and understanding we’re prone to: misunderstanding, creating false impressions, misinterpretation, distortions, even delusion. Why? Because our emotions want to take us to worse case scenarios.

When we hear something with no explanation, we start imagining what it means. The longer it takes to find the answer, the more distorted the picture becomes.

Back in the old days we had to adjust our TVs to get a clear picture. Sometimes just a minor tweak would clear things up. But when we didn’t know what to turn to make things better, we’d often mess it up more than it was to begin with. I remember trying to make the colors natural. I’d turn the hue knob and then the tint knob and go from green to yellow to blue to red. Then miraculously, I’d finally turn something the right way and things would balance and the picture would become clear.

Several years ago, I went to my dermatologist to get a spot checked out. He removed it and sent it off for analysis. A few days later, someone from his office called and said, “Mr. Smith, we got your results back and it’s cancer. You’ll have to come back in.” Then she hung up.

That was it. You have cancer. What does that mean? What kind? What treatment? Is this serious? I went through a dozen questions trying to understand what she had said. I started twisting knobs to clear up the confusion and only made things worse.

What do we do when we don’t understand what’s going on?

We go with what we do understand. The doctor knows what he’s doing. He has a plan for taking care of this. All I have to do is schedule an appointment and show up. He’ll remove the cancer. I don’t have anything to do. It’s all in his hands.

When what we don’t know is frustrating us, go back to what we do know.

·       I know God loves me, and He’ll never leave me.

·       I know He is for me and not against me.

·       I know God’s Word is true, and His heart is kind.

·       I know God is working everything out for good.

·       I know God will accomplish what concerns me.

·       I know God never fails His children.

We have to stop demanding to know what God is doing before we’ll trust Him. “God, if you want me to trust you, You’ll have to show me what’s going on.”

Ecc 11:5  Just as you do not know the path of the wind and how bones are formed in the womb of the pregnant woman, so you do not know the activity of God who makes all things. 

We can’t place criteria on God for what He must do in anything. Neither must we know the activity of God to know He is active.

Look how Daniel resolved his confusion and frustration.

Dan 9:1-3 In the first year of Darius the son of Ahasuerus, of Median descent, who was made king over the kingdom of the Chaldeans—in the first year of his reign, I, Daniel, observed in the books the number of the years which was revealed as the word of the LORD to Jeremiah the prophet for the completion of the desolations of Jerusalem, namely, seventy years. So I gave my attention to the Lord God to seek Him by prayer and supplications, with fasting, sackcloth and ashes. 

The first year of Darius the Mede is 538 B.C. Realize for Daniel, his captivity had gone on for right at 60 years. Add that to him being captured as a teenager, and by standards of that day, Daniel’s an old man and doesn’t know any details about this captivity until he gets a copy of Jeremiah and finds God had placed a limit on the captivity at 70 years. But that didn’t fully satisfy Daniel.

Jeremiah explained the why for the captivity and the length of the captivity but not how God would end the captivity. Was this when his visions get fulfilled? Again, Daniel was having a hard time handling what he doesn’t understand.

He undoubtedly read: Jer 29:12-13 Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart. 

Dan 9:4-10 I prayed to the LORD my God and confessed…

Daniel begins his prayer for understanding after confessing the sins of the nation.

Dan 9:18-19 O my God, incline Your ear and hear! Open Your eyes and see our desolations and the city which is called by Your name; for we are not presenting our supplications before You on account of any merits of our own, but on account of Your great compassion. O Lord, hear! O Lord, forgive! O Lord, listen and take action! For Your own sake, O my God, do not delay, because Your city and Your people are called by Your name." 

Dan 9:20-23 Now while I was speaking and praying, and confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel, and presenting my supplication before the LORD my God in behalf of the holy mountain of my God, while I was still speaking in prayer, then the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision previously, came to me in my extreme weariness about the time of the evening offering. He gave me instruction and talked with me and said, "O Daniel, I have now come forth to give you insight with understanding. At the beginning of your supplications the command was issued, and I have come to tell you, for you are highly esteemed; so give heed to the message and gain understanding of the vision. 

Note: God sent the answer when Daniel started praying. He didn’t have to wait until Daniel signed off. Amen doesn’t activate the prayer. It’s not the words of our prayers or the length of our prayers or the fervency of our prayers that gets God’s attention, it’s the fact of our prayers. God is listening to our hearts cry out to Him.

Realize this was 15 years after the first vision, 13 years after the second. At this point, all God had told him was, his visions relate to things in the future. But Daniel didn’t know how long into the future God meant. Can you imagine having to wait 15 years to understand something? Yet, when it was time, God gave Daniel the understanding he asked for.

We’re obsessed with time. God isn’t. We have to kick our demand of urgency into neutral and stop trying to force some answer to come before its ready.

So, what do you do when you don’t understand what’s going on?

• You keep on going.
• You keep on praying.
• You keep on trusting.
• You keep on expecting.
• You quit watching the clock. 
• You don’t let what you don’t know rob you of what you do know.

Just because you don’t see God at work, He’s still working.

Just because you don’t hear God’s voice, He’s still speaking.

Just because you can’t feel God’s touch, He’s still present.

Just because you don’t understand what’s going on, He does.

So, when the fog is too thick to see the shore, just keep swimming.

And when you can’t see God’s hand, trust His heart.

Hunter’s Hope:

 I don’t understand why all of this is happening.

I can’t fight this battle.

I hate suffering.

I cannot bear to walk through this one more day, one more hour, one more minute.

My heart aches!

We need You now, Lord.

How long, God?

Please do something!

We are desperate for You.

Please intervene!

Strengthen us for this journey.

We cannot endure without You.

Please reveal Yourself right now, Lord.

Perform a miracle in our day.

Show us that You are in the midst of all that is going on and that You care.

Please, Lord, bring healing, hope, and restoration.

Reach down, Father, and rescue us.

Thank You, Lord, for life!

Help me trust You.

Help me trust You when I don’t understand Your ways.

Please help me to trust You in everything.

 

TAKEAWAYS:

 1.      It’s hard to live with more questions than answers.

2.     It’s even harder when we think we deserve to know or ought to know what’s going on.

3.     But God works best within the mystery of the time between question and answer.

4.     It’s the space where trust is demanded and rest is required.

5.     Be convinced, God can be trusted with the unknown and when we need to know, He’ll let us know.