TOPIC:“There's a Christian Way to Master Defeat”
by Rev. Dr. Reg Dunlap
TEXT:Matthew 26:69-75
“And Peter remembered the words of Jesus, who said unto him, Before the
rooster crows, you will deny me three times, and he went out, and wept bitterly.”
(Matthew 26:75)
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R. Halderman, assistant to President Richard Nixon, in his book, The Ends of Power,
wrote: “Few men have had the privilege of being raised as high as I was, and few have had the tragedy of being brought so low.” Peter had that same experience. I have! Have you?
Almost every person I know is conscious of some devastating failure that has caused pain, humiliation and regret. Failure, whether before salvation or after salvation, is a part of living that cannot be denied. Look at the list of Bible saints who failed and sinned against God - Adam, Abraham, Lot, Jacob, Moses, David, Samson, Peter, the prodigal son, John Mark, Demas, Onesimus and many others.
When failure comes and your world falls apart the question arises, Is there wholeness, meaningfulness and usefulness after failure? My answer is an unequivocal and resounding “yes.” God is in the business of rebuilding, repairing, remaking and restoring defeated and broken lives caused by sin.
According to the Bible the answer for those who have fallen is the redeeming grace and forgiving love of Christ. In Him there is love, forgiveness, hope, peace and restored usefulness: Failure need not be fatal. Through repentance there is a hopeful and useful tomorrow. Permit me to illustrate the truth of this principle from the life of Peter the big fisherman who failed so miserably, but who recovered so gloriously. Yes, praise the Lord, there's a Christian way to master defeat.
I.
Consider, first of all, something of the FIGURE of this man Peter. We read from our text: “And Peter remembered…” (v. 75). Now just who was Peter and what was his background?
The name given to him at birth was “Simon.” Jesus said of him: “Thou art Simon, the son of Jonah…” (John 1:42). Now as we trace the life of Simon, later called “Peter” we find that he was a perplexing combination of good and bad. He was both courageous and cowardly, fearful and fearless, weak and strong. On the one hand he was a defeated liar . . .