WEBVTT - Moving Beyond Failure -- Part 2 0:00:00.800 --> 0:00:03.680 Today on Bold steps, Mark Jobe shows us how to 0:00:03.720 --> 0:00:05.239 move beyond failure. 0:00:05.760 --> 0:00:09.240 You'll never move beyond your failure unless you go to 0:00:09.280 --> 0:00:13.360 the hard places. Unless God brings back the issue that 0:00:13.360 --> 0:00:16.479 made you fail in the first place. I love this 0:00:16.480 --> 0:00:19.720 about the Lord that even though we have failed, he 0:00:19.760 --> 0:00:21.599 still calls us to follow him. 0:00:34.320 --> 0:00:37.800 Welcome to Bold Steps with Mark Jobe. Mark is founding 0:00:37.800 --> 0:00:41.960 pastor of New Life Community Church in Chicago. I'm Wayne Shepherd. Well, 0:00:41.960 --> 0:00:44.080 no one wants to talk about their failures. In fact, 0:00:44.080 --> 0:00:47.120 we'd rather ignore them, wouldn't we? And when we experience 0:00:47.120 --> 0:00:49.120 a setback, we tend to go back to the place 0:00:49.120 --> 0:00:52.800 where we had success before the most recent failure. That's 0:00:52.800 --> 0:00:56.080 what the Apostle Peter did. One minute he's a devoted disciple, 0:00:56.360 --> 0:00:58.959 the next he's back to fishing and living a normal life. 0:00:59.280 --> 0:01:03.040 But how should we respond to failure and disqualification. Well, 0:01:03.040 --> 0:01:05.560 that's the topic of today's message, which comes from our 0:01:05.560 --> 0:01:10.119 series on Breaking Free. With that message titled Moving Beyond Failure, 0:01:10.360 --> 0:01:11.559 here's Mark Jobe. 0:01:12.760 --> 0:01:15.520 Now I want you to jot this down. I move 0:01:15.520 --> 0:01:19.520 beyond failure when I deal honestly with the condition of 0:01:19.520 --> 0:01:26.160 my heart and choose to let God change it. You see, 0:01:26.200 --> 0:01:28.600 Peter doesn't want to talk about failure. Most of us, 0:01:28.600 --> 0:01:31.360 when we failed, well, we just don't want to talk 0:01:31.360 --> 0:01:36.520 about it. We want to avoid it. There's shame there. 0:01:36.520 --> 0:01:40.720 There's guilt there. There's a sense of unforgiving, not forgiving 0:01:40.720 --> 0:01:46.200 ourselves there. And so Peter sits down with Jesus. It 0:01:46.200 --> 0:01:51.320 tells us in there they're finishing eating. It says in 0:01:51.320 --> 0:01:54.720 verse 15, and when they had finished eating, Jesus says 0:01:54.720 --> 0:02:00.680 to Simon Peter, Simon, son of John, do you love 0:02:00.770 --> 0:02:06.610 me more than these? Now, Peter had always been a bragger, 0:02:07.330 --> 0:02:10.410 and he had told Jesus. If anybody else leaves you, Lord, 0:02:10.410 --> 0:02:13.370 I won't leave you. The world can deny you, but 0:02:13.370 --> 0:02:17.090 you can count on me, Jesus. And when the time came, 0:02:17.090 --> 0:02:23.690 he denied Jesus. Now the scholars don't know if Jesus 0:02:23.690 --> 0:02:25.970 was pointing at the other disciples and says, do you 0:02:25.970 --> 0:02:28.650 love me more than these? Or maybe he was pointing 0:02:28.650 --> 0:02:30.730 at the fish and the boats and the nets and say, 0:02:30.730 --> 0:02:32.650 do you love me more than these? We're not really 0:02:32.650 --> 0:02:36.130 sure if he was referring to his work or to 0:02:36.330 --> 0:02:40.410 the other disciples, but yet what we do know is 0:02:40.410 --> 0:02:42.930 that my gut feeling is that he was talking about 0:02:42.930 --> 0:02:47.210 the other disciples because Peter had argued how he loved 0:02:47.210 --> 0:02:52.930 Jesus more than other people. And so Jesus asked him, Peter, 0:02:53.450 --> 0:02:59.329 there's three words used for love in the Greek agape, philia, 0:02:59.330 --> 0:03:03.530 and eros. arrows has to do with romantic sexual love. 0:03:04.290 --> 0:03:08.090 Phileo is where we get the word for the town 0:03:08.130 --> 0:03:13.049 of Philadelphia. Brotherly. It means so Phileo has to do 0:03:13.050 --> 0:03:16.410 with more of a friendship kind of love and agape 0:03:16.450 --> 0:03:20.730 has to do with this unconditional divine love. Jesus says 0:03:20.730 --> 0:03:25.890 to Peter, Peter, do you agapao me more than these? 0:03:25.889 --> 0:03:29.290 In other words, do you unconditionally love me more than these? 0:03:29.850 --> 0:03:36.290 And Peter responds to Jesus and he says, yes, Lord, 0:03:37.170 --> 0:03:40.690 you know that I love you, but he doesn't respond 0:03:40.690 --> 0:03:44.130 to yes, Jesus, you know I agapao you. He says, yes, Jesus, 0:03:44.130 --> 0:03:47.250 you know I phileo you. Yes, Jesus, you know I, 0:03:48.290 --> 0:03:53.130 I love you as a friend. And Jesus said, then 0:03:53.130 --> 0:03:58.570 feed my lambs. You see, loving God is not just 0:03:58.570 --> 0:04:01.900 about how you feel towards God. It's about obedience to God. 0:04:04.220 --> 0:04:08.340 Then while they're sitting there, Jesus again says to Peter, Simon, 0:04:08.340 --> 0:04:10.980 son of John, he asked in the very same question, 0:04:11.020 --> 0:04:16.539 do you agape me? Do you love me? Peter says 0:04:16.540 --> 0:04:21.660 a second time, yes, Lord. You know that I phileo you, 0:04:21.700 --> 0:04:26.140 love you as a brother or friend. And Jesus again says, 0:04:26.180 --> 0:04:31.659 take care of my sheep. And then for a third time, 0:04:31.660 --> 0:04:37.260 while they're sitting there, Jesus says to Peter, Simon, son 0:04:37.260 --> 0:04:42.140 of John, do you for me? Now he lowers his 0:04:42.140 --> 0:04:48.820 standard to brotherly love. And Peter's hurt because Jesus asked 0:04:48.820 --> 0:04:54.779 him a third time. Do you love me? And he said, Lord, 0:04:54.779 --> 0:04:57.980 you know all things. You know that I love you. 0:04:59.180 --> 0:05:04.620 Then Jesus said, feed my sheep. I want you to 0:05:04.660 --> 0:05:10.460 know that we don't move. We cannot move beyond failure 0:05:12.380 --> 0:05:15.460 until we stop running from our mistakes. And we. Instead, 0:05:15.460 --> 0:05:18.660 we start running towards Jesus. And that's what Peter did 0:05:19.260 --> 0:05:23.580 when he saw Jesus on the shore. He ran towards Jesus. 0:05:23.580 --> 0:05:28.620 Swam towards Jesus. You'll never move beyond failure unless you 0:05:28.620 --> 0:05:31.220 move towards Jesus. You can't be running from your mistakes 0:05:31.220 --> 0:05:32.979 for the rest of your life. Listen, some of you 0:05:32.980 --> 0:05:35.540 will spend the rest of your time running from your mistakes, 0:05:36.779 --> 0:05:40.060 always trying to run from that divorce, always trying to 0:05:40.060 --> 0:05:44.580 run from that bankruptcy, always trying to run from that addiction, 0:05:45.660 --> 0:05:48.180 always trying to run from that abortion that you had 0:05:48.220 --> 0:05:50.300 and just the shame of it. So you keep running 0:05:50.300 --> 0:05:52.940 from it, keep running from it. And when you run 0:05:52.940 --> 0:05:55.219 from it by trying to be good, trying to make 0:05:55.220 --> 0:05:57.420 up for it, by trying not to think about it, 0:05:57.420 --> 0:06:00.380 sometimes we run from it. Listen, the enemy wants you 0:06:00.470 --> 0:06:03.349 running from your mistakes. And here's the thing you can't 0:06:03.350 --> 0:06:06.230 run from your mistakes. You need to run to Jesus. 0:06:07.950 --> 0:06:10.830 Peter was running from his mistakes, but he hadn't gone 0:06:10.830 --> 0:06:15.190 to Jesus. And finally, instead of running from his mistakes 0:06:15.190 --> 0:06:18.270 and some people crank up the music, try not to 0:06:18.310 --> 0:06:20.990 think about it and you get busy in life. You know, 0:06:21.029 --> 0:06:23.590 some of you get so busy in life because you 0:06:23.630 --> 0:06:28.150 can't stand the quietness, because quietness means you have to 0:06:28.190 --> 0:06:34.550 stop and think about your life. And he doesn't run. 0:06:34.589 --> 0:06:37.510 He runs to Jesus, and when he runs to Jesus, 0:06:37.510 --> 0:06:39.630 it's there. When you run to Jesus that you will 0:06:39.630 --> 0:06:45.070 encounter the voice of God. You cannot run to Jesus 0:06:45.070 --> 0:06:47.830 without him speaking to the hard places of your life. 0:06:49.230 --> 0:06:51.670 And finally, when he came to Jesus, Jesus goes to 0:06:51.670 --> 0:06:55.470 the hard places. Listen, you'll never move beyond your failure 0:06:55.470 --> 0:06:59.230 unless you go to the hard places, unless God brings 0:06:59.230 --> 0:07:02.630 back the. The issue that made you fail in the 0:07:02.670 --> 0:07:06.070 first place. Peter, do you really love me? Peter, let's 0:07:06.070 --> 0:07:09.830 go to your heart. Peter. The issue is your heart. 0:07:17.990 --> 0:07:21.030 You're listening to Bold Steps with Mark Jobe, pastor of 0:07:21.030 --> 0:07:23.910 New Life Community Church. We'll continue today's message in just 0:07:23.910 --> 0:07:24.750 a moment. 0:07:24.750 --> 0:07:27.350 Yeah, this is Mark, and I want to invite you 0:07:27.350 --> 0:07:30.630 today to reach out and send me your testimony, your 0:07:30.630 --> 0:07:34.510 prayer request, your Bible questions any time by going to 0:07:34.550 --> 0:07:39.710 our website, bold steps.org. You can also contact us through 0:07:39.750 --> 0:07:43.630 our Bold Steps app now available through the App Store. 0:07:43.630 --> 0:07:45.990 And you can also leave your message on a recorded line. 0:07:45.990 --> 0:07:51.510 312329 2011. That's what this listener did. Let's listen to this. Mark. 0:07:52.150 --> 0:07:55.030 Hello, my name is Louis. Just wanted a call, had 0:07:55.030 --> 0:07:58.430 a question. Um, that's been in my mind and I've 0:07:58.430 --> 0:08:00.800 been trying to pray about it to get an answer. 0:08:01.480 --> 0:08:04.160 Lately it's been on my mind a lot. You know, 0:08:04.200 --> 0:08:07.960 God says that you know we are his children and 0:08:07.960 --> 0:08:11.760 he loves us way more than what we can possibly imagine. 0:08:11.800 --> 0:08:15.280 But to me, as a father, I wouldn't put my 0:08:15.320 --> 0:08:18.640 children in a playground where I know that there is 0:08:18.800 --> 0:08:22.720 something that can possibly harm them. I know God loves us, 0:08:22.720 --> 0:08:25.600 and I know Jesus paid the ultimate price for us 0:08:25.760 --> 0:08:30.400 so that we don't have eternal condemnation for our sins. 0:08:31.000 --> 0:08:34.040 And every time I see my kids, I try to 0:08:34.080 --> 0:08:37.559 do best by not allowing them to come in an 0:08:37.600 --> 0:08:41.160 atmosphere where there can be tempted to do bad. So, um, 0:08:41.200 --> 0:08:43.680 if I can get an answer, I would appreciate it. 0:08:43.880 --> 0:08:46.160 Thank you guys very much for everything you guys are doing. 0:08:46.480 --> 0:08:47.040 Thank you. 0:08:47.720 --> 0:08:51.600 Hey Lewis, I appreciate your question and it is a 0:08:51.640 --> 0:08:54.840 good and profound question, and I appreciate the fact that 0:08:55.160 --> 0:08:57.880 as a father, God has given you a love for 0:08:57.880 --> 0:09:01.240 your daughters. And you, you are a reflection of the 0:09:01.240 --> 0:09:05.200 father's heart for your daughters. How God feels for you. 0:09:05.520 --> 0:09:08.000 So the question, if I understand it right, you're asking 0:09:08.000 --> 0:09:13.120 why would a good God allow the tree of, of, 0:09:13.520 --> 0:09:16.240 of life in the Garden of Eden if he knew 0:09:16.280 --> 0:09:19.480 it was dangerous? And I'm not sure you asked this, 0:09:19.480 --> 0:09:22.040 but the serpent to be in the garden as well. 0:09:22.800 --> 0:09:26.520 So let me say this. When God created Adam and Eve, 0:09:27.120 --> 0:09:31.400 he created them to have free will. And by free 0:09:31.440 --> 0:09:34.240 will I mean that they have the power to choose. 0:09:34.640 --> 0:09:39.640 He didn't create robots. He created individuals in his image. 0:09:39.880 --> 0:09:43.559 Now there's a huge liability. When you allow someone to choose. 0:09:44.000 --> 0:09:47.560 There will always be evil around. There will always be 0:09:47.559 --> 0:09:52.400 danger around that we can trip into. When our hearts 0:09:52.400 --> 0:09:54.600 are in the right place, we choose what is right. 0:09:54.960 --> 0:09:59.480 When we are led or tempted, we choose what is wrong. 0:09:59.960 --> 0:10:05.689 I believe that God allowed Adam and Eve choices. Unfortunately, 0:10:06.010 --> 0:10:11.250 they chose to pursue. I think in John it's the 0:10:11.250 --> 0:10:15.050 same thing that Jesus was. Uh, says that we're tempted 0:10:15.050 --> 0:10:17.050 with the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, 0:10:17.050 --> 0:10:20.650 and the pride of life. Satan tempted them. They gave 0:10:20.650 --> 0:10:22.490 in to the lust of the flesh, the lust of 0:10:22.490 --> 0:10:24.490 the eyes, and the pride of life. They were both 0:10:24.490 --> 0:10:27.130 dragged into it. And ever since then we have the 0:10:27.130 --> 0:10:30.490 sin nature. What would be the alternative to that? The 0:10:30.490 --> 0:10:34.210 alternative to that would be that God would create them 0:10:34.210 --> 0:10:37.330 in a way where they could not choose. In essence, 0:10:37.330 --> 0:10:41.890 robots in an environment where they could not make choices. 0:10:42.090 --> 0:10:44.530 In other words, where they wouldn't have will. And I 0:10:44.530 --> 0:10:47.290 believe that God and His love, because he was made 0:10:47.290 --> 0:10:51.370 in his image, someone that could choose. Um, he allowed 0:10:51.370 --> 0:10:56.890 them to make choices. The beauty of this story is 0:10:56.890 --> 0:11:00.569 not that they made wrong choices, but the beauty of 0:11:00.570 --> 0:11:03.890 this story is that he loved us so much that 0:11:03.890 --> 0:11:06.610 he was willing to give His Son to redeem us. 0:11:07.010 --> 0:11:09.650 And if you ask, did God know it? Yes, because 0:11:09.690 --> 0:11:14.890 God is all knowing. God predestined. Did God want it? No. 0:11:14.929 --> 0:11:18.170 Did God know it? Yes. And did God give them 0:11:18.170 --> 0:11:22.369 the free will? Yes. I think it's the power of love. 0:11:22.809 --> 0:11:26.010 When God puts us in a place where we have 0:11:26.010 --> 0:11:30.170 to choose, he gives us the power to choose. And 0:11:30.170 --> 0:11:33.730 we have to live the consequences. Not unlike what we 0:11:33.730 --> 0:11:38.730 live today. Today. Louis, you have choices. To follow Jesus. 0:11:39.090 --> 0:11:41.809 He has not made you into a robot so that 0:11:41.809 --> 0:11:45.690 you can't do what's wrong or taken away those choices. 0:11:46.010 --> 0:11:49.770 He loves you even when you make wrong choices, and 0:11:49.770 --> 0:11:53.130 he redeems you even when you make those wrong choices. 0:11:53.130 --> 0:11:57.329 So it points to not an unloving father, but a 0:11:57.330 --> 0:12:01.580 father that loves us so much that even in our mistakes, 0:12:01.580 --> 0:12:04.660 he redeems us. So to me it points not to 0:12:04.700 --> 0:12:10.140 an unloving God, but to an obsessive, powerful, loving God 0:12:10.140 --> 0:12:13.780 whose love knows no limits. I hope, Lewis, that helps 0:12:13.780 --> 0:12:14.860 answer that question. 0:12:14.900 --> 0:12:17.380 Yes. Thank you. Mark. It is important that we explore 0:12:17.380 --> 0:12:19.540 the answers to these questions, isn't it? And if you 0:12:19.540 --> 0:12:22.020 have a bold steps question, maybe you just want to 0:12:22.020 --> 0:12:23.780 let us know how bold steps has helped you in 0:12:23.780 --> 0:12:25.860 your walk of faith. We'd like to hear from you. 0:12:25.900 --> 0:12:27.620 You can leave your message on that number I gave 0:12:27.660 --> 0:12:31.580 a few moments ago three, one, two, three, two, nine, 2011. 0:12:31.580 --> 0:12:34.500 Or simply reach out by going online to bold steps.org 0:12:34.540 --> 0:12:40.380 or emailing bold steps@moody.edu. Now let's get back to today's message. 0:12:40.380 --> 0:12:41.859 Walking Tall again. 0:12:48.860 --> 0:12:50.980 Most of us don't want to talk about our failure. 0:12:52.540 --> 0:12:54.500 We don't want to talk about those places that are 0:12:54.500 --> 0:12:56.500 painful in our life and what we've done and how 0:12:56.500 --> 0:13:00.020 we've done it, and why we've done it. But Jesus 0:13:00.100 --> 0:13:02.580 comes to Peter and says, Peter, this is about your heart. 0:13:02.580 --> 0:13:04.780 And Peter, if you're really going to. Let's go to 0:13:04.820 --> 0:13:07.900 the hard places. You've denied me three times. You thought 0:13:07.900 --> 0:13:10.580 that you were presumptuous. You're not the leader you thought 0:13:10.580 --> 0:13:13.460 you were. And Peter, do you really love me? Look 0:13:13.500 --> 0:13:16.780 at your heart. Search your heart. Your heart needs to change. 0:13:16.780 --> 0:13:21.180 And if it's really going to change, then. Peter, obey me. 0:13:24.460 --> 0:13:26.459 Peter was sad and he was broken. And I want 0:13:26.460 --> 0:13:28.380 to tell you, God doesn't make you sad or broken 0:13:28.380 --> 0:13:30.339 just to make you sad or broken. He makes you 0:13:30.380 --> 0:13:35.420 sad and broken because he wants healing in your life. 0:13:37.020 --> 0:13:39.740 It's a hard thing to look at that mirror honestly 0:13:41.220 --> 0:13:46.100 and see our areas of failure. But that's what Jesus 0:13:46.100 --> 0:13:49.300 does because he loves us. And leads me to my 0:13:49.300 --> 0:13:54.300 third point here. I'm talking about how we move beyond failure. 0:13:58.500 --> 0:14:01.869 And Jesus restores us by causing us to face squarely 0:14:01.870 --> 0:14:05.350 our point of failure, then challenging us to set our 0:14:05.350 --> 0:14:12.270 eyes on the work ahead of us. Hebrews chapter 12, 0:14:12.270 --> 0:14:14.429 verse five says, my son, do not make light of 0:14:14.429 --> 0:14:19.630 the Lord's discipline, and do not lose heart when he 0:14:19.630 --> 0:14:24.710 rebukes you, because the Lord disciplines those he loves, and 0:14:24.710 --> 0:14:27.710 he punishes everyone he accepts as a son. Endure hardship 0:14:27.710 --> 0:14:31.870 as a discipline. God is treating you as sons. For what? 0:14:31.910 --> 0:14:34.990 Son is not disciplined by his father. God disciplines us 0:14:34.990 --> 0:14:39.910 for our good, that we may share in his holiness. 0:14:40.070 --> 0:14:44.990 No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful later on, however, 0:14:45.190 --> 0:14:50.310 it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those 0:14:50.550 --> 0:14:53.390 who have been trained by it. You know what it's 0:14:53.390 --> 0:14:56.270 telling us there in Hebrews is telling us, if you're 0:14:56.270 --> 0:14:59.350 a son or daughter of God and you have failed 0:14:59.350 --> 0:15:02.200 and walked away and you have blown it and you're 0:15:02.200 --> 0:15:05.160 running from your failure. It's telling us that God loves 0:15:05.160 --> 0:15:07.760 you too much to just let you go. God will 0:15:07.760 --> 0:15:10.520 bring you to a point of pain. God will bring 0:15:10.520 --> 0:15:14.720 you to a point of discipline, not because God is punitive, 0:15:14.760 --> 0:15:20.240 but because God is a restorer. There's a difference between 0:15:20.240 --> 0:15:24.800 punishing and restoring. The reason that God brings us to 0:15:24.840 --> 0:15:27.560 discipline is so that we will come back to him. 0:15:28.640 --> 0:15:31.840 We'll feel the pain and we'll say, God, I don't 0:15:31.840 --> 0:15:34.160 want to live this way. God, I don't want to 0:15:34.200 --> 0:15:36.920 walk this way. God, I know there's a better way. 0:15:36.960 --> 0:15:38.960 And listen, if you're in pain right now because of 0:15:38.960 --> 0:15:44.240 your failure, thank God you are. Praise God you are. 0:15:46.120 --> 0:15:49.000 Because it's that very pain that the father allows you 0:15:49.000 --> 0:15:53.040 to go through that drives you back to him. It's 0:15:53.040 --> 0:15:59.800 his love and kindness that drives you back. Lastly, number three. 0:15:59.920 --> 0:16:02.400 and move beyond failure. When I embrace God's plan for 0:16:02.400 --> 0:16:05.360 my life and trust him to know what is best. 0:16:08.200 --> 0:16:14.120 You see? Jesus said to Peter, verily, verily, I tell you, 0:16:14.120 --> 0:16:17.359 when you were younger, you used to. You dressed yourself 0:16:17.360 --> 0:16:20.160 and you went where you wanted. But when you are old, 0:16:20.160 --> 0:16:22.640 you will be stretched out. You will stretch out your 0:16:22.640 --> 0:16:25.760 hands and someone else will dress you and lead you 0:16:25.800 --> 0:16:28.800 where you don't want to go. Jesus said this to 0:16:28.840 --> 0:16:32.360 indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. 0:16:32.360 --> 0:16:37.080 And then he said to Peter, follow me. What Jesus 0:16:37.080 --> 0:16:39.680 was telling him is, I want you to go to 0:16:39.720 --> 0:16:42.720 the hard places, overcome your failure. But more than anything, 0:16:42.720 --> 0:16:47.120 I want you to follow me. Follow me. I love 0:16:47.120 --> 0:16:50.280 this about God. I love this about the Lord, that 0:16:50.280 --> 0:16:53.080 even though we have failed, he still calls us to 0:16:53.120 --> 0:16:59.240 follow him. And still wants to use us. In fact, 0:16:59.240 --> 0:17:01.760 here's what I know about God. God is a master 0:17:01.760 --> 0:17:05.600 at taking our areas of failure and turning them into 0:17:06.119 --> 0:17:09.159 what he will use in the future as part of 0:17:09.160 --> 0:17:11.480 our glory and as part of our heart and as 0:17:11.480 --> 0:17:17.160 part of our sensitivity. God can take your failure and 0:17:17.160 --> 0:17:20.400 use it for his future glory if you let him 0:17:20.400 --> 0:17:25.560 do that. He loves to do that. But he said 0:17:25.560 --> 0:17:28.000 to Peter, Peter, I want you to trust me with 0:17:28.000 --> 0:17:32.600 your future. And Peter. He basically told Peter, Peter, you're 0:17:32.600 --> 0:17:35.719 going to be put in jail and you're going to 0:17:35.720 --> 0:17:42.439 be bound. And people are going to lead you and 0:17:42.440 --> 0:17:44.920 listen to what Peter does. Oh, we're we're so fickled, 0:17:44.920 --> 0:17:48.880 aren't we? It's so funny how quickly our heart goes from. Yes. 0:17:48.880 --> 0:17:50.800 I want to follow you to Lord. Hold on. Let 0:17:50.800 --> 0:17:52.320 me see. Can you explain your plan again to me? 0:17:52.320 --> 0:17:57.960 Because I don't think I like it. Peter turned and 0:17:57.960 --> 0:18:02.170 he saw the disciple whom Jesus loved was following them. 0:18:02.650 --> 0:18:05.609 The disciple whom Jesus loved, his code word for John. 0:18:06.410 --> 0:18:11.010 I loved it because John is writing this book. And 0:18:11.010 --> 0:18:13.970 he always refers to himself as the disciple that Jesus loved. 0:18:15.530 --> 0:18:19.290 I love that about John. You know, the disciple that 0:18:19.290 --> 0:18:26.369 Jesus loved? Well, he was following them and. Peter turned 0:18:26.369 --> 0:18:29.690 and saw the disciple whom Jesus loved, following them. This 0:18:29.690 --> 0:18:32.250 was the one who had leaned back against Jesus at 0:18:32.250 --> 0:18:34.330 the supper and said, Lord, who is the one who's 0:18:34.330 --> 0:18:37.850 going to betray you? And when. And when Peter saw him, 0:18:37.850 --> 0:18:44.570 he asked, and, Lord, what about him? Seriously, Peter, I mean, 0:18:44.570 --> 0:18:47.570 Jesus is saying, follow me, and you're probably going to 0:18:47.570 --> 0:18:50.370 be arrested and you're going to be taken to prison. 0:18:50.369 --> 0:18:54.290 And Peter's like, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, what about John? 0:18:56.050 --> 0:18:59.290 Is he going to happen to him? He's like, hold on, Peter, 0:19:00.020 --> 0:19:03.820 this is not about comparison. This is not about you 0:19:03.820 --> 0:19:06.580 get to choose the plan you want to follow. This 0:19:06.580 --> 0:19:10.780 is about trusting God with your future. This is about saying, God, 0:19:10.780 --> 0:19:14.220 whatever your plan is, I will trust you. It's not 0:19:14.220 --> 0:19:17.380 about me, Lord. It's about you. And I believe that 0:19:17.380 --> 0:19:19.899 you have the best plan for my life, no matter 0:19:19.940 --> 0:19:22.060 what it is, no matter how hard it is, I 0:19:22.060 --> 0:19:32.419 believe that I can trust you, God. In Jesus answered Peter, 0:19:32.660 --> 0:19:35.820 if I want him to remain alive until I return, 0:19:36.580 --> 0:19:42.020 what is that to you? You must follow me. Because 0:19:42.020 --> 0:19:45.540 of this, a rumor spread among the believers that the 0:19:45.540 --> 0:19:48.380 disciple would not die. But Jesus did not say that 0:19:48.380 --> 0:19:51.139 he would not die. Only if I want him to 0:19:51.180 --> 0:19:56.300 remain alive until I return. What is that to you? Incidentally, 0:19:56.300 --> 0:20:00.540 out of the 12 disciples, 11 of them were martyred. 0:20:03.580 --> 0:20:06.940 Some of them were. Their heads were chopped off. It's 0:20:06.940 --> 0:20:11.380 reported that Paul was crucified upside down. Some of them 0:20:11.380 --> 0:20:14.580 were boiled alive in hot oil. These were the disciples 0:20:14.580 --> 0:20:17.659 of Jesus. Some of you say, I wish I could 0:20:17.700 --> 0:20:19.900 have been one of Jesus disciples. Man, it would have 0:20:19.900 --> 0:20:23.219 been so cool just to hang out with Jesus and 0:20:23.220 --> 0:20:26.300 put my arm around him and talk to him. Hold on. 0:20:26.340 --> 0:20:28.460 Yeah yeah yeah, yeah. You like that part, don't you? 0:20:28.460 --> 0:20:31.460 But you forget about the boiling and oil part and 0:20:31.460 --> 0:20:34.899 head chopped off part and crucified upside down part. Don't 0:20:34.900 --> 0:20:37.860 forget that that was a part. The only disciple that 0:20:37.859 --> 0:20:40.859 died of a natural death of old age happened to 0:20:40.859 --> 0:20:45.900 be John. He died of old age. All the other 0:20:45.940 --> 0:20:51.580 all the other disciples were martyred. But the point is this. 0:20:52.220 --> 0:20:55.420 The point is that Jesus, as he was restoring Peter 0:20:55.420 --> 0:20:57.939 beyond failure and Peter, by the way, went on to 0:20:57.980 --> 0:21:01.860 be this incredible, powerful man of God. He led the 0:21:01.859 --> 0:21:05.020 early church. Thousands of people came to Christ on the 0:21:05.020 --> 0:21:07.340 day of Pentecost. He got up in the power of 0:21:07.340 --> 0:21:10.580 the Holy Spirit, and he preached the gospel with anointing 0:21:10.580 --> 0:21:13.780 and power. Because he had overcome his failure. He knew 0:21:13.780 --> 0:21:16.100 who he was. Now. He was a follower of the 0:21:16.100 --> 0:21:19.540 resurrected Jesus, and although he had failed, he was no 0:21:19.540 --> 0:21:24.020 longer living in failure anymore. He became Peter, the Peter 0:21:24.020 --> 0:21:27.619 that we know. Why? Because he didn't stay in the 0:21:27.619 --> 0:21:32.780 valley of failure. He embraced. I'm a broken person, but 0:21:32.780 --> 0:21:36.940 I follow a perfect God. I'm an imperfect person following 0:21:36.940 --> 0:21:40.140 a perfect God, and I trust his plan for my life. 0:21:40.140 --> 0:21:43.260 And Peter, on the day of Pentecost, 3000 people came 0:21:43.260 --> 0:21:47.500 to know him. Yeah. Because Peter preached, he became one 0:21:47.500 --> 0:21:50.500 of the greatest leaders that the early church has ever known. Why? 0:21:50.619 --> 0:21:55.740 Because although he failed, he did not stay in faith. 0:22:01.710 --> 0:22:04.590 You're listening to Bold Steps, the Bible teaching of Mark 0:22:04.590 --> 0:22:08.230 job and today's message called Moving Beyond Failure. If you 0:22:08.270 --> 0:22:10.990 missed any of the messages in this series titled Breaking 0:22:10.990 --> 0:22:13.590 Free What It Means to Walk Tall Again, please listen 0:22:13.590 --> 0:22:15.670 online at bold steps.org. 0:22:15.710 --> 0:22:18.910 Yeah. And Wayne, I just want to encourage our listeners 0:22:18.910 --> 0:22:23.950 because I know right now there are some that are 0:22:23.990 --> 0:22:28.949 carrying the baggage of failure. Maybe it's a marriage that 0:22:29.350 --> 0:22:33.710 just destroyed you and ended up in divorce. Maybe it's 0:22:33.710 --> 0:22:37.550 a business that failed. Maybe it's a church split that 0:22:37.550 --> 0:22:40.590 you were a part of. Maybe you were trying to 0:22:40.630 --> 0:22:43.790 walk in purity and you blew it, and you have 0:22:43.790 --> 0:22:48.109 been living soaking in that failure and believing that God 0:22:48.109 --> 0:22:52.510 can never, never use you again like Peter. And so 0:22:52.510 --> 0:22:54.910 I want to pray for you because I believe that 0:22:54.910 --> 0:22:58.310 there's some of you that God is saying you failed, 0:22:58.510 --> 0:23:02.630 but your story is not done. The final chapters of 0:23:02.630 --> 0:23:06.150 your story need to be written. And your tombstone will 0:23:06.150 --> 0:23:11.429 not say they failed, but your tombstone will say they overcame. 0:23:11.750 --> 0:23:14.230 And so I'd like to pray for you right now. Father, 0:23:14.230 --> 0:23:17.230 I pray in Jesus name for that man. Right now, 0:23:17.270 --> 0:23:23.350 that feels like an absolute failure. God, they're tempted to 0:23:23.470 --> 0:23:27.430 give it all up. They're tempted to just drown it 0:23:27.430 --> 0:23:31.750 in drinking and other habits and walk away from it 0:23:31.750 --> 0:23:36.910 all because they feel so broken in their failure. I 0:23:36.910 --> 0:23:39.630 pray that today God, through my voice and the power 0:23:39.630 --> 0:23:42.710 of the Holy Spirit, that you would remind them, no, no, no, no, no, 0:23:42.869 --> 0:23:46.550 this is not the time to give up. God has 0:23:46.550 --> 0:23:50.350 another chapter for you. And just like Peter went on 0:23:50.390 --> 0:23:52.629 to be used in incredible ways, I pray that you 0:23:52.670 --> 0:23:58.870 would breathe hope, resilience, encouragement, uh, to that person right now. 0:23:59.440 --> 0:24:03.160 that has been overshadowed by the dark clouds of failure. 0:24:03.200 --> 0:24:05.679 Thank you, father, that you have a future. Thank you 0:24:05.680 --> 0:24:09.840 that you forgive, that you restore. That you bring back. 0:24:09.840 --> 0:24:13.199 That you redeem. Thank you, father, that you are the 0:24:13.240 --> 0:24:18.159 God of second chances. And I pray this in Jesus name. Amen. 0:24:18.400 --> 0:24:22.159 Amen. Thank you Mark. We appreciate that extra dose of encouragement, 0:24:22.160 --> 0:24:25.720 especially after tough messages like this one. Well, Peter went 0:24:25.720 --> 0:24:29.040 back to fishing because he felt disqualified. Maybe you've done 0:24:29.040 --> 0:24:32.280 the same thing. Quietly retreated to an old, smaller version 0:24:32.280 --> 0:24:35.280 of your life because some failure convinced you God was 0:24:35.280 --> 0:24:39.040 finished with you. In his book, Goliath Must Fall Winning 0:24:39.040 --> 0:24:42.720 the Battle Against Your Giants, Louie Giglio calls that retreat 0:24:42.720 --> 0:24:45.520 exactly what it is a giant that has to come 0:24:45.520 --> 0:24:48.520 down because you were never meant to just survive under 0:24:48.520 --> 0:24:50.960 its shadow. And the best part is we don't have 0:24:50.960 --> 0:24:54.600 to defeat that giant ourselves. Jesus already has. Once again, 0:24:54.600 --> 0:24:57.040 the book is titled Goliath Must Fall. And we'd love 0:24:57.040 --> 0:24:58.600 to send you a copy. When you give a gift 0:24:58.600 --> 0:25:01.320 of any amount to support this ministry. Just go to 0:25:01.359 --> 0:25:09.879 bold steps.org/or call us at 800 D.L. Moody. That's (800) 356-6639. 0:25:10.440 --> 0:25:12.520 And be sure to connect with us on social media. 0:25:12.560 --> 0:25:15.560 You'll find us on Facebook and Instagram by searching for 0:25:15.560 --> 0:25:20.000 Bold Steps Radio. Also, don't miss the Bold Stepper Weekly. 0:25:20.000 --> 0:25:23.439 Every Monday morning, pastor Mark delivers a free devotional designed 0:25:23.440 --> 0:25:25.720 to help you start your week in God's Word with 0:25:25.720 --> 0:25:29.440 some biblical encouragement and practical insight. It's the perfect way 0:25:29.440 --> 0:25:32.359 to begin each week focused on Christ. Sign up today 0:25:32.359 --> 0:25:35.400 at bold steps.org. And if it encourages you, be sure 0:25:35.400 --> 0:25:38.399 to share it with a friend. Well, that's all for today. 0:25:38.440 --> 0:25:40.560 I'm Wayne Shepherd. Be sure to join us again tomorrow 0:25:40.560 --> 0:25:45.640 for more bold steps with Mark Jobe. Bold steps is 0:25:45.640 --> 0:25:49.639 a production of Moody Radio, a Ministry of Moody Bible Institute.