Well, we do live in a difficult world today. Many concerns that we have on every side. I hope that the next series of sermons will prove to be helpful and encouraging to us as we consider the day in which we live. The writer of the book of which encouraged those Christians, the writer was Peter. Of course, we know that it was God led by the Holy Spirit to write what God would lead him to write, but Peter was quite a man. He was an interesting fellow, and we want to talk about him this morning a little bit and introduce you to him as the person whom God chose to write these great words of encouragement in 1 and 2 Peter, the letters that we will look at. John 21 and verse 15, Jesus has been raised from the dead. The disciples have scattered. He has now gave them the word that they need to go back to Galilee. They are in the boat returning to their fishing. And there the risen Lord appears to them on the shore. Who doesn't wait? Just remember, who doesn't wait when he realizes it's Jesus? Peter. He immediately dives into the water and heads for the shore to meet with Jesus. But Jesus has some business with him, uh-oh, after supper. And Peter has a lot to learn and perhaps maybe we do too. As he walks with Jesus down that shore and Peter is restored to his faith. And Peter turns and says what? To the one following, what about this man? And he's referring to John who's following close by. And Jesus says, if I want him to remain until I come back again, what is that to you? You follow Me." Amen? Hear the Word of God this morning and let's hear a little bit about this man's life and perhaps a very difficult time in his life, but let's see how God dealt with him. John chapter 21, the Word of God, verse 15 through verse 17. By the shore of Galilee after dinner, hear the Word of God. So when they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these? He said to him, Yes, Lord, you know that I love you. He said to him, Ten, my lambs. He said to him again a second time, Simon, son of John, do you love me He said to him, yes, Lord, you know that I love you. He said to him, shepherd my sheep. He said to him the third time, Simon, son of John, do you love me? Peter was grieved because he had said to him the third time, do you love me? He said to him, Lord, you know all things. You know that I love you." And Jesus said to him, "'Tend My sheep.'" And may God add His blessing to this reading of His holy and precious Word. Concerning Peter's restoration, I am certain that if God would show us the sinfulness of our sin at times and put an exclamation point on it, we would probably be alarmed at what we would find. it would probably cause us to collapse before the mercy of God for the self-righteousness and the self-trust and the reliance upon ourself that we have expressed in this Christian walk. Peter was a man who at this point had come to that time in his life where not only did he have to confront a Lord who gave Himself for him to pay for his sins, but he was a man that had to confront his own sin as well. And where had he come? A sense of unworthiness to do what? To even serve God at all. I think Peter would probably be surprised that he was included at all in this regathering of the disciples. I think he was having some of those feelings. I think that's why he responded the way that he did. I think Peter, in his shame at his denial of the Lord, I think he fled and fell back on the only thing he knew, and that was to catch fish. So he went back home and he began to try to catch fish, of which all night there was nothing. But even in his sin, he flees to the Lord, doesn't he? Because I think deep down in his heart, he loved the Lord, though he was a failure morally. He loved the Lord, and he knew that if there was going to be mercy, where was it going to come from? If there was going to be any mercy at all, though he didn't deserve it, it would come from who? It would come from Jesus. Would you say up to this point that Jesus had made a difference in Peter's life? Let me ask you another question. Even in the light of this failure of denying the Lord three times, even with cursing, do you think that God was bringing Peter along and preparing him? Remember Sunday School lesson this morning? Was God preparing Peter? Oh yes, he was. Even his failure. I heard a fellow preaching out in St. Louis. A young fellow in that presbytery out there preached at General Assembly. And he said, most of us have failed. He said, but oh dear Christians, can I preach to you one thing? He said, if you're going to fail, he said, fail forward in the Lord's arms. I love that sermon. And he was just a young guy too, right out of seminary, and he preached before the whole General Assembly. If you're going to fail, fail forward into the arms of the Lord. We're prone to do it, aren't we? Prone to wonder. Lord, I feel it. Prone to leave the God I love. You see, we come back to the table today. And sometimes I think even in the design of the table in the church and the gospel, doesn't the Lord have a way of bringing us back? Of drawing us again to show us really what's important in life. His shed blood, His broken body for our sakes. We would probably be surprised at the depths of which we could deny the Lord Jesus Christ, if the truth be told. That's why as we come to consider Peter in this day and time and we talk about how we are to cope and how we are to deal with the world in which we face, my dear friends, I think one of the first places we need to begin is to recognize who Jesus is as our righteous Savior, as His children walking in a very needy and spiritually sick world. The second thing you need to recognize is who you are. that you are just like Peter. As a matter of fact, I've looked at all the disciples and I think I identify with Peter more than I do with you. Because I say, oh boy, that's me. Yikes. That's it. You know, Lord, You know my heart. You know all about me. Isn't that where Peter finally came in this situation? Where did Peter finally come to? Remember before this as he was walking with the Lord, first of all, way back there in the beginning of the public ministry Jesus calls him, what was Peter doing? Peter was an ordinary fisherman. He fished for a living. I don't know whether you've ever been over to the Sea of Galilee and talked to some of those fishermen by the sea who really fish. They're pretty tough customers. I mean, they're very down-to-earth and they smell like fish and, you know, it's kind of interesting. They work on their boats and they're kind of an interesting fellow there by the Sea of Galilee who fishes. And remember when the disciples stood before the Sanhedrin and were preaching the gospel and they were being accused of preaching the gospel? Remember what the Sanhedrin said about this motley crew? Aren't these ordinary men from the Sea of Galilee that followed Jesus? Who told them? How did they come to be the people that they are? These are just ordinary what? These are just ordinary men. Who told them about these great things of doctrines that we've been entrusted with? Who told them? Jesus, the Son of God, chose those whom would serve Him as His children. And look who the Lord chose as He walked upon this earth to commit the gospel to. What? Some hard-working people by the sea who fished for a living, who were ordinary, true, Wasn't Paul right when he wrote in 1 Corinthians and they were arguing with each other in their pride about who was best? And Paul reminded them of what? That in Christ there were not many of you noble, not many of you wealthy, not many of you had fame in this world. You were really just an ordinary person and the Lord called you to Himself. And Paul had to remind them. that God uses ordinary people to accomplish extraordinary things. Doesn't that amaze you? Why does God call ordinary people to do extraordinary things for His glory? He does that so that none of us, and Paul tells them at Corinth, Paul did that so that no one might glory before Him except in Christ the Savior who saved them and called them. That they might not take the glory to themselves, look how wonderful I am, look how big I am, look what I've done for God. God said, no, there wouldn't be many of you like that. God has chosen what? God has chosen the ordinary things of this world to confound the things that think they're something. You ought to read 1 Corinthians when you get home, chapter 1 and 2. Quite a book. Quite a reminder. So as we come to talk about how we relate to the world today, I want to use Peter's life and set the stage by saying, first of all, you need to know the Gospel. of the Lord Jesus Christ and the Savior that saved you. You need to know His great mercy in the Gospel. And you need to understand why we are called back to the table to be reminded of His broken body and His shed blood. Why? Because the Gospel we proclaim is a Gospel that we do not save ourselves, but by God's great mercy, Jesus Christ has paid the price for our redemption. He is the one that has bought us with a price. He is the one that has given His life in order that we might be healed and we might have righteousness and that we might have life before God. That is the gospel we preach. And I tell you, my dear friends, we need to understand that gospel first and foremost as we go out into the world today because the world today is proclaiming how wonderful it is. and what great answers it has. And I hear more people today say, I don't really need these things about the church and about the Gospel and about the Bible. I hear more and more people, and especially among some of our young people, that I don't need that thing about the Gospel because, listen, I've got my cell phone and I've got all my digital process here. Anything I want to know, all I've got to do is punch it up. And we're beginning to develop a lifestyle in our culture where we think we deserve to know it. We deserve to know it because, you see, we are somebody. And I don't need God anymore, even if that was such a thing to begin with. My dear friends, the culture to which you are going out into today is changing. The workplace is changing. The general assemblies and legislatures are changing. It is a world in which you as a Christian are increasingly becoming the minority. I think some Christians are having a problem with that today. I think there was at times when some of us grew up, there was at least somewhat of a general consensus of the Christian faith in our communities, weren't there? Would you agree with me? Weren't our churches at the center of many communities? Wasn't the gospel preached openly? And didn't most people in our communities come to church? Didn't they? Yes, they did. And just in one generation, dear friends, the culture is changing. and you need to be ready. Peter needed to know his Lord. Peter, in the beginning, let me describe it to you this way, that was Peter and the man who he was, and that was the Lord. The Lord called him, and Peter understood that call and loved the Lord by God's grace, but he served the Lord the best way he knew how. Have you heard someone say that? And sometimes the best way Peter knew how was, Lord, I'm not going to let that happen to you. Sometimes the best we know how is what? The best we know how is not right in the plan of God. I think Peter sincerely wanted to follow the Lord. But Peter was a mix, wasn't he? He was a mix in his understanding even of the atonement and of how he needed to be saved and all of those things, but he sincerely, out of love, followed the Lord. And Peter was very proud of himself, wasn't he? Almost up to this point. And you see the mix at the point of the great confession in the book of Mark. Who do men say that I am? Well, they say, you're Elijah, come back in the flesh. One of the prophets, he says, but who do you say that I am? And Peter jumps up and says, what? Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. And Jesus commends him, blessed are you, Simon Barjona, for flesh and blood, listen, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. And then immediately, boy, upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell will not prevail against it." By the way, that was not a license for the potpourri. The rock on which the church was being built was Jesus Christ Himself and the profession of Christ. And my dear friends, think about this, Peter who made this great confession by the mercy and grace of God that he was the Son of God, the Savior of sinners. And Jesus turns around and says, well, you know, I've got to go to Jerusalem and I'm going to suffer at the hands of men in Jerusalem and I'm going to die at their hand. And who is the first one that speaks again? Peter. And what does he say? Lord, I will not let this happen to you. You know what a good man I am. Let all these others stop following you. Listen, I'm strong. I'm a fisherman. Just wait. Lord, I'll never let that happen to you. Let all these others deny you. But I will never, listen to the language, I will never deny you. He's going to eat those words very soon, isn't he? And if you have such a self-righteousness, you sooner or later are going to eat your words if you have such a faith. Let those who hold the faith be careful lest what? Be careful for those who think they stand lest they fall. You see, you and I have always been given a message in the Gospel to be careful. about how we do and what we do as Christians, because if we at once begin to trust in our own strength and in ourselves, what will happen? Most likely, if it's in our own strength, most likely sooner or later we will fail. Peter had to learn a rich lesson in his walk with the Lord Jesus Christ, that there was no room for His way of thinking. There was no room for trust in self. There was no room for man's ways in the Gospel. That if Peter was going to serve God and walk with God in the midst of the opposition of this world, that Peter had to what? Peter had to come to the point of dying to himself. and surrendering his life completely and casting himself completely upon the Lord Jesus. And you see it right here by the sea, don't you? They're walking along. Peter, do you love me? Oh, where did that come from, Lord? Of course I love you. Remember how short it is and how to the point? Ten my lambs. What is Jesus saying? If you truly love me, Peter, do what? Serve my church. Build up my children. Hold them up in prayer. Give your life away, Peter, for their sake and for my sake. Peter, you've got to deny yourself and follow me. Have we heard that before? Take up your cross. Deny yourself. Follow me. You see, Peter, those are the ones that I need to serve me, to take care of my children. And Peter continues to walk. Jesus once again says, Peter, do you love me? Lord, you know I love you. Do you think Peter was telling the truth insofar as he knew and understood? I think he was. But was it enough? But Peter's going to come to it. Then feed my sheep, Peter. You know what Jesus was doing, don't you? The risen Lord was preparing Peter to serve Him and to take gospel and defend the church. And is that exactly what Peter did until his death? Yes, that's exactly what Peter did until his death in which he was crucified upside down from prison because I don't deserve to be crucified the same way my Lord was crucified. Crucify me upside down for the sake of my Lord. Peter, that's a switch, isn't it? Peter came to discover really who he was trusting in, didn't he, at that point of death. And then they continued to walk. Peter, a third time, oh no. Peter, do you love me? The Bible is so rich here in that you almost pass by it if you're not careful. And it says, and Peter was grieved in his heart that what? that Jesus had asked him a third time, do you love me? And why did Peter grieve? Don't miss it. Because Peter before had been so bold. Remember how he began it? Peter, do you love me more than these? Uh-oh. By the way, Peter, I remember what you said back there, that you love me more than these. Do you think you love Jesus more than other people? If you do, be careful, because the Lord just might test your hand at it. Peter, do you love me more than these? And what is Peter thinking in his heart? You know what he's thinking. Boy, I was pretty rash, wasn't I, Lord? I was pretty definitive back there, wasn't I, Lord? I was pretty presumptuous back there, wasn't I, Lord? And where has Peter been brought? He has been brought to the Savior of the Gospel. And this Savior of the Gospel who has given His life, my dear friends, stands before His disciple who has denied Him. And he brings that disciple to the point of seeing not only him, but seeing his gospel and his righteousness, but also showing Peter his need. Did he show Peter his need? Do you remember where Peter came to? Peter was frustrated, not only hurting his heart, I think he was frustrated after the Lord said to him a third time, because he recognized what? The Lord asked him three times, does he love him? How many times did he deny the Lord? Three times, and I think it was like a hot iron upon his soul and his heart. You love me, Peter? You do. You love me, Peter. Let me ask you a question. Did Peter have any place to run? Neither do you. Peter collapsed upon the mercy of the Lord. And that's what you need to do today if you're going to live in this world as a Christian. Lord! Lord, I'm sorry. You know all things about me. Lord, what am I going to hide from You? You told me what I was going to do before I did it. Lord, where am I going to go? But what does He say? Lord, You know all things about me. There's nothing hidden from You. You know that I love You. Amen? Do sinners say that when they come to the table? Lord, You know I'm a sinner. And I'm not worthy of this table. Lord, You know all things about me. You know that I love You. I'm a sinner saved by grace. That's all I am, Lord. And I cast myself where? Lord, I cast myself completely upon Your knowledge and Your grace and Your mercy. That's all I've got. Remember the song, Thou Must Save and Thou Alone. Cleanse me from sin, or else I die. Laid before us. And this is the Peter who collapses upon the mercy of God, who preaches at Pentecost. This ordinary man is going to do something extraordinary by the power of the Holy Spirit. He, this weakling, this failure, this nothing, this ordinary man, is the instrument that God is going to use to bring the Gospel to this world. Peter stands up and who does he honor as he preaches? Man, if you look at that sermon clearly, he honors the risen Lord Jesus Christ as his Savior. Amen? Do you see a change in Peter from Matthew and Mark? to Acts. Do you see a change in Peter? Who made that change in his life? His relationship, his personal relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ who confronted him and saved him. An ordinary man, he equipped him to serve him in this world. And let me ask you one final question before we go to the table. Did Peter ultimately hear the message to serve the Lord, to feed His sheep and to tend His lambs? Listen, friends, if you don't see it, I hope you see it when we go to this series of sermons. When we go to 1 Peter and 2 Peter and we preach these series of sermons, I want you to see this Peter whom God, through His Son, transformed and equipped him to face the world that he's living in. I hope the Lord will equip you and so walk with you that you know Him as your Lord and Savior. And that you know yourself and know who you are before the Lord. And that in the light of that encounter between you and the Lord that God will take us ordinary folk and He will do what? That He will do some extraordinary things in and through you. May the Lord be with us as we come to the table. And may He prepare your heart that, listen, if you are in Christ, there are no small servants of the Lord. Did you know that? Dr. Francis Schaeffer told me that. No little people. There are no little people with God. If God has called you by His grace and you are trusting Him as your Lord and Savior, then you are His child, but you are His servant. And His intentions is to work in and through you. And listen, in some instances, as far as the eternal things of the kingdom, it will be in and only through you by which certain things are accomplished. Did you know that in the kingdom? Because God doesn't give His glory to people. Because of His own glory, He accomplishes mighty and wonderful things in and through His people, most of them who are just ordinary. God uses ordinary people to accomplish the most extraordinary things. I hope that your heart will be humbled to hear the message that eventually Peter brings under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit to his church and to the sheep of the pastor. May God prepare our hearts to hear it. May you just remember Peter. Every time you hear one of the sermons from 1 and 2 Peter, I hope that you'll remember, well, wait a minute, that's Peter. I thought he was just a fisherman up there in Galilee. What do you mean? Preacher, did he really say that? Yes, he did. By the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, he said that. For what? to feed the sheep, to benefit you as His church today. May God be with you and may God prepare us for this series of sermons. Amen? Amen. Let's pray. Father, we've taken the time to open Peter's life. Lord, we pray that we will be gracious in dealing with Peter For, Lord, if the truth be told in our life was unfolded in the pages of Scripture, Lord, what would it say about us and how we have served the Lord or denied the Lord? Father, in my case, the picture would be grim. But, Father, I thank you for your great mercy in Christ. For we who come to this table today have been brought to the place of denying self. and taking up our cross and following Jesus, whatever that means. Because He knows us all together, for He is the one that has saved us, and only Him, He paid the price that we couldn't pay. He saved us by His grace. We are His. We've been bought with a price. And so, Lord, we come to this table remembering You've got great sacrifice on our behalf in order that we might be redeemed from the heinousness of our sin and, Lord, our own worthiness and our own failure. Lord, we who fail. Lord, we fail into the arms of a merciful Savior who knows all things. Father, thank you for your grace in our life. Continue to lead us. Keep us from sin, Lord. Help us to feed your sheep and to tend your lambs as we ought. Help us to hear the Word of God in 1 and 2 Peter as we preach. Thank you for this time at the table. Nourish us, bless us, refresh us, encourage us, and may you be glorified in our worship. In His name we pray.