“Satan Has Asked for You” #2408

31 And the Lord said, “Simon, Simon! Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat. 32 But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren.” 33 But he said to Him, “Lord, I am ready to go with You, both to prison and to death.” 34 Then He said, “I tell you, Peter, the rooster shall not crow this day before you will deny three times that you know Me” (Luke 22:31–34, NKJV).

Satan wanted to destroy Peter. As wheat is separated from the chaff, Satan wanted to shake Peter to the core and separate him from his faith (v. 31-32). Jesus interceded in prayer for Peter and encouraged him to strengthen his brethren once he returned to the Lord (v. 32). Impetuous Peter did not perceive his precarious position, self-confidently proclaiming he was ready to follow Jesus to prison and death (v. 33). But Jesus knew the extent of Peter’s approaching denials. Still, He received Peter back when godly sorrow led him to repent (Luke 22:60-62; John 21:15-19). Consider these few lessons from today’s passage. (1) Like Peter, Satan wants to devour our souls (1 Pet. 5:8). But we can withstand him in the faith (1 Pet. 5:9). (2) Jesus lives to make intercession for us (Rom. 8:34; Heb. 4:14-16; 7:25; 1 John 2:1). When our faith falters and fails we draw near to God through Jesus, not Mary or anyone else. (3) We must humble ourselves before God to resist the devil (James 4:6-10). Otherwise, pride will be our undoing (1 Cor. 10:12-13). (4) Falling into sin only means failure when we refuse to return to the Lord (1 John 1:8-9). Fellow Christian, do not let your sin overwhelm you. Repent and pray, returning to the Lord (Acts 8:20-24). (5) Jesus knows us better than we know ourselves. Trust Him and follow His word to be protected against Satan (Eph. 6:10-17).

Trust the Lord, not Yourself #1763

31 And the Lord said, “Simon, Simon! Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat. 32 But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren.” 33 But he said to Him, “Lord, I am ready to go with You, both to prison and to death.” 34 Then He said, “I tell you, Peter, the rooster shall not crow this day before you will deny three times that you know Me.” (Luke 22:31–34, NKJV)

Peter had faith in Jesus, but overconfidence in himself led to compromise and sin. As Jesus said, Peter’s repetitive denial of Jesus left him weeping bitterly (Lk. 22:54-62). But, that was not the end of the story. Peter did not remain in the depth of despair. Jesus’ prayer for Peter was answered. He returned to the Lord, strengthened his brethren, and powerfully preaching the gospel. Peter continues to be an important example for Christians. Like him, we are tempted to be overconfident in ourselves instead of humbly trusting Christ to guide our decisions and actions through His word. Loudly proclaiming we would never forsake the Lord can set us up for failure. “Let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall” continues to warn us (1 Cor. 10:12). By submitting to Christ’s word and humbling ourselves in His sight, we are prompted to mourn our sins, cleanse our conduct, and purify our hearts. By doing so, we trust the Lord will lift us up (Jas. 4:7-10). Then, with His help, we can humbly resist the temptation to lift up ourselves in our own eyes.