When Are We Most Susceptible to Temptation? | Matthew 26:69-70

[00:00:00] Real Truth Daily. This is Daily Truths with Dave Ahlman.

[00:00:07] Hi everybody, welcome back to Daily Truths. We're in Matthew chapter 26 and remember Jesus is on trial in Caiaphas' household, right? And the Sanhedrin are all there and they're meeting in the courtyard and Peter follows him at a distance, doesn't want to be too closely associated with Jesus, comes to the gate, there's a servant girl there that recognizes him.

[00:00:28] Now he's warming his hands in the fire, he's in enemy territory and all of a sudden the servant girl that saw him enter the gate to the courtyard recognizes him and we pick up verse 69.

[00:00:40] Now Peter was sitting outside in the courtyard and a servant girl came up to him and said, you also were with Jesus the Galilean.

[00:00:47] But he denied it before them all saying, I do not know, I don't know what you mean.

[00:00:55] Now, what can we say about this? First of all, this happened when Peter was least expecting it.

[00:01:00] Now Jesus had told him that before the rooster crows that night, he was going to deny him three times.

[00:01:05] And then Peter boldly said, if all these other guys fall away, I never will, right?

[00:01:09] And then Jesus said, it's going to happen, the rooster is going to crow.

[00:01:12] So he really wasn't expecting it to happen.

[00:01:15] Of course, he didn't think it would happen anyway because he made that bold claim, hey, I will never deny you.

[00:01:20] If all these other guys fall away, I never will.

[00:01:22] So he really wasn't expecting to really fall, even though Jesus had predicted it was going to happen.

[00:01:28] And he surely didn't think it was going to happen as he's warming his hands on the fire in the courtyard.

[00:01:33] So this temptation came when he least expected it.

[00:01:38] Secondly, he was most susceptible to that temptation because he's in enemy territory.

[00:01:43] Who's around him? Soldiers, servants of campus and Annas, right?

[00:01:48] All those folks that are antagonistic towards Jesus of Nazareth.

[00:01:52] He's in enemy territory.

[00:01:53] So he least expected it.

[00:01:56] He's in enemy territory.

[00:01:57] And then finally, what does he do?

[00:01:59] He diverts attention off himself and basically changes the subject.

[00:02:05] Right?

[00:02:06] She says, I saw you.

[00:02:08] You were with that Galilean.

[00:02:09] And he says, I don't know what you're talking about.

[00:02:13] How about them Broncos?

[00:02:17] Isn't this what we do?

[00:02:19] We find ourselves most susceptible to temptation when we least expect it, when we're in enemy territory.

[00:02:27] And when it happens and we try to protect ourself, we divert attention off ourself and make excuses for our behavior or try to change a subject.

[00:02:37] That's exactly what Peter did here.

[00:02:40] Right?

[00:02:40] Unfortunately, he was unsuccessful.

[00:02:43] He still had to take ownership for what he did and make it right.

[00:02:47] And that's why at the end of this section, you're going to find out that Peter went out and wept bitterly.

[00:02:52] Why?

[00:02:52] Because Jesus had nailed him.

[00:02:54] Jesus said, this is exactly what's going to happen.

[00:02:56] And he did it.

[00:02:57] And he felt so remorseful, so regretful, so filled with grief and despair over what he had done.

[00:03:03] He went out and wept bitterly.

[00:03:04] And we'll talk a lot more about that here in a few days.

[00:03:07] So let's take this apart.

[00:03:09] When are we most susceptible to temptation?

[00:03:11] When we least expect it.

[00:03:13] We already said this.

[00:03:14] When we're in enemy territory, when we're in places we really shouldn't be.

[00:03:18] And we don't think it's going to happen anyway.

[00:03:20] And when it does, when people accuse us in enemy territory, we divert attention off ourselves, make excuses for our behavior and then try to divert attention off of it by changing the subject.

[00:03:33] And you might be saying, I never do that.

[00:03:39] I shouldn't laugh.

[00:03:41] But we see such humanity in Peter.

[00:03:47] Do we not?

[00:03:48] I mean, this is us.

[00:03:50] This is a picture of us.

[00:03:52] This is what we do.

[00:03:53] Now you think about Peter.

[00:03:54] He's such a dynamic follower of Jesus.

[00:03:57] This is the same guy who said, you're the Christ, the son of the living God.

[00:04:01] I mean, he's made bold professions.

[00:04:04] He's the guy who got out of the boat when Jesus is walking on water and he kept his eyes fixed on Jesus and walked in water as well.

[00:04:10] What a guy.

[00:04:12] But yet, fallible, error prone, mistake driven, promise oriented, breaking those promises, on and on and on.

[00:04:20] We can see so much of ourselves.

[00:04:22] I see so much myself in Peter.

[00:04:25] And so what does God do with all that?

[00:04:28] What what does he do when we think, you know, I'll never fall and we find ourselves in tempting situations surrounded by enemies?

[00:04:38] We're an enemy territory and we make excuses for our behavior and don't take ownership.

[00:04:43] What do we do?

[00:04:44] Here's what we do.

[00:04:46] We repent of it.

[00:04:48] We go boldly before the throne of God saying, God, I messed up.

[00:04:53] I have sinned against you.

[00:04:55] I have broken your commands.

[00:04:56] I have made mistakes in my life that I regret and I'm remorseful and I'm repentant and I give it to you.

[00:05:03] And God says, too bad.

[00:05:05] How sad.

[00:05:06] You're dead.

[00:05:07] No.

[00:05:09] Our Heavenly Father picks us up, embraces us in a spiritual way and says, you belong to me.

[00:05:16] My son died for you.

[00:05:18] You're still my child.

[00:05:20] You're an heir of the kingdom.

[00:05:21] Your sins are forgiven.

[00:05:26] Hmm.

[00:05:27] Peter needed to hear that that night.

[00:05:29] Of course, Jesus couldn't do that.

[00:05:31] He couldn't convey that because he was a little preoccupied.

[00:05:36] But later, later, Jesus gave him a great word of encouragement and love and forgiveness and acceptance.

[00:05:45] Remember that Peter was the first one that Jesus met after he was raised from the dead.

[00:05:50] That first Corinthians 15 tells us that.

[00:05:53] And so what did Jesus say?

[00:05:55] I'm sure it was a word of love and acceptance and pardon and grace.

[00:05:58] Right.

[00:05:59] And that love and acceptance and pardon and grace is for you today when you've fallen just like Peter.

[00:06:07] So don't despair, my friend.

[00:06:09] When you find yourself being tempted and falling, when you least expected it in enemy territory and you diverted attention off yourself and tried to change the subject, God knows it all.

[00:06:21] He sees it all.

[00:06:23] He sees it all.

[00:06:23] And yet he loves you and accepts you as his own as you come to him with a repentant heart and a trusting attitude.

[00:06:31] And may you come to the Lord when you fall and you will fall when you when you fall.

[00:06:36] May you come to the Lord with a repentant heart and a trusting attitude that says, I love you, God.

[00:06:42] I believe in your son.

[00:06:44] Thank you for your forgiveness.

[00:06:46] And that is today's daily truth.

[00:06:48] Have a great day in the Lord Jesus Christ.

[00:06:51] Thank you for tuning in to Daily Truths with Dave Allman.

[00:06:54] Pastor Dave Allman is the pastor of Mount Hope Church in Boulder, Colorado.

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