By Pastor John Mateos Ong
Everybody fails every now and then. You are not here to just keep on sinning but you should make the most of your failures because it is inevitable.
Warning & Assurance
Luke 22:31-34 says, ”“Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift all of you as wheat. But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers.” But he replied, “Lord, I am ready to go with you to prison and to death.” Jesus answered, “I tell you, Peter, before the rooster crows today, you will deny three times that you know me.” Jesus warned Peter beforehand that he was going to fail because He already knew. Satan has already asked for permission to sift believers like flour. So Jesus already knew that Peter was going to turn his back on Him. But Peter was very confident in saying that that will not happen to him.
Failure
Luke 22:54-62 says, ”Then seizing him, they led him away and took him into the house of the high priest. Peter followed at a distance. And when some there had kindled a fire in the middle of the courtyard and had sat down together, Peter sat down with them. A servant girl saw him seated there in the firelight. She looked closely at him and said, “This man was with him.” But he denied it. “Woman, I don’t know him,” he said. ”A little later someone else saw him and said, “You also are one of them.” “Man, I am not!” Peter replied. About an hour later another asserted, “Certainly this fellow was with him, for he is a Galilean.” Peter replied, “Man, I don’t know what you’re talking about!” Just as he was speaking, the rooster crowed. The Lord turned and looked straight at Peter. Then Peter remembered the word the Lord had spoken to him: “Before the rooster crows today, you will disown me three times.” And he went outside and wept bitterly.“ Men do not want other people that they are weak. They tell stories of all their triumphs but they do not want others to see their failures. But the Lord wants to bless you but He wants to bless the real you.
Restoration
John 21:15-17 says, ”When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?” “Yes, Lord,” he said, “you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Feed my lambs.” Again Jesus said, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” He answered, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Take care of my sheep.” The third time he said to him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, “Do you love me?” He said, “Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Feed my sheep.“ Because Peter repented of his wrongdoing, he was restored to His Lord. Jesus asked Him three times if Peter loved Him, one for each time he denied Him. When Peter answered “yes,” Jesus recommissioned him, asking him to take care of His followers instead. But people are not like Jesus. They like to condemn and judge instead of restoring them to their rightful place. Just like Peter, God wants to restore and commission you too! You probably ask yourself why God allows you to fail.
What is the purpose of failure?
Failure teaches - John 14:8; when you learn from your failures and from the failures of others; Many products nowadays is the product of many failures; Warren Buffet once said, “It is good to learn from your mistakes but it is better to learn from the mistakes of others.” Hebrews 12:11 says, ”No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.“ How many times does a baby need to fall in order for him to learn to walk? Many times. But each wrong step and fall makes him stronger.
Failure reveals & refines - 1 Peter 1:6-7 says, ”In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.“ When you fail, your weaknesses are revealed. And those revelations become like refining fire. When gold goes through fire, all its impurities melt away until it becomes pure gold. It is painful to go through refinement, but all in all, it makes you a better person. Thank the people who give you judgements in love. If you always hide your failures, it is like going to the doctor and telling him you are feeling fine. Get real with your failures and be repentant so you can be better. James 1:3-4 says, ”For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.” You need to fail in order for you to become better.
Failures wakes us up - Romans 13:11-12 says, ”And do this, understanding the present time: The hour has already come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. The night is nearly over; the day is almost here. So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light.“ Every time you fail, it keeps you on your toes. If you just keep winning in life, you become over-confident and you take things for granted.
What do I need to adjust?
Body - you need to discipline your body; be intentional in the adjustments you are going to make
1 Corinthians 9:27 says, ”No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.“
Soul (has 3 parts)
1.Heart - renew
Proverbs 4:23 says, ”Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.“
2. Mind - guard
We demolish arguments and very pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God; and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.
How can you have the knowledge of God if you do not read the Bible? The Bible has all the truths that you need. Everything that is contrary to it is not true. The mind is very powerful Believe in what the Bible says and change your mind. This is easier said than done. It is not actually easy to change the mind because it is a battlefield. Good and evil battle in the mind. But the spirit is also there, telling you to do what is right.
Galatians 5:17 says, ”For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever you want.“
3. Will - align
Romans 12:2 says, ”Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.“ You need to read the Bible so that you will know what God’s will is for you. If not, everything will be all about you.
Spirit - united with God
1 Corinthians 6:17 says, ”But whoever is united with the Lord is one with him in spirit.“ Sometimes, believers are not really believers. They just did it in their mind. Not everybody in church is assured of going to heaven. The important thing is to be united with Jesus.
At one point in time, you were born in your sinful nature. After some time, someone probably shared the gospel to you and you believed in Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior. When this happened, you were saved and sealed. After you were born again, the sanctification process begins. Failures still take place and you still make mistakes. Eventually, you will die and you will wait in Abraham’s bosom. When Christ’s returns, everybody will go to heaven eternally.
Nobody knows which will go first, your physical death or the return of Christ. Ephesians 1:13 says, “In Him also when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation and believed in Him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit.”
Your spirit is sealed with the Holy Spirit. The seal is for your protection. Only the owner or a person in authority, can put a seal on you. When you believed Jesus, He placed a seal on you because you are a child of God. The seal is a promise, a downpayment. Someday, the seal will be broken.
When the change that happens to a person is fromthe outside, it is just an external change. But if the change is internal, from a new spirit, eventually, your whole being will be changed. Nobody needs to tell you what is right or wrong. The Holy Spirit will tell you what to do.