Well, hey everybody, I'm Adam Schell, the pastor of Albert Heitzen. Welcome to our sermon podcast. And I just want to start out by thanking you for spending part of your day with us. And if you're blessed during our time together today, let me invite you to come and worship with us live on Sunday mornings at 10.30am Eastern time.
You can worship with us live on our church website at mhbcleuoval.com slash live. Or if you're in the Louisville, Kentucky area, we would love to have you come and join us in person. With that, let's get right into this episode, sermon. Mention to the beginning of the service that today is Palm Sunday.
So today is usually a day where we talk about Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem, for what happens on Good Friday. And when he dies on the cross. But we're going to spend this Palm Sunday a little differently than we usually do. That's because over the last few weeks we've been working our way through a series of sermons called Crossroads.
And in this series we've talked about different encounters that people have with Jesus during Jesus' time on this earth. And we've seen that whenever these people have met Jesus, it has brought them to a Crossroads moment in their life. A moment where they had to make an important decision about who Jesus is and how they were going to respond to him. And throughout the series we've seen that when people had came to these Crossroads moments, where they had to make these important choices, that they made a lot of good decisions.
We saw the man, how the man who was blind from birth, decided that he was going to trust Jesus in spite of suffering. We saw how the woman at the well decided that she was going to see herself the way that Jesus sees her, instead of the way that everyone else did. Last week we saw the way that Martha was willing to allow the stone to be rolled away, even though she was still afraid of being disappointed. And each week, as we've heard a different story about how people responded in these good ways, making the right decision when they came to these Crossroads moments in their life, it's become easier and easier for us to feel like whenever we reach our Crossroads in our life, or in our relationship with God, that we're always going to choose the right path.
We're always going to go in the correct direction. But there's something important about Crossroads that we haven't really talked about yet in this series. And that's that at a Crossroads, there is more than one direction you can go. At a Crossroads, there is more than one direction that you can go.
And if we're being honest with ourselves, then all of us can admit that when we have come to some different Crossroads in our lives, we haven't always made the right choice. There may have been a time when you came to a Crossroads in your life where you needed to stand up for something that was right, but you decided to say silent instead. There may be a moment in your life where you came to a Crossroads where you needed to be honest, but you decided to lie instead. There may have been a moment in your life where you came to a Crossroads where you needed to trust God, but you decided to trust yourself instead.
So what do we do when we've come to these Crossroads in our lives and we made bad decisions? What do we do when we have already blown it at these Crossroads? Because it's bad enough to make a bad decision when you reach these Crossroads in your life. But what makes it even worse is that when you go in the wrong direction, it can be really hard to get back to where you're supposed to be.
So what do we do when we make the wrong choice? What do we do when we've gone in the wrong direction? What do we do when it feels like we can't get back to the place where we're supposed to be? Well, that's what we're going to be talking about today.
Today we're going to be talking about somebody who makes the wrong choice when they come to a Crossroads moment in their life. And we find this story in Matthew 26. So you've got a Bible close by or a Bible app on your phone. I encourage you to go ahead and open it to Matthew 26.
As you're finding, let me just point out to you that in this chapter in the book of Matthew, you're going to be able to read a lot about what happens the night before Jesus is crucified. But today I want us to really pay attention to one person who is in this story pretty much throughout it. The person I want to pay attention to is Peter. We all know Peter.
Peter is one of the first people that Jesus called to follow him and became one of Jesus's first disciples. Peter is also the one disciple who was willing to climb over the side of the boat and try to walk to Jesus when Jesus was walking on the water out to his disciples. And Peter is the one, the very first one to confess the most basic confession of our faith that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God. So throughout his life, Peter faced many important Crossroads.
And we can already see that when he came to most of these Crossroads, Peter made the right decision. But that's not what's going to happen in Matthew 26. But before we talk about exactly what happens in Matthew 26, there's a little bit more that we need to understand so that we can appreciate the choice that Peter has to make. And like I told you in this chapter, we read a lot about what happened the night before Jesus was crucified.
So we need to remember that in this chapter, Jesus has been arrested. He has been led to the home of the chief priest in Israel where he is going to stand trial. And Peter is kind of following along all the way. And Peter ends up hiding out in the courtyard outside of the high priest's home so that he can see what's happening.
And this is where I want us to pick up in this story today. So let's take a look at Matthew 26 together where to start reading in verse 69. This is what Matthew writes. Meanwhile, Peter was sitting outside of the courtyard.
The servant woman came and said to him, You are also with Jesus the Galilean. So in this verse, he says to Peter, you were with Jesus. And a couple of verses later, verse 71, Matthew tells us, when he went over to the gate, another woman saw him and said to those who were there, this man was with Jesus, the man from Nazareth. And then a few verses later, verse 73, Matthew tells us, a short time later, those standing there came and said to Peter, you must be one of them, the way you talk gives you away.
So three different times people come to Peter and they say basically the same thing to him. You're one of Jesus's followers. You are with Jesus. You're one of them.
And this is what brings Peter to his crossroads. Peter has to decide how he is going to respond when people ask him if he was with Jesus. And Peter can decide he can make the choice that he is going to be honest and say that he is one of Jesus's followers. Or he can choose to lie and deny that he knows Jesus at all.
And most of us, when we read that story of the story, we think it would be an easy choice to make. We say for sure, if we were in Peter's shoes, we would choose to be honest to say that we were one of Jesus's followers. But you have to remember what else had already taken place that night. That night Jesus had been arrested and he was being put on trial by people who wanted to see him dead.
So if Peter was honest and said that he was one of Jesus's followers, he would have put his own life in real danger. Because if these people were willing to arrest Jesus, what was going to stop them from arresting one of Jesus's followers? And if these people wanted Jesus dead, what was to stop them from killing one of Jesus's followers too? So that night, the crossroads that Peter faced wasn't so much if he was going to be honest or if he was going to lie.
The crossroads he faced that night is if he was going to protect himself or if he was going to continue to stand with Jesus. And the interesting thing about the story is a little bit earlier on in Matthew 26, when Jesus comes to the disciples and he tells the disciples that something is about to happen that is going to cause all of them to abandon him. Peter speaks up and Peter says exactly what he is going to do if he ever finds himself in this situation. He never finds himself in a crossroads where he has to stand up for Jesus or not.
So let me show you what Peter had to say. We've got to go back a little bit earlier in Matthew 26, verse 33, where Matthew tells us this, Matthew writes, Peter replied, if everyone else stumbles because of you, I'll never stumble. Jesus said to him, I assure you that before the rooster crows tonight, you will deny me three times. But Peter said, even if I must die alongside you, I won't deny you.
And all the disciples said the same thing. So a few hours before Peter is going to face this crossroads, he has already made up his mind. He has made his decision. He knows what choice he is going to make.
Peter says that he is going to stand with Jesus no matter what else happens, even if it means he is going to die. Well, that's not exactly what Peter does when he actually comes to this crossroads. So let me show you what Peter really does. Let's go back to verse 69 and read the whole story here.
In verse 69, Matthew writes this, he says, meanwhile, Peter was sitting outside in the courtyard. And a servant woman came and said to him, you were also with Jesus the Galilean. But he denied it in front of all of them saying, I don't know what you're talking about. When he went over to the gate, another woman said to him, I saw him and said to those who were there, this man was with Jesus, the man from Nazareth.
But what they saw him pledge, he denied it again saying, I don't know the man. And a short time later, though, standing there came and said to Peter, you must be one of them the way you talk gives you away. But then he cursed and swore, I don't know the man. But that very moment, the rooster crowed.
Peter remembered Jesus's words. Before the rooster crowed, you will deny me three times. And Peter went out and cried uncontrollably. Earlier that night, Peter had said that he was going to stand by Jesus no matter what.
But even though he said he was going to stand by Jesus no matter what, earlier that evening, when he came to that crossroads, Peter denied knowing Jesus. And he did it three separate times. And if you're paying attention to the story, you may have also picked up on the fact that each time somebody approaches him and asks him, if he knows Jesus, his denial gets stronger. He starts out at the very beginning by saying, I don't know what you're talking about.
The first time somebody asks him if he knows Jesus. The second time somebody asks, we're told that he swears an oath that he doesn't know Jesus. And the final time, the third time that he's approached and asked about it, Matthew tells us that Peter cursed at them and swore up and down he does not know Jesus. And that's the moment in the story when the rooster crows.
And Peter remembers what Jesus had said a few hours earlier. Before the rooster crows tonight, he will deny me three times. Can't imagine what Peter was experiencing in that moment when that rooster crows. He must have felt like in that moment that his story was finished because he had denied knowing Jesus when Jesus needed him the most.
So there's no wonder the Matthew tells us that he went out from that courtyard crying uncontrollably. Because the truth is, this should have been where Peter's story came to an end. Because in this moment, Peter doesn't just make a bad decision. He doesn't just go the wrong direction at this crossroads.
When Peter denies Jesus, it feels like he hits a dead end in his relationship with Jesus. A relationship that had begun three years earlier. So Peter had been following Jesus for the last three years. He had watched as Jesus had performed miracles where he had healed the sick and even raised the dead.
Peter was there and he saw it when Jesus was transfigured on top of a mountain. Peter was the first one to confess that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God. For those three years of following Jesus were wiped away with three sentences. Because when Jesus needed Peter to be there for him, Peter turned his back on him and Peter knew it.
Peter knew that he had denied knowing Jesus instead of standing up for him. That's why he goes out and cries uncontrollably. And what makes it worse is a few hours later, Jesus is killed. And when Peter hears that Jesus died on that cross and was now buried in a borrowed grave, he realized that not only did he deny knowing Jesus, but he was asked about it, not only did he turn his back on Jesus when Jesus needed him the most, but now Peter knew he would never be able to apologize for it.
He would never be able to try to take it back or try to make things right. So after he denied Jesus and found out that Jesus was dead, Peter had to have realized that relationship that had meant so much to him for the last three years was over. So what does Peter do next? Well, the Gospel of John tells us in John 21 verse 3, we're told, Simon Peter told them, I'm going fishing.
So after Peter denies knowing Jesus, after he faces his crossroads and goes in the wrong direction, what does Peter do next? He goes fishing. He goes back to doing what he was doing before Jesus showed up on the seashore and called Peter to come and follow him. And honestly, what else was there for Peter to do?
Jesus was dead and Peter had failed him. So there was no other place for Peter to go than back to where everything had started. And as Peter was pulling those old nets out and loading them back up onto his boat, he had to have felt like it was all over. The last three years that he had spent, not just following Jesus, but being friends with Jesus, was done.
So now the only place left for him to go was back out on the water. But this is when something happens that Peter never could have expected. So this is jumping ahead a week in the story to Easter Sunday, but Jesus rises from the dead. And after the resurrection, Jesus goes looking for Peter.
The gospel of John tells us that Peter, that Jesus is going to find Peter while Peter is out. Fishing. And once Peter comes back in from fishing, the gospel of John tells us about a conversation that Jesus has with Peter. So this is what John tells us, happens in verse 15.
John writes this, he says, when they finish eating Jesus' ass, Simon Peter. Simon, Simon John, do you love me more than these? And Simon replied, Yes, Lord, you know I love you. Jesus said to him, feed my lambs.
And Jesus asked the second time, Simon, son of John, do you love me? Simon replied, yes, Lord, you know I love you. And Jesus said to him, take care of my sheep. And he asked the third time, Simon, son of John, do you love me?
Peter was sad that Jesus had asked him a third time. Do you love me? He replied, Lord, you know everything. You know I love you.
And Jesus said to him, feed my sheep. So when Jesus has a chance to talk with Peter after the resurrection, Jesus asks Peter, do you love me? And he asked him that question three separate times. But when he asks Peter, do you love me?
And Peter responds by saying, you know that I love you. Jesus then goes on to give him a job to do. Jesus tells him to feed my lambs, to take care of my sheep, to feed my sheep. Do you see what's happening in this passage in the Gospel of John?
On the night that Jesus was crucified, Peter stood at a crossroads where he made the wrong decision three different times. But here Jesus shows up and he gives Peter the chance to get back on the right path again. Yes, Peter, do you love me? And Peter responds saying, yes, I love you.
And in that moment, Jesus doesn't simply offer Peter forgiveness. Jesus gives him work to do. He invites him back into the relationship, restoring what was broken. And he tells him to take care of my sheep, to watch over and feed my flock.
So Jesus is basically saying to Peter here, I know what you did tonight before I was crucified. I know that when you stood at this crossroads, you made the wrong decision. But I'm not done with you yet. If you love me, I want you to continue to follow me and do the work that I have called you to do.
This is a moment that all of us need to hear about, because it's a moment that all of us can relate to in some way, shape, or form. We all know that there have been times when we have stood at crossroads in our lives and we have made the wrong choice. And we felt like when we made the wrong choice, it ruined everything for us. But this story tells us something different.
Because, yes, in Peter's mind, he felt like after he denied Jesus three times, it had brought him to a dead end in his relationship with Jesus, that he could never come back from. But what happens in John 23 shows us that Peter didn't reach a dead end in his relationship with God. Because his worst choices were not going to get the final word in Peter's story. Jesus was going to get the final word in Peter's story.
And that may be a message that you need to hear right now, because you feel like you have hit that dead end, that you cannot come back from. So you might need to hear, you need to know that you haven't reached that dead end. Because God's love for you is greater than your worst choices. That's something that all of us need to hear.
We need to know. We need to remember God's love for us is greater than our worst choices. And we see that. We see this happen when Jesus meets Peter on the beach.
Because when Jesus starts talking with Peter, Jesus doesn't pretend like Peter didn't do anything wrong. He doesn't pretend like Peter didn't deny him. No, Jesus confronts Peter. After Peter denied knowing Jesus three times, Jesus asks Peter three times, and Peter still loves him.
And this gives Peter three different chances to get back on the right path. And Jesus still does the same thing for all of us. When you've gone down the wrong path, Jesus comes looking for you. But he's not looking for you because he wants to shame you.
He's not looking for you because he wants you to relive some of the worst moments on your life. Jesus comes looking for you to ask you the same question he asked Peter. Do you love me? And if your answer is yes, then there's still road ahead in your relationship with him.
And that's what the series has been about from the very beginning. It's been about crossroads. It's been about those moments when we have to make important decisions about who Jesus is and how we're going to respond to him. And when we come to these crossroads, sometimes we make the right choice.
But sometimes we don't. But that doesn't mean that God walks away from us. Whether we go down the right path or down a different path, Jesus is always going to meet us wherever we are. And he is going to call us forward and find ways to continue to follow him, even if sometimes we've got to make a few U-turns to get back to where we need to be.
So wherever you are in your relationship with God today, he's asking you that same question Jesus asked Peter. Do you love me? And if your answer to that question is yes, Jesus will always help you find your way back in the right direction. Let's pray together.
God, as we come to you in this word of prayer, you know that there are times when all of us have faced crossroads in our lives where we have made the wrong choices. There have been times when we needed to stand up, but instead we stayed seated. There have been times when we needed to speak out, but instead we stayed silent. There have been times when we needed to be honest, but shows to lie.
There have been times when we needed to trust you, but instead we decided to trust ourselves. And God, sometimes when we make these decisions, and they lead us down the wrong path that can feel like we come to a dead end in our relationship with you. But Peter's story shows us something different. Because no matter what bad decisions we've made, your love for us is greater than they are.
You will always love us more than our worst choices, our worst decisions, our worst behaviors. So God help us. Help us to remember that you don't give up on us, that you always walk beside us and that you are always asking us the same question Jesus asked Peter. Do you love me?
And God let us all be able to answer that question with a resounding yes, knowing that if we love you, there's still work for us to do, still a path for us to follow, still a greater relationship for us to have with you. And pray all this in Jesus name. Amen. You can also worship with us in person.
And that's going to do it for this episode of our sermon podcast. But I want to invite you to come back and join us again when our next episode drops next week. But until then, I'll be praying for you. I hope that you have a great week and we'll see you back here soon for another sermon podcast.