SESSION 5 REDEEMED FROM DEVASTATING FAILURE What s one of your favorite comeback stories? QUESTION #1 #BSFLbeauty BIBLE STUDIES FOR LIFE 99
THE POINT God can redeem us from even our worst failures. THE BIBLE MEETS LIFE I ve thought a lot about failure in recent years. The topic has felt very personal for me lately. My mom died suddenly in 2010. Just 18 months later, my dad also drew near to death. He d been sick for years, but now the end had finally come. He was taken to a hospice home, and I stayed with him constantly except for a critical few hours. Thinking he would live a few more days, I slipped out of his room while he was sleeping in order to attend a banquet. He died while I was gone. I wanted to be with him when he breathed his last but I wasn t. I regret my decision to leave, but there s not a single thing I can do to change it. We all struggle with failure. Thankfully, Peter s life shows us that we re not doomed to live in the regret of our failures. 100 SESSION 5
WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY? Luke 22:54-62; Acts 4:8-13 Luke 22:54 They seized Him, led Him away, and brought Him into the high priest s house. Meanwhile Peter was following at a distance. 55 They lit a fire in the middle of the courtyard and sat down together, and Peter sat among them. 56 When a servant saw him sitting in the firelight, and looked closely at him, she said, This man was with Him too. 57 But he denied it: Woman, I don t know Him! 58 After a little while, someone else saw him and said, You re one of them too! Man, I am not! Peter said. 59 About an hour later, another kept insisting, This man was certainly with Him, since he s also a Galilean. 60 But Peter said, Man, I don t know what you re talking about! Immediately, while he was still speaking, a rooster crowed. 61 Then the Lord turned and looked at Peter. So Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how He had said to him, Before the rooster crows today, you will deny Me three times. 62 And he went outside and wept bitterly. Acts 4:8 Then Peter was filled with the Holy Spirit and said to them, Rulers of the people and elders: 9 If we are being examined today about a good deed done to a disabled man by what means he was healed 10 let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene whom you crucified and whom God raised from the dead by Him this man is standing here before you healthy. 11 This Jesus is the stone rejected by you builders, which has become the cornerstone. 12 There is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to people, and we must be saved by it. 13 When they observed the boldness of Peter and John and realized that they were uneducated and untrained men, they were amazed and recognized that they had been with Jesus. Galilean (Luke 22:59) Galilee was a region in the northern part of Israel. Jesus was from Nazareth and Peter from Bethsaida, both towns in Galilee. Nazarene (Acts 4:10) A term referencing Nazareth, the hometown of Jesus; Nazareth was located in the region of lower Galilee about halfway between the Mediterranean Sea and the Sea of Galilee. Cornerstone (Acts 4:11) The Greek words translated cornerstone are literally head of a corner and can refer to the first stone or to the final stone in a building project. BIBLE STUDIES FOR LIFE 101
THE POINT God can redeem us from even our worst failures. Luke 22:54-62 How do you typically respond when you feel like you ve let someone down? QUESTION #2 What are some ways we deny Jesus today? QUESTION #3 When Jesus began His ministry, He handpicked His team of disciples. Peter, also known as Simon, quickly became a leader and spokesman for that group. Peter was a rough-and-tough, blue-collar worker from Galilee. Over time, he became convinced Jesus was the longawaited Messiah, the Son of God (see Matt. 16:16). Still, along with the other disciples, Peter remained confused over what that really meant. He wanted Jesus to be a military Messiah who smashed the Romans and restored the nation of Israel. When Jesus predicted that His followers would abandon Him, Peter was quick to speak up. He brashly declared that even if everyone else abandoned Jesus, he would boldly stand his ground. He would even die for Jesus (see Mark 14:27-31). Sadly, bold and brash Peter soon ate those words. When Jesus was arrested a few hours later, Peter saw Him in a different light. Jesus, the Messiah who had been so brilliant and articulate when challenged, now stood silent before His accusers. Perhaps in that moment, Peter saw his own aspirations of earthly prominence and power vaporize like a mist. Everything was happening so quickly, and Peter was surely both confused and fearful. The man who had quickly drawn a sword earlier in defense of Jesus now cowered in front of civilians. Rough and tough Peter denied even knowing Jesus not once, not twice, but three times. When the rooster crowed, Peter remembered Jesus words. Immediately the remorse kicked in. Peter wept bitterly, knowing himself to be a failure. I once sat with a friend who had struggled with sexual sin since adolescence. Addiction to pornography and an affair eventually led to a lost marriage, a lost job, and for a season, a lost relationship with his kids. His eyes reflected utter hopelessness as he asked me, Clayton, is there any hope for me at all? I m a complete failure. Fortunately, the answer is yes hope for my friend, hope for Peter, and hope for all of us. 102 SESSION 5
HOPE AFTER FAILURE Listen to the song This Is Now, by Casting Crowns. The lyrics describe Peter s thoughts after denying Jesus. Use the space below to record any thoughts and emotions you experience as you listen and reflect on Peter s failure. What helps you find hope when you reflect on your own failures? BIBLE STUDIES FOR LIFE 103
THE POINT God can redeem us from even our worst failures. Acts 4:8-12 In Acts 4, we see a completely different Peter. What changed? He was restored. After His resurrection, Jesus spent 40 days with His followers (see Acts 1:3). During that time, He talked with Peter along the shore of the Sea of Tiberias and called on him to express his love for Him by feeding His sheep (see John 21:1-19). Peter had failed three times, and three times Jesus called him right back to serve God. He was empowered. Jesus didn t leave Peter to serve alone. To all believers, He has given His Holy Spirit. The very Spirit of God was now living in Peter, empowering Him to feed the sheep and proclaim Christ. We clearly see Peter s transformation from failure in Acts 4. Peter was filled with the Holy Spirit (v. 8) and now spoke boldly about Jesus to the same powerful religious leaders who had sought Jesus death! When asked how he and John had healed a lame man (v. 7), Peter could have simply said, God did it. But Peter wanted them to know exactly how God did it and he held nothing back. How does the presence of the Holy Spirit transform our failures and empower our witness? QUESTION #4 Far removed from his failures, Peter boldly proclaimed the truth about Jesus: There is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to people, and we must be saved by it (v. 12). If Jesus can take a broken man like Peter and empower him for ministry as a witness of the gospel, He can do the same thing with you. Failure happens, but God also offers you forgiveness when you fail. When you re willing to repent and receive the grace of God, you will watch Him transform your hardest moment into your greatest testimony. A story of failure can also be a story of God s forgiveness, grace, and power. God can redeem our failures. 104 SESSION 5
How can we support one another in moving past our failures? QUESTION #5 Acts 4:13 The religious leaders had summoned Peter and John because of a healed beggar. Once they heard Peter s powerful words, however, they were forced to notice three important truths about the disciples standing in front of them: 1) they were bold, 2) they were untrained and uneducated (by the religious leaders definition), and 3) they had been with Jesus. If these men knew anything about Peter, they would have realized the healed beggar wasn t the only miracle standing before them. Peter had been with Jesus, and Jesus had made a difference in his life. Imagine what it might have been like for Peter to talk about denying Jesus. Think of his voice changing to joy as he told how Jesus lovingly restored him on the shore of Galilee and called him to a life of ministry, mission, and witness. Did Peter cry when he told how Jesus forgave him after his failure? Did he shout for joy at the grace he d received? Either way, his failure was a part of his story. You also have a story, that of your own encounter with Jesus Christ. Your life is unique to you, and it contains unexpected turns, failures, defeats, and regrets. God will use the specific elements of your story to touch people s hearts and point to the grace and power of Christ in your life. Your failures can lead you to greater faith when you experience the forgiveness of Jesus. So tell your story all of it and let the Holy Spirit use your witness to bring others into the kingdom of God. JOY BIBLE STUDIES FOR LIFE 105
THE POINT God can redeem us from even our worst failures. LIVE IT OUT What steps can you take to continue the process of allowing God to redeem your failures? Consider these suggestions: Repent. Are you currently failing in an area in your life? Don t hide from it. Face your failure and be honest about it. Then repent and turn to Christ for forgiveness. Encourage. Write a note or give a call to someone struggling with failure. Talk about how God forgives us completely and desires to use us in spite of our failures. Share. Write down your story, including both your failures and your salvation in Christ. Tell your story in a way that does not glorify your failure but lifts up Jesus. Then take the important step of sharing your story with others. I can t go back and redo my failure at my father s deathbed. You can t go back and change any of your failures, either. Yet all of us can choose to move forward in the wonderful knowledge that God can and will redeem even our worst failures. My thoughts 106 SESSION 5