We Are Bearing Witness

Bryan Chapell: until God himself would call us home. We are immortal beings. No one can thwart the purposes of God in our lives until he himself has chosen. And what that means is we can leave everything on the table that God is calling for our all. And and it may require sacrifice. It may require difficulty. But the God of all creation is the one calling. And therefore we can give our all to him.
Guest (Male): So glad you joined us for today's Unlimited Grace, the audio broadcast ministry of pastor and author Brian Chapell. In today's episode, pastor Brian shares a lesson from John 21. In this final message from the series Trusting Jesus, Dr. Chapell points to the redemption and commissioning of Peter even after he had denied Jesus only days earlier. You can find this lesson and many others when you visit unlimitedgrace.com. And while you're there, look for pastor Brian's book The Multi-Generational Church Crisis. This compelling book asks the question of the church, what could be accomplished in the name of Christ if we could better understand each other? Let's hear now from Dr. Brian Chapell as he shares the lesson we are bearing witness.
Bryan Chapell: In France in World War I, to entertain the troops, Gene Tunney, a prize fighter from the United States, did various exhibition bouts and ended up breaking both his hands. As the doctors examined him, as his manager talked to him later, they said, you'll have to give up fighting forever. With two broken hands, the fact that you have been a power puncher, as a fighter, means that now your hands will be brittle and you can never fight again. You must leave the sport. You must do something different. Tunney did not want to listen to that. And so he changed his style entirely. The one who had been the great power puncher instead became a scientific boxer, learning to weave and to jab and letting his technique take over so that ultimately he got a chance at the world championship fighting a mountain of a man known as Jack Dempsey. It was, even to this day, the most attended boxing match in American history, long before TV, long before events such as we can host them, over 100,000 people showing up to watch Tunney and Dempsey fight. It was an amazing fight. And some of you may know the outcome, despite the infamous long count. Tunney won the fight. And people said that in itself was a miracle because Dempsey, even to this day, is looked at as perhaps the most powerful puncher of all time. If Tunney had simply stood in the ring and tried to exchange punches with Dempsey, he would have surely lost. Dempsey was simply too powerful. Instead, it was the technique. It was the science of boxing that won the day for Tunney. And later, when he was interviewed, he was asked, how did you win? His response, if my hands had not been broken, I could not have won. If I had not been broken, I could not have achieved. It's not so far from the gospel that we recognize that unless we have been broken, we cannot be in God's hands what he intends for us to achieve. It's not a message I think that we particularly are ready or inclined to speak this time of year. We want to commend smarts and savvy and ability. As I think about my own children, I think what what do I want for them? I I want success and I want ease and I want accomplishment. I I I instinctively don't add brokenness to my list of the first things that I want for them. So why is it so high on God's list that brokenness is necessary to be an instrument of the glory of Jesus in the hands of God? Perhaps we see as we examine this last section of the last chapter of the last apostle and see how brokenness becomes an instrument in the hands of God. The brokenness is first revealed in the questions of Jesus. You know verse 15, when they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these? The likely source of the question is Peter's own statements at the last supper. Do you remember at that last supper before his crucifixion, Jesus actually said to his disciples, you will all leave me. And Simon Peter said, not I, Lord. Though everyone else abandon you, I will not leave you. Translation, I love you more than they. And now Jesus, after the resurrection, says to Peter, Peter, do you love me more than these? And Peter is ready with the answer. Yes, Lord. You know I do. Did he speak too fast? Was it too unthinking? Was it too flippant? For whatever reason, the Lord asked again. Peter, do you love me? What must be going through Peter's mind now? Did he not hear me? Did I mumble? Is he not accepting what I'm saying? After all, I have just said, Lord, you know. The one I have declared to be my Lord, king, creator of the universe, he's asking me again, do I love him? And I know that he knows. What why is he asking me again? Could he possibly be thinking of how I have failed him in the past? And so we don't know the the way in which Peter answers. We don't have the rhythm of it. We don't have the volume of it. But surely he's a bit more considered this time. Yes, Lord. You know I love you. And then to his horror, Jesus asked again. Simon, son of John, do you love me? He uses his full name. That can't be good. It's like when your mom, you know, John Franklin Mcpherson, you know, you whatever comes next is not going to be good. But it's it is not good, we know, because we get the first commentary from John as he now says what's going on inside of Peter. Remember verse 17? He said to him the third time, Simon, son of John, do you love me? Peter was grieved because he said to him the some the third time, do you love me? The one who has betrayed three times. Now here's Jesus asking three times, do you love me? Surely now it is clear in Peter's mind what Jesus is thinking of. And so Peter is grieved. The word actually is not just that which is talking about the brokenness of Peter being revealed, but it is now rending his heart. This is the same language the apostle Paul uses when he talks about how our sin grieves the Holy Spirit, that there is this this rending of of hurt that God who gave his son for us that our sin would now trample upon his blood, that there is this grief to the Holy Spirit. And it is the same word that's being described for Peter as he now says, my Lord who knows everything is asking me again, do I really love him? I've told him twice and he's not received it. Oh Lord, do you not really believe that I love you? And then the awful words that accompany it because I know that you know everything. What must be in Peter's mind? You remember the event. They are now sitting by a charcoal fire where the breakfast has been served. But the last charcoal fire was the one beside which Peter denied Jesus three times. And the third time, remember when he said, I do not know him. He swore. And just as he swore, we are told in the gospel, look, Jesus looked at him. And now this same Jesus says Peter, do you love me? Oh Lord, you know everything. What I have done, my failures, my weakness, my betrayal, but surely you know this too. I love you. It is a brokenness that we that we fear it may be a part of us at times because not a single one of us in this room can look back over our lives and say there are not the moments in which we know the denial was there too. When we were called upon to stand firm, to stand for, to speak to, and we did not do so because some fear, some sin, some weakness in us kept us from that. And we know the savior still saying to us, do you love me? And our hearts say, Lord, I know I failed, but I do love you. And in response to this third affirmation of Peter, we get not only the brokenness revealed, but the brokenness repaired. The brokenness repaired is first evident in Christ simply coming to serve Peter and the others. I mean, I know it goes by so quickly. Verse 15, when they had finished breakfast, do you remember who prepared the breakfast? It was Jesus. And And you have to say there's more significance here than it's simply fillet of fish early in the morning, right? It's it's the king of the universe who has suffered upon a cross and has died, has now come to those who has abandoned him, including the one who has denied him. And the sin does not make him go away. Instead, this Jesus keeps coming and keeps serving despite the sin. And that in itself is a marvel as you say, here is grace beginning to repair the brokenness that was so evident by Christ just indicating by his presence his own care. Some of you may know the the difficult movie Traffic, which describes a federal judge who's been made the the drug czar of the United States who's supposed to organize all the nation's efforts to combat in young people in the nation across borders the drug traffic. Only to discover after he's been made the drug czar that his daughter at a prep school because of the taunting and the jeering of her friends has begun to experiment with drugs. And she's of the character, she's of the person that the experimentation has become an addiction. And now the one who is responsible for stopping drugs across the whole country cannot stop it in his own daughter. At first, he only knows embarrassment and anger and rage. But as the addiction begins to take over her life and the way she begins to take it is by taking in men for a price, he begins to search for her. He begins to search in the streets and he descends to her hell to find her and finally finds her and kicks the latest customer out of her room and then holds her. She is such glassy-eyed stupor she does not even recognize him. But he bends over her and holds her and weeps for her. You are mine and I have come for you. And I have taken everything I have to serve you because of my love for you in your brokenness. And it is what Christ has done here to to recognize the brokenness that cannot be denied. And you know what cannot be denied is he comes anyway, that our sin does not turn him away.
Guest (Male): You're listening to Unlimited Grace, the audio broadcast ministry of pastor and author Brian Chapell.
Guest (Male): It may seem hard for younger Christians to believe, but people over 50 were raised during an era when 90% of Americans identified as Christian. These older believers were once part of a majority group that understood the mission of the church was to take control of our culture, to halt its evils. At the same time, Christians under 50 have lived their entire lives perceiving themselves as a minority that needs to make credible their faith to a secular pluralistic culture. These distinct experiences and perceptions have a profound impact on the priorities different generations have for church ministry. It's no wonder that younger and older believers don't always see eye to eye. In his new book The Multi-Generational Church Crisis, Dr. Brian Chapell asks the question, what could be accomplished in the name of Christ if we could better understand each other? This practical and hopeful book is backed by thorough research revealing how to open the lines of communication, appreciate the experiences that shaped each generation in your church and unite in one mission to impact your community and the world. You can request your copy of the Multi-Generational Church Crisis when you donate online at unlimitedgrace.com or by calling 844-41-Grace. That's 844-414-7223. And now more from Brian Chapell on today's Unlimited Grace.
Bryan Chapell: Did you catch it? Not only verse 15 does he say, yes, Lord, you know I love you. But then Jesus responds saying what? Feed my feed my lambs. Verse 16 at the end, Jesus said to him again, tend my sheep. The next verse, feed my sheep. There is this calling now that Jesus has for this broken Peter, this one who has betrayed and denied him in so many ways. And And you can almost hear the echoes as as sitting by the charcoal fire again. What must be echoing in Peter's mind is I do not know him. Feed my sheep. I do not know him. You tend my sheep. I swear I do not know him. Feed my sheep. And what has happened is this wonderful affirmation of my still willingness to use you despite your betrayal of me. My sin does not only deny me the service of my savior. It does not deny the calling of my savior. Sometimes we think that because we have brokenness and weakness and sin in our lives, there's no way that God could use us. But the reality is that God is taking the most broken, the most corrupt here in so many ways having walked with you. And he's saying, you become the instrument of my glory. And actually the the brokenness of you equips you to be the instrument of my grace to others. We think that because we have sinned, because we have failed, we we are incapable of being used by God. And yet it is not our perfections that proclaim his grace. It is our willingness to acknowledge our need of grace, our brokenness that becomes the message the world needs to hear. I I in my brokenness am willing to say he claimed me. He came for me. He served me. He made me right, not by my work, but by his. I know that's that's the message that we claim in our mouths, but sometimes we struggle. If if I were just to take the time and I were to walk down the aisles and just talk to you honestly, you would say to me, I do not understand how God could use someone as weak and broken and cracked as the person next to me. Is that what you think? No, where the gospel is at work is you have this question, can God use me? The reality is the reason that God could use the person next to you as well as to you is he has poured his glory into earthen jars that that it is our very brokenness that is allowing God to say, I have a grace greater than that. If if our perfections were all that were on display, we would have no hope for the world. Our lives would actually contradict the gospel. It is the fact that we in our brokenness say, God has loved me and sent his son for me that becomes the glory of our proclamation. Our brokenness is actually what enables the power of God to be on display. He has claimed us despite us. And you have to say if if God is not only repairing these broken vessels, how is he actually preparing them for that glorious message? In a number of ways, they're important to remember. First, by reminding those of us who are jars of clay that if if we are to be those broken people used by God, it will require our all. Verse 18 is a difficult verse in John 21. Jesus speaking to Peter says, truly, truly, I say to you, when you were young, you used to dress yourself and walk wherever you wanted. But when you are old, you will stretch out your hands and another will dress you and carry you where you do not want to go. The first century church would have recognized the words. These are the words of crucifixion. You will stretch out your hands when you are old and you will be dressed for death and you will be carried to where you do not want to go to suffering. The same Peter who has denied is being told that his end will be remarkably difficult and awful. And yet as awful as those words are, I wonder if you perceive the grace that is implicit. When you are old, what has Jesus just said to this young fisherman? When you are old, he is saying you will what? You'll get old. You've got years ahead of you. And And what that means is until God calls you home, you are an immortal being. And that's not just a word for Peter. That's a word for each of us here that until God himself would call us home, we are immortal beings. No one can thwart the purposes of God in our lives until he himself is chosen. And what that means is we can leave everything on the table that God is calling for our all. And And it may require sacrifice. It may require difficulty. But the God of all creation is the one calling. And therefore we can give our all to him knowing that he has prepared. And And for Peter, it must even be special in this way. Peter, you will stretch out your hands. You will be crucified because of your testimony for me. And I wonder if what Peter's thinking is, Lord, does that mean that I won't flinch then? Because the last time that I was called to courage, I failed you. But you are telling me the time will come when I will be able to speak and face the suffering and still be your representative. I mean, surely as much as he dreads the end, he must covet the opportunity. I I have the opportunity here, Lord, to stand for you again. And it it's true for us. I mean, listen, if if you are a faithful believer, if you walk with the Lord, there I can just in mentioning it make you think of the moments in which you have failed to say or do all that you knew was necessary for the salvation of those near and dear to you. And And we want to check ourselves out and say I failed the Lord so badly, I am totally worthless to him. But listen, that happened to Peter and still the Lord was saying, but there will be a time that I call you again and you need not flinch again. The opportunity will come again. And that reality makes us willing to say and if God is preserving me until the time that he calls me home, I am immortal till then. I can leave it all on the table, do whatever is required. God has called you to a place and a time and a purpose. And he has said to you, until I call you home, you're immortal. Give yourself fully to my purposes because what you give will not be in vain. And don't worry that that person goes faster, that person gets more, that person has it. Listen, life is long. And the trials you face today may well be the triumphs of tomorrow. I don't know. I do know that God says, run your race. You follow me. And expect to be used for the glory of God regardless of what you face. Why would you do that? Why would you you face the hard things regardless of of what is coming? Well, that's why Jesus asked the question. Do you love me? Do you? Do you? Because the reality is there is no greater human motivation than love. Fear is not stronger. Guilt is not stronger. Gain is not stronger. The most powerful human motivation is love. And what God has done for you and for everyone in this room is he has said, do you recognize that when you were broken, I came for you.
Guest (Male): That's pastor Brian Chapell and you've been listening to Unlimited Grace. If this message has been an encouragement to you, you can find a collection of more valuable resources at unlimitedgrace.com. When you visit, you will find today's message and many others from pastor Brian. While you're there, you can sign up for pastor Brian's daily devotional sent right to your inbox. Please be sure to join us next time as once again we endeavor to put Christ at the center of our efforts so that lives might be transformed by his Unlimited Grace. This ministry is brought to you by Unlimited Grace Media and continues to be made possible with your generous financial support.