Philippians 3:16 NLT
But we must hold on to the progress we have already made.
Working in the church’s Recovery ministry, you see some miracles that I think are missed on most people that may be in the church.
When you see the change that happens in the life of others who enter the church with major issues in their life, and you see them work through the Christian principles that start to affect change in their lives; honestly, it is nothing short of a miracle at the hands of God.
On the downside, I had also experienced those who had come into the program and made some great strides seem to really be making headway only to end up worse than they were before they came into the program.
Matthew 12:43-45 NLT
“When an evil spirit leaves a person, it goes into the desert, seeking rest but finding none. Then it says, ‘I will return to the person I came from.’ So it returns and finds its former home empty, swept, and in order. Then the spirit finds seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they all enter the person and live there. And so that person is worse off than before. That will be the experience of this evil generation.”
When you examine the events and attitudes that lead to this fall, it really boils down to pride.
We discussed the subject of relapse at our last Zoom meeting for our recovery group. The next morning I read an interesting article by Jon Courson about why some fall away from the gains they experience, and I will try to explain it the best I can here.
Some may say that they “fall” into sin, but the reality is that we don’t fall into sin; we walk into sin, one step at a time, and it all starts with the thoughts that we entertain in our minds.
Peter’s pride has been well documented in the Bible, and we will examine the things that he did before the crucifixion of Jesus that leads to a great fall by Peter. Here is the conclusion that Peter came to about pride:
1 Peter 5:5-7 NLT
In the same way, you who are younger must accept the authority of the elders. And all of you, dress yourselves in humility as you relate to one another, for “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and at the right time he will lift you up in honor. Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you.
The fall starts with:
- Over confidence in the flesh
Matthew 26:33 NLT
Peter declared, “Even if everyone else deserts you, I will never desert you.”
Jesus just got done explaining that He would be abandoned by his disciples when Judas betrayed Him. Up to this point, Jesus gave them no reason to doubt what He said would come to pass; the disciples saw Jesus do many miracles in their presence.
Along with James and John, Peter had several opportunities to see Jesus do things that the other disciples did not see.
When we start to see results in our recovery with God’s help, we start to feel better about ourselves. But it is hard for us to really understand where this really came from. We want to take some of the credit for this; after all, it was our efforts that have stopped us from partaking in the activity that we suffered so greatly for… right?
In Peter’s case, when Jesus explained to them that everyone would desert him, Peter’s response was, “I will never desert you.”
Think about the pride that goes into telling the Creator of the universe that something will not happen that He says WILL happen.
1 Corinthians 10:12-13 NLT
If you think you are standing strong, be careful not to fall. The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure.
2. Sleeping instead of praying
Matthew 26:40-41 NLT
Then he returned to the disciples and found them asleep. He said to Peter, “Couldn’t you watch with me even one hour? Keep watch and pray, so that you will not give in to temptation. For the spirit is willing, but the body is weak!”
Jesus again calls the three top dogs to go into the garden to pray with Him before His betrayal. Jesus was praying and came back to His disciples only to find them asleep.
For the believer, pray is a hedge of protection against temptation. If we are not praying, we leave ourselves open for attacks from Satan as well as temptation. I’d also like to add here that reading the Bible and allowing the words to wash through our minds will give us the thoughts we need to meditate on in prayer.
3. Replacing Devotion with action
Matthew 26:51 NLT
But one of the men with Jesus pulled out his sword and struck the high priest’s slave, slashing off his ear.
The Book of Matthew was written while Peter was still alive, so he was not called out directly for this event, but John’s Gospel names Peter as the man who pulled out the sword and struck the high priest’s slave.
When we start getting into God’s Word and listening to great preaching, it is very easy for our minds to fall on those who need the words we are reading and the messages we are listening to during a sermon.
The Word of God is not a magnifying glass that we are to use to examine the world around us; it is a mirror that we are to examine ourselves with. When we can make this a way of thought as natural as breathing in and breathing out, our lives will start to exhibit the grace, mercy, and forgiveness God has shown us through Jesus Christ.
Ephesians 6:12 NLT
For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.
When we use the Word of God as a weapon against the world around us, we start to stand directly against the people who are around us, and this will not turn out well for us.
This puts us in a very prideful area that God will stand directly against.
For some reason, we get this stuck in our heads that we need to defend Jesus. Jesus made this very clear when he said this:
Matthew 26:53-54 NLT
Don’t you realize that I could ask my Father for thousands of angels to protect us, and he would send them instantly? But if I did, how would the Scriptures be fulfilled that describe what must happen now?”
This is another reason why it is important to be in God’s Word. When we know what will happen, it is not a surprise to us when we see things happening exactly as He said they would.
4. Following at a distance
Matthew 26:58 NLT
Meanwhile, Peter followed him at a distance and came to the high priest’s courtyard. He went in and sat with the guards and waited to see how it would all end.
Here’s how it happens, we are into recovery for a while. Our problems seem so far away, thanks to the grace of God, we are no longer struggling with our old problems, we feel good.
We miss a meeting here; we miss a sermon there; we skip a devotional today. We start to get away from the things that help us out of the things that helped to move away from our problems.
A quote that I heard many years ago, goes like this: “What is easy to do, is easy not to do.”
With a little discipline, it is easy to read the Word of God everyday but it is just as easy to NOT read the Word of God everyday. The difference will determine where we end up.
5. Getting warm by the enemy’s fire
Luke 22:54-55 NLT
So they arrested him and led him to the high priest’s home. And Peter followed at a distance. The guards lit a fire in the middle of the courtyard and sat around it, and Peter joined them there.
I’m guessing that Peter was “cold” because he was following at a distance.
When we move away from God’s Word and God’s people, it is very easy to become “cold” spiritually.
Peter found himself around unbelievers but notice what happens to Peter; he starts to get called out by the servants of the high priests, and he eventually denies that he is a follower of Jesus Christ.
What does this say to us?
There is no place for us at our old stomping grounds. When we go back, we find ourselves with the same old feelings, the same temptations which eventually lead to the old hurts, habits, and hang-ups.
Let’s go back to the verse that we started with:
Philippians 3:16 NLT
But we must hold on to the progress we have already made.
Heavenly Father, thank You for Your Word. Let Your Word affect how we live.
Let Your Word help maintain the fire in our souls. Let Your Word keep us focused on the grace, mercy and forgiveness that only You can provide.
Let us go out in the world with that same grace, mercy and forgiveness centered in our hearts.
Let our testimony stand as a life changed by Your Hand to those that witness our walk with You.
In the name of Jesus Christ, I pray, Amen!! 🙏❤️
