Sifting

Luke 22:31-32 “And the Lord said, "Simon, Simon! Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for you; that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren."

This devotional was birthed out a word the Lord recently gave me for someone who was facing some challenges. I trust it will be an encouragement to you. In the context of the above scripture, Simon Peter was getting ready to face one of the greatest challenges of his life: the arrest, conviction and execution of the man he had given up everything to follow for the past three and a half years. The man he thought was the Messiah whom Israel had long awaited. In the heat of the action, Simon, denied the Lord three times.

What caused Simon to deny his Lord? Fear definitely played a factor. He faced the possibility of being tortured and executed with Jesus. But Simon was a bold, almost brash individual who was ready to take on about anything. In fact, at Jesus arrest, he had pulled out his sword and cut off the servant’s ear. The problem wasn’t that Simon lacked courage, but in the heat of the battle he lost direction. He was ready to fight and even die for his King, but his King wasn’t fighting. The one who could walk on water, calm the seas, chase the money-changers out of the temple, and declared Himself equal with God was yielding to the enemy. This wasn’t part of the script.

Oftentimes like Simon we face challenges in life that we do not understand. Unexpected things happen out of our control. We pray, fast, claim God’s promises in faith, and nothing seems to happen. Like Peter, we become confused and disoriented. This wasn’t supposed to happen this way. If we are not careful, we can become angry, frustrated, or depressed and maybe even give up. We thought we were doing the right thing, obeying God, but it hasn’t worked out.

I believe the words of our Lord to Simon Peter are relevant to us. In the midst of the confusion in the coming days, the Lord wanted Peter to trust Him. Yes, Satan was going to sift him and try him, but two things Peter needed to be aware of was that Jesus knew what he was going to go through and had already covered it in prayer. He also knew that Peter was going to make it because he said, “when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren."

You may be challenged in some area of your life today. Things are not going like you expected or planned. You may not understand why things are happening the way they have. Be encouraged, your Great High Priest knew that you were going to face this long before you did, and He has already prayed for you and knows that you are going to come through. He is faithful and has faith in you because He lives in you. For “greater is He that is in you than He that is in the world.” Be of good cheer, for He has overcome the world for you.

Andy