Luke 22:31-32 31 "Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift you as wheat. 32 But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers."
NIV
When Jesus warned Peter about his upcoming temptation to deny Him He used a figure of speech that would play around with his, and our, imagination – “Satan has asked to sift you as wheat”.
Take a look at this picture of a crude way of sifting wheat:
This was what Satan had planned for Peter. This is what Satan plans for each one of us actually. Imagine yourself going through those small holes, being scraped, scratched, stripped and refined. Ouch.
Many of us are going through this right now. You have a trial, hardship in life, a sickness, or maybe you are being tempted everyday and it is slowly eating you up to the point that you are about to fall. Who is going to help us through these times?
Most Christians, if not all, during times of being sifted, look to heaven for help. The question is – who is there in heaven who will help us? Automatically we answer “God”. And yet many Christians are not sure of what God can really do, or promises to do, which is why we tend to look for other help, either from heaven or earth.
But look at what the Lord reveals to us in His short encounter with Peter:
“Simon, Simon…”. Mentioning Simon’s name twice showed that our Lord was concerned for Simon, which is why He was giving him a forewarning of what was going to happen. If we read God’s word carefully He does warn us about what this world has to offer us, and He lovingly warns us to prepare for it in our hearts.
“Satan has asked to sift you as wheat”. This should bring assurance to a Christian’s heart. Before Satan could begin sifting Simon as wheat he had to ask permission first! Satan is not freely running around the world tormenting Christians. Our God is still Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords…and even if Satan is a ruler of evil, he still has to bow down before our God! So, the evil or hardship that he brings to our life is not apart from God’s permission. (Job 1 and 2)
But why does God permit those things to happen? Well, they are tests. The words “trial” and “temptation” come from one Greek word which means “test”. Yes, we may love God, have faith in Him, and desire to walk in righteousness, but there will be times these will be tested. Hey, even our Lord went through temptation, so we should not expect to experience less in our life. But we have assurance:
1 Corinthians 10:13
13 No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.
NIV
God makes sure that we will pass the test!
And then look at what our Lord assures Simon:
32 But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers."
What a blessed assurance Peter had, that his Lord, his Master, would PRAY FOR HIM! I wonder how many of us have this assurance, this knowledge, that our Savior, our Lord, intercedes for us during our hard times! Most of us depend on our own prayer, our own intercession, during times of hardship, which many times fails because we are downhearted and weak. But we have assurance in our hearts that we have a Lord in heaven who prays for us!
Romans 8:34
34 Who is he that condemns? Christ Jesus, who died — more than that, who was raised to life — is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us.
NIV
Notice what our Lord prayed for Simon – “that your faith may not fail”. Yes, there will be times we may stumble and fall. And Satan will be there to try to condemn us, accuse us to our face. But we have a Lord who intercedes for us, raises us up, renews our faith, and strengthens us to keep walking and experience victory over every trial, hardship and temptation in life.
Many do not realize the assurance of the intercession of our Lord, and the strength that this supplies us during times of hardship and trials. This is the grace that allows us to go through each day in a world that bombards us with trials and temptations left and right. May we proclaim, as the psalmist did, in Psalm 73:
Psalms 73:25-26
25 Whom have I in heaven but you?
And earth has nothing I desire besides you.
26 My flesh and my heart may fail,
but God is the strength of my heart
and my portion forever.
NIV
We need no one else, we have no other source of strength, and we should have no other desire except God, during times of testing.
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