The apostle Peter was a person who was always ready to talk and was ready to act right away, sometimes before it was time. He had a problem with rash speech. However, he was actually a very intelligent person. He was a person who had a tremendous amount of native ability. He was a person who Jesus chose as one of the leaders of his church. Incidentally, if you look at the three places in the new testament where the twelve apostles are all listed, who was always listed first? Peter. Peter is always listed first By the way, just for interest sake, who was always listed last? Judas. The twelve apostles are always listed in three groups. Now they are not always listed in the same order in those groups, but if you look at the lists, they are always listed in three groups of four, and Peter is always listed the first of the first group. The first group was, of course, Peter and Andrew, his brother. And who were the other two? James and John, his brother. That's the way they are listed in Matthew 10. Peter had an experience that's recorded in all the gospels, where he denied his Lord.

I would like to pick up this important story in the book of John. We read it in our scripture from the book of Luke, but I would like to pick it up in the book of John, This is in John the 18th chapter verses 8 through 11. To those who had come to arrest Him, "Jesus answered, I have told you that lam He, therefore if you seek Me let these go their way. That the saying might be fulfilled which He spoke 'of those whom you gave Me I have lost none.' Then Simon Peter, having a sword, drew it and struck the high priest's servant, and cut off his right ear. The servant's name was Malchus. So Jesus said to Peter, Put your sword into to the sheath. Shall I not drink the cup which My Father has given me?"

We don't realize how closely connected the heavenly beings are with everything happening in the world. Ellen White describes it. She saw this very scene in a vision. She saw what human beings couldn't see. She saw Jesus surrounded by angels, that is heavenly angels, of course. There were the angels of the Devil there also. You might like to turn back to Matthew 26, because Ellen White quoted these words of Jesus that Matthew quotes telling this same experience. Matthew was written a long time before the gospel of John. He doesn't mention who it was, but by the time the gospel of John was written, Peter was already dead, so John mentioned him by name. (See Matthew 26:51.) And then Jesus says in verses 52 to 54" put your sword in its place, for all who take the sword will perish by the sword. Or do you think that I cannot now pray to My Father, and He will provide Me with more than twelve legions of angels? How then could the scriptures be fulfilled, that it must happen thus?"

Ellen White saw this in vision and she said "I saw as Jesus spoke these words 'If! pray to my Father he could now give me more than twelve legions of angels,' (that would be one legion for each disciple,) just the weakest of one of those angels could have dispersed that whole mob." Ellen White saw and she looked on the faces of the angels. The angels from heaven were all around and when Jesus spoke those words "My Father could give Me 12 legions of angels" she said "that their faces lighted -up." Oh, they would have loved to have dispersed that mob right then. They would have loved to.

The angels, by the way, are all organized. There is a commander over each company, or group of angels. We do not know exactly their form of organization, but we know from Ellen Whites visions that when the angels come they have a perfect order and organization. The commanding angel would not allow any one of those angels to go to deliver Jesus. Then Jesus said, "but if that should be, how would the scriptures be fulfilled?" Ellen White describes how this look of sadness came over the faces of the angels. They would have liked badly to have delivered Him. But they weren't allowed to. They weren't allowed.

The angels weren't the only ones who had a disappointment. Peter had a terrible disappointment. You see, Peter wasn't a coward. I mean, he had just tried to kill that fellow. He was up against the whole bunch, even though he was way out numbered. He was willing to be like David. He was willing to go against Golliath. He was willing to take on the whole group. He knew the Bible said that one person could chase a thousand and he was ready to go. He had his sword right there and he was going to cut that man's head off. Now I don't know if that fellow was just quick enough to duck so he just got his ear cut off or whether an angel pushed his head down. I don't know which it was, but, it wasn't Gods will for Peter to cut that mans head off. God did not allow that to happen.

By the way, what would have happened to Jesus if Peter had cut the head off of the servant to the High Priest? What would have happened to Jesus at His trial in just a few hours? What would have happened? He would have been accused of murder. It would have been a plausible charge. They would have said that this man was under your authority and he cut this fellows head off and he's a servant of the High Priest. He would have been accused of murder. That would have been added to the charges. However, at Jesus' trial they weren't able to make that charge. The Lord hadn't allowed that to happen. In fact, they couldn't even charge Jesus with one of His followers cutting off this fellows ear. It never even came up. Why didn't it come up? Because although Jesus was bound he released His hands. He had allowed this to happen, at least this much, and he touched that man's ear and healed it.

I have often wondered what he looked like after he had been healed. He certainly must have had blood all over him, all over the side of him. By the way, speaking of ears, there is a lot of blood vessels up there. So, he would have had to have blood all over the side of him. Probably had to go change clothes even though he was healed.

But Peter, when Jesus told him put your sword back, Peter did put his sword back. He didn't go chopping any more ears or heads off, or any thing else. But he was terribly disappointed. Why was he disappointed? Well, Peter did not have it in mind for Jesus to be taken captive, and go to be tried and crucified. Peter didn't have any of that in mind. He had a different plan for the Lord. When the Lord didn't allow him to save him, he was there, and he was ready, he was courageous. Ellen White, said that he would have been a very good soldier.

Peter was disappointed. Do you know that this was a big factor in Peter's denial of Jesus, his disappointment? Have you ever been disappointed? Have you ever seen anybody that got that disappointed? They got so disappointed that they were just ready to give up everything. Have you ever seen that happen? It's not uncommon. They say, "I just can't believe that that pastor or that elder or that deacon would do that to me. He claims that he is the leader in the church, and I can't believe that he would do that to me. How could a Christian do that?" So people are disappointed. You know what happens? They throw everything overboard. Have you ever seen that happen? I have seen that happen many times.

Oh, somebody says, "I thought that the conferences and our organization were going to lead us to victory, that we were going right into the kingdom, and now I see that it's not working out like I thought. I don't know if! will go to church anymore or not." Oh, somebody else says, "After I got it figured out that the conference structure was not getting the three angels message to all the world." I said, "Well I'll go and join these independent ministries and join these special ministries, they have a program, they will get the gospel out to all the world. Somehow, its not working out like I thought. I see dissension and strife and trouble. I guess I'll just forget it all." Ever seen that happen? It Happens all the time. That's what happened to Peter.

You see, God's plan, was being worked out. It was. Do you believe that God's plans are being worked out in the world today? They are. But are they being worked out, the way we all thought they would be worked out? Are they? No. Oh no. God's plans are being worked out but we can't always understand. Could Peter understand how God would allow this to happen? He just couldn't understand it. He got disappointed. Beware, if you are suffering from disappointment. You need to pray that that disappointment will not cause you to lose your faith. Did that happen in 1844? It certainly did. It certainly did. I want to read to you a statement about that.

"Another mighty angel was commissioned to descend to earth, Jesus placed in his hand a writing, and as he came to earth he cried Babylon is fallen, is fallen. Then I saw the disappointed ones again raise their eyes to heaven looking with faith and hope for their Lord's appearing. But many seemed to remain in a stupid state as if asleep, yet I could see the trace of deep sorrow upon their countenances. The disappointed ones saw from the scriptures that they were in the tarrying time and that they must patiently await the fulfillment of the vision. The same evidence which led them to look for the Lord in 1843 lead them to expect Him in 1844. Early Writings 247 Now they expected the Lord to come in 1843. They had made a mistake in their calculations. Now they knew they made a mistake So, now they are expecting Him to come in 1844. They have been through one disappointment, they don't know that they still have the big one coming. But notice these people are waiting for the Lord to come in 1844. She said, "Yet I saw that the majority did not possess that energy that marked their faith in 1843. Their disappointment had dampened their faith." What happened? They had been disappointed and what did the disappointment do? It dampened their faith.

Have you ever met somebody like that? Things did not work out. Oh, it could be in their work, in their family, it could be in their church, could be in an institution where they work. Things did not work out like they thought that they should. Their disappointment did what to their faith? It dampened it. And they were not on fire for the Lord any more.

Say by the way, so that we understand the importance of what we're studying, let me ask you a question. How are you going to get through the time of trouble and be ready for Jesus to come? Have you ever read the chapter in the Great Controversy on the time of trouble? What does she spend pages going over in that chapter? She spends pages going over our experience of faith, and learning to have faith, and spending time with the Lord and developing an experience in faith. Because she says if you don't have faith, you will have to learn the lessons of faith then and it will be harder to learn it at that time than now. So is what we are studying now important? It's very important.

Oh! Friend, has your faith been dampened because something in your life, or your experience just didn't turn out, at all, the way that you thought it ought to turn out?

Has that happened to you? Has your faith been dampened?

There is a man who is recorded in the Bible who is called the "father of the faithful." In fact, if you are going to go to heaven at all, you are going to be called one of his spiritual children. Who is that? Abraham. Abraham is called the "father of the faithful." Do you know how Abraham got the title the "father of the faithful"? You know how he got that title? He didn't get it by taking Hagar. That isn't the way he got it. In fact, it's because he took Hagar as his second wife that the Lord had to give him a terrible test later so that he could overcome his previous unbelief. He sinned terribly by taking Hagar as his wife. Even though Sarah had advised him to do it, he should never have done it. It was a lack of faith. Because of that, he had to bear a terrible test.

In fact, Ellen White says it is the closest test that any human being has ever had to face.

Abraham was asked to go and sacrifice his son to the Lord. Now, that is quite a test. Isaac was to him like an only son. Not like any son, but like any only son, and he was the only son of Sarah. This was the son that God said "I am going to fulfill the covenant promises through this son." The Messiah is going to come through this son. Salvation is going to come to the whole human race through this son." Later the Lord says. "Now I want you to take this son and I want you to kill him." Did Abraham have some disappointment in his mind when that happened? Let me tell you it was worse than disappointment. It was just like an avalanche of grief. How could God fulfill the promise of salvation to the whole human race through Isaac, if Abraham killed him? Yet the Lord said that's what I want you to do.

So he started out , and silently he was praying t day, prayed all night, prayed silently all the next day. He prayed silently all the next day. By the way, would you be tired if you were awake that long? Abraham was an old man. He had been awake two nights and on the third day saw the promised sign. There was a large cloud over Mount Moriah where he was going to sacrifice his son, and he went up there, and he obeyed. Now the Lord didn't allow him to sacrifice his son, but Abraham didn't know that until the last moment when the angel held his hand and said, "No. Now, I know that you are going to obey. He did let him bind him to the alter and raise the knife ready to slay his son. He was all ready, the next moment his son would have been dead.

When Abraham passed that test, Ellen White says, if Abraham had not passed that test, he would never have been called the "father of the faithful". What was the test that Abraham passed? Oh, when God told him to do something and the Devil told him all the way up there "you're breaking the 6th commandment, How can you break the 6th commandment? God has told you to break his law and you say you are a follower of God, and you keep his law? How can this be?" The Devil tempted him all the way up there. But Abraham knew that God had spoken to him and Abraham obeyed.

Even when everything was totally wrong and completely opposite of what he expected. He was terribly disappointed. In fact, disappointment is too weak of a word to describe his experience. But because he passed that test, he became the "father of the faithful".

How is it with you friend? Have there been some disappointments in your life? Now, God himself can not work out His plan for you and me and keep us from disappointments. That's impossible. But if we pray, God could keep us from losing our faith when we run into disappointments. Are you praying about it? Are you saying, Lord help me in spite of the fact that I'm disappointed and things are not working out at all like I thought and I just don't understand it at all. Peter didn't understand it all.

In spite of disappointments, we must pray, help me, help me not to lose my faith. Help me to remain strong, and trust you. Job had that experience. He said one time, If God should kill me, I"ll trust him anyway. Can you say that?. Are you one of Abraham's spiritual children. If you are one of Abraham's spiritual children you have to come to the place where you can say, "Lord I Trust you enough that I will obey you, no matter what happens. They can say they will kill me, they can say I can't buy or sell, they can tell me that everybody else in the world is right and I'm wrong. They can do whatever, I will obey what you say, no matter what, and I will trust you."

It's very common to lose faith. It's the experience that Peter had. He was disappointed and his disappointment was one of the reasons that he lost his faith and he denied his Lord.

I have studied this story about Peter's denial many, many times. I memorized the account in Matthew when I was about 19, I've studied it in the other gospels. It's in all four of the gospels. After I had studied it for many years, finally something dawned on me, and I don't know why I was do dull before. But I began to realize that that story was in the Bible for me, because I was going to be tested and when I get tested I could betray the Lord like Judas did or I could deny the Lord like Peter did, or I could be faithful. I began to pray, I don't know how many times I prayed the prayer. I said "Lord, help me when I'm tested that I won't deny you, that I won't. betray you no matter what happens, no matter what I understand or don't understand. Help me when I'm tested." By the way, very often, when your tested you don't know it. Very often when you are being tested. You don't realize it. Have you ever prayed and said Lord, help me when I'm tested that I won't deny you, that I won't betray you.

There are some other reasons that Peter denied His Lord in addition to the fact that he was disappointed. One of them was that He was so self-confident. You can read it in each one of the gospels. Jesus told him, and he had been around Jesus enough to know, that when Jesus said something that it always turned out to be the truth. All the disciples knew that. That's why when Jesus said that "one of you is going to betray me," they immediately began talking among themselves and saying, "Who is it?" Because they knew that when Jesus said something it always turned out to be the truth. But Peter was self-confident and when the Lord told him, He said " your going to deny me three times tonight." Peter was so self-confident that he argued with the Lord.

Have you ever been in an argument with the Lord? Now, that is not that uncommon, in case some of you have never thought of that before. That's not that uncommon. In fact, it's one of the most common things in the world for Christians. People read something in God's word or in a message from his messenger to the remnant, and they start arguing with it. That couldn't mean exactly what that says. Peter started arguing with the Lord. By the way, when you look at inspired writing's, we find that to argue with the Lord is always an unwise thing to do But Peter was so self-confident that he told Jesus , in effect, your wrong, I won't do it. I will not deny you. In fact, Peter says that even though I go with you to prison or if I'm killed for you sake, I will not deny you. He was that self-confident and he was not lying. He meant every word that he said. But he didn't know himself.

Do you know what God has to do when people get self-confident and they don't know themselves? Do you know what God has to do? He has to allow events to develop so that they will find out. That's exactly what happened to Peter. Peter would not believe. By the way do you know that this whole thing about Peter denying His Lord could been prevented that night, if Peter hadn't been so self -confident? And if when Jesus had told him that he would have said, "Lord, please, please work a miracle, don't let me do that, please save me from myself, "you know that Jesus would have answered that prayer, and Peter wouldn't have denied the Lord. Ellen White tells us so. If Peter would have said to Jesus "Lord, please save me from myself, please don't let me do that," Jesus would have answered his prayer, and Peter would not have denied the Lord that night.

You see, that is not something that God had decreed that Peter had to do and therefore God said it and he had to do it. Oh no! Jesus wasn't telling him that as an unalterable decree. If Peter would have pled with the Lord right then and said, "Lord please save me, don't let me do this," Jesus would have answered his prayer. Let me read that to you from the Desire of Ages. "When Peter said that he would follow his Lord to prison and to death, he meant it, every word of it, but he did not know himself. Hidden in his heart were elements of evil that circumstances would fan into life. Unless he was made conscious of his danger, these would prove his eternal ruin. The Saviour saw in him a self love and assurance that would overbear even his love for Christ. Much of infirmity, of unmortified sin, carelessness of spirit, unsanctified temper, heedlessness of entering into temptation had been revealed in his experience. Christ's solemn warning was a call to heart searching. Peter needed to distrust himself, and to have a deeper faith in Christ Had he in humility received the warning, he would have appealed to the shepherd of the flock to keep his sheep. If he had cried to Jesus, 'save me from myself he would have been kept." Would Jesus have answered his prayer? Yes ,he would have. Peter would have been kept from denying His Lord. He would have said, "Lord, please don't let me do this". "Please save me from myself". Jesus would have answered his prayer. But Peter was self-confident. Not only that, he thought that Jesus was being cruel. Distrusting him. He became offended at his Lord and so he became even more persistent in his self-confidence. Oh friend, I have learned that one of the things that all of us need to fear most is self-confidence. We are not going to go into this in detail, but if you read inspired writings, I mean, we are warned against this over and over again. Do not put confidence in man the Bible says. Don't put your trust in the flesh. don't put your trust in yourself. Put your trust in the Lord.

There are some people, by the way, these are some of the most difficult people a pastor, or an evangelist or a bible worker has to deal with, because they already know. Have you ever tried to teach something to somebody that they already know? Ever try that? Well, this is the problem that Jesus had. Jesus was trying to teach Peter about himself. He was going to deny his Lord. He had elements in his heart that he didn't even know, but Peter already knew. Jesus couldn't teach Peter anything because Peter already knew. Go to somebody and you are trying to work out a problem, trying to explain something, and they say you don't need to talk to me, I already know. Every pastor has had that happen. You can do nothing. You can't help them. Whether they go to heaven or hell, you can't stop them. It is self-confidence. Self-confidence, no matter how much we have studied in our Bible, no matter how much praying we have done, it is dangerous to become self-confident. The Bible says that pride proceeds a fall. One of the main elements of pride is self-confidence. One of the ways we can know that we are having a problem with self-confidence is when we won't listen. Some brother, or some sister, or somebody says "I want to talk to you about something", and you say, "you don't need to talk to me, I already know." That's self-confidence, its dangerous. Peter already knew, but friend, the trouble was what he knew wasn't so. What he knew was wrong. It wasn't the truth. But Jesus couldn't tell him anything, else because he already knew. He was self-confident.

This is the second reason that Peter denied his Lord. The first was, he was disappointed, because God didn't allow things to work out the way he thought they ought to work out. The second reason was because he was self-confident. That's not the only reason, though. Look in Matthew 26 and you will see another reason that Peter denied his Lord. Matthew 26, starting with verses 37, says, "He took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee and he began to be sorrowful and deeply distressed. Then he said to them, 'my soul is exceedingly sorrowful even to death. Stay here and watch with me.' He went a little farther and fell on his face and prayed, saying, 'Oh my Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me, nevertheless, not as I will but as you will'. Then he came to the disciples, and found them sleeping and said to Peter, 'What? Could you not watch with me for one hour? Watch and pray lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak". Jesus said to Peter that night , just before Peter denied Him, he said to Peter, "watch and pray." The crisis of the world was occurring tonight. So what was Peter doing when the crisis of the world came? The crisis that was to determine the destiny of every single person of the descendants of Adam and Eve, that night was going to be decided. What was Peter doing while it was decided? He was sleeping. Why was he sleeping? He was so self-confident. He was so self-confident. He went to sleep. Jesus told him, its not time to sleep now. Its lime to watch and pray.

Oh! Friend, do you want to be saved? You know, salvation isn't complicated, salvation is not complicated. A child can understand what to do to be saved. What is involved in being saved? If I'm a sinner, what's involved? Now, the angels don't need salvation. Their not lost, but I need salvation, because I'm a sinner.

I'm not poking my finger at you if I say that you are sinners too because the Bible says that "all have sinned". Isn't that what the Bible says? I need salvation because I'm a sinner. How am I going to get it? The Bible says, "Look unto me and be saved". Isaiah 45:22. Look to me and be saved. Salvation is simple, Jesus is the Saviour. When I look to Him, what does that mean? It means I put my trust in him. I say, "Lord, I'm committing my life to you."

You read the word faith all through the Bible, what's that talking about? This is what it's talking about, making a commitment. Saying to Jesus, I'm putting my trust in you , I'm committing my life to you, I want you to be the Lord and the Saviour of my life. That is all there is to it. That is it. There is not steps 7-8-9-10. There is one thing, if you do that one thing, everything else will happen in your life and you are going to be saved. The Apostle John says that over and over and over again. If you want to have salvation, "believe" in Jesus Christ. Now the word believe means, as we have explained before, it means to make a commitment. Commit your life to Him, allow Him to be the Lord and Saviour of your life.

By the way, just so that nobody can misunderstand, Listen carefully. Jesus can not be your Saviour from sin unless He is the Lord of your life. If He is the Lord of your life, that means you follow Him, you obey Him and that's all that there is to it. That is what the apostle John says over and over in his book. You believe, you make the commitment, you are going to be saved. Satan will see it at the end of the Millennium. Its written in Great Controversy, it says that He will see that he was powerless to destroy those who put their trust in Jesus. You'll receive the Holy Spirit, you will receive power to live a new life, you will receive power to follow the commandments, you will receive love into your heart so that you will love your neighbor as yourself, and God supremely. When you commit your life to Jesus, you will receive it all. It's not complicated is it? Or is it?

What's hard about it is making the commitment. Lord, I'm not going to be my own boss anymore. I'm committing my life to you. You are going to be the Lord of my life. Anything that you say, I'll do. It really does make sense too, it's the most reasonable thing you can ever imagine.

Just think this through, suppose that you had a terrible physical disease. So you are looking all over the world. By the way, this is very real, it happens every day. You are looking all over the world to find some physician, some healer that can heal you from your disease, and you find someone somewhere. And you get on a plane or drive in a car and you go to see that person and they say, "Yes, you've got it and I can cure you." And you say, "good but I'm not going to do what you say." What would that physician say? He would say, "Your are crazy. You drove all the way, or flew all the way over here to this city to see me, and you have the disease and I can help you get better, and you tell me that you want $ get better, and you say you won't do what I say. You are out of your mind." Or he might say something worse than that but we will stop.

You see, sin is a spiritual disease that will destroy you. Jesus can save you. Oh! Friend, no matter how many limes you have been stung by the serpent of sin, no matter how bad you had the disease, Jesus can save you if you will commit yourself to Him. If you put your trust in Him, and do what he says. But if he is not the Lord of your life, you are stuck. And that's the big problem today friends; with professed Christianity. There are people all over the world, they go to church, they read the Bible, they pray, they do good works, but they have not made Jesus Christ the Lord of their life. Their religion is absolutely worthless.

Later on in Peter's life he said "This same one, which you crucified, God has made Him both Lord and Christ". Oh friend, is He the Lord of your life? Is Jesus the Lord of your life?

Jesus told Peter, "watch and pray", but Peter didn't listen. He slept. We are approaching the end of the world friends, it's lime for you and me to watch and pray. Oh, have you made a resolution, with the Lord and said, "By your grace, everyday I'm going to spend some time watching and praying." Have you made the commitment with the Lord? Are you spending time watching and praying every day? Or are you like Peter? Are you saying "I like to sleep. I have to make a living. I have to whatever it is. I don't have lime. I have worked hard all day, I have to sleep now?"

Remember what Jesus said on the sermon on the mount? "Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things will be added to you." You are going to get what you need for this life but Jesus said I come first. And let me tell you friend, If Jesus is not number one in your life, you are not a Christian. You may go to church. You may have the name. You may be a nice person. But you are not a Christian. You are not a Christian. Jesus said one time, it is recorded in Matthew 10. He said, "If anybody loves father or mother more than me, or son or daughter more than me they at not worthy of me." I have to be number one priority. Read it in the last part of Matthew 10. "He that takes not up his cross and follow me is not worthy of me". Is Jesus number one priority in your life?

Is He your Lord as well as your Saviour? When He says something to you do you obey? Jesus said to Peter, "watch and pray."

Oh friend, he missed it. As I think about it, I wonder how much I've missed? You think about it for yourself. How much have your missed? How much have you missed in your life so far because of the opportunities God has given you to watch and pray and you were asleep? You were busy with the cares of this life. How much have you missed? Oh, Peter, if he had stayed awake and been watching and praying he could have understood, a great disappointment could have been prevented. If he would have started to pray and say "Lord, help me to understand what's going on", and humbled himself before the Lord. The crisis of the ages was taking place just a few feet away from him and he missed it until it was all over. The love of God that He would have seen, that Jesus had for him, his need for repentance, the terribleness of sin, the meaning of the sacrifice of Christ, all those things could have been opened up to his mind by the Holy Spirit if he had been watching and praying that night, but he missed it.

He was not ready for the test and when the test came he denied his Lord. Friends, that is going to happen again. Ellen White says in Early Writings, page 71, she is speaking to Seventh-day Adventists. And she said, that some of them are not going to wake up. Why are they not going to wake up? Because they are asleep. Like Peter. They are not going to wake up until the plagues begin to fall. Well honor, of honors, when the plagues begin to fall, probation has already closed. Then its too late. It is too late to wake up then.

Well, we are out of time and I still had one big subject I wanted to go over with you. We will make it quick. There is one other reason. that Peter denied his Lord and if you look in the 18th chapter of the gospel of John you will see it very clearly. John 18, verse 18. It says, "Now the servants and officers who had made a fire of coals stood there. It was cold and they warmed themselves. Peter stood with them and warmed himself'. When Peter got into the court of the High Priest, where did he go? He went and he associated with the enemies of Jesus.

In the Spalding and Magan Collection page 271, we see this, "Those who receive Christ as a personal saviour doing His work and following His way become members of the Royal family. But there are many with the clearest evidence before them who are walking directly contrary to His instruction, following in the way of sinners". That is what Peter did. He went in the way of sinners. That's where he went. "They do the very same work of accusation that open sinners are doing. In the place of being laborers together with God washing the robe of characters making them white in the blood of the Lamb, that they may be representatives of the saviour, setting in word and deed a Christ-like example. They employ their faculties and powers in a way that the followers of Satan employ their faculties and powers. They think and speak evil." See Peter went to the wrong company, "They spend time and money gathering together jots and tittles of evil. And a mouth that ought to be employed in offering thanksgiving to God is employed in supporting this evil."

So there was a lot of evil talk going on here in this group and Peter was there. That's where he was. He was with the enemies of Jesus, the servants of the High Priest. "Many are engaged in Satan's work, worrying and finding fault, and accusing those who are trying to do the work that they themselves ought to be doing. The talent of speech is used to destroy the confidence of believers in their brethren. Many Seventh-day Adventists stand before the world as fractious and fault-finding, instead of bound together by oneness with Christ"

Peter got into the High Priests court. John went up to see the trial. Peter went over there to stand by the fire with the servants of the High Priest and got into a group of people that were the enemies of Jesus. When they started asking him questions, he denied his Lord. He denied Him once to the maid, who was the door keeper, then he denied Him two more times in the whole group. Ellen White wrote once, "do these brethren know what they are doing? They are standing directly in the way of sinners. They are blocking up the way by their own wrong course the blood of soul will be on their garments unless they repent and entirely change their course. A spirit of criticism and bitterness has come into the Church. The spiritual discernment of many has been dimmed. The spirit can never be poured out while variance and bitterness toward one another are cherished by members of the Church. Envy, jealousy, evil-surmising and evil speaking are of Satan and they effectually bar the way against the Holy Spirit working."

Nothing so offends God as an act that injures the influence of those who are doing His service. He will call to account all who aid Satan in his work of criticizing and discouraging.

So Peter got over their in the wrong company and he denied his Lord.

If you stand in the way of sinners that's the first step (read it in Psalms: 1). Next you will do what? You will eventually sit-- Turn to Psalms : 1. You will eventually sit in the seat of the scornful. If you walk in the council of the ungodly, you stand in the path of sinners, and eventually you will sit in the seat of the scornful. That's exactly what Peter did. He just went right down the line. If you go in the counsel of the ungodly and stand in the way of sinners you will sit in the seat of the scornful.

Peter didn't know himself. He was disappointed, but he was self confident. But then last of all after he had made a whole bunch of mistakes already, he capped it off by going and standing in the way of sinners. And he ended up sitting in the seat of the scornful, and he betrayed the reputation of the disciples. It says in the last part of Matthew 26. that he started swearing. He evidently started swearing to prove that he wasn't a disciple of Jesus.

Is their something for you and me to learn from this story? I'll tell you that there is a lot for me to learn. I've been praying about it. What I've been praying about is that the Lord will help me that when I'm tested, I won't deny my Lord, because I want to tell you Friend, you and I are going to be tested. There is no escape from the test, no escape.

Jesus could not even keep Peter from being tested, but He could have kept him from falling. He could have kept from denying his Lord. If Peter had been humble, and if he had followed instructions and, watched, and prayed, and if he had pled with the Lord and said, "Lord please don't let me do this please save me from myself. Help me." The Lord would have kept him from going in the way of sinners, and he'd been kept from going in the seat of the scornful, and denying his Lord.

Do you want the Lord to save you so that when you're test comes you won't deny Jesus? Oh, Friend if you do, I want to invite you right now before we sing our closing song to kneel down with me and let's pray, that the Lord will keep us.