Luke 22:31-32 Pastor Nathan P. Kassulke
“The Crucial Hours” Lenten Midweek Wednesday, March 30, 2022 “Satan Has Asked to Sift All of You”
Peter had walked on water. Perhaps you recall that account in which all the disciples were terrified thinking they had seen a ghost. It was really Jesus. He hadn’t been in the boat with them when it got stuck in the wind and waves of the Sea of Galilee. But he came to them, walking on top of the waves and cutting through the wind. And when Jesus had explained this to his disciples, Peter was the one who said, “If it’s really you, I want to walk on the water, too.” And he did. There’s a lot more to that story, but it illustrates how Peter is one of the most fascinating of Jesus’ disciples. He was so often in the forefront of what was going on, so often speaking out for the whole group, sometimes not really thinking through what he was saying. So it is maybe not surprising to us either that Peter would be in the spotlight in the crucial hour to which we come in our Lenten service today. And don’t be confused, Peter also went by the name Simon. In fact, Simon was the name given him by his father. The Peter who walked on water is the same man whom Jesus addresses in Luke 22:31-32. These verses come from the account of what took place in the upper room on the evening of what we call Maundy Thursday. Jesus and all his disciples were together to celebrate and observe the Passover. Jesus used that special night to teach his disciples many things. And at the appropriate time that evening, well, let’s hear what these verses tell us: 31The Lord said, “Simon, Simon, pay attention: Satan has asked to have you all, so that he may sift you as wheat. 32But I prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail. And when you have returned to me, strengthen your brothers.” There’s a lot contained in just these two short verses, and there is a lot of context that we know from the rest of the Passion history, the Bible’s account of what took place that night and in the days following. There’s a lot there, but it is summed up well by the theme “Satan Has Asked to Sift All of You.” This warning came from Jesus to Peter as we have already said, but let’s acknowledge that it is very telling Jesus calls him Simon. Simon was his old name, his given name. Peter became this man’s name because Jesus called him that, saying that the rock of his confession that Jesus was the Christ would be the foundation, the bedrock on which Christ’s church would be built. So the name Peter, a reference to a stone, was a reminder of that bold confession. But now it was Simon who was being warned. He was being warned that Satan was going to sift. So what does that mean? Satan wanted to sift like wheat. Don’t think about sifting flour for a cake recipe where that fine flour gets gently shaken or stirred through a fine mesh with other dry ingredients. And don’t think about the winnowing process where the grains of wheat were tossed into the breeze so that the chaff could blow away. This wheat sifting process meant shaking the wheat violently in a sieve so that all the dirt and dust could be shaken off and that everything that was not wheat, like perhaps plant stems or even small rocks, could be separated from the valuable wheat. So what was Satan asking to do? Like that violent shaking of the wheat, Satan wanted to shake Simon Peter violently. He wanted to shake Peter loose from Jesus. He wanted to shake Peter’s very soul with the intention of dragging that soul to hell. And not just Peter. Satan had asked to shake all of the disciples, to sift all of them as wheat. We know something about the specifics of Peter’s shaking. In fact, Jesus goes right from the verses in front of us today into specifics about what would happen to Peter that very night when he would disown or deny Jesus three times. We know that Peter faced those specific trials, so we know that Jesus actually gave permission to Satan to do what he had asked. Maybe that reminds you of the very beginning of the book of Job. In that Old Testament book we hear about Satan appearing before the throne of God to ask about Job and to ask to make his life miserable. And God allows it. And God allows in the Passion History for Peter to face the accusations of the people who insisted that he had been with Jesus. He had been there at the arrest. He even talked like the guy from Galilee, the guy who was on trial. The insinuation was that Peter should have been a suspect, too. Their words shook Peter. They put him on the spot to either tell the truth about his
relationship with a man whose life had suddenly been turned upside down, a suspect on trial, or to try to save his own skin with a lie that he had never even met Jesus. In fact, he didn’t even know what these people were talking about. And when Peter chose the latter, Satan shook him again. Where before he had whispered into Peter’s ears that the only sensible course was to distance himself from Jesus, now his tune changed. Now he said, “What have you done? You denied Jesus after he warned you that you would? How could he or anyone else forgive you?” And the violence of that accusation may have been even worse than the violence of the first temptation. And doesn’t Satan do the exact same thing in our lives? He constantly offers us temptations. He constantly whispers that it’s OK to just give in. What does it harm if we look at a picture that we should not or if we let some lustful thoughts linger in our minds? What does it harm if just one time we miss church? What does it hurt if we tell a little white lie? Isn’t it better that someone else deals with this if I can get out of it? Why shouldn’t I get my way – haven’t I earned the chance to be picky about things? And when we fall, he turns it around and shakes us with guilt. He shakes us in other ways, too. We feel the shaking when our lives come into crisis. We’ve done everything that we think we can do to avoid sickness and death, and sickness still comes and death hits close to home. Satan is shaking us. A relationship falls apart. Our finances are tighter than they have ever been. We or a loved one is called to fight in a place where real bombs and bullets are flying. Do we trust God or do we let our faith be shaken until it disappears? We might wonder why in the world—if Satan asked for permission to shake Peter and the other disciples— why in the world did Jesus give that permission? And we can’t possibly know all that our God takes into account as he makes decisions that affect his people, but we can see this: too often Peter’s confidence was in Peter. He had walked on water after all! Peter himself said to Jesus that even if all the other disciples were to abandon him, Peter would not. He didn’t believe Jesus when he said, “Peter, you are going to deny me.” So God actually used the shaking the Satan inflicted to shake Peter’s confidence in himself. He shook Peter until Peter was left in tears. And that’s where we, too, need to join Peter. We need to be so shaken away from self-confidence, away from sinful haughtiness, away from false pride, until we have only one choice: to rely on Jesus. Satan tried to shake and to sift Jesus, too. Who went through more torture or pain than he did? Who was put into more unfair circumstances than him? And yet he never wavered or faltered. We can have absolute confidence, but not in ourselves—only in Jesus. As powerful as Satan may be, Jesus is stronger. Simon Peter and the other disciples could only be shaken with Jesus’ permission. It also happened with Jesus’ prayer. Yes, we know that Jesus allowed this. We also know that Jesus was in control to both keep Satan in check and to accomplish his good purposes from the violent temptation that came. And so, even before any of the real sifting had taken place, this is what Jesus said to Simon: “But I prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail. And when you have returned to me, strengthen your brothers.” Jesus’ words anticipate Peter’s repentance. He would not look to himself to figure out how to get out of his circumstance and even his despair. He would finally look to Jesus. He would confess how wretched his sin truly was and affirm how gracious a Savior he had, one who was willing to die even for a disciple who had just denied him. Jesus prayed that Peter’s faith would not fail. It may have seemed for a time as though Peter’s faith had failed, but it didn’t because it ultimately knew the only proper object for that faith, Jesus Christ. And Jesus, knowing that his prayer would be answered, directed Peter to strengthen others. Christ anticipated Peter’s repentance and also invited his leadership. The other disciples were going to need strengthening, too. They would need to have their faith focused on Jesus again and again. Their Savior and Teacher being snatched away from them and being executed on the cross was just the beginning. Almost to a man they would face persecution even to the point of death. And together with his brothers, Peter was an important pillar of the early church. He wrote epistles, letters by God’s inspiration that reflect a loving humility that might have
seemed out of place were it not for the sifting Peter had gone through. God used the sifting from Satan to accomplish good for Peter and for many others. No doubt he prays the same thing for us. He gives no promises that in this world our lives will be secure or free from trouble. We ought to expect sifting and shaking, and we ought to be humble enough to know that we may fall. And what does Jesus want for us? He prays that even though we fall into sin our faith may not fail. He prays that it would still be rooted in him and that we would be brought to repentance. He prays that we would see his cross as the payment for our sins and his empty tomb as the promise that our graves will be empty one day, too. And he prays that we would be renewed to serve others. We have faced challenges so that we can help others who face challenges. We have learned how frail we are so that we can encourage others to rely on someone stronger. We have been shaken so that we know where to turn when we are shaken and we can direct others to the same Savior. When Satan’s sifting comes into your lives, and it almost certainly will, know that it must come only with Christ’s permission. Know that you are supported by Christ’s prayer. You have seen Christ’s power. Have confidence that he will use all the difficulties of your lives to draw you closer to him and to his Word. Have confidence that he will keep you close to himself forever.