Amen. Thank you, Brother Charles. So I'm going to apologize now for my voice. I'm a little bit froggy today. I'm not entirely sure what all is going on. But that's all right. Amen. And ready to look into God's word together. Here in Luke 22. Though we are only a couple of days chronologically from Palm Sunday. The day that Jesus presented himself as Messiah to the city. That day that the people came out and waved palm branches crying, Hosanna, Hosanna to the Son of David. Blessed is he that comes in the name of the Lord. Just a couple of days from then. Just a couple of days from when the kids sang his praises. Just a couple of days chronologically. from those moments, those moments when it felt like the good times were never going to end. And yet by the time we come to today's passage, those moments feel as though they may as well be a million miles away. Jesus had been betrayed by Judas, one of his own. And Jesus now faces several kangaroo courts on his way to assassination by execution on the next afternoon when he would be hung on a cross to bear the sins of the world. I want to note this morning as we get started that being a disciple of Christ compels us to follow Jesus at all times. That's what being a disciple is. It is being a follower. And so that means if I am a disciple of Christ, I need to follow him on Palm Sunday. When the sun is shining, when the people are cheering, when everything seems great, I need to follow him. That also means I need to follow Him when it's a dark night. When the people come out not with palm branches and praises, but with swords and spears. Being a disciple means that I need to follow Jesus at all times. And yet what we find in the passage today is that upon Jesus' arrest, all of His followers scattered. They all ran and hid. Yet apparently two of them, Peter and John, had a sort of change of heart and followed soon thereafter. And so Peter becomes the focal point of our passage today because we see this of Peter. That he followed Jesus, yes, but that he followed Jesus afar off. That's a dangerous place to be. Now let's learn some things from the example of Peter this morning. Look with me at verses 54 and 55 as we get started. The Bible says, Then they took, or arrested, they him, Jesus, and led him and brought him into the high priest's house. And Peter followed afar off. And when they had kindled a fire in the midst of the hall, and were sat down together, Peter sat down among them. I want you to notice number one this morning, a distance relationship. A distance relationship. Now, let's be honest, Peter's kind of easy to rag on, is he not? I mean, Peter was the dude that took his eyes off of Jesus and saw the winds and the waves and began to sink. Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. That was Peter. Poor, pitiful Peter. Shame, shame. Peter was the one that Jesus had to look at and say, get thee behind me, Satan. I mean, what kind of knucklehead do you have to be for Jesus to look at you and say, get thee behind me, not you carnal man, not you silly man, not you ignorant man, but get thee behind me, Satan. Peter, come on. You know what we also find about Peter? We find that when the people showed up to arrest Jesus, that Peter, for a moment, decided to fight. He whipped out his sword and he cut off the ear of the high priest's servant. Now, here's the thing, folks. He wasn't aiming for the ear. Peter's just a plain bad shot, I guess. I mean, I can't rag too hard. There's a reason I'm not on the church security team, right? I think everybody would be safe but the person I was aiming at. Peter, Peter, Peter. He's easy to rag on. But you know, sometimes I think in overlooking or in ragging on Peter, we overlook many of the positives of Peter. You know, Peter was the one that fell into the water, but Peter was also the one that walked on water. And so other than the Lord Jesus Christ, Peter was the only one who had the faith to get out of the boat. Yeah, Jesus told Peter, get thee behind me, Satan. But Peter was the one that had the boldness to profess, thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. That was Peter. Peter had that boldness and that insight to make that profession. Yeah, we can rag on Peter for being a bad shot, but praise the Lord, Peter was the one willing to take out his sword and do something. Peter's easy to rag on, but I think sometimes we overlook the positives of Peter. We see where Peter is. Peter is following afar off. Peter, Peter, Peter, Peter, Peter. And we look down our sanctified noses at him. You know, it's easy to make some assumptions about why he ended up where he was. And some of these assumptions probably bear some merit. You know, perhaps Peter was scared. I mean, they did come out in the dead of night with swords and spears and a whole troop to arrest Jesus. Perhaps Peter was a little bit scared. And so he decided that, I'll be there, but he followed afar off. Perhaps Peter was discouraged. You go back and you look at what Peter did, John 18, verses 10 and 11. The Bible says this, and Simon Peter, having a sword, drew it, and he smote the ear of the high priest's servant and cut off his right ear, and that servant's name was Malchus. And Jesus said unto Peter, put up thy sword and thy sheath, the cup which my father hath given me, shall I not drink it? So I want you to put yourself in Peter's shoes. You tried to fight for Jesus and Jesus said, no, no, no, no, no. We're not doing it this way. And so perhaps Peter was a little bit discouraged. He had tried, he had put himself out there and Jesus in that moment had let him know that is not how we're doing this, had shut him down. Perhaps Peter was just confused and disheartened because this was not how he expected things to go. You go back to Matthew 16 and we find that as Jesus began to show his disciples how he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things of the elders and chief priests and scribes and be killed and raised again the third day. Look at Peter's response in verse 22. And Peter took him and began to rebuke him saying, Be it far from thee, Lord, this shall not be unto thee. Perhaps in these moments everything Peter had thought would be was coming undone. You ever been there? Everything you thought would be seems to be fraying and falling apart. Oh, it's easy to look down our sanctified noses at Peter and wag our finger, but Peter was probably scared. He was probably discouraged. He was probably confused and disheartened. And I think all of that's important to note here for this reason. I don't think this distanced relationship, this following afar off, I do not believe that this was something that Peter intended to happen. Peter was a leader. Peter was bold, courageous. He was passionate. Peter's desire was to be close to Jesus. In Luke 22 and verse 23, this is just hours before, and he said unto him, Peter said unto him, Lord, I am ready to go with thee, both into prison, and to death. You see, Peter's desire was to be with the Lord, no matter what that meant. I don't believe Peter's desire was to find himself following afar off. Yet often, a distanced relationship with Christ is not our intent, but it happens. And it sometimes can happen more quickly than we can even imagine. See, being a disciple or being a disciple or a follower of Jesus is a matter of relationship. And here's the thing about relationships. Relationships are dynamic. That means they are ever-changing. That means I am either growing closer in my relationships or I am growing further apart in my relationships, but relationships are dynamic. If you've ever, your husband or your wife or your boyfriend, girlfriend, significant other, you know this to be true, how relationships are dynamic and they can change rapidly. Give you an example. You ever been out on a really nice date, date night, whatever, just having a good time? Couldn't be better. And then somebody says something. Oh, you know the buttons, right? You know exactly where they are. I'll give you an example. In my house, Yeah, I ain't doing that. You see, it can go from real good to real bad real quick. Because relationships are dynamic. And Christian, my relationship with Christ is no different. I am either growing closer to Christ or I am growing farther from him. What is the goal? The goal is clear. I want to grow in my relationship with Jesus. I want to be closer to Jesus today than I was yesterday. I want to be more like Jesus today than I was yesterday. I want to have more of his heart, more of his perception, more of his values, more of his love today than I had yesterday. That's the goal. But sometimes I have to be honest because it's just not the case. As much as I want that to be the case, sometimes I have to be honest enough to recognize that I am following what I have started following afar off. Perhaps it's fear. Fear of giving in, fear of surrender, fear I'm confessing a sin and getting it right. Perhaps it's discouraged and disheartened. You know, sometimes life punches us in the face. And we get discouraged and we get disheartened. And we transfer that to our relationship with the Lord. Sometimes I'm confused. Sometimes it's because I've developed an appetite for something else. But I have to be honest enough to look at my life and recognize those times where I am following a far off, when I am not where I should be with the Lord Jesus Christ. I probably didn't even intend for it to happen, and yet it happens, does it not? We all find ourselves in those seasons and in those places. But Peter teaches us something about that, that the problem is, is a distance relationship can lead to some dangerous ramifications. Look what happened for Peter. Verse 55, and when they had kindled a fire in the midst of the hall and were sat down together, Peter sat down among them. But a certain maid, a little girl, beheld him as he sat by the fire and earnestly looked upon him and said, This man was also with him. In other words, she's saying this is one of Jesus's guys. And Peter denied Jesus, saying, woman, I know not the man. And after a little while, another saw him and said, thou art also of them. And Peter said, man, I am not. And about the space of one hour, after another confidently affirmed, saying of a truth, this fellow also was with him, for he is a Galilean. And Peter said, man, I know not what thou sayest. And immediately, while he yet spake, the cock, or the rooster, crew. You see, it started with distance. but it ended with denial. You see, it started with maybe some caution, but it ended with what we'll find later, it ended with cursing. You see, the problem with following afar off is that following Jesus afar off does not produce the results that either we or God desire for our lives. A distance relationship produces some dangerous ramifications. I want you to note here that it changed Peter's crowd. Peter went from hanging with the Lord, hanging with the disciples, hanging with believers, to hanging out with the enemy. He walked in among them. He stood around among them. And when they kindled the fire, he sat there among them. By the way, that progression mirrors the warning we see in Psalms 1. The Bible says, Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. But Peter here changed his crowd. He walked in with them, stood with them, sat with them. One of the ramifications of following Jesus so far off is you will find your associations among those who are far from Christ. I want you to just consider that logically. When you choose to follow far off, you will find your associations among those who are far from Christ. And Christian, your crowd is a big deal. Paul said this in 1 Corinthians 15, 33, be not deceived, evil communications or evil associations corrupt good manners. Proverbs 13 and verse 20 tells us likewise that he that walketh with wise men shall be wise, but a companion of fools shall be destroyed. By the way, Christian, I think we can use this as kind of a reverse diagnostic tool. Look at your crowd. And that'll tell you a lot about how closely you're following Christ. I'm not saying that we don't have friends and associations among those who don't know Christ. Obviously we need to do that because we want to win people, amen? We want to be a light. We want to be a good influence. But I should not be at home more among the world than I am among God's people. It changed Peter's crowd. but even more destructive, it changed Peter's conduct. You see, Peter went from confessing Christ to cursing. Matthew 26 gives us a little more insight into this scenario. The Bible says, And after a while came unto him that stood by and said to Peter, Surely thou art also one of them, for thy speech bereath thee. Now you sound like one of Jesus' followers. By the way, your speech is a pretty good indicator of what's in your heart. Jesus said, out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaketh. And so if there's garbage in here, guess what's going to come out here? You say, well, I didn't mean it. Well, you know, that's not really me. No, if it's coming out of your mouth on a regular basis, it is you. It is you. So they looked at Peter and said, no, no, no, you talk like one of his guys, you talk like one of them. Then began Peter to curse and swear, saying, I know not the man. It changed Peter's crowd, it changed Peter's conduct. He went from confessing Christ to cursing over him. He went from great courage, I'm gonna pull my sword out, I'm gonna lop some heads off. He went from great courage to great cowardice. You remember the first person to question Peter? It was a little maid. It was a little servant girl. Big bad Peter, with his sword drawn, now cowers in front of a little servant girl. But what happens? We find ourselves following afar off. it becomes very easy to bow to pressure. It becomes very easy to grow conformed to this world. Well, you're not one of those Christians that really believes the whole Bible, are you? Well, you know, anytime you have to start by defending your faith with, well, you know, you're off on the wrong foot. You're not one of those Christians that really believes the Bible, are you? Yes, I am. You're not one of those Christians who literally believes everything in this book, are you? Well, rightly interpreted, yes, I do. Do you really believe that Jesus is the only way to heaven? Yes, I do. Oh, but it's so easy. And there's so much pressure. They call it political correctness, but it has become a weapon whereby the world is seeking to force people to bow the knee to wickedness. I think we must... in our own hearts and in our church clarify what Christian character and courage mean. You know, following Jesus still means that we are to stand for Christ and be ready to give an answer everywhere we go, no matter the cost. You say, well, preacher, if I really do that, I might end up in front of HR. And you might. You say, preacher, well, if I really do that, some of my family members might not like me or accept me anymore. And they might not. You say, well, preacher, if I do that, this whole world's gonna think I'm weird. And they absolutely will. Now let me clarify. I'm not talking about jerks for Jesus. All right? I'll say it over and over and over again. If you are a member of the Jerks for Jesus Club, stop it. Stop it. Resign your position in that club and get right with God. Because you're not a jerk for Jesus and following Jesus like you ought. You're not. You're not. So this doesn't mean be a jerk for Jesus. This also doesn't mean to be a knucklehead over non-essentials. I'm going to choose my words carefully. There are hills that we ought to be willing to die on. And we need to be clear on what those are. There is such a thing still as Christian liberty. There is such a thing still as difference in perspective and difference in preferences, and that does exist. You know, far too often the church has done what the Bible tells us not to do, and we bite and devour one another over things that really don't amount to anything when it's all said and done. So I'm not talking about being a jerk for Jesus. I'm not talking about being a knucklehead over non-essentials. I'm talking about being courageously clear on Jesus and what it means to follow him. If you do that, yes, you will have to live in a way that is counter-cultural, and you will have to live in a way that is peculiar and is different. You will stand out. It changed Peter's crowd, it changed Peter's conduct, how far Peter had gone. Earlier in that night in the upper room when Peter said, I am ready to go with you even to prison and even to death. I don't think Peter could have even imagined a scenario where literally just a couple of hours later he would be cursing over the name of Jesus. And yet what happens? The dangerous ramifications of following afar off is that it becomes a progressive spiral farther and farther and farther and farther away from where we should be. If you're anything like me, there have been times in your life when you have looked up and you're not even sure how you got there. People do things they never dreamed they would do. Say things they never dreamed they would say. Go places they never dreamed they would go. Watch things they never dreamed they would watch. Take things they never dreamed they would take. And very often, people follow afar off. They put on a brave face. Nobody in the Sunday morning crowd would know there's anything wrong. But in reality, there is a heartbreaking reality going on in their heart. We see a distanced relationship. We see dangerous ramifications. But I want you to see thirdly this morning, the desired restoration. The Bible says this. In Luke 22, it'd help if I kept my Bible on the right page, wouldn't it? Look at verse 60. And Peter said, remember this is the time he begins to curse and swear. He said, I know not what thou sayest. And immediately, while he had spake, the rooster crew. And the Lord turned and looked on Peter. And Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how he had said unto him before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice. And Peter went out and wept bitterly. You know, Peter knew that where he was wasn't right. And Peter knew in his heart that the things that he had done were incredibly wrong. And Peter was confronted in that moment, oddly enough, by a rooster and a look. I want to note this morning that we ought to praise God. That when we find ourselves drifting from Christ, when we find ourselves following afar off, that Jesus loves us too much to just let us go. We ought to be so thankful that we have a heavenly Father who is willing to correct and call back His children. I love this. If you don't get anything else from this, get this. Peter might have lost sight of the plot. Peter might have lost sight of what was happening. Peter might have lost sight of Jesus. But Jesus had never lost sight of Peter. And I want you to see the grace, love, and mercy of Jesus in this whole process. Because you see, verse 62, what a sad verse. And Peter went out and wept bitterly. What a sad verse. What a heartbreaking thing. But praise God, that's not the end of Peter's story. I want you to know that before Peter ever fell, Jesus had prepared Peter for this. In Luke 22, verses 31 and 32, Jesus said this. He said, Simon, Simon, Peter, Peter, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat. He said, Peter, Satan's coming after you. He said, but I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not. And when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren. I want you to note here as devastating as Peter's mistake was, as devastating as following afar off was, that Peter's failure was not a surprise to Jesus. And that Jesus loved him before, during, and after. Jesus had prepared for this moment earlier. I want you to note too that Jesus, He died on the cross, three days later He rose again. I want you to see what the resurrected Savior does. Mark 16 in verse number 7. The Bible says this, Jesus talking to the ladies. He says, but go your way. The angel, sorry, talking to the ladies. But go your way. Tell his disciples, next two words with me, and Peter that he goeth before you into Galilee and ye shall there, shall ye see him as he said unto you. The resurrected Savior singled out Peter. the disciples and Peter. Not only did Jesus prepare for this and that Peter's failure was not a surprise, the resurrected Savior sought Peter. Why? Because failure does not have to be fatal. It does not have to be final. And finally, in the book of John, we see Jesus restores Peter. The Bible says in John 21 verse 14, he said, now this is the third time that Jesus showed himself to his disciples after that he was risen from the dead. And when they had dined, Jesus saith unto Simon Peter, Simon, son of Jonas, do you love me, Peter? Do you love me, Peter, more than these fish? Do you love me, Peter, more than the things of the world? And Peter saith unto him, Yea, Lord, thou knowest that I love thee. And he saith unto him, Feed my lambs. Yes, on that night, Peter went out and wept bitterly. But Peter's failure wasn't a surprise. In spite of his failure, Peter was sought. In spite of his failure, Jesus restores Peter and gives Peter a job to do, feed my lambs. Because not only does this failure not have to be fatal or final, failure doesn't have to define us. I want you to notice that Peter wavered. Peter wavered. In Luke 22, Peter followed afar off. He denied, he denied, he denied. Peter wavered with Jesus, but Jesus never wavered with Peter. Peter had moved away from Jesus, but Jesus loved Peter and longed for restoration. This morning the reality is that all of us at times find ourselves in places where we are far off. And no doubt today that perhaps even many under the sound of my voice, you feel, you know in your heart, you have a brave face this morning, but in your heart you know that you are far from God today. I want you to know this morning you may have lost sight of Him, but He has never lost sight of you. Your falter, your failure was not a surprise to Him. Psalm 103 reminds us that He knoweth our frame. He remembers that we are dust. He has made provision for us, 1 John 1 verse 9, if we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. He has sought you, Luke 15 verse 4 and verse 7, what man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he lose one of them, doth not he leave the ninety and nine in the wilderness and go after that which is lost until he find it? And I say unto you that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just persons which need no repentance. He, as the good shepherd, has sought you. He loves you. 1 John 4, 19 reminds us that we love him only because he first loved us. If you're far from God this morning, he desires to restore you. He never left, and He's never given up on you. I think Luke 15 provides the most beautiful illustration of this. The prodigal son, a young man who disrespected his father in unimaginable ways, took his father's good and went to the far country and wasted it. with wicked men and prostitutes, he found himself in a pig pen, eating the husks with the pigs that his digestive system could never handle. This gaunt, sick, unclean child came to himself. And he said, I will arise and go to my father, and I will say unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven and before thee. And I am no more worthy to be called thy son. Make me as one of thy hired servants. Probably a pretty reasonable thing to say for someone who's done what he has done. The Bible says, though, and he arose and came to his father, but when he was a great way off, His father saw him and had compassion and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him and kissed him and kissed him and kissed him. And the son said unto the father, I have sinned against heaven and thy side. I'm no more worthy to be called thy son. The father cuts him off. He says, bring forth the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his hand and shoes on his feet. He said, and bring hither the fatted calf and kill it. Let us eat and be merry, for my son was dead and is alive again. He was lost and is found, and they began to be merry. Go back up, if you would, to verse 22. Verse 21. Verse 20, we'll get there eventually. He arose and came to his father. But when he was yet a great way off, his father saw him. How'd that happen? How'd that happen? The son had been gone a long time. The son had done terrible things. How was it that when he was yet a great way off that the father saw him? How was it that the father saw him before the other servants did? How was it that the father saw him before the other townspeople did? Who probably would have stoned him with stones for what he did. It was that bad. How is it that the father saw him? I believe with all my heart it's because he was looking for him. You know what, this morning you might know in the depths of your heart I'm not where I should be. I'm gonna tell you the wonderful news is that the Father in heaven is looking, waiting, desiring that you come home. James 4 verse 8 reminds us that if we draw nigh to God, He will draw nigh to us. Peter got a look that day, but the look this morning is simply that still small voice in your heart. Christian, I want you to know you may be following afar off, but you don't have to stay that way one minute more. Be honest about it. Maybe it's the fear of giving in, the fear of surrender. Maybe you've been discouraged or disheartened. Life has punched you in the face. Maybe you've just confused. You feel alone. Maybe you've developed an appetite for something else and you know that you have been chasing something else and not Jesus. Maybe you're far off and you don't even know exactly how you got there. Just be honest about it. Draw nigh to God. He will draw nigh. to you because I believe with all my heart that the Father is looking, waiting, hoping that His children will come home. This morning, if you're here and you've never received Jesus as your Savior, I want you to know this, you were born far from God because you were born in sin. sinner by birth and sinner by choice, you were born far from God. But here's the beautiful thing. He crossed a distance you couldn't cross. He paid a debt you couldn't pay. He died on a cross, was buried and rose again. And I want you to know Jesus did everything possible for your soul to be right with God. This morning, if you're not saved, you don't know what it means to be born again, to receive Jesus as your Savior, come today. Let us have somebody take God's Word and show you what it means to be able to put your faith in Christ alone, wherever you are, whatever your need. We don't have to be far off.