Peter got into a mess when he went into an area
controlled by a son of Belial. He was taken down, but in time, he fully
recovered. Peter was trying to see what was happening with Jesus after the
officials bound him and took him to the high priest, Caiaphas. Peter followed
them to the gates of the inner circle of Caiaphas’ servants. Caiaphas was a
devout follower of Satan. He was a son of Belial, determined to get rid of Jesus
in whatever devilish way Satan would reveal to him.
One of Jesus’ disciples already knew the high priest
and was not affected by him or his evil ways, so he was able to go into the
palace where they took Jesus. Only people with a special anointing from the
Lord can be in this position and survive. Most Christians, including the great
apostle Peter, weren’t among them.
“Peter was standing outside at the door” (John 18:16).
Right at that point, Peter should have turned around and left. But he didn’t;
that one action led him down a path that nearly destroyed him.
A woman kept guard at the door. Peter’s friend talked
to her, and she opened the door for Peter to come into the palace courtyard,
where the evil priest’s servants congregated. Peter knew he was going into
enemy territory, and he hadn’t prepared himself. But there he was inside the
gates.
“Then the servant girl who kept the door said to
Peter, ‘You are not one of this man’s disciples, are you?’” He panicked and
answered wrongly, something I think we’ve all done under stress. “I am not” is
what he said (v. 17). The influence of the son of Belial was already getting to
him, and he denied being a follower of Jesus.
Then Peter sidled up to the fire and sat down among
the followers of Caiaphas, probably trying to mix in and be anonymous. But we
are never anonymous when it comes to demons. They know who we are, and Peter
was now in a spiritual trap.
Peter had no business being there. The influence of
that SOB started to wear him down quickly. Someone else asked Peter if he’d
been with Jesus and he denied Jesus the second time. The third denial—the final
blow and most important for our understanding—is when one of the high priest’s
servants, a relative of the one whose ear Peter cut off, said, “Did I not see
you with him in the garden?” (v. 26). By this time, it’s almost like Peter was
under a horrible spell. His head just wasn’t right, and he denied his Lord
again. But there’s something more to this third accusation.
The accuser used the
phrase: “I saw you in the garden.” “Garden” refers to the earth, and here it’s
connected with the physical, cultural, and spiritual influence of where Peter
grew up. It’s where the Girgashites lived in Old Testament times and the
Gadarenes in the New Testament. It wasn’t a well-thought-of area.
The guy was telling Peter
to get back to the slum he came from. He was telling Peter he was a failure and
wasn’t worthy of being an evangelist for Jesus; he was just a fraud and he
ought to admit it and get back to the only thing he was good at—fishing. And
Peter listened. His confidence as a believer was annihilated. After all, he
knew he hadn’t stood up for Jesus even after he was given three chances to
speak the truth. His guilt was overwhelming.
A little background on
Girgashites and Gadarenes will help us to see the bigger picture here. The word
“Girgashite” means “clay dweller.” Girgashites and Gadarenes focus on things
that are visible, natural things they can see. The Gadarenes who came from the
Girgashites were pig herders. It’s said that it’s physically impossible for
pigs to look up at the sky. (Somebody who knows more about pigs than I do will
have to confirm that).
The spiritual aspect of
Girgashites is that they only believe what they can physically see, and they
lead people away from focusing on heavenly things, eternal things, things more
substantial than what’s in front of their cute little noses.
When Jesus healed the
Gadarene man in Matthew 8, the demons went into the pigs and they ran off the
cliffs and drowned in the waters below. Drowned animals in the Bible were
called an abomination because they died without shedding their blood. “The life
is in the blood” (Lev. 17:11). This Girgashite/Gadarene spirit is still in the
world today, causing good, wonderful people to drown before they’re able to
succeed and flourish in life like they want to.
Sons of Belial who’ve
risen to the top of businesses, universities, government agencies, and other
areas of life are crushing the lifeblood out of good Christians and sending
them back to the spiritual slums of living like the Gadarenes, in the tombs, in
empty places where they hide or have little influence.
Jesus found Peter as a practical
fisherman carrying out the traditional Girgashite way. More than once, we hear
Peter say, after a long night fishing: “We caught nothing.” But when Jesus sent
him out, “He and all his companions were completely astounded at the catch of
fish which they had taken” (Luke 5:9).
Jesus broke him away from the narrow-mindedness of the
Gadarene/Girgashite spirit. He called him out to be a
bold evangelist, a “fisher of men” (Luke 5:1-11).
But when Peter got into
the presence of those who served a demonic ruler, he crashed hard. The
influence of the evil son of Belial priest was too much for him. The demons
worked on him with words and accusations to the point Peter could no longer see
himself as the Lord saw him. Peter was deflated. He lost all his confidence in
a very short time.
Then when the rooster
crowed, Peter realized how low he had sunk—he’d denied his Lord Jesus and that
ruined him.
Matthew 26:75 says: “And
Peter remembered the [prophetic] words of Jesus when he had said, ‘Before a rooster crows, you will deny me three times.’ And he went outside and wept bitterly
[in repentance].”
Most of the Christians
I’ve seen who’ve been too close to a son of Belial have gone the same way as
Peter. They’ve been demoralized, cut down, abused, falsely accused, their
confidence ripped from them. Some were threatened with jail time. Instead of
being the gregarious social leader, they shrink back to only a few close
friends or family members. Instead of reaching outward, they go inward and lack
the energy they once had.
It’s totally
understandable. They are not alone. Look at Peter again. He was a weakened man.
After Jesus’ crucifiction, Peter still hung out with the disciples, but it
wasn’t the same. One of the saddest scriptures I know comes during this time.
Jesus was raised from the dead and reappeared on earth to check on his
disciples. Were they preaching the gospel to all nations? Healing? Casting out
demons? Nope. They were back up in the area of the Girgashites.
A sad man, “Simon Peter
said to them, ‘I am going fishing.’ They said, “And we are coming with you.” So,
they went out and got into the boat; and they caught nothing” (John 21:3).
THANK GOD THE STORY
DOESN’T STOP THERE!
Even though Peter had 40
days with Jesus, that didn’t instantly restore the gregarious and bold Peter we
once knew. There was only one event after the Son of Belial destruction, that
saved Peter and got him back to his right mind.
Jesus told the disciples to
get up out of the land of the Gadarenes and go to Jerusalem, and they did it.
They obeyed. They went.
The big change came. Jesus told them: “Ye shall receive power, after that the
Holy Spirit is come upon you” (Acts 1:8). “Power” here is the Greek word “dunamis.” It’s a root word of dynamite.
It explodes miracles, giving us the ability to think the right things about
ourselves and the world around us. Dynamite from the Lord strengthens our
character, to make the right choices. The disciples with Peter allowed the
dynamite of God to ignite their lives; we can too.
From watching Peter up to
this point, we can see that he needed some dynamite—we all do. Anyone attacked
by sons of Belial needs to be restored to a place of being filled with the
miracle power of Jesus. God’s Spirit on the inside becomes like dynamite and explodes
marvelously, filling a person with power and love and brightness that
overflows. It’s the only thing that rescues people from drowning like the poor
harmless Gadarene pigs.
Acts 2 tells us the
disciples were together, and they were expecting the freeing power to permeate
and charge them. It did. “And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and
began to speak with other tongues” (v. 4). Speaking in tongues is one Biblical
evidence that a person has Holy Spirit power in them. When we read a little
further to verse 14, we see that the real Peter is back!! Peter stood up and
lifted his voice and belted out with boldness about the true power of the Holy
Spirit. He was experiencing it, and he never lost his confidence again.
I know a couple of
Christians who have regained their vitality and vigor after being attacked by a
son of Belial. They recovered themselves the same way Peter did. They obeyed
the Lord even though they were downtrodden. They asked the Lord to light up
their “dunamis” dynamite once again,
and now their light shines brightly.
If you or someone you
love has been affected by sons of Belial, and they have not recovered yet,
please be compassionate and understanding. Pray for them, that they have the
willingness to continue to follow and look to Jesus so they will receive the dunamis they need and deserve.
Love, Carolyn
No comments:
Post a Comment