1 ๐ถ๐๐๐๐๐กโ๐๐๐๐ 15:50 ๐๐๐ค ๐กโ๐๐ ๐ผ ๐ ๐๐ฆ, ๐๐๐๐กโ๐๐๐ , ๐๐๐๐ โ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐ก ๐๐โ๐๐๐๐ก ๐กโ๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐บ๐๐, ๐๐๐๐กโ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ข๐๐ก๐๐๐ ๐๐โ๐๐๐๐ก ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ข๐๐ก๐๐๐.
When the Lord said to Peter, โGet behind me, Satan (Matthew 16:23),โ it seemed like Peterโs heart was in the right place; itโs hard to understand that even our good heart needs to die. ๐๐จ ๐ฌ๐๐ซ๐ฏ๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐จ๐ซ๐, ๐จ๐ฎ๐ซ ๐ ๐จ๐จ๐ ๐ก๐๐๐ซ๐ญ, ๐ก๐ฎ๐ฆ๐๐ง ๐๐๐๐จ๐ซ๐ญ, ๐๐ง๐ ๐๐ฏ๐๐ซ๐ฒ ๐ ๐จ๐จ๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐ซ๐จ๐ฆ ๐๐ฅ๐๐ฌ๐ก ๐๐ง๐ ๐๐ฅ๐จ๐จ๐โ๐๐ซ๐จ๐ฆ ๐ฌ๐๐ฅ๐โ๐ง๐๐๐๐ฌ ๐ญ๐จ ๐๐ข๐. Even Peter himself did not see this. After he said โGod be merciful to You, Lord! This shall by no means happen to You (Matthew 16:22)โ out of his good heart, the Lord rebuked Satan in him. That was Peterโs most miserable time in his human life, in his human effort. Peter gave up everything for the Lord, just like many serving ones. The darkest hour in their life is when, even after they seemingly gave everything to the church and to the Lord, they find themselves with nothing and are not accepted by the Lord. That was Peter at that moment.
๐๐ญ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐๐๐ฌ๐ฒ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ ๐๐ญ ๐ฌ๐ญ๐ฎ๐ฆ๐๐ฅ๐๐ ๐๐ฒ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐จ๐ซ๐ ๐ฐ๐ก๐๐ง ๐ฐ๐ ๐ฌ๐๐ซ๐ฏ๐ ๐ข๐ง ๐จ๐ฎ๐ซ ๐ฌ๐๐ฅ๐โ๐จ๐ฎ๐ซ ๐๐ฅ๐๐ฌ๐ก ๐๐ง๐ ๐๐ฅ๐จ๐จ๐โ๐๐ฌ๐ฉ๐๐๐ข๐๐ฅ๐ฅ๐ฒ ๐ข๐ง ๐จ๐ฎ๐ซ ๐ ๐จ๐จ๐ ๐ฌ๐๐ฅ๐. ๐๐๐ญ๐๐ง๐ญ๐ข๐ฆ๐๐ฌ, ๐ฐ๐ ๐๐ซ๐ ๐ฌ๐ญ๐ฎ๐ฆ๐๐ฅ๐๐ ๐ง๐จ๐ญ ๐๐ฒ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐ฅ๐จ๐ฐ ๐ญ๐ก๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ฌ, ๐๐ฎ๐ญ ๐๐ฒ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐ก๐ข๐ ๐ก ๐ญ๐ก๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ฌ, ๐ฅ๐ข๐ค๐ ๐จ๐ฎ๐ซ ๐ค๐ข๐ง๐๐ง๐๐ฌ๐ฌ, ๐ญ๐ก๐๐จ๐ฅ๐จ๐ ๐ฒ, ๐จ๐ซ ๐ข๐ง๐ญ๐๐ฅ๐ฅ๐๐๐ญ. Actually, there are no high things or low things in the Lordโs eyes. It is we who create that sense of better and worse, good and bad. The self, no matter good or bad, is the root behind the striving and jealousyโand even the fornication, persecution, rebelliousness and divisionโin the church in Corinth. Although the church in Corinth was initiated from a highly educated culture and highly philosophical society, Paul was dealing with a group of people who committed very low sins. Sin oftentimes is camouflaged by philosophy and morality, political exercise, and even religious commentaryโopinions about what Christ is supposed to be, what the church is supposed to be, and what Christians are supposed to be.
It is true that Peter loved the Lord wholeheartedly, but why was his love not accepted? Because ๐ฅ๐จ๐ฏ๐ ๐๐ซ๐จ๐ฆ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐ฅ๐๐ฌ๐ก ๐๐ง๐ ๐๐ฅ๐จ๐จ๐ ๐ก๐๐ฌ ๐ง๐จ ๐ซ๐๐๐ฅ๐ข๐ญ๐ฒ; ๐จ๐ง๐ฅ๐ฒ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐ข๐ฏ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ฌ๐ฎ๐๐ฌ๐ญ๐๐ง๐๐ ๐ ๐ข๐ฏ๐๐ฌ ๐ฒ๐จ๐ฎ ๐ซ๐๐๐ฅ๐ข๐ญ๐ฒ. In the Bible, gold typifies the divine nature of God. Without gold, human life is driven by ambitions, lusts, desires, good heart and fear. Only when the hollow human life is replaced by the gold, or the divine elements, are we acceptable to the Lord. This replacement was accomplished by the Lord when His death ended flesh on the cross, and the process still goes on everyday when we allow the cross to be effective on our flesh. No matter how good, our good heart, high mind and even our human love are not enough to make us acceptable to Him; it is still from our flesh and blood. Yet Paul tells us, โthey who are of Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and its lustsโ (Galatians 5:24). Through Christ becoming the life-giving Spirit, we may be joined to Him to be made one with Him. Since, in Him, we are no longer living by flesh and blood and since only a life by the Spirit is qualified, the key today is very clear: โIf we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spiritโ (Galatians 5:25).
(Above are notes of fellowship taken from a gathering 05/17/2020, not reviewed by the speaker.)