THE SIFTING part 1

          THE SIFTING

And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat: But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren.   And he said unto him, Lord, I am ready to go with thee, both into prison, and to death. And he said, I tell thee, Peter, the cock shall not crow this day, before that thou shalt thrice deny that thou knowest me (Lk.22:31-34).

We see here that Jesus is revealing something to Peter that he doesn't yet know. Namely that Satan has a desire to have Peter and to sift him. We see here that Jesus takes it as a given that the access has been granted because He goes on immediately to talk about how Peter should respond after he is converted.

After he is converted...What?! I thought that Peter was converted already! He was hand picked and chosen by Jesus Himself. He traveled with Him throughout the countryside witnessing the many miracles and hearing all His teachings on the kingdom Of God. He was even on of the three chosen to be with Jesus on the mount of transfiguration and saw Him transformed in glowing brightness. He was on of the three named the sons of thunder.

Yet. AND YET, he wasn't converted. He wasn't turned, he wasn't changed, and he wasn't really made anything new from the inside. How could this be?

We also see Peter in this verse declaring that he will never forsake the Lord; that he would even follow Jesus to prison or to the grave. He really had a love for his Lord. When he was asked by Jesus "who do you say that I am", he was the one that got it right by saying that Jesus was the Son of God (Matt. 16:16).

So, how can it be that this one that had the revelation of Jesus as the Son of God still not be converted? What is this conversion? Aren't we converted and saved when we accept this revelation of Jesus as the son of God, as our Savior?

We will see in this study that true conversion comes after the falling away from your Lord. AFTER and only after you have come to know Jesus and have walked away are you able to be truly converted. Yes this is a divine process of God that all of His called out servants must go through.

Let me ask you...Do you, like Peter, love Jesus? Have you, like Peter heard His words spoken through the many messages of countless preachers declaring the Kingdom of God? Have you had the revelation, like Peter, that Jesus is the Son of God? Then, Satan has desired to sift you as wheat.

The sifting of wheat is not a bad thing, but is necessary to separate the wheat from the chaff, the edible from the waste. Jesus prophesied (prophecy always lines up with the will of God) this process over Peter and gave him instructions of what to do after the process was completed.   What?!!

Was it God's will that Peter be sifted by satan? How could a good God allow Peter to go through such a thing? And yet, through the prophetic knowledge of Jesus Christ we can see that Satan only has power to bring forth God's will in His called, chosen servants. We can see that the assignment given to satan to sift Peter was known, allowed and necessary in the plan of God for His called and chosen vessel.

       GOD’S SOVEREIGNTY OVER EVIL

Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan came also among them.   And the LORD said unto Satan, Whence comest thou? Then Satan answered the LORD, and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it. And the LORD said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil?(Job 1:6-8).

We can see here that satan wasn't even thinking about Job. He was only talking about walking up and down in the earth. It was God that pointed Job out to Satan! Get this; God brought the attention of Satan to focus on Job. God basically challenges satan to consider the uprightness of Job.

Then Satan answered the LORD, and said, Doth Job fear God for nought?   Hast not thou made a hedge about him, and about his house, and about all that he hath on every side? thou hast blessed the work of his hands, and his substance is increased in the land. But put forth thine hand now, and touch all that he hath, and he will curse thee to thy face (Job 1:9-11).

Satan then retorts in response to God that Job is indeed blessed, and that there is a hedge around him, but, challenges God to put forth His "hand' and touch all that Job has and that he would deny Him.

And the LORD said unto Satan, Behold, all that he hath is in thy power; only upon himself put not forth thine hand. So Satan went forth from the presence of the LORD (Job 1:12).

Then, God grants Satan the permission and the power over everything that Job has.

Tell me....was it God that put forth His "hand" to touch Job or was it the devil? It was both! (Job 1:9-12).   God uses the devil to perform His will in sifting His servants. The devil was created perfectly as God intended and can only perform exactly what God intends and allows.

The devil has no ability to operate on his own and is deceived to think so (And it is deception to think that the devil can ever attack us without God knowing it...in fact, true conversion starts here - when we recognize the true nature and character of God and how he operates as the SOVEREIGN RULER of the universe).

And so the sifting trial of Job goes on and through that trial he is taught to trust in God. God's nature is revealed to him in his broken state. God pointed Job out, satan desired to sift him as wheat and the access was granted. Satan was used to bring about God's will in blessing Job with more in the end than he had in the beginning.

So the LORD blessed the latter end of Job more than his beginning: for he had fourteen thousand sheep, and six thousand camels, and a thousand yoke of oxen, and a thousand she asses (Job 42:12).

We can say that Job was truly converted during this experience. He was truly humbled and broken before His Maker. He received revelation of God's sovereignty and His mercy. He understood God's judgments and God's blessing. He learned that He was no match for the power of God and learned to submit himself to God whether He gives or takes away. He was truly sifted by the Devil in accordance with the will of God. (Job 1:21)

                    GOD CREATED EVIL

Behold, I have created the smith that bloweth the coals in the fire, and that bringeth forth an instrument for his work; and I have created the waster to destroy. No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and their righteousness is of me, saith the LORD (Isa. 54:16-17).

I am the LORD, and there is none else, there is no God beside me: I girded thee, though thou hast not known me: That they may know from the rising of the sun, and from the west, that there is none beside me. I am the LORD, and there is none else. I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the LORD do all these things (Isa. 45:5-7).

Looking at these verses we can clearly see that God is the one that creates evil and all of the instruments of judgment in the earth. He is SOVEREIGN! He has power over all and He specifically created the devil to test and sift His servants...Why?

Does this allowing of the devil to sift God's servants then make Him evil?? The answer is NO. Evil must submit to the purpose of God bringing many sons unto glory. If God created evil with no purpose, then He wouldn’t be righteous. But God created evil to fulfill a very specific, yet temporary purpose in time.

JESUS PERFECTED BY SUFFERING     EVIL

For it became him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings (Heb. 2:10).

Jesus was perfected by His experience of evil. Evil was necessary for Him to fulfill the will of God. He was perfected through the things which he suffered. He understood the authority of His Father as SOVEREIGN.

If evil isn’t the will and way that God perfects His servants, then why did Jesus submit to it? Why didn’t He defend Himself righteously and destroy it? Jesus had knowledge. Jesus was wise, and He understood the temporary need for evil in the plan of God and so submitted to evil as coming straight from the Hand of the Father.

Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: (Isa. 53:10a).   Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered;   And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him;(Heb. 5:8-9)

         THE KNOWLEDGE OF THE LORD

From that time forth began Jesus to shew unto his disciples, how that he must go unto Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised again the third day.   Then Peter took him, and began to rebuke him, saying, Be it far from thee, Lord: this shall not be unto thee. But he turned, and said unto Peter, Get thee behind me, Satan: thou art an offence unto me: for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but those that be of men (Matt. 16:21-23).

Jesus understood the will of the Father; that He would have to suffer and die in order to be glorified, raised from the dead. He understood the sovereignty of the Father and He loved His Fathers’ ways more than the ways of man. He did not try to avoid evil, but faced it head on because He knew the righteous character of God.
…by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities (Isa. 53:11b).

And yet, here a few verses after Jesus said that Peter was blessed with the revelation of Him as the Son of God and gave him great authority with the keys of the Kingdom (Matt.16:16-20), this same Peter is seen trying to rebuke the Lord and convince Him not to go to the cross.

Trying to convince Him that He doesn’t need to suffer evil and be crucified. Trying to convince Him that the suffering of evil isn’t the will of God; that evil couldn’t possibly be useful, but was to be avoided. Peter didn’t understand the sovereignty of God or God’s purpose like Jesus did! Jesus called Peter an offense to Him because he didn’t know, understand or love the ways of the Father.

         DO YOU KNOW JESUS’ FATHER ?

Let me ask you…. have you, like Peter received the revelation of Jesus as the Son of God? Do you really understand His ways? Or are you an offense to Him? Sometimes we can spend much time resisting the very the very sifting test that the Father God sent our way to promote us; not knowing that He is SOVEREIGN and uses evil to perfect us in Jesus Christ.

Is the god (little g on purpose) in most North American "churches" the God of the Bible?

Volumes have been written on the goodness of God and the 'badness' of the devil.   Often it is taught in such a way so as to leave the impression that God and the devil oppose each other as equals on the same playing field. It is taught that God is good and never does anything 'evil', including cause pain. It is taught that suffering, pain and evil have no purpose in the plan of God, and all the devil wants to do is cause you pain and misery (which isn’t God’s will).

If we were to take this view of God we would have to admit, after looking at all of the pain, misery and evil around us, that God must not be very powerful, or He must not be a very loving Father to let this human tragedy to continue. NO! NO! NO! The God of the Bible is Almighty! The devil is not His equal!! And God does have a purpose for all pain, suffering and evil on this planet.

Unlike the North American 'church', the Bible does not make excuses for God's authority and Sovereignty in creating evil. Many try to take the responsibility off of God, not really even understanding His purpose and will in Jesus Christ.

SEEK THE TRUTH OF THE LIVING GOD

The True and Living God is intimately involved with everything and everyone on a level that the human mind cannot grasp, but that He will reveal to your spirit if you have ears to hear. He does this through his Word.

For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts (Isa. 55:8-9).

Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you:(1Pet. 4:12)

Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time:(1Pet. 5:6).

Forasmuch then as Christ hath suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves likewise with the same mind: for he that hath suffered in the flesh hath ceased from sin (1Pet. 4:1);

But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you (1Pet. 5:10).

Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered (Heb. 5:8); (this is the second time repeating this verse in this chapter…must be very important huh?)

Although Jesus is the Son of God, He had to learn obedience through the things which he suffered. The obedience of Jesus was based on an understanding of the character and nature of the Father as the SOVEREIGN RULER of the universe and understanding His plan and allowance for evil and suffering. In this knowledge He could fully submit to evil and declare   Thou couldest have no power at all against me, except it were given thee from above: therefore he that delivered me unto thee hath the greater sin (Jn. 19:11).

Thus the very evil that the people were doing in crucifying Him is exactly what fulfilled the will of God.

But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory: Which none of the princes of this world knew: for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory (1Cor. 2:7-8).

Notice that none of the princes of this world understood the wisdom of God in this. To all outward appearances it looked like Jesus was defeated. It looked as if evil had won the battle and triumphed over the Life of God’s Son. All of His disciples fled and denied Him. He was left alone, and yet He wasn't alone because the Father was with Him.

Again, God is the ABSOLUTE SOVEREIGN RULER of the universe and the devil cannot do anything that God Himself doesn't know about and ordain. Evil is actually How God brings His purpose into manifestation. Wow!! Did you hear that??

                  CONCLUSION PART 1

So, we see here that Peter was in a place where he declared that he wouldn't deny the Lord; and yet he did. He denied Him and fell away. He had to be sifted by the devil. No matter how much he loved Jesus and wanted to stick by Him, it was ordained that Jesus be left alone to suffer for the sins of the whole world. And Jesus knew and prophesied that Peter would deny Him. Jesus knew Peter better than he knew himself.

Before conversion, which starts with an accurate understanding of the character and nature of God as sovereign, Peter is found resisting the will of God and asserting the false belief that he could walk with Jesus and never deny Him. Peter was wrong. No matter how good his intentions were.

This very process of denying the Lord was necessary, as we shall see in section 2, for Peter to be in the place of true conversion.



QUESTIONS worth asking:
Do we boldly proclaim in our zeal that we will never deny Jesus? Do we try to resist evil, not knowing that it was specifically sent by God to sift us so that we can become useful? Are we really converted, understanding the character and nature of the Father and His plan; or are we just full of religious knowledge?   May God grant us grace to see Him as he is and not after the traditions and doctrine of men!

But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him (Jn. 4:23).