Good Word from Bible Heritage Church...... The Gift of Sifting" (Luke 22:31-32) Jesus made a profound statement recorded in the gospel of Luke chapter 22. In verse 31 He said, “Simon, Simon! Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren.”Here are several observations.· Jesus indicates that a conversation has taken place in the heavenlies over the soul of Peter. In fact, the devil himself has asked permission to ‘sift’ Peter. (Similar conversation over Job in OT)· Jesus uses the analogy of ‘sifting’ to describe the intentions of the enemy. Sifting was not a very gentle process. It involved threshing in which wheat would be placed on a hard floor and many times oxen would then be used to trample on the wheat in order to release the grain from the pods. The pile that was left after the threshing was then placed on a winnowing fan and forcefully thrown into the air. The wind would blow away the chaff and the heavier kernels of grain would fall to the ground. Once this had taken place, the remaining grain would then be placed in what is called a sieve just before it would be put into sacks. This sieve covered with netting was then turned upside down and shaken violently. The grit and dirt fell through the netting until only the grain kernels remained.· Jesus prayed for Peter. But notice what he prayed for. He prayed that his ‘faith would not fail.’· Notice that Jesus DID NOTpray that there would be NOsifting.· I find it also interesting that Satan’s target was one of Christ’s inner circle. In other words, Satan targeted leadership. His strategy: take out the officers and the rest will surrender.· I also find the timing of Satan’s sifting interesting. Satan is very strategic. This sifting comes shortly after Peter has just been given the divine revelation of who Christ is. It is upon this revelation that Christ said He would build His church.· Christ is giving Peter a heads up as to the coming sifting.· He also seems to briefly indicate to Peter that he will fail but will return to Christ. (failure and restoration)· Then after the sifting Peter is to strengthen the brethren. How does this apply to me? · Satan is a roaring lion walking about seeking whom he may devour. He would love nothing more than to get the leaders of Christ’s church to question their faith and therefore cause their passion to wane and their witness to be ineffective. · God will allow times of sifting in our lives. The Bible teaches us there are many times when we must walk through valleys. (Psalm 23)· Many times I feel as if I am being sifted. It seems that my life is being trampled on, thrown into the wind, turned upside down and shaken violently. It is in those times that I am often tempted to give up, quit, and throw in the towel.· Again, perspective is important. What the enemy means for harm, God uses to establish His kingdom purposes in our lives. The enemy intends the sifting to be a death blow to our faith. God allows the sifting to be a purifier of our flesh and a builder of our faith.· Only in the sifting can that which is useless be separated from that which can be used. And one way for us to realize what we are made of is to be tested. You see, testing is not so much that God is trying to find out something, but that He is trying to show us something about us and Himself.· While times of sifting are inevitable, we have the assurance that our Savior has prayed for us. The term ‘you’ in verse 32 is plural in the Greek language. This indicates that not only did Jesus pray for Peter, but He has prayed for all of us who are His disciples.· Jesus has petitioned the Father for the needed strength for us that we might endure to the end.
Posted on: Wed, 04 Sep 2013 01:23:52 +0000
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