Peter

Sermon Topic: The Danger of Self Reliance
Speaker: Alistair Begg
Text: Mark 14

Why did the Hebrew people celebrate the Passover feast?

What did Jesus mean when he said ““This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many”? What connection was he making between himself and the feast that was being celebrated?

What are we to make of the fact that God “did not spare his own son”? (Romans 8:32) Was Jesus a victim? (John 10:18)

Is it possible to read and hear the word of God and not be effected by it?

Do you believe it is possible that you could fall away from Christ? The disciples abandoned Jesus during his time of crisis, are you better than them? How did Peter respond when Jesus told him that Peter would fall way? What is the danger of pride and presumption in regard to our commitment to Christ? (Mark 14:27, 31, 50)

Alistair Begg points out six lessons to take away from this historical event; can you name any of them?

Lesson 1
Proverbs 18:18 “Pride goes before destruction,a haughty spirit before a fall.” Proverbs 28:26 “Those who trust in themselves are fools, but those who walk in wisdom are kept safe.”

Lesson 2
Our hearts are far more wicked than we ever know. (Jeremiah 17:9)

Lesson 3
We need to learn to take Christ at his word and submit ourselves to what he has said.

Lesson 4
Be alert to the way we may influence others.

Lesson 5
There is a reminder in this for us to be gracious in our dealings with each other.

Lesson 6
We learn, as this story unfolds, that failure with God is never final.

Do you need to take heed to one of these lessons? Where do you fit into this story? Where are you at in your daily walk with Christ?

How can you rest in the security of the preservation of God? What role does repentance and faith play in the security that is found in Christ?

Last October during our church’s missions festival we had a guest pastor in from Russia with whom we have been working. His name was Peter. Well that is what I called him, but every time I turned around someone else seemed to be calling him a somewhat different version of “Peter.” I asked him why people around here, who have known him for much longer than I have, seem to call him by so many different names. However, communication was difficult, so he just said for me to call him whatever I wanted. I did not understand.

Maybe now I do.

In The Penguin Classic Baby Name Book, Grace Hamlin writes regarding Russian names;

It’s difficult to keep the names straight in a sprawling novel like Tolstoy’s Anna Karenina even without the added unfamiliarity of Russian names. Compounding the problem is the Russian system of using a first name and a patronymic. Most confusing of all is the fact that Russians are constantly playing with names, creating a string of nicknames from a mere pair of syllables. Finally, a Russian character in high society is likely to bear a French name, owing to the aristocratic affection for Western European habits.

The combination of first name and patronymic is used politely, by acquaintances, so upon meeting someone named Pyotr Ivanovich Lupachkin one might address him as “Pyotr Ivanovich.” (Not all translator render name thus, however.) In a ballroom, he might be know as “Pierre.” And his family might call him, variously, Petya, Petrushka, Petr, or Petinka.

After reading that, I better understand why my Russian friend Peter might be known by so many variations of his name. However, I now feel impoverished because my own family only refers to me by two names, “Kevin” and “Hey, you.”

The Danger of Self Reliance – Alistair Begg

Simon Says, "Just Call Me Peter"

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