Strengthen Your Brethren

I'd like to begin by reading from the 22nd chapter of Luke, starting at verse 28. You are those who have continued with me in my trials. Jesus is speaking to his disciples at the tail end of the Last Supper.

As my Father appointed a kingdom for me, so do I appoint for you, that you may eat and drink at my table, in my kingdom, and sit on thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. Simon, Simon, behold, Satan demanded to have all of you, that he might sift you all like wheat. But I pray for you, Simon Peter, that your faith may not fail, and when you have turned again, strengthen your brethren.

And he said to him, Lord, I'm ready to go with you to prison and to death. He said, I tell you, Peter, the cock will not crow this day, until you three times deny that you know me. Now, this may seem like a strange passage to read as we approach the Christmas season.

Where are the tidings of great joy, and Simon, Simon, Satan has desired to have all of you, that he might sift you like wheat. But if we look at this passage closely, we can see that really it's one of the most comforting in all Scripture. Here we see Jesus giving Peter a word, which is going to hold him through many a coming storm.

I have prayed for you, Peter, that your faith may not fail. And this word, which Jesus gives to Peter, he also gives to us. I have prayed for you, that your faith may not fail.

We're living in a world very much like Peter's world. It's extremely uncertain. Radical evil pervades the atmosphere.

Satan is very, very real, and we, like Peter, grossly underestimate the enemy and overestimate our own strength. Yet Jesus says to us, you who continue with me in my trials and remain faithful are going to eat at my table, eat and drink at my table, in my kingdom. Satan has desired to have all of you, that he might sift you all like wheat.

And now he points his finger at each one of us and looks us in the eye and says, but I have prayed for you, that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned again, strengthen your brethren. When you begin to experience my strength and power welling up inside you, begin to strengthen your brethren.

Now, why did Jesus single out Peter? I prayed for you, Peter. Was it because Peter was the leader of the group, because he had the most gifts? No. On the contrary, it was because Peter was the most flaky.

I'm ready to go to prison and to death with you, Lord. I tell you, Peter, before the cock crows this day, you're going to deny three times that you know me. Now, if Jesus' prayers for this weak man who denied his Lord could hold him, and they did, his prayers can hold us too.

And so we read in Hebrews chapter seven, starting at verse 23, the former high priests were many in number because they were prevented by death from continuing in office. But Jesus holds his priesthood permanently because he continues forever. Consequently, he is able to save completely those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them.

He always lives to make intercession for those who draw near to God through him. He continuously lives to pray for us. Whatever faith we have at this moment is directly connected with his prayers for us.

You believe in God. You have a vision of Jesus. The life of the Spirit burns inside you because the firstborn of a new creation, Jesus, is lifting your name before the Father's throne.

His prayers are what keep us alive in him. He pleads his blood over your sins, strengthen this child of mine, stabilize this man, steady this woman. Father, I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail, and it won't fail.

Your faith won't fail because I have prayed and am praying for you. And now comes the charge, and when you have turned again, strengthen your brethren. So now, as the prayers of the Lord are answered, and we are turned again, and we begin to experience revival and life and strength coming from him, coming from the Spirit, we then become the answer to his prayers for our brothers and sisters.

We strengthen them. We strengthen our brothers and sisters so that they, too, can fulfill their calling. And we do it in three ways.

We strengthen them by praying for them. We strengthen them by giving them a good word, speaking a living, helpful word. And we strengthen them by working at their side.

First of all, knowing that we are being sustained by the prayers of our Lord, we strengthen the brethren, our brethren, by praying for them. Reading from the fifth chapter of James, the sixteenth verse, Therefore, confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another that you may be healed. We pray for one another, not as potshots at prayer, but rather as sinners.

Confess your sins to one another, who have been washed in the Lamb's blood. And we may fold now, because he has sustained us and is sustaining us with his prayers, to lift them up by name before the Father's throne. And as our prayers go up, and they join the prayers of our Lord for these people, heaven opens.

And the angels of God, ascending and descending upon the Son of Man, bring life into their hearts, and encouragement, and light, and hope, and strength, where you have a fellowship of men and women who seriously pray for each other, there you have strength. Where you have a fellowship of men and women who turn their criticism of each other into prayer for each other, who turn their impatience with each other into prayer for each other, who turn their anxiety for each other into prayer for each other, there you have strength. Every negative thing, every divisive thing is turned into something positive, gloriously powerful in God, through prayer.

I have prayed for you, that your faith may not fail. And now, as you are being strengthened, strengthen your brethren by praying for them. Knowing that we are being sustained by the prayers of our Lord, we strengthen our brethren by giving them a good word.

Colossians chapter 3, verse 16. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, as you teach and admonish one another in all wisdom. Speak to one another, teach and admonish one another, exhort, encourage.

The Lord gives each of us a word for brothers and sisters, and this word becomes, if it's from Him, like a cup of cold water in a hot desert, like a good meal for somebody who's hungry. Sometimes it's a word of encouragement, sometimes it's a word of caution, sometimes it's a call to repentance. Always it's a word that we speak, not vertically, but horizontally.

In other words, we don't speak this word down to them as if we're God and they're our mere creation. But we always carefully, carefully make sure that we speak this word to our sisters and brothers as peers, as equals, as brothers speaking to brothers, sisters to sisters, or whatever. That we're not talking down, always across.

And as our word goes forth, as God's strength, being made perfect in our weakness, goes forth as a word, that strength now renews them in their weakness, and they're restored and they're revived. A word spoken from your lips will absolutely transform somebody's day. A word spoken from your lips will renew their vision, restore their mind, their sanity, give them hope, increase their courage.

A word spoken from you, Lord God, in a world where words are so cheap and so often false, misleading, frightened, demoralizing, give me a living word, a healing word for my sisters and my brothers. And he will. He'll give us such a word, if we are willing to speak it to them, that they may be strengthened.

Knowing that we are being sustained by the prayers of our Lord, we strengthen our brethren by working at their side. When God sent Moses to deliver his people from Egyptian bondage, he did not send him alone. He gave him Aaron, his brother, to help carry the load.

Jesus sent them out two by two. The Spirit said, separate, set apart from me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them. Barnabas and Saul did not go out alone.

They went out together. They worked together. Even our Lord, God, the Son in human flesh, found it essential to gather around him men and women who could help carry the load, carry the burden, bear the weight.

And so we read in Ecclesiastes chapter four, verse nine, two are better than one because they have a good reward for their toil. For if they fall, one will lift up his fellow, but woe to him who is alone when he falls and has not another to lift him up. And though a man might prevail against one who is alone, two will withstand him.

A threefold cord is not quickly broken. There are men and women in the body of Christ who feel very much alone. They feel alone because they're carrying their burden all by themselves.

Because they carry that burden alone, they get weary and they get weak. So the Lord says, the Spirit of the Lord says, draw near to that person, join yourself to that man, to that woman, take hold of the burden with them and work at their side. I have prayed for you that your faith will not fail.

And now you're being strengthened, strengthen your brethren by carrying the load with them. Here's a woman who's been going to the hospital every day to see her sick husband. Months have gone by, she's still at it, she's getting wearied and she's getting discouraged.

Now comes a sister who joins her and she goes with her and she doesn't talk all the time and ram her opinions down this woman's throat and try to somehow get something out of it for herself. But she's just there laboring at her side. She strengthens her sister by her presence.

Here's a man who's just burned out. He's carried the load so long, he's just tired. He quit the journey.

He's sitting by the roadside, staring into space. And you go and you join yourself to that man and you take hold of his burden and you say, come on, let's go. And together you walk along the road and every step he takes with you, he gets new strength from God.

We're gathered here today because we're on our way to a heavenly banquet. This is not home. Thank God.

And this feast of bread and wine, which we are about to eat, is but a tiny foretaste of a glorious feast which lies up ahead. We who continue with our Lord in his trials, bear reproach for his name and remain faithful are not going through all this in vain. We're walking through a world that's crumbling apart on our way to a kingdom which stands forever.

And that kingdom already shines in our midst, but there is an enemy who wants to keep us from making it to the end of our journey. He has demanded to have us that he might sift us like wheat. He stands there watching our stumbling, waiting for his chance to move in for the kill.

And that's literally the reality of this world. And anybody who tells you it's all peaches and cream is lying or terribly deceives himself. This enemy sows seeds of discord among us and waits for our egos to cause those seeds to bear evil fruit.

We would not stand a chance against this enemy. Except for one thing, Jesus points his finger to each one of us, looks us in the eye and says, I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail. And when you are turned again, strengthen your brethren.

Today, we're experiencing afresh the answer to his prayer. Our faith has not failed. It stumbled and bumbled all over the place, but it has not failed.

And we are being refreshed and we are being revived. And now it's time for us to also respond to his command. Strengthen your brethren, strengthen them by praying for them.

By giving them a good word, by working at their side. And you will see the glory of heaven shining in your midst as you press on. Toward the day when you will eat and drink at my table, in my kingdom, let's just wait upon him in silence.