Failure: Forgiveness Overcomes Failure

Focus Passage:  John 21:15-22

Facing failure of guilt, we need some forgiveness and hope. We are haunted by a mistake that we made that has changed our life. It is the infidelity that resulted in divorce. The angry words to our boss that got us fired. The car or home that has put us deeply in debt. How do you undo the past and rebuild the future? The answer is Jesus. You can’t undo the sins of the past by yourself. They will always haunt you even if you manage to get your life back together. Only Jesus can help us to forgive ourselves and move forward. Know that you are not alone. Even the apostle Peter had a guilt that weighed heavily on him. As he sits around the fire days after Easter, seeing Jesus was bittersweet. He was glad to see Jesus, but Peter had a burden. He had denied his Lord He wondered if he could be forgiven and if there was really hope for someone who had fallen like he had. This is a story of restoration for Peter and for us.

The first element of hope is God’s love. (v.15) We can never whitewash the truth to take away guilt. We can never control the things in our world so that we feel comfortable. Hope comes when we see the depth of God’s love. Peter saw that Jesus still loved him. Peter knew that he could never do enough to undo denying the Lord. He had hope because he realized that Jesus loved him in spite of what he had done. If you want to have hope, look to Christ. Hope comes when you feel in your heart that Jesus loves you and that he will do anything to help you in the future. You cannot control the future, but He can. You cannot fully prepare for the future, but He can handle whatever comes. Hope comes as we hope and trust in His love for us not in ourselves.

The second element of hope is God’s purpose. (v.15) Peter is told three times to go and feed God’s lambs and sheep. He is restored as a disciple so that he can spread the hope to others. He will care for others across Asia Minor and into Rome. Others will have hope because Peter will share the hope that he has in Jesus. Hope is not yours to keep. It is yours to give. Hope is yours to give to your children. It is yours to give to others in your church and your workplace and your family. Others around you are locked in guilt as well. Most people have things that they wish they could undo in life. Jesus is the answer to their guilt as well. We have hope because God is good and we need to share that hope with others. God has a plan for their future and ours.

The third element of hope is surrender to God. (v.18) Why do we trust the retirement banker who we know makes mistakes and not trust Christ? Why do we trust the doctor or the idiot on Television and not trust the Lord? If you want hope, you surrender to God and let him tell you what will work. Sometimes what He tells you defies logic. In the text, He tells Peter that Peter will be crucified. It is something that Peter mentions years later in the book of 2 Peter and happens in Rome in about AD 66. Sounds bad, but it will cap a wonderful life with the Lord. You can’t control your money or your health. You can’t control the direction of our country or the schools that your kids go to. Somethings you just have to surrender to the Lord confident that God will make the most of our lives and bring us joy.

The fourth element is to trust God’s plan for you (v.21). Don’t get trapped in the comparison trap. It will rob you of hope. Peter finds out he will die and wants to know about John. Here is the beloved disciple. Here is the only disciple that came to the cross while all the others hid in fear or betrayed the Lord like Peter. Does he get a better deal, Lord? What about him? Like children we are always comparing our jobs, our children, and our property. We want to know why someone seems to be doing better than we are. If you want hope, don’t compare. You will see all the good things that happen to people and miss all the hardships that they face. Just be glad about all that the Lord has brought to your life.

Jesus gives an invitation to hope. So how do you thrive when your world has fallen apart? You accept Jesus’ invitation to hope. Here is Peter’s call renewed. He was forgiven. He would serve the Lord again. Jesus would lead and Peter would follow. The future had a purpose and direction. Ask yourself how your life has been different because you have followed Jesus. What are the joys that have come because you surrendered to him? Take time to make a list of the blessings that have come because you have felt his love. Hope springs from Jesus. He can forgive the past because of his cross and rebuild our futures. What is impossible for us can be easily done by Him. Feel His love. Claim the forgiveness that He offers you and the promises that He has made in scripture concerning your future. Let Him exchange your guilt and failure for forgiveness and hope.