The Fruit of Prayer
In today’s passage (Luk 22:28-34), Jesus predicted Peter’s denial but if we read the text closely, we see that Jesus was not rebuking Peter. Rather, He was praying for him. So then, we must ask: Was Peter the fruit of Jesus’ prayer?
- Peter’s Denial
Jesus had already seen that Peter would be caught by Satan’s temptation, fall into deep despair, and that his faith would be severely shaken. That’s why Jesus warned Peter in advance and urged him to keep his faith. However, Peter ultimately failed, committing the serious mistake of denying Jesus for three times (Matt 26:69-75).
Despite his faith being so shaken, why didn’t Peter heed Jesus’ warning? It was because Peter was over-confident in himself. He trusted in his own strength too much and was unable to perceive his true spiritual condition. He made a bold claim that he kept saying, “I will go with you to prison and even to death”-a promise he could not fulfil (Luke 22:33).
Beloved, when a promise is not kept, it becomes a lie. Peter may not have intended to lie, but in the end, he became someone who lied to Jesus. All of these stemmed from overconfidence in himself-his own faith and spiritual state.
Our senior pastor once explained Peter’s condition as having committed the sin of ceasing to pray. If Peter had continued living a life of prayer, he would have remained humble. If he had maintained a prayerful life, he would have listened to Jesus’ words and examined himself. But he didn’t. Peter had stopped relying on God, choosing instead to rely on himself (1 Sam 12:23).
Beloved, when we separate the grain from the chaff, we use a winnowing fork. The heavy grain falls back into the sieve, while the light chaff is blown away by the wind. But if the harvest was poor that year and the kernels are light, we become concerned: What if even the grain gets blown away by the wind? (Matt 3:12)
This is exactly what Jesus is feeling as He looks at Peter. Peter should have been heavy grain that falls safely into the sieve. But because he stopped praying, he became light-so light that he looked like he might be blown away by the wind. That’s why Jesus warns him-to keep him from being carried away like the chaff.
Dear Saints, what is our condition today? It has been 13 years since we began our journey of faith at TLCC. Are we thinking, “By now, my faith is strong. It’s not easy to find someone with greater faith than mine?” Are we perhaps committing the sins of ceasing to pray? Let us not place our trust in the length of our faith journey or our past experience. Let us instead remain humble before God, always praying, understanding the heart and the will of God, and standing firm against the temptation of Satan. I bless you in the name of the Lord that we would become such people.
- The Prayer of Jesus
When we examine today’s passage more deeply, we realize that it is not merely about Jesus predicting Peter’s denial. Rather, it reveals that Jesus was praying for Peter so that his faith would not fail.
- Jesus Prays that Peter’s Faith May Not Fail (Luke 22:32)
Peter was Jesus’ lead disciple. If Peter were to fall away and deny Jesus, wouldn’t the remaining eleven disciples follow suit? That is why Jesus offered a special prayer, asking that Peter’s faith would not fail.
Peter went through a deeply difficult time. How great must the pressure have been for Jesus’ closest disciple to deny Him? But the important thing is this: Peter was not alone in that moment. Jesus was with him-supporting him in prayer.
The Bible tells us that Jesus is still interceding for us today (Rom 8:34). That means He is walking with us every step of the way. The footprints we see on our path of our lives are not ours-they belong to Jesus, to the Father.
If Jesus is on our side, if the Father is with us, then no matter how hard things get, we can rise again. We can give and invest all that we are into God-because He is with us (Rom 8:31).
- Jesus Prays that Peter would Rise Again (Luke 22:32)
If Peter had fallen completely, like Judas Iscariot, there would have been no way back. So Jesus prayed that even if Peter fell, he would recover-that he would rise again, stronger than before, renewed.
Our Lord Jesus prays for us to return, even when we make mistakes. When the prodigal son returned, while he was still far off, the father ran out to meet him (Luke 15:20). Let us also return. However, when we repent, there is one thing we must bear in mind: we must be prepared for our sins to be exposed. We must be ready for discipline. Even the prodigal son realized: “It would be better to return and to be scolded by my father than to stay here and perish.” (Luke 15:17-18). That is when true repentance begins.
When we come before God, all our sins are revealed. True repentance is saying, “Even if I’m humiliated before others, I will remain beside God.” And when the prodigal son truly repented, he was restored to his rightful place as a son (Proverbs 6:23). So I pray in the name of the Lord that through true repentance, you and I will be restored as sons and daughters of the Father.
Conclusion: Jesus Prayed that Peter Would Become a Strong Leader (Luke 22:32)
Jesus was looking at Peter- who was drifting away-and praying that he would repent, return, and become a strong leader in the church. Jesus prayed that Peter would become a worker for the Lord, a caretaker of the church, and a shepherd of brothers and sisters.
And indeed, after Peter’s repentance and the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, Peter became an astonishing evangelist-bringing three thousand souls to repentance with one sermon (Acts 2:38-41).
Dear brothers and sisters, could God use us to lead three thousand people to repentance? If He did it 2,000 years ago, why wouldn’t He do it again today? They key is not whether you can do it. They key is that this is the prayer of Jesus Christ.
Today’s title is “The Fruit of Prayer.” Yes, we must pray and bear fruit through our own prayers. But more importantly, we are to become the fruit of Jesus Christ’s prayer (Luke 22:31-32)
The Lord's Covenant Church Malaysia 