Matthew 16:21-28 - From then on Jesus began to point out to his disciples that it was necessary for him to go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders, chief priests, and scribes, be killed, and be raised the third day.  Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, “Oh no, Lord! This will never happen to you!” Jesus turned and told Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me because you’re not thinking about God’s concerns^[b] but human concerns.”

Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If anyone wants to follow after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life because of me will find it.  For what will it benefit someone if he gains the whole world yet loses his life? Or what will anyone give in exchange for his life?  For the Son of Man is going to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will reward each according to what he has done.  Truly I tell you, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.”

Romans 8:31-39 - What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? As it is written: “For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.” No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Within 24 hours, Peter made some huge mistakes. He didn't stay up to pray as Jesus requested. He cut off the ear of a temple servant. He denied he knew Jesus three times. Like Peter we make big mistakes, but Jesus desires to restore us, not destroy us.

We all have ups and downs as we walk with Jesus. In this message, we look at two moments in the life of Peter where he seemed to have it all together and then, just a few short verses later, he messed up. The question when these inevitable events happen in our walk is do we get back up again when we fall?