Jesus told Peter that he was going to be sifted. Peter did not understand it at the time, but Jesus knew what Peter needed to be ready for the leadership role that he was going to take on. He had to be sifted before he was ready for the work Jesus had for him.
And the Lord said, “Simon, Simon! Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren. But he said to Him, “Lord, I am ready to go with You, both to prison and to death.”
Then He said, “I tell you, Peter, the rooster shall not crow this day before you will deny three times that you know Me.” Luke 22:31-34
Since Jesus declared that Peter was going to get sifted as wheat, let’s find out about this process. Why does wheat get sifted and what does the process look like? According to the below article, sifting wheat is a two-step process: The first is manual threshing, and the second is winnowing.
Threshing: The first step in the process of sifting wheat is to loosen the chaff from the edible grain, which is called threshing. The old-fashioned way to do this is to spread the wheat onto a floor made from stone, concrete, or tamped earth, and to beat it with a flail.
Winnowing: The next step is called winnowing, where the loosened chaff is removed from the grain. The old-fashioned way of doing this was to throw the grain in the air, the lighter chaff would be blown off by even a decent breeze. The heavier grains would fall back to the ground below where they were thrown. From: How Do Farmers Sift Wheat? | eHow.com
The wheat gets sifted, so the hard outer shell can be broken through and removed. You want the actual wheat to remain and nothing extra. As you can imagine, that’s the same process a person has to go through. God breaks down the outer shell of a person, so the real seed of life can remain.
Peter’s sifting came in an unexpected way. He had such self-confidence that he didn’t think anything could move or shake him. This man was not a fearful man. He was a confrontational man, and he even declared that he was willing to die for Jesus. He was also very sure of his love for Jesus. Satan came to attack the place of Peter’s greatest strength, which was his self-confidence, and God allowed it to happen. While much of Peter’s natural strength would be threshed by the trial, there remained a kernel of true faith and love in Peter’s heart. Peter may have felt like a pebble after the sifting was completed, but He was spiritually much stronger than ever before because the outer shell of self-confidence and pride was broken off of him.
When Jesus was arrested, many left him because they feared persecution, but Peter followed where Jesus was taken. That’s who Peter was and that was right down his personality alley!! What he hadn’t anticipated was that in a matter of minutes his greatest strength would be tested. When asked if he knew Jesus, fear set in. The man, who was cutting off the soldier’s ear just a few hours ago, now could not even admit he knew Jesus. The giant had turned into a grasshopper! The lion had turned into a sheep!! But you see Jesus had given permission to the enemy to do this to Peter.
Jesus knew that before Peter could shepherd His flock, Peter needed a good understanding of what it meant to be a sheep. God was developing something in Peter that he didn’t possess before. All his life he had ridden on his confrontational strength to get the job done!! He was rough, he was abrasive, and he was impulsive! However, the work Jesus had for him while it certainly had a confrontational dimension, also required humility, gentleness, dependency on the Lord, and an understanding of human frailty.
Peter’s love for Jesus was another element of sifting for him. He could not believe himself denying the one he loved. How could he be such a coward!? He probably thought he disappointed Jesus and that Jesus made a mistake by picking him. If Jesus thought Peter was a courageous go-getter this would have completely shattered that idea in Jesus’ mind. Peter must have thought, “I’m not any good for Jesus. Why would he want cowards to be his disciples and leaders?” Jesus knew Peter better than Peter knew himself. You see Peter was surprised by his denial of Jesus, but Jesus wasn’t surprised! Jesus had already told him that Peter was going to deny him three times before the rooster crowed.
Jesus knew if you were going to be His leader, you must understand your true nature! A mature person knows their limitations. They don’t act impulsively and presumptuously. They don’t have self-confidence but God-confidence. This needed to be shifted in Peter. This was the sifting that Peter went through. The bad news was that Peter thought it was all over. He just going to go back to fishing. At least he knew how to do that well even if his heart was not in it anymore.
The good news is that Jesus not only did not give up on Peter, but He also saw the process as the very thing Peter needed to become a powerful shepherd in His kingdom. Now Peter was prepared and ready. Now the keys of the kingdom could be trusted to a man who didn’t think too highly of himself. His flesh was not going to get the best of him. Now pride had been broken and the enemy could not have a field day with him as he had many times in the past.
Peter went through a very painful process. If you are in a process with God that is difficult and makes you feel like giving up, please don’t! In difficult times, we can easily entertain the idea that I am not qualified to do God’s work. We are surprised by what we see in ourselves. The key is, to recognize that Jesus is not surprised. Praise God for showing you that it is not because of your qualifications that He picked you. One must know their true nature and learn not to depend on it when dealing with God’s work. The Lord by His gracious hand has to allow for our natural strength to be weakened, so we can truly have room for his supernatural strength to take over our lives!! Praise God for His process!! Just hang on to Jesus. He will see you through!
Image by CANDICE CANDICE from Pixabay
This was awesome and broken down very well!
Awesome!!! God works great with broken pieces!
Praise God! Thank you Terry!
This is a true and powerful reminder. Thank you!
Praise God! Thanks for sharing. I’m glad you were blessed.
Praise God! Thank you for allowing God to use you. I pray others will read your article and understand that God is only sifting us to have us become more powerful shepherds in His kingdom. By doing so, the devil can no longer have a field day with us like he has in the past.
Amen! Praise God!Thank you.
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https://knowhisways.com/.
I am so Thankful that GOD directed me to this page. It has really Blessed me. Thank You!
Praise God! Thanks for sharing.
So blessed for the revelation that God as provided and your willingness to share it. I join so many others in sayingraduation, Thank you and to God be the glory for the liberty that I know possess. God bless you!
God bless you! Thanks for sharing.
Amen. This definitely hit a nerve…Praise GOD!!!Thank you for the process.
Praise God! Thanks for sharing.
This was an awesome revelation of this scripture. Thank you for your submission to hearing the Holy Spirit and sharing with the people. May God continue to bless you in your ministry.
Praise God!Thank you for sharing. I appreciate the encouragement.
I’ve been going through a sifting a long time. Jesus is teaching me that nothing good comes from my will, nothing! Yet, when the enemy rages, it is Christ in me, and me in him that matters. 1 John 4:13 .
May we willingly allow Christ full access within, that His power be useable from us.
I certainly want to be absorbed by the person of Jesus.
Sifting brings forth the, “bread” of life. Christ will make bread from our sifting; the good stuff with which there is no coin valuable enough to purchase.
Amen Cynthia. Thanks for sharing.
Hello.
I ran across this article today 8/14/2018. I too am an author and am writing my second book. God had me talking about Luke 22 and I needed more clarity on how wheat is sifted or the purpose of it. My grandmother was a baker but uses an old fashioned sifter for her baking needs. because of this publication, I’m able to help my readers understand the sifting process. Thank you for such a wonderful read.
Praise God! Thanks for sharing.It’s my pleasure and honor to share God’s Word.
An awesome explanation! I appreciate it and am thankful for your post. It goes along with what I am teaching in our Discipleship Class, Power To Become The Sons of God. Blessings on you!
Praise God! Thanks for sharing.
Even at 2021 this is still Awesome! Thank you for this post I’m going through the sifting process right now and I promise I wont give up
Praise God! Thanks for sharing.
This is so beautiful and enlightening for me. I am 61 yrs. old and at the age of about 20… the asst. pastor called me out during a Wednesday night bible study and quoited this passage of scriptue to me. I researched over the years up until tonight … about the process of sifting BC., …. I am so grateful for seeing the pride mirror that was brought out in the area of Simon Peter’s life, it hit home for me. I remember when I heard the Spirit of the Lord, saying unto me…. ” it’s not about how much you love me… but about how I first LOVED YOU”, …. my worship and responce now is… I love you back LORD!!! Thank you for FIRST LOVING ME!!!
Praise God!That’s a very good insight!
Thanks for sharing Denise.
When I am weak, then am I strong!
Awesome piece. Thank you and God bless you
Praise God! Thanks for sharing. I’m glad it blessed you.
This was an awesome read! Yes I have been surprised about what I have been finding out about myself! God is so wonderful. God knows us better than we know ourselves! With your permission would love to share and use this to reach for Adult Bible Study.
May the Lord continue to use you for His Glory!!
Praise God! It is all for His glory. Feel free to share the message with others and help others grow in the Kingdom of God!
Wow! 2023 July 5, 3:21am EST. What a blessing this God sent Word has been to me. I I have heard this word or passage of scripture mostly taught with such negative connotations. However, you brought out the highs and the lows. My heart leaps for joy knowing that the reason for being sifted is not all bad but it’s for my good and for the glory of God. He knows how much pressure to apply and when to apply the pressure in each one of our lives. This teaching helps me to trust God even the more. Thank you Great Woman of God for allowing God to use you. May God continue to use you and to richly bless you and your family.
Ursula
Praise God! I’m glad that this message blessed you.
Amen! Thanks for sharing Ursula.
Blessings
Thank you for this word! This was a God moment for me. I was praying and I heard God say, “Satan has come to sift you as wheat.” I felt an urgency to look up the process of sifting wheat. I found your article and I believe God used it to reveal some things I’ve been going through. Thank you for being obedient to write it. It appears you wrote this in 2014, according to responses above and look how God has used it even in 2023. God’s blessings on you. Keep writing for Him!
Praise God! Thanks for sharing Rhonda. That’s very encouraging.
The Lord is doing something and He will see you through it.
Blessings