1. The Flesh Is Weak, But Failure Is Not Final

Mark 14:37-38

“And he cometh, and findeth them sleeping, and saith unto Peter, Simon, sleepest thou? couldest not thou watch one hour?

Watch ye and pray, lest ye enter into temptation. The spirit truly is ready, but the flesh is weak.”

The disciples loved Jesus.

Their spirit was willing.

Their intentions were good.

But their flesh was weak.

This describes every one of us.

Sometimes we fail God.

Sometimes we fail ourselves.

Sometimes we fail others.

The enemy wants us to believe that one failure means we are finished.

But Scripture teaches otherwise.

A person may fail many times and still not be a failure.

Someone wisely said:

“A man may fail many times, but he is never a failure until he begins blaming someone else.”

The weakness of many people is that they get stuck in a rut.

Someone described a rut as:

“A grave with both ends knocked out.”

People become trapped by yesterday’s mistakes.

They relive old failures until they stop moving forward.

Yet God never intended His people to live in the cemetery of yesterday.

1. God Calls Us To Rise Above Past Failures

When Jesus came the third time, He said:

Mark 14:41-42

“And he cometh the third time, and saith unto them, Sleep on now, and take your rest: it is enough, the hour is come; behold, the Son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners.

Rise up, let us go; lo, he that betrayeth me is at hand.”

Notice the contrast.

“Sleep on.”

Then:

“Rise up.”

As far as helping Jesus in the garden, the opportunity was gone.

That moment had passed.

But another moment was arriving.

The future still awaited them.

Many people allow a past mistake to destroy their future usefulness.

Yet failure does not have to be final.

Someone said:

“The successful man lengthens his stride when he discovers the signpost has deceived him; the failure looks for a place to sit down.”

Another said:

“Most failures begin in failure to try.”

And Henry Ford famously observed:

“Failure is only the opportunity to begin again, more intelligently.”

God is not looking for perfect people.

God is looking for people who will get back up.

The Bible is full of people who failed:

• Abraham lied.
• Moses lost his temper.
• David sinned.
• Jonah ran from God.
• Peter denied Christ.

Yet God used them because they rose again.

III. Replacing Ruts with Trenches of Truth

Many people remain trapped by past failures because they continue thinking the same thoughts that led them there.

Someone once asked:

“What is the difference between a trench and a rut?”

• A rut is unintentionally created.
• A rut has no real purpose.
• A rut eventually requires repair.

But a trench is different.

• A trench is intentionally dug.
• A trench has a specific purpose.
• A trench is created to deliver a needed resource and solve a problem.

Someone else wisely said:

“A rut is simply a grave with both ends knocked out.”

Many people live in mental and spiritual ruts.

They continually replay old mistakes.

They rehearse past failures.

They believe lies about themselves, their future, and even about God.

Eventually those thoughts become pathways in the mind.

The good news is that God has given us a way to replace those ruts with trenches of truth.

Instead of continually rehearsing failure, we must intentionally dig new pathways through the Word of God.

We must find God’s promises, memorize them, write them down, meditate upon them, speak them, and believe them until they become part of who we are.

The battlefield is often the mind.

The enemy says:

• “You’ll never change.”
• “You’ve failed too many times.”
• “God can’t use you.”
• “Your best days are behind you.”

But God’s Word says otherwise.

The question is:

What ruts do you need to replace with trenches of truth?

Consider some of these powerful truths from Scripture:

Confidence in God’s Keeping Power

2 Timothy 1:12

“For the which cause I also suffer these things: nevertheless I am not ashamed: for I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day.”

Paul did not say, “I know everything.”

He said, “I know whom I have believed.”

Our confidence is not in ourselves but in Christ.

Victory Over Fear

2 Timothy 1:7

“For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.”

Fear creates ruts.

Faith digs trenches.

God has given us power, love, and a sound mind.

Confidence in Difficult Times

Psalm 112:6-8

“Surely he shall not be moved for ever: the righteous shall be in everlasting remembrance.

He shall not be afraid of evil tidings: his heart is fixed, trusting in the Lord.

His heart is established, he shall not be afraid, until he see his desire upon his enemies.”

When our heart is fixed on God, we are not controlled by bad news or fearful circumstances.

God Is Able

Daniel 3:17

“If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king.”

The three Hebrew men refused to allow fear to determine their future.

They dug a trench of faith and declared:

“Our God is able.”

Think on Truth

Philippians 4:8

“Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.”

What we continually think about eventually shapes what we become.

God tells us to deliberately focus on truth.

Strength for Every Challenge

Philippians 4:13

“I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.”

When the enemy says, “You can’t,” God’s Word says, “You can through Christ.”

God’s Provision

Philippians 4:19

“But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.”

Our future is not dependent upon our resources but upon God’s resources.

Fresh Mercies Every Morning

Lamentations 3:22-23

“It is of the Lord’s mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not.

They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.”

What a beautiful promise for those struggling with past failures.

God does not offer recycled mercy.

His mercies are new every morning.

Every sunrise is God’s reminder that yesterday does not have to define today.

Application

The disciples had fallen asleep in Gethsemane.

Peter would soon deny the Lord three times.

Yet Jesus did not leave them trapped in their failure.

He simply said:

“Rise up, let us go.”

The way we rise up is by replacing the ruts of fear, shame, regret, and unbelief with trenches filled with God’s truth.

If we continually think failure, we will live defeated.

If we continually think God’s promises, we will walk in victory.

The future belongs to those who intentionally dig trenches of truth in their hearts and minds.

 

 

 

III. Nature Preaches the Sermon of Renewal

God has filled creation with reminders that failure is not the end.

Fruit Trees

Every year fruit trees appear dormant.

Branches become bare.

Leaves fall.

They seem lifeless.

Yet every spring they bloom again and bear fruit.

The Human Body

Scientists tell us that many cells in the body are continually renewed.

God designed life itself around the principle of renewal.

The Water Cycle

Water evaporates, forms clouds, falls as rain, nourishes the earth, and begins the cycle again.

God continually demonstrates that renewal is His idea.

No wonder Paul wrote:

2 Corinthians 4:16

“For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day.”

Notice:

Not yearly.

Not monthly.

Not occasionally.

Day by day.

Every sunrise brings another opportunity for spiritual renewal.

1. The Prodigal Son Chose To Rise Up

One of the greatest examples of recovery from failure is the Prodigal Son.

Luke 15:16-18

“And he would fain have filled his belly with the husks that the swine did eat: and no man gave unto him.

And when he came to himself, he said, How many hired servants of my father’s have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger!

I will arise and go to my father, and will say unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and before thee.”

The turning point was not when his circumstances changed.

The turning point came when he said:

“I will arise.”

Many people have been destroyed, not because they sinned, but because they never arose from their sin.

Many have believed the lie that there was no way back.

But God’s mercy always leaves a road home.

The prodigal’s victory began the moment he got up.

Likewise, our victory begins when we stop living in yesterday and start moving toward God again.

1. Forgetting What Is Behind

The Apostle Paul understood this principle.

Philippians 3:13-14

“Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before,

I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.”

Paul had plenty of reasons to dwell on the past.

He had persecuted the church.

He had imprisoned believers.

He had consented to Stephen’s death.

Yet he refused to become trapped by yesterday.

Instead, he reached forward.

Notice the language:

• Forgetting
• Reaching
• Pressing

All three are forward-moving actions.

You cannot drive effectively while staring into the rearview mirror.

Neither can you live for God while constantly looking backward.

God’s grace is always calling us forward.

1. We Become Too Earthbound