Cold Weather Christians
Cold Weather Christians
Text: John 18:18
Theme: What to do when you get cold in your walk and fellowship with Jesus Christ
records a simple statement that carries deep spiritual significance: “for it was cold.” On the night of Jesus’ arrest, the temperature in Jerusalem likely dipped into the 30s or 40s—a physical chill that mirrored the spiritual condition of Peter’s heart. Only hours earlier, he had been close to Jesus in the warm fellowship of the upper room, but by the time the guards arrived, Peter found himself following Christ “from a distance.” His emotions had spiraled, his expectations had been disappointed, and the role he wanted to play—defending Jesus with the sword—had been denied him. The result was a gradual cooling of heart and fellowship. And just as the disciples went from twelve to eleven to eight to three to two to one, a believer’s spiritual temperature often changes slowly and quietly if they are not vigilant.
Three scenes in Peter’s behavior reveal what it looks like when Christians grow cold. First, Peter stood outside the door. He wasn’t where he shouldn’t be, but he wasn’t where he could have been. Instead of being close to Christ, he lingered on the outside. Many Christians find themselves in that same place—still saved, still interested, but standing at a distance from the fellowship they once enjoyed. As Spurgeon said, a believer may fall into a “dry, cold, spiritless state,” but he need not stay there. Jesus continually calls His people back into close fellowship with Himself.
Next, Peter stood warming himself around the fire of Christ’s enemies. When the warmth of fellowship with Christ grows cold, believers often seek comfort from places that cannot truly warm the soul. The world’s fire may amuse or distract, but as J.C. Philpot noted, “The world’s fire gives no true warmth.” Peter attempted to warm his hands while his heart remained far from God—a vivid picture of outward form without inward power, a temporary comfort that leaves a believer even colder than before.
Finally, Peter stood weeping. When the rooster crowed, and Peter locked eyes with Jesus, every layer of coldness melted in a moment. His tears were not merely emotion—they were “godly sorrow that worketh repentance” (2 Corinthians 7:10). God used that sorrow to bring Peter back where he belonged. What followed is one of Scripture’s most beautiful stories of restoration. Peter kept close enough to Jesus and the brethren to be reignited. He ran to the tomb. He returned to the upper room. He jumped into the water to reach the risen Lord. And in a setting strikingly similar to the night of his denial—sitting by another fire—Peter confessed his love for Jesus three times. That failing disciple was restored, empowered, and used mightily by God, even to a death that resembled his Savior’s.
Peter’s story reminds us that coldness is not final. It is not the end of a believer’s walk—often it is the beginning of renewal. Jesus said He would rather we be hot or cold than lukewarm. Coldness means you can still be warmed. Like Solomon wrote, even in cold seasons, we are to keep plowing—keep moving, keep seeking, keep responding. If Peter could go from standing without the door, to warming himself at the wrong fire, to weeping in brokenness—and still be restored to fellowship and fruitful service—then so can you. Jesus has a fire burning. Draw near, and let your heart be warmed again.
Text: John 18:18
Theme: What to do when you get cold in your walk and fellowship with Jesus Christ
records a simple statement that carries deep spiritual significance: “for it was cold.” On the night of Jesus’ arrest, the temperature in Jerusalem likely dipped into the 30s or 40s—a physical chill that mirrored the spiritual condition of Peter’s heart. Only hours earlier, he had been close to Jesus in the warm fellowship of the upper room, but by the time the guards arrived, Peter found himself following Christ “from a distance.” His emotions had spiraled, his expectations had been disappointed, and the role he wanted to play—defending Jesus with the sword—had been denied him. The result was a gradual cooling of heart and fellowship. And just as the disciples went from twelve to eleven to eight to three to two to one, a believer’s spiritual temperature often changes slowly and quietly if they are not vigilant.
Three scenes in Peter’s behavior reveal what it looks like when Christians grow cold. First, Peter stood outside the door. He wasn’t where he shouldn’t be, but he wasn’t where he could have been. Instead of being close to Christ, he lingered on the outside. Many Christians find themselves in that same place—still saved, still interested, but standing at a distance from the fellowship they once enjoyed. As Spurgeon said, a believer may fall into a “dry, cold, spiritless state,” but he need not stay there. Jesus continually calls His people back into close fellowship with Himself.
Next, Peter stood warming himself around the fire of Christ’s enemies. When the warmth of fellowship with Christ grows cold, believers often seek comfort from places that cannot truly warm the soul. The world’s fire may amuse or distract, but as J.C. Philpot noted, “The world’s fire gives no true warmth.” Peter attempted to warm his hands while his heart remained far from God—a vivid picture of outward form without inward power, a temporary comfort that leaves a believer even colder than before.
Finally, Peter stood weeping. When the rooster crowed, and Peter locked eyes with Jesus, every layer of coldness melted in a moment. His tears were not merely emotion—they were “godly sorrow that worketh repentance” (2 Corinthians 7:10). God used that sorrow to bring Peter back where he belonged. What followed is one of Scripture’s most beautiful stories of restoration. Peter kept close enough to Jesus and the brethren to be reignited. He ran to the tomb. He returned to the upper room. He jumped into the water to reach the risen Lord. And in a setting strikingly similar to the night of his denial—sitting by another fire—Peter confessed his love for Jesus three times. That failing disciple was restored, empowered, and used mightily by God, even to a death that resembled his Savior’s.
Peter’s story reminds us that coldness is not final. It is not the end of a believer’s walk—often it is the beginning of renewal. Jesus said He would rather we be hot or cold than lukewarm. Coldness means you can still be warmed. Like Solomon wrote, even in cold seasons, we are to keep plowing—keep moving, keep seeking, keep responding. If Peter could go from standing without the door, to warming himself at the wrong fire, to weeping in brokenness—and still be restored to fellowship and fruitful service—then so can you. Jesus has a fire burning. Draw near, and let your heart be warmed again.
1 Comment
Well said- from experience the pattern holds true. There is nothing like the warmth received from the fires of the Holy Spirit through Gods word and solid preaching working from within to restore and revive one’s life