March 21
While [Peter] was still speaking, the rooster crowed. And the Lord turned and looked at Peter. . . . So Peter went out and wept bitterly. - Luke 22:60-62, NKJV
The night Jesus was betrayed, a man stepped up to Peter in the courtyard of the temple compound and challenged him: “Didn’t I see you with [Jesus] in the olive grove?” (John 18:26, NIV). All the tension and anger of the past hours exploded in Peter and tumbled out in a stream of curses as he insisted, “I don’t know the man!” Yet as he spoke, he heard the unmistakable sound of a rooster crowing in the distance. At that very moment, a commotion in the breezeway got everyone’s attention. With the denial still burning his lips, Peter looked into the eyes of Jesus!
The look of Jesus was like a flaming fire, burning away Peter’s hypocrisy and sin. Then as the entourage around Jesus roughly pushed and shoved Him forward, the moment passed. Peter, shaken to the core of his being, went out into the night, where he “wept bitterly,” sobbing out his confession to God.
Three days later, Peter knew his sin had been forgiven when he met the risen Christ. Do you have the uneasy feeling that Jesus is “looking” at you? Is your heart burning with shame and guilt? Don’t shed tears, shed your pride and come to Him for cleansing and restoration.
From Just Give Me Jesus
