"A second time the rooster crowed. Then Peter called to mind the word that Jesus had said to him, 'Before the rooster crows twice, you will deny Me three times'. And when he thought about it, he wept" - Mark 14:72
This is an occurrence that all four gospel writers record. We learn from Matthew and Luke that Peter wept bitterly. Mark says he wept when he remembered the word of the Lord, but Luke tells us that it wasn't just the memory of Jesus' word that caused these tears. We read in Luke 22:61 that as Peter was at the fire, as he has just finished denying the Lord with oaths and curses, Jesus is brought out and He passes by and looks toward Peter - and it stabs him to his very soul! Then he went out and he wept bitterly! Can you imagine what that look of Christ must have been like?
How often do we deny the Lord? I'll be honest, I've denied Him - perhaps not with my words, but with my actions, with my behaviour; with omission, things that I leave undone; and commission, things I do that I ought not to do. I believe this look from the Lord Jesus that broke Peter was not a look of condemnation, nor a look of disappointment or disdain, I believe it was a look of love. In John 13 we see that the Lord tells the disciples what's going to happen before He goes to Gethsemane. He tells Peter that he's going to deny Him, and the next thing that Jesus says to Peter is found in John 14:1 - He's speaking to all of the disciples, but this is what Peter would have heard after being told he would deny Jesus: 'Let not your heart be troubled' (remember that the chapter divisions have been put in by men). You remember that Jesus also told him: 'Simon Peter, Satan has desired to sift you, he wants to have you and sift you like wheat, but I have prayed for you'. Oh, that has brought me so much encouragement many times in my life! I know my own weakness, I know my propensity to let the Lord down and deny Him and disown Him - but what it is to know, even though I might be in the darkest temptation and trial of life, that Jesus is praying for me!
If you're reading this and you have denied Him, you have let Him down, you need to see this look of love. If you could only see Him in His love toward you, even in your backslidden state, even in the sins that you're dabbling with - you're so far away, maybe as far away as Peter, cursing and swearing against Christ! It's hard to imagine a person could be saved and be doing that, isn't it? But if you could only see His look of love, I believe it would melt you.
Warren Weirsbe says: 'Before we judge Peter too severely, we need to examine our own lives. How many times have we denied the Lord, and lost opportunities to share the Gospel with others? Do we, like Peter, talk when we should listen? Do we argue when we should obey? Do we sleep when we should pray? Do we fight when we should submit?'. We're all on trial in relation to Christ, every one of us. Unsaved people are on trial in relation to their Christ rejection, but we as believers are on trial in relation to our Christ denial.
Peter appears to fail, doesn't he? But notice: Peter's failure was not final - there's a way back! Wherever you've been, whatever you've done - and I don't care what it is - there is a way back! This Saviour still looks upon you in love. In fact, after he was forgiven and converted and restored by grace, Peter was brought to an even greater place - that's marvellous! God's grace is like that: greater than all our sin.
Read or listen to more on Peter's denial of Christ in “Trial And Denial”.
