READING: Leviticus 6:8-8:36, Matthew 26:57-75
“And he went outside and wept bitterly” (Matt 26:75).
This single sentence speaks volumes about Peter’s response when he denied knowing Jesus. True, he said recurrently he was not a follower of Christ. He even came to the point that he began swearing his truthfulness in response to the accusations of the people. Then, a rooster crowed.
Jesus had said that would happen. In fact, He had said Peter would deny Him three times before the rooster crowed—and Peter remembered the Lord’s words when he heard the rooster. It seems as if the voice of the Lord in the ear of the denying disciple became much louder than a rooster announcing the morning. Peter could not escape the fact that he had just done exactly what he said he would not do. Uncontrolled weeping gripped him.
And, that’s good news, because Peter’s grief gave evidence of his heart. He denied Christ in the heat of the moment, but his brokenness over his sin showed his agony over displeasing Christ. His love for the Lord was only briefly overshadowed by his desire to protect his own skin. In the end, the Lord still loved him, forgave him, and used him as a primary leader in the early church.
PRAYER: “Lord, bring me to weeping over my own sin.”
DAILY ACTION STEP: As much as needed today, let the Lord bring you to the end of yourself.
TOMORROW’S READING: Leviticus 9-11, Matthew 27:1-31