Don’t Deny Him - Luke 21-22

Luke 22:54-62 (ESV)

Then they seized him and led him away, bringing him into the high priest’s house, and Peter was following at a distance. And when they had kindled a fire in the middle of the courtyard and sat down together, Peter sat down among them. Then a servant girl, seeing him as he sat in the light and looking closely at him, said, “This man also was with him.” But he denied it, saying, “Woman, I do not know him.” And a little later someone else saw him and said, “You also are one of them.” But Peter said, “Man, I am not.” And after an interval of about an hour still another insisted, saying, “Certainly this man also was with him, for he too is a Galilean.” But Peter said, “Man, I do not know what you are talking about.” And immediately, while he was still speaking, the rooster crowed. And the Lord turned and looked at Peter. And Peter remembered the saying of the Lord, how he had said to him, “Before the rooster crows today, you will deny me three times.” And he went out and wept bitterly.

The denial of Peter is one of the most famous stories of the Gospel accounts of Jesus life.   It was predicted at the Passover meal and fulfilled at Jesus’ first trial.   Peter, after boasting he could never leave Jesus, denies he even knows Jesus. Not once; not twice; but three times.  And perhaps the worse part of this entire story (only recorded by look) was the face Jesus made to Peter at that moment.  Note the last two verses of the above passage, again:

Luke 22:61-62 (ESV)

And the Lord turned and looked at Peter. And Peter remembered the saying of the Lord, how he had said to him, “Before the rooster crows today, you will deny me three times.” And he went out and wept bitterly.

Imagine the face of Jesus.  If you have ever had a parent look at you in disappointment you might be able to relate to what Peter saw that day.  But this is not our parents.   This is the Son of God, the Savior of the world.   It is important to remember that we, too, deny Jesus in our lives.  When we don’t speak up for Him in a crowd that does not prefer Him, we deny Him.  When asked about success in life and we point to our resume’ of life, we deny Him.  When we are lost and need answers and we turn to mankind’s solutions, we deny Him.  It is not hard to condemn Peter for what he did.  It is much easier than we think, however, to act just like what Peter did.