THE COCK CROWS AT DAWN (4).

*WISDOM FOR TODAY.*

*THE COCK CROWS AT DAWN (4).*

*Scripture Treasure.*

Lk 22:54-62

*Then took they him, and led him, and brought him into the high priest's house. And Peter followed afar off.*

*And when they had kindled a fire in the midst of the hall, and were set down together, Peter sat down among them.*

*But a certain maid beheld him as he sat by the fire, and earnestly looked upon him, and said, This man was also with him.*

*And he denied him, saying, Woman, I know him not.*

*And after a little while another saw him, and said, Thou art also of them. And Peter said, Man, I am not.*

*And about the space of one hour after another confidently affirmed, saying, Of a truth this fellow also was with him: for he is a Galilaean.*

*And Peter said, Man, I know not what thou sayest. And immediately, while he yet spake, the cock crew.*

*And the Lord turned, and looked upon Peter. And Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how he had said unto him, Before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice.*

*And Peter went out, and wept bitterly.*

*Insight and Highlight.*

When we talk, we often assume it to be true but when we find evidence that proves us wrong, we should stop and repent.

*Scripture Commentaries.*

The cock crowed. Jesus looked at Peter. Peter saw Jesus' look.

Jesus' look and the cock crow proved Peter wrong.

Only the gospel of Luke recorded Jesus's gaze after Peter had denied him.

It was a look that sent a chilling message to Peter yet was not without compassion.

Proof that the look was chilling but with compassion was made openly clear when Peter *"......went out, and wept bitterly.*

Jesus' word had come through.

It was a point at which Jesus' accuracy confronted Peter's failure.

We will look at further lessons we could learn from the cock crow.

First, though we can definitely not hide from God but it goes also to show that there are times we can not hide from people or our actions can not be hidden from them.

If some do not see us, some will see us.

If some do not see what we do, some will see them.

A *".....certain maid..."*, *"....another..."*

*And about the space of one hour after another confidently affirmed,..."* confronted Peter as a follower of Jesus, Lk 22: 56-61. One woman, two men, all three saw and said the same thing about Peter confirming he was a disciple of Jesus.

Second, while God looks with compassion, His looks on the sinner may take another meaningful dimension.

He looks on us with pity but His looks upon the wicked is with indignation.

Though one could say Jesus's look on Peter may not have been with indignation but His look certainly was not without a message of failure or betrayal.

The story of Peter tells us of God's opposing faces: one to the righteous and the other to those who do evil

1 Peter 3:12: *For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and His ears are inclined to their prayer. But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil"*

Third, it sends a strong signal to those who deny Christ.

Besides Jesus's gaze, the cock crow was a symbol of his denial of Christ's prophecy.

People deny each other one-on-one so often denial is a two-person emotion. It appeared so between Jesus and Peter.

However, Peter's denial went beyond a two-person emotion . It went to denying Jesus before all the people around. it is worse when this happens. Open denial is worse than one-on-one denial.

This is why Jesus emphasizes the importance of publicly acknowledging Him rather than a private or hidden acknowledgement.

He emphasizes the importance of acknowledging Him in the face of persecution, wherein Peter failed.

He said in Matt 10:33 *But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven.*

The emphasis is on the admonition to not deny Him before men.

A lot of people would acknowledge or prefer to acknowledge Him in private, but certainly not in public.

While Peter kept quiet in public, the cock crow exposed him in public..

His denial may be in secret, the consequences and guilt of his denial would be made public.

The cock crowed, everyone heard his bitter cry. What he said in secret was made public by the crow and his outburst.

*Remorse corner.*

The cock crowed and the bubble burst.

*Call to Word action.*

The bubble burst but was restored by his remorse .

*The Christian clarion duty.*

If you would confess Jesus in secret, do not deny Him in the open!

*Prayer.*

Lord, help me. Do not let me deny You, in Jesus name.

Good morning, and have a blessed day.

God bless you.

Shalom.