And the Lord Looked at Him

This may be one of the saddest moments in the New Testament.   The verse is Luke 22:61 and this is what happened immediately after the rooster crowed.   Peter had denied Jesus three times, even though earlier he had promised he wouldn’t, and then Jesus looks it at and it hit him.  He had totally blown it.  And as soon as he realized it, he left the courtyard and “wept bitterly.”

Have you had one of those moments?  Caught up in your humanity have you found yourself forgetting what God had asked of you and plunging ahead in something you knew you shouldn’t do?  Have you then, at one point or another,  even while trying your hardest to avoid His gaze, felt like the Lord has turned at looked at you?  What was your response?

The beauty of Jesus is that that gaze was simply a reminder to Peter of how far away he had drifted.  It wasn't a look of anger or frustration it was just a knowing glance.  And it led him to repentance which eventually led to Jesus reminding Peter three times at the end of the book of John that He loved him.

The whole point of the gospel is not based on a theory that we never screw up.  It is based on the fact that no matter how many times we do, God will forgive if we repent and come to him in humility.    It’s not God’s anger or fear of Him that leads us to repentance, but His kindness.