Rooster Reminder

"The Lord turned and looked straight at Peter. Then Peter remembered the word the Lord had spoken to him: "Before the rooster crows today, you will disown Me three times." And he went outside and wept bitterly"- Luke 22:61-62 (NIV).

It is 9:00 right now. That's the time, 2,000 years ago, that Jesus was nailed to the cross after a night of accusations, mocking, beatings, and scourging. We call this Good Friday, but it was horrendous for the Lord Jesus. As I prayed this morning, our rooster crowed outside the window. I couldn't help but think of Peter's journey that night. He had passionately told Jesus he would die for Him, but within hours denied knowing Jesus three times...just as Jesus had told him he would do, and then a rooster crowed. There will be communion service tonight. So many will partake of the sacraments, who deny Jesus. How do we deny Jesus? We do it with our thoughts, our speech, and our actions. We should all be able to hear an alarm of some sort, like a rooster crowing, that points to our own insufficiency without the Lord. If Peter's fortitude, who walked with Jesus for three years, failed him at the crucial hour, we too, will fail and deny Jesus. We need Jesus. We can't do this without Him. He said, "I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in Me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from Me you can do nothing" (John 15:5). I'm thankful God gave me a "rooster reminder" that I'm a sinner saved by undeserved mercy and grace through the blood of His Son.