Amen, please be seated. Our gospel lesson is from the gospel according to Saint Luke, chapter 22, verses 54 through 62. As we continue in our Sunday morning series in the gospel according to Luke. And as we continue to walk with Jesus in this Lenten season, all the way with him to the Good Friday cross. Luke chapter 22, beginning in verse 54. Then they seized Jesus 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 were 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 said to him, before the rooster crows today, you will deny me three times. And he went out and wept bitterly. The grass withers and the flower fades, but the word of our God shall stand forever. Let's look to our God once again in prayer. Gracious and loving father, we give you thanks for the gift of your son. We thank you for the way he looks upon us with convicting and transforming grace. We pray that you would grant us your spirit's help that we may look to him, receive his grace, and be transformed into his likeness. Through Christ we pray, amen. In the hours before sunrise on Good Friday morning, Jesus was arrested in Gethsemane and taken to the residence of Caiaphas, the Jewish high priest. This large home of Caiaphas was one that he likely shared with his father-in-law, Annas, who had previously been high priest and who continued to wield great power over the affairs of the Jewish people. It is likely that Annas lived in one wing of this mansion and that Caiaphas lived in the other. As we connect the dots of the various gospel accounts, it seems that the six trials, or appearances of Jesus before the authorities, occurred as follows. He was first brought before Annas, then before Caiaphas and the Sanhedrin, the governing body of the Jews, After being detained in prison for a while, he was brought before Caiaphas and the Sanhedrin again. Then, having accused him of blasphemy, he was sent to Pilate, the Roman governor. Pilate sent him to Herod Antipas, the ruler of Galilee, who sent him back to Pilate. who infamously, as we confess from the Apostles created and I seen created every week, gave in to the pressure to have him executed. Peter's denials took place during the first and second trials of Jesus as he appeared before Annas and then before Caiaphas. when Peter made his third denial and made that unforgettable eye contact with our Lord. So let's consider what happened in the mansion and from the mansion and in the courtyard and back to the mansion under two headings this morning. First, Peter's denials, and second, Jesus' look. First, Peter's denials. Hours before in the upper room where they had celebrated the Passover meal together in Luke chapter 22, beginning in verse 31, Jesus said to Peter, Simon, Simon, behold, or look or listen very carefully to me. Satan demanded to have you. that he might sift you like wheat. But I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned again, strengthen your brothers. As if to say, don't worry, Jesus, I got this. Peter said to him, Lord, I am ready right now. I am ready to go with you both to prison and to death. Jesus said to him, I tell you, Peter, The rooster will not crow this day until you deny three times that you know me. Then once they had retreated from the upper room to the Garden of Gethsemane to pray, and where Jesus did persevere in blood-sweating prayer, Peter and the others repeatedly fell asleep. And Jesus repeatedly woke them and said, rise and pray that you may not enter into temptation. When Judas led the cohort to Gethsemane to arrest Jesus, Peter drew his sword and cut off the ear of the servant of the high priest. Jesus rebuked Peter and healed the servant's ear. Then while others fled completely, Peter and John followed Jesus to the estate of Caiaphas. According to John chapter 18 and verse 15, John, whom in typical fashion John refers to as the disciple or another disciple or the disciple whom Jesus loved, but he's talking about himself, John tells us that John himself had some connection to Caiaphas and his family. Perhaps John and his father, being the fishermen that they were, maybe they supplied the household of Caiaphas with the best of fish. But there was some kind of relationship between John and his family, maybe through his wife, we don't know, but there was some relationship between John and the household of Caiaphas. Thus, John was allowed to enter. We know him. Peter, at first, stood outside the gate of the courtyard, but John spoke to the servant girl, the gatekeeper, who kept watch at the door, and she brought Peter in. So in the midst of the palace servants and temple guards, the police, Peter and John warmed themselves at the fire that had been made in the courtyard. The servant girl, as we read in verse 55, with Peter's face illumined by the fire, got a better look at Peter and said, this man also, in other words, in addition to John, was with him. By this point, Peter had begun to get a better sense of how things were going to go down on Good Friday. Before, when Jesus had foretold his betrayal, arrest, and death, Peter didn't want to hear about it. He tried to dismiss it. He said to Jesus in Matthew 16 and verse 22, far be it from you, Lord. This shall never happen to you, this suffering that you're foretelling about yourself. This shall never happen to you. Jesus, of course, rebuked Peter and said to him, get behind me, Satan. In other words, you are doing the work of Satan who tempts me to try to get the crown without going through the cross. He said to Peter, you are a hindrance to me, for you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man. Then Jesus told Peter and the others that if they wanted to come after him, they must deny themselves, take up their cross daily, and follow after him. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. But even after such repeated teaching from Jesus, Peter held on to the idolatrous notion that Jesus' path, and thus his own path, would be a gloriously easy path. Victory without suffering. But now, as he sat in the courtyard, Peter was beginning to read the writing on the wall. Jesus' path would not be an easy, pain-free path at all. The one whom Peter hoped would overthrow Israel's oppressors, both their religious oppressors and their political oppressors, had been taken captive. He was being tried. He was being led as a sheep to the slaughter. If Peter couldn't save Jesus from suffering, well, he could at least try to save himself from suffering. So in verse 57, he denied what the servant girl said. He said, I do not know him." And as we read in verse 58, a little later someone else saw him and said, you also, in addition to John, are one of them. Matthew 26 and verse 72 tells us that Peter uttered an oath when he made this second denial. Perhaps he said something like, in God's name or before almighty God, I swear to you, I do not know him. These first two denials likely took place when Jesus was before Annas. with open windows and breezeways between the place where Jesus was and the courtyard where Peter was so that both parties could see and hear what the other party was saying and doing. About an hour later, Peter was accused once again of knowing Jesus. The accuser said in verse 59, certainly this man also was with him for he too is a Galilean. Peter's accent had betrayed him. Just as we can pick up on a southern accent versus a northeastern accent or a midwestern accent. This accuser discerned that Peter had a Galilean accent just as Jesus would have had a Galilean accent and presumably still does have a Galilean accent. Luke tells us in verse 60 that Peter said, man, I do not know what you are talking about. Matthew tells us that Peter began to invoke a curse upon himself and swear, I do not know the man. In other words, Peter said something like, may God strike me dead if I'm lying to you. May God strike me dead if I know this man. This one who had previously confidently confessed When Jesus asked, who do you say that I am? This one who said, you are the Christ, the son of the living God, now says, I don't know this man. In John 18, 26, we are told that the man who made this third accusation, interestingly enough, was one of the servants of the high priest and a relative of Malchus, the man whose ear Peter had cut off This man said, did I not see you in the garden with him? Peter denied it. As Luke tells us in verse 60, it was while he was making this third and lengthy denial, when you compare it with the other Gospels, this lengthy denial that the rooster crowed. Peter had been so sure of himself. In Matthew 26, beginning in verse 31, Matthew tells us that just a few hours earlier, when they were in Gethsemane, Jesus told his disciples, you will all fall away because of me this night. For it is written, I will strike the shepherd and the sheep of the flock will be scattered. Peter, as usual, spoke up. He answered, though they all fall away because of you, I will never fall away. Jesus said, truly, I tell you this very night before the rooster crows, you will deny me three times. Peter, unfazed by the sobering words of our Lord, said, even if I must die with you, I will not deny you. And all the disciples said the same. It seems that Peter was habitually one of those folks who didn't really listen to what other people were saying. He was just preparing what he was going to say next. That certainly seemed to be the case in Gethsemane. For here he was denying Jesus Just as Jesus foretold, and just as Peter, before Jesus could barely get those words out of his mouth, that prediction out of his mouth was protesting, no, I will not. So first, Peter's denial. And second, Jesus' look. Verse 61, 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 word bitter, that's such a descriptive word, isn't it? And in the Greek, it is. The word bitterly, it's the only place, Matthew used it to describe what Peter did, and Luke describes it, uses it to describe how Peter wept bitterly. Think about that. Has a bad taste in your mouth. Peter has a bad taste in his mouth now for what he had done. for how proud he had been, for how sure of himself he had been, for how quickly he turned on Jesus in order to appease a servant girl and these others who were accusing him of being with Jesus and John and the rest. He had this, it's turning his stomach. His sin is turning his stomach. It's leaving him with this bitter taste in his mouth. Peter, who always seemed to have words ready to say in response to the words of Jesus, now had no words in response to Jesus's silent communication here. Jesus doesn't look at him and Peter says, yes, but, but, no. He had no words. to respond to this look. This look penetrated Peter's heart more than all the words that Jesus spoke to him over the course of three years. Just think of it. Or to put it another way, this look took all those words that Jesus had communicated to him over the course of three years, or at least those words when Jesus said, you're going to deny me, Peter, and that took those words and began to make those words effective in Peter's life. When I was in seminary and came under the care of the presbytery as a ministerial candidate, the minister who gave the charge to me and the other candidates spoke to us from this very passage of scripture. I'll never forget it. And his charge to us was always remember this look. Always remember this look. His point was always stay sensitive to the all-knowing Convicting gracious eyes of Jesus. Stay in fellowship, face-to-face fellowship with Him. While you're learning all this theology and all these wonderful things, Make sure that you don't see those things as an end in and of themselves. Rather, those things can be a means As the other means of grace are a means, prayer and sacraments and preaching of the word and the singing of God's praises, these things are not ends in and of themselves. These are not boxes to check off. These are not things to accumulate in your head, feel superior to other people, no. These are means, these are channels. These wonderful truths are means by which you can, by the Spirit's grace, Grow in your relationship with Jesus, this face-to-face relationship that you have with him. Don't lose sight of that. And don't forget this look, this convicting, searching, gracious look that will continually be leading you to repentance and renewed faith in Jesus. This look that Jesus gave to Peter reminds us that sin is not just the transgression of a written code. That makes sin far too abstract just to think of it that way. No, sin is deeply personal. Sin is against the father who gave his Son for you. Sin is against the Spirit. Sin grieves the Spirit who lovingly takes the things of Jesus and shows them to you. And sin is against Jesus who loved you and gave himself for you. So remember this look. and experience this kind of look in your own life by always looking to Jesus. As G. Campbell Morgan put it, the look of Jesus would have been wasted on Peter if it had not been that Peter was looking at Jesus. Yes, Peter was only following Jesus at a distance. And yes, Peter had been sure of himself, and then when the pressure was on, sought to save himself by denying that he knew his dearest friend. But Peter, to his credit, had hung around. And Peter had looked at Jesus, which enabled him to lock eyes with Jesus. in a way that led to true change in his life. Maybe that's a good argument for coming to church even when you don't feel especially spiritual. Even when you don't feel like you're really close to Jesus. You think maybe, would that be hypocritical of me to go to church, the kind of week I had. I haven't been super close with Jesus. Been kind of acting like he doesn't even exist. Would that be right for me to go to church? I think what goes down with Peter here teaches us, yes. Just go where Jesus is. He said, where two or three are gathered in my name, there I shall be also. Go to where Jesus especially is. Where His love and grace are communicated. Hear his good news. Join him and his people in prayer. Confess your faith. Sing praises to him. Receive his body and his blood. Look to him and receive his gracious look that can lead you closer to him. We'll grant you that repentance and that renewed faith and that renewal of that close fellowship that you've had with him before and bring you closer than ever to him as you're real with him, open with him. We're gonna sing a hymn in just a moment. Jesus the very thought of thee. The first line is so helpful in this regard. Jesus the very thought of thee with sweetness fills my breast. The thought of Jesus fills our breasts, our hearts with sweetness, with delight. That's the theology part. thinking about Jesus, ruminating on Jesus, hearing sermons about Jesus and reading the Bible and thinking about it. But that's not the end, that's the means. Look at the verse. Jesus, the very thought of thee with sweetness fills my breast, but sweeter far thy face to see. and in thy presence rest. The doctrines, the principles, the propositions that we receive from scripture, those are wonderful, but they're not ends in and of themselves. The purpose of them is to get you closer to the person named Jesus, and through him, the Father, and with them, the Spirit, bringing you into this face-to-face, eye-to-eye relationship with the lover of your soul. So wherever you are in your journey, however you feel, look to Jesus. Look to Jesus. He's looking at you. We read about the Lord looking upon his people in Psalm 33. He's looking right at you. So look to him. Lock eyes with him by faith. Receive his all knowing, convicting. Gracious, forgiving. Healing. restoring, life-giving look today. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, amen.