Mark 14:66-72

Be still: Lord Jesus, thank you that my failures do not define me. Your grace restores me. Amen

Read: Mark 14: 66-72

Immediately the rooster crowed the second time. Then Peter remembered the word Jesus had spoken to him: ‘Before the rooster crows twice you will disown me three times.’ And he broke down and wept. (v72)

Encounter: Peter loved Jesus deeply. He had promised only hours before, 'Even if all fall away, I will not.' Yet when the pressure came, as a servant girl asked if he was with Jesus, we see how fear won. Three times Peter denied even knowing Jesus. And then the rooster crowed and what had just happened sank in - betrayal.

I can imagine the rooster's crow echoing in Peter’s ears, his heart sinking as Jesus’ words came rushing back. He had betrayed the One he loved most. 

But this moment, as devastating as it was, wasn’t the end of Peter’s story. Jesus knew Peter would fail, and yet he still commissioned him. After the resurrection, Jesus would meet Peter on the shore (John 21). Three times Peter had denied him, and three times Jesus restored him: 'Feed my sheep.' The same man who crumbled in fear would become the bold preacher at Pentecost.

That’s the hope of the gospel; our failures don’t disqualify us. They become places where God’s grace meets us most powerfully. Think about moments in our lives where we might have denied Jesus maybe not with words, but with our resistance, compromise, or fear of what others would think. And yet, Jesus doesn’t discard us. He restores us.

The rooster’s crow wasn’t just judgment on Peter, it was a demonstration of mercy. It woke him up, broke him down, and led him toward repentance and restoration. Sometimes God allows moments that sting to bring us back to him. And when he restores, he doesn’t just forgive, he always recommissions.

Apply: Is there an area where you feel like you’ve failed Jesus, in words, actions, or silence? Bring it honestly to him this week. Receive his forgiveness and ask him how he wants to turn your failure into a testimony of his grace.

Devote: Jesus, thank you that my story doesn’t end with failure. Thank you for meeting me with mercy and restoring me by your love. Help me to live not in shame, but in the freedom of being forgiven and called again.