“彼得想起耶稣所说的话：‘鸡叫以先，你要三次不认我。’他就出去痛哭。” – 太26:75
虽然我们很容易在日常生活中忽略麻雀和其他的小鸟，但如果我们看到一只公鸡，或听到公鸡的叫声，就很难忽略它：那咕咕作响、时而尖锐的、甚至惊天动地的叫声足以把任何人吵醒！
在今天的经文中，公鸡的叫声给彼得敲响了警钟。他曾承诺要对主忠心，但到了最后，他却退缩了，他甚至否认自己认识耶稣。当然，耶稣早预知这一切会发生，祂理解要认同一个受苦的救主并不容易。
有时，圣灵也会用我们生活中平凡的事情来帮助我们看到我们是如何让耶稣失望的。可能是在社交媒体上，或者在工作中，或者在开车的时候，我们突然意识到我们做得不对，我们也有可能出于种种顾虑而否认我们与耶稣基督的关系。
值得感恩的是，神是满有怜悯的。在约翰福音21章，记载了耶稣死里复活后，祂温柔地挽回彼得，呼召他忠心服事（约 21:15-19）。藉着祂完全的爱，耶稣也会扭转我们的逃避否认，让我们勇敢面对，完全属祂。
祷告
主耶稣，我们很愧疚，我们有时在生活中也否认了你。求你赦免我们，复原我们，赐给我们力量，使我们称你为我们的主。奉你的名，阿们。
马太福音 26:31-35, 69-75
31那时，耶稣对他们说：“今夜你们为我的缘故都要跌倒，因为经上记着说：‘我要击打牧人，羊就分散了。’
32但我复活以后，要在你们以先往加利利去。”
33彼得说：“众人虽然为你的缘故跌倒，我却永不跌倒。”
34耶稣说：“我实在告诉你：今夜鸡叫以先，你要三次不认我。”
35彼得说：“我就是必须和你同死，也总不能不认你！”众门徒都是这样说。
69彼得在外面院子里坐着，有一个使女前来，说：“你素来也是同那加利利人耶稣一伙的。”
70彼得在众人面前却不承认，说：“我不知道你说的是什么。”
71既出去，到了门口，又有一个使女看见他，就对那里的人说：“这个人也是同拿撒勒人耶稣一伙的。”
72彼得又不承认，并且起誓说：“我不认得那个人！”
73过了不多的时候，旁边站着的人前来，对彼得说：“你真是他们一党的，你的口音把你露出来了。”
74彼得就发咒起誓地说：“我不认得那个人！”立时，鸡就叫了。
75彼得想起耶稣所说的话：“鸡叫以先，你要三次不认我。”他就出去痛哭。
Claiming To Know Christ As Lord
“Peter remembered the word Jesus had spoken: ‘Before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times.’” – Matthew 26:75
While it might be easy for us to overlook sparrows and other small birds in our daily meanderings, it can be hard to ignore a rooster if we see or hear one: the gurgling, jarring, sometimes ear-splitting racket is enough to wake anybody up!
In our reading for today, the sound of a rooster crowing became a devastating wake-up call for Peter. He had promised to be faithful, but when it came right down to it, he chickened out, and he denied ever knowing Jesus. And, of course, Jesus knew that would happen. It isn’t easy to identify with a suffering Savior.
Sometimes today too, the Holy Spirit may use ordinary things in our lives to help us see how we have let Jesus down. It could be on social media, or at work, or when we’re driving that we are suddenly pierced with an awareness of how we haven’t done the right thing, and that we too are capable of denying our relationship with Jesus Christ.
Thankfully for us all, God is merciful. In John 21, after Jesus has died and risen again, he lovingly restores Peter, calling him to serve faithfully (John 21:15-19). Through his perfect love, Jesus also reverses our denials by reclaiming us as his own.
Prayer
Lord Jesus, we are sorry for the ways we have denied you in our lives. Forgive us, restore us, and empower us to claim you as our Lord. In your name, Amen.
诵读: 骆云秀
片头: 张妙阳
