Wednesday, April 8, 2026
Immediately a rooster crowed a second time, and Peter remembered when Jesus had spoken the word to him, “Before the rooster crows twice, you will deny me three times.” And he broke down and wept. Mark 14:72
The Comeback From Defeat
I have messed up too bad. I can never comeback from this. My life is forever destroyed because of my bad choices and mistakes. No one will ever want me. This cannot be fixed. Have you ever felt like any of those statements were true about you? Peter made a mistake and felt the powerful sting of defeat when he betrayed Jesus the evening he was arrested. But Peter learned an important and valuable lesson about how the resurrection of Jesus changes everything – even past failures and defeat. It is a lesson for us as well.
Then Jesus said to them, “All of you will fall away, because it is written: I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered. But after I have risen, I will go ahead of you to Galilee.” Peter told him, “Even if everyone falls away, I will not.” “Truly I tell you,” Jesus said to him, “today, this very night, before the rooster crows twice, you will deny me three times.” But he kept insisting, “If I have to die with you, I will never deny you.” And they all said the same thing. Mark 14:27-31
Peter was deeply troubled by Jesus’ words that he would deny Jesus, his Lord and Savior, but he did deny him just as Jesus said he would. He denied him three times before the rooster crowed twice. In his pride, Peter said he would never deny Jesus. We all have those things we say we would never do. Satan loves it when we say that – and he waits. The minute we cross the line we say we will never cross, he is right there cheering us on. He takes advantage of our weaknesses and helps us stumble right into what we said we would never do.
Pride can make us think that we have it all together, but pride is the root of many sins. It can make us secure in our own ability when the truth is that we have no security or power apart from Jesus Christ. Pride tells us that we should be able to fix our own problems - to take control of our lives and get it straightened out. Pride keeps us from calling out and depending on the power of God in our lives and leads us straight to defeat.
Three times Peter was asked, by three different people if he knew Jesus or was one of His disciples, and three times he said no. And then he heard the rooster crow, locked eyes with Jesus, and wept bitterly. It was the kind of look that cuts right to your soul. The kind that means he knows what is going on inside your heart. Peter felt shame - the shame you feel when you know you have done something wrong to someone else and then you find yourself face to face with them. Peter felt shame, but that was not what was being reflected in Jesus eyes. There was no condemnation, but compassion. There was no judgement, but only mercy. There was no disappointment, but only grace.
The beautiful ending to Peter’s story was after the resurrection, when Peter could comeback from his defeat because of the resurrection of Jesus. The angel at the empty tomb told the women to go and tell the disciples – and Peter – to go to Galilee where Jesus would meet them there. The angel specifically named Peter because Jesus knew the defeat and hopelessness that Peter was feeling in his heart about his betrayal of Jesus.
“Don’t be alarmed,” he told them. “You are looking for Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they put him. But go, tell his disciples and Peter, ‘He is going ahead of you to Galilee; you will see him there just as he told you.’” Mark 16:6-7
Jesus met them on the beach, cooked them breakfast and restored his relationship with Peter and Peter’s calling.
Jesus looks at us in our sin the same way - with love, compassion, grace, and mercy. No condemnation, no judgement, no disappointment. He defeated death and the grave so that we can comeback from our defeat. He refocuses our hearts to him, just as he did Peter, and he restores our purpose and path. Are you lost in defeat today? Have you given up on your calling because of the mistakes and choices that you feel you cannot comeback from? Because of Jesus’ comeback in the resurrection, you can comeback from defeat.
