“Killing the Rooster/Forgiving Myself”
“Killing the Rooster/Forgiving Myself”
Luke 22:54-62
A. I was raised on farm. We had dogs, cats, horses, cows, pigs, and chickens. When I was
about two years old my mother set me up on a tractor seat, one of our three roosters flew up
and starting flogging me. I would like to think that I remember this occasion. My mother
told my dad to kill that rooster. He killed the wrong one. That left two. The other one died
that winter and that left only the mean rooster. No wonder I hate chickens—the only chicken
I like is on my plate!
1. Jesus said to His disciples, Matt. 26:31-35 “Then Jesus said to them, ‘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.’ But after I am raised up, I will go before you to Gailee.’ Peter
answered him, ‘Though they all fall away because of you, I will never fall away.’ Jesus
said to him, ‘Truly, I tell you, this very night, before the rooster crows, you will deny me
three times.’ Peter said to him, even if I must die with you, I will not deny you!’ And all
the disciples said the same.”
a. As the day wore on and Jesus was arrested, Peter was following Him at a distance.
Everywhere he turned someone said, “He was with Him.” He couldn’t escape people
who recognized him as having been with Jesus. And Peter denied it every time. After
the third time, a rooster crowed and Jesus turned and looked at Peter. Peter went out
and wept bitterly. He let Jesus down. Have you ever heard the rooster crow?
2. People have things to forgive themselves for. Over 20 years ago, a man came into my
office. He wept and he sobbed and sobbed violently with his head in hands because he had
forced his wife to get an abortion years before.
3. Preacher, how do I forgive myself for abandoning my children, for lying to my boss, for
cheating on my spouse, for infecting someone with aids, for breaking a heart, for
destroying lives by selling drugs, for murder, for not raising my kids right.
4. Guilt and self-condemnation are hard to deal with. There are all kinds of stories on the
internet about people walking into police stations and confessing to crimes. Can’t live
with it.
5. Paul had to live with being involved in arresting Christians and putting them to death.
a. 1 Cor. 15:9-10 “For I am the least of the apostles, unworthy to be called an apostle,
because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and
his grace toward me was not in vain.”
How do I kill the rooster?
I. ACCEPT THE PARDON THAT GOD HAS ALREADY PROVIDED.
A. After Peter denied Jesus he went out and he cried bitterly.
1. Why did he cry? He felt guilty, he let Jesus down, he lied several times, he sinned.
2. At that point Peter’s greatest need was forgiveness from Jesus. Did he get it?
3. After the resurrection, the angel said to the women Mark 16:7 “But go, tell his disciples
and Peter that he is going before you to Galilee.” (Why single out Peter, he was one of the
disciples? That was the Lord’s way of letting Peter know that he was forgiven and was
still loved by Jesus.)
4. We will note later in the message about Jesus and Peter’s first encounter after his denial.
B. How would you respond to someone who said the following to you:
1. There is no way a man lived in the belly of a fish for three days.
2. There is no way a man walked on water that was not frozen.
3. There is no way a virgin got pregnant and had a baby.
4. There is no way a man took 2 fish and five rolls and fed thousands of people.
5. There is no way that a dead man came back to life.
6. If we would say, “You are wrong” why do we refuse to believe it when the same books
says God forgives us?
a. Ps. 103: 10-12 “He has not dealt with us according to our sins, nor rewarded us
according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is
His lovingkindness toward those who fear Him. As far as the east is from the west,
So far has He removed our transgressions from us.”
b. 2 Cor. 5:17 “Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things
passed away; behold, new things have come.”
C. The problem is not with God—the problem is with me.
1. When someone says, “I can’t forgive myself,” they are saying, “even though Jesus
forgives me there is another god above Jesus whose opinion mattes more, ME.”
2. Do you want to be forgiven of all your sins? Then you have to let go of the sin of not
not forgiving yourself.
3. The real issue is not forgiving myself but believing in His forgiveness.
a. We don’t understand grace, we feel like we need to be punished because what we have
done is soooooooooo bad.
4. How do I let go? Admit your unforgiveness toward yourself, Pray, “God, I repent of not
believing you have forgiven me. Your word says you have forgiven me and I accept it.”
a. You will have no peace or contentment until you can forgive yourself.
II. CAPTURE PAST REMINDERS AND REPLACE THEM WITH SCRIPTURAL
PROMISES.
A. When you are listening to music in your car and a song comes on that you don’t like or a
commercial, what do you do? You change the station.
1. The accuser/devil talks to us and he plays recordings in our mind. He says, “Look at how
bad you have been. Look at all the people you have hurt. Look what you have done. You
hypocrite.” He believes in one resurrection—our past. He plays that recording over and
over in our mind.
2. I wonder how many times the devil tried to remind Peter that he lied, swore and cursed
that he did not know Jesus? Peter never brought it up in Acts or his epistles.
B. We have to challenge Satan’s lies with the truth.
1. 2 Cor. 10: 3-5 “For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh, for
the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction
of fortresses. We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the
knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ.”
2. Rom. 12:2 “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of
your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and
acceptable and perfect.”
3. When the devil tells you that you are no good, you have to quote the Scripture to capture
that lie.
a. Ps. 139:14 “I will give thanks to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
wonderful are Your works, and my soul knows it very well.”
b. 1 John 1:9 “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins
and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
C. God’s acceptance of us is not based upon our performance, but our position in Christ.
1. We have to trust the fact of our forgiveness over the feelings of our false guilt.
2. There will always be some reason why we should feel like a failure. We can be our own
worst enemy. You can get away from your boss for a while, but there is one person you
can never get away from. You eat with this person, you sleep with them, you even shower
with—that person is you. You can never get away from you.
3. Stop beating yourself up over the past and replace them with Scriptural reminders. God
accepts you even though you haven’t reached perfection—it’s called justification.
4. The devil wants to keep us trapped and tied to the past, but God wants to set us free. Jesus
said He came to set the captives free! You can’t gain God’s approval you already have it.
5. The real need is to reprogram our thinking.
a. The devil shoots demonic lies at our mind—he often hits his target. You have to
knock down his lies with the belt of truth. The devil doesn’t want you to feel good
about who you are. Let us accept ourselves while God changes us.
b. God is not looking to catch you in a sin so He can push you down, He is looking
to recreate you in Christ. Find the good in yourself and not just the bad.
III. SERVE HIM WITH PASSION AND PRODUCTIVITY.
A. After Jesus was crucified, Peter went back home and to his old trade of fishing.
1. John 21:1-17 “After these things Jesus [a]manifested Himself again to the disciples at
the Sea of Tiberias, and He manifested Himself in this way. 2 Simon Peter, and Thomas
called [b]Didymus, and Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, and the sons of Zebedee, and two
others of His disciples were together.3 Simon Peter *said to them, “I am going fishing.”
They *said to him, “We will also come with you.” They went out and got into the boat;
and that night they caught nothing.
But when the day was now breaking, Jesus stood on the beach; yet the disciples did
not know that it was Jesus. 5 So Jesus *said to them, “Children, you do not have [c]any
fish, do you?” They answered Him, “No.” 6 And He said to them, “Cast the net on the
right-hand side of the boat and you will find a catch.” So they cast, and then they were not
able to haul it in because of the great number of fish. 7 Therefore that disciple whom Jesus
loved *said to Peter, “It is the Lord.” So when Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he
put his outer garment on (for he was stripped for work), and threw himself into the
sea. 8 But the other disciples came in the little boat, for they were not far from the land,
but about [d]one hundred yards away, dragging the net full of fish.
So when they got out on the land, they *saw a charcoal fire already laid and fish placed on
it, and bread. 10 Jesus *said to them, “Bring some of the fish which you have now
caught.” 11 Simon Peter went up and drew the net to land, full of large fish, a hundred and
fifty-three; and although there were so many, the net was not torn.
Jesus *said to them, “Come and have breakfast.” None of the disciples ventured to
question Him, “Who are You?” knowing that it was the Lord.13 Jesus *came and *took the
bread and *gave it to them, and the fish likewise. 14 This is now the third time that
Jesus [e]was manifested to the disciples, after He was raised from the dead.
15 So when they had finished breakfast, Jesus *said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of John,
do you [f]love Me more than these?” He *said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I [g]love
You.” He *said to him, “Tend My lambs.” 16 He *said to him again a second Simon son
of John, do you [h]love Me?” He *said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I [i]love You.”
He *said to him, “Shepherd My sheep.” 17 He *said to him the third time, “Simon, son of
John, do you [j]love Me?” Peter was grieved because He said to him the third time, “Do
you [k]love Me?” And he said to Him, “Lord, You know all things; You know that I [l]love
You.” Jesus *said to him, “Tend My sheep.”
2. Peter couldn’t change the past, but he sure did a good job of changing the future.
3. The real blessing comes from the ability to change the future.
4. When you are serving you see that you are accomplishing things for the Lord—that
helps take away past regrets too.
CONCLUSION
A. Peter preached the church’s first sermon just 50 days after his denial of Jesus.
Forgiveness is not a feeling—it is a decision of the will.
You cannot command a feeling but only an action/behavior.
Feelings are the caboose of the train, but the will is the engine.
When you forgive yourself, in time, you will feel like it.
“Feelings come and feelings go and feelings are deceiving, my warrant is with the word of God none else is worth believing” (Martin Luther).
“Action seems to follow feeling, but really action and feeling go together; and by regulating the action, which is under the more direct control of the will, we can indirectly regulate the feeling, which is not” (William James, psychologist).
“By this we shall know that we are of the truth and reassure our heart before him; for whenever our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and he knows everything. Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence before God” (1 John 3:19-21).
We must trust the fact of our forgiveness over our phantom guilt.
“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because He has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim liberty [release] to the captives
and recovering of sight to the blind,
to set at liberty [freedom] those who are oppressed” (Luke 4:18).
When someone says, “I can’t forgive myself,” they are saying, “even though Jesus
forgives me there is another god above Jesus whose opinion mattes more, ME.”
”But go, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going before you to Galilee” (Mark 16:7a).