Before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice

 

Before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice

 

(Matthew 26:69-75)Now Peter sat without in the palace: and a damsel came unto him, saying, Thou also wast with Jesus of Galilee.  But he denied before them all, saying, I know not what thou sayest.  And when he was gone out into the porch, another maid saw him, and said unto them that were there, This fellow was also with Jesus of Nazareth.  And again he denied with an oath, I do not know the man. And after a while came unto him they that stood by, and said to Peter, Surely thou also art one of them; for thy speech bewrayeth thee.  Then began he to curse and to swear, saying, I know not the man. And immediately the cock crew.  And Peter remembered the word of Jesus, which said unto him, Before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice. And he went out, and wept bitterly.

Faith is different from the faith that arises within me and the faith that God gives. The faith built up by humans is the same as building a house on sand. Even though the disciples experienced tremendous miracles and experiences for three years, it is the faith that all run away from the cross. Even though Peter had the faith to risk his life walking out of the boat and walking on the water, Jesus said, "Before the rooster crows, you will deny me three times." You can experience miracles in the belief that you can risk your life as circumstances change. But the Lord says that the faith that leads to salvation is not such a faith.

Regarding being born again, Jesus said, "You must be born again with water and the Holy Spirit." Those who are not born again are nothing more than believing in themselves like Peter. Humans never change unless they are reborn with water and the Holy Spirit, because they are the old man who is a physical being. Regenerate faith is faith that is united with Jesus, who is crucified and dies. Faith in unity with Jesus, who is crucified, means that the inner person dies together. The old man must die, because he came from Satan's temptations.

There is no way to die except in Genesis 3:15. "And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel. Here, Satan's head is broken by the death of Jesus. So, the old man must also die on the cross. The head of the idol of greed within me is broken.

If you don't realize the meaning of dying, you don't even know the meaning of being born again. Most church people view being born again as a change of mind. That is why they do not understand the relationship between the old man's death and regeneration. Trusting in yourself (the old man) is ultimately trusting in Satan, and you will be the one who wants to kill Jesus. If God doesn't shed light, you don't realize. Others say they believe in Jesus well, but unless the old man dies, he is only a follower of Satan and a man who tries to kill Jesus. Others may be told that Jesus is the Lord and lives for Jesus, but if he is not born again, he will eventually live for himself. This is what has the effect of being against God.

In Romans 1:17, ``For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith. 』You will be saved only if you are born again from the faith I believe and come to the faith that God gives. Only when we are born again can we obtain the righteousness of God. To be born again, the old man in the depths of the flesh must die. So the Bible keeps telling us to repent. If you don't know the meaning of repentance and think that you are confessing your sins, you are not born again. Repentance is a life of self-denial. Repentance is the death of the old man. If you repent, heaven will come to those who repent.

Repentance begins with the realization that "I cannot follow the Lord." So, it is a being that must die. If you don't realize your identity, your religious life will be nothing more than a religious act. If we don't realize our identity, we haven't even started repentance. In Luke 22:31-32, 『And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat: But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren. It is that Satan is legally claiming Peter. The Lord prayed that Peter's faith would not fall, but it fell. So, they say that if you don't turn back, everyone falls out of faith. Peter, after following Jesus for three years, says, "Return." What to turn around?

If the Lord tells millions of people in the church today, "Return", you might say "What is it to change? The word ``convert'' means being converted: (epistropher: translated as conversion). Jesus is telling his disciples that if they do not turn away, they will all run away from the cross. Peter said energetically, "Never deny Jesus." Jesus said, "Return," but Peter is confident. The result was a run before the cross. Peter's result was a run away from the cross. Everyone in the church can give their lives to the living Lord, but can they give their lives to Jesus who died on the cross? Few people hold onto the dead Jesus Christ, who is forsaken by the people and cannot answer no matter how much they call. The kind who holds up Jesus who died on the cross is the one who realizes that Jesus' death died because of the evil within him. That's why I confess that I am the wicked, too, dead.