Everyone parent and every child knows “the Look.” You know, when the child is fidgeting in church and you turn to them and “look” at them? Or maybe it’s at the dinner table! Everyone is holding hands so you can pray and then two kids start arguing because one is squeezing the hand of the other too hard? They get “the Look” from the parent.

Stop.

Cut. It. Out.

It might look like this:

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Or this:

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When my dad gave me “the Look” or when my husband gave our girls “the Look” they usually stopped what they were doing immediately and settled down. While each of us love our children immensely, sometimes we don’t love their behavior. “The Look” gets them back on track.

In John 18, we read the account of Peter who denies Jesus three times when asked if he was a follower of Jesus. The book of Luke (22:61-62)  records that Jesus “looked straight at Peter” after he refused to admit three times to others that he was a follower of Jesus.

The difference between my parenting look and this look of Jesus was that this was not a gesture of condemnation. Instead, it was one of complete love and of one who knew Peter’s heart. He knew that Peter loved Him deeply, he knew that Peter would deny Him (he had warned him), yet he still loved him.

What struck me again was the difference between Peter’s remorse over his sin and Judas’ actions after he had turned Jesus in. While Judas immediately ran out and hung himself, Peter didn’t. He wept bitterly, but he still came to the place where Jesus was hung on a cross. We know from later chapters and church history that Peter went on to be a great leader and writer in the church.

Why the difference?

Because one had a relationship with Jesus and the other didn’t. Judas hung out with Jesus and looked like he was a disciple of Him, but his heart had never really changed. He was the same sinful Judas, whereas Peter spent the same amount of time with Jesus and had a changed life. Yes, he was loud and impulsive (sounds like me) but little by little, he turned different areas over to the Lordship of his Savior.

We don’t have the privilege of physically walking and talking with Jesus, but we do have the Holy Spirit with us here on earth who guides us as we have a relationship with the entire Trinity.

We have been given God’s very words to read and study so we can learn from people like Judas, Peter, and even Jesus Himself. That’s why we are committed to getting God’s Word in to the hands of the Bibleless people of the world!

Who will you be today? Choose to be a Peter…a follower…a sojourner. Then when you get “the Look” you’ll know it is one full of love, not condemnation, and you too can look forward to the day when you see Jesus face to face.