The Lord turned and looked straight at Peter. Then Peter remembered the word the Lord had spoken to him. Luke 22:61
The Greek word for “looked straight at” in this verse is emblepo. It literally means “to observe fixedly” or “to discern clearly.” In other words, Jesus gazed upon Peter fully, knowing him through and through. At first this might seem to be a scary thought, Jesus looking right at us and knowing all our faults and missteps. But there is a certain added depth to this verb that can give us comfort. When Jesus looks at Peter and “discerns clearly,” he sees a man who is many things—a disciple, a friend, a husband, a fisherman, but also a sinner. And Jesus in his complete gaze sees it all and in his great love, still has compassion on Peter. He already knew that he would forgive the repentant Peter for his denials of him. He already knew that Peter would become the greatest orator of the story of salvation in Jesus and one of the most widespread sharers of the Gospel message throughout the known world.
When Jesus looks at us, he does so in the same way. He sees our triumphs and our failures, our strengths and our weaknesses, our service to him and our sins. He looks at it all and still loves us, still forgives us, still calls us to spread the Good News for him. As St. Paul reminds us, “Let each of you remain in the condition in which you were called” (1 Corinthians 7:20). Through Christ we can see in ourselves what he holds dear and focus on that.
