When The Chickens Come Home To Roost

When The Chickens Come Home To Roost

A Sermon by Roosevelt Wright, Jr.

For the Tabernacle Baptist Church

Monroe, La.

November 2005

SCRIPTURE: And the Lord turned, and looked upon Peter. And Peter remembered the

word of the Lord, how he had said unto him, Before the cock crow, thou shalt

deny me thrice. Luke 22:61

Introduction

What happens when our past comes back to haunt us? Has it ever happened to you? It’s when a chapter in your life that was once closed is suddenly reopened or revisited. It’s when you stare at the results of a failed experience returned before your eyes. In happens in all areas of life. It’s that moment when you look at the bad habits of one of your children and realize that you are looking at yourself at the same age. It is very frustrating when we see it unfold in front of our eyes.

In 1963 after the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, most of white America became angry with Black Muslim leader Malcolm X when he made a disturbing analogy. Malcolm said that America operates with a double standard. Abroad, it opposes governments that do not support freedom for all citizens; then denies freedoms to its own. In addition, he said, the nation attempts to assassinate and remove leaders of opposing nations through the covert actions of the CIA and other secret government organizations. He said the assassination of John F. Kennedy was a case of “When the chickens come home to roost.”

The phrase, “When the chickens come home to roost” is a colloquialism that refers to the tendency of chickens on a farm to roam freely. In the day, they are often seen under the house or pecking long distances from the coop. However, when the sun begins to set, without fail, chickens will always come back home to perch themselves on the roosts.

In America today we are living in difficult times, caused partially by the errors and mistakes of our national past. The chickens have come home to roost.

We have promoted violence and explicit sex in the media, even to the point that daytime soaps and cartoons are now filled with violent and irreverent material. The results are before us. We have a violent society that takes murder and violence lightly and expects every good movie to have at least one hot sex scene. The chickens have come home to roost.

In the 1960’s we began a “War on Poverty” that was supposed to eliminate poverty in America. Decades later, we see a subclass developed before us. This subclass has become dependent upon public assistance, food allotments, free lunch, subsidized rent and other acts of charities. Before us today is a generation of which a growing number is trapped in an endless cycle that is destroying our families and the moral fiber of our communities. The chickens have come home to roost.

We have removed God from our schools and public places. Prayer at athletic events, assemblies or in classrooms has been abolished. In many areas, Christ has been removed from Christmas, substituted with an X or a mere “Happy Holidays.” Now, we see a nation that has less respect for God and no fear of him. It is a nation that is gradually degenerating. The chickens have come to roost.

Even in the church, the chickens have come home to roost. There are many who are looking at the results many years of neglect and spiritual decay before. Churches that allowed their men’s programs to die are now frustrated with the scarcity of males in the fellowship. Churches that have treated their teaching ministries lightly have fallen prey to “Praise, Worship, and Prosperity” cults that have outgrown the body of Christ. The chickens have come home to roost.

As Christians, we know that whatever we do today, will meet us again in a few years. We should do our best to lift Christ up before this present generation. When we fail to do what we should do with enthusiasm and power, we deny him to a world of unbelievers. That denial will come back to haunt us one day, “when the chickens come home to roost.”

Exposition

This text focuses on Jesus as he tells Peter that he would deny him instead

of standing with him.

Jesus was on trial and being falsely accused. On the outside, while Jesus was

being tried on the inside, Peter waited to hear the result. As people recognized

him as a disciple of Christ Peter became afraid and began to deny knowing

Christ. After his third denial, he heard the cockcrow. Then he remembered what

Christ had told him earlier, that before the cock crowed he would deny him three

times.

Peter was one of Christ’s elect leaders. There were 12 disciples selected out