Hello, my ‘Walking with Jesus” friends on this Friday,
I’m sure you’ve had a conversation with someone when you felt their response to you was shallow and insincere. Remember how that made you feel? If the subject you were talking about was significant, you probably pressed in with more questions or a different tone, right? That’s what Jesus was doing with Peter as they shared a shoreline breakfast together.
Why? Because Peter desperately needed several things that maybe you and I need today, and only Jesus can give those things, both to Peter and to us!
First… Peter needed to know if Jesus had given up on him?
Could there still be a place at the table with the other disciples, even though Peter had denied Jesus three times? Peter felt like a failure and wondered if Jesus would consider giving him another chance? Have you ever felt that way? Do you know that with Jesus there is ALWAYS a second chance if our hearts are genuine.
Second… Peter was a married man with family obligations, and he needed to make some practical, financial decisions about his future.
Fishing was familiar to him and very likely Peter could make a reasonable living on the Sea of Galilee. But what had these past many months with Jesus been all about and what was Peter’s future? Fishing or something else? Peter had a wife to care for!
Third… Peter had been viewed by most of the other disciples as a leader in the group, but Peter wondered if he could ever regain their leadership trust after his failure of crumbling at the question of a young servant girl and denying Jesus!
Surely, they would face much stronger opposition in the future. Could Peter ever be trusted to lead again?
Yesterday, we watched as Jesus asked Peter a gut wrenching but essential question: “Simon, do you love Me more than these”? Peter had answered with a shallow response of ‘friendship’ and a total disregard of the comparison part of the question. (John 21:15) Breakfast and early morning conversation continued with resurrected Jesus and these seven disciples. We have no record of what they talked about.
Then Jesus turned a second time to Peter and looking straight into Peter’s eyes asked the same question, but in a different way: “Simon, son of John, do you love Me?” (John 21:16) No comparison this time, just a straightforward question calling for a straightforward answer. Once again, the word Jesus used for love was ‘agape’, the type of love Jesus said HE had shown them in their months together and especially in His suffering on that Passover weekend.
Once again Peter hesitated. Peter knew how fickle his heart was. Bold and brash one moment, fearful and intimidated the next. Peter sure didn’t want to fall into that trap again of making a promise he couldn’t keep, so his answer, again, was one of shallow friendship. Again, Jesus urged Peter to “take care of My sheep.”
I wonder if Peter looked at John and thought about the fact that Jesus had entrusted care of His mother to John at the cross. We presume John was doing a great job of watching over Mary and both caring for and protecting her as she needed him. Could Peter have been entrusted with the care of Jesus’ mother if he had been standing at the cross? I think Peter did lots of soul searching at the breakfast that morning and probably made some important character-building decisions.
Finally, Jesus looked for a third time directly at Peter and this time asked: “Simon, son of John, do you love Me?” This time Jesus used the same friendship word Peter had twice used. The implications were obvious. Jesus lowered the expectation to meet the level of commitment Peter seemed willing to make in their relationship. Oh my, how that hurt Peter.
Then Jesus gave Peter a glimpse into his future indicating that when Peter was young, he enjoyed his freedom of doing anything, saying anything, even going anywhere he wanted. But Jesus could see Peter’s old age so Jesus said: “…but when you are old you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go.” (John 21:18) Pause.
As you and I grow old, my friends, will that be us one day? Unable to make our own decisions or care for ourselves? Will we need others to meet even our most basic daily, personal needs? With what attitudes are we aging, my friends?
John again gives us a brief commentary in vs. 19 that “Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God.” (John 21:19) By the end of this conversation on the beach that day, and especially when Peter watched Jesus ascend back to heaven from the mount of Olives (Acts 1:9-11) and then when then Holy Spirit came upon Peter, (Acts 2) he became a different man…one of the great leaders of the Jesus movement in the first century.
And then Jesus said something amazing to Peter: “Follow Me!” What? Was Jesus inviting Peter back into that close disciple/master relationship? Yes! Was Jesus calling Peter to step away from the other six disciples because Jesus had some leadership development things to say to Peter?
YES! Was Jesus inviting Peter, just as Jesus had done on this very same beach many months before, to TRUST Jesus with the rest of His life and follow Jesus into everything Jesus wanted to accomplish IN and Through Peter? Oh YES! And tomorrow we’ll walk with them down that beach listening to what Jesus said to restore Peter.
Let’s pause here friends and I urge you to honestly look at your soul… your mind and your heart, asking yourself to search for accurate words which describe the truthfulness of the relationship you have with Jesus. Words which describe honestly the place Jesus has in the priorities of your life. And also… words which describe the relationship you believe Jesus would like to have with you?
Finally, what relationship would you like to have with Jesus when you are old and dependent upon others? How long of a journey is it from where you are today to those future days and what would Jesus like to do in nurturing the relationship you have with HIM? What will it require from you and me to find that ‘vine & branches’ relationship we need (John 15:5-8) and nurture it so we can stand strong and fearless in the face of these challenging days as we grow older.
The ‘lessons learned’ summary notes are at the link below, as is a wonderful worship song and I’ll meet you here on the beach at breakfast tomorrow.
Today’s Scripture: John 21:16-19.
Choose below to read or listen.
 |  |
Bible images provided with attribution to www.LumoProject.com.
Have a comment or question about today’s chapter? I’m ready to hear from you, contact me here.
Pastor Doug Anderson
“Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, with our eyes fixed on Jesus…” (Heb. 12:1,2)
Archived back issues of “Walking with Jesus” and other resources are available by clicking here to open our ‘home page’ (or go to HOME at upper right of this page).
Share with friends. Subscribe below for daily “Walking with Jesus”.