John 21:15-21. A Final Encouragement – to Shepherd

On October 26th 1963, one month before he died, C.S.Lewis wrote a letter to a little girl which contained these words of encouragement.

“If you continue to love Jesus, nothing much can go wrong with you, and I hope you may always do so.”

How wise these words are. Loving Jesus, living for him is the heart of Christian experience.

In this last section of John’s gospel, Peter, who had recently denied Jesus three times in succession, is commissioned afresh, together with the other disciples, to lead God’s people. The chapter emphasising the need for all Christ’s people to be,

a. Fishermen – that is fishers of men or evangelists

b. Shepherds – or pastors

This summarises the calling of all Christians. It was not just for the apostles or the clergy, it is for all Christians, both then and now.

Jesus’ Great Question

What qualifies people to serve Christ? Surely it is in the questions that Jesus puts three times to Peter,

“Do you love me?” John 21:15,16,17

When Peter assures Jesus of this, three times Jesus replies,

“Feed my sheep.” John 21:15,16,17

There is a subtle variation in the Greek of the words for ‘love’ used by Jesus in both his question and in his commission but now most recent scholars, Bible commentaries and Bible translators think that there is no significant difference in meaning. The Greek should not be translated,

“(Jesus) Do you love me? - (Peter)I care for you.”

Modern translators are therefore reasonable in saying,

“(Jesus( Do you love me? - (Peter) You know that I love you.” John 21:15,16,17

The threefold question surely reminded Peter of his threefold failure in the courtyard of the high priest when he denied that he knew the Lord Jesus.

There is however a variation when Jesus asks this question the first time ,

“Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?” John 21:15

The address, ‘Simon, son of John,’ was only used on one other occasion. This was when Peter was first called to be one of Jesus's disciples. Then Jesus had said,

“You are Simon, son of John, you will be called Cephas (which when translated, is Peter).” John 1:42

They were speaking in Aramaic but John’s gospel was written in Greek.

Jesus is taking Peter back to that day when he was was first called by Jesus to follow him, when he left his boat and left his family in order to spend the rest of his life following Jesus.

The other question is what Jesus meant by the last part of the phrase,

“Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?” John 21:15

This is probably another response to the proud boast that Peter had made in the upper room.

“Even if all fall away on account of you, I never will.” Matthew 26:33

This claim that Peter loved Jesus more than the other disciples must be questioned and rebuked by Jesus. Jesus is now asking,

“Peter do you really love me more than the other disciples?”

This was a humbling beginning to the conversation.

“Do you love me?”

Although very simple, this is a very searching question, both for Peter and for us. We may know a lot about the Bible, be very busy in church work, give much and even talk much about Jesus. We may make a big show of our religion, but still lack a deep love for the Lord Jesus. Belief in Jesus means a love for Jesus and without this love, this deep-seated commitment to him, there can be no vitality about our faith. We are no better than ‘painted statues or stuffed animals in a museum’ or, as Paul puts it in 1 Corinthians 13:1, ‘a resounding gong or a clanging symbol.’ Such people are those who claim to be Christians but have no love either for Christ or for other Christians. The great bishop, J.C.Ryle wrote,

“Knowledge, orthodoxy, correct views, regular use of forms, a respectable moral life – all please do not make up a true Christian. There must be some personal feelings towards Christ.”1

Feelings by themselves may be here today and gone tomorrow, but if genuine and based on facts they will result in a determination to live a changed life. However an entire absence of feeling for Christ is an ominous symptom. A love for Christ must overflow into what we think, say and do. A Christian has the Lord Jesus at the centre of their life. Paul wrote,

“And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.” Colossians 3:17

Peter’s Great Answer

Three times Peter replies,

“You know that I love you.”

On the third occasion Peter was really hurt. He probably felt as if Jesus was doubting him. But surely Jesus knew exactly what he was doing – he was pricking Peter’s conscience and teaching him a solemn lesson. If it was painful for Peter to be questioned like this, how much more painful was it for Jesus to have be denied by Jesus. Surely this answer of Peter’s is one that all true Christians can say, to Jesus

“You know that I love you.”

We may be weak, fearful, ignorant, unstable and fail in so many ways, but at least we are sincere in our love for Jesus. We do love him.

What is the secret of loving Jesus? It starts with a realisation of how God sees us, what we are really like. Only then can we see how much God loves us and is calling us to turn away from our independence and become his people – that is repentance.

Surely Jesus knew that, in spite of Peter’s foolish self importance, he did love him.

“Lord, you know all things. . . ” John 21:17

Of course Jesus knew that Peter loved him. He knows the state of the heart of all of us that are reading this article. We don't really know the true state of our hearts; so often our thinking is blown around by our feelings, but the Lord does know all about us

Note that Jesus does not deny that Peter loves him.

Matthew Henry's Bible commentaries (started in 1706) are treasured by many of us, but surely he has missed the point here. He suggested Jesus meant,

“Peter, I've come to suspect your love, for if you loved me, you would not have been ashamed or afraid to confess me.”

Is there a better way to understand what is going on in this dialogue? Jesus knew of Peter’s love for him, but he also recognised his weaknesses. Though we are weak and frail, though we fall away and deny Jesus, he knows that, deep down, we love him.

Consider Sarah, the daughter of a lovely Christian family. In a Scripture lesson at school the class all had their Bibles out. Sarah’s Bible was covered on the outside with stickers such as ‘Jesus loves me’, that many children love. There was a short break in the lesson and both the teacher and Sarah left the classroom. When Sarah returned she found her classmates mocking her Bible and laughing.

“I bet that’s Sarah's Bible,” one girl said.

The mocking got to Sarah and she blurted out,

“No, that’s not mine.”

When Sarah went home she felt wretched. There were floods of tears, she was inconsolable. She'd been quite off-balance and denied her love for her Lord and Master - just like Peter. This didn't mean that she didn't love Jesus. No, the tears meant she did love him.

Their problem was not a lack of love, but the lack of self control.

There are some modern Christian songs that express a devotion to Jesus in very exaggerated terms. Examples are, “I will forever stand . . .” or “I surrender all.” Some of these make me cringe. Do we all really mean them when we sing such songs or are they just words? Some old hymns are much wiser. William Cooper was a depressive but he wrote glorious hymns that are so real, such as,

“Lord, it is my chief complaint, that my love is weak and faint.

Yet I love you and adore.

O for grace to love you more . . .”

That is true Christian realism. The Scottish preacher Andrew Murray said,

“Just as water ever seeks and fills the lowest place, so the moment God finds you abased and empty, His glory and power flow in.”

So Peter is humbled but only to be privileged.

Peter’s Great Privilege

Peter was told three times,

“Feed my sheep.”

So Peter was commissioned, in spite of his failure, to care for the Lord’s most precious possession -his people. The Lord Jesus was soon to depart this world, into whose hands will he pass on this responsibility? He chose to use members of his church, weak people.

A senior clergyman said at the clergy conference,

“You must never talk about your church as your people. They are not your people, but Christ's people.”

Notice what Jesus said,

“Feed my sheep.”

He could have given this responsibility to others, perhaps angels, they might be more efficient, but he has chosen to give this responsibility to Peter, as a representative of fallen Christians. This is an awesome, breathtaking privilege that God has given to us. Most of us who are active for Christ have, at some stage and in some way, been deeply humbled. That is how he fits us for the tasks of fishing (evangelism) and shepherding (pastoring).

If we are to persevere in these tasks for the rest of our lives, only a love for the Lord Jesus will suffice. People will be ungrateful, say unkind things about us, misunderstanding us; it is only a love for Jesus that will keep us strong. Calvin, the great reformer in Geneva, said in his commentary on John 21,

“Simon, son of John, do you love me?” By these words Christ means that no man can faithfully serve the church, and employ himself in feeding the flock, if he does not look higher than to men. The office of feeding is, in itself, laborious and troublesome, since nothing is more difficult than to keep men under the yoke of God - among whom there are many who are weak, others who are wanton and unsteady, others who are dull and sluggish, and others who are slow and unteachable. In addition to this, we must take into account the ingratitude of many, and other causes of disgust. No man will steadily persevere in the discharge of this office unless the love of Christ shall reign in his heart in such a manner, that, forgetful of himself and devoting himself entirely to Christ, he overcomes every obstacle.”

Let us apply this lesson to three kinds of people,

1. The humble Christian

He is conscious of failure and may be on the brink of despair. Peter is in this group but Jesus knows of his love for him, that he was spiritually willing - but his flesh was weak. Be reassured, if God is humbling you through your experiences and failures, it is because he is willing to, and intends to, lift you up. The psalmist understood this,

“If you Lord, kept a record of sins, Lord, who can stand? But with you there is forgiveness, so that we can, with reverence, serve you.” Psalm 130:3-4

A child falls over into a puddle of muddy water. He can just sit there, cry and bemoan his fate or alternatively get up, go to his parent, get sorted out and press on. To get up and get on is what Christ wants us all to do.

2. The young, gifted, ambitious Christian.

These people can be a great encouragement but there are potential pitfalls. They mustn't think too highly of themselves, they mustn't compare themselves with others, there must be no boasting, there must be no sense of spiritual superiority, no nonsense that they deserve the privileges that God is giving them.

“So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don't fall.” 1 Corinthians 10:12

3. All ordinary Christians.

These are those who are seeking to serve Jesus according to their gifts and abilities. How important it is to make love for the Lord my constant priority. Remember what happened to the church in Ephesus? They were hard-working and doctrinally sound, but God said about them,

“Yet I hold this against you: ‘You have forsaken your first love. Remember the height from which you have fallen. Repent and do the things you did it first.” Revelation 2:4-5

We are each called to consider what is blocking out our love for Jesus. Is it pride or some other sin? Whatever it is, we must repent and turn back to Christ for forgiveness. Then, on the positive side we have to restart doing those things that foster our love for Jesus, we need to think of how best we can serve him.

The world will always be hostile, it will mock us, it will condemn us, it will do everything to try to stamp out our enthusiasm and zeal. The world says, “Is it really worth it?” The world tempts us saying, “You'll have more fun doing other things. You're missing out, spending your time and money on pleasing your Jesus!” In contrast the Bible says to us,

“Therefore I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God.” Romans 12:1

“Never be lacking in zeal, but keep spiritual fervour, serving the Lord. Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.” Romans 12:11

We Christians love the Lord Jesus, “because he first loved us” (1 John 4:19-21)

“Lord, you know everything, you know that I love you.” John 21:17

Jesus said to Peter, ‘Follow me’. Don't look to other Christians, just be concerned about yourself. Jesus says to each of us,

“You! (Greek)must follow me.” John 21:22

BVP

1 https://img.sermonindex.net/modules/articles/article_pdf.php?aid=32790